His happiness felt like a slap. Of course he would see soldiers descending on them as a good thing.
“Hands up,” the soldier barked. His gun swiveled in Enzo’s direction. “State your name and national identity.”
Enzo raised his hands. “Enzo Vasquez. I’m a special ops officer from Kansas City. You and I work for the same government and have the same goals,” he emphasized, “So it would be nice if you didn’t shoot me.”
The soldier stepped closer. His night vision goggles made him look insect-like. “Is that so? Then you’ll have some ID on you, Officer Vasquez.”
“Normally, I would,” Enzo conceded, “but I’ve been working undercover with a group of harvesters.”
Would he willingly tell them everything? Charity swallowed and tried to push away the feeling of betrayal that twisted in her chest.
“Harvesters?” the soldier repeated without an ounce of belief. “We don’t run into many harvesters in the woods. We do run into scouts for the breakaway states, though.” He jerked a finger at Charity’s flashlight. “Careless of you to tell us your location. Now you can tell us where the rest of your division is.”
Her flashlight. They’d been near enough to see it when she’d been checking for animals. All of this was Charity’s fault. Again.
Enzo’s attention never wavered from the soldier. “Call the department of special ops. Director Schmitt will confirm my identity. Or his personal assistant Perry will, since I’m sure Director Schmitt is sleeping.”
The soldier grunted. “We don’t make calls out here that could reveal our position. But I’ll do something better. I’ll give you truth serum and see what your story is then.” He gestured to the soldiers behind Enzo. “Cuff them.”
The man stepped forward and clapped handcuffs on Enzo. Someone behind Charity did the same.
Enzo was right to fear cave-ins. Here out in the open, she felt as though the world was caving in. She’d brought the soldiers here, and now they were giving Enzo truth serum. In seven minutes, they could learn everything.
The lead soldier holstered his gun, pulled a vial from his pocket, and wiped the serum across Enzo’s cheek.
“Are you working for the breakaway states?” the soldier asked.
“No. I’m a special ops officer in Kansas City, just like I told you.”
The man cocked his head in surprise. “What are you doing out here in the middle of a war zone?”
“My wife and I were at her parents’ cabin. They were supposed to pick us up yesterday but never did. We decided to head out on our own before we ran out of food.”
“You went to a cabin in a war zone?”
“It wasn’t a war zone when we came. We’ve been there for over two weeks and never left the area.”
“Why were you at a cabin for so long?”
“My wife,” Enzo nodded at Charity, “she wanted to start a family. The trip wasn’t my idea. I was against it, in fact. We’ve been fighting, trying to figure out what our future will look like. She knew it would take a long time to convince me to become a father. But she can be pretty convincing when she wants.”
The man lifted his hand to stop Enzo’s monologue. “Do you have any intentions of hurting the US soldiers or hindering their cause?”
“No.”
“Are you hiding anything of importance?”
That question would sink them. She shut her eyes in anticipation.
“Yes,” Enzo said. “Many things. I don’t want to have a baby, but if it will keep Charity in my life, then I’m willing to do that. Because despite everything I’ve said, I don’t want to lose her. I love her. Although I still think her family is crazy, and I don’t ever want to see them again. Worst in-laws ever. Really, the worst. Her brother, Milo, is a complete idiot, and I?—”
The man cut him off. “That’s enough information.” He cast an uncomfortable glance at Charity and cleared his throat. “You and your wife can return with us to our camp and catch a ride back to the city with the next supply truck that comes.” In a lower voice, he added, “Sorry about making you say all that stuff about your in-laws.”
Charity’s mouth had dropped open during Enzo’s speech, and she clapped it shut. He loved her. He didn’t want to lose her. Why hadn’t he told her all of that last night? Or, for that matter, during the day? And how had he managed to keep the important secrets while under the influence of truth serum?
Enzo looked at the ground, seemingly ashamed of what he’d said.
The soldiers removed Enzo’s and Charity’s handcuffs. She’d spent two weeks wondering why the vision had made her marry Enzo. His guess about wanting to protect her might be right, but she’d realized another reason. If they hadn’t married, Enzo wouldn’t have been able to tell the soldiers she was his wife or that they’d talked about a baby. He would have had to tell the other truth—the one that would’ve gotten her arrested.