by Billi Jean
At a break in the tree line, he spotted a house on the opposite mountain. Behind them, he heard nothing of pursuit. His hope was that they would find nothing and leave.
He wasn’t counting on it, though. They knew where the ‘copters hit and they knew this island would have been his choice simply because it was bigger. At least he’d bought them a peaceful night. More peace than he deserved, but they’d needed it. He’d needed it, he admitted.
“That’s where we head.”
Mandy squinted over at the white house nestled along the mountainside. “Is it safe, to go there, I mean?”
She looked so beautiful, he reached out and brushed her hair off her face and caressed his knuckles over her flushed cheeks. She was hot.
“We’ll check it out first, sugar. Don’t look so worried. Here, drink this.” He took her empty water bottle and dug out another full one. If they could make it to the house, then hopefully the water would be on and they could drink there. So far, they’d not passed any sign of fresh water, not a stream, brook, or any other sign of drinking water.
He studied the surroundings, trying to estimate the distance and time it would take to reach the other side. She’d kept up so far and for that, he was thankful, but soon enough—his thoughts broke off at the sound of a ‘copter’s low purring engine and whirling blades.
He shoved Mandy down on her haunches and pushed them into the shade of the trees. “Hush, baby, don’t move.”
“Got it,” she whispered, suddenly circling his forearm with her hand. He glanced down but she was staring up and towards the sound of the approaching helicopter. What if he lost her? A slice of pain slashed him deep in the chest. He’d just made things good between them, shit, with her help, but he wanted more time—time to live—with her.
Above them, a black and red helicopter came into view. It was civilian, fancy, expensive but far enough from them he exhaled in relief. If they possessed any high-tech equipment, they’d be under fire by now. Mandy tightened her hand on his arm, then suddenly dropped it. “Sorry, I don’t—”
“No, baby, you can always hang on, right?” He put her hand in his and squeezed gently. “I’m here for you,” he murmured.
“I know you are, I just don’t want to slow you down,” she whispered.
He snorted. “I was having trouble keeping up with you. Now, shh, let’s see what these yahoos do.”
“Do you think they know we’re here?” she asked after watching the ‘copter with him for several minutes.
“No, they’re simply being cautious for once,” he said, watching them circle away and head off.
“They usually aren’t?”
He turned at the teasing lilt to her voice and had to resist the urge to kiss her pink lips. Her smile drove him nuts. She arched a delicate eyebrow and his cock twitched eagerly.
Mandy leant forward until they were almost nose to nose and said, “You’re being a grump, Mac. Just in case”—she shrugged and yeah, his eyes pinned on the twin mounds under her small tank—“you are unaware how hard that is on me.”
She made her words sound a hell of a lot sexier than they should be. Reaching up, she tipped his chin up from where his gaze had been stuck on her breasts.
“You have something on your mind, soldier?”
The idea of unzipping, shoving her pants down past her gorgeous ass, and tossing her over the fallen tree behind them played out in his mind. He closed the distance between them, wrapped his arm around her waist to tug her right between his thighs, and settled for kissing her breathless. She didn’t let him down. No, his little wild cat wiggled closer and reached down to rub his cock through his BDUs. His mind went into full-on ‘fuck Mandy’ mode. He groaned into their hot kiss, tangling his tongue along hers, nipping her lips, and taking over until he had to slow down or strip and make love for the rest of the day.
Breathless and flushed, she looked so sexy he took her mouth once more until with more strength than he’d thought he possessed he disengaged and set her back on her own. They both panted and the arousal in her eyes did odd, crazy shit to his ability to think straight. Part of him heard the helicopter make another pass and start back towards the shoreline, but most of his brain centred below his belt.
“Damn, Mandy, babe, you’re killing me.”
“I’m not trying to,” Mandy whispered, running a shaky hand through her blonde curls.
He laughed and tugged her up until she stood next to him. After straightening her top he tipped her head up and brushed his lips over hers. “Just breathing, you do, though. I’m used to it.”
