When NexGen hired her, they’d sent her to the Iraq-Kurdistan border where they’d been developing new oil fields and the tensions between the two people groups was tense. If she’d known what would happen, would she have turned the job down? It was hard to say.
There weren’t many reasons for a group of unfamiliar people to know her name, though.
Shit. Fuck. And damn it.
Erin paced three strides, turned and paced again. She was in what was little more than a cellar of some kind, dug directly into the rock. At night she shivered and lost feeling in her fingers and toes. During the day she’d sweat until her clothes were soaked through.
She was a bargaining chip. That was the best answer to why she was here. She was something to use to get what they wanted. It wouldn’t be comfortable for her and she’d probably be here a while, but it was the least dangerous option.
The best option after that was to be sold to one of the insurgent groups—ISIS, Taliban, Al-Qaeda, it didn’t matter—who would then use her to try to get something in return. Prisoners, resources, it didn’t matter. It still wouldn’t be a comfortable stay, but at least her value was in being alive.
The worst option was if this was personal, and she knew for a few poor souls out there, this could be. She’d done the right thing. The events that led to that disaster proved her case. But that didn’t matter. All these people had seen was her face speaking those words, and it was her fault.
Erin sat on the lowest step and cradled her head in her hands.
None of it made sense. She still didn’t understand how a group this disorganized had managed to breach the facility perimeter and get to one of the main buildings. They had new weapons. Explosives. Even the flash grenades were too sophisticated for a rag tag group of insurgents with no clear affiliation or support.
This shouldn’t have happened. Perfect attacks existed, but for the site security to allow those men through and her personal security to be in the toilet at the time?
None of this made sense.
And now the people holding her were probably back to fighting about what to do next. In the few glimpses she’d had of them since being tossed down here, everyone was fighting.
A door banged somewhere in the house and voices speaking over one another came closer.
Erin pushed to her feet and turned, backing against the opposite wall.
Someone clanged pots around, muttering to themselves.
She tilted her head, listening to more than the words. The scrape of feet. The rustle of clothing.
Two people.
“That should be enough,” the one moving around said in Arabic.
“I don’t see anything,” another replied.
Two men.
Enough what?
And what were they looking for?
Footsteps heralded a third and fourth person.
“Where is she?” one of the newcomers asked. Still another man.
“I don’t see anything,” the same voice said again. “Are we sure we have to move?”
“Yes,” the newcomer snapped.
Erin knew these four voices. If she saw their faces, would she recognize them? She swallowed and glanced around the darkness as though she could find a way out she hadn’t discovered yet. She’d combed every inch of the wall, wearing her fingernails down to the nubs trying.
“Come on. Get her out of there. We’re going.” The newcomer in charge stopped outside the cellar door.
A key fit in a lock. Metal rattled. Another lock undone.
The cellar door swung open.
Erin held up her hand, shielding her eyes from the kitchen light. After almost three days of darkness, even a little light was too much.
A man grabbed her by the wrist and hauled her up the steep stairs. Her head ached, and her eyes couldn’t quite focus after being in the dark for days. Someone spat curses at her while another jerked her scarf down, covering her face.
She saved her breath. These people had been hurt and wronged. They wanted a target for their anger. Begging them to see her as a person wouldn’t change them. With any luck, her compliance would make them lazy. When they underestimated her, that would be her one and only chance out of this.
“What are you doing?” a woman demanded. The only woman Erin had heard.
“We’re going,” the man in charge of this faction said.
“No. No, you are not,” the woman said.
“We have been here too long. It is not safe.”
“You cannot go anywhere now, you idiots. Weren’t you listening? The truck isn’t working.”
Several people muttered curses.
“What’s going on in here?” More men, more voices.
Erin swallowed. Something was happening out there. It was bad enough everyone was nervous, fighting and angry.
The kitchen was—what? Ten by twelve?
Were they going to cram nine people in here, some carrying weapons?
With tempers hot this sounded like a great way for an accident to happen.
“Americans!” Someone from across the home shouted.
Please...
A metal clang made Erin’s skin break out in goose flesh.
She’d heard that sound before.
“Look out!” someone yelled.
She squeezed her eyes shut, but it didn’t help.
A bright flash of light dazzled Erin’s eyes, even through the fabric of her scarf.
Smoke filled the room in seconds. The people around her choked and coughed, some shouting orders that countered what someone else wanted. Her scarf provided Erin some meager protection against the smoke bomb.
This was her chance.
Erin took a step, only to have a pair of hands haul her sideways. She ran into a table, stumbled over a chair, all while trying to hold her breath.
Erin bounced off a doorway, giving her the perfect opening. She spun and her feet slipped on the gravel like sand. She went down hard. The hands holding her slid.
She rolled onto her knees and clawed the scarf from around her face.
The night sky spread out over head. So pristine and perfect. Another person rushed past her, choking for air. The one who’d dragged her from the house wasn’t in sight.
They’d abandoned her.
Erin shoved to her feet and jogged a few steps out into the night air.
