Chapter 19
Jasper
I couldn’t stand lying in this hospital bed a second longer. I didn’t give a fuck that my head was pounding, my leg hurt like a bastard, and my ribs felt like someone beat me with a baseball bat. I’d been here for hours, and the longer they ignored my demands, the angrier I became. I had so many questions, but no one would answer them. Where the hell was Alysa? Was she okay? God, tell me she’s okay.
When the nurse came in to check my vitals, I grabbed hold of her arm. The look on her face said I was hurting her. I didn’t mean to, but no way in hell was I releasing her until she talked.
“Where is Alysa LaHouse?” I barked.
“Please let me go. I told you, I don’t know who you are talking about,” she said, trying to get free.
“She was in the SUV with me when we crashed,” I growled. At least, I think we crashed. Why else would I be here in the hospital with a broken leg and cracked ribs? The last thing I remembered was Alysa yelling something before the SUV went rolling over. There was nothing after that.
“Mr. Florraz, there was no one with you when they found you,” she said.
She had to be lying. “We were on our way to the airport. She was sitting with me and…and James Burke was driving.” If they didn’t know Alysa, maybe James could tell me what the hell happened to her.
“Do you know who that is?” Once again, she shook her head. Frustrated, I let go of her arm. I wasn’t going to get any answers here. “Get me the doctor,” I said. She didn’t move, so I barked, “Now!”
She jumped back and rushed out of my room. I’d feel bad later, but right now, I didn’t care if I made every nurse cry, I needed to find Alysa.
When the door opened again, Logan Henderson and his brother Alex came in. It was going to take more than the two of them to stop me from leaving. “If you’re coming to tell me to calm the fuck down, you can forget it.”
“That’s not why we’re here,” Alex said.
Logan stepped closer. “Alysa is not here.”
My heart was racing. “Not here like…not alive? Or not here like…she boarded the jet?” I held my breath hoping she was on her way anywhere far from here.
He looked down and me and said, “We don’t know where she is. Both she and Burke are missing.”
I felt like my chest had been torn open and someone was squeezing the fuck out of my heart. “You know damn well who has her. That bastard Ocalla. You’ve got to get me out of here so I can find her.”
Alex said, “They are looking for them now.”
“Who? The police that probably are on his payroll?” I snarled. There were some good ones, but I wasn’t foolish enough to believe that they would stand up against Ocalla alone. If they tried, they’d be killed. It’s how Ocalla ran shit. It’s what I was trying to stop.
“Bennett Stone and his team are handling it,” Alex said. “They are going to find them,” he added.
Dead or alive?I knew what kind of person Ocalla was. If Ocalla took them, it was for one purpose only, to show Tabiq who was in power. And it’s not me. Not the Hendersons.
Alysa’s life was at stake. I hated it, but it was time for me to swallow my pride, pick a side. If I picked Ocalla and stopped fighting everything he stands for, he might let Alysa go, but it was highly unlikely that he’d do the same for James. One thing Ocalla hated more than me was the American military. They represented the thing Ocalla had lacked. Honor.
James may no longer be active duty in the Marines, but that would mean nothing to Ocalla. Hell, Burke’s probably dead already.
There was a knock on the door and Ziva popped her head inside. “Can I come in?” she asked.
Why not? It’s not like anyone cares what I have to say.I nodded and she came walking over to me. She leaned over and in my ear whisper in Tabiqian, “For the love of Tabiq, and all those who have paid the price fighting for our freedom, I beg you to trust them.”
I was raised hearing the name James Henderson. It struck fear in anyone who had a female child. He might be dead but now Ziva wants me to trust his offspring to save the someone I’ve come to care deeply about? That was asking too much. Besides, they don’t trust me anymore than I do them.
I looked up at her, and she added, “For Alysa, trust them.”
I had to give Ziva credit, she knew what to say. If it wasn’t for Alysa, I wouldn’t even be considering teaming up with them.
Logan asked Alex, “What is she saying to him?”
“I don’t know. And honestly, I don’t need to,” Alex said.