by Debra
“But—”
“Will, if you interrupt me again, our partnership is over and nothing you say or do will keep me from walking down this mountain.” She waited, listening to her heartbeat and only her heartbeat for several long seconds. “I understand your concerns and the basic plan. Assuming you have the climbing skills, if we had the gear we could go due north and maybe with a lot of luck, find the plane.”
She paused, gathering her thoughts, hating the words that had to be spoken. “If I’d taken a radio instead of a gun, things might be different. As it stands, you’re right. We need to track Lancaster.” It would be the greatest test of her self-control to watch and wait when she had Clint’s murderer in her sights. “At least until we can narrow the search field.”
Will remained silent.
“I’m done talking now,” she declared.
“All right.” His clothing rustled softly as he scooted up to sit beside her. “Before we even get started, I want to say thank-you.” He bounced a fist on his thigh, then sighed. “It was my third op when it happened to me.”
Sensing where this was going, Charly stiffened. She did not want to hear this. She didn’t want to feel a connection. She needed her embarrassment over the lies he’d fed her in town, needed the anger to keep her steady.
“Just getting to graduation makes you feel immortal,” he began, his voice barely a whisper. “We know in here—” he tapped his temple “—that certain actions are high risk. We know there are consequences when we go out.”
She understood what he meant, though the context differed between civilian life and military action. There were risks when she helped on search and rescue, more risks when she helped track fugitives.
“Intel on the op was clear, complete as it gets. The plan was simple—get in, get our hostage, get out. But the bizarre happened in the form of an IED. We weren’t even the target. Not really. We had the best training in the world, but I wasn’t fully prepared for the weight of hauling my dying friend to the egress point.”
Her mind drifted back to Clint’s temporary grave.
“It’s the strangest thing to see a man you’ve lived with, worked with, a man you consider a brother go down,” Will continued. “It’s worse when it feels senseless. I know how that sticks with you, Charly. But eventually you get through the grief and reach a point where you can recall the fullness of the life instead of the empty moment of death.”
Steady? Her entire system was quaking like a leaf in a windstorm. She looked down at their joined hands. When had that happened? How was she supposed to maintain her composure after hearing a story like that? Feeling petty, she tugged her hand free. She wanted to call him a liar, to accuse him of manipulating her, but she couldn’t get the mean words past the lump of tears lodged in her throat. Blinking rapidly, she pushed to her feet and buried the volatile mix of feelings whirling inside her.
It would take huge doses of calm and focus to get them through this. By sheer will, her vision was clear when she looked at Will again. “Let’s go.”
He stood up and dusted off his dark pants. “You’ve got the lead.”
She nodded, choosing the most direct path. When Lancaster was in custody, when Will’s job was complete and they were back in Durango, she’d take an entire day, maybe two, and wallow in her grief over Clint.
For now, they had work to do.
Chapter Ten
Will knew he’d handled things poorly with Charly, and with every silent step carrying them closer to Lancaster, he vowed to make it up to her when this was over. That kind of decision came with a new risk factor he’d never considered before, but the woman pulled things out of him. Things he never discussed. Yet he’d sat there and held her hand and let it pour out. Telling himself it was for her benefit, to ease her grief, was complete bull.
This kind of sticky situation proved why he was better working the solo operations. Working alone, he couldn’t embarrass himself by sharing pitiful memories of his failures. Alone, he couldn’t cause others the embarrassment he’d caused Charly.
Her reaction to his purpose up here surprised him. He’d expected the anger, but he couldn’t see any reason for her to feel foolish over their dates. He just didn’t know how to explain it to her in a way she’d understand.
Thank God they were finally close enough to Lancaster’s camp that talking wasn’t safe. Too often since they’d set off he’d wanted to apologize, to make his feelings for her clear. She hadn’t misunderstood his interest, but he figured he’d have a hell of a time convincing her of that anytime soon.
This wasn’t the best time to get distracted by the woman, so he gained a little detachment by focusing on her skills as a guide. Yesterday he’d discovered a serious appreciation for her endurance. Today, in closer proximity, he marveled at her commanding awareness of their surroundings—of all things nature.
As they’d become acquainted, she’d talked a little about her family and the traditions she carried forward with their business, but seeing her in action was nothing short of astounding. She moved swiftly, only occasionally glancing to the sky or pausing to listen to her surroundings. Granted, he knew she was familiar with the area, but watching her, he understood her grandfather’s comment about her having a compass for a heart. Charly traveled with such confidence, without leaving a trace, that Will thought the military should hire her for training.
Without a word, she’d pointed out animal tracks as they appeared. Both prey and predator, from rabbits and deer to wolves. Thank God the bears and snakes were hibernating. He wasn’t so ignorant about the area that he thought Lancaster’s crew was the only threat on this mountain, but he was suddenly grateful he was navigating this wicked terrain with Charly.
He didn’t give an opinion on their route, trusting her to find the most direct path to the campsite. He wondered what they’d find when they got there. He hoped the men had left behind a few provisions. His small pack wasn’t going to carry them very far.
