Cade Finnegan wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him. He tried to convince himself that he was still amped up from the operation they had just finished, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t stop watching the woman’s hands moving under the table she was sitting at. To him they very clearly were signing in American Sign language, help, and then she spelled ‘kidnapped’. He leaned forward and the other three team members mimicked it.

    “Woman at my three, she is signing help and kidnapped.”

    “You sure?” Buchanan asked.

    “Yeah, over and over again.” Cade nodded.

    “Plan?” This came from Leroy, he was always ready for a fight, whether it be in a bar, desert, or jungle.

    “I’ll make contact, y’all distract when I give the signal. Get out as soon as you can.” Cade looked to his three friends, his three teammates and brothers in arms. They all nodded solemnly, Buchanan, Leroy, and Mendez were ready for the fight and knew the plan.

    “Text in your locations,” Mendez added, “I’ll be on pickup. Finnegan you take the woman out the back.”

    “Aye, alright keep up men.” Finnegan said with a wink then boomed, “what do you mean I can’t get her number? Of course I can!”

    Cade stood pretending to wobble slightly. “I’ll prove it.”

    “Fifty,” Leroy reached for his wallet.

    “Keep your money,” Cade slurred, “I do this for me!” He jabbed a thumb into his own chest and staggered towards the woman. He had already taken in the situation as best he could. She sat across from two men, a third was next to her. He had mentally filed their physical descriptions for later.

At least it would be a fair fight. Cade had noticed the knife as soon as he leaned against the table between the woman and the man across from her. The woman’s eyes opened wide in surprise, they were gold, a bright gold that even sparkled in the dingy German dive bar.

    “Hey there pretty lady come here often?”

    Callena would have laughed at any other time. She was sure she had gotten the American’s attention, she was sure he understood, and if this was his plan to help her, then  she was obviously in more trouble that she thought. The four Americans had looked and acted like frat boys they were typical in their noise level and drinking habits.

    “I um,” Callena stammered looking to her captors for direction.

    “Hey buddy, scram,” the man they referred to as ‘Mole’ was sitting directly across from Callena when he spoke the American turned to him not so cordial any more.

    “Hey if you love it so much then why didn’t you put a ring on it?” Cade threw in a sassy hip sway before he took the punch to the face. He staggered back in complete exaggeration so he could grab a beer bottle in each hand. In a flash he broke both of them. Lunging forward in almost the same move he stabbed Mole in the gut with one then grabbed Callena by the arm pulling her behind him. He disarmed the one with the knife, they had called him Boris. He scanned for the third man, but his men were already on it.

    Leroy and Buchanan had flipped a table and were punching or restraining the men still standing. Mendez was nowhere to be found.

    “Let’s go,” Cade tugged her hand. He was completely sober looking now and Callena had frozen at the transformation. His face went from slack and jovial to hard and focused. She followed gaping after him.

    A silver SUV stopped just as they slid out the back door. Cade used an old piece of wood to jam the door shut. The shouts of the bar were still in full force.

    Cade opened the door and shoved her into the back seat. He followed and immediately reached under the seat in front of him for his service weapon.

    “Report?” Mendez asked as he turned and headed for the front.

    “I took out two, Buchanan and Leroy were on damage control, last I saw.” Cade said loading his gun. “Stay here.”

    He got out in front of the bar and helped Leroy carry Buchanan out the front the loaded him into the trunk and sped off.

    “US Embassy,” Cade demanded.

    “One step ahead of you brother,” Mendez said as he drove through red lights and on the wrong side of the road.

    Cade stripped away Buchanan’s shirt seeing blood on his right side, “Damn busted my stitches.” Buchanan winced.

    “I’ll fix them when we get to the embassy.” Cade muttered using the torn shirt to staunch the blood.

    “You’re a peach,” Buchanan replied, “My wife gave me that shirt.”

    He sat back with a groan, blood loss and alcohol didn’t mix, but besides being light headed he would probably be perfectly fine. Callena saw the blood and put a hand over her mouth. She started speaking in Spanish, so fast and so panicked that Cade couldn’t catch it.

