Black Flagged Redux

Chapter 45





1:30 PM

Acassuso Barrio

Buenos Aires, Argentina





Jeffrey Munoz closed the door behind the doctor and walked back to Jessica, who had propped her arm up on the couch. Her eyes looked glassy from the sedatives and local anesthetic used to keep her from jumping off the portable medical table. Sanderson had arranged for a team of medical specialists to treat her superficial injuries, but most importantly, to repair Jessica's left hand. They had done most of the work yesterday, and from what the doctor could tell, she would regain full, unrestricted use of the hand.

The indirect shotgun blast had mangled three of her fingers, bending them at odd angles and stripping away a considerable amount of skin. Luckily, most of the raw material needed to reset the fingers and close up the wounds was still present. The finished work wouldn't be pretty, especially without sophisticated skin grafting and plastic surgery, but it would suffice for the moment. Once Sanderson stabilized the situation, Jessica could seek further medical treatment at a private reconstructive surgery center. Her hand was wrapped in several layers of bandages and gauze, which the doctor would change regularly over the course of the following week, while checking on the hand's progress.

Jessica had been unusually quiet since they arrived at the private house, far north of the downtown area. Munoz would have preferred getting further out of Buenos Aires, but Jessica's hand was in bad shape and the injury to her neck looked frightening up close. Driving their minivan into the gated courtyard of this house had been a blessing in disguise for all of them. They had desperately needed somewhere to stop and regroup their thoughts.

Now it appeared that they would spend the next week here with Jessica. At least she had apologized repeatedly before being hit with the sedatives. She hadn't been too coherent since the surgery, rambling on about nothing he cared to hear about and insisting on calling her husband. What choice did he have but to listen to her? They were trapped in this house, and he had no intention of letting her out of his sights. He especially had no intention of letting her use a phone to call Daniel.

Sanderson had been specific about that, so he had disconnected the landlines and enabled passwords on their cell phones. He didn't trust Jessica any further than he could throw her and wouldn't be surprised to find out that she was pretending to be wacked out on painkillers. He'd removed every possible weapon, with the exception of the table legs and remote controls. He considered zip tying her legs together; to discourage an escape attempt, but Sanderson had made it clear that she was not to be restrained. For now, he just needed to make sure she didn't vanish.

According to Sanderson, Daniel and his team were stacked up against nearly impossible odds, which was why he didn't want the two of them communicating right now. Daniel couldn't afford the distraction.

He watched her lean her head back against a cushion and close her eyes. He knew she'd been through a lot in her life. Before yesterday. Before Daniel. Maybe she deserved a second chance, or was this her third? He had no idea. He just hoped Daniel made it back alive. He couldn't imagine what she might do if Daniel was killed.