by Avery Gale
Chapter Two
Abby could feel the branches of the trees tearing at the skin on her face and arms. For some reason the darkness surrounding her seemed to amplify everything else, or perhaps her mind was using that to ground itself against the tidal wave of terror she was fighting now that the adrenaline that had fueled her escape was starting to ebb away slowly. She kept thinking about Kalen Black and Logan Douglas, remembering their afternoon at the pool behind her parents’ home. She’d known that her brother and Gage had let them spirit her away so they could spend time with Holly, but there had been a lot more to that afternoon than simply distracting her. For some reason, Abby knew that most of what had happened had been more about finding out how she would react to their obvious interest in her than it had been about her brother’s privacy.
An almost hysterical laugh nearly escaped her lips before she managed to pull it back. Just the idea of those two Doms wondering anything was absurd. Kalen Black and Logan Douglas were the most balanced and self-assured men she’d ever met. And as for wondering about her reaction to their interest…well that was just plain dim-witted on their part. If they didn’t know by now that she had been insanely attracted to them since she was barely a teenager…well, they just hadn’t been paying attention. Sure she’d been academically advanced for her age, she’d finished her first PhD when she’d been eighteen and completed the second one a year later. But being smart sure didn’t mean she’d been emotionally mature. As a matter of fact, the opposite was probably more accurate. She’d been immersed so completely in the sheltered world of academia that she’d rarely dated or even spent much time with the opposite sex aside from her conversations with her brother’s friends.
Abby suddenly realized her mind was wandering and she shook her head as if that physical action alone could clear the cloudiness that kept creeping into her head. Why was she feeling so muddled? It was only then that the bone-deep cold she had previously managed to ignore crashed through her and threatened to drop her in her tracks. Stopping to catch her breath and get her bearings, Abby listened and was relieved when she didn’t hear anyone chasing her. She squinted in the darkness trying to make out any identifying landmark that might give her some clue where she was. The last thing she remembered was leaving the gym near the hotel where she’d been staying in Washington D.C. and feeling like she’d been stung by a bee.
Knowing she’d been drugged scared the hell out of Abby. She quickly ran her hands over her body making sure all of her clothing was where it was supposed to be. Knowing someone had had their hands on her while she hadn’t been conscious turned her stomach and for a few seconds she’d been afraid she was going to throw up.
Since she had only flown into town this afternoon, she wondered how they’d found her so quickly. Hell, she hadn’t even taken time to unpack her bag before heading to the gym. She was supposed to meet with members of the Senate Energy Committee tomorrow morning, so obviously someone didn’t want her to share her recent breakthroughs in the areas of bio-fuels and renewable energy sources. Abby hadn’t intended to tell them everything she’d found…not just yet anyway, because she hadn’t worked out all the kinks. But she certainly had enough to share that just her preliminary notes had set off alarms with members of the Middle Eastern Energy Consortium.
She had planned to call her brother telling him she was “in the neighborhood” after her meeting tomorrow. She knew she was being a coward by waiting, but she’d known all too well that he would share the news with Kalen and Logan…so she’d stalled. She hadn’t been sure she was ready for all that meeting with them would entail so waiting had seemed like a good plan at the time. Not so bright, Abby. Maybe if you had done the right thing you wouldn’t be in this damned mess.
It hadn’t taken her eyes long to adjust to the darkness, but she was still grateful that the full moon could be used to her advantage. Taking stock of her surroundings, Abby was relieved to see that it didn’t appear they’d taken her far. Judging by the trees and rocks she was seeing, she didn’t think she’d even been taken out of the state, which meant she was probably in the mountains of western Virginia. Just knowing that it wouldn’t take her brother long to get to her if she could find someone willing to help her contact him was comforting…the fact he would almost certainly bring Kalen and Logan along…not so much.
