The drive from Carlos' village to their meeting location in Peru was well over a 24-hour journey. Near their 14th hour mark, he pulled over near the small town of Antabamba, Peru to refill for gas. Alonzo accompanied Jill inside the store to grab a few items from the smiling woman behind the store's counter of the brightly lit building at around 7 p.m.
"You guys want to rotate cars? I think Alex has begun to repeat himself at this point and Pedro and David are bombed out." Alonzo called when he and Jill walked back toward a tired looking Carlos.
"Ah, no," Carlos replied easily. "I got my co-pilot."
"You understand that you have to share sometimes, right?" Alonzo was biting into some kind of energy bar as he leaned against the bed of the truck.
"Oh, was it not me you wanted to sit with? That's cold, little brother." Carlos taunted before he threw a look Jill's way.
Alonzo rolled his eyes and clasped Jill on the arm when he passed and ambled back toward his Jeep.
Jill watched Carlos' eyes follow his brother before they climbed up to her.
"You understand that my brother has a slight crush on you, right?" he asked with an expression that was hard to read.
"I mean," Jill was smiling crookedly at him when she sat in the open driver's side seat. "Who wouldn't? You didn't see me in my battle suit and that was the only good thing about captivity."
"You mean you had a catsuit and you didn't bring it? What the fuck, Supercop?" Carlos had finished filling up the truck and leaned into the cab to place his hands on the worn leather of the seat poking out from between her spread legs.
"Tell you what," she kissed his cheek before she scooted back into her position on the passenger's side. "You dig out that vest you wore in Raccoon, and I'll find a catsuit."
"The vest? Seriously?" he shut the door to the truck and turned the engine over before he looked over at her. "That's what did it for you?"
"Well," Jill lifted her hand and made a gesture. "I mean, you had other… great things."
Carlos gave her a slow grin and Jill could literally see him puff up a little when he said, "Stop looking at my arms, Supercop, I'm too tan to be blushing this hard."
Jill rolled her eyes and turned her head to keep him from seeing the hard smile she was making out into the darkness of the terrain that was blurring past the window now.
After another two hours, Carlos and Alonzo pulled their vehicles off road toward the coverage of trees in a sloping terrain. While squinting through the darkness, Jill recognized the first signs of the green foliage that parts of South America were known for.
Dimly, through the moonlight that was poking through the cloud coverage, she could make out the tall reaching branches of the deciduous layered trees.
Jill's eyes glanced over in the right-side mirror as she viewed Alonzo's jeep stop on the incline of the hill she and Carlos were traversing down. When Alonzo didn't follow, she glanced over at Carlos and took in his silhouette from the blue-green dashboard lights.
Jill had offered to drive several times, but under the guise of what first appeared as chivalry, soon came through as an underreaching fear Carlos had tried to keep from her so she wouldn't feel bad. Although Jill was technically licensed and a citizen in the country, through Trent's documents only, she still didn't know the roads or the possible dangers of what lay in between each city. The end result was a very exhausted looking Carlos.
"Hey," she called softly, turning toward him in the cab. "Alonzo stopped back there."
Carlos blinked a few times and glanced over at her with a tired smile. He soon slowed the vehicle and put it in gear before he shut down the engine. Only the faint light of the moon came through the windshield now.
"Yeah, he's gonna be posted up there as a look-out. They'll be doing sleeping rotations in the jeep. We're gonna get some sleep for a few hours before we resume." he explained softly.
Carlos' dark, almost black, brown eyes were catching the glare from the windshield, and Jill was tilting her head slightly while she viewed him.
"Sorry I can't drive, Carlos. I'll get a good idea of the land soon. I'll probably buy some maps, study the geography, learn some of—" Jill was rambling, and she stopped when the glint of his grin flashed out at her.
"Valentine, are you nervous right now?" Carlos reached his hand out to touch hers on the seat. "Surely you're not nervous about being in a dark car with me?"
With a breath of a laugh, Jill shook her head and squeezed his hand before she said, "No…nervous isn't it." She paused and considered it for a few beats. "I think this is an inadequacy that I'm feeling. I think… I'm just feeling like there's more I can be doing, or that I could be contributing."
