Page 44 of Fast Vengeance

The rest of the guys all started talking at once. Gabe’s chest was too tight, he couldn’t breathe in here. He pushed past them to fish his phone from his gear, then walked outside, pissed as hell that his commander would even ask this of her.

He dialed Oceane’s number, needing to talk to her. To warn her.

It rang and rang and rang, but no one picked up, not even voicemail. He hung up, his mind racing.

Victoria. She deserved to know what had happened to Cap, and maybe she could talk to Oceane about this. No doubt Taggart already had the WITSEC people meeting with DEA officials to propose a plan to get Hamilton back.

Gabe wanted his team leader back alive, of course he did. But Cap was trained and knew the risks of the job. Oceane was an innocent civilian. Putting her life on the line to do it made it feel like someone had dropped an anvil on his heart.

His mind was made up. He was probably breaking a dozen agency rules by doing this, but he didn’t give a fuck at the moment.

He dialed Victoria’s number, his heart thudding as it rang in his ear. Come on, pick up. Pick up…

“Hello?”

“Victoria, it’s Gabe.”

“Gabe? What’s… Is everything okay?”

By her tone she already knew it wasn’t, and he wouldn’t lie to her. Oceane had been right the other day; there was definitely something going on between Cap and Victoria. “No. Listen, I don’t have much time, but I wanted you to hear this from me before the news breaks. Cap’s been taken prisoner by Nieto.”

Her sharp gasp hissed in his ear. “What?”

He closed his eyes at the horror and shock in her voice. “A few hours ago, during a routine meeting with an informant.”

“Oh my God, is he—”

“We don’t know where he is. But we think he’s still alive. Nieto has claimed responsibility. And there’s one more thing.”

“What?” she asked urgently.

“The agency and WITSEC are going to want to meet with Oceane about this. I need you to talk to her before that happens. In person, if you can. Tell her…” That I don’t want her risking herself for this. That I would do anything to protect her and spare her any more pain. “Just tell her she’s not obligated to do anything they ask.”

“All right. I’ll go find her right now. Will you let me know if there’s any word about Brock?”

“If I can.”

Gabe ended the call and closed his eyes, feeling like he was being torn in two. He already knew how this was going to play out. They were going to ask Oceane to come down here and involve her in some way, as a front to an operation that would hopefully save Hamilton.

Coming down here would mean risking her life. Period.

But if she didn’t, Hamilton was almost certainly dead.

So no matter how he sliced it, this thing was a shit sandwich.

****

Victoria choked back tears as she rushed down the hall to the stairwell and ran the three flights to the floor where Oceane’s room was. Her friend hadn’t answered her phone when Victoria had called a few minutes ago.

The hallway was empty. She was out of breath, trembling as she knocked on the door. Seconds passed. She knocked again, hard enough to hurt her knuckles. “Oceane. Open up.”

No answer.

“Dammit.” Where was she? At this time of night Oceane was usually curled up in bed either reading or watching TV.

She couldn’t believe Brock had been taken hostage, let alone by Nieto. When she thought of what he must be enduring right now at the hands of those animals Nieto and the others used as sicarios…

Violent, vivid images bombarded her. Memories of what had been done to her and the other girls during her captivity. The way her family had been massacred. The countless other Veneno victims she had seen photographs of during her research for her books.

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