Found in the Lost

by Tarina Deaton

He shrugged like it was something that happened more frequently than she thought. She opened her mouth to ask exactly how often, but stopped at the sight of Devon and Harrison—their names finally coming back to her—exiting the tunnel, carrying Shane between them. They laid him on the ground right away and knelt beside him.

  “Helo’s three minutes out,” Jordan said.

  Kinley grasped her hands tight under her chin. She’d never, ever been the hand-wringing type, but the sight of Shane laid out on the ground while his teammates attended to him was more than she could bear.

  “Hey.” Jordan touched her shoulder. “We’ve got him. We won’t let him go without a fight.”

  She closed her eyes, tears tracking down her cheeks, and nodded, grateful he wasn’t feeding her a crap load of platitudes about everything being fine.

  “Kinley, how are you with heights?” Jordan asked.

  Her brows pinched together. “Okay, I guess. Why?”

  “The helicopter can’t land here, so we’re going to have to hoist up.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “The engineer is going to drop a cable, we’re going to hook into it, and they’re going to pull us up.”

  Kinley’s eyebrows rose while she opened and closed her mouth. “Oh. Uh…okay. What about Shane?”

  “They’re going to do the same with him,” he said.

  “His wounds—”

  “They know what they’re doing, Kinley.”

  She swallowed hard while her heart whomped, whomped in her chest. Shane was so pale. They’d cut his shirt off and had his chest wrapped in wide green and white bandages. She could see the blood seeping through. There was no other choice but to trust them.

  The wind whipped up and grew more and more forceful. The whomp, whomp wasn’t her heart, but the rotor blades of the black helicopter hovering over them.

  “Come over here,” Jordan shouted. He led her out from under the belly of the helicopter and pulled her down to a kneeling position, tucking her head down and covering most of her body with his.

  The wash from the blades whipped her clothes and hair around her, throwing up leaves and sticks.

  “Keep a hand over your eyes,” he shouted near her ear. “Keep your eyes on the ground, I’ll lead you over and hook you up. Okay?”

  “Okay!”

  He took her upper arm and led her back toward the group. She curved a hand over her eyes to protect them and kept her head bent when he stopped.

  “Raise your arms,” he shouted.

  She did as he asked and he slipped a wide, thick canvas loop under her arms.

  “Hold on here.” He took her hands and placed them on the canvas, almost in front of her face. He shimmied into a second loop, then raised and lowered one arm.

  “Hang on!”

  A sharp squeak escaped when the cable drew taut and her feet left the ground. She squeezed her eyes closed. Maybe she hadn’t given enough thought to whether or not she had an issue with heights. Of course, she hadn’t had all the information when he’d asked that question. Had he asked whether she had an issue with being dragged up in the air on a cable and a loop, she might have answered differently. The force of the wind from the blades whipped her hair around her head and face, lashing the skin around her eyes and mouth with the ends.

  They stopped moving and she felt Jordan lean close again. “Lift your feet. The engineer is going to grab you and pull you back.”

  Sure enough, as soon as she lifted her feet in front of her, hands grasped the material at her hips and pulled her back until she hit the rough floor of the helicopter with a jolt. She blinked her eyes open. Jordan’s feet were braced on the edge of the opening while he held on to a bar over his head. The man next to her lifted the loop over her head and handed her a set of large headphones attached to a cord. He gestured for her to put them on and she slipped them over her ears. They immediately muted the noise from the helicopter.

  “Move back,” he said.

  Kinley glanced behind her and scooted back on her butt, using her feet to propel across the floor. He helped her into a seat and snapped the harness around her.

  Jordan hooked a cord from his belt to a ring on the inside ceiling of the helicopter and slipped from the loop. Then he leaned out of the helicopter.

  She gasped, expecting him to fall, but the cord kept him in place. Another cry escaped when she saw the top of Shane’s head appear. Jordan leaned down and helped haul him into the helicopter. Devon and Harrison appeared quickly.