Carlos beckoned her silently with a slight jerk of his head.
Moving her bag to the floor of the cab, Jill slid closer until their thighs were touching. Her face turned up to his, and she studied the new look he had across his features before he glanced down and took her thigh in hand.
"This week, you entered my country under a new name, with only the knowledge of one of our languages, a map to my last known location, information of my capture, and limited resources to pull off a rescue mission," He paused. "Now, I'm gonna go out on a limb here, and suggest that not many people might be…equipped for such a thing."
Jill found herself squinting at him while he spoke.
"Also—" he continued.
"Carlos." Jill put up a hand. "Are you…are you giving me a pep talk right now?"
Carlos let out a laugh and dropped his head a bit before he lifted it back up. "No, listen this isn't what it looks like; I got to first base with you already. This is—ow—genuine, I swear!" he choked out when she smacked his arm.
Jill was lifting a hand to stifle her bubbled laughter before she put her head back against the truck's headrest.
Both of them, in the crawling evening of the night, while in the middle of nowhere, sat there for just a few moments in the dark, and joined in on each other's giggling countenance that was fueled on by exhaustion and road wear.
"Alright," she said, clearing her throat with one last chuckle. "Do go on about my list of achievements thus far."
"You're fuckin' cute when you giggle, you know that right?" Carlos asked before he shook his head and lifted his elbow over their seat. "In short, you're damn gifted under the odds, Valentine and you've done enough since you've been here. Fuck, me sitting here right now at all should be proof of that."
Jill sighed and gave a tentative nod in return.
"Also though," Carlos continued. "While we have the time, I just wanted to know a little more about you. I only know as much as you told me and as much as I could read on you when you were missing."
"You read about me?" Jill asked when she followed suit and lifted her elbow up onto the back of their seat. She was resting the side of her face against her propped up hand while she studied him. "Why?"
"I did read about you," he admitted and shifted slightly before clearing his throat. "I mean, impressions aside from surviving Raccoon? I just…I never thought I'd see you again, and I wanted to know a little more given that you had become a sort of guardian angel in my head."
"You mentioned that," she said, giving him one of her soft smiles. "Are you sure you're not trying for first base here?"
"I could be persuaded," he said while his grin flashed at her again in the shadows.
"Mmm, I'll think about it." she responded coyly. "So, what did you learn?"
"Well, your status as Special Operations Agent for the BSAA was pretty common. I wasn't sure what I was looking for at first—just more. Through that, I found your titles, and these articles that had been done on you weren't what I wanted. It wasn't you in there. It was just someone talking about what you had done—which is important, but it wasn't what I was looking for." He paused. "Shit, I'm butchering this. I just wanted to know where you came from. What did you like? Why did you become an officer? What's—"
Jill cut him off when she placed both of her hands on his leg and leaned up from her knees to place a soft kiss to his moving mouth.
Carlos stopped and slid his hand behind her neck as he leaned her a little closer.
Jill pulled back a little and opened her eyes before she said, "I'll give you points for that. You're a natural infiltrator for first base."
"I don't know what I said but I'm alright with that," Carlos breathed.
"I am more than my titles, Carlos." Jill responded as she kept ahold of his leg and glanced down for a moment.
Carlos remained silent as he listened.
"I think that's part of what I'm also technically running from. I became a figurehead, or a symbol for something years ago. After Africa…" she trailed off for a moment. "After Africa, I just don't know how to be that person that can do that anymore. I felt like I was setting myself up for failure and it was my own life I was going back to, so it should be easy."
"No, that's hard," Carlos finally spoke as he rubbed his chin for a moment. "I can't imagine going through what you did only to try and come home and be expected to be the same. None of us remain the same in our lifetimes, let alone after something like being a captive."
"Do you feel different after being held for a week?" Jill asked thoughtlessly.
"Absolutely," Carlos replied instantly. "Obviously a different experience, so I'm in no way equating myself beside you. I was held bound, drugged, beaten, and forced to watch men I grew up with be…executed in different ways. No, I'm not the same after that."
