by Vanessa Kier
“No.”
“But—”
“Em, we’re white. The rebels are in the area. Do you really want to put your homestay family and their neighbors in danger if someone reports to the rebels that they’ve given us shelter?”
“But you can’t afford the time to take me all the way to the border. Not with how slowly we’ve been moving!”
“I’m not going to put you in any more danger, Em. You’re going to the embassy in the United African Republic even if I have to knock you out and tie you up.” He’d do it, too. Anything to keep her safe.
The Jeep rounded another bend in the road and Emily slammed on the brakes.
Max cursed at the familiar sight. A crater had been blown in the road where a feeder road intersected from the left.
“Max, how are we going to get past? The trees are too close together for me to drive into the jungle.”
The left side of the crater went all the way up to the edge of the tightly packed trees, leaving only enough room to walk, not drive. “I think there’s enough room that we can drive along the rim to the right.”
Emily shook her head. “What if the ground is unstable? We could end up falling into the hole.”
“We’re either going to have to risk it or leave the Jeep and head out on foot.” He traced the distance between here and the border on the map. “It will take us days to walk to the border from here.” Hiking that far would be no problem if he wasn’t injured. But while his arousal had masked his pain this morning, after sitting in the Jeep for so long everything hurt. He’d hike if necessary, but he’d definitely slow them down.
Emily scowled at the crater. “I’m not a good enough driver to handle this.”
“I’ll do it.” Yeah, it would aggravate his leg, but she was right, navigating the rim of the crater would be tricky. He considered unloading the gas cans from the roof, but figured the toll that would take on their already exhausted bodies would be worse than the danger to the Jeep’s balance because of the extra weight. “You should get out and walk through the jungle to the other side.”
She raised her eyebrows. “In case the Jeep falls in.”
He shrugged. “Yeah.”
“I don’t want to lose you, Max.”
He put his hand on her thigh. “I don’t want to lose you, either. But there’s no denying that this is dangerous. If I fail, you’re in better physical shape to hike to the border.” He gestured to his sat phone sitting on the console as it charged. “Take my phone. Here’s the code to unlock the phone.” After she’d correctly repeated it back to him, he continued, “If something happens to me, call Rene or Kristoff, and let them know. They’ll tell you what to do next.”
Emily swallowed heavily, then nodded. She kissed him fiercely, then climbed out of the Jeep. He checked the tires and walked the route he’d be driving to make certain that it was somewhat solid. It hurt to put weight on his leg, but he managed to ignore the pain. After he was satisfied that he could make it all the way around, he gave Emily a kiss and a wink, then got behind the wheel.
“Don’t you dare die on me, Max Lansing!” Emily said before stepping clear.
He didn’t let himself look at her through the rearview mirror. He didn’t want to be distracted by her concern. He needed all of his attention focused on the task ahead.
As he’d expected, working the clutch with his injured leg sent pain shooting through him. And although he’d known that the vehicle didn’t have power steering, he’d forgotten just how stiff the steering was. Dammit, no wonder Emily was so tired.
The good news was that the area he was driving over was fairly clear of debris, because most of it had slid into the crater. The bad news was that the ground wasn’t completely solid beneath the tires. He kept the Jeep moving slowly forward, trying to keep as far to the right as possible so that at least his right tires were on more stable ground. He’d almost reached the safety of the other side when the earth gave way behind him. The back end slipped.
“Max!” Emily screamed.
Adrenaline surged through him as he struggled to keep the Jeep from sliding back. The front wheels were on solid ground, so he eased the Jeep forward until all four wheels hit the road. He kept driving until he figured he was far enough away to be out of danger. After taking a few deep breaths to steady his heart rate, he eased his aching body out from behind the wheel.
