Weather the Storm (Security Specialists International #3) (36 page)

“Yes.” Elana understood only too well. Demidas had brought his personal security force; the men were loyal only to him and there would be no desertions. Vanko and whoever was with him would have their hands full against the battle-hardened criminals. He could be killed. Fear hit her stomach like a fist.
No. No. Can’t think that way.

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Vanko will come to the house to find me. We have to let him know I won’t be here.”

“Jose will tell them.” Rosa grinned. “He is the butler here. He runs this place when Demidas is not here. He has fixed it so your rescuers can get onto the island secretly.”

Rosa helped her into a simple, sleeveless white blouse. “Here are some sandals.” The girl knelt at her feet and buckled them. She stood and removed the switchblade from her pocket and handed it to Elana. “Your knife. Let’s go, yes?”

“Yes, and thank you for helping me.”

“
De nada, senorita
,” said Rosa.

Elana took the knife and slipped it into the front jeans pocket. She let out a breath and realized how much stronger she felt dressed and armed. The psychological feeling of being somewhat in control plus the effects of the adrenaline in her bloodstream were amazing. “How will we leave? By the terrace?”

“No, that passes by the room where Demidas is sleeping.”

“Is he really sleeping?” Elana asked as she followed Rosa to a panel in the closet which slid open silently after Rosa keyed in a code.

“I slipped a sleep drug into his vodka bottle.” The girl smiled. “He always drinks before he naps.”

“If he drank it.” Elana was worried. With her here, he might not want the effects of vodka to dull his senses. He never drank the whole time he had her the last time, and while he had some vodka on his breath when he kissed her, he would not chance more before he raped her. “We can’t count on that.”

“We aren’t.” Rosa patted Elana’s arm. “This is why we are taking the tunnel into the jungle. My brother will meet us.”

Elana grasped Rosa’s arm and squeezed. “How can I repay you for all you’re doing?” Rosa and Jose were risking their lives, because Demidas would kill them and not quickly for helping her escape.

“Your man ridding us of Demidas is enough payment. Now, stay close. Hold onto my shoulders.”

Elana followed the girl into the tunnel. It was lit by LED string lighting near the floor. The walkway sloped gently downwards then leveled off. “What are we going under?”

“The main house, the housing for the men, and the hanger for the helicopter.” They came to a crossing with three potential routes. Rosa went right. “The other two tunnels exit into the barracks and the hanger.”

Elana had never thought she was claustrophobic, but found it hard to breathe. The air was stale, tepid, and humid. “How much longer?”

Rosa must have heard the panic in her voice, because she looked over her shoulder and smiled reassuringly. “Not much. We can stop if you need to rest.”

“No…no. I need fresh air.”
And open space.
The sooner, the better.

“We are almost there.” Rosa walked faster and Elana let out a mewl of relief.

In maybe five minutes, she spotted a door. “Is that the exit?”

“Yes.” Rosa entered a code into a key pad and the door slid open. A young dark-skinned man who looked a lot like Rosa stood there. “This is my brother Jose.”

Elana offered her hand to the young man. “Thank you, Jose.”

“Don’t thank me yet. Your man has not arrived. And already the alert has been sounded for your disappearance. Demidas did not drink.” Jose shot his sister a worried glance. “I will hide you both and then go to the rendezvous site. Ziv is on the prowl. Demidas is roaring like an angry bull.”

“Ziv won’t hurt me, Jose,” Rosa murmured. “He likes me.”

“He likes Demidas more,” Jose insisted.

“Your brother’s correct. Zivon is loyal to the bone to Demidas. He’d kill you in an instant.” Elana gripped the younger woman’s hand. “Trust me on that.”

Rosa nodded, but her eyes held disbelief. She turned to her brother. “What are you waiting on, Jose? Demidas’s men could be in the tunnels even now.”

Grim-faced, Jose shut the door and used a rock to destroy the mechanism. “They won’t get out that door easily. Come.” He walked into the thick jungle. Only the small LED flashlight in his hand lit his way in the early morning darkness and revealed what looked to be a path that might have been cleared at one time, but was now invaded by the thick tropical foliage.

