Page 360 of The Black Trilogy

“What was the plan?”

“I didn’t know all of it. He said it was better that way, but if things went as they were supposed to, we would have enough money to escape and hide from Hector and Diego.”

“Where was the money coming from?”

“Carlos didn’t say, and I was afraid to ask. The whole idea of escaping seemed too good to be true.”

“Do you think he was serious?”

“I didn’t at first. Then one evening about a year ago, he came to my room. I’d never seen him so…animated. He had this light in his eyes. Hope.”

“Why? Did he tell you?”

“Hector had sent him on a trip overseas. He didn’t usually do that, but they’d been having some problems with that government program, the one where they spray the coca plants with something that kills them, and Diego and most of the men were busy dealing with that.”

“I bet they were.” Eduardo had told me all about Plan Colombia. It had caused him a headache too, at least until he found the right people to bribe. Government officials flew over the fields, spraying herbicide over the coca. Unfortunately, the chemicals also killed any other plants they touched, destroying crops and causing health problems for the people living in the targeted areas.

“Hector received a report from someone in his sales network that the DEA was nosing around. He sent Carlos over to find out who and shut them down. Except when Carlos got back, he told me he’d found his brother. I didn’t believe him at first, but he insisted, over and over, and I began to think it might be true.”

“It must have been me,” said Black. “I was working for the DEA a year ago.”

Jane nodded, and another tear slipped down her cheek. “He promised Hector he’d fix the problem, but when he went back to America, he was really going to meet you. He planned to ask you for help to get us out of Colombia. Even though it seemed impossible, he was convinced you would be able to set us free. Except he never came back.”

“But I did,” Black said.

“Yes. Even though Carlos said there was a good chance he wouldn’t return, I kept hoping.”

Black shifted her closer in his arms. “And you couldn’t grieve either, could you? Because nobody knew about the two of you?”

Her tears fell harder as she shook her head. “I was supposed to try and escape. He left some money and a memory stick in the hut.”

“That’s what’s in the envelope?”

“I need to post the stick to Blackwood Security in Virginia. Can you help me?”

“Sure.” I pointed at Black. “You’re sitting next to the Black part of Blackwood Security. That’s where we’re from.”

“Really?”

I rummaged in the wardrobe until I found one of my business cards in a jacket pocket, then flipped it over to her.

She held it in both hands and read, then took the memory stick from the envelope and handed it to me.

“Do you know what’s on it?” I asked.

Hair flopped across her face as she shook her head again, and she pushed the stray strands behind one ear. “Carlos said I was better off not knowing. And then it didn’t matter because I was stuck at the compound. The thought of leaving on my own scared me more than staying.”

“Do you have any idea what Carlos did while he was away?”

“No, but Hector was furious when he found out. His phone rang, and five minutes later, he started shouting about money and lawyers and trust accounts. Diego was angry too. He put his fist through a wall when he got out of the meeting with his father.”

“Short fuse, then.”

“What does that mean?”

“He loses his temper easily.”

She bobbed her head. “Always. I knew it was something to do with Carlos when Hector stormed past and yelled at his security chief to get him back to Colombia immediately, no matter how difficult that might be. I didn’t have any way of warning him. All I could do was pray.”

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