by Kim Baldwin
Kat leaned over Jake and gently embraced her, pressing her lips against Jake’s forehead, which was damp with sweat. “You’re all right now, it was just a dream,” she whispered.
“Was it?” Jake wondered aloud. “Or are my nightmares memories of things I’ve done?”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Kat held Jake in her arms, absently stroking her fair hair, until she finally relaxed and her rapid heart rate slowed to normal. But Kat could offer few words of reassurance. She knew of no way to avoid the subconscious hauntings of one’s misdeeds.
“I’m okay now,” Jake sighed, pressing her face into the warm flesh of Kat’s neck. Kat’s comforting embrace had chased away the terrible vision.
Kat released her and pulled back enough to look into Jake’s eyes. “What can I do?”
“You’ve already done it,” Jake answered. “Kind of hard to remember nightmares when such an irresistible distraction is so close.”
Kat colored a little at the unexpected compliment. “Been kind of hard for me to keep my mind on anything but you lately, too,” she admitted.
“So you made it to town?” Jake asked. “What happens now?”
“Well, first I’m going to get you patched up with some stuff I picked up at the clinic.” Kat took two vials out of her pocket and shook a pill out of each. “I want you to take these. This is Cipro. It’s an antibiotic. Your knee might have an infection. And this is Darvon, a painkiller. I’m going to have to reset that arm in a while, and it’s going to hurt when I do. That’ll help.” She poured a glass of water from the pitcher on the bedside table and handed it to Jake with the pills.
As Jake swallowed them, Kat examined her injured arm. “The swelling’s gone down quite a bit. I’ll be able to reset it in just a little while. You’ll get a proper cast this time.”
“So you’ve had medical training too?”
Kat nodded, but didn’t elaborate.
“Well, I’m lucky you’re so multitalented,” Jake said. “Speaking of which, will you play your cello again for me soon?”
“If you like,” Kat responded. There wasn’t much, she realized, she wouldn’t do if Jake asked her to. That’s a switch. “But how about I practice my cooking skills first. Hungry?”
“I could eat,” Jake admitted.
Kat couldn’t hide her smile. “Okay, I’ll whip us up something and be right back.” She started to turn to leave, but Jake reached out her hand and stopped her.
“Uh, Kat? I need another pit stop pretty soon,” she said.
Kat nodded and immediately picked Jake up and cradled her in her arms in what was now getting to be a rather familiar position. They looked at each other, remembering what had happened the last time they were like this, and both smiled shyly.
Jake couldn’t resist. She threaded her fingers into Kat’s hair again and caressed the back of her neck as before as she grinned at Kat and raised her eyebrows expectantly.
Kat laughed and charged off deliberately toward the bathroom. “You’ll never get fed if you keep that up.”
“Aw, shucks.” Jake snapped her fingers in disappointment.
Kat was still chuckling as she left the bathroom and shut the door. She leaned her back against it and closed her eyes. She couldn’t stop grinning. She had never felt so comfortable with anyone while at the same time so unbelievably nervous and excited. It was an odd mix.
And she was just a little terrified at the prospect of letting her barriers down to be close to someone. She didn’t know how. I’m no good with words. Not these kind of words.
“Okay, Kat. I’m ready.”
Kat’s hand was already on the doorknob. She had the door open almost before Jake stopped speaking.
Jake jumped a little at Kat’s instantaneous response. “My, you’re eager to please,” she teased.
Kat’s cheeks reddened, but she was still smiling as she took Jake in her arms and lifted her.
Kat did it so effortlessly that Jake could not help but run her hand over the taut muscles in Kat’s upper back and shoulders as she was carried to the bedroom.
Kat bit back a whimper at the soft caress.
“Thank you,” Jake breathed playfully in Kat’s ear, just before they reached the bed.
Kat turned to look at her.
Jake had her eyes closed and lips pursed, ready to be kissed.
Kat chuckled. “You’re dangerous,” she said, setting Jake down gently on the bed.