    “Mendez, language report.” Cade demanded trying to get her attention. She was shaking and crying and he had very little tolerance for hysterical people in general.

    “She’s freaking out, sir.” Mendez replied.

    “That’s all you got, really?” Cade gave her a quick shake, “knock it off.”

    She smacked him right across the face, it was a knee jerk reaction.

    “Well that worked,” Leroy said drily. He had his gun ready to go and even though he looked relaxed everyone knew he was scanning for a tail. He had already called the embassy let them know who they were names, ranks, military ID numbers and what they were doing.

    “Boss, you got blood,” Leroy said reaching for the med kit. Callena had been dressed in old jeans and a t-shirt that one of her kidnappers had given her that day. On her right thigh blood was starting to seep through the jeans.

    Cade was over the back seat in a flash, Leroy moved the other way to sit with Buchanan. Callena was so shocked by the men that it wasn’t until he had completely cut the leg of her jeans that she thought to protest.

    “Madre de los dios. Lo siento no tengo morphine.” Cade said as he started to move and examine the wound. His Spanish was rusty, but he noticed the change in her right away, the sound of her native language calmed her down.

    “Esta bien, no necesito. Estoy bien.”

    “Como se dice big fat liar en Espanol?” Cade asked her with a serious look on his face.

    Callena signed something very rude in American Sign language and crossed her arms haughtily.

    “You’ll need stitches,” Cade murmured as he turned the leg trying to get a better look at it. Leroy held up his phone to help. “We’ll just wrap it for now, fix it at the embassy.”

    “Americano?”

    “Si.”

    Cade liked the look of relief on her face at that information, and it wasn’t long before they rolled through the gates of the embassy.

    Leroy and Buchanan got out first, securing the perimeter. Mendez got out the front and paved the way with the representatives inside the consulate. Cade got out last waiting for the all clear before he took Callena in his arms and carried her in.

    “Need a doctor, Buchanan needs his stitches fixed, and her leg needs to be looked at.” Cade instructed heading straight for an elevator. They went to the second floor where there were hotel like rooms and he put her down on a bed.

    “Don’t have a doctor Commander.” The representative said, “but we probably have everything you need to help her, I need your name, ma’am, and nationality so we can get you help. If you can tell us what happened.”

    “My name is Princess Callena Maria Gardena Soto. I am a Cordovian, and I was kidnapped by a group of men. I do not know all their nationalities. One was Russian, another German, the third Cordovian, I believe. I have been captive for three months.”

    “We’ll get a call out, Cordova I’m guessing doesn’t have an embassy here?”

    “No sir, Espana, would be the best to contact.”

    “I’ll get them right away, Commander Finnegan you okay here?”

    “Yes sir, set up my men will you? And have Mendez put a call into our command.”

    “Already on it,” Leroy said collapsing into a seat, “All we wanted was a drink man, a drink, and you’re off saving princesses.”

    “Yeah well, life with me is never boring.”

    “I’m going for a shower and a cheeseburger, anything for you Princess?”

    Callena had resumed her shaking, it was all starting to set in. She was finally free, she had survived three months of hell and had gotten away. All she could do to respond to the man was shake her head, no.

    “You’re army?” She wanted to know more about her rescuer, thank him somehow and apologize for striking him when she was panicked.

    “Navy SEALs, your majesty,” Cade said bent to the task of stitching up her thigh.

    “Callena, or Lena, please,” Callena replied, “You saved my life.”

    “All part of the service, ma’am.” Cade cut the suture material and wrapped the leg. She was tough, he had to give her that. He looked through the medication and pulled out some oxy and benadryl.

    “No thanks.”

    “Take at least half, and with these, so you don’t puke okay? You’ll get a little woozy, but should be mostly with it. Keep that leg dry okay?”

    “Okay.”

    Cade nodded stiffly and started to pack up the medical kit.

    “Will you stay?” Callena blurted. “I feel weak and stupid. I know I’m safe, but,” she looked downcast as if she was ashamed of this.

    “Sure,” Cade shrugged. “Let me just have one of the guys get me a change of clothes.”

