Page 8 of Unleash You

I can’t believe it’s really you. Thank you. You can’t see me right now, but I’m smiling from ear to ear. I’m also crying, if I’m being honest. Tell me everything. I know you left for college the day I moved away. Did you finish? How’s life in the real world? How are the Coles?

Next week, it’ll be Christmas break. I would love to come down and see you. Or at least talk? Let me know.

I miss you brother, always.

Anabelle

That day I quickly realized impersonating Charlie hadn’t been one of my best moments. How was I supposed to explain to her that Charlie didn’t want to see her? That after all these years, he still blamed her for their parents’ accident. A whole year went by before my stupid brain thought it would be a good idea to write to her again. We had just been deployed to Colombia for a recon mission. Anabelle’s letters became a sort of beacon to me. In the midst of chaos and devastation, she was the light at the end of the broken path.

I enlisted Dad to help me intercept Charlie’s mail in Atlanta. Dad didn’t question my motives at all. He simply agreed to send me Anabelle’s letters. And that was how I started my three-year affair with Anabelle Copenhaver. For some insane reason, I never considered that one day she might want to come home. That one day, she’d want to see her brother in person. I had to tell her the truth, even if it meant she would never trust me again. She would hate me for lying to her for so long, for letting her pour her heart and soul out to basically a stranger, for giving her hope that she had a brother who loved her and cared about her still.

How was I going to get out of this mess? How was I supposed to keep Anabelle safe if she didn’t trust me? I would never forgive myself if something happened to her because of me. The threat hanging over our heads from our time in Venezuela was still very real. We were sent home, but the mission hadn’t ended. Not until Charlie returned. Not until Rebecca Smith, the woman who risked her life to save others, had the safety and freedom we promised her.

3

Getting Out Is the Hard Part

Anabelle

I powered walked to the elevator bay and hit the call button several times. If I stayed here another minute, I might head back to Wesley’s office and jump him. Right after I made him hurt somehow for not telling me about my brother. I would have returned way sooner if I’d known. When the doors opened, I hopped on and pressed theL. Why did it still affect me so much to be near Wesley? Shouldn’t some immunity kick in after a few years of wanting someone so bad?

As if I’d summoned him, Wesley darted into my line of sight at the end of the hallway. Did he suddenly remember he had more business items we needed to tend to? I balled my fists. I let the doors shut and exhaled. I had to go home and start on my plan to get my brother back. My passport was still current from my trip to Italy with Lilly a couple of years ago. Lilly and Liam had been like a real family to me. Even if they, along with Charlie, constantly came up with reasons why I couldn’t come home. Well, now I was here. How would they react to that?

I climbed in the back of the Escalade. Will shifted his body to give me a quick nod. “Home?”

“No, not yet. Do you know any good travel agents?”

“I don’t, I’m afraid.”

“I might need to take a trip soon.”

“Where exactly?” He started the ignition. The way he clenched his jaw told me he didn’t like where this was going. Had Wesley already warned him about not letting me leave the country?

“Venezuela.”

I’d promised Wesley I would give him two weeks, and I had every intention of keeping my word. Mainly because traveling to a different country took some planning. I fished my phone from my purse and typed in Maracaibo in the search engine. When Charlie told me they had been stationed there for a while, I hadn’t thought to look it up. From the images, Venezuela looked like a pretty country. I zoomed in on Maracaibo and the jungle surrounding it. Charlie was there somewhere, all alone. If only we could still write to each other.

Within a few clicks, I confirmed Wesley’s story. He wasn’t exaggerating when he said it wasn’t safe to travel to Venezuela. Every article or post spoke of the country’s civil unrest and political turmoil. Luckily, not all flights from the US to there had been suspended. I wasn’t stupid enough to go on my own. Wesley’s team had a much better chance of helping Charlie. But guns and muscle weren’t the only way to get things done.

I texted Teak, one of my dad’s old buddies from his time with the marines. Over the years, he would check in on me, same as Lilly and Liam. We weren’t super close, but maybe he could point me in the right direction.

“Home?” Will’s voice pulled me out of the rabbit hole my mind had fallen into.

“No. Let me send you an address.” I had no idea how Teak would react to me showing up at his door, but he always said he thought of me as the daughter he never had, and that if Charlie and I ever needed anything I should reach out to him. Right now, we needed all the help we could get.

“Done.” He smiled at me in the rearview mirror.

I relaxed on the back seat as Will drove us away from the city. An hour later, the tall buildings had been replaced by overgrown trees and narrow roads. We were somewhere in the mountains, headed deeper into the woods. My heart raced at the idea that technically I had just met Will this morning when he picked me up from the airport. Jesus, what a homecoming.

“What’s your background, Will?” I clutched my phone to get my hands to stop shaking. If Wesley hired Will, it had to be because he was trustworthy.

“Army.”

“Did Wesley explain the situation with my brother?”

“He did.”

“Is that why he hired you? For your army skills?”

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