The house was at the very edge of what looked to be a small village. She didn’t know if the house was being attacked, or if she was being rescued.
“Where is she? Someone find her,” one of her captors yelled from inside.
Shit.
Now or never.
Erin bolted, sprinting as fast as she could move her legs. Whoever had attacked the house might or might not be friendly to her. There was no way to tell. She kept going, arms pumping. She turned at the first opportunity, weaving between the homes. A dog rose out of the shadows right in front of her.
She saw the shape too late.
Her foot caught and she pitched forward. Gravel and sand scraped her skin. Her knees jolted hitting the ground, jarring her bones.
The dog yelped as it scampered away.
Erin coughed dust and shook her head. Her body throbbed with adrenaline, her limbs ached.
Feet crunched the ground behind her.
She would not go back there.
Erin shoved to her feet and swayed. Days without regular food or water were taking their toll.
“Erin Lopez?” The accent was American, but without light there was no way to tell if he was US military, private sector, or someone she didn’t want to run into in a dark ally.
She whirled to face a figure armed with a rifle. The man in the shadows was impossible to identify, beyond big.
“Who are you?” She wasn’t admitting anything yet.
“VIP asset is in hand,” he said to someone else, but he was alone.
“What?”
“Sorry, ma’am. Come with me, please?” He had an earpiece. She could see the wire when
he turned his head. He was either military or a contractor then.
“Not until you tell me who you are.” Erin took a step back. She’d made enemies. She couldn’t blindly trust someone because they claimed they were there to rescue her.
“My name is Riley.” He lowered his weapon and glanced over his shoulder. “I’m with Aegis Group Lepta Team. We were hired to bring you home safely. Now, if you don’t mind, I think it's best we move. Now.”
Aegis Group.
That was familiar.
Riley strode toward her. Erin backed away, but he was coming faster than she moved. Riley wrapped his left arm around her, his hand firmly in the middle of her back, and hustled her around behind the homes. He didn’t manhandle her or drag her, which was a nice change of pace. If it weren’t for the situation, she might even call his touch comforting.
Lepta Team?
She couldn’t remember having heard that. Was he lying to her? Or was he her new guardian angel?
“Nice night, isn’t it?” Riley kept her moving at a steady pace. He had a destination in mind, unlike her.
Erin peered at the homes, but most of the lights were out. Did these people know what was going on? Were they taking cover?
“Thirsty? Anything hurt?” Riley peppered her with questions that didn’t matter.
“We need to get out of here,” Erin said.
“Glad we can agree on something.” Was it her imagination, or did he laugh?
“These homes, what about the people?”
“Oh, everyone’s safe. Figured if things were going to get hot, we should clear out as many people beforehand. Seemed like the neighborly thing to do.”
Erin gaped at the shadow shrouded man.
They’d taken time to empty homes before trying to rescue her? And risked someone spilling the beans?
Who were these people?
2.
FRIDAY. UNKNOWN, IRAQ.
Riley caught sight of another pair of men in long, white garments. They were being trailed from both sides. That accounted for four of the eight they’d identified as a threat.
“Grant? Nolan? Can anyone hear me?” he said, keeping his voice low.
“They’re following us,” Erin said.
Fuck.
There was some kind of interference on the comms. Once again, whatever toys these people had didn’t make sense for the kind of operation they were running.
“This way.” Riley grabbed Erin’s hand and pulled her into the darker shadows of one of the homes.
“What are we doing?” Erin whispered.
Did he lie to her and keep her calm? Or did he bank on the hope she was cool under pressure given her background?
He rolled the proverbial dice and decided to take his chances. The woman in that video who’d fought back was someone he’d like to work with.
“We’re cut off from my team,” he said. “We have a vehicle parked past these homes behind a service station. I need to get us there and swing back to pick up my people.”
“And you expect me to sit here and wait?” Her voice went up in pitch. Three days in captivity could do a number on a person. He didn’t blame her in the least for not wanting to be alone in the dark.
“Can you run?”
“I’m not waiting here.” She seemed indignant he’d even ask.
He liked her fire. However, making a run out in the open like that put her at risk. These people hadn’t hesitated to fire on their team. Riley might not be able to stick to their non-lethal tools. If it came down to the lives of people taking shelter, Erin or his team versus the kidnappers, Riley couldn’t hesitate to make the call.
“Then I’m going to need you to run in front of me. That way if they fire, they hit me, not you. Got it?” He dug the keys out of his pocket and handed them to Erin. “Can you unlock the SUV for me?”
“Yeah.” She took the fob from him.
“Those guys are going to realize we lost them and circle back. We’re going to cut between these homes then straight across. Blue service station, tan SUV. Got it?”
“Yes. Let’s go.”
No tears. Not a bit of panic. Her voice didn’t even waver. God, if all their VIP assets were this calm Riley’s job would be a piece of cake.
He stepped out, fitting the butt of his rifle against his shoulder. Nothing moved in the narrow space behind the homes.
“Go,” he whispered.
