“Hold still.” Someone was pushing him down.

“Got to get to her,” Zed punched out with his left fist and felt a satisfying crunch.

“Dammit, how in the hell is he even conscious? Hold him down so I can get some morphine into him.”

“Where is she?” Zed croaked out. His head, neck, and right arm felt like they were on fire, and he couldn’t see anything, but where was Marcia?

“I’m here. Zed, I’m here.” Why did she sound so far away?

He tried to move his right arm again, and when that didn’t work, he tried to pull his legs in, so he could kick out.

“Watch it! Strap him down.”

Why couldn’t he see anything?

“Can you hear me?” It was Marcia’s voice.

A woman was screaming. “Marcia, why are you screaming?”

“It isn’t me, Zed. It’s one of the women from the tourist camp. There are four injured people.”

“Alice?” he asked.

“Raymond took Alice on the other helicopter.” He could hear the tears in her voice.

“Don’t cry.”

“Quit trying to talk. Every time you do the bandage on your neck gets bloodier. Why is he still awake?” she said shrilly.

Ah dammit. He’d felt this before. This was not the first time he’d been drugged up when he’d been injured. He tried to force his eyes open again. “Get to Brockman,” it was the last words he said, then he was lulled to sleep by the hum of the helicopter.

* * *

Sunlight. Drapes. Flowers.

Well, he wasn’t aboard the USS Ronald Reagan that was for damn sure. He must be stateside. Just how bad had he been wounded? It hurt when he turned his head. Didn’t stop him though. Might as well start his physical therapy now. He saw Hunter look up from a magazine.

“Aliana’s going to be upset that she missed you waking up. She just went to the bathroom.”

“So, the flowers aren’t from you? I’m hurt.”

“Look closer, there are three bouquets. And no, none of them are from me.” Then Hunter grimaced and got out of his chair and strode over to the windowsill. “Shit, Alia signed my name to the arrangement she brought.”

“Hell Hunter, even I knew that was going to happen.”

“You sound like shit.” Hunter picked up the glass with the straw and brought it to Zed, so he could take a sip.

“I know I’ve been told things before. I kind of remember the surgeon talking to me on the Reagan after surgery. But it’s vague. Can you fill me in?”

He remembered being on the helicopter. Marcia, she’d been safe. He hadn’t been able to see her, but he’d heard her. He’d asked about her when he came out of surgery. They’d laughed because apparently, he’d asked often. She’d been shipped stateside.

“You almost died.”

“I didn’t, so it doesn’t count. Any permanent damage?”

Hunter chuckled. “Isn’t your real question, when can you get back to the teams?”

Sometimes it sucked to have people who knew you so well. Zed nodded, then grimaced at the pain.

“No permanent damage. Not even to your vocal chords. However, got to admit, right now, you’re sounding kind of sexy.”

“Teams?”

“Doc said full recovery, duty ready in four to six weeks. You have some ligament damage on your right shoulder, not to mention your neck is fucked up.”

“Didn’t know fucked up was a diagnosis.”

“Talk to your doctor if you want something more precise. It’s your shoulder shit that’s going to require rehab.”

“Got it,” Zed grinned. “Now fill me in on the mission.”

The door pushed open, and Aliana Novak, Hunter’s soon-to-be-wife stepped into the room. She gave Zed a warm smile. “You’re awake. We’ve been so worried about you.” She came up to his bed and adjusted the sheet. “Do you need some water? What can I get you?”

“What do you want to get for me, Alia?” Zed gave her a slow smile, loving the way she blushed.

“Quit giving my fiancé a hard time,” Hunter admonished as he walked up and put his arm around Aliana. She stood up straight and shrugged out of Hunter’s hold.

“Zed, what I want to get for you is a quick kick in the ass for getting injured and worrying my man.”

Zed laughed. He liked this new level of spunk. It reminded him of Marcia. He looked over at Hunter. Now, Marcia he could safely ask about in front of Aliana.

“Where’s Marcia? She was injured too.”

“She’s still in town answering questions,” Hunter answered carefully.

“How long have I been here? How many days have they been asking her questions?” Zed pushed himself up on the bed as well as he was able.

“You probably shouldn’t be moving. Aliana rushed forward. “You’ve only been here since last night.”

He continued to prop himself up on his elbows and squint at Hunter. “How long has Marcia been in custody?”

Hunter got up and draped his arm around Aliana. “Zed, get real, she’s not in custody. She’s nobody’s prisoner. She’s just answering a few questions.”

“How many days?” Zed asked again in a low rumble.

Hunter looked down at Aliana.

“Uhm,” Hunter hesitated.

