I FLIPPED THE LIGHT ON in the hotel room. Kyle was passed out in the bed next to some blonde girl and Vic was crashed on the sofa in the small living area. I knew the drill—if one of us was going to get lucky, he’d head up to the room first. We’d hobble in later when the coast was clear and crash on the floor, giving the loving couple the bed. Of course, Vic never did that to us. He was a serial monogamist. We’d always tease him, but I was starting to think Kyle and I were the ones who were fucked up and Vic had the right idea. I wouldn’t be in this mess now if I hadn’t given in to my needs, but then again I would’ve never found Annie.

I nudged Kyle. “Hey. Sorry to interrupt. But we need to go.”

Kyle understood. He rolled over to the girl. “Hey, sweetheart. Sorry, but I need to help my buddy out.”

The girl nodded, almost looked hurt. She reached for her clothes and got out of bed. I couldn’t help but stare at her naked body. Great ass, perky tits, nice tan skin. She slipped her panties on, then her jeans, and pulled a pink tank top over her head. She either hadn’t been wearing a bra or didn’t bother to look for it. Kyle gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll call you. We’ll be in town for a little while longer.”

Kyle actually might call. He straddled the line of commitment-phobe and romantic. His usual M.O. was to start a fling with a girl, swear that she was the one, and then vanish when it got intense, which it always did. Everything we did was intense. Sometimes I wondered what it would be like to have a mellow job, a relaxed life.

I gave the girl an awkward wave. But because I was paranoid about Annie, I wanted to make sure she was going to be safe. “Where are you staying?”

“Oh, a hotel down the road. I’m fine to walk.”

Fuck that. “We’ll take you.”

She looked at Kyle. “No, I’m okay. Really. It’s just a few blocks.”

Kyle got dressed. “No, Pat’s right. Sorry, I should have offered myself. We’ll drive you.”

She shrugged her shoulders. “Okay.”

She slipped into the bathroom. I signaled to the guys to get their guns and night-op gear.

“It’s on.”

Vic slipped on his gun. “You found her?”

“Not sure. Her pimp is there.” I explained about dancer and my watch.

“Good enough for me.” Kyle loaded his pistol and gathered the bag full of our gear. “Hooyah!”

Kyle’s girl walked out of the bathroom, her mascara smudged. But at that moment, I didn’t see this nameless girl, I saw Annie. Annie’s eyes. In one careless, drunken night, Annie’s world had changed forever. Spring break, five years ago, a night like this. The girl who stood before me, she didn’t know that Kyle was a good guy. That the three of us weren’t going to gang rape her. But this girl took a chance, a chance on him, a chance with us. In a foreign country, with different laws. These girls had false senses of security, that they were invincible. But all it took was one wrong drink, one wrong man, and they could end up dead, or in a living hell. Just like Annie.

We headed out of the hotel and piled into the small rental car. We dropped the girl off at her hotel room, Kyle walking her in to make sure she was safe.

He climbed back into the car. “So what’s the plan?”

“We’re going to go back and case the place. I’m not even sure Annie is there.”

This amateur rescue attempt was so different than the missions we usually went on as a Team. We had to clear the house, like we’d done many times in Afghanistan. These traffickers probably only cared about drugs and money; they weren’t going to risk their lives over one hooker. To them, Annie was property. Expendable.

We parked a block away from the building, put on our gear, and snuck up outside the door. The absence of sound and light made me believe everyone inside was asleep. I wanted this to be clean.

“I think she’s in that room. Second window to the left.”

“Let’s check it out.”

I was a non-practicing Catholic. Even so, every time I went on a mission, I always said a silent prayer.

Amen. Let’s roll.

A dog barked in the distance. Kyle and Vic stood watch alongside me as I used my night vision goggles to peer into the window.

A sink, a bed, some rumpled sheets, a mop of dark hair. I focused the scope. Could I see her face? Her tattoo? The necklace?

