Her Master Defender

by Karen Anders

  Vin fidgeted in the backseat. “Can you stop driving like an old lady, Jerrott?”

  Beau swore softly in Cajun French and glanced at his coworker in the rearview mirror. “I’m not driving like an old lady. I’m going seventy-five. It just feels slow because we’re worried about Amber.” He swore again, his voice seriously lethal when he said, “If anything happens to her...”

  “That dirtbag’s life is over,” Vin said, just as deadly.

  Silently, Chris agreed as they sped down the highway toward MWTC. “Beau, push it to ninety. I’ll take care of the highway patrol,” he said as he pulled out his cell.

  * * *

  When the door burst open and someone shoved a man through, Amber was disoriented from being hit on the head and thrown into that sick animal Garza’s trunk and left in there while he’d handled Dr. Thompson’s murder. One she was sure he’d committed. She was still reeling from what Garza had told her they planned to do to her. She was trying to manage her fear.

  Then she recognized the man and suddenly, against all the despair of her predicament, she had hope. “Tristan!”

  He looked up at her before Garza kicked him in the ribs. “Michaels! Nice of you to join us.” Garza pulled a handgun out of the small of his back and pointed it at Tristan’s head.

  “No,” she screamed at the same time as the chief.

  “I want him alive. I’ve always wanted to know what it would be like to pit myself against a bona fide Special Forces Recon marine.”

  Tristan pushed himself up on his hands until he was in a sitting position. Garza scowled and waved the gun to indicate that Tristan was supposed to move closer to her. He complied. His jaw was unshaven and grimly set, and she recognized that kind of tension in a man. Deadly.

  “Give me your cuffs,” Garza said, and the chief handed them over. Garza smiled as he jerked Tristan’s arms behind his back and cuffed him.

  “Pit yourself against me?” Tristan said, his eyes narrowing. “How?”

  The chief smiled and Amber still couldn’t reconcile the short, balding milquetoast chief as the ringleader of these men. She was sure it was Garza pulling the strings, but he followed the chief’s orders to the letter.

  The chief walked over and crouched down. “You don’t understand, Sergeant.”

  His voice was scary calm. “Why don’t you enlighten me?” There was a coiled energy in him—as if he was locked and loaded and all he needed was the pull of the trigger.

  His features looked as though they had been hacked out of granite, but there was something dark and intense in his eyes, something so dangerous it made even her swallow hard.

  “They’re going to hunt us, Tristan,” she said, unable to keep the horror out of her voice.

  His head whipped around to her, then back to the chief. “You hunted James? I’m going to kill you with my bare hands,” Tristan said, and she marveled at how his voice only got quieter.

  Even the chief pulled back as if Tristan was going to rip him to shreds. “James was an unsanctioned hunt,” the chief said, as if he was talking about a wily fox instead of a wonderful human being. “Randall was never very good with patience. He kidnapped James and released him much too close to where you were conducting your class. He almost got away. He was a worthy opponent, one of the best I’ve heard of so far, and Garza and I have hunted our share of military and law-enforcement prey.”

  “You are all sick and twisted animals. James was only twenty-five years old. He’d been through two tours serving his country, protecting you and your rights. How dare you hunt him like an animal!”

  The chief nodded. “I agree. Randall squandered what would have been a satisfying kill. He was dealt with. No one in my operation steps out of line and lives.”

  Tristan’s face was a mass of pain and rage. He was so tense next to her that Amber could feel the heat coming off him. “You’ve been hunting people on base!”

  “I got bored with game hunting a long time ago. Then we joined Sportsmen Unlimited—where the unlimited really stands for something.”

  “Geezus,” Tristan said.

  “I suggest you conserve your energy. You’re going to need it tomorrow.”

  He rose, heading for the door. Tristan said, “I’d suggest if you want to live, you should let us go right now.”

  The chief turned and there was deep gratification in his face. “Oh, this is going to be a great hunt.”