“This is my signal to leave,” Aliana sighed softly. “Zed, I’m so glad you’re feeling better.” She turned to Hunter and kissed his cheek. “Don’t wear him out,” she said forcefully. “I don’t care how much information he wants, he needs his rest.”

She headed for the door, and Zed remembered his manners. “Aliana,” Zed called out.

She turned and smiled at him. “Yes?”

“Thanks for the flowers.”

“It was Hunter’s idea,” she said as she walked out the door.

“She’s been hanging out with the team more, hasn’t she?” Zed chuckled wryly.

“Yep. She’s turning into a smartass,” Hunter grinned broadly.

“Now, tell me, how many days has Marcia been answering questions?”

“What happened out in the jungle between you and Marcia Price?” Hunter countered.

“That’s not relevant. Just answers my question.” Zed’s strength gave out and his head hit the pillow. Hunter leaned over and adjusted the bed, so Zed was in more of a sitting position,

“Is that better?” Hunter asked.

“Answer my goddamn question.”

“She’s been answering questions since she got stateside which was three days ago. Brockman didn’t know what was going on with her because she didn’t tell him, and all he cared about was getting home to Virginia, so his youngest daughters could visit him in the hospital there. I’m sure if he was running on all cylinders, he would have put a stop to Homeland Security putting the screws to Marcia.”

“Why did they?”

“As soon as she mentioned a man named Jefferies, all bets were off. He’s way above our pay grade.” Hunter picked up the cup again and started to put the straw to Zed’s lips.

“Give that to me.”

Hunter chuckled and carefully placed the cup in Zed’s hand.

Zed grimaced when his hand trembled as he held the cup and straw one handed up to his mouth. His other damn arm was useless because it was connected to an IV and some kind of space-aged monitoring system. Hunter took the cup back and placed it on the nightstand when Zed was through, then pulled up a chair and sat down.

“I want a report on everyone who was injured.”

“Aye aye,” Hunter saluted.

Zed just stared at him.

“Brockman was in bad shape by the time he hit the Reagan. He ended up needing a portion of his lung removed. He was in surgery for seven hours whereas you were in surgery for one-and-a-half.”

“I saw two people die at the tourist camp.”

“Five total.”

“Tell me.”

“After you were hit, Raymond took the woman who operated the camp as a hostage onto their helicopter. He wanted Marcia who he still thought was Lesley Brockman, but you protected her. So, he took the other woman instead and that was the reason our Seahawk didn’t shoot down their Mi helicopter. The only fucking reason. Everyone knew she was going to die, but we just couldn’t do it ourselves.”

Zed thought back to those moments right before he was hit. He remembered covering Marcia with his body, he remembered shooting, then the bullet slamming into him, and praying nothing had hit the woman under him. He also remembered Raymond still holding Alice by the neck and backing up toward the Mi Helicopter, the fucker.

“I understand why they didn’t shoot down the helicopter with Alice on it. It was the right decision.” Hunter reached over and plucked the empty glass from Zed’s hand. “I remember Marcia on the Seahawk, and there was somebody else crying, another woman’s voice. I thought I heard Nurul.”

“The native woman?” Hunter asked. “The one with the baby?”

“Yeah, that’s her.”

“Marcia threw a fit when our guys were going to leave without her. Made them go and get her. There were also four more injured at the camp, one a child who came aboard the Seahawk and taken to the aircraft carrier. One of the men didn’t make it.”

“Did you find Alice?”

Hunter rested his elbows on his knees and looked down at the floor.

“Just tell me what happened.”

“The pilot of the Seahawk reported he saw a body being thrown from the Mi. They were too far away to do anything, and he was still in the process of taking on wounded.”

Both men sat in silence for a while.

“Did we get some kind of idea of where they ended up?” Zed asked.

“They flew too low,” Hunter shook his head. “They were headed toward Sandakan. All of our ships were deployed on the Northwest side of Borneo. We have people on the look-out.”

Zed knew there were a lot of places the helicopter could land, and there were a lot of inlets along the coast where they could easily get a boat.

“How long was the debriefing?”

“Marcia’s was the longest since she spent all that extra time with Felix Raymond. She’s due to be on her way home to Virginia tomorrow.”

“Where’s she going to stay?”

“You still haven’t told me what she means to you,” Hunter said.

“She is just someone I rescued. Now answer the question.”

“Look Zed, I didn’t get her life story, okay. I just know that she’s due back in Virginia. I heard Brockman’s daughters are being taken care of by their aunt and uncle. There was something about an older sister who is in rehab for heroin. I only know this shit because Dex runs his mouth. Okay? If you need more info, go talk to him.”

