Logan took in the details of the building, noting there was one window with bars on the side he could see. That had to be where they were holding her. He kept his sight trained on the door, waiting for Ballard to come out.
Closing his mind to the sounds around him, he tried to sense Dani. If only he could somehow let her know he was there. The air around him grew heavy, his breathing slowed, and something strange happened. For a moment in time, Evan stood next to him and they were with Dani. “Buy time and stay safe,” Logan whispered.
“What?”
What the hell had just happened? He lowered the binoculars and blinked at Buchanan. “I didn’t say anything.”
“Did, too.”
Had he? It had seemed so real that maybe he had. “Are the dogs going to be a problem?”
“Decourdeau says not to worry.”
“What’s his plan, do you know?”
“He’s got a tranquilizer gun. Said there’s just four Dobermans and they’re only half-ass trained, so no big deal. He’s been creeping up to the fence at night, cooing to them in Doberish. Man’s wonky, if you ask me. Rubs raw meat all over his clothes and then goes a’visiting his doggies.”
Logan raised a brow. “And they don’t bark?”
“Surprised me, too. Now if you or me tried to sneak up on them, different story altogether. Swear to God, dude’s got some kind of voodoo shit going on.”
“Whatever works,” Logan said. “Stupid of these idiots not to have anyone doing night patrol with the dogs. Not that I’m complaining.”
“Yeah, there’s only the guard at the gate on duty at night.”
Ballard came out and Logan brought the binoculars back up. The man said a few words to the guards and then walked off. Logan tracked him, noting he entered the only building that looked like a house. Besides the house, there were several structures that appeared to be dormitories, along with the kennels and the small building where they were keeping Dani. The big question was, would she still be there at 0300? He unrolled his site map and circled Dani’s location and the house.
“Call Turner and tell him to send one of his men here. I want him watching that building from now until we drop in on them. If they move Dani, I want to be notified immediately.”
“Hey, boss, look.”
Through the binoculars, he saw Evan’s twin up close for the first time. Except for the shaved head, Logan would’ve sworn he was seeing his friend. Eli said something to one of the guards, the man walked away, and then Eli went back inside with Dani. Rage turned Logan’s gut sour. He stepped forward, intending to tear the place apart with his bare hands to get to her.
Buchanan grabbed his arm. “Easy, Iceman.”
The name grounded him, and Logan stilled, letting the Iceman cool his blood. He’d already made one mistake too many—another was unacceptable. The Iceman didn’t screw up. Logan did, and so he was banished until Dani was safe in his arms.
“Meeting at eighteen hundred. I want everyone there except the man assigned to this post. He’s not to move an inch until I say otherwise.”
Deep in the woods, Logan sat next to Barbie and spread out the satellite photo in the middle of the circle of men. She’d participated in one previous mission on American soil, acting as their operations coordinator. Her goal was to join one of the teams, but she had no combat experience and would have to prove herself to the men. So far, she was doing an excellent job of winning their respect.
He went over the plan, and then went over it again. They didn’t have the luxury of their warehouse, where they could build a facsimile of the compound and train for a week or two, but each soul on the mission knew what was at stake and they would do or die. Logan had been on many missions with some of these men, some he hadn’t, but they were all ex-SEALs and the most skilled in the world at what they did.
The plan was the best they could come up with under the circumstances, the one least likely to get anyone killed on either side. If the Iceman had to, however, he would metamorphose into Superman and take a hundred bullets, because nothing and no one would stop him from rescuing Dani.
After reviewing the upcoming night a third time, it was time for a pep talk. “Andre’s bewitched the dogs, so you don’t have to worry about Doberman teeth sinking into your ass.” Logan looked at Decourdeau and shuddered. “You’re a scary man, but I can live with that as long as you don’t ever turn your voodoo shit my way.”
“No problem, mon ami, long as you don’t go and piss me off.”
As Logan had intended, the men laughed quietly. “And you, Romeo, no flirting with the ladies.”