  “Are we going to be paired up?” Tristan said.

  “No,” the chief said. “We’re going to split you up. It’ll be more fun for us.”

  Garza approached Tristan and crouched down. “Aren’t you cocky? I bet Amber knows all about that.” He waggled his eyebrows at her. “Wouldn’t hurt to have a real man to compare you to. Too bad the chief is going to take you. But then...” He looked at Amber. “She’s no consolation prize. I got a feeling she’s going to give me a good time and when I run her to ground, an even better time. I’m going to see how feisty she really is.”

  “Last chance, Garza. Let us go.” Tristan’s voice was a flat, dead calm.

  Garza laughed.

  “You’ll never see me coming and you’ll be dead before you hit the ground.”

  Garza punched Tristan, knocking his head to the side. “Well, tomorrow I’m going to have your girlfriend and then I’m going to kill her. Sweet dreams.”

  They left the cabin and slammed the door shut behind them. Amber heard the lock turn.

  Tristan’s gaze locked on her. He spoke, his voice low and ragged. “Are you all right?” He shimmied his arms under his butt so that his cuffed hands were in front. Amber did the same. He draped his arms over her head and dragged her against him.

  Locking her jaw to stop the weakness from taking hold, Amber grasped the back of his head, molding herself to him. Her throat was so tight she could barely get the words out.

  Hauling in a deep, ragged breath, he tightened his embrace, his face still buried against her neck. “God, I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered roughly, holding her as if he couldn’t let her go. “I almost went crazy.”

  Tears burning her eyes, Amber clasped his head even tighter. “I can’t believe this is happening. That Mayer hunted him, Tristan. It’s heinous. That’s why there were so many service members AWOL. They’ve been doing this for two years. They started with hikers and snowmobilers, then started on military targets because they were deemed more challenging.”

  He swore viciously under his breath. “Did they explain to you how this was going to work tomorrow? Any advanced information I have will be helpful.”

  “Garza told me that there was no escape, but to be a jerk, he said if I was smart, fast and resourceful it was possible I could get away. It was obvious he didn’t believe I was any of those things. He made that quite clear. But he told me I would get a fifteen-minute head start. Then he and three other hunters would chase me.” She took a breath.

  “Garza’s an overconfident, egotistical asshole and that’s going to be his downfall. So, you’re doing great. I know this is terrifying, but tell me everything.”

  “I’m so glad you’re here.” Trapped by the intensity of his gaze, Amber stared at him, all her feelings for him swelling up inside her.

  “I would never leave you alone or abandon you, Amber. I’m in this until my last breath.”

  Tears stung her eyes. “Oh, God, Tristan.” This could be it. It could really be over. Really over. Her life was down to a matter of days.

  “Come on, sweetheart. Tell me the rest.”

  Her voice wobbled, but she cleared her throat and her voice got stronger. “If I make it to nightfall, they have agreed not to hunt me but let me rest. In the morning as soon as the sun rises, they will be coming after me again.”

  “Sporting of them,” he said through clenched teeth. “All right.
I’m going to explain to you how to survive the night, then about moisture and dehydration. Then, Amber, I’ll need to give you tips on how to avoid hypothermia. I need you to listen to everything and ask any questions you have. It’s crucial you do everything I say until I can get to you.”

  “Tristan, you’re going to have four armed men after you.”

  “I know. They’re all going to die. I swear to you that I will get to you as soon as I can.”

  It was as if he gave her a shot of electricity. Experiencing a sharp hot-and-cold rush, she curled her fingers into his shirt to steady herself. She just stared at him, thinking about what he’d just said, then realizing that he was a Force Recon marine. He was not going to hesitate. He was not going to hold back. He was going all out tomorrow and unleashing the weapon the Marines made him into. A lethal, thinking, hard-muscled warrior. She could see it in his eyes, feel it in every line of his body, knew it in her heart. If anyone could save her tomorrow, it would be him. It was her job to stay alive.