When he limped back to the crater, he saw that the rim he’d driven across had completely crumbled away. His pulse kicked once. Ah. Nothing like a close call to keep life interesting. He grinned across to Emily, giving her a thumbs-up. She raised her camera and snapped a photo of him. Ha. She really seemed to be taking to this photojournalist idea. Good for her. Not that he particularly wanted his life, or his death if he’d fallen into the crater, to be part of a documentary, but he loved that she seemed to have found a new passion.
She lowered the camera and gave him a relieved smile in return. Then she replaced her camera in her rucksack and walked into the jungle. The moment he lost sight of her, his heart gave another frightened kick. Great. Emily had infected him with her panic attacks. He’d been calm while he drove along the rim, but the prospect of her meeting a rebel or a jungle predator had him breaking out in a cold sweat.
That was one of the advantages of working alone. He didn’t have to worry about the safety of his partners. Or the woman he—
Emily emerged from between the trees and strode up to him with a grin on her face. Fighting back the urge to hold her and not let go, he gave her a tight nod. “I need to take a quick break before we move out.” He jerked his thumb toward the trees.
She looked at him and raised her brows, as if she suspected he was struggling with a riot of emotions. But she simply shrugged. “Okay.”
Feeling like a coward, he took care of business and wrestled his fear under control. He’d just zipped back up when the ground shook so hard that he lost his balance and had to brace himself against a tree.
“Max! What’s going on?” Emily had moved to the other side of the road to deal with her own personal needs.
“I don’t know. Stay put while I check.” Once the earth had quieted, he stepped onto the road. Way down, several miles closer to the border, he saw smoke and dust rising into the air.
Emily, of course, hadn’t obeyed his command, but appeared at his side. “I think the rebels just dynamited another intersection,” he said.
The sky chose that moment to open up, dumping warm rain on them as if they were standing under a tipped bucket. In seconds, they were both drenched to the skin. Fan-tastic. Just what they needed. “C’mon. Let’s get back to the Jeep and get the hell out of here before the road becomes impassable.”
Emily shot a worried glance toward the fading dust cloud in the distance, then turned and headed back toward the Jeep. They were about halfway there when the earth rumbled and the rim of the crater began to collapse inward. “Run!” he shouted.
She sprinted ahead, slipped in the growing mud, then righted herself and kept going. Max tried to keep up, but his wounded leg buckled, throwing him to his knees.
“Max! Behind you.”
He checked over his shoulder. Christ. The sinkhole was swallowing the road. He scrambled forward the best he could as the ground beneath him tipped down toward the crater.
A new rumble sounded underground. The angle of the road increased. Debris hit them as it tumbled toward the mouth of the crater. A baseball sized rock slammed into Emily’s shoulder. She lost her balance and started to slip toward Max.
“No!” Max braced his hands on her butt and shoved her forward. “Go,” he gasped. “Go! I’ve got you. Aim for that piece of land with the trees straight ahead. It looks stable.” Max gave her a hard enough push that momentum carried her to the edge of the jungle. Her hand latched onto a root and she used it as leverage to shimmy onto firm ground.
The earth trembled. Max’s hands lost purchase on the muddy road and he slipped to the edge of the crater. At the last moment,
he managed to catch hold of a vine and stop his fall. But his left foot dangled over empty space.
“Max!” Emily lunged for him.
His fingertips brushed hers and she grasped his hand. Before they could make stronger contact, the earth beneath him fell away, tearing them apart.
Max’s entire lower body slipped over the edge. He snagged a protruding root and halted his descent as his belly met the edge of the crater.
Emily crawled toward him.
“No! Stay back.”
“But I can help you.”
He gave her a warning look. “We have no idea how stable the ground underneath you is. Your extra weight too close to me could collapse this entire area. So keep away. The phone is still in the Jeep. Remember the unlock code?”
She nodded and told it to him.
“Good. If I fall all the way in, call Rene or Kristoff, then get the hell out of here.”
The earth gave out a little more beneath him and he tightened his grip on the root.
“I’m not leaving you!” She glared at him. “Tell me what to do.”
