She fell face-first onto the marshy ground.
For a moment Hannah was so stunned she couldn’t move, then she remembered the gun. But first she had to get to Kelsey, who was lying with her face in a pool of water and possibly drowning. Fumbling for the gun tucked against the small of her back, wondering whether Liam was calling to warn her about Dirk, she rushed to her cousin and dragged her to one side, relieved to see that Kelsey was still breathing.
She straightened as she pulled the gun free, turning to face Dirk, only to see him standing firmly, steadying a gun on her.
“Give me your gun,” he said in a tone that sent chills up her spine. “Never thought I’d be worrying about you shooting me, but then, you brought down Machete, didn’t you? Who would have thought?”
“What are you doing?” she demanded. “After everything you’ve seen, why would you work for the Wolf? He doesn’t care anything about the people who work for him. He uses them up like tissues and throws them away to die. You’ll die, too, as soon as he’s got no more use for you,” she told him furiously.
Mendini laughed at her. “For God’s sake, how stupid can you be? Don’t you get it? I am the Wolf.”
*
The cabin was empty, though there were signs that people had been there recently. There were two rooms, a living room that had apparently been lit by candles and a bedroom with mattresses on the floor.
“No blood anywhere,” Logan announced.
“Going to check the front,” Dallas told him.
He stepped out the front door and, as soon as he saw that the area was clear, jumped down to the marshy ground from the porch. He rounded the corner of the house, using what trees he could find for cover. When he reached the back he searched the trees for the women, even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to see them in the thick mangrove growth.
A flash of movement caught his eye, and he realized there was a small beach to one side of the mangroves. They’d missed it on the way in. Two women huddled together on the small patch of ground, their backs to him, and an old man was pacing in front of them—the movement that had caught his attention—and wielding a knife.
The man began to speak, and Dallas strained to hear.
“You hear? They found...body...wretched Maria. You think you...run like Maria?” The old man’s voice grew louder, his movements more agitated. “No, no. You will stay here. You will be ready when the Wolf wants you. Maybe you’ll go live in Colombia, huh? They like pretty girls there. And at least you will get to live.”
Dallas shifted carefully to get a better view of the two women. Yes, one was Jose’s sister, Alicia, and the other must be Alma. He wished Tio would turn his back, giving Dallas a chance to rush him and take him down without shooting him. He needed to take Tio alive, so he could find out what the old man knew about the Wolf.
“I can try to distract him.”
Dallas heard the whisper at this back and turned to see Jose looking grim and determined.
The ghost strode toward the water, moving toward Tio—and then through him.
The old man swatted at his back, as if he thought there was a bug on him.
Jose began punching the man over and over, wafting through him to attack first from behind, then from the front, then from behind again.
Baffled, Tio spun around, trying to see what was happening.
Dallas took advantage of the split-second distraction and rushed forward, tackling Tio to the ground. The man was old, but he was a fighter. They struggled in the sand, and Dallas managed to break his grip on the knife. Then, when the old man looked up at him, he couldn’t resist.
He slammed him with a right hook to the jaw.
Tio was out.
Dallas slipped the plastic cuffs from his pocket, rolled the man over and secured his hands.
Tio wasn’t going anywhere.
The two women jumped to their feet and ran over to him, sobbing, talking at the same time, nearly knocking him over.
“I’m Agent Dallas Samson, and we’re going to get you out of here. Alicia Rodriguez?” he asked.
He didn’t need to. Jose was standing by her, trying to touch her, and he was sobbing, as well. His tears looked real.
The pretty brunette nodded. “And this is Alma White. Where did you come from? How? Do you know my brother, Jose? They told me he was dead, but—”
“I’m so sorry. Jose is dead. But he helped us find you,” Dallas said. “Now—”
He broke off when he heard the sound of a shot being fired.
And then a scream.
*
Hannah put down the gun and was desperately trying to figure out what to do next when Dirk grabbed her hair and twisted so hard she nearly cried out in pain. He dragged her in front of him as a human shield.