“Well, let's see how he likes it when his man comes back to him in a body bag.” Atlas unbuttoned his suit jacket and casually sank his hands into his trouser pockets. “But before that, I have some questions.”
“I don’t have any answers,” Cam said.
“You will tell me what I want to know, Mr. Ramirez.” Atlas snapped his fingers and pointed to one of his men.
One of the guards slid spiked brass knuckles onto his fist. Cam struggled, but his bonds held. He waited for the first blow, lifting his eyes to his captor, who was staring back at him with a peculiar expression on his face. Cam noticed a small red spot appear in the middle of Atlas's white dress shirt. Slowly, it bloomed. A moment later, Atlas March dropped to his knees before collapsing dead onto the floor. Cam's gaze shot to the room's entrance, where a man in black tactical gear with a balaclava covering his face fired two more suppressed shots. The guards fell at Cam's feet.
The man entered the room, bypassed Cam, and set his pack on a table. “You Miguel Ramirez?”
Cam remained silent. The man withdrew a karambit from the duffle. The black curved blade was lethal, and Cam knew it took years to master the knife's use. “I was told I’d know you when I saw you—the eyes,” the man said, tapping the tip of the weapon to his cheek.
Cam stared at the wall. “Yes.”
The man stepped in front of him and, with impressive expertise, cut the ropes. “You’re free to go.”
“I don’t understand.” Cam rubbed his wrists.
“I was instructed not to kill you. I’m not killing you. The man I work for said to tell you; you can thank your scar-faced friend.”
“Who do you work for?” Cam asked.
The man returned to the pack and started pulling out bricks of C4. “Someone who doesn’t like competition. Go. Now. You have about twenty minutes.”
Evan. Cam snapped up the comm device and inserted it as he raced out of the room. “Tox, Steady? You copy?”
“What's your status?” Tox barked.
Cam spoke as he raced through the tunnels. “Atlas March is dead, and the mine is wired to blow. Get everybody clear. I don’t have an exact count, but call it T minus fifteen to be safe. Move the rendezvous point beyond the low hills to the west. That should be clear of the blast zone. I’m getting Evan, and we’ll meet you there.”
“Good copy. Out.”
Back at the storeroom, he pulled the steel cabinet away from the wall. When he saw the rocks stacked haphazardly in the entrance to the treasure cave, he wanted to shout for joy. She was here. To abate her fear, he spoke through the small gaps.
“Evan? It's Cam. I’m coming in. Don’t nail me with a rock or anything, okay?”
A tiny voice replied. “Okay.”
Cam pushed away the rocks and barreled through the small hole like the hulk. It was pitch black, the lanterns from the storage room casting a sliver of light near the entrance. Cam switched on his flashlight and scanned the small space. There, sitting by a wide puddle, was Evan. She was smiling.
She scrambled over to him, and he fell back on his ass, lifting her into his lap. No words escaped before his lips found hers. The kiss was filled with passion, relief, concern, and, most of all, hope. Cam deepened the kiss, their tongues dancing. He lost himself as they melded. It wasn’t a zing he felt. It was a fucking sonic boom.
He pulled her body closer, deepened the kiss further. All he could think in that moment was, I love her.
He broke the kiss and cradled her head into the crook of his neck. This was madness. How could he love this woman? Then she pulled back, and her cinnamon gaze met his alight with happiness. “I was really hoping you’d show up.”
How could he not love her?
The words were on his lips when she said the one thing that drew his declaration to a screeching halt. “All I kept thinking this whole time was I wish Miguel were here.”
Cam pulled back like he’d been stung. Miguel. He schooled his expression and smoothed her hair. “Come on. We gotta get out of this mine.”
“But first…” Evan reached into the side pocket of her pants and withdrew a rock. Cam stared at it.
“Oh, wait, no. This is an actual rock.” She held it in her fist. “I stuck it in there in case I needed, you know…” She swung the rock down through the air. “Whack any bad guys.”
She replaced it in the side pocket of her cargo pants and withdrew another. “This is what I wanted to show you.”
It was round like a geode and the size of a baseball. He saw nothing of note in the dim light.