That was his woman. So fierce. So loyal. “Fine. Get the rope from the cargo compartment. Tie it to the trailer hitch on the Jeep, then throw the end to me. Hurry.”
She nodded and raced off.
He didn’t know if she had enough time to get the rope and anchor him before the hole swallowed him. Ignoring the pain in his leg and ribs, he hauled himself forward until he could grab onto the trunk of a young tree. Refusing to look down at the growing hole, he focused instead on pulling himself closer to the more solid edge of the jungle.
He checked Emily’s progress. She was just tying the rope off.
“Here!” She tossed him the other end of the rope, but it bounced off his shoulder.
“Sorry.” She tried again. This time, he was ready and caught the end of it. Before he could tie it around his chest, the earth collapsed with a thunderous roar.
Max fell into the crater.
CHAPTER TWELVE
EMILY SCREAMED. “MAX!”
Oh, no. No. NO.
The crater widened. The ground tumbled away in front of her, forcing her to back up. But she didn’t take her eyes off the place where Max had disappeared.
She was beginning to think that the crater would just keep growing, forcing her to retreat farther along the road, when with a final shudder the earth went eerily still. In the silence, she heard the trickle of dirt inside the hole where the rain hadn’t reached yet. The crater had to be at least four hundred yards across. Pebbles pinged as they tumbled down. The rain had stopped, but water dripped off the ends of leaves and runnels of water snaked into the crater.
Other than those small noises, the birds and insects were quiet. Probably scared away.
The rope she’d tied to the Jeep was taut. That was good, right? It meant Max probably had hold of the rope and was hanging down the wall of the crater, waiting for the earth to quiet before climbing out, rather than being buried under dirt and mud and unable to move.
Her rapid breathing sounded loud in the silence. But she didn’t have time to calm down. She raced to the Jeep and grabbed the second rope she’d seen in the cargo compartment. After tying that to the hitch as well, she stretched out on her belly and crawled forward. After every small movement, she paused. Listened for any sign the earth had started another underground collapse. It seemed like forever before she neared the edge of the hole. But she was afraid to get too close, certain the edge would give way.
“Max? Max, can you hear me?”
Nothing.
Her stomach pitched. “Max? Answer me. Please.”
Silence.
“No. I won’t let you be dead. You hear me, Max Lansing?” Muttering curses in as many languages as she knew, she wriggled forward a few more inches, freezing when the edge of the crater collapsed no more than a foot in front of her.
When the ground stabilized, she called out again. “Max? Can you hear me?”
A faint response filtered out of the hole. “Here.”
She whooped in joy. He was alive! The world blurred behind a curtain of tears. Swiping at her face, she blinked the moisture away. She didn’t have time to cry.
“Pull,” Max called weakly. “Jeep.”
“Hang on!” She crawled away from the edge. Once she reached a safe distance, she stood up, raced to the driver’s seat, and put the Jeep in gear. The tires slipped in the mud and it took her a moment to figure out how to compensate. Then she inched the vehicle forward. She didn’t want to move too fast. If Max was hanging from the rope, not braced on some protrusion along the side of the crater, then his arms would be killing him. Not to mention the strain on his cracked ribs. And the fall might have torn open the wound in his back.
She needed to haul him up carefully. Slowly.
No matter how strongly her instincts insisted she had to get Max out of there now.
FEET RESTING ON some unidentifiable, narrow surface, Max spat another clump of dirt out of his mouth and tightened his two-handed grip on the mud-slicked rope. He shook his head, trying to dislodge the stuff covering his head, but only succeeded in getting dirt in his eyes. Damn, that hurt. He shut his tearing eyes. If only—
The rope jerked him up. He gasped at the sudden pull, then promptly coughed as dirt slipped into his mouth. When his upward motion stopped, he stuck his toes in the wall of earth in front of him and rested his head against it.
