Hallowed Ground

by Mary Alford

  He draped his arm around her and tugged her into his embrace. It was the two of them against an unknown enemy. Their future was as dark and frightening as the journey facing them and the nightmare they’d barely escaped. It didn’t do to look beyond the moment. They had much to overcome to survive, and, if they did, she had a feeling there would be even more obstacles waiting for them.

  Thinking about the future now was futile when there was no guarantee either of them would have one.

  ◆◆◆

  Jax reluctantly let her go. “We should keep going,” he said without looking at her, his tone distant, unable to help it. Her rejection was like a knife to the heart. Jax was well on his way to falling in love, yet he had no idea where he stood with her. He shook off the dark weight of hopelessness with difficulty. Facing the grueling journey ahead of them was going to take all his wits. He couldn’t afford to engage in the emotional warfare going on in his head.

  Even though she tried to be strong, he could tell Erin’s wrist was giving her trouble. Her face was drawn, her eyes glassy. He’d packed first aid items in his backpack. Jax dug out some pain meds and handed them to her. “It’s not much, but it’ll help with the pain,” he said gently.

  She smiled. “Thanks.” She took the pills and washed them down with water.

  Above, dark clouds threatened to engulf them as did the dropping temperatures. Light snow continued to fall. More was on the way. They’d need to find shelter once the weather moved in, but for now, they had to keep going because Jax had a feeling the men who had set the trap for his team would track them relentlessly.

  “Who do you think is really behind this?” Erin asked, forcing him to shove aside his troubled thoughts for the moment.

  Jax shook his head. “I don’t know, but I’m beginning to think this may not be the work of Al Hasan at all. Maybe someone’s trying to lay the blame for these attacks on him.” He glanced sideways at her. “Someone with intimate knowledge of how we do our job.”

  He had her full attention. She said, “It can’t be anyone from our unit. They are all dead . . .” She stopped walking and faced him, reality dawning in her eyes. “Am I under suspicion?”

  It wasn’t in him to lie to her. No matter how much it hurt to speak the truth, he slowly nodded.

  The shock on her face was easy to read. She swallowed. It was a long while before she could force the question out. “What do they have on me?”

  He couldn’t keep this from her any longer. “They found an offshore account with a quarter of a million dollars in it.” He hesitated a second. “Your name is on the account.”

  Her hand flew to cover her mouth. “That’s not possible,” she managed in a whisper.

  Jax wished he could make it better for her. “I know that. Someone is obviously setting you up to take the fall for everything. The only question is who?”

  The fear in her eyes shook him to his core, and he clasped her uninjured hand. “We’ll get to the bottom of it, I promise. I’m not going to let them frame you for something you didn’t do.”

  A hint of a smile touched her lips. She squeezed his hand, then let it go. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” Keeping his feelings to himself with her close and looking so vulnerable was next to impossible, but he pushed them down. That was for another time. Right now, they had to stay alive long enough to find the true killer.

  Ahead of them lay an endless vista of rugged terrain and hidden dangers. They were without options. Going back meant certain death.

  Jax glanced around them. “Let’s head out. Our only chance at staying alive until our team arrives is to keep one step ahead of the enemy.”

  He started walking again, and she kept up with him despite her injuries. Erin would do everything in her power to carry her weight.

  As they continued their upward trek to the top of the pass, Jax scoured the unfamiliar countryside, unable to dispel the feeling they were being watched.

  The snowfall turned heavier with the predicted storm moving in. How long before they’d have to seek cover? Under these conditions, not long. Although he was exhausted to his core, he couldn’t relax. Trouble loomed everywhere. Since Blake’s death, they’d all been struggling to understand the reasons behind it. Now, the rest of his unit was dead along with his direct commander and good friend, and they were no closer to discovering who was behind the attacks than they were the night of Blake’s death.

  He kept his eyes trained on the wooded area surrounding them, unable to shake the feeling that Al Hasan had been served up as a scapegoat to cover the true terrorist’s identity.

