Volcano by Gabby Grant

passion that had seized him from that very first moment and
refused to let go. There was something about her, a
fierceness , a melancholy longing, that only Mark understood. And
together, each of them was better, stronger, than they’d ever been apart.
    Mark had hoped , had waited more
than forty years, to find a woman who fit his life. And Ana not only fit it,
she filled it- completely. But now that she was gone, Mark felt nothing but
burning empty. Empty and angry, he realized. Angry enough to detonate every
building and smash every sick bastard’s head this side of Richmond, if that’s
what was necessary to bring Ana back. But this wasn’t just a Virginia problem
and Mark knew it. This wasn’t just a US problem either. Yet, as US intelligence
appeared the target, America was certainly the bull’s eye on the board. All
Mark had to do was find out who was throwing the
goddamned darts.
    Mark heard the car phone alert in the sedan parked behind
him. Albert popped open the passenger door and lifted the trilling receiver.
    “I see... When... No, absolutely. You did the right thing in
letting me know...”
    “And?” Mark asked, heading back up the boat launch that led to
the river.
    “That was Mooney on the line.”
    Mark’s stomach soured. It seemed nothing ever involving Tom
Mooney meant positive news. Former Ambassador Tom Mooney had been appointed to
Costa Negra at the time of Ana’s earlier kidnaping. He was now stationed back
stateside as head of the US State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and
Research. Mooney and Albert Kane went back a long way, Mark had learned. Longer than anyone had originally suspected.   
    Mark waited.
    “Seems all hell’s busting loose all over the place.” Albert
said, removing his glasses. “Joe McFadden’s gone AWOL on some top security
mission in the Middle East. Seems he’s got a five hundred “K” bounty on his
head.”
    Mark whistled. Other than Albert’s friend, Mooney was also
Joe McFadden’s uncle. They were each the only family the other had left.
    When Mark first met McFadden in Costa Negra, the tension
between them had been explosive enough to ignite the atom bomb. But afterward,
once they’d been forced to work together toward the common worthy objective of
freeing hostage Ana Kane, Mark and Joe had developed a grudging respect for one
another. Later on, that qualified admiration had developed into something more
akin to friendship. A friendship that appeared to go the way of the wind once
Ana’d broken off her relationship with Joe and taken up instead, more
indefinitely, with Mark.
    Mark looked at Albert and noticed the older man seemed
unsteady, a condition rare for a seasoned professional like Kane. In fact, Mark
had only seen Albert with that expression on his face once before. And it had
been in the north of Spain, just over three years ago.
    “ This have anything to do with the
analyst scare?”
    “I’m afraid damn not,” Albert said, repositioning his
glasses. “For once, McFadden’s disappearance and Ana’s abduction have nothing
whatsoever to do with one another.”
    So why then did Mark have the kinetic sensation that somehow
they did? “Better check back with HQ and see what they’ve got on that coat,” he
said, heading back around the car to the driver’s door.
    Mark was just pulling open his car door when a slight ping
whizzed by his right ear.
    “Jesus Christ!” he said, diving onto the driver’s seat.
“Down, Albert!   Get down!”
    The rapid ratatat of submachine fire sliced from the nearby
trees and shattered the sedan’s rear window.
    “Holy shit,” Albert said, scrambling toward the floor, “set
it in gear!”
    Mark righted himself as much as possible while still dipping
beneath the dash. He cranked the ignition, set the car in reverse and floored
the pedal.
    The car lurched backwards as another round of gunfire tore
loose, this time splintering the windshield.
    “Think they like us?” Albert asked, clutching