He clung to her impassioned gaze. The roaring of thunder and sizzling lightning continued to dance in the sky above them as they remained dry and safe at the rear of the cave. He saw the pulse fluttering softly along the line of her slender neck. His mouth tingled hotly with the memory of her boldness and neediness; his lower body throbbed with raw need of her. Dev understood as never before that honesty between them was necessary. The next twenty-four hours could kill one or both of them. His fear of the past—of not being good enough to be a father—and his belief that he would never find a woman who could love him, warred with his desire for Kulani.
Looking at her tender expression, the way her lips were breathlessly parted, her cheeks stained a rose color, he could think of no other woman who could fulfill him as much as she already had—and they weren’t even lovers! Could a person really fall in love this fast? He wanted desperately to speak of these things with her but knew it wasn’t the right time or place.
Instead, he opened his hands toward her. “I’ve had this dream all my life and I want to share it with you,” he began quietly. “I told Susan about it, but it didn’t inspire much of a response from her.” With a shrug of his shoulder, he hesitated before baring it all.
“Dreams and visions are important,” Kulani coaxed. “Share yours with me?”
She was sincere. Emboldened by her support, he grinned nervously and waved his hand toward the opening of the cave. “Ever since I was knee-high to a grasshopper, I used to dream of owning a small horse ranch. I can remember, when I was as young as eight, I used to sit around and draw the ranch with crayons. I knew what it would look like, the color the house would be painted, the number of corrals and all that stuff. I used to wait until my mom and dad came home at night, and at the dinner table, after eating, I’d pass my artwork around to my three brothers and my parents.”
Dev laughed, but it was a strained sound. He looked up at the rugged lava ceiling above them. “My brothers always heckled the hell out of me over those pictures. They made fun of my stick horses and stuff. My parents, though, encouraged me. They praised my efforts and asked me questions about this crazy dream I had. We lived on a ranch, but it was never really a working one because my mother was a medical doctor in town and my father a professor at a university in Denver. I liked where we lived. I used to daydream by the hour out in the fields where the alfalfa had once grown, and imagine working the land as if it were a real ranch. I’d sit out there with pen and paper and sketch the scenes I saw in my daydreams. I’d pretend there were cowboys, horses and cattle instead of just a lot of weeds growing.”
Kulani smiled. “It sounds like a great dream.”
“Well, I took it even further than that. I drew pictures of this black-haired woman who would one day be my wife. I drew the three kids I’d imagine we’d have—two girls and a boy. The ranch was alive and busy. I was working full time in the saddle—and I was so happy….”
The wistfulness in his deep voice caught and held her. She saw the dream in Dev’s shining green gaze. She heard it in his voice. Reaching over, she pressed her palm gently against his powerful chest, over his heart. “Sometimes we’re blessed with a dream or vision like you’ve held. It’s a wonderful one. It’s one you shouldn’t ever give up on. In life, anything’s possible.”
Sliding his hand beneath hers, Dev closed his fingers and gripped it softly. Sitting in silence as the rain poured down in unrelenting sheets, the wind gusted, and the low rumble of thunder echoed throughout the valley, Dev realized even more how much he wanted Kulani to be a part of that dream.
“Have you ever considered leaving your island?”
She shook her head. “No…my heart, my spirit, is here. Kauai has helped heal me, Dev. I want to pick up where my mother left off with her herbal lore and knowledge. I want to tend that herb garden of hers and someday soon begin selling fresh herbs locally to the people who can use them to help themselves toward health.”
Stroking his fingers across the top of hers, he said, “I understand.” And he did. Reluctantly, he released her hand. Dev saw the mix of emotions cross her face—the desire for him, the hunger and the fear. Why fear? Maybe from the past, he mused. And didn’t his own past war with the present? Didn’t it keep him from seeing Kulani as an integral part of his life?
Right now, life was too tenuous. Death could be as quick as taking in a breath of air. Frowning, he muttered, “I wish we could go on talking like this, exploring….”
