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too.”
    Rafael held her face in both his hands and kissed her deeply. He wanted to cherish the feel of her full lips and the intoxicating scent of her skin. No matter how things had turned out between them, she’d given him a gift.
    She’d let him feel normal. For a little while he’d been a man with a woman. No past. No future. He’d have to be satisfied with that.

Chapter 4
     
    Havana, Cuba
    Next day
    The vibrant and bustling streets of downtown Havana were a feast for Athena’s eyes. Their benefactor, Esteban Ruiz, a Vice President of the Council of State and the man who had procured the services of the Omega Team, had provided transportation for her team from the airport. Athena stared out the window of the limousine as the vehicle drove through the picturesque La Habana Vieja —old Havana—with its restored historic buildings and immaculate streets.
    The others on her team were impressed by the capital, but Athena saw the city with different eyes.
    Havana, the crown jewel of Cuba, thrived under a façade of progress, bolstered by the tourist trade. But the capital drained any hope of the average Cubano seeing much needed funds from the government spent on the towns and villages outside the city. Too many families lived in squalor, packed into dilapidated slums without basic sanitation, clean water to drink, or food to eat.
    Athena had seen it with her own eyes.
    “I’ve never been out of Florida.” Jacquie gaped out of every window. “What’s up with all these old cars? They’re kinda cool.”
    Athena remembered the city when she visited as a child with her mother and father, but some things hadn’t changed. Brightly colored vintage American cars from the 1950s—with polished chrome and white wall tires—were a constant reminder of a world time forgot.
    “These classic cars are iconic now,” Athena replied. “Cuba is a rolling car museum, courtesy of Fidel Castro’s four decade long grudge against the United States. When he banned imports, time stopped.”
    Havana blended the old with the new and flourished with life. Narrow cobbled streets were edged by refurbished old buildings with more modern wide boulevards cutting through the sprawling capital of over two million residents. Lavish gardens abounded in colorful flowers with too many monuments and statues to count. Lines of people stood in front of street vendors and haggled while men and women on bicycles dodged traffic and pedestrians. Those who lived and worked in Havana—even on a meager wage—were lucky.
    “They have us staying downtown?” Rafael asked. “I thought we’d be more low profile.”
    “It would appear our client would like to make a point that he’s livin’ large and in charge.”
    Athena had an ingrained distrust of career politicians, no matter which country cultivated them, but for this mission, she would try to keep an open mind.
    “We’ll meet Esteban Ruiz in an hour, but I have a feeling there won’t be anything low profile about him or this assignment. He’s throwing us a reception in one of the ballrooms.”
    That got Landry and Rafferty’s attention.
    “What? They’re throwing us a party just for showing up?” Clive Landry, a retired Force Recon Marine, pursed his lips. “I could get used to this.”
    “I hope they have pigs in a blanket. And baby corn.” Sam Rafferty, a former Navy SEAL, nodded his head.
    “Nobody eats baby corn.” Landry scowled. “Not on purpose.”
    “I eat it,” Rafferty said. “But I never know what to do with the cob.”
    “Were you dropped on your head as a child?” Landry asked.
    Rafferty said weird stuff just to get under Landry’s skin. Everyone on the team knew it—except for Landry.
    When they rolled up to a town square, Athena spied the Gran Teatro , the Grand Theater of Havana, home of the world renowned Cuban National Ballet. Her mother had taken her to the ballet once. She never forgot it. Near the historic theater on Paseo del Prado stood one of the oldest