Zed blew out a deep breath. It still didn’t tell him what he needed to know about Marcia. He thought she lived with the Brockmans, but he really wasn’t sure, and it really bothered him. But why should it?

“Zed, I’m going to ask again, and not just for my edification, but also for you. What does this woman mean to you?”

He looked at this man who was one of his oldest friends and answered honestly, “A lot. She means one hell of a lot. If you ask me why, I couldn’t really explain it.”

Hunter stared at him for a long minute, then nodded. “I can accept that. You’ve always been a bit of a spooky bastard.”

Zed barked out a laugh. “So how many days before I can blow this popsicle stand?”

Hunter leaned over and hit Zed’s call button. “Once the nurse lets your doctor know you’re conscious, she’ll give you an ETA. I was going to tell you the doctor was hot, but I don’t expect that matters anymore, right?”

“You’d be right, it doesn’t matter.” His focus was elsewhere.

* * *

Marcia disconnected her call. Vi had sounded like her usual upbeat self and was in the process of retiring from her job as a teacher. She would be a great help. She rolled her neck and wondered when the pain would stop. It was either her leg or her head that was hurting, and she’d be damned if she was going to take another one of those prescribed pain pills. Nothing but Tylenol for this girl. But man, she hurt, and the doctor said she could expect this for the next week!

She pushed up from the hotel bed and eyed the clock. She eyed the Uber app on her phone, the car was five minutes away. Based on her hobbling speed, she’d just make it to the lobby in time to meet him. Visiting hours weren’t going to last much longer. Too bad Frick and Frack had taken so long with her ‘debriefing’ today. Just how many times could they ask a question in a different way? You would have thought that she was a criminal or something.

She was so mad, she tried to slam her hotel room door shut, but in the end, she just couldn’t bring herself to do it. Somebody might be trying to rest. Then when she started stomping toward the elevator, she just ended up hurting herself.

Yay for team Price, what an idiot.

At least punching the button a bunch of times for the elevator didn’t hurt her.

“In a hurry?”

A tall man dressed in a suit was smiling down at her. But it was the wrong tall man. He didn’t have dark eyes, high cheekbones or warm caramel skin, and his smile didn’t make her melt.

“Just trying to get to the hospital before visiting hours are over with,” Marcia answered.

“Family?” he asked.

His voice didn’t rumble. He could be quiet any time now as far as she was concerned. She pressed the button again, letting her hair hide her face. “Nope, a friend.”

He shut up.

The elevator opened, and they waited in an awkward silence until they got to the lobby, Marcia did her best not to limp as she headed to the front. Her car was waiting. It was good it wasn’t cold in San Diego, she only had a light coat. She’d gotten some clothes from someone on the aircraft carrier and a few more here in San Diego. How they had managed to get her ID, bank card, and a replacement phone so fast, she had no idea, but she wasn’t just dealing with the military, she was dealing with Homeland Security.

“Lady, are you listening to me? Where to?”

She gave the address for the US Naval hospital she’d memorized.

Now that she was on her way to see Zed, she was nervous. The man was a SEAL, he probably had women throwing themselves at him all the time. What were they called? Buckle Bunnies? Nope, that was for girls who liked the men in the rodeo. Silly Putty! Lesley knew this kind of thing. She always knew things.

Frog Hogs!

Her palms started to sweat. Please say Zed wasn’t going to think she was following him around like some swooning woman.

Buckle up, Buttercup. Stop this. Marcia wiped her hands on her jeans and sat up straighter in the back of the car. You don’t feel good, and those men hadn’t been doing a darn thing for her self-esteem. Why did they question her like she was some kind of conspirator when she’d been a victim? She’d wished Mr. B. hadn’t been still in the hospital, he wouldn’t have allowed this.

Then there was the fact they wouldn’t tell her what had been going on with Nurul. It wasn’t until she refused to open her mouth for three hours, they finally told her that Hana was doing fine and recovering. They didn’t tell her where though. If it weren’t for the fact she needed to see Zed, she would have just taken a flight home today.

“We’re here.”

She looked around and realized they were in front of the hospital. She dug in her pocket for some bills to tip the man. She didn’t even have a purse. She needed to get home. She wanted her own clothes, her own things. But.

Marcia walked into reception. “I’m here to visit Zed Zaragoza.” She shifted as they looked on the computer, her leg hurting.

“We don’t have a Zed, but we have a Dante Zaragoza, is that who you’re looking for?”

“Uhm, yes,” Marcia nodded. How many Zaragoza’s could there be at the hospital.

“He’s on the third floor. Visiting hours are going to be over in an hour,” the woman warned her.

