Reaching down, he picked up his overnight bag and began filling it with the things he needed for his overnight stay in Buzios. The only reason he had accepted Thetas’s invitation was because the look Corinthians had given him had dared him to. He shrugged. He was a sucker for a dare, especially one from Corinthians.
Chapter 7
Someone was in her room.
That thought suddenly registered in Corinthians’s groggy mind and she came awake instantly. She sat up in bed and frantically glanced around the room. It was dark and she couldn’t see a thing. Fear knotted inside of her. She pushed aside the covers and was about to ease out of bed when someone pulled her up from behind. A large, rough hand covered her mouth, effectively silencing the scream she was about to make.
“Don’t make a sound. We have to get out of here. Now.”
Trevor’s deep voice cut through Corinthians’s near hysteria. Her body became calm when she realized who the intruder was, and she automatically relaxed against his hard frame. She then became angry, almost livid. Had he lost his mind? The nerve of him entering her room in the middle of the night and frightening her. And how on earth did he get in? She squirmed against him, and when he twisted her around to face him, she glared up at him, barely making out his features in the darkness, but ready to give him a piece of her mind. She would have done so if his hand hadn’t still been firmly clamped over her mouth. But in her furious state, she was not about to let that stop her. She tried talking against the palm of his hand and couldn’t. She groaned her frustration, getting even madder.
Trevor pulled her over to an area where a small pool of light flowed in through the window blinds. “Shh. Listen to me, Corinthians. Listen like your very life depends on what I’m about to tell you because it just might. A group of terrorists have taken over this hotel.”
He saw her dark eyes widen and blink as she comprehended what he had said. He felt the chill that swept through her body and momentarily froze her in place. “I couldn’t sleep and decided to go downstairs. I took the stairs instead of the elevators.” Trevor decided not to mention the reason he had taken the stairs was because he’d felt the need to work off some frustrated sexual energy. Being around her at the dinner party had made his desire for her stronger than ever.
“When I got to the bottom floor I saw them. They’re holding some of the hotel personnel at gunpoint, as well as some of the people in our group who decided to stay late at the dinner party. I ducked back in the stairway before they saw me. It’s my guess that eventually they’ll make a clean sweep of this hotel and take anyone they can as hostages, especially Americans. I don’t plan on being among that number, and I don’t think you want that, either. So we’re getting out of here. Understand?”
Corinthians nodded her head. She could tell from the look on Trevor’s face and from the troubled sound of his voice that he was dead serious about the hotel being under terrorist attack. She took in a deep gulp of air when he removed his hand from her mouth.
“Come on, we have to move quickly before they reach our floor,” he whispered close to her ear. “I’ve jammed the elevator and blocked the stairway door but that will only buy us—”
“Why don’t we just call the police?” Corinthians cut in. Following his lead, she kept her voice low.
“I tried, but the phones are dead. And because this hotel is located on an isolated stretch of beach the cell phones haven’t worked since day one, and there’s no place we can go to for help that’s close by.”
He sighed deeply. “We’re wasting time. You need to change out of what you have on and put on something else. Wear something dark, and put on a pair of comfortable shoes. And you’re going to have to get the items out of your closet without turning on the lights.”
It suddenly hit Corinthians that she was dressed in her sleepwear. But at the moment, being modest was the last thing on her mind as she quickly moved to her closet. She couldn’t worry about Trevor seeing her dressed in her short, silk nightshirt. There wasn’t much light in the room for him to see too much and besides, he’d once seen her in a whole lot less.
No woman’s body should be that perfectly shaped, Trevor thought as he watched Corinthians rush to the closet and begin pulling items off hangers. And no woman’s body should feel that soft. He couldn’t help but remember how she’d felt against him a few moments ago when he had pulled her out of bed. His hand hadn’t been what he’d wanted to use to cover her mouth. The deep desire he always felt around her had tempted him to cover her mouth with his own, and again taste her passion and her fire. What he had wanted to do with his hand was to run it over her body, to feel her softness while he continued to kiss her, and elicit from her that sweet, deep, throaty moan he’d gotten out of her last night while kissing her.
He mentally chastised himself for letting his mind concentrate on seducing her and not on the important matter at hand, which was getting them to safety. “While you’re getting dressed I’m going to throw a few things we might need in a bag,” he whispered, glancing around the room. He needed to look at anything in the room but at her right now, especially her legs and thighs that were exposed from underneath her short nightshirt.
“I packed that bag earlier tonight to take with me to Buzios,” Corinthians said, pointing to her overnight bag next to the bed. “Everything I might need is in it. We’ll be able to return to the hotel in a couple of hours, won’t we?”
Trevor wished he could answer yes to that question, but he wasn’t sure. “I hope so,” he said leaning down and picking up her bag. He frowned. It was heavy, way too heavy.
“Where are we going?” Corinthians asked, tossing the items that she had taken out of the closet on the bed.
“In the jungle. We’ll hang out there until the authorities get things back under control here.”
She nodded. “How did you get into my room?” she asked, after reaching down for her shoes and socks.
“I picked the lock,” he answered absently. He couldn’t keep his gaze off her legs.
