With two men restraining them and two others pointing weapons at them, Alex didn’t believe he and Rachel stood a chance at taking them out. They’d be forced back to the lodge.
After what felt like forever, it came into view. Blake Temple stood on the porch. Where was Michelle? She’d been his constant companion and now she was no longer with him.
Rachel saw Temple as wel, and her footsteps faltered.
“It’s going to be okay. Remember, they need us.” Alex hoped that was still true.
Temple spotted them and hurried down the stairs. The men holding them captive released them and shoved them forward.
“So, we meet again.” Temple’s menacing smile told Alex the man was going to enjoy getting even. “Well, this time the tables are turned.” He addressed Rachel directly. “You will answer our questions now. Otherwise, your friend here will die.”
Standing close to her, Alex could sense all her fears. She’d been through so much. He’d hurt her badly. She’d lost her husband too soon. She deserved to have the chance to be happy again, and he was determined to give it to her even if it meant losing his life to save hers.
“Where is he?” Temple got into her face. She couldn’t keep from flinching. “We’ve searched the lodge. He’s not here. Start talking.”
While Rachel struggled to come up with a believable answer, he had an idea that just might work. “I know where he is,” Alex told the man, immediately drawing Temple’s glaring attention to him.
“What do you know? Who are you, anyway?” The man was clearly doubtful.
So far, no one appeared to know that Alex was CIA. He just needed to come up with a convincing story to buy them more time.
“Liam is my friend. He called me a few days before he went missing. I think I know where he would be hiding.”
Faint interest showed on Temple’s expression, yet he wasn’t fully convinced.
“A friend, you say. What else did he tell you?” He was trying to figure out how much of the real story Alex knew.
“Nothing. Only that he was coming up here for a few days to fish in one of our old spots.” The swimming hole in the cave. If he could convince them that Liam was in there, he and Rachel would have a shot at escaping through the labyrinth of passages the cave provided. The man who searched him earlier had taken the knife and flashlight, but had overlooked the lighter for whatever reason. They’d have the advantage. They knew how to get out. These men did not.
“Don’t believe him. He lied to us before,” McNamara told his boss.
While Temple didn’t quite buy the story, whatever he needed from Liam had made him desperate. He was willing to go along. “And where exactly would that be?” Temple asked in a bristled tone. “And keep in mind, you’d better not be leading us on again...otherwise...” He left the threat hanging.
“I’m not. I want to live. I want Rachel to live. I know where Liam’s at. I can take you there.” Alex held on to a breath as the man continued to watch him, trying to determine if he was telling the truth.
“And why would you give up your friend?”
Alex struggled to make his answer seem believable. “Because I care about her and I don’t want her to die because of something her brother did.” He turned to Rachel, with his heart in his eyes. As he watched, a tear spilled down her cheek.
“Touching,” Temple mocked. “Then you’ll make sure you don’t try anything foolish, because if you do, she dies.” Temple turned to one of the men standing nearby. “Take him to the vehicle. I’ll be there shortly.” He faced Rachel again. “You’d better hope he’s telling the truth. Otherwise, I’ll kill you myself.”
Temple motioned to one of his men, who grabbed Rachel’s arm and started toward the lodge. There was no way Alex was letting Temple separate them. Staying together was their only chance at surviving.
“Hold on just a second. I’m not going anywhere without her.” Alex stood his ground. He meant it. He wasn’t budging without Rachel. “If you want my help, she comes, too.”
Temple glared at him for the longest time. Alex was certain he’d call his bluff. “All right,” he said at last. “But she stays in the vehicle, and if you’re lying, I’ll have my man kill her without thinking twice about it. Understood?”
Not exactly the answer Alex hoped for, but at least Rachel would be close. He struggled through exhaustion to come up with some way to get them both free. He couldn’t help but feel time was running out. For them. Liam. Deacon. He couldn’t imagine how bad Deacon’s condition had deteriorated in the hours since they’d left him.
“Get them both in the SUV. We’ve wasted enough time. We have buyers counting on us.”
Alex’s blood ran cold. Buyers counting on us... Had Temple just let it slip that whatever it was they were trying to locate, possibly sarin gas, he had a buyer waiting impatiently for it?
He looked over at Rachel. She’d heard it, too.
“You men come with us. McNamara, try to reach them. Let them know everything is going according to plan,” Temple told the man. “Apparently I can’t trust any of you to do the job correctly. I’ll need to go there in person to make sure Carlson gives up the location for the stuff.”
Two men grabbed them by the arms and forced them into the back of one of the nearby vehicles.
Temple got up front along with a driver. The remaining two men sandwiched Rachel and Alex between them. They wanted to make sure they didn’t try to escape.
Turning in his seat, Temple demanded answers. “Well? Where is this place? And keep in mind, I’m at the limit of my patience. If you can’t produce your friend, you are no good to me.”
The warning settled over him like a storm cloud. He knew what Temple meant. If they didn’t come up with Liam soon, they’d be dead.