“Thank you.” Marcia headed for the elevator.

Once again, she pressed the button multiple times. She didn’t have much time and wanted to make the most time with Zed. Oops, Dante. What the heck? Dante? Oh yeah, he’d introduced himself as Dante in the jungle. That’d seemed like a lifetime ago.

“Hey, there.” Strong arms steadied her as she rolled back on her feet. She looked up and for a moment she thought it was Zed. Marcia frowned as she realized that it was another big Hispanic-American man.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she smiled tentatively. It was the eyes. Their eyes were the same. “Do you know Zed?” she asked.

“Marcia?” he asked. “I’m Hunter Diaz.”

“Zed talked about you,” Marcia grinned.

“Let’s go on up, I’ll show you to his room.”

“It’s three-twenty-eight, right? I think I can find it on my own,” she assured him and stepped around him to enter the elevator. He held it open and pulled out his wallet. What was he doing?

“Take my card,” he said. “If you need anything, anything at all, give me a call.”

She took it out of his hand. “That’s really nice of you, but I’ll be fine Hunter.”

“You never know. Just think of me as a Zed stand-in until he’s up on his feet.”

The man might look a little like Zed Zaragoza, but there is no way he could compete. “Yeah sure,” Marcia said as she shoved his card into her pants pocket.

He gave her a slow smile that got really wide.

“What?” she asked defensively.

“I’m just thinking, it must have been an interesting time in the jungle.”

“Can you let the door go?” she scowled. “There isn’t that much time for visiting.”

“It was nice meeting you, Ms. Price,” Hunter said as he let the door close.

She watched the numbers as they turned over to three and thought about Hunter Diaz. What had all that been about? Well, at least he had been nicer than the suits she’d been dealing with for the last three days. When she got out of the elevator, she hustled down the hall as best she could to Zed’s room. His door was closed, so she knocked.

“Come in.”

Yep, it was him, she recognized that rumble from her dreams. Her straight white teeth bit into her lower lip as she considered that. What was she doing dreaming about his voice? She shook her head and opened the door. As soon as she saw him, relief poured through her. He was awake, and his black eyes were bright as he looked at her.

“Marcia,” he grinned broadly. “I planned to track you down.” He held out his hand to her. As if there was a magnet in his hand, and she was made of steel, she grasped it. He pulled her so she fell against him, his strong arm holding her as her face pressed against his cheek.

“Watch out. You’re hurt.”

“The bandage is on the other side,” he said gruffly. He was right, so she nuzzled against his neck, breathing him in. It was stupid. This wasn’t the reason she was here. She just wanted to say thank you, but there was no way she was going to leave his embrace.

“Hey. Hey. Are you okay?”

Darn it. She was getting his neck wet. She tried to pull away, but his arm held her in place. “Let me go.”

“Marcia, what is it?”

She pulled up enough, so she could look into his eyes. “I’m just emotional. It was a lot, you know?”

“Explain it to me,” he requested softly.

“I should have died at least five thousand times, but you saved me.”

“The way I remember it, you saved yourself. And you saved Nurul and Hana. You’re a hero.”

She bit her lip, and his eyes flickered down to watch, then raised to look her in the eye. “I wanted to see you. Thanks for coming,” Zed said.

“I needed to see you.” She shuddered. “I needed to see if you were real.”

He seemed to be saying so much with his eyes, but maybe she was reading it wrong. She couldn’t stand it. She needed to lighten the mood.

“Dante, huh?”

“Occasionally. Depends on the circumstances.” His voice went through her like liquid heat. He couldn’t possibly mean what she thought he did. Was his hand squeezing her waist a little tighter?

“How are you?” His hand came up to trace the curve of her cheek. “I can barely see the bruising on your face, so that’s good. But you were limping when you came in, how’s your leg? Your head?”

“I’m fine.”

“Marcia, you’d say you were fine if you were on fire.”

She snorted a laugh.

“So, tell me the truth, what did the doctors say?”

“I got the all clear on the concussion. My leg is infection free, that was their big worry.”

“But?” he prompted.

“They recommended R.I.C.E.”

“Sounds really familiar,” Zed chuckled. “Rest, ice, compression, and elevation.”

“Yep, that’s it. The swelling has gone down, but I’m still limping. They said the week after next, I should be back to normal.”

“Hunter told me Homeland Security has been questioning you. How hard of a time have they been giving you?”

She sighed, it was time for business. “Not a hard time, exactly,” she prevaricated.

“Bullshit. Three days? They’ve been questioning you for three fucking days?”

