after she laid down, the key clicked in the lock, and two guards appeared, glaring at her as if daring her to try something.
They took her by her arms and propelled her down the long hallway to the front entrance and out into the yard of the compound.
Briana looked around, wondering if she could break free of the big men and make a run for it. Or was this what the Devil Boss had been after all along…the trade?
Hell. Briana hoped it wasn’t a trade. Alejandra needed to be with her baby, not this lunatic. He would make their lives miserable and possibly end them without a second thought. Because she’d made a run for it, he might even torture her before he killed her.
Torture.
Was the Devil Boss about to perform his first act of torture on her? Would he record it and send it to Hank and Rafe to make them convince Alejandra to make the trade?
All these thoughts raced through Briana’s head in seconds. Then they were at the gate, and the cartel leader was there as well.
As soon as the gate opened and the path cleared of cartel men, Briana could see three SUVs standing at the end of the drive. The lead one stood open and men were outside the vehicles, using the doors as shields.
Briana’s heart skipped several beats. She couldn’t help but think that shit was about to get real in El Salvador.
Then Hank Patterson got out of the second vehicle and opened the back door.
Rafe emerged.
Briana gasped, and her heart fluttered. He was there. He’d come for her. Her eyes welled with tears she quickly blinked back. The two guards at her side walked her forward a couple of steps and stopped, still holding tightly to her arms.
After Rafe got out of the SUV, he turned and extended his hand.
Alejandra emerged, leaned up and kissed Rafe’s cheek.
A short stab of something hit Briana square in the gut. Jealousy? No, the kiss had been quick, as if in thanks. Envy. Probably. She wished she could kiss Rafe’s cheek and lips and hold him close.
Then Alejandra called out in Spanish and then English. “Let her go. We meet halfway. Alone.”
Her heart pounding, Briana nearly collapsed, when upon a command from their leader, the cartel guards released her arms. She was free but had to walk the gauntlet of the road leading into the compound.
Alejandra stepped away from Hank and Rafe, walked around the open doors of the lead vehicle and kept coming.
“Go,” El Chefe barked.
Briana lurched forward, rubbing her arms where the men had held her so tightly there would be bruises. The fifty or so yards to the SUVs seemed like a lot more.
As Alejandra neared, it dawned on Briana that she didn’t have her baby with her. Where was Bella? The men behind her didn’t seem to have her. Was she in one of the vehicles? Her heart stopped for several beats. Had she left Bella in the States?
Her heart squeezed hard in her chest. This woman was sacrificing herself to save Briana. Leaving her baby in the hands of others…
Oh, her heart hurt.
As she approached Alejandra, she shook her head. “You shouldn’t have come. Where’s Bella?”
“I had to. She’s with Sadie. Be ready to run.”
Briana frowned. “What?”
Alejandra glanced down at her hand, holding something green with a handle clutched against it. “Just run,” Alejandra said as she continued to walk toward the compound.
As the item registered in Briana’s mind, she picked up her pace, walking faster. Holy shit. Alejandra had a grenade.
Dear Lord, please don’t let her martyr herself for me.
Briana glanced over her shoulder as Alejandra approached the phalanx of men surrounding El Chefe. In an underhanded toss, she rolled the grenade between the legs of the men guarding the cartel leader. They scrambled, dancing away from the object.
Alejandra spun and ran toward Briana. “Run!” she yelled.
Briana stumbled over her own feet then righted herself and ran as fast as she could.
Alejandra caught up with her, took her arm and pulled her along with her.
An explosion rocked the ground beneath their feet, the force at their backs pushing them forward so fast, they fell to their knees.
Gunfire exploded all around.
“Stay down,” Hank called out.
“Cover me!” Rafe cried and ran toward them, hunkered down.
Briana crawled on all fours toward him.
Alejandra did the same, moving as fast as she could.
When Rafe reached them, he pointed to the ground in front of Alejandra. “Stay flat on your belly. I’ll be right back.”
Alejandra dropped to