Catalyst (Breakthrough Book 3) (8 page)

“What kind of problem?”

He crossed his arms, trying to ignore a sudden spike of pain in his side.  “It’s about our old friend, Mateus Alves.”

DeeAnn raised her brow curiously.  “I thought he was dead.”

“He is.  And so is his head of security, Miguel Blanco.”

“You found him?”

“I did.”

DeeAnn stared at him for a moment, puzzled, then shrugged.  “So he’s dead.  Why should I care?”

“Normally I’d say you shouldn’t.  But he was murdered yesterday morning.  By someone who we think knew Alves pretty well.”

“An eye for an eye, I guess.”

Caesare glanced at Alison, who was watching DeeAnn.  Blanco had nearly killed DeeAnn, and Alves had been planning to.  She didn’t care what happened to either of them.  But she couldn’t hide her surprise either, no matter how hard she tried.

“Blanco died after being tortured.  By someone who wanted to know everything that happened up on that mountain, including who was there.”

That got both of the women’s attention. 

“What does that mean?”

“He knows what Mateus Alves was after.  He knows how he died, and where.  He probably also knows about you and Dulce, and that monkey, Dexter.  We think he knows just about everything, and we think he’s going back to find what Alves couldn’t.”

The first signs of concern appeared on DeeAnn’s face.  “Dulce and I aren’t in danger, are we?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Good.  So why do we even care?”

“Because if he finds that monkey, I think we all know what’s going to happen.”

DeeAnn stared at him, but said nothing.  What happened to the damn monkey wasn’t her problem.  She couldn’t save it –– she knew that now.   But her brush with death had woken her up to the ludicrousness of what she
thought
she could do.  It also left her with a very real appreciation of the value of life.  Life was precious.  And she only had one shot at it.  She was no longer interested in sacrificing hers for some hopeful ideology.

“I don’t care what happens.”

Caesare glanced to Alison and back.  “Well, that may be.  But that’s not what I meant.  Alves was a fanatic, obsessed with the idea of immortality.  And now that we know DNA can be passed between species, what do you think is going to happen if this new guy gets a hold of that monkey’s DNA?”  Caesare took a small step closer to her.  “Alves came damn close, and believe me, DeeAnn.  Alves was bad.  But this guy is a whole lot worse.  Blanco and his girlfriend were tortured and literally beaten to death.  For answers.  What do you think happens if someone like that figures out how to outlive all of us?”

“That’s impossible.”

“Is it?”

“I’m not stupid, Steven.  It’s not that easy to transfer DNA.”

“It can be done.”

Something on Caesare’s face made her halt her reply in mid-sentence.  Her eyes narrowed and she turned to Alison.  “You know something.”

She nodded.

“What?”

“Steve’s right.  It can be done.  We saw it, on the Bowditch.”

“The ship that sank?”

“Yes.”

DeeAnn was quiet for a moment.  “It doesn’t matter.  This guy will never find a single monkey on an entire mountain.  Dexter’s probably already dead anyway.  Even if he’s not, it would take months, maybe years, to find him.”

“Not with Dulce’s help.”

DeeAnn’s eye widened and she shook her head.  “No!  I can’t do that to her.  I won’t.  You don’t know what was happening to her up there.  She may be better now, but if she melts down again…a manic gorilla who’s twice as strong as you would be the last thing you want on your hands.  Believe me.  We can’t risk that again.”

“Not even for an all-expense paid trip to the rainforest?”

DeeAnn was not amused.

“Then how about a fancy medal from the President?”

“The answer is no.”

Caesare’s smile faded.  “Okay, look.  The truth is we need your help.  We need you and Dulce to help us find the monkey.  To get in and out, quickly.”

“Who’s we?”

He didn’t answer immediately.  Instead, he looked at them both and then took a few steps back to the door.  He opened it, leaned outside, and motioned his head. Steve stepped back, holding the door open.

A moment later, three men appeared in the doorway and one by one stepped into Alison’s office.  All three were dressed in casual clothes but sported hardened, chiseled faces.

“I’d like you to meet my friends: Officers Corso, Anderson, and Tiewater.”

