Page 79 of No Questions Asked

Holy drug runners! They were here and heavily armed.

I was about to dart back to the chief to raise the alarm when a hand suddenly clamped over my mouth, cutting off a scream. I was so frightened, it took me several seconds to realize who’d attacked me.

Vicente.

Chapter Forty-Five

Lexi

I shook in terror, blinking rapidly at Vicente. My brain and body were in shock. What was he doing? Did he know the drug runners were just few feet away?

I struggled to move, but he pressed his hand harder against my mouth, his head shaking in warning. Seconds later, the drug men passed just steps away without seeing us. He waited another minute or so before he lifted his hand from my mouth.

“Sorry I scared you,” he murmured.

“I almost had a freaking heart attack,” I whispered. “I didn’t know if you were with them or against them. We have to warn them.”

“We’re too late.” He pointed down at the compound where the gunmen had already engaged the natives. A cry arose as the warriors began to load their bows and move forward. They appeared concerned, but not frightened, since they easily outnumbered the men. One of the more confident villagers stepped forward to warn off the gunmen and was subsequently shot in the leg. He went down screaming while the chief and the rest of the villagers froze in shock.

I quickly grabbed the satellite phone from around my neck, dialing Slash’s phone. It took what felt like forever to connect, but Slash answered right away.

“They’re here,” I whispered, telling him what he certainly already knew by this point.

“I know,cara. I’m going to hide the phone and leave it on so you can hear what’s going on. Mute the phone now so you can listen, but not give away its location. Go get help as soon as you can. We’ll surrender and wait for you to bring back the authorities. Be careful and...ti amo.”

There were so many things I wanted to say and no time to say them. I heard the door to the building in which Slash was located crash open and then people yelling. Alarmed, I muted the phone and looked at Vicente, who was listening intently. I could hear Salvador in the background shouting something, but I had no idea what until Vicente translated for me.

“They’re speaking in Spanish,” he said. “Definitely Venezuelan. Salvador is telling everyone to put down their weapons and surrender peacefully. He told the drug runners he’s a scientist living and studying the native population and they came upon the compound by accident.”

“What about Slash?” I whispered, my heart constricting in my chest. I couldn’t hear his voice among the cacophony of shouting voices. “Is he okay?”

“I think so. It’s possible they think he’s just another native. After all, he’s dressed like one of them and sort of looks like them, too.”

I considered the possibility. Vicente could be right. Slash was wearing a loincloth and his Mediterranean complexion and dark hair helped him to blend in, even though he wore hiking boots. He was a master of disguise, so it was possible he could pull it off. It was too hard to say which way that would go at this point.

“They’ve rounded up everyone and are putting them into the same building where you were with the computers,” Vicente said.

That was good news because that meant we could monitor what was happening via satellite phone. It was also bad news, because with all the people in there, the fact the computer was on and uploading the drug runners’ records could be discovered at any moment.

Panicked, I watched as armed men moved through the area collecting the weapons the villagers had surrendered. Once they finished, they gathered by the open door of the computer building to talk. Wherever Slash had hid the phone, it was close enough to pick up on the conversation.

“What are they saying?” I asked Vicente in a hushed voice.

“They’re discussing what to do with the natives. One of the men says they should kill them as a warning to any of the other tribes to stay away from them. Obviously the warning shot they gave yesterday didn’t get that meaning across.”

I didn’t want to ask, but I needed to know. My imagination raced through a dizzying array of scary scenarios. “What else?”

“One of the drug runners is worried about Salvador. He isn’t buying the scientist angle, especially since they found the backpack with the guns. They wonder if Salvador is working for another drug cartel. They think he might be trying to steal their research for growing coca plants in lower elevations.”

I closed my eyes. “Oh, no. Are they going to kill him?”

“Not yet. They’re afraid if they kill them before the boss has a chance to question him, the boss might not be very happy.”

“Where’s the boss? And what about the villagers? Are they going to hurt them?” It was hard to think through the panic. My brain screamed at me to run and get help before the drug runners hurt anyone else. But I couldn’t get through the rainforest without Vicente, and we needed information, so I had to force myself to stay cool.

“The guy said if they kill the natives, it might make the others more reluctant to talk since they think they’ll have nothing to lose.” Vicente paused, his eyes suddenly narrowing. “Wait. He says the boss might be bringingEl Esqueletohere tonight.” He pumped a fist in the air. “I knew it.”

“Knew what?”

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