Marcia pressed up against his chest and reluctantly, left the comfort of his embrace. She sat down in the chair beside the bed. “Okay, three days was overkill. I don’t know what their problem was either. They treated me like I was on trial or something. I had to tell them over and over again everything Raymond ever said.”

“That should have taken three hours,” Zed said as he leaned forward and speared her with a fierce glance.

“I agree,” she grinned. “But I made them work for it.”

“What do you mean?”

“It was actually after four hours, I gave them the silent treatment.”

“You asked for a lawyer?”

“Nope,” she smiled broadly, remembering the two agents’ frustration and eventual fury.

“You’re killing me here, Marcia, I see your smile, and it’s absolutely diabolical. What in the hell did you do?”

“Nurul and Hana had been left behind in Borneo. I told them until they got her on the phone with a translator, I wasn’t going to talk to them again. That’s part of the reason I was there so long,” she admitted.

Zed shouted with laughter. “How is Nurul? How’s the baby?”

“They’re with Nurul’s auntie. The doctor on the aircraft carrier made sure Hana’s arm was set properly, and they had gotten her back to her family. She’s still really tore up about her dad.”

“It’s not your fault,” Zed reiterated what he’d said in the jungle.

“She’s going to be staying with her aunt. I took down all of her contact information. I’m going to send them some funds.”

“Marcia,” Zed frowned, “you don’t have to mother the Western Hemisphere.” He held out his hand, and she reached out and took it. He made her feel less alone. How funny was that? She had more people in her life than most.

“It’s not a big deal, Zed. With their cost of living, they don’t need much, and I get interest payouts every year from my parent’s life insurance policies. That’s what paid for my college.”

He just shook his head. “So that’s why it took three days to question you, huh?”

“Not entirely. Day three was spent asking all the same questions they asked on day one. It was stupid. They really ticked me off. They were A-Holes.”

Zed’s lips twitched.

“What?”

“Has it worked? Do Brockman’s two younger daughters not swear?”

“No,” Marcia sighed, “both of them have potty mouths, sometimes. It really yanks my chain.”

“How about when grown men swear?” Zed asked carefully.

“I couldn't care less,” Marcia grinned. “I’m just about setting an example. However, I will say I would prefer the adults try to keep it clean around the kids.” Marcia waited to see how Zed would take that, and she didn’t have to wait long.

“I agree. That’s part of what we do in the military, set an example.”

She thought about it. She’d been to bars in Virginia when she’d gone out with Rick, and some of the military guys had been pretty rowdy and rude. But then again, how many times had she been out walking around campus or just seeing the sights and come across some of the politest men and women possible?

“What are you thinking?” Zed asked.

“I’m thinking people are people,” she answered. “Good, bad, and indifferent, they come in all flavors. I went to Virginia State, and not all the military I ran into were setting an example, but then again, many were. I guess I was just painting a lot of people with the same brush.”

“You live in Alexandria now, don’t you?”

“How did you know?”

“We were briefed on everybody who was on the yacht. Just the basics. But it made it sound like you were living with the Brockman family.”

“I am. Ever since Mrs. B. died, I’ve been living there. It dovetailed with when I graduated.”

“So, you’re the girl’s nanny?”

Marcia started to giggle. Zed scowled at her, and that made her really start to laugh.

“What’s so damn funny?”

“I have a B.S. in Mathematics. I’m currently working as a junior economist at JP Morgan. The C.I.A. wanted me to work as an intern.”

“Thank God, you turned them down.”

“Why?”

“Once they realized the type of woman you were, they’d have you in the field in an instant. It’d scare the hell out of me.”

“You don’t think I’m capable?” She held her breath as she waited for his answer.

“Didn’t you hear me? They’d be crazy not to have you in the field, you’d be excellent. My hair would go white overnight.”

She leaned closer. His raven black hair was cut short, but she could see just a bit of a curl on the ends. “There’s not a bit of gray,” she protested.

His black eyes turned liquid. “I hadn’t met you.”

Marcia’s breath held. He hadn’t really said that, had he? He didn’t mean anything by it, did he?

“I’m temporarily assigned here in San Diego. I have about five more months here before I return to my team in Virginia,” he said seriously.

“You live in Virginia?” she breathed.

He nodded his head. “Small world, huh?”

She smiled slowly.

He gave her that wicked grin she remembered from the jungle. “Don’t make any dates before I get back into town. Consider your dance card full. I’ve already arranged with Amelia to transfer my some of my physical therapy time back at Walter Reed.”

“You’ll be in Virginia?” she grinned. “When?”

“Three weeks, so you can consider me booked up until that time.”

“How’d you know what I was going to ask?”

“I just knew.”