She laughed again and reached up to touch his chest. “Still beating.”
He pulled her hand on his cock and pressed his hips forward. “Not as much as this.”
“Mac!” She snatched her hand away like she hadn’t been stroking him moments before.
“Come on, the sooner we get moving the sooner we reach that house.”
“Then what?” she asked.
“Then we see what we can do to get off this island.” He needed to be harder, more focused on getting them to safety and less on getting in her pants. They’d been lucky so far, but he needed to be the soldier, not the lover. Not until they found safety, then he’d hold her tight.
Until then, he needed to focus on keeping her alive.
Chapter Nineteen
The house was empty. Mandy could see that from the window where they peered in. Someone had covered everything in white linen to protect it from the elements. Mac stood quietly nearby, examining the ground. A line of sweat cut down his black T-shirt, his arms had red scrape marks from the dense underbrush they’d fought to get up here, and he even had dirt smeared on his jaw, but he had never looked more handsome to her.
He’d been silent most of the afternoon. She knew with the walking, climbing, and crazy cartel after them, he had a lot on his plate. Having her in danger had to be hard on him. She knew that, but still, she had to fight down the insecurity that she’d done something wrong, or, worse, something he didn’t like.
“Been empty for a while. We stay here. Step back, I’m going to break the glass.”
She nodded. The house was probably a vacation home for Grandpa and Grandma Rich back in the wealthier parts of the US. The house screamed elegance and wealth. What would that be like, to have a home in Hawaii you forgot about?
The crash of broken glass on the hard floor inside sounded loud in the quiet surrounding the place. Mac had used a shirt he’d wrapped tight around his arm, but she still clenched her teeth as he knocked the remaining glass out of his way with his elbow. Ten seconds later, he had the window unlatched and up. He hoisted himself up and dropped silently to the hardwood floor. She let out her breath when no alarms went off.
He immediately opened the back door and motioned her inside. “We need to check the place. Come on.”
Walking around someone else’s house felt weird, but they were silent and the dust on the floor proved that the place had been empty for a long time. Possibly years, but what did she know about Hawaiian dust patterns? Nada, that’s what.
They found a key box in the kitchen and the front door had two bolt locks but no camera, no alarm, nothing. They also discovered they were on Molokai from a phone book near a phone. Upstairs were three bedrooms, every inch of furniture covered in the flowing white sheets. The wooden blinds were closed and in the biggest bedroom, the thick, scarlet and gold drapes were shut so tight it was dim inside the room. A bathroom had running water when Mac turned the knobs and the Jacuzzi tub was big enough for six.
“Spooky, huh?” she whispered.
He glanced down at her and grinned, removing a load of bricks from her chest so she could breathe. She’d not done something, he was simply in soldier mode.
“I was thinking romantic?” he said.
Surprised, she laughed. “Really? It smells a bit…funky.”
“Yeah, closed in, huh? But they have a Jacuzzi.”
The hopeful gleam in his hazel eyes did o
dd things to her breathing. Who was she fooling? Mac did odd things to her breathing.
“Let’s go back down and set some things up in case anyone does find this place then get you cleaned up.”
She shook her head at that and touched his sweaty shirt. “You’re dirtier.”
He glanced down and shot her a full on grin—making her heart rate skyrocket.
“Yeah? Are you offering to clean me up, sugar?” he purred.
“Someone should.”
His eyes turned that dark intense colour she knew meant she’d be in his arms within seconds, but, instead, they both suddenly froze at the same time. The sound of trucks coming down the road registered.
Mac gripped her hand in his and raced out of the door, down the hall, and took the stairs two at a time. “Fuck, sugar, trust me, okay? That’s all I ask. Just trust that what I do, how I act, is just to get you safe.”
“Okay, okay, I do, but, Mac, I—”
“No time, run.” He jerked his gun free, grabbed her wrist with his other hand, and started running towards the dense jungle. They made it to the tree line before she heard the shouting.
