Redemption River

by Lindsay Cross

  He pulled open the cab. It had one freaking chair.

  Where the hell would Evie sit? He quickly surveyed the interior, but found no extra space. The entire plane had been designed with one thing in mind: make as much room as possible for pesticides and as little room as possible for the single human who would fly the stick of gum.

  Hunter grabbed the handle by the door and hefted himself into the seat. A single black stick protruded for steering. Way too few analog dials for reading on the dashboard. He grabbed beneath the seat and found the instruction manual, flipped the small booklet open. First page. Copyright 1965.

  Holy mother of shit.

  “You find what you need?” Evie leaned his way and Hunter quickly stuffed the book back under the seat.

  “Everything but the key. There should be a box somewhere. Can you help look for it?

  Evie stopped and started scanning the shop. Hunter took a deep breath. He was about to fly something he had no business flying. He jumped down to check the fuel. Half full. Perfect.

  “Found some keys.” Evie ran to him.

  “Perfect.” He couldn’t resist dragging her to him and claiming her mouth. She called to him. Everything about her filled him. Made him need her. Want her. Evie immediately opened her mouth to him and Hunter took what she offered and more. God, he couldn’t get enough of her. Her soft skin. Her determination. Her love.

  Get it together. What was wrong with him? He’d been on hundreds of missions. And he’d never let his emotions affect him this way. Never.

  Evie stood there, fingers pressed to her mouth, staring up at him with her heart in her eyes. And he felt shame.

  This was what he wanted, wasn’t it? He’d wanted her to trust him, and she did. He’d wanted her to need him, and she did. Instead of elation, he felt like the trash he’d seen in the yard. Rotting and disgusting.

  “Let’s see if I can get her going.”

  28

  Evie wobbled back a step and grabbed the side of the plane. Hunter had just smacked her with a hotter than hell kiss and left her hanging. Her insides were basically goo at this point.

  He had broken their kiss, his gaze impossible to read. But his naked chest definitely distracted her. Big, thick, and packed with muscle. She wanted to kiss every single square inch.

  She wanted to kiss other things as well.

  Evie shook her head. What was wrong with her? She should be freaking out right now. Airplanes were not her thing. In fact, just the sight of one flying overhead sometimes caused her heart to stutter.

  And now she was about to climb into this yellow lego-sized plane with Hunter?

  The fact that he was willing to do this for her and her family…well, it only made her feel better about her decision to ask for his help with Marcus after they saved Maxine. She wasn’t stupid. She knew she couldn’t handle a snake like him alone.

  He started the engine and her heart stopped. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. People weren’t meant to fly. The very concept didn’t make sense. Her boots were made for walkin’…not soaring through the air.

  “Hunter, maybe we should talk about this some more.” She edged back a step.

  Hunter’s gaze remained fixed on the airplane’s dashboard, and Evie realized he couldn’t hear her over the engine roar.

  Her chest started to lock up. Then her stomach. Then her arms and legs. The panic attack hit hard and so fast she didn’t have a prayer of stopping it. Yes, the burning pain that mimicked a heart attack was familiar, and yes, she had learned to talk herself down from it. Sometimes. But that was before the panic reached about an eight on her fear scale. Zero being a spider on the wall. Ten being…well, a quick visit to the emergency room for an anti-anxiety cocktail delivered straight to the vein.

  This was definitely an eight. She’d shot up from two in the time it took for the engine to turn over.

  Evie’s feet kept moving her backward until she bumped the shelf lining the wall and jostled the stacks of discarded papers. Breathe. Just breathe. People flew all the time. Every day.

  Wasn’t flying supposed to be safer than driving? But no way was it safer than walking.

  “Evie?” Hunter appeared not a foot away. She hadn’t realized he’d followed her. Hadn’t had room for anything but her panic.

  “Evie,” Hunter said again. She tried to get her jaw to open, her vocal cords to work. But all she managed was a brief lip flap and no sound.

  “Have you ever flown?” Hunter asked.

  Evie shook her head no. She never wanted to either.

