He chuckled. “Korgan didn’t tell me anything before we left but to get the job done any way I could. He was a bit bad-tempered because I was going to do something interesting and he was stuck back there talking strategy with Vogel. Sometimes being Einstein bugs the hell out of him. But that’s his problem.”

“Because he could have been Indiana Jones?”

“Maybe. But I’m much better at it than he’d ever be. He’d get distracted saving the world.”

“And you’re getting distracted chasing after Juno?”

“I wasn’t distracted. I was watching and admiring. I’ve worked with service dogs before from the minefields in Afghanistan to the jungles in Brazil, but I don’t think I’ve seen one as good as Margaret’s dog, Juno. She knew exactly where she was going and how to lead you past those sentries that started popping up during the last two miles. She’s very interesting.”

“Particularly since she was also leading you safely past those sentries?” she asked dryly.

“Of course, but by that time I assumed she’d be able to do that. I was just paying attention to her body language to see if I could gauge how soon we’d arrive at Masenak’s camp. Juno is almost totally silent, but every movement tells a story. It’s part of the dog-wolf heritage. Every tensing of muscle, every pause…And there was an eagerness about her in that last five minutes I was on her trail. She’s almost reached her target…” His eyes were narrowed on her face. “Hasn’t she, Alisa?”

She nodded slowly. “Less than ten minutes now.”

“I knew it!” He was still whispering, but it was brimming with triumph. “Yes.”

“You’re very perceptive.” She added, “And extremely savvy about everything connected to jungle warfare.” She gazed at him appraisingly. “Trained in the Philippines?”

“For a while. How did you know?”

“Because they’re the best at what they do. They’ve even been known to send teams to other countries to train their special forces. Their climate is perfect for adjusting to jungle warfare conditions, and they sometimes use service dogs trained to hunt down fugitives to hone their skills. I’d guess you were probably in one of those units while you were there.”

“Yes, I was. Excellent.”

“Not particularly. Just guesswork,” she said. “Besides, Korgan wouldn’t have brought you here if you weren’t the best. He knew I’d be angry about you coming anyway, and it would have compounded the insult if you didn’t know what you were doing.”

“I know what I’m doing,” he said quietly.