Not again. Please, God, not again.
“Obviously, these bastards aren’t as stupid as I wanted them to be,” Mac snarled.
She stumbled on a tree root and nearly went down. Instead, her arm got yanked hard enough to make her wince, but she kept going, too afraid to look back for fear of slowing them down.
When would this stop?
Mac glanced down at Mandy and saw the fear she was trying so hard to hide from him in her tight expression. She’d been so quiet in the house, worrying him more than ever. She’d not once mentioned the airfield, let alone the crash and him forcing her out of the helicopter. Had he shown her too much?
If he had, now he’d have to show her even more.
Fuck, he wanted this over. He wanted to make love to her in that Jacuzzi tub, slow and easy, with candles and wine. Maybe soft music. Give her a massage and treat her like she deserved. She’d love it.
Instead, he forced her to run a hundred yards more to the tree line before he slowed to a lope. She kept up with him but stumbled again. He pulled her under the canopy. She struggled to breathe, her face turning slightly blue around her lips. He practically tore the backpack apart trying to get her inhaler out of the pouch and out of the damn plastic packaging.
Mandy fell to her knees with her hands cupped over her mouth, trying to limit the oxygen. He ripped the plastic, shoved her hands aside and, almost before she had her mouth around the inhaler, he pressed the chemicals in her mouth. Her eyes flew wide, and she coughed so explosively she nearly gave him a heart attack.
As soon as she’d got over her coughing fit, a dog’s harsh barking sounded from the direction of the house. Their eyes met and she sucked in a breath, calming herself within seconds. Seconds they didn’t have. He pulled her up from her knees and ducked, driving his shoulder into her middle and hauling her over his shoulder with his pack. She didn’t protest, but he heard her gasp.
“Just for a bit. Okay, sugar?” He didn’t wait for a reply, but felt her nod and grip his belt to keep herself from jarring him, he realised after a few steps.
Suddenly in front of them, a brook cut through the jungle, opening up farther down to a bigger, deeper water source he could see through the foliage. The brook had gouged a channel of sorts into the earth, creating steep slopes on either side of it, broadening out as it got farther down the incline. He cut into the ankle-deep water, staying easily within its banks. The water would hide their scent. Maybe. More, the sharp incline would act as cover if the cartel did make it this far.
He slowed, dropping her carefully next to him. Her face was red, but she was breathing. He couldn’t afford a fight right now and, thankfully, all she did was stare up at him with a worried look. “I’m good, I never meant to slow you down,” she offered.
God damn he loved her.
She scanned the area, eyed him, for what, he didn’t know, then hugged him tight.
“We gotta go, we have to run. Can you do that?”
“Yes, I can keep up. Go fast.”
He cupped her cheek, feeling the pressure to move like a building storm inside, but he took a moment to touch her. She rubbed her face against his hand and kissed his palm.
“Come on.” He grabbed her small hand and dragged her up the nearest ravine and up the side of a small hill. They broke through the underbrush and raced across an open field. His heart crashed in his chest and he expected to hear gunfire at any moment, but they made it to the dense jungle again. Keeping her close, he slowed, turning to survey the way they had come. He could hear, above the blood pounding in his ears, the sound of a dog barking. They’d not lose them this time. The dog changed things. The brook had been a long shot. They’d have to fight. He’d heard one truck. Maybe six men. They travelled in packs, he remembered.
Mandy stood near him, watching him and the field, her hands on her knees, bent over and trying to catch her breath. She was fast.
“We stop here. We have to fight now, Mandy. No one survives in this game. No one.”
“We?” She stood upright and looked at him like he’d lost his mind. Maybe he had. But he needed her safe. He’d fought in some fucked-up wars. He’d taken gunshots meant for other men. He’d been knifed, blown up by pieces of shrapnel still lodged in his leg, but he wasn’t going to let a damn thing happen to Mandy. He wasn’t going to end his life here, when he was this close to his dream. And he wasn’t leaving her unprotected. If push came to shove, he’d rather have her armed than unprotected.