She looked them over with her arms still crossed in front of her.  “Well, at least you’re not dumb enough to go alone this time.”  DeeAnn immediately regretted her statement the moment she said it.  If Caesare hadn’t gone
alone
last time, she wouldn’t still be alive.  It was a stupid thing to say.

Caesare let it go.  She’d gone through enough trauma.  Taken advantage of by both Alves and Blanco on what was supposed to be a mission of goodwill, she was literally staring down the barrel of a gun by the time Caesare got to her.  She had every right not to want to go back.  But they needed her and Dulce, badly.

Neither Corso, Anderson, nor Tiewater replied or even moved.  What DeeAnn Draper didn’t know was that these three men were handpicked from three of the best Navy SEAL Special Warfare teams on the East Coast.  And they were now tasked with safely accompanying Caesare, DeeAnn, and Dulce back into the jungle –– four members, including Caesare, who could protect them and still maintain a small, nimble, and fast group.  From the insertion to the extraction, the priority was to get in and back out before Otero and his men.  And there wasn’t a lot of time.

Alison remained quiet and watched DeeAnn, standing strong in front of all four men.  Their presence and stone like expressions exuded a feeling of strength throughout the room.  She was sure it was supposed to be reassuring, not intimidating, but it was both.

“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Steven,” DeeAnn said.  “And I applaud your courage.  But I don’t share it.  I came as close to death as I ever want to be, for a long time.  I’m not a soldier.  I’m a scientist.  Fearlessness is not one of my strengths.  Dulce may have gotten over it, but I haven’t.  I don’t know if I ever will.”  She glanced briefly at the other men.  “I’m sorry.”

Caesare frowned.  “This isn’t about fearlessness, DeeAnn.  Or bravado.  This is bigger than you and me.  It’s bigger than all of us.  This is about the world being a much more frightening place to live in tomorrow if we don’t do something today.  And every generation after us will have to pay the price.  The price of not stopping this while we could.”

DeeAnn stared at him, considering his words.  To her, it didn’t matter what happened today.  There was so much evil in the world.  So much apathy.  It was everywhere and the world was going to end up in a bad place regardless.  Maybe this discovery would hasten it, or maybe it wouldn’t, but either way she was sure that in the end things would end up the same.  She wasn’t ready to trade her life, or Dulce’s, for a bunch of egotistical men and governments who would keep fighting with each other long after she was gone.  Those men didn’t care about a brighter future for everyone else.  They only cared about a better today for themselves.  For their secret, corrupt, elitist clubs that would do anything they could to survive.  And to rule.  Men like Caesare and his friends might be genuinely concerned about the future, but the men they served were not.

She slowly shook her head again.  “Sorry, this is not my fight.  I paid my dues, and then some.  DNA or no DNA, I don’t believe anything is going to change.  Not the people, the politics, and certainly not the system.  If we were all in this to make life better for everyone, that might be one thing.  But this is just a game.  Nothing will change.  It will always be played by people who have never played by the rules and who now want to change the game itself.  I don’t think they’ll be able to, but I’m not willing to die just to find out. ”

Caesare inhaled and finally nodded.  The last thing he wanted to do was to force her to come.  It wouldn’t be all that different from what happened to her the first time.

He moved slowly, and as he turned, he looked to Alison, who was still watching them both.  She and Caesare knew something DeeAnn didn’t.  Something much bigger than trying to find a monkey.  Something only he, Alison, and two other people knew and had sworn themselves to secrecy.

Caesare turned to Corso, Anderson, and Tiewater and motioned back toward the door.  “Give us a minute, fellas.”

One by one, the men turned for the door.

When it clicked shut, Caesare looked at Alison.

“Tell her.”

“Tell me
what
?”

Alison turned to her friend solemnly.  “There’s more.”

“More what?”

“There’s more to the story.  About what we found on top of that mountain.”

DeeAnn’s eyes moved back and forth between them.  “You mean when you were outside.”

“Yes.”

She knew what Alison was referring to.  She was on the helicopter too, with Dulce.  But she hadn’t wanted to know what was outside or what it was they found.  Dulce had already come frighteningly close to having a complete breakdown, as had DeeAnn.  The truth was she didn’t want to go outside.  She was done.  Finished.  They had survived and all she wanted to do from that moment was to go home.  To get home and start over.

