The Infinity Tattoo by Eliza McCullen

Cunningham might have gone?”
    “I really don’t,” Richard told him. “Cunningham isn’t from these parts, but he may have friends and colleagues on the base. Who knows?”
    “Okay,” said Augusto. “Let me know if you hear from him.”
    Every day that Cunningham was missing, Richard had sweated bullets. He covered for his absence by authorizing indefinite leave. That would hold for a while, but not forever. Thank heavens, the guy had resurfaced.
    Richard grabbed his cell phone and dialed the international number.
    “Si,” said the man on the other end.
    “It’s me,” said Richard. “I have some good news for you.”
    “Tell me.”
    “Your guys have tracked down our man.”
    “Where is he?”
    “At a place in Sedona, Arizona, called Goodwin Landscaping.”
    “Goodwin. Why does that name sound familiar?” There was a long silence on the other end. Then, “ Dios mio !”
    “What? What is it?” said Richard.
    “There was a journalist here. During the coup. Her name was Goodwin.”
    “Well, it could be a coincidence,” said Richard.
    “No such thing. You find out more about this company, who owns it. Then call me back.”

CHAPTER NINE
    “We need to talk, Jack,” Meg said staring into the black night in front of her.
    “Meg, I am so sorry I got you involved in this,” he began.
    “No, Jack. I mean we need to talk about Alex.”
    “It’s the tattoo, isn’t it?” he said. “You’ve known all along that I was a friend of Alex’s.”
    Meg nodded.
    “Well, why didn’t you say anything?”
    “Why didn’t you? I gave you the perfect opportunity when I told you about Alex’s disappearance. Why do you think I let you stay?” she said.
    “I don’t know. And at the time I didn’t care. I desperately needed a place to hide out. I was just glad that you did. And then, I didn’t want to think about it. Working for you, staying at your place . . . it was all so peaceful. I just wanted to make it last as long as possible.”
    “It was because of Alex,” Meg said, bringing him back to the subject at hand. “He had always spoken so fondly about the four of you. He told me that if he was ever in need, he knew he could go to any one of you, and you would do anything you could for him. So I helped you for Alex’s sake.”
    Jack lowered his head. Finally, he said, “I’m humbled. That you would love Alex so much that you would take me in on the strength of a tattoo.”
    “My feelings for Alex are for another conversation. Right now, I want you to tell me everything.”
    “Okay. Okay. I will. Just before I came to Luke Air Force Base, I was serving in Honduras at Soto Cano.”
    Meg stared at him for a moment. Then she cuffed him on his head. “You son of a bitch,” she hissed. “How could you stay in my house, eat my food, drink my beer, and not tell me that?”
    He covered his head with his arms as she continued to beat on him wherever she could land a fist. “Meg, stop,” Jack mumbled under the cover of his arms. “I’m sorry. Stop, please.”
    She stopped as suddenly as she’d started. When he lowered his arms, he saw she was staring out the window again. Tears ran down her cheeks.
    “I’m sorry, Meg.”
    “Just . . . tell me the rest,” she said.
    Jack looked up at her and felt like a complete jackass. She was right to be upset. She had taken care of him, brought him into her house, trusted him. Even though she knew he was lying to her.
    “You have to believe me,” he said. “I was afraid to tell you anything. Whatever it was that got me into this mess, I didn’t want you involved.”
    “It’s Alex. That’s why you’re in this situation, isn’t it?” Meg insisted.
    “I . . . I think so. I just don’t know.”
    “Of course you do. If you didn’t think it was Alex at the heart of this, you would have told me that you were in Honduras.”
    “Maybe subconsciously, I did. But there’s just so much I don’t understand, so many missing pieces.”
    “Me too,” Meg