“Si,” she said compliantly.“Come to the back with us.”
They continued dancing for a moment, Luciana’s captor leaning in and murmuring quietly into the woman’s ear.
The trio of new men stood there on the dance floor, looking somewhat out of place before they began to spread out, mingling with the crowd.Luciana watched them in confusion and then briefly locked eyes with one of the strange men, blinking in shock as recognition dawned.
He was older than when she’d last seen him, different thanks to the years that had passed, but she’d know that face anywhere.He’d been one of her father’s men.
Chapter 6
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ACHILL COURSED THROUGHHarrison late that afternoon as he reviewed the documents he’d discovered.Luciana’s family ties had been difficult to dig into.Surprisingly so.He’d previously gotten the names and background information on most of her relatives, but there’d been little about her father, Juan Rodriguez, or how he’d amassed his vast fortune.Harrison had found it somewhat surprising that a woman in Luciana’s position would be cast out on her own as a teenager.The wealthy family was clearly protective of their secrets, but they weren’t hidden away, living as recluses.They were established in the community, and Luciana’s absence had been explained away as her wanting nothing to do with them.
Had she defied her family in some way?Left of her own free will or been forced out because of some disagreement?He didn’t have answers to any of those questions, but he could ascertain from what little he knew that Luciana was being treated differently than the other women held captive by the Gulf Clan.
Very differently.
She hadn’t been immediately sold like Avery or the other women who’d been kidnapped.Luciana was still directly in the cartel’s clutches.The fact that she’d been sighted in public at all was somewhat of a shock.Normally, the women who’d been trafficked by the Gulf Clan were quickly sold and sent away.Permanently.The mystery about her father’s fortune had made Harrison question if her treatment was somehow tied to him.
And after hours of digging...jackpot.
Clicking on the dossier he’d compiled on Juan Rodriguez, Harrison scanned over the contents.The man had a large family compound in Colombia, with a number of household staff and workers that lived on the property.Although everything appeared to be on the up-and-up, Harrison had discovered that Juan was involved in the real estate business, buying properties under a shadow company that he’d carefully hidden his ties to.The purchase and subsequent sale of properties throughout Central and South America was excessive.He’d covered his tracks well, carefully hiding his involvement.No one made that much money from real estate, however, without ties to one of the cartels in the area.
Juan Rodriguez had likely remained in his family compound without drawing too much attention to himself by using hush money or some other dirty deal he’d made with the cartel leaders.The real estate business Juan was involved in went deeper than mere property transactions.Harrison was sure of it.
The fact that he’d uncovered the shadow company at all felt like a damn miracle.Harrison was scouring sources himself, not relying on a roomful of analysts.There was no doubt more to uncover, and he was out of time.Luciana was likely being held for a reason—either to draw her father out into the open, get him to pay off the Gulf Cartel, or for some purpose Harrison had yet to discover.Juan Rodriguez might very well have something the cartel wanted—and they had his only daughter.
Harrison opened the encrypted message from Jack, reviewing the addresses he’d sent over.He could’ve found the locations using other means, but Harrison was thankful his old friend happened to be in the right place at the right time.He typed in the first address, and satellite imagery and maps appeared on his screen.Not surprisingly, the home was secluded and on an expansive property, fenced in, and likely guarded.There were two more addresses as well, both known by the locals to be owned by Santiago Garcia, head of the Gulf Clan.
If Harrison could narrow down where specifically Luciana was being held, it would save a hell of a lot of time.Searching multiple properties would slow down the SEAL team, and if they were discovered on one of the properties and the cartel sounded the alarm, Luciana could be moved or killed before they got to her.
He pulled up the other addresses, then accessed a database to review the most recent satellite imagery.Any changes in the number of vehicles on the property, patterns, or other movement could give him the sway he needed to head to one location over the other.
“Where are you, Luciana?”he murmured.
One home seemed to be frequented more than the rest, judging by the vehicles coming and going.That didn’t specifically mean Santiago Garcia was there, however, or Luciana.If his men needed to search every property, then that’s damn well what they’d do.