Jake shrugged, and they shared another laugh.
“Well, I’m off to the kitchen,” Kat said. “After you eat something, would you like to clean up? It will be a lot harder to take a shower once I’ve put your cast on.”
“I would. My hair can really use it,” Jake said, running her hand through her disheveled locks. She looked chagrined. “And I’ve probably started to ripen a little, haven’t I?”
Kat smiled. “No,” she reassured Jake. “Not that I’ve noticed. But I thought it might make you feel better, and it would just be easiest if we do it soon.”
“Well, thanks. That’d be great,” Jake said. “Now what’s for breakfast? Or is it time for lunch?”
“It’s whatever time your stomach tells you. Which will it be?”
“Doesn’t really matter, I guess. Anything at all is fine.”
Kat turned to go.
“Anything fast,” Jake amended in a loud voice just as Kat disappeared through the doorway. “And I am pretty hungry!”
Jake settled back into the pillows and closed her eyes. She relished the easy camaraderie that was developing between them. If she’d ever felt like this before about someone, she certainly didn’t remember it. She didn’t believe it was possible. It was as though destiny had brought her here, wiping her violent past from her memory and delivering her to the woman who would complete her.
Despite her playful teasing, Jake was uncertain how to proceed. She knew one thing, though, for sure. She trusted Kat. The woman had saved her life heroically, not once, but twice—despite the fact she believed Jake had set out to kill her. Her actions spoke volumes about her true nature, and her heart.
But although Jake was anxious to get closer to Kat, she was incredibly nervous about it too. In a way, she was a tiny bit glad that her injuries would necessitate a delay in any real intimacy. She didn’t want things to happen too quickly. It was too much fun savoring it as it happened.
*
Kat whipped up some potato pancakes for her and Jake. She relished having fresh ingredients again. She sautéed some apples to go with them and fried up thick slabs of bacon. She plopped a large dollop of sour cream on each of two plates, then filled both with the brunch ingredients. She set the plates on the serving tray, along with two mugs of coffee.
Kat needed the caffeine. She’d started to yawn midway through the cooking process and was finding it hard to stop. She didn’t want to calculate how sleep deprived she was. She knew she needed at least a short nap pretty soon.
Kat carried the tray into the bedroom to find Jake waiting expectantly for her. As she approached the bed, Jake strained to see what was on the plates, sniffing the air like a bloodhound. Her eyes widened in pleasure when she spotted the full plates, and she wasted no time snatching up a fork when the tray was placed in front of her.
Kat grabbed her own plate dramatically off the tray, as if afraid Jake would devour that too. Jake played along, stabbing out toward Kat’s plate with her fork as it was being pulled out of her reach.
“Can’t help it if I like your cooking,” Jake grumbled good-naturedly.
The two were mostly quiet as they ate, stealing occasional looks at each other as they both attacked the food with hearty appetites. Jake’s plate was nearly empty when she suddenly stopped her single-minded assault of its contents and set her fork down. She looked up at Kat. “Uh, Kat?”
Kat met her gaze. “What is it?”
“Well, I-I was wondering how you thought we might manage a shower for me. I mean, I don’t think I can stand on my
own very long,” Jake stammered. The prospect of having Kat help her in the shower sent a flush of heat to her face. She didn’t think she was quite ready for that much exposure. Not with their sexual chemistry crackling like a bonfire.
Kat had already considered that. “I have a big plastic tub you can sit on in the shower,” she said. “I’ll be close by if you need help, but you’ll be able to reach everything you need.” A grin found her lips. “I think if you can make it out of the bunker and halfway to Canada,” she said, rolling her eyes, “you can manage this mighty challenge.”
Jake laughed. “Great. It’ll be nice to be clean again.”
An hour later, Jake was clad in a pair of green flannel pajamas that were much too large for her, but toasty warm. The painkiller had kicked in, helping her endure her efforts in the shower and making her drowsy again. She was propped up in bed watching Kat put a cast on her arm.