She rolled to her side and her profile came into view. Annie was mere steps away from me, only metal bars and a bunch of lowlifes stood in between her and her freedom. My muscles trembled.

No time to celebrate—she wasn’t free yet.

I signaled to my men. With those fucking bars on her window, we couldn’t just grab her. We had to go through the back door.

I had no intention to kill her captors. My only goal was to save Annie.

Gun and scope out, I touched the door. No lock. I pushed it in, and motioned for Vic and Kyle to follow. They were right behind me.

As they scanned for men, I crept down the hall to Annie’s door.

She was sound asleep, under the covers. Or in a drugged stupor. If I woke her, would she scream?

Fuck it. I was about to scoop her limp body in my arms, when something under the covers moved.

A little boy.

Wavy hair, dark skin. Annie was cuddling his tiny body.

What the fuck?

Her eyes opened, startled. She clutched him to her chest.

“Who’s that?” I whispered.

“My son. Please, take us away.”

Her son? She didn’t mention anything about a kid.

My heart almost pounded out of my chest. Lashes open, hazel eyes glowing. Color returned to her face. Her hope almost brought me to my knees.

I didn’t have a choice and even if I had, I wouldn’t leave her little boy behind. I scooped them up, praying the little boy wouldn’t wake. Who was his father? If he was the pimp or the dancer, how was I going to take the boy out of here without bloodshed?

We made it to the living room, and I immediately spied the pimp cowering in the corner. The dancer ducked behind the sofa.

A light went on; about a dozen half-naked women were huddled in the kitchen.

The pimp reached for his gun.

Stupid motherfucker.

Clickclickclick.

Kyle discharged his weapon without a second of hesitation.

A loud thud reverberated on the floor, the pimp’s body now splayed on the ground. Women shrieked. The little boy’s hazel eyes, the same shade as Annie’s, opened yet he remained silent. The smell of gun smoke mixed with rotten food wafted through the air.

I shifted the boy to my other arm and placed Annie down, her legs shook so bad she dropped to the floor.

Vic gathered the women, crying and screaming, and secured them in a back room. Then, I handed him the little boy and Vic took him out of the room. He didn’t need to see this.

Kneeling to the ground, I checked the pimp’s pulse. Gone.

“Secure!” Kyle yelled.

I aimed my gun at the dancer. As long as he didn’t do anything dangerous, I’d let him live. His eyes cast a cold glance at Annie. An unspoken command.

Annie clutched my ankle. “Don’t kill him!”

I didn’t have time to deal with her attachment to her captor. I shook her off of my leg. “We don’t want to hurt you, man. Forget you ever saw us. You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”

The dancer laughed. His hand lowered toward his waist, I didn’t have time to disarm him. Too many lives were at stake.

Poppoppop.

His body collapsed forward.

“No!” Annie screamed and tried to run over to him. But I intercepted her and held her back, while Kyle checked the dancer. He was a goner.

I signaled to Kyle. “Send it.”

He threw a stun grenade—we didn’t want to take any chance of another armed man emerging from one of the rooms. A blinding light and booming sound reverberated, leaving anyone left disorientated.

Done. Let’s get the fuck out of here.

Vic went in front of me; the little boy cradled in his arms, Kyle had my back. I walked out of that house, carrying Annie. My heartbeat drummed in my chest. I did it.

She was finally free.

We dashed into the car, then hightailed it out of there.

Annie held her son in her lap and rocked back and forth, tears streaming down her face. Her eyes, which had seemed so disturbed on the night I had met her, were soft, almost filled with an inner glow.

Why hadn’t she told me about her son? Did she think I wouldn’t save her if I’d known? Had I just killed his father?

She held my hand and refused to let go. I didn’t want to let go of her either. I wanted to make sure Annie’s pain had ended and I vowed to protect her until she was safe. This climax, this reunion, we’d both come down from this high soon. The invisible sand hourglass would run out before we both realized it.