  The lack of details concerning the presumed terrorist should have been their first clue. Haashim Al Hasan appeared to be in his early thirties. According to Blake’s asset, he was the son of herdsmen, who grew up in a small village near this very area. Not much to point to the man as a possible terrorist, really. What if everything they believed they knew about Al Hasan was a lie?

  Out of the corner of his eye Jax thought he saw something. He stopped suddenly, squinting at the dense treed area to his left. Was that movement close by?

  Erin halted next to him. “Do you see something?” She barely got the words out when more than a dozen armed men emerged from the trees around them.

  Dressed entirely in black Payraan Tombaan, with lungees—or turbans—covering their heads, they moved closer. Jax whirled around. The men were everywhere. He and Erin were surrounded.

  “Drop your weapons,” one of the men ordered in the Dari language. Jax’s blood ran cold. Who were these men?

  “We’re outnumbered. What do we do?” Erin whispered, her voice less than steady, her full focus on the men advancing on them.

  There was only one choice if they wanted to live. “We do as they say.” He slowly lowered his Assault Rifle to the ground in front of him. After a moment’s hesitation, Erin did the same. With his heart pounding in his chest, he waited to see if they would kill them in spite of their cooperation.

  A single man hurried forward and grabbed both their guns, then fell back in rank.

  Once they were unarmed and vulnerable, the men closed ranks around them, stopping but a few feet away, weapons trained on them without saying a word.

  A frantic prayer sped through his head. They needed God’s help, and now, if they stood a chance at living.

  Seconds ticked by in silent standoff. Jax’s breathing became shallow, his pulse racing. Were these the men responsible for killing his team? Blake? If so, then what were they waiting for? Why not finish them off while they had Jax and Erin at their mercy?

  His answer came swiftly when another man pushed through the circle of men. Shock rippled through Jax’s limbs. Was it possible? He recognized him! Though the only image they had of the man had been flawed, Jax was almost certain this was the man they’d been chasing for several years now. The supposed terrorist known as Al Hasan.

  Erin involuntarily moved closer to him. His gaze sliced to her. She looked as if every drop of blood had left her face. She’d figured it out as well. Had they been wrong? Was Al Hasan responsible for the attacks after all? If so, then how did the man obtain his intelligence? How would he have known they were raiding his training camp in the middle of the night? The thought was unsettling.

  Like the rest of his men, Al Hasan was dressed entirely in black. The man stopped a few feet away, eyeing them both with open suspicion. When he spoke, he addressed them in fluent English. What he had to say about cut Jax’s knees out from underneath him

  “What is the CIA doing in our land?” Suspicion and open hostility showed on the man’s face.

  Jax’s gaze shot to Erin. The same shock rippling through him was there on her face.

  Al Hasan knew they were CIA. What else did he know?

  Jax fought past the questions swamping him. If captured by the enemy, they were trained to deny being part of the CIA. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. We were hiking and got lost in the storm.”

  The
man’s lip curled into a smile at Jax’s answer. “You are CIA,” he said without emotion. “Why else would you be here in this dangerous part of the country? Certainly not on a hiking trip. So I will ask you again, why are you here in my land?”

  Jax had no idea how this encounter was going to play out, but something about the man didn’t add up. His gut told him this was no criminal mastermind like they’d been led to believe.

  “We came here looking for you, Al Hasan,” he told the man. “And it looks like we’ve found you.”

  “An honest spy. That must be a rarity.” Al Hasan’s smile widened. “And why would you be looking for me? I am a humble herdsman. I’d say you have far more serious things to deal with. And if what happened back there is an indication, you’re looking in the wrong direction. I suggest you focus on someone closer. Someone from your own organization perhaps.”

  Jax’s brows slanted upwards. Al Hasan’s accusations mirrored his and Erin’s beliefs. “What do you know about that?” he asked.

