My father.
The bottom drops out of my world. My father. His name is on every document. I flip through the sheaf of papers as everything I thought I knew turns into one big lie.
The dates.
They go back years.
“What’s wrong?” Max places a hand on my shoulder.
I show him the documents as tears pool in my eyes. “My father.” I point to the damning evidence. “He’s in league with Benefield.”
“What?” Max takes the papers and flips through them. His eyes round as I grab at my stomach and sway on my feet.
“He’s in business with Benefield. They’re partners.”
Partners.
Suddenly, my kidnapping takes on a whole other meaning. Was the ransom just a lie? Did my father intend for me to become just one of the hundreds of Benefield’s victims? Is everything I thought I knew about my father a lie?
“Max…” The floor tips beneath me. The only reason I don’t fall is that Max wraps an arm around my waist. He holds me up. He grounds me. Max provides the only truth I know right now.
He’s here to rescue me. As for my father? Benefield? I take a shaky step back.
“I’ll figure all of this out.” Max turns me to face him. He grabs both my arms and gives the tiniest of shakes to get my attention. My tear-filled eyes greet his grim expression. “I’ve got you.” He stares deeply into my eyes. “Eve…I’ve got you.”
His words shake the foundation of my world. I believe him. This man who came into my life as the most monstrous of men is now the one who will save me. I trust Max. I believe him.
I’ve got you.
I cling to those words. They’re the only thing that makes sense right now.
He tucks the papers and the ledger inside his shirt, securing them in place. All expression is gone. Max, the cold, calculating warrior is once again in place.
I thought to take evidence of all the girls whose lives had been stolen in the hopes they could be found. Instead, I found evidence of my father’s betrayal.
I also found hope.
Twenty-Eight
Max
Time’s running out and this detour is messing with our extraction plans. Knox and I are supposed to be at the south wall. Instead, we’re rummaging around Benefield’s office finding the unspeakable.
Eve discovered an unsavory truth. Those papers, more so than this ledger she’s adamant we find, reveal a connection between her father and Benefield.
Carson Deverough’s in business with Benefield.
Even I, who’ve seen all manner of vile and disgusting things, struggle to frame what we found into something which makes sense.
The bills of lading span a five-year timeframe. Meticulous shipping records not of cargo, but human lives.
Her father.
Benefield.
Their signatures side by side.
It’s damning evidence.
But I have questions.
Her kidnapping? How does that work into this?
The ransom demands? Those make no sense.
Why would Benefield extort millions from Deverough if they’re in business together?
Money laundering? It’s the first thing that comes to mind.
Blackmail? That comes in as a close second.
It’s the most obvious answer, although the man Knox and I met in New Orleans certainly played the role of desperate father perfectly.
He was worried.
Scared.
He feared for his daughter’s safety.
It’s the kind of desperation that can’t be faked.
What’s the angle being played here?
Nothing we’re going to solve in the next few minutes. This is the kind of stuff we give to Mitzy to chew on until it makes sense. My job is to get Eve out alive, and I’m one hundred percent dedicated to that task.
A task I’m currently failing at achieving.
“Max,” Knox calls out, telling me we’re running out of time. “We’ll miss exfil if we don’t step up the pace.”
Our operation is planned down to the minute. If we don’t make our window, we’ll be left here without support.
I turn to Eve. “You with me?”
She returns a shaky nod, telling me she totally doesn’t have her head in the game. I need to get her attention and shake her out of this trance.
I grip her arms and force her to look me in the eye. “All of this…” I tap my shirt, where I stuffed the damning evidence. “We’ll deal with it later. Right now, I need to get you out of here. I need you focused.”
The stare she returns is one of turmoil. Eve isn’t on board; she’s barely hanging on.
That’s okay with me. I’m trained in dealing with unwilling hostages. If I have to sling her over my shoulders and carry her out, I’ll do it.
I snap my fingers in front of her face. Eve blinks. It’s the slowest, most ponderous movement I’ve ever seen, but it works. A veil lifts between us. Her vision clears. Her eyes focus. Eve sees me. She trusts me. Talk about a sledgehammer hitting my heart. Her trust hits me where it counts.
If only she could look at me that way with something more than desperation. I’d give everything to have her look at me with affection instead. Desire for her rushes through my body. It’s carnal, needy, and undeniable.
And there goes the kind of stray thought which is dangerous.
Thinking about a relationship right now is not where I need to focus. Not that she’d ever want me. Time to bite the bullet and accept the hand I’ve been dealt. Mission first.
Get her out alive.
I focus on that.
“Eve…” I grab her arms and shake her, “you with me?”
Another slow blink, but her vision clears. Her lips press together. Eve looks at me with the grit and determination I’ve learned to expect from the strength of her character. This girl is a survivor.
“I’m getting you out of here.”
“Okay.” She moves toward the door. The door Knox guards. “We need to head to the west wall.”
“Exfil is to the South.” Knox gives a shake of his head, dismissing Eve’s instructions.
She looks at him. “I don’t know what ‘exfil’ means, but we’re closest to the western fence. There’s a gap where an animal tried to break through the fence. Benefield’s men haven’t mended it yet. I don’t think they know it’s there, and the cameras don’t look that way.”
“Are you sure about this?” I grip her arms, tight, still kind of giving her a hard shake. If her mind’s not in the game, it could mean certain death for us.
“Sure as I can be. A pig, or a tarpon, doesn’t matter. It dug a trench through the stream, pushed up the bottom edge. It’s covered by a bush growing over the stream. It’s been there for weeks. Either he doesn’t know about it, or he doesn’t care. Either way, we’re closer to the western fence than the southern wall. What does exfil mean?”
“It means that’s where our team expects us to meet them.” Knox looks to me like I’m crazy to contemplate Eve’s suggestion.
I turn to Eve. “What’s between us and the southern wall?”
“His whole army, I suppose. Honestly, I don’t know, except he doesn’t guard the western approach like he does the southern exposure. It’s all heavy jungle that way. Nobody moves through the jungle. It’s impassable.”