Jill gripped the top of one of his hands, shook her head quickly, and started to say, "I'm sorry, that was a stupid—"
"No," his hand missing the fingers lifted on top of hers. "It wasn't. I have an experience you can understand; I appreciate you asking. If it wasn't for you here, I'd be in a much darker place, Jill. Well, actually I'd be dead."
Jill huffed a self-deprecating laugh and gestured back at herself with her free hand. "Carlos, if I hadn't found you…I wasn't going back. I don't know where I would have gone. Aside from finding out what may have happened to you and slaughtering as many cartels as I could find? I have no idea."
"My brother would have kept you." Carlos said with a chuckle. "He told me so."
Jill laughed and shook her head before she said, "He was so mean to me when he met me. Which, I get considering I just walked into your village and camped outside of your house."
"You did?" Carlos was turning toward her more.
"Yeah," Jill cleared her throat. "I was dedicated. Still am."
"Well, you did find me. Better yet, Supercop, you got to keep me." His hand squeezed hers tighter. "What are you going to do with that kind of power?"
"For starters," Jill said, thankful for the lighter tone. "I'll tell you what you wanted to know. I joined the U.S. Army straight out of college. I am the only woman who had the honors of being trained for bomb disposal for the 1st SFOD-D and from that I found myself honorably discharged to set my sights on something unique other than normal police work."
"Yes, but why did you join the army?" Carlos asked with a genuine smile on his face at her offering.
"To avoid a life of crime." Jill watched his eyes.
When he laughed and waited for her punch line, Jill grinned and shook her head.
"No, really, my father was Dick Valentine; the famous jewel thief from France." She continued.
"Which would make you…?" Carlos was leaning forward before he laughed.
"A quick-fingered slip of a girl who decided to go straight when daddy was put in jail. I'm not the best representation for truth, justice, and the American dream." Jill found herself enjoying his constant chuckle and his genuine interest.
"So, the B&E specialization…?" Carlos uttered.
"Is a total given when you consider that I could rob you blind." Jill finished. "I also love playing piano, I love to dance, I am a Kyōshi in Kendo martial arts, and I prefer the French cuisine over the Japanese cuisine that my parents both brought me up on."
"Hold on, Kendo martial arts?" Carlos inquired.
"Think Japanese sword fencing." she quickly explained.
"Hell, that's good, Valentine." Carlos sucked his teeth around his mirth and obvious excitement. "A thief, a samurai, and one hell of a soldier. A dancer too, hmm."
"What about you?" Jill asked then.
"Shit, I should have gone first." Carlos said with a somewhat apologetic sigh. "I don't have nearly that decorated of a history. I grew up in my village as the fifth son in my family—Alonzo is the youngest but I'm sure you've picked up on that. My family was torn apart by gang violence even before I was born but there were good moments too."
With a sobering expression, Jill set her other hand over the one that was still holding hers.
"Portions of the cartel and its influence have been tearing across Bolivia for as long as I can remember. When my brother Tonio was killed in front of me, I knew I needed to do something to protect my family and protect my people. That found me training with armed revolutionaries who taught me to fight back for the people of the community. Unfortunately, I was captured and sentenced to die. Had it not been for the reputation I earned, Umbrella wouldn't have interfered, and I'd be twice dead."
A quiet tear slipped down Jill's cheek while she considered the sordid history of the man in front of her.
"Hey," Carlos leaned forward and raised a hand to thumb away the liquid. "What's this?"
"You've lost so much, Carlos," Jill said after a moment before she leaned her head into the hand now cupping her cheek. "You've also given your entire life to this conflict and to the protection of others. I'm sorry for all you've lost."
Even in the dark, Jill could see what she thought may be gratitude and love shining in his eyes then.
"I have good people supporting me and I have those who make it worth everything I've been through." He responded softly while he studied her. "Come here."
After a moment of shifting, Jill settled sideways in his lap with her legs kicked out onto the passenger seat of the truck. With Carlos' arms wrapped around her middle, Jill turned her face up when she cupped the side of his healing face and laid gentle kisses against his jaw.