Kulani nodded and looked at her watch. It was 2:00 p.m. “I know—me, too. But we need to check in with Cappy.”
“Right,” Dev said, already grieving over the loss of intimacy they’d established so easily moments ago. Back to business. Back to trying to survive this nearly impossible mission.
Chapter Ten
“Are you ready?” Dev peered through narrowed eyes at the view from the ledge where they’d stayed after the second night’s arduous descent. They had made it to the rocky lip in the very early morning and had managed to grab a few hours sleep before the turbid dawn approached. In the gray half-light of morning, they were going to disappear into the jungle below and try to locate the professor and his team.
Kulani nodded. “Are you?” The rock ledge where they’d stayed was small—no more than a ten-foot break in the cliff wall—but the black lava overhang effectively sheltered them. The ledge floor was narrow and had been hard to land on this morning. Dev had taken a spill just as he’d descended the last thirty feet. One of the lines holding him had been sliced through and he’d fallen to the hard rock ledge right in front of her. At first Kulani had thought Dev was dead. Luckily, he’d only had the air knocked out of him. However, his left shoulder had taken the brunt of the fall. He was favoring it now and Kulani knew it still bothered him.
“Yeah,” he muttered as he locked and loaded the special rifle that would be used for the hunt. Morgan wanted the Black Dawn members to be brought down with specially made tranquilizer darts if possible. Morgan’s goal was to keep them all alive for interrogation. It was a good plan but it left Dev and Kulani at a distinct disadvantage, because the bioterrorists wouldn’t be firing darts back at them if they got within range. No, they would be using bullets, with the intent to kill. However, Kulani and Dev also had standard issue pistols that shot bullets. And if push came to shove, Morgan had authorized shooting at Black Dawn members in self-protection if Dev or Kulani thought the darts were too risky.
Kulani inserted a tranquilizer dart into the breech of her rifle. They were both sleep deprived, but adrenaline was keeping them wide awake and hyperalert. They planned to leave their packs behind on the ledge and had stripped down to their black nylon suits and flak jackets. Each had painted the other’s face with thick dark camouflage paint so their skin wouldn’t stand out in the dark green jungle. They each wore headsets, the microphone against their lips so that they could communicate in little more than a whisper, if necessary. Cappy, far above them, would monitor them and send anything they said via satcom link directly to Morgan’s facility and to the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. From there, the federal agencies involved would receive a blow-by-blow account of their reconnaissance of the area.
Looking at Dev, who knelt on one knee near the edge of the rock shelf, Kulani shivered. They hadn’t any time left. How badly she wanted to discuss so many other things about herself—and Dev. Neither knew what lay down in the darkness under that jungle canopy. Looking up, Kulani saw that the tropical storm was pretty much over. It had rained only once last night, thank goodness, and she’d handled the descent much better. This time, she’d been able to throw off the hypothermia on her own.
Hunter’s sharp profile was etched against the gray light. From their vantage point on the canyon wall, Kulani could look out across the jungle treetops to the far-off Pacific, where clouds caught the colors of dawn. She felt momentarily unnerved by the crimson glow. Was it a sign? Of blood? Whose? Their own? Was it a signal of impending death for one or both of them? They h
ad no idea if the professor was down there or not. This was going to be high-risk reconnaissance, Kulani knew. All her military training would take over.
Dev had been a Navy SEAL, and he was perfectly equipped for this mission. Kulani knew she was the weak link in their team. She prayed to her ancestors to give her the courage and guile needed to keep her and Dev from being exposed to enemy fire. Although they carried loaded 9 mm Berettas at their sides, Kulani knew that in thick jungle, where trees grew so close together, no one would get a straight shot for very long. No, bullets would ricochet wildly off the trees.
That meant they’d have to get very close, no more than a hundred feet away from their intended target. She didn’t feel any safer with the tranquilizer rifles. While Black Dawn would be firing at them with real bullets, they were supposed to attempt to fight back with a dart designed to render a human being incapacitated for two hours. It wasn’t a fair fight, Kulani thought as she moved soundlessly to Dev’s side.