Much as he’d done last night, she crossed the stream and circled around, avoiding the trail she’d cleared with Lancaster. To his surprise, Will heard men shouting as they closed in on the campsite. He couldn’t believe Lancaster hadn’t set out already.
With no more than a look, he and Charly dropped flat, carefully creeping forward to watch and listen.
“We have a signal from that beacon to follow,” Lancaster shouted. “Forget the bitch. We don’t need her.”
One of the men was down and one eye was swollen shut.
Charly tapped him. “Jeff,” she mouthed, pointing to the ground.
Will nodded, understanding. The man who’d been charged with guarding her last night hadn’t fared well in the hours since her escape.
“If she notifies the authorities,” another man said, “we’re all screwed.”
“I say we leave Jeff to deal with any authorities while we go on to the plane.”
Will noted Jeff kept his opinion on that plan to himself.
“Dumb move going without her. She can’t be far.”
“We’re not incompetent,” said Max. He held up the tracking gear. “We know where we’re going.”
“But you saw how well she knows the area.”
“Enough!” Lancaster stopped the bickering. “This isn’t a damned democracy. You work for me,” he said, his face turning red. “All of you work for me.”
Watching the body language, Will thought the men surrounding Lancaster disagreed. It seemed as though Scott was the man the others looked to time and again for guidance.
“You want to get paid, you follow my orders.”
Will slid a look toward Charly while Lancaster ranted on. She met his gaze with a raised-eyebrow expression that told him they were on the same page. A madman running around on the mountain was going to be a particular kind of fun.
“We’ll split up,” Lancaster said, only slightly calmer. “Jeff and Bob will track down the guide and kill her. The rest of us will go to the plane.”
�
�And how do we find you when we’re done?” Bob asked.
“You have radios. I can’t imagine she’s gone far. She must be panicked, knowing we won’t let her get away. Find her. Kill her. If you’re closer to Durango when that’s done, you’ll wait for us in town.”
Will took it as small comfort that the crew planned to return to Durango after retrieving the Blackout Key. He’d pass that intel to Casey. The director could have a reception waiting for Lancaster.
Will carefully watched the men tasked with killing Charly. It was clear they thought they’d be cut out of the profit. At worst, they’d be in place as the scapegoats if things went bad up here.
It wasn’t any surprise, but the division of Lancaster’s crew meant a new set of challenges. He and Charly couldn’t follow both Lancaster and the other men. He had no intention of leaving Charly out here alone. Not just because he needed her expertise to get around faster. Not just because her need to avenge Clint rolled off her in perilous waves.
No, his need to keep her close went deeper than that. He told himself it was the mission, that he wouldn’t leave a civilian out here, unarmed and underequipped, to bat cleanup for the United States. He wasn’t believing it. Still, he couldn’t risk letting his mind wander down that path littered with land mines. Better to keep it all business up here.
Charly was a civilian, and considering how angry she was at him, it was best not to bring his personal interest into the mix. Dating her was fun and exciting, but he’d known from the start it wouldn’t turn into anything long-term. He wasn’t built for the long haul. Didn’t have the heart for it.
Beside him, Charly didn’t even twitch as they watched Jeff and Bob gather gear, check weapons and head away from the campsite. Again he thought SEAL candidates could learn a few things from her. In a town like Durango it hadn’t taken long to learn about Charly’s stellar reputation for guiding and tracking, but she’d been so lively and animated when they played pool or talked over a meal. He’d had no idea she had this deep well of cool reserve.
It took a remarkable person to remain still and calm in the face of such a direct and deadly threat. It took something else—an undefinable quality—to do so this close to a friend’s rough grave.
Will struggled against an inexplicable need to rush in and take down the five men distracted with their preparations to move out. For Charly. He could see the solution and call it a good day’s work. They could take the beacon and find the damned key, and be done with it all.
Only Casey’s desire to take Lancaster alive, along with Will’s combat experience, kept him in place next to her.
She shifted closer, and her fingertips landed with a light flutter on his hand. He hadn’t realized he’d reached down for the gun holstered to his thigh. He gave her a brief nod, and she seemed to understand he had himself under control again.
It felt like an eternity before he risked a cautious whisper. “We’re not splitting up,” he said, offering her a hand up.
She didn’t accept his offer of help, but she deliberately turned her back to Clint’s grave. “We can tail Lancaster,” she said, surprising him. “He’s your priority.”
“You aren’t worried about the other two men?”
She shook her head. “Are you? Unless they’re blind, they’ll pick up the trail I left for them.”
Her easy dismissal of the pair caught his attention. “What did you do?”
“I led them toward a natural trap. If we’re really lucky one of the men who feels like this mountain is his personal property will intercept them first.”
“And if we’re not really lucky?”
“They’ll turn north and try to rejoin Lancaster, pinning us in the middle.”
“Why didn’t you go to a mountain man for help last night?”
“I didn’t need help last night until you tackled me.”
He figured it best if he didn’t reply directly to that.
She cocked an eyebrow, clearly understanding his silence. “Besides, I’d talked myself into going to the authorities, thinking that was better than conducting my own manhunt.”