"Tell me something you like," Jill asked softly. "Are you a dancer, a poet, or enjoy something weird like yodeling? Give me a piece of you too."
Carlos rumbled out an easy laugh while he seemed to enjoy the attention she gave to his skin.
"I like working with my hands. I wanted to be a mechanic before I knew what I needed to do to keep my family alive. This is my father's truck," Jill glanced out at the hood of the faded red truck while Carlos spoke. It had been the very same truck Alonzo had driven her around in when she had first arrived.
"My father taught me what he could before things got hard. As I grew older, I found I also liked building and restoring furniture. I took a woodworking shop in school, and I found it to be a peaceful way to pass the time. In between the madness of everything, I'm the one who helped build most of the things you see in people's houses and the houses themselves."
Carlos paused and looked down at her, "I sound like a damn old man, don't I? I do like dancing though, so we'll see when we can put that to good use."
Jill stared up at him and ran her thumb along his bearded jaw when she shook her head softly.
"No," she whispered. "You sound perfect." Jill paused for a moment before suppressing a grin. "A little Jesus-y, but I'm certain Jesus did not know how to do that thing you do with your tongue—"
Carlos busted up into laughter before he was pressing her slightly into the steering wheel and began devouring her mouth.
"You're a comedian too, huh?" he murmured in between the pulls he made at her lips. "Just when I didn't think you were deadly enough."
"I meant what I said to you," Jill said with a hardening resolution in her chest while their lips whispered together. A thrum of sheer determination in her tone when she realized how much she absolutely wanted to keep Carlos Oliveira. "I will protect you now and I will protect your people with everything I have."
"The Rhamnusia," Carlos murmured quietly while he seemed to bask in her conviction. "South America will never be the same with you protecting it, Valentine. I won't be either."
Jill rested her forehead against his cheek when they both fell silent for a moment.
Was it possible? That everything that she had gone through in her short life had amalgamated to a hopeful future in which she could help shape a community who deserved its freedom and its ability to thrive when people came together?
"Fortune is neither good nor bad, Rhamnusia. It simply is. Figure out what that means for you. I can't tell you what it is, the BSAA can't tell you where to find it, and Carlos won't be able to give it to you." Trent had told her in his Audi just before she had departed.
"I love you," Jill whispered into the silence of the cab. "And I will give you everything I have to make sure you're safe and happy, Carlos."
Carlos answered that with a kiss against her forehead before he whispered his love and the same promise to her.
"Thank you," Carlos said after a few moments. "For coming here to find me, Jill. For trusting me as you have, for the moments stolen in between, and for showing me who you are. I really do want to know everything that matters to you. You're not just a name; you're everything to me."
Jill found his mouth in the dark and unlike their last few times, the kiss was unhurried and deep with a meaning and promise that the foundation of love was built upon.
When they broke apart, Carlos was looking down at her with a slow, silly grin that love was also known for.
"So, second base wasn't in your sights?" she bid in jest at his look.
"Is this a bad time to tell you that I actually planned for us to lay on a blanket in the truck bed and fall asleep looking up at the stars?" Carlos murmured softly.
"My God, Carlos, I don't know if I'll survive if I find out you're a sleepy romantic too." Jill uttered with her stomach fluttering.
"I aim to please, Ms. Valentine," he said huskily into her ear before he kissed her cheek. "C'mon, we should actually get some sleep at some point."
When she stepped out from the vehicle, the air of their surrounding area was slightly windy and muggy while the sounds of chittering insects reached her ears. Behind her, Carlos was pulling a few blankets out from the small space behind the driver's seat.
Jill could barely make out Alonzo's jeep in the distance but even as she stood there, she could feel someone's eyes looking back and making sure they were all safe as they slept.
When Carlos had the blankets set up, they both climbed into the back and settled themselves on their backs with Carlos' head resting on a duffle bag that had been stuffed with extra clothes they had brought. His large hands maneuvered Jill's body against his, and her head rested against his chest while they both looked up into the night sky.
"Look there," Jill whispered while she lifted a hand to the sky. "The Gemini constellation."