“Ready?” There was so much Dev wanted to say to Kulani. He knew their communications were being monitored, so he said nothing.
“Yes.”
He heard the grimness in her low tone. Reaching out, he gripped her hand momentarily and gave it a firm squeeze. When she lifted her chin to look up at him, he winked at her and gave her a devastating smile.
“For luck,” he told her.
Kulani’s heartbeat quickened. Not from the fear that ate at her, but from the incredible tenderness she saw in Dev’s eyes as he held her fingers in his large, warm, roughened hand. She saw the smoldering desire banked in his eyes and knew he wanted to kiss her. She felt it in his touch. Instantly, her body and heart responded to his nonverbal communication. Kulani squeezed his hand back and gave him a broken smile. “Yes, luck…” she whispered.
Releasing her hand, Dev moved quickly and quietly down the pile of lava that had fallen and shattered over the centuries, creating an incline of loose rock that led to the jungle four hundred yards away. He rapidly negotiated the boulders as well as the gravel and made it to the tree line. Turning, he motioned for Kulani to come down. He was on full alert now, his hearing accentuated. Gripping the rifle in his right hand, he watched her careful progress down the treacherous slope. Even now, she was graceful. He grinned as she reached for his outstretched hand, and met her fingers, stabilizing her as he drew her into the surrounding jungle. Good, now they could move with more ease. Being out in the open was dangerous.
The soft plop of rainwater falling from leaf to leaf sounded above them. Ferns, the main plants to grow beneath the jungle canopy of guava, umbrella and palm trees, swatted at them.
Tree ferns, reaching thirty feet above them, provided them with excellent cover, as did Amau ferns, two to five feet tall. If they had to, they could literally squat or flatten out on the ground and the thick ferns would completely hide them from an enemy. The older fern fronds were a healthy green color, the younger ones a bright, contrasting red. To Dev, it looked like a Christmas land as they continued more deeply into the jungle.
The ground beneath them was unstable and dangerous because colorful lichens covering the rocks held moisture and made conditions slippery. For the most part, the black and gray stones were sharp-edged lava. Dev took each step carefully to test the stability of the rock where he placed his booted feet. He felt Kulani close behind him. A few times they tripped and almost fell. The terrain was wet, slick and unforgiving.
For an hour, they moved almost soundlessly among the trees, hugging the lava wall at the rear of the valley. If Professor Valdemar and his team were around, Kulani wasn’t sensing them. She knew this Black Dawn operation was small. And probably well camouflaged.
Voices!
Instantly, Kulani dropped to her knees, to be swallowed up by the surrounding ferns as Dev ducked against a tree. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest. She saw Hunter’s face turn stony and emotionless as he held the rifle in readiness. Her mouth went dry. Yes, there it was again! Laughter this time. Two men were joking as they walked along, oblivious of their presence. Kulani couldn’t see them; she could only hear them. Gulping, she hugged the ground, the sharp points of the rocks pressing into her body. It was damned uncomfortable, but she didn’t want to risk being detected. The voices were coming their way.
Suddenly, from behind them, rifles cracked once, twice, three times.
Gasping, Kulani saw wood from the trunk of the tree where Dev was standing explode into a hundred needlelike projectiles. Rolling over on her back, she raised into a sitting position. There! Two men in camouflauge fatigues were standing no more than a hundred yards behind them, in the opposite direction from the voices they’d heard. The men’s faces were darkened with greasepaint, their rifles aimed directly at Dev.
Kulani heard a sudden groan. Dev! Twisting to look across her shoulder, she saw him crash to the ground. Blood was spurting out of his right forearm. Oh, no! Without thinking, Kulani fired back at the two men. They ducked behind the trees.
“I’m hit….”
Hunter’s muttered words sent a wild chill through Kulani. Scrambling to her feet, she lunged toward Dev as he lay at the base of the trunk, hidden by thick fern fronds.
“Come on!” She slipped her arm beneath his.