    Buchanan brought in a change of clothes for Cade, sweatpants and a t-shirt. While he was there Cade fixed his stitches and wrapped his stomach.

    “I’ll send up food for both of you okay?”

    “Yeah, thanks. I’m going to leave the main door open while I shower, keep an ear out?”

    “Leroy is stationed outside.” Buchanan jerked his thumb.

    “He has food?”

    “Yes, and Mendez is running damage control.” Buchanan was about to launch into an overview of the damage they did, how many of the kidnappers they killed and to the bar. Cade held up a hand to stop him.

    “Later, I can handle it later.”

    “Alright, get some sleep you look like hell, man.” Buchanan slapped him on the shoulder and they exchanged a manly hug.

    “Thanks for having my six.”

    “Anytime.”

    Cade took a long hot shower, his first in weeks and put on the sweat pants. One of the men had set up a small camp bed and Callena was making it.

    “It’s fine,” Cade said running a towel over his black hair. He hadn’t shaved in a few weeks either, and would see about getting some razors later.

    Their dinner was set on a small table by the bullet proof windows. They sat facing each other their knees bumping. Callena wore the same t-shirt and sweatpants that he did, with the seal of the United States on it.

    “They got ahold of my parents, they’re flying in right now, will land in a few hours.”

    “That’s good, I’m sure they’re worried,” Cade hated small talk, and even more so when he wasn’t even sure what to say to this person. She had been kidnapped, and held against her will. He didn’t know what had happened to her in that time that she was a captive, and he didn’t want to know. He clenched and unclenched his fist a few times, Callena noticed the muscle on the side of his jaw was flexing from clenching his teeth.

    “I never got your name,” Callena blurted when he didn’t say anything.

    “Cade Finnegan. The one with the stab wound, red hair that was Gavin Buchanan. Spanish speaker, was Martino Mendez. Black guy, Jamal Leroy.”

    “You’re a team?”

    “A SEAL team, yeah.”

    “What were you doing in a dive bar in Germany?” She wondered.

    “Finished a mission, celebrating before they sent us back to the states.”

    “I’m sure you can’t talk about it.”

    “No ma’am I can’t.”

    “Lena, please.” Her voice was small and she looked down at her hands. She had long black hair it had waves to it but wasn’t pin curls.

    Cade didn’t know if he could call her Lena, by her given name, now that he knew she was a Princess.

    “Where does your family live?” Callena tried.

    “South Carolina, ever been?” Cade asked thinking this was a much easier line of conversation.

    “No, New York, Los Angeles, and D.C. only,” Callena smiled at the memory.

“So Cordova, where is that?” Cade mentally patted himself on the back for making small talk.

“Off the coast of Spain, big shipping port a lot of imports and exports go through. I’m the oldest. If I’m married before my brother then my husband will be Prince. It’s binding, no matter how the marriage is arranged.”

She looked down at her food before she continued, “I think they meant to sell me off to the highest bidder. Someone from the middle east, control of my home by a terrorist would be very strategic for them.”

“I’d say so,” Cade agreed, “I hope they send in a doctor tomorrow, if you need to talk to anyone about what happened.” Cade let that hang between them.

“They held me against my will, they beat me when I tried to escape, or talked back. That is all.”

“Still,” Cade tried to reason. “Sometimes talking to someone helps.”

“I’ve just told you and I feel no different,” Callena snapped.

Cade laughed, “yeah well that’s because I’m not a professional.” Callena narrowed her eyes at him, “or apparently any good at this, I’m sorry. So you have a younger brother?”

“Yes, Rafael. He’s ready to take over, he’s twenty-two now. Do you have siblings?”

“Young brother and sister, twins. They just turned twenty-three and are working in New York.”

The conversation was easier and when they finished dinner Cade was ready to sleep. It was late, well past midnight and he knew as soon as the Crowned Prince and Princess of Cordova showed up it would be chaos.

There were already cameras outside the embassy when they left, tons of media personnel trying to get a shot of them.

The airfield was private with three different security points. Felipe had them hide their faces as he had them waved through. The plane wasn’t extravagant, but functional. Cade sat across from Leroy and Buchanan, Mendez left the seat open next to him for Callena and he instead sat with her parents. Take off was smooth and as soon as they were in the air Leroy pulled out a deck of cards.

