Page 24 of Rescuing Nathaniel

It felt more like a lifetime.

“You’re alive, Aves. And you escaped. That’s what you need to hold onto,” Nathaniel said as he squeezed her hand.

Giving him a grateful smile, she went back to what she’d been saying. “I think there were probably around two dozen or so doctors and nurses I saw over the two weeks, but there were usually the same six or so I saw the most. They didn't talk business in front of me so I don’t know much. Don’t even know how many other people like me were on that boat.”

For the next hour or so, Nathaniel peppered her with questions. Details on the men and women’s appearances, ages, accents, demeanors, interactions, and a million other tiny things she probably wouldn't have even thought about if he hadn't outright asked her.

The more questions he asked, and the more she had to search her memories to find the answers, the more her head ached. A dull throb at first, right behind her eyes, grew as she worked hard to give accurate answers to Nathaniel.

She didn't want to get anything wrong, no matter how small because the weight resting on her shoulders was heavy. These people were dangerous, and they weren't going to stop just because she got away. They had a lucrative business running and they wouldn't give up that money for anything.

Not unless someone forced them to.

Right now, she was the only one who had the information that could potentially bring them down.

That pressure had the dull throb growing until it pounded like someone was hammering between her temples.

“Okay, Aves, that’s enough for now,” Nathaniel said, and his hands grasped her shoulders as he laid her down to lie on her back.

“Can answer more,” she mumbled, but her voice slurred, and she realized she’d been pushing too hard. She was still weak, recovering from major surgery and infection, lost in the jungle, traipsing around in nothing but a hospital gown, with not enough food or water to sustain her flagging body.

“Not right now you can't,” Nathaniel said firmly. “You need rest.”

“You need intel.”

“Not more than you need rest. This isn’t all on your shoulders, Aves. People are hunting these traffickers, and I was able to plant the tracker. It’s not up to you to singlehandedly bring down an organ trafficking ring.”

The problem was it felt like it was.

And it was an enormous pressure.

One she wasn't quite sure wouldn't wind up crushing her to smithereens.

* * *

March 2nd

5:17 P.M.

Nathaniel muttereda curse as he heard it.

The unmistakable sound of footsteps.

Whoever these people were, they might know how to grab innocent victims off the streets without getting caught, but they had no idea how to move through the jungle without giving themselves away.

Ava had only just drifted off to sleep, and she so badly needed the rest. She was recovering, but it was slow. Without painkillers and antibiotics, nutritious food, and plenty of fluids, along with a whole lot of uninterrupted rest, she wasn't going to keep improving.

In fact, she could even start going backward.

Carrying her over his shoulder had started her wound bleeding again, even though there had been no alternative. She couldn’t walk the whole way out herself, and he needed to have his weapon ready if they needed it. Which meant carrying her over his shoulder was a necessity no matter how much it kept aggravating her wound.

Maybe he’d pushed a little too hard with his questions, but he’d wanted to know if any of her doctors, nurses, or guards had been of Mexican descent. If they had, he would need to tread extremely carefully when they reached a village. Especially given their strange attire. He was wearing a wetsuit, she was wearing a hospital gown, and they didn't look like they were two lost hikers or any other believable story he might have been able to weave.

Now, though, he was going to have to wake her up, throw her over his shoulder, and make a run for it. Hiding wasn't going to work as easily this time around because if the men had backtracked to where they thought they had already looked for Ava, it was because they’d found the dead body of the man who had abducted her.

If they had found the body, there was every chance that they also knew she wasn't alone.

What were the chances that a five foot two woman, with a slender build, who had been operated on against her will, was weak and hurting, would be able to snap the neck of a man almost a whole foot taller than her and with easily a hundred pounds on her?

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