* * * *
Kalen had Abby’s chip activated and was mapping it before Jace even made it to the control center. “Talk to me.” The worry in his voice was evident, but Kalen was impressed that his friend seemed to be making a huge effort to stay in professional mode.
“I’ve got her on the map and I’m overlaying the latest satellite images now. She had been moving at a steady speed in a northwesterly direction—approximately forty miles per hour, but that abruptly changed a few minutes ago. She reversed directions and is probably averaging two to three miles per hour. Mountainous terrain so I doubt she is out there training on purpose.” Kalen wanted Jace’s opinion so he was just going to wait until his friend and boss could process the information because Kalen was sure Jace would draw the same conclusion he and Logan had, and he didn’t have to wait long.
“She’s gotten away from whoever had her, but I doubt she was prepared for the weather up there and that cold front we were watching for has already hit that area.” Kalen wasn’t surprised that Jace knew the security team had been closely monitoring the incoming storm. Nobody wanted Club Isola members getting stranded on the small island and being forced to call their coworkers to explain why they wouldn’t be able to make it into their offices Monday morning. “Fuck, we need to get to her before they find her again or she…” Kalen knew exactly what his friend hadn’t been able to finish. Unless Abby was dressed in some seriously warm weather gear, she was probably already feeling the effects of hypothermia.
Logan was already on the phone and from this end of the conversation it was obvious he was talking to someone at the airport. Jace was speaking with Gage, giving him a quick update and letting he and Holly know that he wouldn’t be returning to their small apartment inside the club anytime soon. While both of his friends were busy making phone calls, Kalen couldn’t take his eyes off the small flashing dot on his screen—as if keeping his eyes on the cursor indicating Abby’s position would keep her from slipping away from them.
It couldn’t happen again. They just couldn’t lose another woman in their care. Their last mission as SEALS had been to rescue a young woman that had been kidnapped by rebels hoping to extort money from her wealthy Saudi cousins. But her family hadn’t wanted to pay the ransom and by the time Kalen and Logan’s team had found her she’d been raped and beaten to death.
The thought of losing the one woman he and Logan had longed to make their own was almost enough to scramble the last of his control. It was Logan’s voice that brought him back from the edge he’d been so close to going over. “We have ten minutes to gear up and meet at the chopper. Tony will be here in thirty seconds to relieve us.”
Kalen grabbed three handheld GPS trackers and quickly powered them up and synched them to Abby’s tracking chip. They were all in their gear and Ian’s helicopter was lifting off in under seven minutes. Under different circumstances Kalen would have been damned impressed with what all they’d done in a few short minutes, but with Abby’s life hanging in the balance it felt like they’d spent too much time grabbing medical supplies he hoped like hell they weren’t going to need.
Andrews had been the closest military base with a helicopter capable of maneuvering in the mountains in the rapidly deteriorating conditions and it had only taken one call from Ian to insure their transport had been set up and was ready to fly by the time they set down. They quickly transferred their gear into the larger helicopter and were off the ground in less than five minutes. Their time in the air was taken up with setting up their gear so they could fast rope down as close to Abby’s current location as possible. When the door on the side of the chopper slid open, the frigid wind nearly took K
alen’s breath away, and his fear for Abby shot straight off the chart.
Chapter Three
It was painfully obvious the weather was deteriorating rapidly and Abby knew her only hope for surviving was to figure out some way to make sure she was sheltered from the moisture that was starting to fall. The temperatures had dropped significantly since she’d started running back down the mountain, and that meant the light misting rain that had started falling a few minutes earlier was going to turn to sleet in short order. Just when she was about to give up and just crawl under one of the larger pine trees lining the road, Abby spotted the burned remains of a small building. There wasn’t anything left of the small structure, but there was an open-front low-ceilinged wooden shed that looked like it might at one time been used to keep wood dry for use in the tiny cabin.