Carlos let out a laugh and said, "It would be my zodiac. I was born on May 24th."
"Means I have time to plan for your birthday." Jill hummed in approval of the new information.
The cloud coverage had moved back far enough for them to view the bright stars above. As luck would have it, February was one of the best times to view the Gemini constellation.
"Did you know that the Kabbalah, an esoteric method, discipline, and school of thought in Jewish mysticism, believes that 12 zodiacs are linked closely with the 12 archangels?" Jill asked softly.
Carlos shifted his head to look down at her when he said, "So, you're a stargazer too? You are full of surprises." He leaned down and kissed her temple. "I didn't know that. Tell me."
"A lot of religions and spiritual philosophies suggest that a systemized plan governs our birth at the set time and location and therefore the dates on which we are born are not an accident." Jill paused for a moment while she thought of the archangels for each. "Gemini is associated with the Archangel Zadkiel. The archangel of freedom, benevolence, kindness, and mercy. He is the patron angel of all who have it in them to forgive and to allow forgiveness."
"Do you believe in fate then?" Carlos whispered into her ear.
"If I was ever inclined to, Carlos, it would be because of you," Jill answered honestly when he rolled his top half upwards and moved his mouth down below to the spot beneath her ear.
"You're the man I couldn't let go of when I had my freedom again, and—" her breath hitched when he began to suck softly at her neck. "You are absolutely the embodiment of mercy, kindness, and the very reason I may ever be able to forgive myself for what I've done."
Carlos removed his lips from her neck and lifted his head when Jill turned her eyes toward his.
Fortune could speak to a few different meanings. One was luck and the favored results that found a person at the end of each day. The other was fate and what a person found themselves with no matter how they viewed it.
While she watched the man beside her pant from the love growing between them, she realized that if she was the embodiment of retribution to those around her, then he was what came after. Forgiveness.
Forgiveness for what she couldn't control, forgiveness for what she had done, and forgiveness to a land that had known pain and loss.
Carlos proceeded to undress her under the sole witness of the stars. Their lovemaking was soft when he pulled her leg over his hip and entered her slowly while they lay on their sides, facing one another. His name was a prayer on Jill's lips when she eventually rose to peak and tumbled further into the heart of the man who followed shortly after her.
The city of Ayacucho was meeting their sight as they were nearing noon of the following day. Jill stared at the old city as Carlos recanted the city's history and small facts of its inhabitants' beliefs.
Derived from the Quechua words aya and k'uchu, the city had been renamed to honor those lost in the Peruvian war for independence in 1825.
Ayacucho was also well known for its 33 churches, which represented one church for each year of Jesus Christ's life.
The buildings that rose up around them while Carlos navigated them around the south side of the city were a mixture of ancient architecture. One of them being the style of the Incas of Cusco, and the other the Spanish colonial architecture; all of it together was a bleeding combination of history around Jill that she found herself, once again, dropping her mouth open from.
When she heard Carlos' chuckle, Jill glanced over at him and was reminded of Alonzo's similar amused stare when she had done the same thing only a few days ago.
After their night in the back of the truck, Carlos had been all soft touches and gentle words in her ear all morning.
"I can't believe you stayed single, Oliveira. You're breaking the hearts of so many in silence." she had told him when they woke up in the pre-dawn of that morning.
"Never had a woman make me feel like you did when we were just running for our lives 12 years ago," he responded easily when he had molded himself against her. "And trust me when I tell you I am a man hard-pressed to never settle for less."
Carlos' truck and Alonzo's jeep came to the final stop in a dirt lot behind a row of buildings and Jill glanced up to see streams of people walking through what appeared to be a market ahead.
"This is where we're meeting?" Jill asked, turning to Carlos.
"Somewhat, it's a bit of a walk from here but we have some time before the gathering. I wanted you to be able to see some of the culture here before we arrived." He was looking up at her in the growing silence after he slid the keys into his cargo pants.
"What?" He uttered at her look.
"Nothing," Jill said with a shy smile.
"You can tell me if I'm charming the pants off you, Valentine," he purred with a half grin.
