5
Hoyt’spowerful legs filled Marley’s vision and she took a big gulp of air. Why had she thought it was a good idea to relate her friend’s story, even indirectly, to a man who was going through a similar experience?
She couldn’t blame him if he cursed her right now—she actually wished he would. If the raw, acid-like pain blazing from Hoyt’s blue eyes gave any indication of what he thought about her, she’d be better off crawling under the nearest rock and never coming out, living with the snakes and insects where she belonged.
Hoyt cleared his throat, the sound as rough as the man. “Sorry to hear about your friend.”
Marley rocked back on her heels. Stammering out, “I-I-I didn’t mean to bring up any bad memories. It’s just that . . .”Shut up before you say something even stupider.
Hoyt’s entire face twisted in a grimace—no, wait—was that a smile? “It’s okay, my fiancée tells me it helps to talk about it, so don’t worry. I know what I look like, but I don’t bite.”
He’d just cracked a joke about his torture. Wow. His strength amazed her. Her friend had caved to the pressure and pain, yet here stood a clearly scarred man willing to poke fun at his scars, “You don’t look like you would bite.”
“I think I’m going to like you, Mitchell.” And with that, Hoyt turned to Mack. “There are two mountains to the north, and it looks like the land dips to a lower elevation just past them and off to the west. Give me a map.”
Marley did her best to squeeze into the smallest size she could make herself. She’d much rather have Hoyt on her side than against her, and for that much she could be glad. But the killer look Mack had shot her before turning to his men clearly stated he knew exactly what she’d been thinking. Then again, Marley was beginning to realize Mack always looked angry about something. Maybe that was just a permanent expression for him—resting asshole face.
Geez, as soon as she found her copilot, she would kill him. If this hadn’t happened, she’d probably be on the phone with her baby girl right now, talking about her flight, because Maddie always liked to hear details. Her father said Marley had been the exact same way at Maddie’s age. Inquisitive to a fault.
Her phone.She’d forgotten about putting it in her pocket! Marley quietly dug the cell from her pocket, hands shaking. If she could get a call out they’d be safe.
She tapped the power button and nothing happened. She tried again, and again. The screen bleeped green and then went black. After one more attempt, the phone wouldn’t turn on. With a frustrated sigh, she dropped her dead phone into her pocket.
“I think we can make it to Boga within twenty-four hours if we move now,” Hoyt said. The team was studying a large topographical map they’d spread out on the ground.
Marley scooted closer, wanting to hear exactly what kind of decisions they were making. She studied the terrain of the jungle, tracking where her flight path was supposed to have brought them. Boga was close to the border of Uganda, but she hadn’t heard of any military outposts anywhere near that town.
The Congo River cut across most of Africa, filled with predators above and below the water. Most of the country was straight-up tropical jungle, filled with mountains and deadly cliffs and drop offs, and home to dangerous animals like the snake Marley had come face-to-face with after their initial drop.
Her entire body shivered uncontrollably at the thought that she had nearly become lunch. She had no intention of ending up in the belly of any creature in this godforsaken jungle. She would do what it took to survive and get home to her little girl. It would become her mantra.
“You stay close to me like before. Keep your head down, your gun ready.” Mack’s harsh voice ripped her out of her thoughts and Marley nodded instinctively in agreement.
No matter how much he got on her nerves and no matter how much her body’s reaction to him got on her nerves, this man and his team were her best hope for getting home to her daughter. “Okay.”
“Ranger, you and Hunter did missions here before. Do you remember anything about the locals that we should know?” Mack asked.
Ranger pointed to an area north of them. “You’ve got your Mai Mai controlling the territory up there. To the east are the Ugandans. Both of them are pretty bad ass, and they have a solid policy of kill first, ask later, especially when it comes to anyone who looks like an outsider. There were a couple of French and British mining operations that took out entire villages before anyone found out about it, so they could have all the rights to the area. Those companies got filthy rich and managed to kill off a few hundred locals before anyone wised up to what they were doing and tried to stop it. Needless to say, both tribes have a reason to kill anyone who doesn’t belong on sight.”
Hunter picked up where his brother left off. “It would be better for everyone involved if we just avoid detection completely. I don’t think they would appreciate anyone like us being in their territory.”
Mack pointed to a spot on the map further east along the Aruwimi River. “Sounds like we’re going west then. We’ll try to avoid contact if at all possible. But if it proves unavoidable, take them out as silently as possible and move on. If we get separated, we’ll meet up here.”
The man they called Reaper unfolded himself from his position sitting on the ground, coming to his full towering height. Marley guessed that he had to be somewhere close to seven feet. “I’m not going anywhere until we find out from her exactly what happened in the cockpit.”
Marley faltered, the soullessness of his gaze covering her in dread-filled chills. This man killed without hesitation, she could sense it, and he could do it to her before she took her next breath. Marley felt as if the world around her were shrinking, descending on her shoulders and pressing her down into the earth.
Mack stepped in front of her, crossing his arms over his chest and causing the muscles in his shoulders to ripple. “I’ll be the one who questions her. Not you.”
Underneath that veneer of rough command was a threat of protection, and Marley found herself leaning in closer to the shield that his back offered her.
“Everyone here knows the depths of Mankel’s treachery,” Reaper said gruffly. “His schemes have more layers than an onion. Don’t act shocked that I would question her involvement.”
Mack took a step toward the big man, and Marley had to fight the urge to tag along behind him.
Reaper dwarfed Mack, but the colonel didn’t seem to mind in the least. He got up toe-to-toe with the soldier. “You’re under just as much suspicion as she is. In fact, more so. Mankel could very easily have planted you and used Merc’s past to get you in. I don’t trust you. Not yet.”
Merc edged in closer to the pair. “Commander, I think—”