  Al Hasan’s expression returned to blank. “I know everything that happens in my country. Just as I know you lost many of your own men back there, and you are being followed. If they catch you, they’ll kill you as well.”

  Jax felt as if his shock was frozen on his face. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Followed by whom? You’re the only one I see following us.”

  Al Hasan shook his head. “Unlike you and the CIA, I mean you no harm. I only want what’s best for my people and my country, and that doesn’t include your people, serving your own agendas, interfering with that. Your country has done enough damage to ours. Villages wiped out. Families displaced. Dead. So many lives lost. Your war has left Afghanistan ravaged for years, and it is no closer to being over than it was in the beginning.” He drew in a breath and let it go. Then he motioned to the man who had taken their weapons. The man came forward and handed the weapons back to them. With a nod, Al Hasan and his men turned to head back up the mountainside.

  Stunned, Jax shoved his weapon into his jacket pocket and went after him. One of Al Hasan’s men blocked his path.

  “Who’s following us? If you know something, help us,” Jax demanded, his tone reflecting his frustration.

  Al Hasan glanced to the man blocking Jax, then the man backed away.

  Facing Jax, he said, “Why should I help you? Your people have branded me a terrorist without a shred of evidence. They’ve forced me to live on the run with my family. There’s a bounty on my head and on the heads of my people when it’s your own who are the true evil ones.” He shook his head. “I’m afraid I cannot help you.” With those chilling words, Al Hasan turned and covered several steps before stopping. He stood still for a moment, then turned back to Jax once more.

  “The storm is coming in quickly. Out in the open up here is no place to be, even for a spy. Our camp is past that ridge.” He pointed up ahead. “You can ride out the storm there with us. We have food and a warm fire. Once it passes, you must do what you believe is right.”

  Chapter Nine

  Al Hasan turned and began walking again. He and his men slowly picked their way up the mountain with the ease of those who were used to trekking through rough terrain.

  “What do you think that was about?” Erin forced the question out, fear still pumping through her veins. She and Jax stood planted where Al Hasan had left them, watching as the men disappeared.

  Jax pivoted to face her, his eyes wide. “I don’t know, but if this man really is the hardened killer we’ve been led to believe, he would have murdered us right where we stood and thought nothing of it.”

  “But can we trust him?” She was filled with doubts, unsure whom to believe. She was being framed for Blake’s death and probably what happened to their team today. Someone close to her was spreading lies, soiling her reputation, while they’d been led to think Al Hasan was the true enemy.

  Above them, lightning lit up the countryside, chased by an enormous clap of thunder. With her nerves shot, Erin jumped in alarm. Thunder snowstorms were a rarity. This one appeared to be building up momentum.

  Jax caught her eye. “Right now, I’m not sure who to trust, but facing this nasty storm while exposed and vulnerable isn’t exactly a welcome idea. I don’t think we have a choice. We need to go with them.”

  When she didn’t answer, Jax grabbed her good hand and together they followed Al Hasan and his men.

  Once they crested the ridge, the men headed off to the right and further into the woods. Erin hesitated. Still holding her hand, Jax looked back at her, his brows raised in question.

  She shook her head and followed. The twilight of the forest made it hard to see. The storm intensified, and the snow came down thick.

  Just when Erin was beginning to worry they were being led to their deaths, she spotted what appeared to be an opening in the side of the mountain. A cave. Nothing about it looked inviting.

  Al Hasan and his men disappeared inside. Once they reached the opening, she stopped and faced Jax. “Are we making the right decision?” she asked, wishing Jax appeared more confident.

  He shook his head. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “But what choice do we have?”

  Still holding her hand, Jax entered the cave. Off to the left, one of the men waited for them. When he spotted them, he headed down what appeared to be a long passage without a word. After another glance exchanged, they followed.

  When they’d traveled a short way, the passage ended, opening into a large circular room. A fire burned brightly in the middle. Dozens of men, women, and children milled about.