  “Listen. I promise you’ll be okay. And we’re so close to Mercy that we’ll be landing the minute after we take off. I swear.” He grabbed her shoulders gently.

  “I…I’m kind of afraid of flying.”

  “I can see that. Is there a reason?”

  He was being so logical, she was almost ashamed of her illogical answer. “I don’t have one. I’m just scared.” She barely managed to get the words past her lips.

  “Listen, I know you don’t care that flying is safe. I’ve never had a phobia, but I understand it’s not rational. So maybe this will help you.” He grabbed her shoulders, caught her gaze and held it. “If we don’t fly this plane back to Mercy, Brown will definitely get to Maxine first.”

  It was like an ice bucket had been upended over her head. She’d been so wrapped up in fear she had all but forgotten about her mom. About Brown.

  Blood started pumping in her veins, building pressure slow and steady. She had no choice. It was her fear. Or her mom.

  “Let’s do it.”

  *

  Hunter taxied the plane out of the hangar. Evie sat right behind his seat, squished in the small compartment, her knees to her chest. The airplane moved slowly as he maneuvered onto the dirt runway. It had headlights, thank God. She wasn’t sure she could have handled complete darkness.

  “You ready?” Hunter asked over his shoulder.

  Was she ready to take off in an airplane smaller than her car and trust a sort-of pilot to fly it? “Yes.”

  Hunter pushed the throttle forward and they took off, steadily building speed. Dirt and mud flew up and spattered on the sides of the aircraft, and each ping against the metal made her flinch.

  Evie grabbed on to the chair and pulled herself level with Hunter’s ear. “You sure you know what you’re doing?” She almost yelled to be heard over the noise of the engine.

  “I told you—trust me.” Hunter pushed the throttle all the way forward and Evie gulped. She kept her eyes glued to the runway, feeling each bump they hit all the way down to her bones.

  The headlights picked up the muddy road and the tall, overgrown grass lining the sides. The insects splattered on the windshield were also illuminated.

  This was like a bad dream. If only she could wake up. Safe. Secure. In her comfortable bed.

  Dark and light images took shape at the end of the runway. Cows.

  Her lungs stopped all together. “Cows! Hunter, cows!”

  “I see them. We gotta get more speed.” He floored the gas and yanked back on the steering stick. The plane caught air and then bounced back onto the ground. Evie could make out distinct color patterns of brown and white on the big animals.

  “Hunter, hurry!” She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think past the possibility of their imminent death.

  Hunter yanked back on the stick again and they caught air a second time. Evie’s stomach dropped into her knees. The plane hit the ground again, restoring her stomach to its original position.

  Her nails dug into the pleather seat. She ducked her head behind Hunter and closed her eyes, unable to watch.

  She was going to die in this airplane. On the ground. Sometimes karma was a real bitch.

  Then she felt the plane rise again, only this time they didn’t touch back down. They rose high and fast and Evie’s stomach plummeted back to the earth below. The plane jolted and a small scream escaped her lips.

  “Cow,” Hunter said over the roar of the eng
ine.

  Jesus. H. Christ. How was she here? Now? The plane glided through the air, smooth and easy. They dipped and rose over the trees and Hunter pulled them up higher. When they leveled out, he turned to look at her.

  It was the same look her mother had given her after she’d finally overcome her fear enough to get on her first horse. She’d loved it. Now Hunter had that same expression, the one that said I-told-you-so.

  And she would give it to him. They were in the air and he was flying. He turned back around.

  The plane dipped and her stomach felt queasy again. This was why she avoided roller coasters. Of course, their frames were made of steel; the up and down movements of this plane were supported by absolutely nothing.

  “We’ll be there in a few minutes. I’m gonna try to land on Hank’s driveway. It’s long enough and it should be clear at this time of night,” Hunter informed her and Evie latched on to the fact this whole ordeal would be over in a few minutes.