“Come on,” he said, crossing the creek to the campsite. “Maybe they left us something useful.”
She surprised him again when she didn’t even pause at her friend’s grave. But he turned when she swore softly. “If it wasn’t your job to secure Lancaster, I’d say let the mountain take care of these guys.”
He walked over and knelt down as she gathered up an open pack of fresh food. “Did you expect them to be responsible campers?”
“A girl can dream,” she muttered while she dealt with it. “But I’m not surprised.”
Charly bit back the rant. It wouldn’t help and it was only a diversion from the real problem. She might be out of her depth with national security and the mailman-turned-SEAL, but she recognized that truth. It felt as if her veins were trembling with grief, anger and fear. None of that would bring Clint back. None of those feelings would see justice done for him. Especially not the fear.
She found her pack and examined what Jeff and his pals hadn’t taken. Her spare radio was missing, but they’d left her first-aid supplies and the meal bars.
She left the tent behind. It was too cumbersome for what Will had in mind. “Check Clint’s pack for any rope or gear,” she said to Will. Once they had a better idea of where the plane went down, she wanted every advantage to get Will to the objective first.
Hearing Lancaster order her death, hearing the others agree so easily to carry out the order, something had clicked into place. If Lancaster thought he’d hired the best, he was about to find out how right he’d been. She shrugged into the small backpack and cinched the straps so it wouldn’t shift. Lancaster thought he could run roughshod over this forest, over land she considered as vital as her heart. She’d happily show him how wrong he was.
She spared a final glance for Clint’s grave, making a silent promise to return and bury him honorably at her first opportunity. She promised herself that despite the sharp and lethal odds stacked against her, she’d survive both Lancaster and the perils north of the peak.
“Ready?”
She nodded, not quite prepared to test her voice or meet Will’s gaze. Ready to do this was the only option, because she refused to give in.
“Lead the way.”
It wasn’t much of a test. Lancaster, feeling safe, didn’t care about hiding his trail. For the first hours, the real trick was holding back far enough that they didn’t get caught.
There had been a call on the radio and another heated discussion about the route, forcing Charly and Will to fall back and discuss their options.
“Any ideas?”
“Might be entertaining when they try to walk on air.”
“Entertaining,” Will echoed, his eyebrows drawing close. “They must have some idea about the terrain.”
“If so, they hid it well yesterday.”
“They can check the area with their smartphones.”
She shook her head. “Those are only expensive paperweights at this point.”
“I’d think the beacon tracker would have some setting about terrain.”
“Maybe.” Charly swallowed the lump in her throat. “Clint got a look, said it was high-end. We didn’t talk about it after that.” Their time had run out. She felt Will’s eyes on her, had just opened her mouth to fend off any sympathy when she caught the faint sound of voices.
Pressing her index finger to her lips, she drew them behind a screen of small trees. Rooted in place, absolutely still, she couldn’t even hear Will’s breathing.
Nearby, a radio crackled, but the disembodied voice on the other end was garbled. Beside her, she knew Will was straining for any clue about who was out there.
Bob’s voice, slightly breathless, reached them just before he came into view.
Damn. She’d managed to get them pinned between Lancaster and the team he’d sent out to kill her. Why hadn’t her trap worked? The strong and sudden urge to run surpris
ed her. She had to smother it. Running wasn’t an option. The men were too close.
Will touched her shoulder and the gentle contact grounded her. She scanned the area, looking for the best option for a fight or escape.
If they had any sense, the men should pass right by their hiding place.
“We should’ve gone back down,” Bob said, stopping to catch his breath.
“I’m telling you she’s out here somewhere,” Jeff argued.
“You saw her hat. She’s dead or long gone.”
“I’m not staking my cut on your theory. That was a fake trail.”
“No way. She was scared, is all. It was dark. She got lost.” Bob swore. “And Scott knows better than to cut us out of the take. Besides, that mad bastard left too much behind in Durango. Let them freeze their asses off out here. It’s easy enough to catch up with them when they’re done.”
She could see Jeff wasn’t buying it. His eyes, one dark and bruised, scanned the forest floor, moving into the trees. Any second now and he’d spot them.
How had she missed his skills?
Because she hadn’t been looking. Too busy operating on the assumption that she was leading curious software developers, she’d been focused on giving a good tour.
“She didn’t get hurt, lost or dead,” Jeff insisted. “It was a trap for whoever followed her.”
A trap that failed, she thought with more than a little regret. Hopefully there’d be time to feel like an idiot about that later. Right now they had to start evening the odds.
She looked to Will, grateful one of them was dressed for stealth. She pointed to herself, indicated her plan to stand up and draw their attention. He could circle around and they’d have them.
Will gave a nearly imperceptible shake of his head.
She sent him a defiant glare, motioning for him to circle around.
He reached for his gun and this time she shook her head. They needed to handle this quickly and silently, without allowing Jeff or Bob to notify Lancaster.
She thought that kind of tactic would be second nature to a man with Will’s professional experience. Grabbing his jacket, she pressed her mouth close to his ear and outlined her plan.