It covered half of her palm and ended at her elbow. She couldn’t remember ever having a cast before and wondered if this was the first time she’d ever broken anything. Kat had checked her ribs before she’d undressed for the shower, and they seemed to be much better. She hardly felt them now. Her knee was still swollen and she couldn’t really put her weight on it, but it wasn’t hurting as much since she’d taken the pills.
Kat finished and began toweling off her hands.
Jake flexed her arm, testing the cast. It was more comfortable and solid than the splint had been. She wiggled her fingers. The swelling was nearly gone. She tried again to take the wedding ring off. It moved but wouldn’t quite go over her knuckle.
Kat noticed her efforts. “I really should have taken that off you when I first brought you in,” she said. “It’s something hospitals do routinely when there’s swelling. But I didn’t notice it at first, and then it just somehow seemed—well, like you should be the one to do it, I guess. But it’s bad for your circulation to keep it on. Let me help.”
She walked to the bathroom and returned with a small tube of hand cream. She slathered Jake’s finger with it, and the ring slid off. Kat set it on the bedside table.
“Thanks,” Jake said, staring at her finger. At the deep impression where the ring had been. Like she’d worn it for a very long time.
The ring evoked the painfully unresolved question of Jake’s marriage. Jake’s conscience reasserted itself—a nagging guilt that tugged at her despite her desire to be with Kat.
Kat wondered what Jake was thinking but didn’t feel she could ask. She too saw the deep mark the ring had left. You’ve worn that too long for it not to be real. She herself had never worn a prop ring long enough for it to leave behind more than a faint, fleeting mark.
Kat wondered not for the first time what might happen if and when Jake remembered a spouse. I couldn’t bear it now if she left. The thought sent an ache as real as any pain she’d ever felt through her chest. She suddenly needed air. The renewed thought that something might one day surface to come between them was unbearable. It was an enemy she didn’t know how to fight.
“Try to get some rest,” she said, adjusting the pillows behind Jake so she could lie flat.
The painkiller was making Jake awfully sleepy, and her mind welcomed the opportunity to stop its guilty tirade over the wedding ring. She lay back and closed her eyes. “Thanks, Kat,” she mumbled.
Kat watched her for a few minutes until she was sure Jake was asleep. She leaned over and kissed her on the forehead. Then on the lips, barely touching. “Pleasant dreams,” she whispered.
*
Kat stuck two TV dinners in the oven to cook for Frank and Otter and set the timer on the stove. She napped on the couch while they cooked. She’d always had a talent for being able to go long periods without substantial sleep, subsisting on catnaps she grabbed whenever she could. But the short rest didn’t help much this time. She awoke groggy and knew she needed a long chunk of uninterrupted sleep very soon.
She carried the dinners, two paper cups, and a gallon jug of water out to the generator room. Frank was asleep on the sleeping bag, his snores so loud they overpowered the drone of the generator. Otter was lying on the coats, watching her.
She set the food and water down near the two of them. “Still determined to get back at me?” she inquired idly, digging in her pocket for the handcuff keys.
“You shouldn’t have left me there, bitch,” he sneered.
“It’s the past, Otter. It’s over and done with. I’d advise you to forget about it and think more about whether you’d like to have a future.”
“Like you’re going to let that happen.” What the hell was she up to, playing these mind games with him?
“You really should get in a more cooperative frame of mind,” Kat said, pulling her gun. “Lie face down now, like a good boy.”
He complied, grunting as he rolled onto his stomach.
She stepped around him to unlock Frank’s handcuffs. She nudged the snoring man awake. “Dinnertime, Frank,” she said, backing away, keeping her gun trained on both men.
Frank blinked awake to find his wrists were free. He sat up and stretched, looking at Hunter, then his eyes fell on the food.
“Eat up,” Kat encouraged.
“What about me?” Otter whined.
“You’ll get your turn.”