“How long is this flight?”

“Five hours to the UK, we’ll refuel in London, then continue to America.” A stewardess said. “Can I get you men something to drink?” There were two stewardess’ the other attended exclusively to the crown prince and princess.

“Want me to deal you in princess?” Leroy asked.

“What’s the game?” Callena wanted to know.

“Five card stud, aces and deuces wild.”

“Shania will you bring us a bag of pretzels, we need something to bet with,” Callena said sweetly.

“Got a serious one boys,” Buchanan said with a grin.

    “Normally,” Cade said leaning in, “each hand is worth a point.”

    “First to twenty wins,” Leroy finished.

    “Pretzels are better,” Buchanan decided, “More of a chance of you chumps eating your winnings.”

    Shania came back with their drink orders and a large bag of pretzels. Callena divvied them up and they started the game. It took them all the way until lunch was served with her and Cade having the largest piles.

    “They’re giving each other signals under the table,” Leroy decided dropping his cards.

“Clear off lunch,” Cade said piling up the pretzels and putting them in an empty bowl. He added a handful to sandwich plate placed in front of him. The bread was French and warmed with lean steak on it. There was melted cheese that didn’t come in a powder or plastic wrap and fresh vegetables.

“Man when is the last time you saw lettuce,” Buchanan said looking at his sandwich with reverence.

Callena practically drooled at the sight of the food, but unlike the night before the idea of eating it filled her with anxiety. She took the sandwich apart giving Cade the bread, and Buchanan the vegetables. She picked at the meat eating only one slice of it, and when that didn’t sit well she gave the rest to Leroy.

Feeling okay? Cade asked in sign so that it wouldn’t be obvious. He could already see the concern on her parents faces.

I guess I’m a little anxious.

What happened you ate last night?

“Dude stop, it’s like you’re whispering,” Mendez groused. Cade rolled his eyes at his friend, Mendez knew plenty of sign haven’t spent a good deal of time with Cade’s sister.

    “Having a private conversation, thanks. Want to be apart of it? Learn sign.”

    She fine, leave her alone man. This came from Buchanan.

    Seriously, let her be. Leroy added.

    I’m just tired, I think I’m going to lay down for a bit. Callena said standing.

    You sure? Cade couldn’t hide his concern now and Buchanan grabbed his arm before he could follow her to one of the long low couches and tuck her in.

    People deal with trauma differently, you know this. If she wants help she will ask us for it. Now cut it out, you’re not her boyfriend or her bodyguard. Plus her parents look pissed. Buchanan explained. If there was a place to storm off to Cade would have done it, but instead he sat down and pulled out his tablet. He watched a video that his sister Savannah had sent him. Marco was flexing his hands menacingly.

    “We’ll be in the back room if you need anything,” Felipe said.

    Cade sulked and put on his ipod. He needed to get out of his head for a minute. He had thirty before Buchanan flagged him down. Callena was trashing on the couch.

    “Seizure?” Cade asked.

    “Night terror,” Buchanan said moving to her side. “If she thrashes wrong she could take my stitches out again.”

    “I got it. Talk me through it.” Cade said lifting her off the couch. It wasn’t easy, her arms and legs were everywhere and she was muttering incoherently.

    “Hold her tight, slowly wake her up,” Buchanan instructed.

    Marco led the way out of the back cabin with a gun in his hand and the royals behind him.

    “Start talking to her.”

    Leroy and Mendez stood in between them with a shake of his head, “Buchanan can talk him through it, just give him a chance.” Mendez explained in Spanish.

    Callena’s eyes fluttered open at Cade’s muttered demand.

    “Where am I?” She slurred.

    “Dissociating,” Buchanan warned, “don’t wake her up all the way make her realize she’s dreaming.”

    “You’re on your parents plane, you’re safe. See there are your parents.” Cade pointed them out.

    “I’ve seen them in my dreams many times before. I know it’s not them.” Callena leaned her head against his chest, she shook it gently, “make them go away, they’re not real. I’ll never see them again.”