Bad idea. Water slid down the surface, turning the dirt under his cheek to mud and dissolving his foothold. Only his hold on the rope saved him from plummeting into the hole.
Great. Just what he needed, a slippery wall to climb. For once, couldn’t life cut him a break?
Eyes still closed, Max hunted around with his toes until he found what felt like a rock sticking out from the side of the crater. Then he waited for the next lift.
Between the incremental pulls from Emily and his novice attempts at blind climbing, he made steady progress. But he really wished he had some idea of how far he had yet to go. Did he have feet? Inches? Yards?
Christ, he hoped the top was near. His arms were shaking, he had rope burn on his hands, and his wounded leg had pretty much gone numb. When sensation returned, he’d be in a shitload of pain.
Yeah, like he should complain. He was just lucky to be able to feel anything. He could have been dead.
Right. Not going there.
He waited for the next tug on the rope, to time his foot moving up. When it didn’t come, his heart thumped. He spat out the remaining dirt from his mouth. “Emily?” His voice was little more than a whisper.
Dammit, he should have told her to run. Even though the tremors had stopped, that didn’t mean she wasn’t in danger from any rebels who’d decided to come back this way to check their handiwork. Or maybe Ziegler had finally found them. If he caught her…
“Emily!” This time, fear gave him the strength to vocalize loudly. If she was nearby, she’d hear him.
He rubbed his eyes against his arm, but that only smeared mud over his lids. He cracked open his lids, but the world was just a brown blur. Growling in frustration because he had no idea how far he was from her, he closed his eyes and shouted, “Dammit, Emily, say something. Are you okay?”
“Sorry!”
Max’s body sagged. He’d never heard a sweeter word.
“I had to make adjustments to the pulley system. I’m back now.”
“Don’t do that again without warning me first! You nearly gave me a heart attack, thinking you’d been captured by the rebels.”
“Oh…” He imagined her brows scrunching together in that cute way she had when she was surprised or confused. “Um…all right. Give me a sec to get into position. I’m not going to use the Jeep for this part. I’m going to use a pulley system to pull you out on my own. I can just see the top of your head. The good news is you don’t have far to go. The bad news is this final distance will be tricky. You’ll see a big root system sticking out to your rig
ht in about three or four feet. If you can aim for that, it should give you enough leverage to boost yourself up to the rim, then I’ll grab you and help you the last few feet.”
God, he loved her strength. Not many people would still have the energy to pull him out of this hellhole after everything Emily had been through.
He heard dirt shift as she moved away.
“Wait!” he called up.
“What?”
“I can’t see. I’ve got dirt in my eyes. You’re going to have to talk me through this.”
“Oh. All right. I’ll give you five more pulls, then I’ll pause to come back to the edge to look down and tell you where you are. Okay?”
“Yes.” No. He didn’t want to lose the sound of her voice. Hadn’t realized how being alone in the dark had affected him until he heard her speak. Hadn’t recognized until now that the pressure in his chest was due to fear for her safety. But he had to let her do her job. “Go ahead.”
“Good. Give me until the count of ten to get over to the pulley. One, one-thousand…”
Right on the count of ten, Max felt another tug on the rope. The brief rest had done him good, and he pushed off with a bit more strength than last time. He almost forgot to count the tugs, though. What he thought was five counts later, he heard Emily’s voice.
“Excellent. You’re just slightly above and to the left of the roots. Perhaps the length of two of your arms. Can you sidle sideways until I tell you to stop?”
Hell. At this point, he’d let go and fall if she told him he’d be okay. Moving his good leg sideways wasn’t a problem. But while he’d been able to move his bad leg vertically and put some weight on it, the lateral movement caused a sharp tear of pain. He clenched his teeth and leaned his head against the dirt as he rode out the wave of agony.
“Max? What’s wrong? Is it your leg?”
He had to wait until the pain subsided before he could answer. “Yeah.”
“This isn’t going to work, is it? You can’t put weight on the leg going sideways.”