  “Do you trust me?”

  He had thrown open a door to possibility—a door she desperately needed, a door that let in a whole new set of options. She cupped his face with her bound hands. “Yes. I trust you with my life.”

  “I won’t let you down.” He pulled her close and whispered, “Are you still afraid?”

  “A little less now.”

  He kissed her mouth. “Good. We’re going to get out of this. So, listen to me. Do exactly what I say. I’m going to tell you where you can get a weapon. When Garza catches you, instead of a mouse, he’s going to find he has a tiger by the tail.” He smiled.

  She closed her eyes and took a breath.

  “But first, you run.”

  “Tristan.”

  “No, Amber. Run and keep running. Don’t stop, don’t fight, don’t think until you can act. You’ll have them right in your crosshairs. I’ll show you where you can get a weapon.” He grinned.

  She grinned back at him and more of that fear diminished.

  “I will find you. I promise. Stay alive. Keep moving. Survive until I get to you. I know this mountain like I’m the wind and the snow. I have the best training in the world and they just bought more trouble than they can handle. We may be miles apart, but we’re going to do this as a team. They’d be smart to put a bullet in my head right now.”

  “Tristan. Please don’t say that.”

  “So, run. I will find you. Stay alive, baby. That’s all. We are not going to die tomorrow. They are.”

  She nodded. Hit with a giddy weakness, Amber closed her eyes and pressed her forehead to Tristan’s, held on to him, forcing air into her lungs. And something hard and tight let go in her chest. There was a chance for them. If she didn’t blow it. There was a chance. Gathering her strength, feeding off his confidence, her heart fluttering like crazy, she opened her eyes and stared at him. Leaning forward with her eyes still open, she kissed his mouth. He stared right back, his eyes as open, intense and focused, and he kissed her back.

  “Repeat after me.”

  Managing as tough a smile as she could, she tightened her hold on his shirt.

  They said it in tandem. “We are not going to die tomorrow. They are.”

  * * *

  Later they were fed. Tristan was sure it was to keep them up to their exacting standards. Weak prey wasn’t very much fun to hunt.

  As soon as they left the room, he turned to her. “Okay, let’s get started. There are two types of weather—wet cold and dry cold. Wet cold is where it can get to 50 degrees during the day and freezing conditions at night, like in the valley. Then it warms up again during the day. Dry cold means the temperature doesn’t get above 14 degrees. In dry-cold conditions, there is no thaw. That’s what we have here in the mountains. There will be no thaw, and the possibility of warming when the sun comes up won’t happen. Factor in windchill, which is how cold it feels, and it’s going to get damned cold.”

  She walked to the window and gazed out. He knew the scene before her. Nothing but a white vista of snow. A wilderness devoid of any shelter, warmth or help.

  “That’s the first thing you need to manage. Put as much distance as you can between Garza and yourself. Then slow and allow the heat you’re generating to warm you.”

  She kept her back to him and remained silent. He had no idea if she was truly seeing what she was facing tomorrow or was entirely inward at the moment.

  “There are going to be two main cold-weather problems that you have to guard against,” he continued. “Frostbite and hypothermia. Frostbite means that your skin has fallen below the freezing point, and ice crystals are forming within your skin cells, killing them. Tuck your hands under your armpits when you stop to rest. Make the rest periods brief.”

  She’d had to accept and process a great deal today and, despite her few brief lapses into panic, she’d maintained extremely well. He didn’t know her well enough to know her breaking point. Maybe she didn’t know, either. But from the steady set of her shoulders, he didn’t think she was teetering on the brink. Yet.

  “Amber?”

  “Yes, warm them under my armpits. Got it.” She turned around then. “Explain hypothermia, including the symptoms, so that I can be aware of them.” She moved her manacled hands to push back a wisp of her hair.