  “We’re in,” one of the men said. His voice sounded hollow coming through the earphones.

  The group unhooked from the cable and snapped their cords to rings in the floor. Jordan and the man who helped her in moved the metal arm that held the winch into the helicopter and slammed the sliding door shut. “All secure.”

  “We’re out,” came the reply.

  Helpless, Kinley watched while they inserted an IV line into Shane’s arm. His eyes fluttered and his lips moved, but she couldn’t hear what he said. One of the men leaned his ear close to Shane’s mouth, then looked at Kinley before replying to him. Whatever he said didn’t come over her headset, but Shane struggled to angle his head in her direction and he lifted his free hand.

  Her heart lurched in her chest and she lurched against the harness. Glancing down, she pulled and pushed, but couldn’t figure out how to release the belts. The man who’d buckled it leaned over Shane and twisted the center of the circle, releasing all the buckles at once.

  Throwing her headset aside, she fell to her knees at Shane’s head and grasped the side of his face in her palm. Pressing her lips to his temple, she said, “I’m here. I’m here. Stay with me, Shane. You have to stay with me.”

  “Found you,” he mumbled. His eyes fluttered closed and she snapped her gaze to Jordan, kneeling on the other side of Shane.

  He mouthed, “Passed out.”

  Looking at Shane again, she pressed her fingers to the pulse in his throat, finding the strong, but slow pulse.

  “I’m here,” she whispered against his forehead.

  The ride was shorter than she expected and yet the longest seventy-six minutes of her life. They touched down and Devon threw open the door. Devon and Jordan jumped down, leaving their guns tucked behind some green netting in the back of the helicopter.

  Through the open door, Kinley saw four people in scrubs jogging toward them, the two in the rear pulling a gurney between them. From her vantage point, she could see the tops of other buildings around them. When they reached the side of the helicopter, they transferred Shane to the gurney with Devon and Jordan’s help, then raced back the way they came. She tried to scramble out of the helicopter—if she didn’t hurry, they’d get in the elevator without her and then she’d lose them, but Devon and Jordan climbed back in and stopped her.

  “Let me out!”

  Jordan grabbed her around the waist when she tried to squeeze between them. The door slid shut and they lifted off,

  “No! Take me back!”

  “Calm down, Kinley. You’ll be back, but we have to get you somewhere safe first.”

  She pressed a hand against the window, watching the building grow smaller and smaller the further away they flew. There wasn’t anywhere safer than with Shane—didn’t they know that?

  Less than ten minutes later they landed again and the pilot cut the engine before they opened the door. This time, two men and a woman waited on the edge of the small concrete pad.

  Jordan helped her down from the helicopter and led her toward the small group.

  “Miss Dunn?” the woman asked.

  “Yes,” she said.

  “Belinda Parker. Welcome to the U.S. Embassy.”

  Chapter 14

  Shane flinched and swatted at whatever was trying to crawl up his nose. Pain shot across his shoulder and back and he groaned.

  “Oh, good. You’re awake.”

  He blinked his dry and gritty eyes several times and tried to focus on Paige.

&n
bsp; “Did you stick something up my nose?” He rubbed the underside—slowly this time.

  “Maybe. You were taking too long to wake up.”

  He glanced around the hospital room. “Where are we?”

  “Charleston. You were transferred here after they stabilized you in Guatemala.”

  “I feel like someone took a sledgehammer to my back.” He flexed his shoulders to test the amount of pain and regretted it immediately.

  “The bullet traveled under your shoulder blade and they had to dig it out. That should have been the end of it but, being your difficult self, you developed a fever so they kept you under while they tried to get it down.”

  Closing his eyes, he nodded. “How did Christine get the gun? Her hands were behind her back.”

  “Yoga, I think,” Paige said.

  He opened his eyes and squinted at her. “What?”

  “Kinley said she did yoga. I figure she was able to slip her hands under her ass then slipped her legs through her arms. I haven’t been able to do that since I was nine.”