  Al Hasan motioned them over to the fire. Every molecule in Erin’s body screamed they were making a huge mistake by trusting him, yet their choices were limited to stay and risk being wrong or leave and end up at the mercy of the elements and whoever was responsible for taking out their team.

  Erin lowered herself to the ground near the fire. Jax hesitated briefly before doing the same.

  Across from them, Al Hasan dropped down with ease. A woman brought food to them. Erin recognized the meal immediately. Kabuli pulao, a dish that consisted of steamed rice with chopped raisins and carrots served with lamb. The woman poured strong black coffee and handed cups to them. Then she hurried away, her face filled with mistrust.

  “My wife. You must forgive her. She doesn’t trust Americans. Her entire family was killed by a drone attack a few years back. Our only child died as well.”

  Shocked, Erin stared at the woman who had returned to a group of women. She couldn’t imagine how hard it must be to lose a child like that. Certainly, she couldn’t blame the woman for not trusting them. “I’m sorry,” she murmured and realized how trite her apology sounded.

  Al Hasan snapped his fingers. One of the men standing nearby hurried over. He spoke to the man in a low voice. Erin couldn’t make out what was said, but the man rushed away. A few minutes later, he came back carrying something and advanced toward Erin.

  “That’s far enough,” Jax immediately rose to his feet in a protective gesture.

  “He means you no harm,” Al Hasan told her. “Basar has herbs that he has made into a salve to help ease the swelling in your wrist.”

  Erin visibly relaxed. Basar knelt next to her and opened a folded cloth that contained a small bowl with a pungent-smelling paste inside.

  Basar pointed to her wrist and set the paste down near her. With Jax’s help, she removed the makeshift bandage. The swelling was severe. She could barely move her hand.

  Taking some of the paste from the jar, Jax gently smeared it around her wrist while Erin bit her bottom lip to keep from showing the excruciating pain the simple gesture caused. Once he’d finished, he rewrapped her wrist, and Erin placed her hand back into the sling Jax made for her.

  “Thank you,” she told Basar, who bowed his head, then moved away.

  The rest of Al Hasan’s men stood some distance away watching them with the same distrust his wife had shown.

  “The storm
should pass in a few hours. You must leave once that happens. I can’t risk having you give our location away to your people who are coming to rescue you.” Al Hasan paused. “I hope you don’t regret letting them know you are still alive.”

  Erin flinched at his words. Even Al Hasan was convinced their own people had betrayed them. Her gaze slid to Jax. She could see the same doubts there.

  “How do you know our people are coming here?” Erin asked, keeping her full attention on the man.

  Al Hasan shrugged. “After what happened to the rest of your team, I’m sure you contacted them right away. They’ll be here soon enough.” Al Hasan leaned forward, his gaze intense. “But you are warned, not every CIA agent’s motives are what you believe them to be. That attack earlier wasn’t led by any of our people. That was all you.”

  ◆◆◆

  “The storm is winding down,” one of Al Hasan’s men informed him.

  Al Hasan nodded, then turned to them. “You must go now. We must break camp soon, before the people responsible for the earlier attack find us and you. The weather has kept them immobile, but now that it is clearing, they’ll return to the hunt.”

  Jax couldn’t dispel the feeling that Al Hasan knew more about the attack than he was saying, but it would be futile to ask any further questions. Al Hasan had refused to answer their questions so far.

  With nothing left to do, Jax and Erin gathered their backpacks and headed for the cave’s opening. Al Hasan went with them.

  “If you keep on the path you were traveling earlier, you should summit the mountain before dark. The temperature will drop drastically with darkness, you’ll need protection from the elements. Once you reach the top of the mountain, head to your right. You’ll see another small cave there. It will provide shelter for the night. Do you have the means to make a fire?”

  “Yes, we have a lighter,” Jax said.

  Al Hasan nodded. “There should be enough dead trees around to use for fuel. Good luck to you both. I hope you find the answers you are looking for.”