Erin ducked between the two homes, sticking to the side where the shadows were thicker. Seeing her in action, it was easy to peg her as former military. The composure, how she moved.
They slowed to a stop closer to the street. Erin went to a knee, providing him a clearer view.
Sure enough, two of the kidnappers stood a few houses down, their heads together.
“Not yet,” Riley whispered.
The two turned toward their hiding spot, staring back toward the house where they’d held Erin hostage at.
In the distance little pops broke the stillness.
Someone had opened fire.
They’d hoped to pull this off without firing a shot.
The duo turned away.
Erin darted forward before Riley could tell her to go. His boot slipped on the hard-packed earth before he got traction, following in her wake. She had all the speed of a jackrabbit, outdistancing him in moments.
Men yelled off to his left.
Riley glanced at the pair, only to see the other two had joined them. One raised their gun. Fuck. Riley swerved. The bullet hit the dirt road a few feet away. Still too close for his comfort.
An engine revved to life.
Erin had made it to the SUV.
Another shot blasted the ground, this time on his other side.
A tan SUV roared out from behind the service station and flipped on its headlights, going directly to bright. Erin turned the wheel, putting the truck between the shooters and Riley. He threw himself at the passenger side, piling inside.
“Go!” he barked before he was even seated.
Erin stomped on the gas and shifted, turning them back toward the place she’d been held captive.
“Grant, Nolan, Vin, B—do you copy?” Riley didn’t like how long they’d been out of communication.
“Comms down?” Erin asked.
“They’re jamming us. All I’m getting is static.”
“What?” Erin’s face scrunched up, and she glanced at him.
“Yeah. I know.”
He rolled the window down. They’d surrounded the house, spacing themselves out around it. They’d hoped to flush people out with the flash grenades and maybe catch Erin. If Riley had to guess, the kidnappers had poured out of the house like a bunch of angry fire ants and swarmed the others, backing them into a corner. He tilted his head and listened for the sound of more gunfire.
“Where am I going?” Erin asked.
“Turn right here, then we’re going to go left, but I’m not sure where. They’re...that way.” He pointed diagonally, through several buildings where the sound of gunfire had come from earlier.
“Where are we? How long have I been here? Two days? Three?” Strain broke her voice.
“Pull over. Let me drive,” he said. She was the asset. It wasn’t her job to drive.
“I’m fine,” she snapped.
Damn, but he liked her fire. Riley couldn’t help but grin at her prickly response.
“You’re better than fine. Most people in your shoes have to be carried out. Turn!” He pointed at the intersection just ahead.
Erin yanked on the wheel. The rear tires skidded, and they swung a bit wide, but they made the turn.
“I see them.” She leaned forward.
Thirty yards down the street, two men in white took cover behind a car, their guns aimed at a broken-out storefront.
Riley leaned out the window and aimed. He didn’t relish taking these shots. His finger tightened on the trigger. The closest shooter went down, clutching his leg. The second shooter fled before Riley could get off another
shot.
“Riley? Riley!” Grant bellowed in his ear.
“Fuck. I hear you. Get in.” Riley dropped to his seat.
Erin hit the brakes, and the SUV slid a good five feet before coming to an abrupt stop.
A man in green gear leapt through the shop front and went to a knee, rifle up, eyes on the road behind them. The three others followed, getting into the SUV. In moments they were loaded, and once more Erin laid on the gas, sending them shooting out of the small village into the desert alone on a long stretch of lonely road.
“Everyone, meet our chauffer, Erin. Erin, this is everybody.” Riley unbuckled his helmet and set it in his lap. The sun might have set and temperatures were dropping, but the gear was still damn hot.
“What the hell happened back there?” Grant demanded.
Riley winced, his TL’s voice coming in even louder through the headset. He pulled the comm out and let it dangle against his shoulder.
“Where am I going?” Erin’s voice quivered. Just a touch. If Riley hadn’t heard her speak evenly, he might not have noticed the tremor. She was strong, but she was also human.
“Pull over. Let me take it from here,” Riley said.
Besides the village behind them, they were miles from anything. The two-lane road stretched on for what looked like ever. The clear sky stretched out overhead, unbroken by a single cloud. Millions of stars twinkled at them under the crescent moon. If they were going to be followed, they’d see the headlights or hear the engine long before another vehicle got to them.
Erin eased the vehicle to the shoulder. She was at the end of her rope. She’d done as much as she could, and now she needed to collapse. Riley got out before she’d brought the SUV to a complete stop. He circled the front and pulled the driver’s door open.
She slid out, moving slower. This was the clearest look he’d gotten at her yet. He didn’t spot any wounds, no blood. Her features were tense, lips pursed. She’d served with the military. For a woman in combat heavy situations that meant becoming one of the guys, having to act tough. He was willing to bet the act was a defense mechanism. Despite rescuing her, he and his team were still an unknown.
“You okay?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
“Yeah.” She straightened her spine.
Dangerously Taken (Aegis Group Lepta Team, #1) Page 2
