Page 58 of Terminal Voyage

I was too numb to even respond. I had never done anything like that before. I had never killed anyone. Despite the training, it was a club I never wanted to join.

“What about Felix and Antonio?” Silas asked.

I shook my head.

“We must vamonos,” Matteo said.

“What about the police?” Hannah asked.

Matteo shook his head. “The cartel owns them. We must go.”

“Not so fast,” Silas said as Matteo started gathering the gear. “How did they know we were here?”

Matteo swallowed hard, fear in his eyes, looking guilty. "I don't know."

"The only people who knew we were here were Felix, Antonio, and you."

Matteo swallowed and glanced at the others before returning his gaze to Silas. "I don't know what to tell you.”

"There were plenty of opportunities to get ambushed at Tzun Kaan,” Silas said, fury building behind his eyes. “We didn’t have trouble until we met you.”

"The jungle is a dangerous place."

"How much were they going to pay you?”

"What!?" Matteo said in as innocent a voice as he could muster.

"You tipped them off. You told them exactly where we were going to be. You had plenty of time to do it before we arrived. I made arrangements with you after lunch."

Matteo swallowed hard.

By this time, Declan and the others glared at the dive guide.

Silas took aim. He was mad. We all were. An inch from death, we’d gotten lucky. Lucky that I made it out of the cave. Lucky that I acquired a weapon. Lucky that I didn't miss. I wasn’t going to take credit for the whole thing. There was something more than skill at play. It seemed the Universe didn't want me to die today. And I was okay with that.

Matteo shook his head. "I swear, I didn't have anything to do with it."

Silas didn't back down. "Start talking, or I'm going to put a bullet into your brain.”

29

Silas was under a lot of pressure. As far as security went, he had proven himself ineffective. At least in this situation. There was no doubt in my mind he feared for his job. Why wouldn't Declan fire him? Sure, he might last the rest of the trip, but at the first opportunity, the billionaire would let him go for someone more capable. Still, what could he and Kyle have done without weapons?

I think Silas wanted to prove his worth.

"Start talking!" he demanded of the guide.

Matteo trembled, and his nervous eyes darted around to the others, looking for a lifeline—looking for someone to tell Silas to put the gun down.

Nobody did.

"I didn't have a choice," Matteo finally cried. "They forced me to do it."

It didn't pass the sniff test, and Silas knew it. "Bullshit! Assoon as you figured out who had booked the cavern tour, you called your buddies in the cartel.”

"If I want to stay in business, I have to stay on their good side. I throw them something every now and then. Typically, they just mug tourists for cash and jewelry.”

Silas shook his head. "Why would guys who make millions of dollars running drugs mess with nickel-and-dime tourists? No. You throw them high-value targets when they come along. People they can extort for millions."