Frank picked up one of the Salisbury steak dinners and began eating. Kat had bought a package of plastic utensils at the grocery to feed the men with. Frank’s flimsy fork broke midway through his meal. He stared at it just a moment before tossing it aside and reaching for the one in Otter’s.
Otter glared at him but didn’t object.
When Frank was done, Kat opened the door to the outside and motioned him through it. “Five minutes to stretch your legs and do anything else you need to do,” she said, keeping the gun trained on him.
They stepped through the door into the chill air, and she closed it again to try to retain as much heat as possible in the generator room.
The snow was still falling. Kat was relieved to see that no trace of her snowmobile track remained. It was only midafternoon, but the thick cloud layer obscured the sun and made it seem later than it was. She breathed deeply of the crisp cold air, idly watching Frank turn his back to her so he could piss without her seeing.
Frank took his full five minutes, working the kinks out of his stiff muscles. He said nothing to her until his time was almost up. “Are you really going to let me go?”
She met his eyes. “Yes. You have my word. If you continue to do as you’re told. Don’t let Otter talk you into something you’ll regret.” She opened the door and waved him through it ahead of her, then shut it again.
“Lie face down, Frank. Hands behind you.” She locked his handcuffs behind him again and secured him to the wall. Then she stepped over to Otter and unlocked one of his cuffs, keeping her gun pressed against the back of his neck as she did so. She stepped away, giving him a wide berth.
Otter rubbed his sore wrists as he sat up, watching her. He reached for his dinner, retrieved his fork from Frank’s empty plate, and began eating. The food was stone cold, but he ate in silence, hardly glancing at it. He kept his eyes on Hunter.
When he was done, she let him outside as she had done with Frank, but she kept more distance between them.
Otter looked right at Hunter as he unzipped his coveralls and relieved his too-full bladder in her direction. But his arrogant display failed to provoke a reaction.
Kat watched him with a bored expression.
Otter walked around as much as he dared until his time was up, studying the surrounding area in the light of day. The dense trees around would provide good cover for an escape, but the fresh snow would make it too easy for her to track him.
“Let’s go,” Kat said. She punched in the security code and opened the door. Otter trooped ahead of her, watching for an opportunity.
From a short distance away, a pair of eyes followed them through binoculars as the two disappeared inside. The door slid closed
.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Kat crashed on the couch after she finished with Otter and Frank and got six full hours of uninterrupted sleep. She awoke with a plan. She looked in on Jake, who was still sleeping, then booted up her computer to message Kenny. It was time to call in a favor. He wouldn’t like it, but she knew he would do it if she asked.
She spelled out what she needed him to do. She gave him the access number to one of her Swiss bank accounts and the GPS coordinates of a small clearing near the bunker. It was a measure of trust she had never afforded anyone, even Kenny, but it was necessary if her plan was to work. It would probably take her friend a couple of days to implement everything she needed him to do, but Jake could use the healing time before they tried to move her.
She sent off the e-mail and waited for his response. She didn’t have to wait long.
Whatever you need. I’ll be in touch.
Satisfied, she noted the time—10:00 p.m.—and logged off. If all went according to plan, Jake would be safely ensconced in a new location within seventy-two hours or so, and Kat would be free to deal with Garner.
*
Jake came awake to the feel of Kat’s large hands gently stroking her hair, fingertips caressing her scalp. They traced a slow pattern from her hairline, just above her forehead, back along the top of her head to her neck. The pattern repeated, then again. Kat’s thumb traced the outside of her ear as the caress passed by.
Jake, lying on her side, opened her eyes drowsily and smiled at Kat. She closed them again so the caress would continue. “I can’t imagine a nicer way to wake up,” she murmured. She enjoyed the touch immensely. It was sensual yet healing. Relaxing, but undeniably stimulating, too.
Kat chuckled, and Jake’s eyes popped open. The caress halted when their eyes met.
Kat was in the chair, which had been pulled up against the bed near Jake’s head. Her left elbow rested on the edge of Jake’s pillow as her hand paused in its journey through soft blond hair.