  For some time now he’d been juggling the need to protect her and take charge of the situation so she wouldn’t suffer any more than necessary. But Amber wouldn’t expect any quarter. “Hypothermia is when your body loses more heat than it produces and your core body temperature drops. Some of the symptoms of hypothermia are slurred speech, stiff joints, loss of coordination, slow pulse, uncontrollable shivering and mental confusion. Many times, getting wet in addition to the cold leads to hypothermia, and the result can be as severe as a coma or death.”

  Her face went a little white there, but she pressed her lips together. He watched her tighten her spine, set her jaw, and he couldn’t be more proud. He rose and joined her at the window. “To fight hypothermia, try as best you can to not get sweaty. This will be hard if you’re running, but do your best. Most heat is lost through your head, so when you’re running, take off your hat and as you cool put it back on. Otherwise, always keep it covered.”

  He knew imagination was often far worse than even the harshest reality. She’d already seen a lot. He respected her enough to not pull any punches or sugarcoat a thing. “This isn’t going to be easy and I’m not going to minimize the danger here. But the worst thing you can do is panic. Remember, you are going to have an advantage. I’ll get to that last.”

  She nodded and took a deep breath. “You know I was supposed to be in Aruba. Hot, white-sand beaches, warm, surf and a lot of alcohol.”

  He laughed. “You planning to be drunk the whole time?”

  “That hadn’t been my plan, but if I make it there—when I make it there—they better keep the mai tais flowing.”

  His mouth kicked up. “Would you send me a selfie of you in your bikini?”

  That got the laugh out of her that he’d hoped for.

  “Are you sure you can handle that, marine?”

  “Ooh-rah. I’ll do my best, ma’am. Use all my training in keeping my tongue in my mouth.”

  She laughed again, grabbing his shirt. Then her smile faded. “Tell me what to do about shelter.”

  Something so powerful welled up in his chest. He tugged her against him until she was in his arms, her cheek tucked against the steady beat of his heart. “I’m sorry,” he said, pressing his face against her face. “Sorry any of this is necessary.”

  “I’m sorry, too. I should have been more aware that Garza was bad news. I miscalculated and he took the advantage. I’m not going to let that happen again. I promise.”

  “It was broad daylight at the sheriff’s department. Who would have thought he
would be that demented?”

  She nodded. “Point taken. Shelter?”

  He didn’t let her go and that was all him and nothing to do with her needs. “If I don’t get to you by nightfall, make a shelter. Make sure you’re not in an avalanche spot. Check for accumulated debris and broken tree stumps at the base of the clearing. If you find both, chances are you’re in an avalanche chute. The side of the clearing is a much better shelter location. You should also avoid areas near overlooks and cliffs. Start looking for an ideal spot as soon as the sun touches the horizon. You don’t need to get too fancy—your goal is to make it through the night.

  “Dig a snow trench deep enough to provide a windbreak. Pile and pack additional snow on the windy side for further protection. Gather as much pine boughs, leaves, anything soft to line the bottom for insulation. Once you climb in, cover yourself with copious amounts of pine or any other leaves you can get. Snow is a better insulator than your average tent, so your emergency shelter should get you through the night. Hillsides provide good wind shelter, but low-lying areas are colder and damper, so avoid them.

  “Make your shelter as small as possible to help retain heat. Stack up tree branches to the entrance to block the cold and retain heat.”

  “I suppose I should manage my sweat while I dig and gather—moisture is my enemy in the freezing cold.”

  “Bingo, babe. Once you’ve built your shelter, you should focus on water and warmth. The human body can survive for about a week or less without water, depending on conditions. Dehydration can set in within a few hours. It’s important to remember that water is just as important in cold-weather survival as it is in hot weather. A minimum of two quarts of water is needed for survival, and in cold conditions, you should drink even more. Eating snow may seem like a great idea, but it will lower your core temperature and actually bring on dehydration. Wrap it in cloth and suck the water out as it melts. Try to find open water—rivers, streams, lakes and springs. It’s best to get your water from a fast-moving body and strain it with some cloth to remove large bits of sediment.