Logan ran toward Kodiak, smiling triumphantly as she patted the fanny pack fastened securely around her waist and gave him a thumbs-up. Her smile faded and her steps faltered briefly when he raised his arm and aimed his gun at a point over her shoulder. She ducked and turned her head to see Lucca emerging from the tent. It occurred to her that, true to his word, her husband had her back again, as always.

Lucca saw the gun too and hit the deck, rolling across the ground and effectively ruining Kodiak’s shot. Kodiak grabbed Logan’s arm and pulled her onto the bike behind him. As much as he wanted to stay and finish the job, he would have to leave the killing to the Sinaloans.

As the engine roared to life, he and Logan took off and were soon careening down the narrow path that would eventually take them out of the jungle and, with any luck, to civilization once more.

“Hang on, girl!” Kodiak yelled over his shoulder as he shifted gears. His words were lost on the wind as the Ducati surged forward.

He leaned into a sharp curve and Logan followed his lead. Her trust in him was absolute. They were on a steep downward slope so even the slightest wrong move on her part would mean disaster. She understood the seriousness of their current circumstances: if their enemies caught them, they’d die; if the motorcycle went over the edge of the ravine, they’d die. Neither of them had any intention of dying today.

“Hang on!” he shouted again, tilting his head slightly toward Logan but keeping his eyes on the road. “Baby, you and I aren’t going home without that fucking canary diamond.” Kodiak was determined to come through for his father and get his wife home to Louisville safely.

She still couldn’t hear him over the wind as it whipped through her hair, but she got the gist of it. “Bogota, here we come!” she laughed, nearly euphoric from the adrenalin pumping through her veins.

This was already one hell of an adventure and it was just getting started. They wanted to be the ones to get that diamond back to Glazov, and once a Glazov put their mind to something there was no stopping them. This exhilarating moment with her husband was all she’d ever wanted. She was happy to be alive—even if it only lasted a few more moments.

 Right now, they just needed to make it to Bogota in one piece. Eventually, they made it to a primitively cleared road that was considerably wider than the path they had followed from the campsite.

“We’ve got company,” Kodiak yelled an hour later as he checked his side mirror. Word of their dramatic exit must have spread. There was no way the beat-up truck that was following them was going to catch up to them, but speed was an adrenaline rush they couldn’t resist.

They lost track of time as the sun rose and they left the truck and the jungle far behind. Eventually, they began to see signs of civilization and scattered traffic, but the surge of adrenaline continued unabated.

“I’ve never been so glad to get out of a jungle,” Logan sighed dramatically.

He glanced back at her. “You got something to tell me, baby? Making a habit of outrunning bad guys in the jungle?”

Logan nuzzled the back of his neck, biting down lightly as a grin curved her lips. “Yeah, right. You know what I mean.”

Aurora and her team hit the jungle floor running. Gunfire turned the campsite into a warzone, and Oleg and Roksana struggled to tell the good guys and the bad guys apart.

When the perimeter was secured, Samuel called in their coordinates and waited for the helicopter to arrive. They got to work searching the emerald shipment for the rumored drug stash. Since the group had set up camp at one of X’s larger clearings, the helicopter landed with room to spare, although the wind and debris it kicked up as it arrived made it seem like the wrath of God had descended on them and meant business.

With impressive efficiency, Aurora’s men began loading large packets of cocaine into the helicopter while the Ramirez brothers’ crew handled the emeralds. She wasn’t happy that the two men responsible for this fuckup were missing but she would worry about that later.

She had paid off the authorities, which would ensure she and the drugs made it to Mexico with no government interference. After they delivered the drugs to her ‘production facility’, she was planning a special trip to the States to meet with Glazov and the Ramirez brothers. A smile crossed her lips at the thought of possibly encountering Escondido along the way. The thought of his hands on her body as he moved inside her sent a thrill of anticipation down her spine.

“Why, Dante.” The words slid off her tongue like melted butter with just a hint of sarcasm as she addressed the man Escondido had sent to track her and ensure her safety. “Why am I not surprised to find you here?”

“Escondido sends his regards.”

“I’m sure he does.”