“Listen before you start saying no. That dog, you hear that?” he asked and waited until she reluctantly nodded. Her grey eyes were so light against her flushed face they looked blue today, he noticed, then wanted to kick his ass for noticing. Mind on the game, Wolf.
“That dog is not going away. They train them to find people. And it will, sugar. But that’s okay, because I’m better trained. So, here, in these trees, we wait. They’ll come across the field, we aim, and we kill.”
She swallowed hard, opened her mouth, then closed it, looked at the field, then back over at him. They could both hear the dog going crazy. The Gonzales bred Presa Canarios, claiming they were commodores de carne, flesh eaters. The breeds came over to Mexico to protect cattle, but they were incredibly powerful and possessed a complete lack of fear. They weighed upwards to two hundred pounds and if one caught a man without a gun he was going to die.
Mac unbuckled his pack, squatted down, and opened it. He’d packed an extra side arm in a waterproof pouch along with ammunition. He knew Mandy was watching him, but she remained silent. He had no time to think about what he was forcing on her, but he thought about it anyway. Would she hate him? If she had to kill a man, would she blame him? He didn’t know. All he knew was he wasn’t leaving her unarmed.
He freed the gun, gathered up the ammo, loaded the clip, and handed Mandy the Glock and an extra two clips of ammo. She took it all silently, simply looked down at them in her hands. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking. He needed her alert and ready for this.
“You remember how to use that Mandy? I trained you on the same gun. It’s reliable. It won’t lock up. It’s going to kick, so you’re going to be here, on your stomach. You shoot two shots. Don’t aim. Don’t even try to aim. Shoot up at the sky for all I care, but you shoot to trick them into thinking there are more of us, okay?”
She nodded quickly.
“Good, good, then you move two feet west, two more shots, move west ten feet, then wait a full minute and move back east. I want you to go back and forth from west to east.”
“Okay.”
“Baby, if anyone breaks free of me, you shoot their ass off. Aim for the biggest part of their bodythe chest.” The sound of barking grew and, with it, he heard shouts. The Spanish came through loud and clear.
Mandy exhaled heavily, took hold of the gun the right way, and nodded. She put the extra ammo in
the pocket of her BDUs and tugged her curls out of her eyes. Her nose and cheeks were slightly sunburnt, he noticed.
“We survive this and make it to town, hide there, okay? Make some calls. Get the hell out of Dodge.”
She swallowed and nodded.
Her silence, and one-word answers freaked him out, but he tried to keep his head. She needed him.
Through the tree line, he saw them, first the dogs, their massive black heads and upper bodies fanning out the meadow grasses as they shoved through. The men behind came two at a time. First two, then two more off to the left then the last two over on the right side, looking wary but confident. Strength in numbers.
“There they are. I’m going to kill the dogs first, then the two on the left. You hit the area with fire and I’ll take care of the rest.”
Some men would never allow a woman to see them kill. He knew that, and it pissed him off. He wanted to protect her, coddle her, and hide this side of his nature from her. Life wasn’t allowing that. Everything was blowing up into the open between them. And when the dust settled, he feared she might look at him in horror rather than with love.
“Mac—” She shivered and he dragged her close, dug out his stocking cap from the thigh pocket of his BDUs, and shoved it over her curls. He grabbed a handful of dirt and rubbed it over her pale face, even spreading it over her sunburned nose. She winced but stayed silent. When she was dark enough, he pulled out his extra shirt, made sure there wasn’t any glass on it, and tugged it over her head. She stayed silent but he saw her trembling.
“Be careful. Move but stay here, on this side of the jungle. If I’m shot, you run. Circle around, get their truck and head to the nearest town.”
The dogs let out a wild explosion of barking, and Mac bent his head, taking her lips in a quick kiss, tasting her too fiercely before he turned her and pressed her down over by a fallen tree. “Start as soon as the dogs die.”