Elana held onto Jose’s waistband and Rosa held onto hers as they moved ever deeper into the tangled undergrowth of the island’s tropical rain forest. They moved quickly, an almost electric urgency connecting the three. She strained to hear sounds of pursuit, but only heard the calls of jungle creatures disturbed by their presence.

Shuddering, she resolutely put bugs, snakes, and four-legged predators out of her mind. She had more than enough to worry about with the two-legged kind hunting them. A whole football team could be scrimmaging fifty feet away and she wouldn’t be able to see or hear them…or do a damn thing about them. The heat and humidity had quickly sapped what little strength Elana had. She felt as limp as an overcooked noodle.
And useless.

But she refused to utter a word of complaint or slow Jose and Rosa down. She’d rather die of dehydration in the jungle and be snacked on by jungle scavengers than ever be near Demidas again.

The few minutes she’d been in his presence, had been two minutes too many.

As sweat dampened her body, she concentrated on placing one foot at a time. After a while the pain in her calves indicated they’d been climbing almost since they’d left the tunnel. No wonder she was having such a hard time, not all of her weakness was due to the heat, humidity, and her condition.

When Jose finally stopped, she ran into his back. She’d been so focused on just breathing and staying upright and walking.

“You okay, Senorita Elana?” Jose grasped her upper arms and steadied her.

“Water would help.” And a shower. Clean dry clothes. A day of rest, in bed, with Vanko. Hey, she might as well dream big.

“I think I can help with that.” Jose’s smile shone brightly in the moonlit early morning.

Moonlight? She finally noticed it wasn’t as dark as it had been. They now stood in a rocky clearing. The sound and smell of water was all around them. The moonlight reflected over a large grotto. At the far end, a waterfall splashed into the small body of water before it ran over another drop off and maybe to the sea which glimmered in the distance.

The young Bahamian waved his hand. “Water. It is safe to drink from the waterfall. Do not drink from the grotto. Animals drink and bathe there. It is safe to swim in, though.”

He took one of her arms and pulled her around the edge of the grotto toward the far end where the waterfall was located. “Come. You can shelter in a cave behind the waterfall. There is a path leading to the small cave. I will then take another branch of the path upwards alongside the falls to go to meet your rescuers on the other side of this hill.”

“Thank you.” Elana gripped his arm and squeezed.

“No problem.” He led her behind the waterfall with Rosa following them into a cozy cave just big enough for three to four people. “There is fresh food and some other things to make your stay here more comfortable.” He lit a small lantern which set the damp rock walls to shimmering and then turned to his sister and hugged her. “Stay with Senorita Elana. Do not think just because Ziv is nice to you in bed that he is a nice man. He is not. Trust me, little sister.”

Rosa nodded, but Elana noted the stubborn look that crossed the girl’s face and sighed. She’d have to keep an eye on Rosa. After all these two had done to help, she wouldn’t allow Rosa to be lured by Zivon’s false promises. Elana still remembered how he’d used her as a shield during the gunfight twelve years ago. Maybe she’d show Rosa the bullet wound on her shoulder and tell her just what kind of man Zivon really was.

“We’ll watch out for each other, Jose.” Elana caught the young man’s gaze. He did a chin lift in acknowledgment and waved his hand before he moved onto a path only a goat would love and began to scramble up the rocky incline to the top of the hill from which the waterfall originated.

Elana turned to Rosa. “Shall we see what your brother has in the cooler and those bags? I need food.” And pain meds, but she’d deal. The adrenaline that had gotten her out of bed, through the tunnel, and up the hill to this place of safety was gone. She was exhausted. Food would help, and please God, caffeine.

Elana’s distraction worked and Rosa began to hand Elana wrapped packages—and thank you lord, a cold can of cola with sugar—and chattered away about how she and Jose would run the island once Demidas was gone.

Outwardly, Elana listened and nodded at the girl’s words, but inside she knew they weren’t out of the woods, or in this case, the jungle, just yet. The subject of Zivon did not come up, but Elana’s gut all but shouted the girl was thinking about her Russian lover all the while she was telling Elana her and her brother’s plans to run an exclusive boutique hotel on the island.

Her gut also screamed that Zivon was closing in.

Elana wasn’t sure she had the strength to fight him—and Rosa wouldn’t.

Hurry Vanko. Hurry.

