Chapter 4
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“COMMANDER MADDEN, IT’Sgood to hear from you,” Harrison’s longtime friend, Jack Mathers, said over the phone.Currently on TDY in Panama, Jack had been keeping his ear to the ground for any word on the missing nurse.As an analyst with the State Department, Mathers had access to multiple sources in Panama City.
“It was good to hear from you, too, Jack,” Harrison replied.“Although that was damn early Hawaiian time.How are things in Central America?”
“Different than Boston,” Jack said, and Harrison could practically see him smirking.
“Ain’t that the truth,” Harrison replied.“Miss shoveling a couple feet of snow?”
“Just about as much as you do,” Jack laughed.
Harrison’s lips quirked.“I love a good New England winter, but no.I’ve been on the West Coast and now in the middle of the Pacific Ocean for too long to ever suffer through those brutal storms again.”
“I hear ya,” Jack said.“Unlike you, however, I eventually have to go back.”
“There’s always a job for you here in Hawaii,” Harrison said.“There are plenty of contractors around with us Navy guys.You could retire from State and switch to the contracting world.”
“So I hear,” Jack said.“I’ll keep that in mind in case I’m ever ready for something new.”He cleared his throat.“I’m assuming you’re calling about the intelligence I shared with you overnight, however, not simply to catch up with an old friend.”
“You’ve got that right,” Harrison told him.“What else do we know about the situation?”
“Two local teenage girls have gone missing,” Jack told him.
“What?”
“Luciana was spotted two nights in a row on the outskirts of the city.The second night, two teenagers in the same area disappeared.They were out for the evening but never returned home.Their parents reported their disappearance to local authorities.It’s possible that’s what prompted the informant to come forward in the first place.Luciana’s appearance outside the city might otherwise have gone unnoticed or been deemed unimportant were it not for the missing girls.”
“Damn it,” Harrison seethed, clenching his fist.He had no doubt the cartel members had kidnapped those teenagers, just as they’d kidnapped Avery and Luciana.“That could complicate matters.More eyes will be on the cartel now.”
“Maybe, maybe not.The shitty thing is, many of the girls who are taken are sold off to buyers almost immediately.”
“The locals know the girls are long gone,” Harrison assessed.
Jack’s voice was grim.“Spot on.There’s a lot of police activity this morning as the authorities and families search for the teenagers, but I doubt it will last very long.It’s assumed that the teenagers were taken by the cartel, and there’s little chance the police will ever be able to get them back.Frankly, I’m shocked Luciana is still in the area.”
“Me too,” Harrison admitted.“I don’t know what to make of it.When the other nurse, Avery Nielsen, was kidnapped, she was sold to a buyer almost immediately and found in his home.”
“Sick bastard,” Jack ground out.
“Agreed.And while my team rescued her in time, before she was harmed, Luciana was nowhere to be found.The women were separated right after they were kidnapped, and Luciana practically vanished without a trace.There’s been no sign of her until now.”
“You feel guilty,” Jack assessed.“Don’t deny it.I’ve known you since we were kids.You can’t be everyone’s savior.”
Harrison muttered a curse.“Maybe not, but I can damn well save her.Send me the teenagers’ info, too,” he said, clenching his fist.“If they’re being held with Luciana, then that makes their potential rescue easier.”
“They’re probably in the hands of the buyers by now,” Jack said, the anger in his voice only thinly veiled.“The cartel sells women.They’re nothing more than a product to them.A commodity.Most of their victims are in and out within twenty-four hours.If they think Luciana’s been seen, however, it’s possible they may attempt to move her to a new location or rid themselves of her entirely.”
“Understood,” Harrison said, his jaw ticking.“Time is of the essence.I know that as well as anyone.”
“Why the focus on her?”Jack asked, his voice quiet.“Plenty of women are trafficked, Harrison.She’s not an American, which makes matters harder for you in staging a rescue.We can’t save everyone.”
A beat passed.“We can’t, but she reminds me of someone I knew long ago,” Harrison admitted.“Someone I couldn’t help.Besides that, Luciana was kidnapped alongside Avery.It burns me up that we rescued one woman and not the other.”
“Never leave a man behind,” Jack quipped.
“It feels like unfinished business, and I won’t be satisfied until she’s out of their clutches.No one deserves that life,” he added darkly.