    Different angle, Cade thought grimly. “Okay then. Who am I? Am I one of your captors?”

    She looked at him puzzled. “No you’re not.”

    “Then who am I what’s my name?” Cade pressed.

    “You’re the soldier.”

    “I’ll try not to be offended,” Cade said drily.

    Confusion masked her face for a second then her eyes brightened, “the arrogant sailor, the one I smacked.”

    “And do you remember last night?”

    She looked confused again, “No. You took me out of the bar. That’s I don’t have-.”

    “That’s fine, that’s perfect. I took you out of the bar, so you can see me, you can hear me.” Cade took her hand, “can you feel my heart.”

    Callena nodded.

    “Your brain can make up somethings, but not that much.”

    “Okay,” and she promptly fell back into a deep sleep. Cade put her back on the couch and covered her with a blanket that was draped over the back. Her hand swung wildly for him, so he sat on the ground in front of the couch, near her head. He took her hand and slid it over his heart.

    “Another round?” Buchanan whispered going for the cards he had put back into his bag.

    “Sure,” Cade agreed. Leroy and Mendez sat around him, all four of them standing vigil over Callena.

    Gloria once again had a hand over her mouth in shock, four Americans watching over her daughter was a big surprise to her. She watched as Callena rolled to her side to be closer to them, to one in particular. When she looked to her husband she could see the gears turning in his head.

    They went back to the cabin which had a desk and a twin sized bunk.

    “He could compete,” Felipe said as soon as the door was closed, “He is a private citizen but saving her, we could honor him.”

    “But an American? How will that look to his people? His leader? He is a military member, they take those commitments very seriously.”

    “They are part of an elite group, but with that video on the internet, his face everywhere, it might change his career.”

    Gloria nodded at this, “you’ll be asking the president won’t you?”

    “Of course I will.” Felipe scoffed, “he’s a good man.”

There has only been one other time that Cade woke up to someone trying to choke him. It had been a woman that he was supposed to be tailing for information. She had been slight and wasn’t very effective. This time however he felt the air escape him and knew he was in trouble. He went for an area that was vulnerable and managed to get out of his attackers grip. He clocked him solidly on the temple and shoved him over the camp bed.

Callena was awake sitting bolt upright in shock.

“Are you hurt?” Cade managed as he gasped. He went after the guy and held him down with a knee to the shoulder blades. Callena could only shake her head mutely.

A man and woman entered the room and Cade guessed them to be Callena’s parents. The Crown Prince was in his fifties with salt and pepper hair. Callena had his sharp gold eyes. Her mother had soft brown eyes that seemed to water up when she took in the scene. Cade had taken off his shirt in the night because he was overheating, so he was half dressed on the back of the man who had attacked him.

“What’s going on?” the Crown Prince fumed. “That’s my head of security!”

“Slight disagreement about the appropriate way to wake someone up.” Cade said backing off. “For the record, choking someone, not appropriate.”

Cade bowed to the Crown Prince and Princess, gave Callena a quick salute and left the room. He slammed the door behind him.

Leroy and Mendez met him in the hallway, they had run from their own rooms, “heard a scuffle,” Mendez said tilting his head to get a better look at the bruises that were forming on Cade’s neck.

“Cordova head of security tried to choke the hell out of me. Rat bastard.” It would hurt to swallow for a few days he guessed.

“Any reason why?” Leroy wanted to know.

Cade shrugged and held his hands up in a “who knows” gesture. “I need coffee it’s too early for this shit.”

“That American defiled her!” Marco Feliz fumed pointing at the door.

“What?” Callena laughed, that was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard. “No he didn’t. Papa, I asked him to stay because,” Callena wanted to defend the man who saved her, but she didn’t want to explain her weakness to her father. She took a deep breath and decided it had to be done, “I was worried the men would come back for me. Commander Finnegan is a good man. He saved me. He got me back.”

“Relax, mija.” Gloria sat on the edge of her daughter’s bed and gave her a fierce hug. “You’re okay now, you’re safe. We’re here.”

“Wait outside, Marco,” Felipe said in an undertone.