Shaking out a musty-smelling canvas tarp laying inside, Abby tried to erase her footprints with a branch she managed to tear loose from a tree several yards beyond her hiding spot. She threw the small branch aside and backed into the small shelter and pulled the awful smelling cover over her head and tried not to identify the odors emanating from the offending piece of fabric that she hoped would keep her out of the sight of anyone tracking her. She would have a better chance of her body heating the smaller space as well.
Keeping her mind busy was going to be a struggle because Abby had already been exhausted from traveling and the grueling workout she’d just completed before she’d woken up in the trunk of a damned car. Add to that running through the trees over uneven terrain and then finding this small hidey-hole had claimed the last of her energy. Trying to sort through what her kidnappers might have had planned for her was important because it might give her some idea of who she was hiding from. She knew the Consortium wanted her bio-energy project results because they would have a hard time refuting or duplicating information they didn’t have time to study. She’d bet they had already raided her hotel suite and taken her laptop. She smiled to herself thinking how surprised they’d be that it didn’t even have a password…because there wasn’t any need for any security to protect the small computer that she used for keeping up with her friends from college and exchanging pictures. The most interesting thing on the small unit was the videos she’d been studying from various do it yourself home improvement shows. Abby had never been the least bit interested in cooking, but she loved remodeling and woodworking.
She hadn’t kept anything work related on her personal computer for several years. Her PowerPoint presentation for tomorrow’s meeting and all of her research was saved in her personal folder on Garrett Oil’s secure server. She was suddenly very grateful her fathers had listened to their long-time friend and colleague, Daniel Lamont when he’d suggested they work with Colt Matthews and Mitch Grayson to set up a secure system that Mitch had told them was more secure than the Pentagon’s.
Abby knew that she had to fight back the exhaustion and sleep that was tempting her with its siren call of blissful escape from her current predicament. Instead of being lulled by the taunting of her rapidly stiffening muscles, she worked to stay focused using her memories of that warm afternoon by the pool with Kalen and Logan as a blessed distraction. If she really let herself sink into it, she could almost feel the sunshine caressing her bare skin as she basked in the warmth it had provided. After she dived in the pool she’d felt the water move around her as both men closed ranks around her quickly. She’d known there wasn’t any way for her to out swim a couple of former SEALs, but with her head start, she’d gotten almost to the other end before they’d caught up with her.
They’d led her quickly out the steps in the shallow end and into one of the more private areas surrounding the pool itself. They’d made short work of her skimpy bikini and their dual looks of appreciation after they’d stripped her had been great for her ego. The sun was warm and Abby had been grateful for the plush towel Kalen had draped over the large rock they’d laid her on. Kalen had lowered his lips to hers in a kiss that went from sweet to conquering in less than five seconds.
Abby had been so lost in Kalen’s smoldering kiss that she hadn’t noticed that Logan had spread her legs wide until his mouth sealed itself over her waxed pussy. She’d screamed into Kalen’s mouth and felt Logan’s chuckle against the very sensitive lips of her labia. Abby had never been completely waxed before and had been astonished at how much more sensitive she was to their touch. Between them, they had sent her over the edge making her come three times before they’d wrapped her up in the towel and then led her up the outside stairs to the small deck that ran the width of her bedroom. They had both kissed her sweetly and promised better things were to come once Jace, Gage, and Holly left the next day.
Knowing they had planned to spend a few days with her had been the only thing that had kept her from crying when Jace told her the next morning that he was pulling them in as back-up because they’d gotten information that her new sister-in-law was in danger. Proof once again that fame was a double edged sword. The sun had barely breached the horizon when Jace had found her sitting by the pool. And when he’d begun their conversation with an apology, she’d barely fought off her tears.
Suddenly, Abby heard a soft snap that sounded like a wet twig breaking under a footstep. She held her breath for so long she was starting to feel faint when she heard the scuff of a boot and knew whoever it was they were standing just outside the small shelter she was hiding in. Just as panic started to overtake her she heard a familiar voice call her name and the relief that washed through her was so overwhelming it felt like it had taken her muscles hours rather than seconds to respond. Throwing the foul-smelling tarp aside, Abby launched herself into the waiting arms of Kalen Black.
