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erupted from both sides. They were outgunned and either they were caught in the middle of a turf war or they were being ambushed. Neither worked in their favor.
    Flattening himself to the ground, silent communication rippled through the group as the shots increased, coming closer to their hiding spot. Getting the hostage out topped their short list of priorities. The men inched their way through the grass. Each one continually checked for the whereabouts of teammates and enemy shooters.
    Dirt spit up around them, halting their progress. When the shooting failed to stop, Hayden slowly pulled his body to a low crouch. Five men would rush each side, leaving six SEALs to get the kid to safety. Hayden waited for the order to move. An eternity passed before it finally came. They belly crawled several feet before panicked shouting in Portuguese and Spanish nearly brought them to their feet. Hayden stayed low until he was within striking range.
    “Now!” The whispered shout buzzed in his ear.
    Hayden launched himself up and forward, surprising a man three feet in front of him. He fired and the armed man crumbled to the ground. He turned and another man was bringing his weapon around. In the chaotic minutes that followed, the drug lord’s men took serious casualties and the order to fall back came with the first sounds of a diesel truck approaching. Cautiously the men made their way to tree line.
    Fifty feet into the jungle, Hayden spotted Christian crouching near a tree. “What’s wrong?” Hayden asked, stopping near his lover and scanning the area. He no longer heard sounds of pursuits but didn’t want to take any chances. Radio check had confirmed everyone had made it out alive. The words used also meant they were scattered. Making it the extraction point was now everyone’s priority.
    “Fucking reopened my wound.”
    Hayden flipped the safety on his assault rifle and slung it over his back before crouching down next to Christian. “Take your shirt off and let me see it.”
    Christian nodded, shrugged off his pack and shirt, constantly retaining hold on his weapon.
    “Did more than open it. Fuck. You get hit again?” Hayden asked, removing a blood soaked bandage.
    “Not that I know of, but then I didn’t feel it the first time. Not really.”
    Hayden removed his pack and dug out his mini first aid kit. The several-inch-long gouge in Christian’s arm was approximately a half-inch wide and nearly as deep. Still, he wasn’t surprised that Christian hadn’t realized he’d been shot. From experience, he knew that it was possible that Christian wouldn’t have felt it. He dug a hole and dropped the soiled bandages into it. Inhaling a slow breath, he poured water over the wound and followed it with clean gauze pads, packing the area before adding pressure. He waited for the bleeding to stop, applied Bacitracin to the wound then taped more gauze pads over the covered area, dropping the remaining soiled components into the hole and covering it.
    “Keep it clean and that should last until we get back to civilization. Otherwise, Tyler will have to stitch it closed,” Hayden said holding onto Christian’s arm longer than was necessary.
    “Stitches are a matter of time,” Christian replied flatly.
    “True. But there could be way more complications in the middle of the Amazon jungle.” Refusing to acknowledge the niggling emotion in his chest, Hayden brushed a thumb over the skin above the bright white tape and gauze. Aware his fingers were inside the sleeve of Christian’s t-shirt, it still took him several heartbeats before he pulled it back.
    Christian smiled and nodded. His fingers brushing Hayden’s before dropping back to his side.
    Rocking back, Hayden stowed the first aid kit into his bag then slowly pulled himself to his feet, shrugging into the pack. He continued to scan the area as Christian dressed and slung his own pack on in silence. Checking their position against where they needed to be, they pushed