With his dive buddy, John, Vanko walked onto the sandy beach, both men shedding SCUBA gear as they moved toward the shelter of the encroaching jungle where the Walshes stood. He glanced at the waterproofed handheld computer which showed the location of Elana’s tracker. She was directly east of them over a hill, less than one kilometer away. Her location placed her outside the main house which was almost two kilometers away as the crow flies.

Not long, Elana. Hold on,
lyubimaya
. I’m coming.

He was about to say something to the Colonel when he noticed movement in the jungle behind his team. He waved the Walshes down and pulled his Glock from the waterproof thigh holster.

“Senor Taylor?” A Bahamian-accented voice came from the thick foliage.

John put a hand on Vanko’s arm. “It’s our contact.”

Vanko nodded, but his gun remained in his hand. He noted the Walsh men also had their guns at ready. Good Marine training.

“Senor Taylor? It is Jose.” A slightly built Bahamian slipped out of the dark shadows onto the small moonlit beach. “Good. You are just in time. My sister Rosa and I took Senorita Elana from the house, but the alarm has sounded. The Russian will be hunting. There are not many places to hide on this cay, so we must hurry.”

Jose turned and led the way into the jungle, following some path only he could see. “Come. It is a short climb and then down to a grotto. I hid the women behind the waterfall.”

“How is Elana?” Vanko asked as he took point right behind the young man.

Jose spoke as he shoved and macheted his way through vines and branches with one hand and shone a small, but powerful, LED-flashlight to light the way. “She is fine. Zivon gave her some drug to keep her quiet on the trip from Florida. Demidas sat and watched her sleep, but then was persuaded to rest until she woke up. Rosa went in, got her dressed, and then out of the house.”

The siblings had taken a lot of risks. He would be forever grateful and would find a way to reward them. Though ridding the cay of Demidas was probably a reward in itself. He wasn’t rumored to be a kind or generous employer.

“Did Demidas…” Vanko couldn’t voice his worry aloud. The Russian wouldn’t think twice about raping an unconscious, injured woman. He’d done much worse over the years, according to the Interpol reports from his victims who’d managed to survive.

“He did not touch her.” The young man shot a grin over his shoulder. “He sent for the doctor—my uncle—and my uncle told him to let her rest until he could check her wound and the effects of the drug given her. Demidas wasn’t happy, but he obeyed.”

“Thank God.” Vanko was barely aware of the other men following them or the terrain they traversed. His only thoughts were for Elana—for her safety.

“Vanko.” Colonel Walsh touched him on the shoulder. “You and John should take Elana to the beach and have John’s man bring a small boat in for you. No need to worry about alarms now. My boys and I will take care of Demidas and his men and secure the island until the Bahamian authorities can get here to take over.”

Colonel Walsh had made a call to the Bahamian Coast Guard during the short trip to this cay. Elana’s uncles, once they’d been informed Elana had been taken to the Bahamas, had Interpol pave the way for cooperation in taking out Demidas and his people. Since Demidas was wanted in several European countries including Great Britain and in the United States, the Bahamian authorities were more than happy to cooperate.

While Vanko might want to be in on the takedown of Demidas, Elana’s health and safety were his first priority. “Take John. With Jose’s help, I can get Elana to the beach myself. I’ll be close by if you need me.”

“Son,” Colonel Walsh chuckled, “while I have no issues having a SEAL like John back me up, me and my boys are Marines. Nuff said.”

Vanko shook his head. He’d come up against the Marine ego before, but had to give them credit—all the Marines he’d met had always come through when the die was cast. They did not know the meaning of the word quit.

For long minutes they climbed and scrambled up the rocky incline in the hot, humid night air. Their way was lit by the moon filtering through the trees and small LED flashlights shielded to focus the beam downward. The only sounds were the birds, the waves crashing the shore behind and below them, and the sound of the stream rushing toward the falls. The men were well-trained predators and made little to no sound.

Jose held up a hand and whispered. “Stop. We go down now. Single file. Very steep. Use the rope to guide you.” The young man grasped a rope anchored into the rocky decline with pitons and began to walk downhill, leaning his weight back over his heels.

“Forty-five degree decline, gentlemen.” Vanko directed his single beam along the ground. “Watch your step.”