Chapter 12
Sometime in the afternoon Day 15
Amelia quietly picked up a palm leaf to wipe out the signs of her bare feet as she drifted into the jungle looking for green coconuts. The browns ones would be too hard to crack. She really needed to find newly fallen green ones. The coconuts seemed plentiful when one wasn't too picky.
She found three suitable coconuts and headed back to the cenote. A man stepped from behind a tree blocking her path. He raised a hand gun and flicked off the safety. Amelia stood still, she heard a second man walk up behind her.
"Drop the coconuts."
Three perfectly good coconuts fell to the side of the path.
The man behind Amelia step around to look into her horrified face.
"Hi. Let me introduce myself and my partner. My name is Michael Keith and this is Greg Keith. We own a private investigation company. Your parents hired us to find you."
The two men looked related, both blond and blue eyed; one average height and the other slightly over six feet.
Amelia began to shake and she covered her mouth. She fought the tears that began to gather.
"Why are you pointing a gun at me?"
"Greg, drop the gun!" Greg dropped the gun as color rose into the man's cheeks.
"Please excuse my cousin. We had to be sure it was you."
"How… how… do I know my parents sent you?"
"I have a note from your mother."
Amelia grasped the note with a shaking hand. She could barely make out the words through her tearful eyes, but she would recognize her mother's hand writing anywhere.
Amelia,
These men were hired to bring you home. Their names are Greg and Michael Keith. Ask them what you got for your 18th birthday.
Love Mom.
Michael closed her hand around the note. "You got a Mac and AutoCAD for your eighteenth birthday."
Amelia grabbed Michael and hugged him. She held him until she stopped crying.
Amelia pulled away and wiped her eyes. "Mom didn't mention Tony."
"We found Tony's body and traced the oceans currents to this general area. We also had reports of the two of you seen with a man who lives in Tulum."
"Your parents know about Tony. I am sorry for your loss."
Amelia looked at her feet. She hoped her parents didn't know everything about Tony's death.
Amelia sniffled, fighting to find her voice. "They told me Tony was cut up into small pieces and thrown out in open sea."
Greg stepped up to Amelia. "We didn't want to tell you the details, but we did find enough to get a DNA match."
Greg reached out and gently took Amelia's arm. "Come on. Let's go see your parents."
Amelia pulled away. "No! We have to get Bobby first."
Greg grasped her arm again. "Don't worry; tell us where he is hiding. We will go get him after we get you to safety."
Amelia shook her head and tried to pull away. Greg held on and wrapped his arms around her.
"No, we can't go get him. We have to get out of here."
Amelia struggled and kicked. "He is a NYPD detective. He rescued me from Suarez. We have to get him. He saved my life. I won't leave him!"
"Amelia calm down. We were paid to bring you to your parents. The jungle is filled with police, military and warring gangs. We do not know who to trust. How do we know your friend is really on your side?"
"I trust him with my life! He is a short distance away. Please, I beg you."
"If he is NYPD, we will call them to arrange his rescue. Please calm down."
Michael shook his head. "Please don't make us force you."
Greg whispered in her ear. "Do you think your parents would protest if we left your friend behind to insure your safety?"
Michael grabbed one of Amelia's arms. They drug her off into the jungle.
Amelia dragged her feet even after they became raw and bleeding. She wanted to make it as difficult as possible for these two dicks. She continued begging them to go back for Bobby.
"Amelia be quiet. Someone will hear you." She could hear the pleading in Michaels' voice, but she didn't care.
"Screw you!"
"Shush it… Michael do you hear something?"
Two men stepped onto the path. Their faces were covered with black masks and the held machine guns.
Two more stepped behind them. "AFI, identify yourself."
Michael and Greg looked back forth at the men, not wanting to let go of their paycheck.
A bullet pierced the tree next to Greg's head. Both Michael and Greg shoved Amelia down and covered her with their bodies.
The jungle seemed to come alive with gun fire. AFI surrounded the trio and began shooting back at everything that moved.
More AFI advanced into the jungle, forcing the fighting away.
The remaining AFI pointed their weapons at Greg and Michael. "Get up and move, follow that man."
Another AFI picked up Amelia and began running after the rest. Amelia hung on for dear life.
The gun fire became more distant and the men slowed down. They all stopped to catch their breath. The man carrying Amelia handed her off to another man.
"We need to keep moving." The men set off running again.
The jungle open up to a dirt road revealing a large military-like operation. The AFI agent carried Amelia directly to a medic station. Greg and Michael followed closely.
The agent gently placed Amelia in a chair. He turned around to the Greg and Michael. "You should take better care of your charge. Why are her feet damaged?
Without waiting for an answer, the agent turned around and waved to a man in suit. The man was in a heavy discussion with the other agents. He nodded and trotted to the medic station.
"Amelia Ackerman?" Amelia appeared in shock, she just stared at the man. Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times, but nothing came out. The medic handed her an open bottle of cool water.
She stared at the bottle in her hand. Tears began to stream down her face. "Bobby."
She threw the bottle at Greg and Michael. "They left him there!"
"Amelia, I'm Agent Tejada. Who are you talking about?"
"Bobby, he is a detective for the NYPD narcotics division. Suarez kidnapped him from New York."
"Amelia, are you talking about Robert Goren?"
Amelia's tear filled eyes looked directly into Agent Tejada's eyes. "Please find him. He saved my life. He never told me his last name."
"Don't worry we will find him. I'll be back."
"You two idiots follow me!"
Greg and Michael followed the agent into another tented area.
The medic reached out and touched Amelia's hand. Amelia looked up to see a nice young woman in a uniform. "Excuse me Ms. Ackerman, I would like to check you out and wrap your feet."
TBC