“He has asked me to convey a message. He expects you to come to him when you have concluded this operation. He has set time aside after your meeting with the heads of the other cartels.”

“Well, I don’t know, I’ll have to look at my schedule.”

Dante’s face remained impassive. “Go to him or not, I don’t care. But you know perfectly well that he’ll take you if you don’t go willingly.”

If Dante was trying to scare her, it was having the opposite effect. The thought of Escondido taking her by force was a powerful aphrodisiac to a woman like her. She spent her days always in control as she built her empire. Surrendering control to him, even if only for a few hours, was always intoxicating. If Escondido wanted to play, fine; she would give him more than he bargained for.

Her decision made, she strode away, tossing the words over her shoulder defiantly, “Dante, you can convey a message for me. I’m a big girl. I can handle him. After all, I’ve been doing it for years.”

Two days later, Aurora sat in the chair across from Glazov’s desk, supremely confident to be keeping company with some of the most dangerous gangsters in the world. She had an agenda today and she wasn’t the kind of woman who was easily deterred from achieving her goals.

Novak exhaled irritably, shifting restlessly in his seat. Lately he’d been feeling like beating the shit out of somebody and it was becoming a distraction. He had hoped he would be able to get his hands on one of the Colombian traitors but that hadn’t worked out after all. He was more than a little disappointed.

As he considered the woman so many feared, he couldn’t help but feel some respect for her. She worked in a man’s world, after all, and she had far surpassed the success of the men who made the mistake of underestimating her. The only person she hadn’t been able to surpass in matters of business was Escondido.

She was a beauty. Her long dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail that accentuated sultry, strong features. Novak found her vivid green eyes particularly intriguing. Though he wasn’t one to go around checking out other women, there was a certain kind of strength about this one that demanded respect. She was dressed in black leather pants and a form-fitting black leather jacket. Her only jewelry was a pair of large gold hoop earrings. She kept her makeup simple, keeping the emphasis on her lush, blood-red, pouty lips.

Glazov’s voice cut through Novak’s appraisal of the woman. “Aurora, you have my gratitude for ensuring the safe arrival of my emeralds; however, there is still the matter of Lucca and Marco being on the run.”

“I would say that’s the Colombians’ problem and not something you need to be concerned with...sir.”

Though her look was direct, she was savvy enough to demurely lower her gaze when faced with Glazov’s unblinking stare. It was a delicate dance to do business with the Pakhan. One needed to exhibit quiet strength and just the right amount of deference without appearing to be coy. She could only hope her use of ‘sir’ would work in her favor.

“I would be inclined to agree with you if not for the fact that my son and daughter-in-law are still in Colombia. They have not shown up in Bogota yet, so we wait. If he crosses the path of the two men who have caused us so many problems, I doubt Kodiak will be inclined to pass the hit off to another organization. He likes to handle things himself.”

Aurora bristled at the implied insult. “If the traitors get their brains blown out for their disloyalty and stupidity, that’s their problem.”

She jumped as Glazov’s fist hit the desk so hard that the items on it rattled and shook. Novak stifled a snicker. Maybe that would knock her down a notch or two. Though she wasn’t exactly being disrespectful, the woman was being too damn confident. She needed to recognize she was on someone else’s turf. And not just anyone: the Pakhan.

“Sir…I meant no disrespect,” she purred. “But emotions have no place in business, and certainly not in situations that are beyond our control. Now, we have two men on the run; we have no idea where they are or who will find them first.”

This time it was Novak who answered her, drawling, “So we’ve got a first-come-first-kill situation?”

“Pretty much,” she agreed in a serious tone.

“Well, one thing’s for sure,” Glazov interjected coolly, “with the cartel hunting them down, they can’t stay in hiding for long.”

Glazov didn’t reveal that arrangements had been made for a bodyguard to watch over Kodiak and Logan once they arrived in Bogota, and he most certainly didn’t reveal that the man had inside information on the two missing men’s stash house, which was being watched already. Aurora would find out soon enough when his son succeeded where she had failed.

The Pakhan had never been one to reveal the aces he always seemed to have hidden up his sleeve. And he saw no need to start now.