Alex told the driver where to find the entrance of the cave. “The vehicle won’t be able to make it the entire way there. We’ll have to go the rest on foot.”
Temple clearly wasn’t pleased by this, but he motioned the driver to begin. Once the SUV reached its limit, the driver stopped.
“Bring him with us,” Blake ordered to the man closest to Alex. “You, keep an eye on her. If she tries anything, kill her.”
“We’ll get through this.” Alex turned to look into her eyes. “Just like we did before.” Realization dawned on her face. Praise God, she understood. If she could overpower her captor, she’d need to head to the second entrance. He’d try to meet her there.
He was forced out of the vehicle. There was just enough time for one final searching look between them before he was hauled away.
Temple stood in front of the vehicle, staring at the nearby mountain. “I don’t see any cave,” he muttered once Alex was forced to stop next to him. “This better not be another runaround like the lodge. This is your last opportunity.”
“It’s no runaround. The opening is hidden by grown-up scrub brush. It’s this way, if I remember correctly,” he added, so as not to tip the man off that he and Rachel had already been through the cave earlier and Liam wasn’t there.
“Then what are you waiting for? Find it.” Temple was furious. No doubt he had promised something that he was in danger of not being able to deliver.
After another quick glance back at Rachel, where he was almost positive he saw the tiniest of nods, Alex headed for the entrance to the cave with Temple and the other two men in tow.
He took longer than necessary to uncover the opening, while his limited options ran through his head. Once he’d shoved aside the brush they’d piled in front of the entrance, he noticed that their footprints were still there. He sure hoped Temple didn’t spot them.
With the opening exposed, one of the men shoved Alex inside. He hit the opposite wall hard and winced in pain, holding his injured side.
“Well, which way to this fishing spot of yours?” Temple demanded as all three men entered t
he cave.
“To the left.”
“Then lead the way,” Temple ordered. “But I’ll warn you again, if you’re lying, I’ll kill you right here and she’ll be dead soon after.”
The chilling reminder of what was at stake shot through Alex’s sleep-deprived mind. “It’s dark this way. I’ll need some light.”
Temple stopped next to him. “You wouldn’t be trying to warn your buddy now, would you?”
“I’m not trying to do anything but let you know there are some spots up ahead that can be hairy. If you’re not watching what you’re doing, you could break a leg.”
After another glaring assessment, Temple motioned to one of his men, who used his phone’s flashlight app to illuminate the cave.
The pool was still quite some distance from where they were. Alex headed that way while his brain started to formulate a clearer plan of attack. It was three against one. He needed something to level the playing field.
He remembered all the times he and Rachel had come up here in the past. The pool had been a surprise at first. He’d told Temple that Liam came here to fish, but that wasn’t the case. The natural underground pool was cold as ice and there were no fish in it.
If he was recalling correctly, there was a small space just off to the right side that they’d only explored once a long time ago because it was unstable even back then. The walls were literally crumbling. If he could convince them to search in there...
When they reached the pool, the man with the flashlight app shone the light around the area. When it became evident that Liam wasn’t there, Temple rounded on Alex. It was clear he was enraged. “You lied. There’s no one here. And no sign that anyone has been here before. Enough. Kill him,” he ordered one of the men standing close to grab Alex. The man reached for him.
It was now or never.
“I said he told me he was going fishing up here. We used to fish in this spot many times in the past. Maybe he gave up or... Wait, I think I hear something over there.” He pointed to the small area.
Temple stared at the small dark space and then at him. “I don’t hear anything.”
Alex didn’t look away. “I did. If he’s injured, he could be hiding in there.”
Temple motioned to the man with the flashlight. “Check it out.”
The man didn’t seem thrilled at the idea. Reluctantly, he did as his boss suggested.
Temple grabbed Alex’s arm and hauled him along with him. The third man followed.
“Do you see anything?” Temple asked the man with the light. He let go of Alex and peered into the darkness.
Alex eased backward; the third man was now at his left side. His weapon was within reach. If he failed, he’d be dead...and so would Rachel.
In a split second, Alex grabbed the gun and shoved the man on top of Temple, sending them both sprawling into the room. Then he opened fire on the crumbling wall. It took only two shots before the ancient rock collapsed upon itself, entombing Temple and his men.
The world around him rumbled and shook. The place was unstable. He needed to get out of here as quickly as possible before the entire cave went down.
Alex stumbled in the direction of the entrance. The rumblings stopped. Dust boiled all around him. It wouldn’t take long for Temple and his men to dig out. He had no doubt that the man guarding Rachel would have heard the noise by now.
He hurried out of the opening and spotted the man. He’d seen Alex. He jumped from the vehicle and began shooting.
Alex ducked behind a nearby tree. The man was coming his way. He returned fire, forcing the man to take cover behind the vehicle. One of Alex’s rounds ricocheted off the front of the SUV. Right away, Alex could see fluid spilling out. The radiator was shot. The SUV was useless.
