Against the Wind Read Free

allow—”
    “Allow, General?” She looked at him with an innocent question in her large brown eyes. “I thought my government had made all the arrangements. I have permission to travel on my own to the northern part of the country, to retrieve my father and bring him back to the United States. Is there some way that interferes with the agricultural concerns of San Pablo?”
    General Ortega opened his mouth, shut it again, and Maddy could hear the gentle grinding of teeth. “Of course not, Miss Lambert. We only wished to make things easier for you. The Grand Pablan Highway is not at all what you’re used to, and while we have made great strides in law and order, the rebels have been draining our manpower in the north. I cannot guarantee your safety if you insist on going by yourself.”
    Maddy smiled. “I don’t expect you to guarantee my safety, General. I consider that to be my responsibility.”
    “You are very headstrong, Miss Lambert. I only hope you will not regret your decision. At least wait until tomorrow to leave, and think about our very generous offer.”
    “I’m sorry, General. I’m leaving as soon as I can.”
    It hadn’t been noon, it had been closer to three o’clock, and she hadn’t made it more than fifty miles when darkness had begun closing around her. For a moment she’d regretted her impulsive action. She’d lied to the so-helpful General Ortega—no arrangements had been made for a vehicle or supplies. Her directions to the tiny mountain town of Puente del Norte were the only thing she relied on. But she had the very strong suspicion that if she showed up at a rebel stronghold in a government limousine with an armed guard she wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms. Her father had been more than vocal about his disapproval of
el presidente
’s repressive regime, he’d been strident. Maddy didn’t owe him much, but he didn’t deserve to have his daughter show up surrounded by his sworn enemies.
    Hertz, Avis, and their ilk had long ago abandoned San Pablo. The rusty, venerable Toyota she’d finally located had recently transported chickens and perhaps goats, and the odor, combined with the humid heat, almost sent her back to General Ortega. It would have been simple enough to find him—one of his Gray Shirts had been doing a not very effective job of following her since she’d managed to shake Ortega at the airport.
    But the Toyota ran smoothly, if bumpily, enough, and the animal smell of it dissipated as the day wore on.
    The road was getting worse, far worse, signaling the proximity of a semblance of civilization. Maddy slowed the Toyota to a crawl, edging along the narrow trail, straddling the ruts. Suddenly she jammed the tiny carinto a quick, jolting stop that rocked the poor tin creature on its frame. A huge branch lay across the narrow road.
    Maddy swore under her breath. The car had stalled, and she switched off the ignition, turning to the door handle. And found herself looking directly into the barrel of a very large, very nasty gun.

CHAPTER TWO
     
    She swallowed, her mouth suddenly very dry, as she stared into the narrow, deadly little barrel. Slowly, carefully she raised her eyes, past a sweat-stained shirt, open to reveal a hairy chest, past a thick neck, stubbled chin, hooked nose, directly into the eyes of a very fierce young man. Those eyes were a cold, merciless brown; like a lizard’s, they stared at her unwinking. Maddy could see the shadow of others behind him, but she didn’t dare move her gaze from his, certain that if she did that lethal-looking gun would explode in her face. She swallowed again, wetting her lips, and tried to summon the distant trace of a smile. She could imagine the ghastly parody that issued forth.
    A string of rapid, incomprehensibly idiomatic Spanish issued forth from that grim mouth, directed at Maddy, and there was little doubt that the speech contained both questions and orders.
    “No comprendo,”
Maddy managed, which wasn’t