by Janie Crouch
“Cam!” The yell reverberated through the room, but she wasn’t sure how much farther into the house the sound went.
It was only a moment before Rick hit her again. The whole world seemed to spin as Sophia fought to hold on to consciousness. Rick wrapped one hand around her throat. “You will shut up or I’ll kill you right now.” He squeezed to prove his point and Sophia felt everything begin to dim.
Sophia didn’t know how to fight someone this much bigger and stronger than she. She clutched at his hand on her throat, but it didn’t seem to affect anything. She just tried to drag air into her lungs past the hand intent on keeping that from happening. It seemed to be a losing battle.
And then out of nowhere Rick’s body flew off her. Sophia sucked in gulps of precious air, scampering as far away as possible. Her vision cleared and she realized it was Cameron who had tackled Rick and gotten him off her, and was now in the midst of pummeling the other man. Rick had both height and weight on Cam, but Cam had caught him by surprise. And he obviously wasn’t interested in showing Rick much mercy.
A sickening crunch brought a howl from Rick before he fell back onto the floor, completely unconscious. Cameron immediately stopped hitting him. He looked over at Sophia. “Are you okay?”
Sophia nodded, still trying to breathe as deeply as possible. Cameron rushed to her side, wincing and gently touching the bruise she was sure was forming on her cheek from where Rick had hit her. “I’m okay. Just…panicked. No permanent damage done.”
Cameron reached over and kissed her on her forehead. “Good, because we have to leave. Right now,” he told her as he helped her up.
“Smith knows about me.” She pointed at Rick’s unconscious form. “Rick took great delight in letting me know Smith wanted me brought in to be tortured.”
Cameron went over to a large dresser that sat against one wall. “Are you okay enough to help me move this?”
Sophia grabbed the other end of the dresser. “Sure, I think. Why?”
She understood a few moments later when they slid the chest directly in front of the door. Getting in that way would be difficult for anybody.
“I’ve got Ghost Shell. We’ve got to get the hell out of here.”
“How did you get it?”
“I locked Smith and his little FBI friend in his own panic room. But that’s not going to hold him for long.” Cameron rushed over and grabbed a jacket out of his bag as well as the Omega Sector gadget thing he’d used earlier. He tossed a sweatshirt to Sophia. “Here, you’ll need this. Sorry I don’t have anything else. I’m not sure how long we’ll be outside.”
“Can’t you just contact Omega and have them pick us up?”
“No. We have to go on our own.” He headed over to the sliding glass door that led to the small deck.
“Isn’t Omega our quickest route out of here?” Sophia followed him to the door.
“Normally, yes. But Fred McNeil—the FBI agent Smith has on payroll—knew way too much. Made me think we might have a mole inside Omega, too.” He turned and looked at Sophia, trailing a finger gently down her cheek. “I can’t be sure either way right now. But I won’t take a chance with your life.”
“So how are we getting out of here?”
Cameron slid the door open and stepped out onto the deck. The brisk fall air was instantly chilling. “We’re going to get as far as we can on foot. I’m going to have someone I trust meet us.”
“Can’t we steal a car here or something?”
Cameron shook his head. “No. I’m sure Smith would be able to track them with GPS. Almost all newer vehicles can be tracked. Plus, it would take way too long to drive out of here. Air is our best option.”
Sophia grimaced. “Okay, on foot to the airfield it is, then.”
Sophia followed Cameron outside. She was glad the clothes Smith had sent for her this morning had been casual: jeans, a sweater and lace-up flat boots. She imagined if Smith had known she’d be running from him he would’ve provided her a skirt and heels. Cameron climbed over the deck railing and jumped the few feet down to the ground, then helped as Sophia did the same. He took her hand and led her around the back of the house carefully.
Sophia could hear some sort of commotion at the front of the house. They didn’t stop to see what it was. Cameron just took advantage of it and they ran deeper into the woods. Sophia knew it wouldn’t be long until Smith’s henchmen would be after them. She held on to Cameron’s hand and ran as fast as she could.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Running as fast as they could while not leaving a trail any six-year-old could follow was a delicate balance. They needed to put as much distance as possible between them and the house. Cameron knew by now Smith and McNeil would’ve gotten out of the panic room and would have every available person looking for them.
The terrain was all downhill—it was difficult to run and hard on the body. Cameron caught Sophia as she tripped over an exposed tree root.
“Sorry,” she said through breaths, gulping air.
“You okay? Let’s take a rest.”
Sophia shook her head. “No. I know we need to keep going. I’ll be all right.” But her pale features and clammy hands argued differently.
But she was right, they did need to keep going. These early hours were the most important if they were possibly going to have a chance to escape. Cameron gave Sophia a brief nod, but slowed down a bit. He kept hold of her hand as they continued to work their way downhill. It was unbelievable how tough Sophia had been the past couple of hours. Cameron knew trained agents who couldn’t keep plowing on the way she had. She had every right to complain or ask for him to at least slow down, but she hadn’t.
It was impressive. Hell, everything about Sophia was impressive. When this was over, when Sophia was safe, Cameron planned to rectify the mistakes he’d made five years ago. He’d walked away from her once, but he wouldn’t make that error again.