  She chanced a peek out the side window. The moon had emerged from the clouds again and light spilled onto the earth. Evie sucked in a breath as she took in the sight below them. They were flying over a patchwork of fields of different shades of green. A canal ran up the center, Red Fork Bayou, and the moon reflected directly up at her from its depths. Evie realized that if she could just unclench her muscles for long enough, she would enjoy the ride.

  But her muscles were on permanent lockdown. Her throat was so tight she could barely get in enough air to support brain function.

  “You know you have to face your phobia to get over it,” Hunter said. It was as if he could read her thoughts.

  “Yeah, well, I have a phobia of jumping off bridges, should I give that a try?” Evie couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of her voice. She could give a crap about facing her fears. She would be out of the airplane as soon as the wheels stopped rolling.

  “I guess if you’re one of those people.”

  What kind of answer was that? “What people?”

  “Stupid.” His yelled response was so unexpected she burst out laughing. She wasn’t stupid. Just smart. Smart people knew to keep their feet on the ground.

  “There’s Dad’s house. I’m going to land. Hold on.” Hunter turned the plane to the left, and they swooped through the air.

  Evie tightened her grip on Hunter’s chair. No. She was definitely not made for this whole air thing.

  He swooped back right and they started to descend. “Oh god, oh god, oh god…” The chant helped. Anything helped.

  “You should be saying, ‘Oh Hunter…’” Hunter yelled. They dipped some more.

  “Oh god, oh god, oh god…” Her chanting increased in volume.

  The plane touched the ground. Then bounced back up into the air and Evie’s heart followed the same rhythm, bouncing from her stomach into her throat and then back again. She kept her eyelids clenched shut.

  The plane touched down again and stayed on the ground. She could hear the gravel pinging hard against the metal frame of the airplane. She could feel each and every pothole and bump down Hank’s driveway.

  “Hold on!” The plane skated sideways, sending mud and gravel and dirt flying. Evie’s eyes skidded open just in time to see it sliding straight toward Hank’s house. The plane slammed to a stop not twenty feet from the front door.

  Hunter killed the airplane. The roar of the engine died, only to be replaced with the loud roaring in her ears. Her breath sawed in and out of her chest. When she got in enough air to think, she realized Hunter was breathing raggedly too. Then he slammed his hands onto the dashboard and gave a loud yell of triumph. “I did it. I told you I could do it.”

  The joy in his voice told her he had doubted himself.

  “I’m glad at least one of us had some confidence,” she said. “Now if you don’t mind I’d like to get the hell out of this thing right now. Before I puke.”

  Hunter had the door open in less than five seconds flat. Once they were safe on the ground, he grabbed her hair and helped her onto her knees as she gulped for air.

  “What the hell is going on here?”

  Evie lifted her head to see Hank, and two other men she didn’t recognize running toward them. All three men had guns and expressions that said they wouldn’t hesitate to use them.

  “Sorry, Dad. Didn’t mean to wake you up in the middle of the night,” Hunter said. Evie managed to straighten, but she didn’t let go of his arm.

  “Son, is that an airplane in my driveway?” Hank said. He approached Hunter, slow and cautious. Probably afraid his son had lost his mind.

  The dark haired man let out a low whistle. “Since when did you learn to fly a crop duster?”

  “Tonight.”

  29

  “Tonight? What was all that crap about learning to fly for the military?” Evie locked her claws into his arm and pulled him toward her, ready to slice his jugular.

  “I did learn, but a lot of it was through emergencies like tonight. I knew if I told you the truth you would be a lot more scared. And I also knew no matter how scared you were, you were going to get into the airplane. So I made an executive decision.”

  Evie wanted to smack that small sideways grin right off his handsome face. The man was looking at her like she should be thankful. Perhaps she would feel more gratitude after she punched him in the stomach. “So you lied to me? You could’ve killed me!”

  Hunter leaned down, so close she could feel the bristle of his cheek against hers. “But I didn’t.” He kissed her before she could gasp out a response, and then straightened and turned to face the others.

  Evangeline could not help but notice all three men were shirtless. Make that four, since technically Hunter hadn’t been wearing a shirt for the past twenty-four hours. And all of them were handsome.

