Page 48 of Knox's Mission

“Then, I did my job,” he said.

“Donnie was noisier, and he relied more on A.J. when we had him,” Amy recalled.

He decided against relaying his theory of what might have happened to Donnie. There was no reason to upset Lorna. She might have decided to move on from the relationship but her feelings were still fresh, raw. She might feel a sense of satisfaction for a few moments but it wouldn’t last. And then she would be even more hurt.

Again, he didn’t see the point when he couldn’t verify the hypothesis.

“I just don’t see how he could survive on his own out here,” Amy said.

“Maybe we’ll get the chance to ask him,” Knox pointed out. “Now that I know he could be following us, I’ll know what to look for.”

He made quick work of returning the hammockto his pack while everyone had a piece of fruit. After another round of mosquito repellant, they were ready to move on.

Wet clothes didn’t bother him. Breathing in the soupy air did, for the effect on the others. It slowed them down, especially civilians. Lorna wasn’t able to move as quickly as he would like. Amy seemed to be doing well. Still. They were most likely going to have to find a place to camp for the night. Based on experience, Lorna had another couple of hours in her before she would need to stop again. They could methodically make their way through the jungle, stopping every three hours to give Lorna half an hour of rest. At some point, she might need more. At the very earliest, they could make the extraction point by tomorrow midmorning.

Staying in one spot wasn’t ideal. They’d be like sitting ducks if Donnie really was in cahoots with a cartel or government out here.

Three hours passed by faster than Knox realized. He stopped to give Lorna a break.

“I can keep going,” Lorna pushed.

“Are you sure?” he asked. “Because the worst thing you can do out here is overestimate your abilities.”

“We don’t need to stop for long then,” she reasoned after a thoughtful pause. “Maybe just long enough to have another piece of fruit and a drink?”

Knox nodded, stopping long enough to accommodate the request. This went on for the rest of the night. By morning, earlier than planned, they made it to the clearing without further incident.

The chopper wasn’t there, but Knox hadn’t really expected it to be. He signaled for pickup and waited for a response to confirm the chopper was on its way.

“What do we do now?” Lorna asked, the annoying whine returning to her voice. To be fair, she was trying to be a trooper. She hadn’t slept. She looked emotionally wrung out and physically exhausted.

“You can sleep,” he said after pitching the small tent and setting up the hammock. “There isn’t much else that can be done except lay low and keep quiet.”

“Someone is coming, though, right?” she asked. Her voice had a more hysterical quality to it now. She’d hit a wall.

He glanced at Amy, who was already moving to reassure Lorna.

“I’m not going to promise you everything will be alright,” Amy said in a surprise move. “But we’ve made it this far together and I have hope that we’ll make it out of here alive. I don’t think I ever thanked you for calling Knox, though. Lorna, you saved my life. I wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t made that call. So, thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Lorna’s chin quivered.

“I’m the reason you’re in this mess in the first place,” she said. “It’s all my fault, Amy. You could have died and your blood would have been on my hands. I got so caught up in Donnie’s vision that I forgot about my own dreams. And I became like him, willing to use anyone to accomplish my goal.”

Amy was shaking her head before Lorna finished her sentence. “You will never convince me that you’re like Donnie. First and foremost, you wouldn’t have left me alone in the jungle.”

“I sent you in there alone,” she countered.

“That’s not true,” Amy said. “You trusted Donnie with your life, and A.J. is supposed to be the best guide. You sent me in because you thought you’d be joining me in twenty-four hours. You couldn’t have known A.J. would freak out and take off. Or that Donnie would turn out to be a self-serving asshole.”

Knox’s fist came up, his signal to stop and be quiet. His gaze locked onto something or someone moving across the clearing. On closer study, there were several people moving. Shit.

He motioned for Amy and Lorna to get down and make themselves as small as possible. His watch vibrated twice, meaning a chopper was on its way. How long? That was anyone’s guess. Could be anywhere from half an hour to end of the day. The only information transmitted was that the chopper was on its way.

Would it get there in time? Because Knox realized the folks coming toward them were also circling them.

How many were there?

He glanced at Amy. She was huddled down, comforting Lorna.

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