When Corinthians dashed off into the bathroom to change, Trevor sucked in a deep breath to regain control of his senses before quickly walking through the connecting door and into his room to get his own overnight bag. They would have to combine their stuff into one bag, preferably his since it appeared to be the sturdier of the two.
Going back into Corinthians’s room, he opened her night bag and began going through it, only taking out the things he thought were necessary and packing them in his. His hand trembled when it came in contact with silky and lacy material. He took a deep breath when he pulled out a pair of lacy underwear and a matching bra. He put them back inside her bag.
Corinthians came out of the bathroom dressed in a pair of dark-colored jeans and a black top. She had on a pair of sneakers.
“We can only take one bag, so I’m putting our stuff together and using mine,” Trevor said, turning to her.
She nodded. “Did you get everything I need?” she asked as she watched him zip up the bag.
Trevor thought about her underthings he hadn’t placed in his bag. “I took out everything I’m letting you take. Too much stuff will slow us down and we don’t need that.”
He tossed her wallet to her. “Keep this on you at all times. You may need your passport.”
Corinthians nodded, stuffing her wallet into her back pocket. “How are we going to get out of here?”
“Just follow me and do what I tell you to.”
Corinthians took offense with the bossiness of his tone of voice. She glared up at him. “I’ll do what you tell me to do as long as it makes sense.”
“I won’t do it, Trevor. It doesn’t make sense. There has to be another way,” Corinthians said moments later as they stood on the balcony of her hotel room.
Trevor turned and met her gaze. “What do you suggest that we do? Use the elevators or the stairs to get down?” His voice was low and agitated. He was beginning to lose his patience. “This is the only way we can make it down wit
hout being seen. It’s not as bad as it looks.”
Corinthians wasn’t convinced of that, as she looked down over the balcony’s railing to the ground that was five stories below. She then looked at the fire escape ladder that over the years had grown covered with trails of burgeoned vines. Evidently periodic safety inspections weren’t required here. “I disagree. I think it’s as bad as it looks.”
Trevor frowned. “Then suit yourself. You can stay here if that’s what you’re inclined to do. But I’m going down using that ladder. I suggest you do the same and follow. Believe me, the last thing you’d want is to stay behind. Female hostages, especially the ones who’re attractive as you are, don’t fare well with terrorists. I’m sure you know what I mean.”
Corinthians shuddered. She knew exactly what he meant. Last year the newspapers had reported how an American businessman and his wife, who had been vacationing in Central America, had been abducted by a group of revolutionaries. The man had been killed and his wife had been gang raped before she’d been left for dead.
She took a deep breath. Revolutionaries or terrorists, they were all the same in her book. Both groups had causes and beliefs they were willing to die for; causes and beliefs they would do just about anything to draw worldwide attention to.
Corinthians glanced again at the ladder. It didn’t look like it could hold one person’s weight, let alone two. “I might fall,” she finally said softly in a shaky voice.
Trevor saw the fear in her eyes, and he heard it in her voice. A part of him wanted to reach out and pull her into his arms and soothe her, reassure her. “You won’t fall. I won’t let you. Trust me.”
Their eyes met for a moment, then Corinthians nodded. She would trust him. For some reason she believed he would get them to safety.
“Come on, Corinthians. We need to get a move on, and the fire escape is our only way. I’ll go first and you follow. With me ahead of you, I’ll be between you and the ground.”
Corinthians nodded and watched Trevor. With the overnight bag in one hand, he hefted his body over the side railing. After getting the proper footing, he reached out and grasped the vine-covered ladder with his free hand.
He glanced back at her. “Just follow me down.”
Trevor had gone down the rungs a few feet before looking up at Corinthians. She hadn’t moved from her spot on the balcony. “Come on, baby, you can do it.”
Corinthians took a deep breath. The fear attacking her was immediately wiped away with Trevor’s term of endearment. The word baby had flowed like soft honey from his lips. Looking deep into his dark eyes, Corinthians leaned over and clutched the metal ladder with her hands. She then lifted her body over the side. After getting firm footing and saying a silent prayer, she began following Trevor down slowly, rung after rung, one step at a time. At one point, she almost slipped, but Trevor’s hand reached up and cushioned her backside to keep her from toppling over. She breathed a prayer of thanks to God when her feet finally hit solid ground.
She turned to Trevor to thank him for his help when suddenly there was a burst of gunfire that seemed to be all around them. He snatched her down to the ground and covered her with his body, shielding her. When it was apparent the shots had been fired from inside the hotel, he lifted his body off hers.
“Sounds like all hell has broken loose. Let’s get out of here,” he whispered urgently. “See that area over there?” he asked her, pointing to what appeared to be a wooded cove.
Corinthians shook her head. “Yes.”
“We’re going to make a run for it. I want you to run as fast as you can and no matter what, don’t look back, and don’t stop. I’ll be right behind you.”
Corinthians nodded. Although Trevor hadn’t said so, she knew that by being behind her, he would be protecting her back. His instincts to protect and defend completely amazed her. Although she feared the unknown, she felt her life was safe in his hands.
“Run, Corinthians.”