"I can't think of a more dangerous idea to give you," Jill responded when she matched his grin and turned to step out of the truck.
"Now there's a smile," Alex called in a warm greeting when he walked over.
"He's just a great driver," Jill downplayed loud enough for Carlos to hear. His responding scoff from across the truck was music in her ears.
"Was she drooling on the windows when you drove in?" Alonzo's grin was very similar to his brother's when he joined Alex's side.
"Pretty much fogging 'em up, yeah," Carlos responded as he hauled one of their bags over his shoulder.
"You guys think you're fuckin' hilarious for pointing out my obvious appreciation for beauty," Jill was muttering when she followed suit and grabbed her bag.
"The vocabulary switch will be a slow descent into madness, Rhamnusia. Welcome to the family." Pedro called her out on her vulgar choice of words before he locked up the jeep.
The five men were flanking her while they made their way toward the market ahead.
"You guys know my name is Jill, right?" she asked with a playful demeanor that was born under the sunny day stretching out before them.
"I don't like it," Alex uttered first.
"It sounds so…" Pedro tried but trailed off.
"Nice? I know, right?" Alonzo supplied.
"Maybe we can just call you that on the holidays," David, the usually quiet one, finished.
The four men glanced at him for a moment before they all began to chuckle and chuck him in the arm for participating.
Jill watched them all as they continued to joke and banter while they followed her to the stalls ahead. Each of them had a natural response to the other that spoke of the years they had spent growing up beside one another. Carlos, who was now considered their superior in their fight, held himself as an older brother to them all. It wasn't hard to see why people would follow him, or why he would work so hard to protect them.
They were a community of men who knew loss and knew the importance that each person held.
To Alex's playful but serious nature when he regarded his duties. To Pedro's storyteller driven soul he shared at campfires but had a natural hand for strategy. To David's more solemn nature but loyal devotion he gave with his every move.
"What's that look?" Carlos asked softly beside her when she had stopped at a stall that had caught her eye.
"You all are a family," Jill said simply. "It's just been nice to be in the presence of."
Carlos' true smile was slipping onto his face, and it nearly took her breath away.
"They can be your family too, Jill." he said after a moment. "I'd wager to say they already are."
Jill had picked up a bracelet while he spoke, and she glanced back up at him. Her fingers roamed softly over the jewelry before she set it back down.
"Do you like that?" he asked curiously.
Jill had met his eyes again but quickly glanced down at the piece before she nodded. It was a bracelet that seemed to be woven thread twined with what smelled like bark of a eucalyptus tree. Two small, white, crafted flowers had been sown into the front of the bracelet's centerpiece.
"I do but maybe I'll wait to celebrate with purchases once we know what we'll need our funds for with everything that may come to pass soon." Jill answered before she glanced over to see Alonzo and the others waiting for them. "C'mon."
Walking with the four men ahead of her and Carlos at her back, Jill felt herself smiling as she took in the city.
Signs for a festival, music, and food at 5 p.m. had the people of the city talking around her excitedly. Many were pushing past and heading toward the square that was apparently somewhere behind them. Knowing their meeting was at 2 p.m., Jill briefly wondered if they might be able to catch it on their way out. The idea of dancing to music was a younger woman's desire in her heart and it was one she hadn't been able to embrace since before 1998.
The market vendors waved and beckoned her over, but Jill kept a steady path and gave an apologetic promise to stop by to see them later.
A hope was growing in Jill Valentine's chest. A hope to share a life with the man behind her and the serving with the men before her, but also to the land around her. She had meant what she had told Carlos in the truck last night. Jill didn't know what the future held when she had started this journey, but she didn't have any intention of going back to her old life. She couldn't and it felt unfair to try.
As luck would have it or maybe even fate, Jill had found Carlos. With that, it had opened up a new life before her and the more and more she looked, the more she saw the future she wanted.
Turning back, Jill looked for the dark-eyed gaze of Carlos and found him missing behind her. The swirls of people passing had her whipping her head over shoulders when panic seized her chest. Vulnerability and love stole her usually calm center point while her mind immediately went to horrible possibilities for his absence.