While the man continued gunning for him, in his peripheral vision, Alex saw Rachel ease from the vehicle. Before the man realized she was there, Rachel shoved him hard. He went sprawling across the frozen ground, his weapon landing in front of him. Rachel raced for the gun. The man grabbed her ankle and she fell. As she crawled and clawed for the gun, the man, still holding on to her ankle, reached it first. He snatched it with his free hand and pointed it at her head. She’d be dead in seconds.
Alex charged the man. When he spotted Alex, he turned the weapon on him. Before the man could get a single shot off, Alex fired once, striking the man through the heart. He fell backward, limp.
Now freed, Rachel grabbed the man’s gun then felt for a pulse. “He’s dead.” She searched his pockets. “Alex, he doesn’t have a phone.” Frustration laced her voice.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s get out of here while we still can. The SUV’s useless and it won’t be long before Temple and his men come after us.” As they headed away from the site, Alex told her what had happened inside the cave. “We just have to stay out of sight for a few more hours. This is almost over.”
He didn’t say as much, but if the chopper ran into any obstacles along the way, it could be even longer before Jase and the team reached them. And he wasn’t sure how much longer they could survive up here on the mountain on their own.
TWELVE
They couldn’t keep running around without direction. Going back down the mountain wasn’t an option with Temple’s men still stationed at the lodge. She told Alex as much.
He seemed to be reading her thoughts. “We can’t head back to the camp. That’s one of the first places they’ll look. I would if it were me. I just hope they don’t find Deacon this time.” He looked around the area, frustrated.
Rachel stopped dead in her tracks. “Wait, I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before now. The ranger station is up here on this side of the mountain.”
He stared at her for a moment, not seeing the significance. “You mean the one on top of the mountain.”
“Yes, but there’s a radio up there. We can use it to reach the rangers and have them contact your people. Let them know where to look for us. We can get Deacon the help he needs.” She didn’t believe there was any way Temple’s men would be looking for them up there. “They’ll be expecting us to try to get off the mountain, not go farther up.”
“You’re right, they won’t be. The only problem is it’s at least a three-hour hike uphill and we’re worn-out. My team may arrive before then...and I’m not sure Deacon has that long.”
She shook her head, discouraged. “What other choice do we have? If they catch us again, they’ll kill us, and it’s too risky to try to get Deacon out of there on foot.”
They’d be sacrificing Deacon’s life by making the wrong decision.
Alex stopped next to her, apparently seeing all her concerns. He drew her close for a moment. “You’re right. It’s our only option. God didn’t bring us this far to let us die. We have to hold on to that promise.”
As she looked into his eyes, she believed him. Alex had dropped everything to help her find Liam and now, faced with death himself, his faith never wavered.
A breath separated them. As she lost herself in his eyes, something shifted inside of her. All the wishes she’d buried deep in her heart rose to the surface. She would always care for Alex no matter what happened in the future. She cupped his face. Everything she still felt for him was right there in her touch.
The years melted away, and it was like turning the clock back to the time when they’d dated. Her heart beat crazily against her chest. She’d give anything if this moment were happening under different circumstances.
She pulled away and stared up at him. She didn’t want to hide her feelings any longer.
He gently stroked her cheek. “We should keep going. It’s too dangerous to stop now...” Yet he didn’t move.
Rachel swallowed visibly. Would there ever be a right time for them? The past seemed to determine that there wouldn’t be.
She stepped away and he let her go. Regret was in his eyes.
“You’re right. We have to keep moving.” Rachel turned and stared up at the top of the mountain, where the ranger station was situated, trying to reclaim her composure. She’d loved him for as long as she could remember, but it seemed as if circumstances were determined to stand in the way of their having a life together.
As they continued hiking at an exhausting pace, Rachel struggled to think of where Liam might be hiding. Her gut told her he was still up here somewhere. Otherwise, the entire area would be crawling with agents by now. They’d covered many of the places Liam liked to go as a child, and yet her brother was still missing. She had little doubt that Liam was the one who had brought Deacon to the cabin and then he’d disappeared into thin air.
With no answers coming, she shifted her attention to what they’d overheard. “Temple said he wanted McNamara to let someone know that things were going according to schedule. He had to be talking about selling whatever Liam had taken from him. My guess would be sarin gas. Yet I don’t understand how they managed to get it here in the US?”
They had to figure out who Temple’s buyer was before it was too late. She was out of breath and running on her last ounces of energy. Thinking clearly was a near impossible task.
Alex looked about as worn-out as she was. Once they reached the ranger station, they could radio for help, but if Temple’s men tracked them, there was nothing but a sheer drop-off behind the station. She didn’t want to think about that possibility.
“What if they didn’t bring the gas here?” Alex’s voice interrupted her burdened thoughts. “What if they made it themselves?”
The possibility of Temple manufacturing the gas himself hadn’t crossed her mind. She remembered Alex had told her that Temple and his men had been chasing the Chemist, the person responsible for manufacturing sarin gas.
“What if they found the Chemist and killed him? Decided to take over his business? They’d have his recipe for creating it,” Alex said.
Target on the Mountain Page 30