Taking a deep breath, she did as he’d instructed and took off running with him right behind her. When they reached the wooded area, he grabbed her hand and stopped her from going any farther.
“Wait,” he breathed in her ear and gently tugged her behind him. “Let me go first now. Just stay close.”
Corinthians nodded as they walked deeper and deeper into the overgrown thicket of trees and foliage of numerous plants. A gentle breeze wafted through the trees and the surrounding dense undergrowth. Moonlight glistening across the land provided them with an adequate degree of light as they kept walking, moving farther away from the hotel.
A few minutes later when Trevor stopped suddenly, she almost bumped into him. He quickly dropped to the ground and pulled her down beside him. Placing a finger to his lips, he whispered, “Shh.”
Moments later she understood why he’d requested her silence when she heard voices. Trevor sandwiched their crouched bodies tightly between the trunks of two huge blossoming trees, placing her behind him. The low-hanging branches shielded their presence from view.
Corinthians tried ignoring the flutter in the pit of her stomach from the feel of them being so close and their bodies touching. Trevor’s back felt warm and sturdy against her chest. Neither the material of her shirt nor the material of his was thick enough to diffuse the heat passing from his body to hers. From her body’s reaction, they may as well have been skin-to-skin. Her breasts were tingling from the contact, and her body was trembling.
Trevor felt her shiver and misinterpreted it as her being frightened. He reached behind him and took hold of her hand, entwining their fingers. He didn’t want to question why it was important to him that she felt safe. He tightened his fingers around hers, willing her to believe things would be all right, and that he would take care of her.
Corinthians held her breath when, in the sparse lighting cast to earth from a quarter moon, the figures of two men came into view. Whatever they were saying was being spoken in Spanish.
She wished she could follow their conversation, but she didn’t know Spanish any more than she knew Portuguese. But from the way Trevor’s body stiffened, she could tell he somewhat understood them. At one point during the men’s conversation, he snapped his head around and looked at her with questioning eyes.
It seemed that a full twenty minutes had passed before the men finally moved on. Corinthians was grateful. Her body was hurting from remaining in one position for such a long period of time, and the smoke from one of the men’s cigarettes had begun stinging her eyes.
When Trevor was sure the men had moved a safe distance away from them, he stood and pulled Corinthians up with him. “That was a close call,” he said. He began stretching to work the kinks and tightness out of his cramped body.
Corinthians followed his lead and began doing the same thing. “Did you understand what they were saying? Who are they? I could swear they’re the same ones from McDonald’s. But with those bandannas tied around their heads, I can’t be too sure.”
Trevor stopped stretching and turned to fix his gaze on Corinthians. He’d wondered if she would notice that they were the same two. But until he found out what was going on and how she was involved, he wouldn’t tell her that. “I understood a little of what they were saying, but not enough to make any sense out of it,” he replied truthfully. “Come on, I’m going to find a safe place where I can leave you before I go.”
Corinthians’s eyes widened. “Go where?”
“Back to the hotel.”
“Why? Shouldn’t we stay put until the police come?” she asked, not caring that her voice was quivering.
The look Trevor gave her was deep, intense and protective. “I’ll be back, Corinthians, but I need to go back to the hotel to see if I can help the others.”
He picked up the overnight bag. “Come on, let’s keep moving.”
Trevor left Corinthians in what he considered a pretty safe place. Using extreme caution and all the survival skills he possessed as a former member of the Marine’s Force Recon gr
oup, he made his way through the jungle of dense vines, overhanging trees and thick underbrush.
He tried to ignore the surge of adrenaline pumping through his bloodstream, and the rush of energy consuming him. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, out here in the wilds underneath the predawn sky, and the possibility of danger nipping close at his heels, he was within his element.
One of his special skills as a member of the Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance unit was his survival expertise. Within the special, elite group of highly trained men who engaged in special Marine operations, his fellow peers had considered him one of the best in that field. Because of the nature of the Force Recon, they had to be well trained on how to survive if they were ever caught behind enemy lines. All of them had been taught ways on how to escape their captors, how to hide out in the thicket of a jungle, and how to travel with special emphasis placed on what roads and paths to avoid.
Trevor crouched down when he saw the hotel in the distance through the trees. There had been approximately twenty-five people who had stayed at the hotel for the research summit. And no telling how many others had been there just for a little rest and relaxation. It would take quite a number of terrorists to handle a group that large of panic-stricken and hysterical people.
He had only seen five armed men when he had gone downstairs. At the time, after weighing all the factors and considering all his options, he had decided not to be foolish and to try doing anything heroic. His main thought had been on Corinthians and getting her out of the hotel. For some reason it had been of monumental importance to keep her safe.
Trevor sighed deeply, not fully understanding why he had felt such a strong need to protect her at any cost; even at the cost of his own life. Even now he was worried about her. He had discovered a steep slope that had been well-hidden by a cloak of trees whose overhanging branches had formed a canopy, making it the perfect hideout. And although he felt she was pretty safe for now, he didn’t want to leave her alone for too long. He had given her strict orders to stay put.
Fire and Desire (Arabesque) Page 7