  “I think you two need to come inside and tell us what’s going on,” Jared said, his black hair gleaming in the porch light, mussed from sleep.

  “I can’t wait to hear this story,” Hoyt said.

  “And I’d especially like to know why you’re flying someone’s crop duster down my driveway,” Hank said. The man was still in good shape and he generated an air of authority. Evie could see why her mother would be attracted to him.

  A sense of urgency slammed into her. Her mom. “Hunter, we don’t have time to talk.” Evie pulled on his arm.

  Hunter turned to face her. “Let me give them a brief run down. They can help, Evie. Think about it. Won’t we have a better chance of saving her with their help?”

  Evie bit her lip, indecision sawing her in half. If they came, it would mean a lot more ammo on their side. But it would also cost them precious time.

  Hunter grabbed her arms and caught her gaze, adding, “Don’t you think Hank has a right to know about Maxine? Don’t you think he would want to help to?”

  “Hank has a right to know what?” Hank was heading toward them, apparently ready to be in the loop.

  “You want to tell him?” Hunter asked.

  Evie bit her lip and shook her head, no. They all went into the house and Hunter shut the door behind her. They walked through Hank’s small entry and turned right into the living room. Two men, one blond, one dark, took up most of the couch along the wall.

  “Evie, meet Hoyt and Jared Crow. They are the best scout snipers in the entire force,” Hunter said.

  “Pleased to meet you,” Evie said.

  Hank stood, hands crossed over his chest, in front of the stone fireplace. Tension crackled in the room. They all seemed to be shooting off sparks of electricity.

  It was too much. Everything was happening too fast. She needed to get out of this room. “Hunter, I need the restroom. Can you handle this?”

  She tried not to let her fatigue show, but his hand cupped her cheek. He knew. He pressed a small kiss to her forehead and Evie leaned into his embrace, needing his strength. “Take your time. I’ll share the news.”

  “Bathroom’s down the hall on the left.” Hank’s voice broke into their brief mo
ment of peace.

  Evie left without looking back. A cellphone on the entry table caught her attention. She made a split-second decision and swiped it. Hunter could fill his dad and his friends in on the story. But Evie had to take care of her family.

  She eased the bathroom door shut behind her and turned on the sink. Once the noise filled the bathroom, she plopped down on the toilet and dialed Marcus.

  “I had a set back. I’m on my way. Do not hurt my mom.” Evie got it all out before he could say a word.

  “I thought we had an understanding. You missed your deadline,” Marcus said.

  Evie wanted to hyperventilate, but she forced herself to stay calm. “What have you done?”

  “Nothing yet. Maxine is just my guest for now. What happens to her depends on what you do next.”

  “Tell me what to do.” If she could just get a clear plan out of him, she could tell Hunter everything. She trusted him. She knew he would help.

  Marcus didn’t respond. She could feel the satisfaction through the phone. If she was going to get Hunter and his men to help save her mom, she had to know exactly what Marcus planned. She could play the sad broken little woman any day of the freaking week.

  “Please, tell me.”

  “Good girl. I knew you remembered. Now, listen and do exactly as I say.”

  *

  Hunter waited until he heard the bathroom door shut before he began talking. “I went to her house last night and Sheriff Brown showed up.”

  Hoyt bit out a curse and jumped up from the couch. “So that wasn’t just dirt on her face and neck?” He started pacing the living room.

  Hunter shook his head slowly, trying to keep the rage from taking over. “No, I heard her scream from upstairs. He had her on the ground.”

  “That son of a bitch.” Jared sat up from his sprawled back position on the couch. His relaxed stance turning deadly.

  “What exactly does this have to do with Maxine?” Hank ground out. Hank had to be one of the most levelheaded men Hunter knew, but right now he looked like he was about to explode.

  “Brown is threatening to kill Maxine if Evie doesn’t do what he tells her to.”

  “And what exactly is it he’s asking Evie to do?” Hank asked.