DeeAnn shook her head.  “I don’t want to know.”

Alison glanced at Caesare before replying.  “I don’t think that’s an option anymore.”

“Excuse me?”

Alison straightened from the edge of her desk.  “There’s more to this than you realize, DeeAnn, and it’s the reason Steve’s going back.  It’s not just about the monkey or its DNA.”

“No!  Whatever it is, I don’t want to hear it.  I don’t want to know.”  She looked at both of them in anger.  “This isn’t my problem.  Find someone else!”

“This could turn out bad, DeeAnn.  Really,
really
bad.  Not just for those at the top, but for
everyone
.”

That instantly stopped DeeAnn’s head shaking.  “I already tried to help.  I did!  And what did it get me?  Nightmares, that’s what!  I’m lucky if I sleep three hours a night.  You know why?  Because up there, for the first time in my life, I was completely and utterly helpless!  They were about to kill me and dump my body, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it!”

She looked at Caesare who remained quiet.  “If it weren’t for you, Steve, I would be dead.  Dead.  Right now!  I will never forget what you did.  Ever.  But there is no way I’m going to put myself in a position where that can happen again.  I don’t care how many men you bring.  Bring them, bring the Marines too, bring all of them, and I still wouldn’t go back!  I’ve had enough fear to last me a lifetime.  I sure as hell don’t need anymore.”

DeeAnn could no longer stop the tears.  She quit talking and looked for an exit.  With a sudden burst, she ran past Caesare, flung the door open, and rushed out.

Caesare emerged behind her and watched as DeeAnn disappeared down the stairs at the end of the hall.  Once she was out of sight, he turned to the other men standing behind him.

Tiewater raised an eyebrow.  “That didn’t appear to go very well.”

11

The small, white Ming Dynasty vase smashed against the wall with the force and sound of a small explosion, breaking into hundreds of pieces as it fell onto the plush carpet.   Tiago Otero was furious.  His eyes blazed as he looked for something else to throw but found nothing within reach.

He cursed repeatedly and glared back at Lieutenant Samuel Russo, the head of his own security, and the man delivering the news about his men.  One was dead and the other hospitalized.  They were instructed to burn the house down with Blanco’s dead family inside.  But Russo’s men had failed miserably.  Instead, they found the house virtually empty and someone waiting for them. 

It was worse than failure, it was humiliating.  Now people would know that it was Otero who had been taught the lesson –– direct challenge to his power and influence over all of Brazil.  A mockery.

With lips snarling, Otero looked down at the table and the cut fabric Russo had laid upon it.  “What is this?!”

“A sign.”

“A sign of what?!”

“Of who did this.  It’s in the shape of a trident.  The symbol used for the U.S. Navy SEALs.”

His eyes shot back to Russo.  “The U.S. did this?”

“It would appear so.”

Otero’s gaze fell back to the shirt, blinking.  “Why would Blanco be involved with the U.S.?  What did they have to do with anything?”  After considering the possibility, he finally shook his head, sneering.  “It’s a prank.  A diversion.  Whoever did this wanted us to think it was the Americans.  But they’d just as soon kill someone like Blanco as I would.”

Russo stared at him over the table.  “Not his family.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

Over the years, Otero had become familiar with many of the C.I.A.’s escapades.  They were as ruthless as anyone.  They simply made it appear as though it was someone else. 
But the Americans would never point the finger at themselves.
 
Would they?

His eyes narrowed.  “Find out who it was.  Now.  No matter how you find them, I want to know who did this!”

“I will.”

Otero clenched his jaw and bared his teeth.  He would track down who did it, who had publicly insulted him.  And when he did, that man would find out that there were far worse things than letting some worthless family perish.

He waved Russo away and waited until he left the room.  Otero then turned and walked angrily through the room to his study.  Lined floor to ceiling with rare and expensive books, he continued to the center of the room where a round table sat.  It was covered with a giant map of Brazil and the entire South American continent.  Centered on the country’s highest mountain range called
Acarai
, stood the range’s highest and still unnamed peak.

He and his men were going to uncover its secret.  Part of the Brazilian Army was coming with him and they weren’t leaving until Otero knew everything,
including what the Chinese were after
.

It was a question he would soon regret asking.