Luciana bit her lip, looking resigned.“If I come with you to Hawaii, I’ll figure something else out,” she finally said, her voice trembling.“I can’t impose on Avery and you like that, but I’ll make it work somehow.I always do,” she added softly.
Harrison looked at her again, something in his chest clenching.Her dark hair fell around her face, shielding her expression, but as she glanced at him—those eyes.His heart stuttered.Those eyes were what slayed him.
The next words were tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop them.“You’ll stay with me.”
Chapter 12
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LUCIANA BLINKED INsurprise, staring at Commander Madden.His jaw was set, his face rigid, but he looked almost as surprised by his sudden offer as she was.“What?I couldn’t possibly impose on you like that.”
Ryan was gaping at him like he’d grown two heads, and even the other two men in the back of the Humvee with them looked on in confusion.Commander Madden ignored the stares from his men, keeping his focus solely on her.“I’ve got the space.I have a home in Oahu that’s quiet and off the beaten path.You’d be safe there,” he assured her.“I just meant that I wouldn’t be bothered.Avery’s working again, but her schedule is such that she could check in on you when I’m busy on base.You’d have time to heal and recover, then do what you choose with your life.”
“But you’re saying it might not ever be safe to return to Panama,” she pointed out.
His jaw ticked.“Probably not.But you could remain in the United States or find somewhere the cartel’s clutches don’t reach.You’re from Colombia.”It wasn’t a question.
“Si,” she replied.“But I’m estranged from my relatives and haven’t seen my family in years.I couldn’t return there either.Not happily, at any rate.”A memory of the nightclub flashed through her mind, and she quickly brushed it aside, unwilling to consider what it meant that one of her father’s employees was there.She’d have plenty of time to worry about that later.Now, her only priority had to be her immediate future.
“What was that thought?”Commander Madden asked, missing nothing.
“I thought I recognized someone at the nightclub,” she told him.“I’ll explain it more later,” she added, glancing out the window as they finally approached the airfield.It was well-lit and staffed despite the late hour.There was a U.S.military plane waiting on the runway, no one seeming surprised by this but her.
Of course they’d flown here.It boggled her mind that a U.S.Navy SEAL team from Hawaii had flown in just to rescue her.Surely, they had teams stationed in the continental U.S.
But Avery’s Ryan was in Hawaii.All of these men were here because of Luciana’s connection to her.
A small sigh of relief escaped her lips as they drove into the military base.She was exhausted, and growing more tired by the moment.Just thinking about the specifics of everything was overwhelming.She was safe here in the Humvee with Avery’s boyfriend and his teammates.Safe with Commander Madden.All the adrenaline from her escape earlier was wearing off, however, and right now, she simply wanted to sleep for hours and hours.Days.Luciana hadn’t felt a moment of security in the past month, and she knew the only reason she did now was because of the U.S.military men surrounding her.
“That’s our ride,” Harrison told her, nodding toward the plane.
“I figured that was the case, but how will I be able to enter Hawaii?I know you’re on a military plane and probably not landing at a regular airport, but even so....”
“I’ve got a friend in Panama City who works for The State Department,” Commander Madden explained.“He was able to facilitate things, and we already have a passport and the necessary papers ready.We can evacuate you from Panama City and bring you with us to Hawaii.I can’t offer to fly you CONUS, given we’re returning to Oahu, but we figured you’d want to spend some time with Avery and decompress before you figure out your next steps.”
Luciana gaped at him.He’d clearly thought this through and had already arranged for it to happen.Maybe she should be annoyed, but right now, she simply felt relieved.Luciana didn’t know where else to go, and fleeing from the cartel seemed the logical thing to do, at least until she was certain they weren’t looking for her anymore.It was possible she’d be forgotten after a while, and they’d stop their search.She could identify several of the members though, which might pose problems.She’d have to continue her work as a nurse somewhere else in Central America.Despite the needs of the migrants, she wasn’t sure she could work near the Darien Gap.She’d never feel safe there again.