The roar of the military rifles boomed around them. Bullets pinged. She yanked Dev upright, her adrenaline flowing. Gripping the rifle in her left hand, Kulani pushed him ahead of her. He staggered, caught himself and pushed on.
No one knew, Kulani hoped, about a hidden cave here in the Kalalau Valley—a secret cave along the edge of this jungle, not that far away.
“Run!” she gasped at Dev. He was gripping his left hand across his right forearm. Bright red blood was spurting from between his fingers. He moved brokenly. Stumbled. Fell. Kulani raced up to him and looped her arm beneath his once again.
“Follow me!” she rasped when he was on his feet.
It would do no good to fire back at the Black Dawn terrorists. Kulani continued to move swiftly. She heard Dev sucking in breaths ladened with pain. She heard the rasp of agony in each explosive gasp. How badly was he hit? Would he die? Bleed to death? Her mind swung in a hundred directions simultaneously. First, they had to outwit the terrorists on their heels. Up ahead, the understory ferns of the jungle grew even more thickly. More bullets ricocheted around them. Kulani jerked a look over her shoulder. Dev was right on her heels. She had lost sight of the terrorists. Good!
Breathing hard, her mouth open, as she gasped for breath, Kulani plowed wildly through the heavy barrier of ferns. The cave wasn’t far ahead, if her memory served her correctly. Come on! Come on! Where are you? Where?!
There! Kulani skidded to a halt. In one movement, she twisted around, grabbed Dev by the shoulder and savagely shoved him downward.
“Get in there!” she ordered breathlessly as she dropped to her knees. Now they were completely protected by the overhead ferns.
“What?” Dev gasped, on his hands and knees among the damp, lichen-covered rocks.
“There!” Kulani jabbed her finger in front of him. “Get in there!”
He saw it—a dark hole in the earth, not more than four feet across. He realized through the haze of pain that it was a ground cave. Instantly, he powered himself down into the maw of darkness. Once inside, the rocks disappeared and his knees met a floor of sand and pebbles. Breathing raggedly, Dev plunged headlong into the darkness. He slammed repeatedly into the sides of the tight, confining tunnel. Up ahead, he began to see grayness. Light! What was this place? Kulani knew of it. Did the terrorists? His mind spun between survival and pain.
He heard Kulani scrambling behind him on all fours. She was barreling through the tunnel at a high rate of speed. Trying to steady his raw breathing, Dev shoved on toward the gray light ahead. The entire floor of the cave was composed of fine, black sand, he noted, making movement swift and easy. Within moments, Dev reached a small, oval room—a womb-shaped cave about twenty feet in diameter. Far above him, a shaft of ligh
t could be seen, mostly blocked by leafy green fronds covering the opening. The gray, filtered light illuminated the cave dimly.
Kulani dove from the restrictive tunnel and tumbled forward. She landed heavily on her shoulder and rolled past him, her boots clipping his left arm. Once inside the cave, she scrambled to her knees, put her rifle aside and turned all her attention to Dev. As she tried to steady her breathing, she saw him sitting with his back against the wall, fumbling for a dressing from his belt, without much luck.
“Here, let me….” Kulani whispered raggedly. Hands shaking violently, she ripped the nylon away to expose the bloody wound. A bullet had gone completely through his right forearm. It was bleeding in spurts.
“Apply direct pressure until I can get a dressing on it,” she whispered as she fumbled for the first aid kit on her waist belt.
Dev warily kept watching the tunnel. “Will they know where we are? Where this cave is?”
She shook her head as she quickly doused the dressing with antibiotic. “I don’t think so. Only the old Hawaiians, the kahunas, know of it. Lift your hand….”
He watched gratefully as Kulani tightened the dressing around his wound. The bleeding had been staunched. He knew that most artery injuries would close off on their own in two or three minutes. Thankfully, the artery hadn’t been severed at a flat angle, or he’d have eventually bled to death. Another sensation flowed across him: the realization that he wasn’t such a loner after all—that he needed Kulani just as much as she needed him. Only together could they finish this mission. Only together could they survive it.
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