Page 5 of Ethan
It’s then I notice how thin he is and his tattered clothes. My heart breaks for him.
I’m about to say something else, but he doesn’t let me.
“Comer. Solo obtienes comida una vez al dia.” Meaning, ‘Eat. You only get food once a day.’
With those words, he releases the ropes binding our arms and climbs the ladder out of the bunker. Ethan immediately speaks.
“Translate, please,” he states dryly.
I almost smile as I relay the entire conversation.
“He was probably kidnapped as well. What kind of people are they? It’s horrible.”
My mind flashes to the young woman we couldn’t save. I wonder where she is and what they’ve done to her.
“Human trafficking,” Ethan says, as though he’s reading my thoughts. “The girl you were trying to save. She’s probably already sold here or on her way to another country to be used as a slave.”
I raise my hand to cover my mouth.
“Who are they?” I ask, horrified.
“From what we know, it’s a terrorist cell. They seem to operate worldwide, but we tracked a major operation here. They’re involved in all sorts of illegal things that fund their terrorist activities. It started in the U.S. but has gradually become larger in scale. All efforts to shut them down have been unsuccessful. We nab one leader, and another one comes up in his place.”
I try to understand the magnitude and implications of all that.
“Wow, you special ops aren’t playing, huh. The worst thing I’ve had to take care of in all my years as a detective was a serial killer.”
Ethan shrugs before grabbing a spoonful of the glob on the plate.
“You’re going to eat that? That’s awful. What if it’s poisoned?” I ask, disgusted.
“You need to eat to have enough strength to escape. Also, if they wanted to poison us, I’d like to think the food would be better looking than this,” he states, taking a sip. Then he nods, appreciating.
“It’s actually not that bad,” he tells me before proceeding to eat.
I follow suit after a few minutes, and I have to admit he’s right.
Still, I’d rather be in my hotel room or on the beach.
Just yesterday, I was soaking up the sun and getting a tan. Now, I’m in captivity. Life really works in funny ways. But at least I’m in captivity with a debatably nice, good-looking man. It could be worse. Of course, it could still get a lot worse too.
Chapter 3
(Ethan)
______
It’s been at least two days, and I’m optimistic the cavalry must be on its way. I was supposed to check in every 24 hours, so my teammates must know something’s amiss.
As far as hostage situations go, however, this one hasn’t been too bad. Sure we’re underfed, and we haven’t seen the sun in days. We’re uncomfortable, but at least we haven’t been tortured. Not yet, anyway. Which leads me to believe that my theory is correct. They must think we’re normal Mexican civilians or fairly uninteresting tourists. It’s also why I’ve kept my mouth shut on the few times we’ve had company. They can’t know I don’t speak Spanish. Audra has been speaking to them. It seems they’re planning to get a ransom for us. They don’t consider us overly important, which is why we’ve mostly been left alone.
But Capa had bad news for us when he snuck into the cell this morning. We’d asked him to keep an ear out for us as he’s able to walk around the camp more freely. They don’t consider him a threat. Apparently, the terrorists have finally decided what to do with us. According to Capa, they’ve confirmed we’re Americans. They used digital facial recognition, which is annoying. These guys have really good technology. We really can’t afford to underestimate them. Now that they know we don’t live in Mexico, they’re thinking of getting us to reveal who we are. Luckily my cover will have held because mybackstory is solid. But I’m concerned they’ve discovered Audra is law enforcement. Hopefully, they’ll decide that we’re from somewhere important enough and are simply planning to get a ransom for us. Considering we’re from America and the U.S. is their biggest enemy, I’m willing to bet our nationality would benefit them. Or be highly detrimental to us.
Capa and Audra have developed something akin to friendship. He has been really helpful.
Audra...…. I don’t know what to feel about her. On the one hand, she has to be the most eccentric, possibly crazy woman I’ve ever met. But she’s also kind and thoughtful, and genuinely caring. I can tell she has a good heart.
It also doesn’t help that she’s hot as hell. Even in the dimly lit bunker or basement or wherever we are, I can tell she has a sexy figure and the prettiest green eyes. She’s really beautiful, and she seems almost unaware of it.
