Free Seduced by His Target by Gail Barrett Page B

outside of town was an airstrip, a coffee-colored slash carved out of the jungle, a simple dirt runway with half a dozen warehouses sprawled nearby. The planes picked up the paste and flew it to Colombia to the cocaine processing labs.
    Aside from the airstrip, the town didn’t consist of much, only a few unpaved roads lined with wooden shacks. The bulk of the buildings hugged the river snaking through the valley floor, its sluggish water the same muddy brown as the anacondas lurking in the jungle nearby.
    “So what’s the plan?” Henry asked, meeting her gaze.
    She shot a quick glance back at their captors, but they were still busy doing their prayers. “We need to make a break for it when we reach the town.”
    His gray eyebrows gathered into a frown. “You don’t think we can reason with them? I thought they wanted a ransom.”
    She hesitated, not wanting to confess the truth, that these men were going to kill him because of her. Knowing Henry, he’d try to do something heroic to help her, sacrificing himself to keep her safe. “That’s what I thought at first, but I heard... I got the impression they might harm us when we reach the town.”
    “That doesn’t make sense. Why did they kidnap us then?”
    “You’re right. It doesn’t make any sense.” And neither did the hope she couldn’t quite extinguish, that Rasheed might still turn out to be a good guy and come to their aid. Exasperated, she pushed him out of her mind. “But even if they don’t hurt us, once we get into the jungle it’s going to be harder to escape. We could get lost and wander around for weeks. This could be our only chance.”
    Henry’s gaze held hers, his blue eyes thoughtful now. “Is there something you’re not telling me? I get the impression that there’s more to this kidnapping than you’ve let on.”
    “Of course not.” She tried to sound convincing. “I’m just saying that we need to escape when we reach the town.”
    “All right.” His eyes still doubtful, he looked toward the valley again. “You think we can find someone to help us?”
    “I doubt it. The drug cartel probably controls the town. Most of the people probably work for them. And the ones who don’t will be too afraid to help.”
    “So what do you suggest?”
    Considering that, she studied the town. She couldn’t see a highway leading out of the jungle. People arrived mainly by plane or boat. And since the drug smugglers operated the airplanes...
    “We need to get on a boat.”
    “How? I don’t have any money, do you?”
    “No,” she admitted, her own doubts mounting. “Maybe we can stow away.”
    A soft thud sounded behind her. Tensing, she jerked around. Rasheed. He stood with his hands braced on his hips, his piercing gaze skewering hers. “It’s time to go.”
    Uneasy, she bit her lip. Had he overheard them? Would he try to stop them if he had? She tried to read his expression, but as usual, she couldn’t glean any clues.
    “So soon?” She hedged. “Can’t we stay here and rest a little longer?” She needed more time to plan.
    “No. We need to go.”
    The other men headed toward them, the purpose in their steps impossible to miss. This was it—the moment of truth. Her time was finally up. In a few short hours they’d reach Buena Fortuna, and she’d have one chance, one shot to help Henry escape.
    And if she failed, her friend would die.
    * * *
    By the time they arrived at Buena Fortuna three hours later, Nadine’s stomach was in total rebellion, her nerves wound so tightly she wanted to retch. She scanned the murky river gliding past, the hodgepodge of boats thronging its shore—rafts, canoes, thatch-roofed vessels piled high with cargo of every sort. Wooden huts crowded the banks, perched haphazardly on logs, as if they’d washed ashore during a flood and gotten marooned in the debris.
    They crossed the wooden bridge into town, the stench of rotting garbage strong in the air. Barefoot children stared at them from the