She heard him grunt out a breath as she hit his chest and when she wrapped her legs around his waist and locked her arms around his neck, she felt his arms tighten around her as he pressed his face against the side of her neck. His whispered “Thank God” was the only thing she heard before she let the tears flow freely down her frozen cheeks.
* * * *
They’d fast roped down into a small clearing that was about a quarter mile from the last signal they’d gotten from Abby’s chip. With the possibility of a short signal delay they knew they couldn’t pinpoint her exact location if she started moving again, but just before they’d reached the mountain, the cursor had seemed to stall out in one location. Kalen had sent up a silent prayer that she had found shelter rather then been injured or worse. He’d taken the most treacherous path because if she’d already died from exposure, neither he nor Logan had wanted her brother to be the one to find her.
When he’d seen the low-roofed woodshed he’d tried to approach it as quietly as possible since they didn’t have any way to know who else might be tracking her out here in the freezing ass rain. And the bottom line was that she might actually be here because she wanted to be. All of their assumptions about an abduction had been exactly that—assumptions. And until they knew for sure who or what they were dealing with, they had to assume the worst case scenario. As he’d been making his way to the small shelter he’d noticed a tarp in the corner. He knew he could move with complete stealth if he needed to but he’d grabbed a small twig with one hand and snapped it while keeping his weapon clasped tightly in his other hand holding it alongside his leg.
At the muffled snap of the damp twig Kalen had heard a small gasp from under the tarp and his knees had nearly buckled in relief. When he’d softly called her name there had been a couple of seconds’ delay before she had thrown off the tarp and sprung into his arms. She’d hit him directly in the chest with her small body and he’d nearly fallen over backward at the force. Later…much, much later…he might see some humor in that fact, but right now all he could think of was how grateful he was to have her in his arms.
Securing his weapon, he tapped his communication device and let Jace and Logan know his location and that he’d found her. He hadn’t even tried to get a blanket over her because he simply didn’t
want to let go of her long enough to dig it out of his pack. He could hear Logan running toward them and knew Jace couldn’t be far behind. As he held her tight against his chest he felt the moment she let go and her gut-wrenching sobs tore at his heart. He’d rescued a lot of victims and knew that they often held it together until they felt safe enough to let go and it was only then that the tidal wave of emotion came crashing out. He’d always been amazed at the strength of the people he’d rescued. He’d seen them continue on for days as their rescue team led them out of jungles or over miles of barren sand dunes without shedding a tear until they were safe in the arms of someone they loved and trusted. And knowing Abby had let go the minute he’d wrapped his arms around her filled Kalen with hope that her heart already trusted him even though he knew the real battle was going to be with that brilliant mind of hers.
Chapter Four
Logan had only been a few yards from Kalen when he’d heard him say he had found Abby, but honest to God it had taken him a full five seconds to overcome his relief and get the muscles in his legs to respond. When he’d run up to them and seen Abby wrapped tightly around Kalen he knew his friend wasn’t even going to try to set her down to wrap her in the heat insulating gear they’d packed. Instead Logan stepped up behind her to press his body against hers while he shook out a thermal blanket that looked more like a giant piece of aluminum foil than a blanket and then carefully stepped back so he could wrap it around her.
When Logan started tucking the blanket in around her, she turned her tear-stained face to look at him and he was sure his heart had missed several beats. Even with her eyes red from crying and mud and blood smears over the scratches on her face, she was still breathtakingly beautiful. When she leaned into him, Logan dropped everything he’d had in his hands and held his jacket open. He’d almost growled in satisfaction when she hadn’t hesitated to scramble inside his coat and wrap her tiny self around him as tight as the bark on a tree. He enclosed her in the jacket and was happy to have Kalen’s help zipping her securely inside.