  “You found yourself tied up a lot as a kid?”

  “My brother was a shit when we were growing up.”

  The corners of his mouth turned up briefly. “Is she dead?”

  Paige nodded. He nodded back and closed his eyes again. He was seriously tired, but he had more questions.

  “Where’s Kinley?”

  Paige brushed at the edge of her skirt. “As far as I know, she’s back in North Carolina.”

  “What do you mean, as far as you know?”

  “When we evacuated you out, she was transferred to the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City. From there, she was sent to D.C. to answer questions from the Guatemalan government. We felt it was better for her to be back on U.S. soil before answering any questions about bodies and priceless treasure.”

  “Jesus,” he said. “You had her do that on her own?”

  Paige scoffed. “Of course not. We sent Jocelyn Gantry to act as her lawyer.”

  That was something at least. He would have rather been there with her, but that obviously wasn’t possible.

  “Right. On to business,” Paige said. “This has been an expensive vacation for Leonidas. Thankfully, the International Archaeological Foundation and the Government of Guatemala have contracted with us for site security of the excavation of the ruins.”

  That got his attention. “Who’s leading the dig? From the Foundation?”

  “I’d have to look it up, but I think it’s a Dr. Bright, or Bart. Something like that.”

  “Biert?” he asked.

  Paige nodded. “That might be it.”

  “That’s bullshit. Kinley should be the lead on the dig—she found it! It was her research that led to the discovery. She deserves the credit!”

  “You need to calm down before you pull something,” Paige said. “I don’t know how the decision was made or who else is on the team. All I know is he is the person we were given as the point of contact for coordination.

  “You might also be interested to know that both you and Kinley are receiving a quarter of a percent finder’s fee.”

  “A whole quarter of a percent, huh?” Not that he wasn’t interested, but he doubted that would be any consolation to Kinley. She wanted to be part of the discovery. She wanted the credit, not the riches—not that a quarter of a percent sounded like a lot anyway.

  “The overall worth of the treasure that’s been found so far is estimated to be around half a billion dollars.”

  His jaw dropped.

  “Yeah. Congratulations. You’re a millionaire and everyone gets bonuses this year. Except you. As soon as you’re well enough, you’ll take over as security site lead.” She cocked her head. “Unless you’d prefer to do something else and not return to Guatemala.”

  Shane was still gaping at her when she dropped that second bomb. “No. I want the site lead.” If there was any chance at all of Kinley returning to the site, he wanted to be there. And if she wasn’t invited, he’d make damn sure she was.

  “Good. I’ll leave you to rest.”

  Three days later, Shane shuffled down the hall holding on to the handicap rail like a ninety-nine-year-old man. The physical therapist said to walk, so he was walking. So much, the nurses yelled at him after his third lap around the hall.

  This weakness was bullshit. He needed to be better. Today. He had shit to do. At the top of his list—trying to call Kinley again. Paige had sent his phone and clothes from the camp site in Guatemala and he’d called Kinley’s number as soon as it had charged. Unfortunately, it had gone directly to voice mail every time and he didn’t know if she’d gotten hers back. Her mailbox was full, so he couldn’t even leave a message.

  He reached his room and eased onto the bed, shifting and grunting his way onto his back. Centered in the bed, he released all the tension in his muscles. Fuck. He hated taking painkillers, but he might have reached his threshold for the day.

  A soft knock drew his attention. Kinley stood in the doorway, a shy, unsure smile on her lips. He’d never been so fucking happy to see anyone in his entire life.

  “Can I come in?” she asked.

  The pain forgotten, he eased up on his elbows. “God, yes. Come here.” He held out his right arm since it didn’t hurt as much when he moved it.

  As soon as she was within reach, he pulled her close and pressed his lips to hers. She tasted like rich coffee, sweet caramel, and forever.

