Page 25 of Wild Temple
I figured Jack would be hungry, so I told her to order for the three of us. Another round of those smash burgers would do the trick.
Jack arrived about the time the food did. I introduced him to Brooke, and we chowed down at the breakfast table.
"How was your flight?" I asked.
"Great! Slept most of the way. I'm ready for action.”
"Something tells me we’re going to see plenty of it.” I gave him a recap of everything I'd been through since I'd gotten here.
After we ate, I figured I’d try my luck with Rex one more time. With Brooke in tow, I hoped it would elicit a little sympathy. She was adorable, and her story certainly tugged at the heartstrings.
14
"Jack Donovan!" Rex exclaimed as we stepped into Whisky Tango Foxtrot.
We approached the counter, and the two shook hands.
"Still raising hell?" Rex asked.
"And then some," JD replied with a grin.
"I gotta be honest. I never expected to see the two of you standing in my bar.”
Jack smiled. "Living proof that dreams do come true."
Rex scoffed. “More like nightmares.” His eyes fell upon Brooke. She was hard not to look at. "And to whom do I have the pleasure?" he said, extending his hand, instantly smitten.
I made introductions.
"She's welcome anytime." Rex's eyes flicked between the two of us. "The jury is out on you two.”
We laughed. He wasn't entirely joking.
"I'm afraid I’ve got more bad news," I said.
Rex grimaced. He was at his limit of bad news from me.
I filled him in on Brooke’s situation. A solemn frown tugged Rex's face. "I'm really sorry to hear that."
"I sure am hoping you've got something helpful to tell me.”
Rex frowned again and shook his head. "I wish I had something to tell you. I reached out to my contacts, but everyone's being tight-lipped. These aren’t the kind of people you want angry at you. I'll keep trying to find something out. But I’ve got to be careful.”
I thanked him for the effort, though I'm not sure how much effort he applied.
It was clear Rex didn't want to have a damn thing to do with this. I could understand. As a businessman, he'd put down roots here. This wasn't the kind of place where you wanted to piss off the local syndicate or the cops. They had six ways from Sunday to make your life miserable. If you weren’t careful, you might find your bar burned to the ground—and that's if you were lucky. People who buck the system around here often ended up in a shallow grave in the jungle. A set of bones could go undiscovered for centuries in a place like this.
When I knew Rex, he wasn't scared of anything. He was always the first one into the fray. But he couldn't hide the fear in his eyes now. He knew something more than he was letting on.
He offered us a drink, and we took a seat at the bar. We sipped fine whiskey and talked about the good old days. We relived old missions and talked about guys in the unit, mourning those we lost. Rex was happy to talk about anything else but human trafficking.
Rex plied us with liquor. The early afternoon slipped into the late afternoon. By that time, we'd all indulged a little more than we should have. But it was good to catch up. I think Rex took a liking to Brooke. Who wouldn't? Maybe he'd be more inclined to help.
"If you run into Bayu or Putu, let me know,” I said.
Rex laughed. "You know how many guys on this island share that same name? Good luck.”
He had a point.
