Amazingly that worked, but then the Americans started to move and Eddie insisted they give chase, the entire time working against the Mexican commander, his general, and all their men. Amadi helped them track everyone’s movements, and Eddie was so focused on his own radio interceptions he never caught on to Lazzo’s secret communications.
And then it all went south. The stupid Mexican commander and general revealed the truth about the attacks, and Eddie caught on to the deception. Eddie all of a sudden decided to help the Americans escape and blatantly defied General Roja to do so. As much as Lazzo tried to figure out a way to separate Danny from the rest of the Americans, he couldn’t, and then when they saved Danny at the river, he didn’t have the pack on him. It was in one of the boats ahead of them. Amadi was killed there, and Lazzo still had to keep the truth from Eddie, in hopes that by fleeing with the Americans—which would surely be reported back—the Libyan commander wouldn’t immediately kill his family. He had to hope Commander Boli would give him a little time.
In the boat, Danny admitted to reaching the vice president in the tent and having the vice president’s daughters, confirming all of Eddie’s suspicions. But when pushed to reveal more, Danny didn’t. Instead he guarded his words and his backpack closely, leading Lazzo to believe the secrets were being kept in there. Lazzo needed to communicate what he’d learned to the Libyan commander, but there was no way to do it without being exposed. He had to trust his instincts that Commander Boli wouldn’t reveal their secret to the other commanders, considering what it would mean for him as well—probably his own death.
Then circumstances got even worse. At Lake Powell Lazzo, Eddie, and the Americans went head to head with General Roja and his men, and Eddie saw his wife… and the whole plan blew up again. Eddie’s emotions took over, and there was no way for Lazzo to maintain control of him. General Roja eventually handed Eddie an envelope the Libyan commander had sent him that day—which Eddie gave to Lazzo without ever reading—and Eddie stayed behind to save his wife. Eddie could very well be dead now. No matter what the Mexican general had promised.
When Lazzo arrived at Nellis Air Force Base with the Americans, he snuck off to open the envelope and contact Commander Boli. He told the commander he finally knew where the information was, promised he was keeping his word, and insisted he had to stay with the Americans to collect it. The commander did not sound pleased, but Lazzo explained what he needed the commander to do now and Boli assured him he’d follow through. Commander Boli then asked Lazzo one last question: Had Eddie learned the truth? “Yes,” Lazzo had replied. There was a long pause on the other end, and then the commander added one last note.
“You have until October 12, 2022, to get me what you promised, or everyone dies.”
It wasn’t until later when Lazzo realized his “yes” answer to the commander’s question could have meant so many different things. Ultimately it could have meant Lazzo had betrayed the Libyan commander. If that was how the commander had taken it, his family could already be dead. Suddenly Lazzo realized that was likely exactly how the commander had taken it—based on Boli’s response on the phone. And then panic set in—internally. Lazzo had to fight to remain calm in front of the Americans.
That worked until an apparent miscommunication between Denver and San Diego had their plane not only followed but attacked before it reached safety in Hawaii. Lazzo never had the chance to grab Danny’s backpack and jump out. Commander Boli had promised to have him picked up after he jumped—and to otherwise keep the skies clear—but the attacking fighter jets indicated either he hadn’t had time to radio them, or Boli had simply decided to tie up the loose ends.
When Danny went back to the cargo hold to prepare everyone for the jump, Lazzo switched out his backpack, and when it was time for them to jump, Lazzo tried to stay behind. Lazzo had intended to turn the plane back and try to radio Denver, but Danny had knocked him out and forced him to jump. Danny later thanked him for trying to be the hero, when in fact that hadn’t been Lazzo’s intent at all. Danny had also saved Lazzo’s life—when the Coast Guard had intended to kill him—and taken him to Hawaii, but Danny had gotten his backpack back. Lazzo still had nothing for Commander Boli.
And then there was talk of the “Elephant Box” Danny had mentioned on the plane, the code words that had essentially granted them access to Hawaii. Danny and Reagan met with the governor and were supposedly given access to the contents of that “box.” One night Lazzo had seen Danny flipping through a large thick book and—through the walls of their room—overheard him telling Kate a little about it. Then Lazzo knew what he needed to do to save his family. He needed that book. And now he knew where Danny kept it. But getting it and getting off the island back to Colorado—or even the mainland—was another issue altogether. The calendar told Lazzo he was running out of time. And he still had no idea how he was going to pull this off.
He held up the notecard from the envelope Eddie had handed him at Lake Powell and looked at it closely. There was an address in Kauai, six numbers, and “October 12, 2022. Last chance.” If Commander Boli had kept his word, Lazzo’s family was still alive. If he hadn’t, then Lazzo was going to sacrifice his current freedom—and the trust of all these people—for nothing.
NINE – The Address
Lazzo had already checked out the address on the card. It was hard to get off Redemption without a military escort, but he’d been able to do so a couple times during the Pack’s weekly meetings on Oahu.
There was a private ranch at Nohili Point on Kauai, with a cast-iron gate blocking a long dirt road. The first time Lazzo saw it he knew what it was—a Libyan safe house. He just couldn’t believe it was still operational. A distinctive insignia was carved into the gate—common in Libyan intelligence—and when Lazzo punched in the six digits from the notecard, the gate unlocked and creaked open.
Lazzo had hopped back on the bicycle he’d borrowed at the marina and ridden down the road to the house at the end—a pink concrete building with bars on all the windows and another keypad at the door. But the six-digit code didn’t work on this one. Lazzo walked around the house, looking for another way in, but he couldn’t find any. An old garage stood south of the house, but there were no signs of life there either. He didn’t know what to make of it. Maybe this wasn’t the right place, or maybe he was too late. Or too early.
The second time Lazzo visited the pink house it had recently rained. Fresh tire tracks were visible on the dirt road, and a light shone in the window of the house—but again no one answered his knocks. There was still no way inside. But someone either was—or had recently been—here.
This time, however, as he rode the bike back to the marina, he was keenly aware he was being followed. A few furtive glances in the bike’s small mirrors showed a brown van about a half mile behind him. It never got closer, even when he slowed and stopped. Lazzo was certain it was someone from the house. As he hopped in the boat and headed back toward Redemption, he saw the van parked on a hill overlooking Kauai’s Waimea Bay. Given his small boat and the direction he was heading, he knew they’d figure out where he was going. Even if they didn’t know about Redemption, there was only one other island in that direction—Niihau. Maybe they’d come out there for him?