  He loved her. Not just thought he did, but knew it in the marrow of his bones. But he didn’t want to tell her there, laid up in a hospital without a way to get down on his knees and beg her to let him find a way to make it work. He’d quit Leonidas, if that’s what it took. He didn’t care if he had to carry all her tools for the next sixty years while she deciphered ancient writing all over the world, as long as they were together.

  She pulled away too soon. “I’m hurting you.”

  “No, you’re not.” Falling back on the bed didn’t help his argument.

  “Shane. I can feel you grimacing against my lips.”

  “Maybe a little, but it was totally worth it.” He ran his fingers through the soft waves of her hair, hanging soft around her shoulders. “You’re here.”

  “I’m here.” She smiled and eased away, sitting on the edge of the bed when he refused to let go of her hand.

  “Paige told me about Christine. Are you okay?”

  She nodded and took a shaky breath. “I’ll get there. I’m having a hard time understanding what drove her to that point. I mean, I get being ambitious and being discounted as a woman, but not to the point where people die because of it.” She shook her head. “But mostly—I miss her. I miss the woman I knew and I feel bad about that.”

  “Don’t.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Celebrate that woman. She had to have had some really good qualities at one time to have earned your respect and trust. Miss that woman.”

  She offered him a tremulous smile. “How’d you get to be so smart?”

  “I met this woman a couple weeks ago. Smartest person I know.”

  Laughing softly, she took a tissue from the box beside the bed and wiped her nose.

  “How did you know I was here?” he asked.

  “Paige. I had to go to Leonidas to prepare to return to Guatemala and I asked about you. She told me where to find you.”

  A lightness spread through his chest as if a too-heavy barbell had suddenly been lifted off his sternum. “You’re going back to Guatemala?”

  “Yes. The Foundation asked me to be on the team leading the excavation of the ruins.”

  “That’s great! Congratulations.” He kissed her knuckles.

  “I accepted because I was told you were the lead for the security team.”

  “That’s what I hear. As soon as I can do more than shuffle down the hall a few times.”

  “And you’re okay with that?” She wouldn’t look at him and picked at the edge of the sheet next to her leg.

  His
brows pinched together. “Yes. Of course, I’m okay with that. Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “It’s a pretty long commitment.”

  He smoothed the worry lines between her eyebrows. “I’m okay with that.”

  “A few years long.”

  “Kin—I’m okay with that.”

  She finally smiled, then pulled her lower lip between her teeth and looked at him. “Me, too.”

  “Good. Because you’re stuck with me for a while.”

  “I am?”

  “Yeah, you are.”

  Kinley leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. “I’m okay with that.”

  Chapter 15

  “Ms. Dunn?”

  Kinley looked up from the carving she was examining. “Kinley. You can call me Kinley.” She was never going to get used to the deference these grad students showed her. She wasn’t that much older than them.

  The guy blushed. “Right. Uh, you wanted to know when they arrived. They just drove through the checkpoint.”

  Kinley grinned and jumped up from the short stool she sat on. “Thanks!” She dashed through the tunnels and chambers, having to backtrack twice when she turned the wrong way. Bursting from the entrance, she ran across the space between the temple and the new campsite.

  Two weeks. She hadn’t seen Shane in two weeks. Twice as long as the length of time she’d spent with him in Guatemala. It was honestly ridiculous. If any of her friends told her they’d fallen in love with a guy after only a few weeks, she’d tell them they were crazy. Especially when they’d been separated for most of that time. Angie, Leonidas’s IT specialist, hadn’t been able to get the network operating until five days ago so they hadn’t even been able to video chat more than a few times.

  A large black SUV came down the lane they’d cleared to ensure no ruins were destroyed. It stopped at the edge of the camp and Shane exited the passenger side. He closed the door and scanned the camp. Eduardo, one of the drivers, pointed in Kinley’s direction and Shane turned, breaking into a huge grin when he saw her running toward him.

  At the last second prior to throwing herself at him, she remembered he was still recovering from being shot.