Read Heart of Danger for Free Online Page A

“roughing it” tour to the max because they would be sleeping on the ground, surrounded by bugs and snakes and God knows what else, but it was right up Kelly’s alley, and honestly, Kelly had kind of gotten Natalia out of her “I hate getting my hands dirty,” stage years ago. She wasn’t as adventurous as Kelly—not on her own anyway. If she had been on her own she would have just gone to do some sightseeing in the city, but this was perfect—or at least it should have been. Everything changed so quickly, and there was no going back.
     
    Natalia looked up through the empty spaces in the barb wire fence. She was stuck in that compound whether she wanted to be or not—and clearly she didn’t want to be stuck there. When she agreed to go with Kelly on the outback tour, she had no idea they would find themselves knee deep in a pile of horse manure. Not literally of course. But their guide, of the ten person tour, had managed to take them to a remote area of the outback and they had just happened to turn up there on a day when the drug cartel was doing its business. Ten people dead and she, she was the only one left alive. She watched her best friend get shot in the heart right in front of her. She watched her bleed out as she tried to hold her hand over the wound. She watched the life leave her eyes and in that moment she knew she was next. She was the only one left, so she had no doubt that her fate would be the same.
     
    Instead of killing her, they took her prisoner. Apparently Senior Valdez was going to be flying in from Colombia to Australia to finalize their business and he liked the darker women. They were holding her there for him, so that he could take her back to Colombia and do whatever he wanted with her. They left the dead bodies where they lay because they said the animals would clean it up for them. Those bastards had murdered ten people and now they were going to let them be picked apart for dinner. And her friend, the woman who was more of a sister to her, more a part of her heart than anybody had ever been, had been among those killed. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right. Yet it had happened. Her heart was breaking. She knew the finality of death. She knew that she would never see Kelly again. She would never hear her laugh or share the memories of yesteryear with her. She was gone, and no amount reliving the moment when her heart stopped beating was going to bring her back.
     
    “If Kelly were here she would tell you to fight, Natalia. She would tell you to fight like hell.” But what could she do? Where could she go? She was locked in a compound surrounded by barbwire fencing. She was in a foreign country, in the middle of nowhere, and even if she could get out she wouldn’t know which way to go once she did.
     
    She sighed, watching the sun flitter through the fence. She had to get out of here. She had to escape, but how could she? Their tour group wasn’t due to get back to base camp for two days. She wasn’t due to leave for home for another four days, and that meant nobody would be looking for the group and nobody would be looking for her. By the time they realized something had gone wrong, and that she was missing, Senior Valdez would already have her moved.
     
    “Find me guys,” she prayed. Alex knew about the tour. She had emailed him when she emailed to let him know why she wouldn’t be online for a couple days. While she was emailing him she tried her best to admonish him for his joke he felt compelled to make in his last email to her. He had made some wise crack about an Australian kiss, and she had written back, “real original, Alexander.” He didn’t like being called Alexander and she only did it when he did something that warranted him being called by his full name. He knew she was going on the tour, and he had told her to be careful, to stay safe and stick with the group. Since he knew where she was she knew they could find her, but it could take a while. She knew