exactly clear on where the diamond was inside the cave, and pirate riddles and X marks the spot are unfortunately not real, so I’m left to scavenge and scrape along the walls, looking for any nook or cranny where a diamond might’ve been hidden centuries ago to never be seen again.
I narrow my beam, hunting for that flash of raw diamond I know so well . . . but I can’t tell. My eyes are too dazzled after the two days in the jungle, from hours of hiking and exhaustion, so after a quick search, I head back out the way I came. I could spend hours in here.
I might have already. I’ve lost track of time, and if Francisco asks questions, I’ll have to come up with some verbal tap dancing, maybe saying I was interested in the crystals. They already think I’m an idiot.
But when I reach the mouth of the cave, the commotion I hear brings me to a halt. Whatever’s going on, it doesn’t sound very peaceful, and I bring my knife to my shoulder, ready to deal with whatever I find beyond the waterfall.
At first, as I hear Francisco and his men yell in Portuguese at someone, I think maybe Nikolai’s burly guard’s come back. Maybe he thinks he can squeeze me for a little bit of extra juice.
But suddenly, Francisco yells out in English, “Stop! Hands up!”
What the fuck?
I creep around the waterfall to peek out.
But nothing prepares me for what I see emerging from the jungle beyond the clearing.
Chapter 36
Emma
What the actual fuck, Miguel?
I stare in the direction he’s just disappeared in, wondering . . . did he just lead us into an ambush and then bolt?
He’s grown exceedingly careful and quick as we’ve gotten deeper and deeper into the jungle, but just like that, he pulled a branch aside and guided us through.
Only for us to be captured.
And of course, Miguel himself is nowhere in sight now. Whether he’s a traitor who sold us out, a coward hiding in the jungle, or something else, he’s melted into the thick undergrowth with ninja-like skills.
I look to Caleb, who’s stone-faced and obviously bottling up some fury of his own. His fingers tighten on the gun in his hands, but he sees the numbers and the odds. It may be two on two, but it’s far from a fair fight. The men holding us are big and powerful, with weapons already up and ready. On the other team is us, and Caleb is stuck with me and only the gun in his hand since I’m inexperienced with firearms.
Gruff voices yell in accented English for us to put our hands up, talking over each other so much that I almost can’t distinguish who’s yelling what.
Caleb glances at me and sighs, judging my safety against his odds of winning a gunfight before setting his rifle down and complying. Meanwhile, my hands immediately shoot for the sky. Real Lara Croft move there, I guess.
Even though Caleb and I are compliant, stepping away from Caleb’s rifle and spreading our feet wide, we’re both grabbed by rough hands.
The men, one large and one larger, twist our arms behind our backs.
The big guy holding me is especially rough, holding so tightly that I think my wrists might shatter from grinding against one another in his big paw. I won’t give him the satisfaction of crying out, however, and clamp my lips tighter, taking strength from Caleb who gives me a look of support.
Big guy presses a gun to my temple. It’s surprisingly warm from the heat and humidity of the forest, and I’m suddenly so frightened that I nearly pee my pants in fear.
But even with the danger and discomfort that I’m in, I can look over and see that Caleb is getting it much worse.
The guy holding him must see that he’s a more significant threat than I am, because he’s working hard to make sure Caleb is at a disadvantage. While Caleb isn’t resisting too much, the guy really cranks on his wrist before suddenly kicking the back of Caleb’s knee, forcing it to bend and shoving him to the ground.
As soon as Caleb hits the dirt, he brings his boot down hard on Caleb’s calf. I don’t think it’s broken, but Caleb’s eyes tighten and he makes a grunting noise as he holds back the pain.
Both men pull back the hammers on their pistols, and in that moment I’m certain I’m going to die, right here in the