But first he had to get her to safety. Her breathing became more ragged so Cameron slowed down. They’d been running for well over an hour. He glanced at the sky overhead—it was starting to look ugly. It wouldn’t be long before a storm hit. That was both good and bad. Good because it would make it harder for DS-13 to find them. Bad because the temperature was already pretty brisk. Being soaking wet was definitely not going to be comfortable.
“Where are we trying to go?” Sophia asked now that they weren’t running at breakneck speed.
“Back down to the runway where we landed.”
“Do we have a plane? Did you change your mind about contacting Omega?”
Cameron was torn. “Honestly, I don’t know what to do about Omega. There may be a mole, but if there is one, I have no idea who it is.”
“So how are we going to get out of here?”
“I’m going to get a message to one of my brothers. He used to be part of Omega, but got out a couple of years ago. He has his own small airplane. Runs a charter business.”
“Okay.” Sophia sounded relieved. Cameron didn’t blame her. Knowing there was an actual plan made the running a little easier, but not much. Cameron looked up at the sky again. Definitely looked worse than it had just a few minutes ago.
“Ready to pick up the speed a little more? We need to get as far as we can before this storm hits.”
Sophia just nodded. Cameron took her hand again and began adding speed to their downhill scamper. They ran silently, talking definitely not a possibility when expending this much effort. Cameron was winded himself, so he couldn’t imagine how Sophia was feeling. She never complained, but he could hear her breathing become more and more labored.
The rain came at first in a gentle sprinkle and was almost welcome for its cooling effect at the pace they were keeping. But then the skies opened and it really began pouring. They tried to continue but after falling twice
, Cameron knew they had to stop. When he looked closer at Sophia he realized they should’ve stopped much sooner. There was absolutely no color in her face and she was swaying dizzily on her feet.
“Sophia?” Her eyes looked at him without really focusing. “Soph! Are you okay?”
She nodded but obviously wasn’t really hearing anything he was saying. Cameron took a step closer to her. “Soph? Hey, can you hear me?” He said it loud enough to be heard through the pouring rain. Sophia just looked at him blankly.
Cameron put his hands on both her cheeks and was shocked at the heat radiating off her. This was definitely more than just the exertion from running. Sophia had a fever—a high one. Cameron wiped her hair from her forehead, where it was dripping water into her eyes.
“It’s okay, baby, you don’t have to run anymore. Let’s find a place where we can have some shelter.” Cameron gently led Sophia over to a nearby tree that had fallen. The huge root that had come out of the forest floor provided a slight overhang. It wasn’t much, but it would keep Sophia a little bit drier as Cameron looked for something better.
He bundled her as far back into the tree root as he could and knelt down beside her. “Sophia…” Cam spoke slowly, deliberately. “I’m going to find us some better shelter. I’ll be right back. I don’t want you to move from here. Okay?”
Sophia seemed to understand. She nodded weakly. “Okay.”
Cameron didn’t waste any time. Getting Sophia somewhere warm and dry, and figuring out what the heck was wrong with her, was the most important thing. It wasn’t long before he found what he needed: a small cave. It wasn’t big, barely room for two people to sit up in it, but it was dry. Cameron checked it for animals and critters, delighted when he found only a couple of squirrels, which he quickly chased out.
Sophia was exactly where he had left her, propped against the large root. It didn’t look as if she had moved at all from the moment he’d left. As a matter of fact, with her eyes closed, lying so still she almost looked…
Cameron rushed over and knelt beside her. “Soph? Honey, are you okay?” When her eyes didn’t open immediately he felt for her pulse at her throat. It was there. Although finding her pulse flooded him with relief, its rapid fluttering concerned him. This was more than just exhaustion from running down the mountain.
Cameron pulled her arm around his shoulders and slipped his arm around her waist. He stood, bringing her weight with him. Sophia didn’t wake up but a low moan escaped her lips. Cameron cursed under his breath when he realized he had grabbed her injured arm. Jostling her as little as possible, he brought her slight weight up into his arms and carried her to the cave. Feeling the heat radiating from her—she definitely had a fever if he could feel it through her layers of clothing—Cameron moved as fast as he could without putting either of them in danger of falling. The rain continued to blanket them in its cold misery.
Sophia’s eyes opened just a bit as he laid her as gently as he could into the small cave opening. “I don’t think I can run anymore,” she said, her voice barely louder than a whisper.
Cameron brushed her hair back from her face. “You don’t have to run anymore, sweetheart. You have a fever, probably from that cut on your shoulder getting infected. We’re just going to rest here for a while.”
Sophia struggled to sit up. “I’m sorry I’m slowing you down. I just don’t feel very good.”
Cameron stopped her minimal progress and helped her lay back down, even though rain was still pouring down on him. “Don’t try to sit up. I’m going to crawl in behind you and scoot us both back.”
Sophia didn’t answer and Cameron wondered if she had passed out again. He tossed his small backpack over to the side of the cave, mindful of the Ghost Shell hard drive in the bag. Then he crawled inside, joining Sophia but careful not to jostle her in any way that might cause her pain. The cave was not very large. It was difficult for Cameron to fit himself into the dark area—he couldn’t even sit up to his full height. But at least it was dry.
