Page 10 of Wicked Ambition

Sobering, he said, “Yeah. Señor Vargas uses the ruins for meetings sometimes. In fact, he was there just a couple of weeks ago and found someone he didn’t expect. He didn’t react well, and she ended up being held on his compound for a while.”

“And you’re just telling me this now?”

“I didn’t want to tell you at all.” There was a growl in his voice. “But you need to know that the ruins aren’t safe to visit. You need to stay as far away from Vargas as possible.”

There was more to the story, but Ayla would worry about the details later. She had a bigger question first. “How do you know so much about this drug lord?”

Oz gave her a long look before he said, “Because I used to work for Señor Vargas.”

Chapter 5

Mentioning he’d been employed by Vargas was a strategic move, but Oz wished he’d kept his mouth shut when he saw Ayla go pale. She’d already been uneasy about the fact he was a mercenary, but it was likely she imagined him fighting in Puerto Jardin’s civil war. Working for a drug lord was clearly a step too far for her.

The urge to confess the truth, that he was Army Special Forces and not a mercenary at all, shocked Oz mute.

He knew better.

Just the fact she was in this country was suspicious, especially given the night they spent together. He couldn’t risk his team by blowing his cover.

Hardening his resolve, Oz ignored her stricken expression. Ayla needed to know he wasn’t bullshitting when he told her the ruins were dangerous. If her fear and loathing of him convinced her he knew what he was talking about and that prevented her from traveling out there, then her low opinion of him was worth it.

It wasn’t only Vargas. Oz didn’t believe she could manage the hike from the road to the site, not as rough as the terrain was.

Ayla was corporate. She was city. She probably went to the gym four or five days a week, followed her training plan for weights and cardio, and called it good. He suspected she’d try to reach the ruins anyway, and to hell with it being beyond her abilities. Oz recognized stubborn when he saw it and Ayla was hellbent on saving her twin. He admired the loyalty.

“Are you sure your sister made it to Trujillo?” he asked.

Ayla didn’t look at him for a moment, then she straightened and said, “Yes, I know she arrived here.”

Call him skeptical, but she didn’t seem aware of much. He wanted proof. “How do you know that? Maybe she never left the capital.”

“I know.” Ayla’s voice was resolute, but she didn’t tell himwhyshe knew.

He considered pressing her, but her expression suggested that would get him nowhere. Oz decided to circle back later.

It was clear Ayla would never manage the trip to the ruins, but what about her twin? Was she capable? “What kind of physical condition is your sister in? Could she handle a long hike over rough terrain?”

“Probably,” she said at last. “Io does things like rock climbing, kayaking, surfing, hiking, and competing in Ironman races. She’s into challenging herself.” Ayla’s lips curved, but there was a hint of ruefulness there. “She’s been talking about training to compete in some five-day bike race that takes place in the mountains.”

From her tone, Oz gathered Ayla didn’t understand her sister’s interests. He did. There was something about setting ambitious goals and meeting them that was addictive. It was part of what originally drew him to Special Forces.

“She could have made it to the ruins then,” he said when he realized Ayla stared at him expectantly. “Ifshe ever left Trujillo,of course. This city is dangerous.” And if she made it from Rio BlancotoTrujillo, but he left that part unspoken.

“You said something about street smarts earlier. Io has them. She’s always had a sixth sense that’s kept her out of trouble.”

“Not this time,” Oz said. “Not if you flew down to save her.”

Ayla nodded and a worried expression settled on her face. “It had to be something unexpected, something she didn’t see coming.”

Oz shrugged but didn’t comment. Dodging muggers wasn’t the same as evading the men working for a drug lord or an arms dealer. If she’d hired the wrong guide to take her to the ruins, she could have been robbed and murdered on the way to the site. Or robbed and abandoned to fend for herself.

It didn’t even need to be human trouble. Maybe she’d tried to hike to the ruins and encountered a venomous creature or she’d injured herself severely enough that she couldn’t walk out. Without a satellite phone, she wouldn’t be able to call for help.

He didn’t point out any of the possibilities to Ayla, not when she was already concerned. Adding to her list wouldn’t help anything, and it might hurt if she hared off into the rainforest to find Iona. “You don’t plan to go to the authorities, right?”

“I read up on Puerto Jardin before I arrived. I know about the corruption and that the police and military can’t be trusted. Going to the authorities might put Io at greater risk.”

“It would putyouat risk, too,” he growled. Ayla seemed to care more about her sister’s well-being than her own. That stubborn expression Oz was becoming accustomed to settled on her face again. He changed the topic slightly. “So, the sum total of your plan is to go to San Isidro and ask questions?”

---