“Yes, Sire,” Marco gave a deep bow and left the room.

“We were in a bar waiting for an informant. I had tried to run away before so they made me come with. I was signing under the table, and the American, Cade, he saw it.”

“And he understood?” Felipe went to pace by the window.

“Yes, he did.” Callena smiled a little bit as she retold the next part. “He pretended to flirt with me, his friends created a distraction and they got me out, brought me here.” Callena emphasized pretend, because it was so over done and horrible that it was a plan.

“You’re okay?” Gloria asked moving the hair from her face.

“I was cut in the altercation,” Callena winced at the memory and knew how her parents would react to that, “but I’m fine, Cade stitched it up.”

“Our doctor will decide that.” Felipe snapped.

“Yes, Papa.”

“It’s time to do the process, we can’t put it off anymore, mija. Once you are promised to someone we will have the protection of them as well.”

Callena paled at this. Her father was talking about an archaic tradition where potential husbands for a Princess competed for her hand, it was like a bad American reality show. Except it was really real and it was her life. “Whatever you think is best Papa.”

Felipe’s eyebrows shot up, he was worried this experience had altered his daughter. She was polite, and meek. Had the fire died in her? Her desire to challenge him and her brother.

“We’ll be downstairs, come down when you’re ready,” Gloria said and shooed her husband from the room.

They went to the small kitchen where the men were talking and laughing.

“When Cade says wait for the signal you wait,” Mendez was leaning over the table laughing.

“Yeah who decided the signal was a punch to the face?” Leroy wondered looking at the bright shiner on Cade’s face.

“Savannah did,” Buchannan grunted. He was the first to see the crown prince and princess standing there and stood up. Mendez followed. Leroy turned and bowed politely but Cade wasn’t in the mood. He went to the fridge and pulled out more than cereal in case Callena wanted something different.

“Finn, the Secretary of State would like a word.”

“Awesome,” Cade closed the fridge and followed the aide, the crown prince followed him and Cade felt is was better that he just keep his mouth shut.

“Commander,” the secretary was waiting on the video screen. The aide closed the door behind him.

“Mr. Secretary. This is the Crowned Prince of Cordova.” Cade introduced.

“Felipe, please you saved my daughter.” As if that explained it.

“About that, we need you and your men stateside pronto. Before this escalates even more.”

“More? Sir.” Cade tilted his head still standing at attention in sweatpants and no shirt.

“Video one,” the secretary said and with a few keystrokes there was a youtube video of Cade flirting with Callena then starting the fight.

“Sorry, sir.” Cade winced visibly.

“I will fly the men back personally,” Felipe said stepping forward, “under my flags if your President will allow.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem,” the secretary said with a grim smile. “We’ll see you stateside, Commander.”

The call clicked off. Cade sat in one of the arm chairs while Felipe asked to have the full video shown on the big screen.

“You move fast,” he commented.

“I didn’t know she had been hurt,” Cade looked down at his hands, “I would have protected her better, moved her faster.”

“Hindsight is twenty-twenty. Your Secretary of State is mad, yes?”

“A youtube video that’s been viewed a million times over night, yeah he’s mad. This will spread.”

“You and your men should get your things, we’ll head to the airport.”

Cade nodded and stood.

“You know you took out two of the men, you got her behind you. You got her out. My head of security might be a little bit upset that you accomplished what he couldn’t.”

“Probably why he went after a sleeping man,” Cade fell into step beside him and headed back to the kitchen. Callena was sitting with Mendez and Leroy.

“Buchanan went to call the wife,” Leroy explained.    

“Alright, pack up men, we head out under the Cordova flag in an hour, temporary allegiance to Prince Felipe, we’ll be using his transpo.”

The men bowed and headed to their rooms. Callena stood and frowning touched Cade’s neck. The words out of her mouth were crude Spanish.

She rounded on her father, “And what is to be done about Marco?”

There was the daughter he knew and loved. He smiled, and immediately regretted it. Her gold eyes flashed in challenge. He held up hands for peace. “I will speak with him and he will apologize. Are you okay Commander Finnegan?”

“Just fine,” Cade said brightly. “I’m going to go pack.”