He eased himself behind her then pulled her backward as gently as he could so her back could rest against his chest. She didn’t say anything or make any sounds, just slumped hard against him and continued shivering. Cameron caught her forehead with his hand and laid it back so it rested against his shoulder. He felt the heat radiating from where he touched her, although the rest of her body was racked with chills. He tucked his legs more securely around the outside of hers in an effort to share more of their body heat.
Cameron had some ibuprofen in his backpack. He would allow Sophia, and himself, a chance to rest for a little while, then would give her some. It wouldn’t fight the infection, but it would lower her fever for a little while. But he didn’t have many of the painkillers, so getting some antibiotics into her system as soon as possible was critical.
Holding Sophia snugly against his chest with one arm, Cameron reached over to his backpack with the other. The Ghost Shell hard drive was still safe inside, and he reached for the Omega communication system. Cameron still wasn’t sure who he could trust inside Omega, so instead he made a call to his oldest brother, Dylan. He knew Dylan would be loath to get involved with Omega Sector—or any government undercover work whatsoever—after what had happened to him, but his brother would do it anyway if Cameron asked. And Cameron was definitely asking. The fact that Dylan had his own Cessna airplane at his disposal was a huge plus because no cars were getting up this mountain anytime soon.
Cameron’s plan was to get Sophia out with Dylan and back to safety. Cameron wouldn’t go with them. Instead he would meet the Omega extraction team at dark and go back to headquarters with Ghost Shell. If there was some sort of mole inside Omega, Cameron wasn’t taking a chance with Sophia’s life. He knew Dylan, or any of his three siblings, could be trusted. That was as far as Cameron was willing to go when it came to Sophia’s safety—only the people he absolutely trusted without a doubt.
Cameron punched his security code into the communication unit. It was so much more than a phone, but in this case Cameron was using it for the simplest of calls. He pushed the digits to call his brother Dylan. He picked up after just two rings.
“Branson.”
“Dylan, it’s Cameron.”
“Cam? Hey, little brother. Haven’t heard from you in a while.”
“I’ve been working. You know, the usual.”
Dylan did know. He had enough background with Omega Sector that Cameron didn’t need to explain further. “Are you done with that…project you were working on?” his brother asked.
“No, Dyl, I’m not. As a matter of fact the project became a great deal more complicated over the last few days. I need your help.”
“What’s going on, Cam?” Cameron could tell he now had Dylan’s full attention.
“I came across some information today that suggests that someone within my company might also be…working for a competitor. Problem is, I’m not sure who that person in my company might be or if it is anyone at all.”
Dylan paused for a moment and Cameron could tell he was processing what Cam was trying to tell him. “And you’re worried for your safety?”
“No,” Cameron told Dylan softly, looking at the small woman lying in his arms. “I can handle myself. But someone else has gotten involved and I don’t want her to have anything to do with anybody in my company if there’s a problem.”
“Roger that. What do you need?”
That’s what Cameron loved about his family. They had each other’s backs, without needing a bunch of details. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t needle the details out of Cameron later—him asking Dylan to fly out a lady friend was something he was going to get ragged about pretty hard—but right now all Dylan wanted to know was how he could help.
“I’m about to send you some coordinates. It’s a small unlit airstrip in northern Virginia. It’s smack in the middle
of the mountains. You won’t believe it’s there until you’re right on it. I need you to take my friend back to DC and stay with her. That’s it.”
“Where will you be going? You staying there?”
“No. I’m heading to DC also, but I’ll be getting a ride with my company. It’s already planned.”
“All right. What time?”
“Dusk.” Cameron knew Dylan landing his airplane at the unlit airstrip after dark in terrible weather was risky. They’d be cutting it close, but this would be their best chance. “I’ll be looking for you around eighteen hundred. And if mountains and oncoming darkness aren’t enough of a challenge for you, the weather here is absolute crap. Pouring buckets. Hopefully it will clear out.”
“Sounds like a party. Can’t wait.”
“Dylan, I need you to get some antibiotics. She’s got an infected cut and is running a fever. I don’t want her to have to go straight to the hospital when a round of antibiotics will do. She’s been through a lot.”
Dylan didn’t ask where he was supposed to get antibiotics without a prescription. But Cameron knew his brother would have them when he arrived. “Anything else?”
“No. And, Dylan, thanks.”
“You owe me one for this, bro.” Dylan chuckled. “But what’s new?”
They disconnected and Cameron sent the coordinates to Dylan.
Sophia was still asleep lying against him, but moaned softly and was obviously uncomfortable. Cameron decided to give her the ibuprofen to help get her fever down, then maybe she could rest a little easier. He got the small tube out of his bag—it wasn’t much but hopefully would help her feel more comfortable until Dylan got there with the antibiotics. He grabbed a water bottle, too.
“Here, sweetheart,” Cameron whispered as he put the pills up against Sophia’s lips. “Take these. They’ll help make you feel better.”
“Cam?” Sophia obviously was groggy. “What’s going on?”