He had just been behind her only minutes ago when she looked last. Had someone caught him—
"Rhamnusia," David said beside her.
With a spin of blonde hair, Jill was looking anxiously into David's eyes with her mouth opening.
"He'll be right back," David simply explained. "I saw where he went. He's fine."
A ragged breath tore through Jill's throat, and she suddenly felt foolish. Of course his men were watching.
She caught Alonzo's gaze from over David's shoulder and she saw his eyes light up in concern as he moved back for her.
Alonzo grabbed her arm to pull her to his side and glared at David.
"The hell did you say to her?" Alonzo demanded.
"She was looking for Carlos," David explained while looking a little panicked.
Alonzo blinked and chuckled before he pulled Jill forward into a walk again.
"Man, you guys really do got it bad. C'mon, little kullaka, he'll find you soon enough." Alonzo teased.
Jill sighed and glared halfheartedly up at Alonzo.
"Do you all really have to keep using the Aymara words without teaching me what they mean?" she bid with a little bite in her tone.
"You'll learn the language one day and then the jig will be up. We won't be able to keep our super secrets from you anymore." Alonzo said with a wave of his hand.
With an elbow playfully driven into his side, Jill felt herself relaxing and they continued to walk on. Her worry lingered but she would trust David at his word.
Soon, fingers were sliding over her wrist to pull her to a gentle stop and Jill looked up to see Carlos looking down at her with a new look in his eyes. Jill watched as he looked up and over toward where Alonzo had paused, waiting too. Carlos gave a jut of his chin and Alonzo seemed to understand whatever it was he was communicating.
Alonzo, Pedro, and David continued ahead but after something Alonzo said, Alex waited behind and posted himself against one of the walls of the building ahead.
Carlos was pulling her quietly toward a small alcove that led into what looked like a residential plaza of the city. Once they were in the shade, Carlos lifted something between his two fingers. The bracelet.
"I asked you if you believed in fate last night, Jill," Carlos began quietly when he brought her hand up and took to tying the bracelet on her left wrist. "And you said that if you did, it would be because of me, what I represent to you, and what you've been through."
Jill took a deep breath while she tried to suppress the emotion creating moisture in her eyes. He had gone back for the bracelet he knew she wanted. A simple thing but something he had taken further notice of and decided it was important enough to surprise her with.
"Tell me then, would it not be fate that would bring you to the one of the Aymara stalls in that marketplace?" Carlos murmured when he finally finished with the bracelet. He was getting better with his dexterity now that he was getting used to his missing fingers.
Jill's breath caught in her throat when he stepped into her and angled his face down to hers when he continued, "Would it not be fate that drew you into one of the things I would like to give you the most? You picked a jaqichasiwi bracelet and I was supposed to ignore that?"
"What's a jaq—" she began.
"Oh, no," he interrupted in a husky whisper before he stole a kiss. "You can find that out when we return home. No spoiling the surprise, Supercop."
Carlos continued to kiss her deeply against the alcove and Jill could think of nothing but that future stretching ahead of them.
A whistle caught in Jill's ears before Carlos pulled his head back slowly. His black hair swayed when he glanced over at Alex who was waving them over.
"Time to go," Carlos said softly before turning his attention back on her. "Let's see what the other members have to say and then we can buy you that bed."
"Definitely a sleepy romantic," Jill teased a little breathlessly when he pulled her away from the wall. "We never finished our conversation about the Peruvian and Colombian leaders the other night. Anything I should know?"
"You were pretty distracting," Carlos agreed while his right hand curled around her left one. "But I think you'll figure them out pretty quickly. I have no fear that you can hold your own."
Jill squeezed his hand for the confidence he had in her when she glanced over at Alex who stood waiting for them.
Alex's eyes were on the bracelet at her wrist. When the young man's eyes landed on hers, his healing face pulled into a delighted smile.
"Ready, Jill?" Alex Sosa asked with that twinkling happiness in his eyes. Bidding her name with respect in his tone.
Whatever may come, for the first time in a few years, Jill decided she was, in fact, ready.