by Dana R. Lynn
“How long will this journey take?” Levi was probably the one to ask, but she didn’t want to talk any louder than necessary. She kept her eyes on the ground and sensed his shrug.
“Not sure. Traveling on foot is not the best or quickest way to do it.”
“You haven’t called your chief yet.” They’d been so keen on escaping she’d forgotten the reason he’d wanted the phones in the first place.
“Not had the time. And I really want to put some distance between us and your uncle before I call.”
She thought for a moment.
“You’re procrastinating,” she realized.
“Procrastinating? Why would I do that?”
His defensive tone told her she was right.
“You don’t know if you really want to know who the mole is.”
He didn’t deny it. Nor did he admit it.
“Aiden?”
He sighed. “Do we have to do this? Right now?” he practically growled at her.
She widened the distance between them. Honestly, she wasn’t trying to offend him. All she wanted was some basic conversation to keep her mind occupied so that it would stop chasing after worst-case scenarios. Her anxiety levels were climbing by the minute. The muscles in her neck were so tight it felt like turning her head would be disastrous.
“Sophie, I didn’t mean to snarl.”
She sniffed.
“Oh, come on. We’ve been through a rough couple of days. Cut me some slack here.”
It was true. They had come through a harrowing time, were still going through it. And it was largely due to Aiden that they had survived it.
She slowed, feeling petty.
“You’re right. I’m overreacting.”
His hand brushed her shoulder. “I think you’ve got just cause. You’ve been so strong. I wish I could tell you we could stop, and that things would go back to normal. But we can’t. Not yet. For now, all we can do is keep going.”
Afraid her voice would wobble if she spoke, she contented herself with a nod. She wasn’t sure she even knew what normal looked like anymore. It had never crossed her mind when she was climbing the career ladder that she would one day soon be without her parents and brother or that she would be a parent to her sassy little sister.
Reality was hard.
The awkward moment was shattered by a phone ringing. Sophie put a hand to her chest, as if that would slow her racing heart. Celine went a few steps before she realized the others had stopped. The ringtone was too high for her to hear.
“Yeah,” Aiden answered.
She heard the man on the other end yelling. Aiden paled as he put the call on speaker. “Say that again.”
“You’ve been spotted!” Brad repeated. “The call came in over my pager. Some woman claims she saw you in a store parking lot. There are going to be checkpoints on the main road. It’s a manhunt.”
Aiden hit a button, disconnecting the call.
Sophie stepped closer and lowered her voice, even though there was no one else around. “What do we do now?”
In response, he pulled out the map. She tapped her foot, waiting for him to finish examining the paper and inform them of the new plan of action.
“There.” Aiden jabbed the map with his finger. “We’ll head for the river and follow it.”
The river.
A swift pulse of sheer terror swept through her. Then common sense reasserted itself. They were going to walk near the river. Near it. Aiden had said nothing about going in it.
Because even if it was the calmest trickling brook, she didn’t know if she could do it.
She pulled in a deep breath, steadying herself.
Aiden’s hand found her shoulder again and slid gently until it was cupping the side of her neck.
“Sophie?” His deep voice calmed her frazzled nerves. She risked a glance up into his dark eyes and stayed. The assurance and promise she read in them healed something in her she hadn’t even realized was broken.
Aiden would make sure no harm came to her or Celine.
“I’m good, Aiden.” When his eyebrow lifted, doubting her, she lifted her chin. She was strong enough to deal with her fears. They weren’t going to slow the group down. “I’m fine. I don’t like water, but we’ll be walking near it, not going for a swim.”
He searched her face. When his gaze settled momentarily on her lips before moving back to her eyes, her breath hitched. The moment stretched out, neither of them moving.
“You guys coming, or are you just gonna stand there?” Celine’s tone carried a touch of sarcasm.
She grinned. Trust her sister to break up a tense moment.
“We’re coming! Hold your horses,” she called back.
Aiden’s hand dropped from her neck. Disappointment zinged through her.
They resumed walking. Although they were no longer touching, she was aware of the man beside her with every step.
Her sense of peace dissipated two hours later. Levi and Celine were still up ahead of them, but her sister’s steps had begun to drag, and Levi was limping slightly. Was it an old injury, or had he injured himself on their trek?
It was Aiden who worried her, though. He had retreated into silence, his expression growing dark and grim. She knew very little about him. What was going on behind the handsome mask?
Sophie was so deep in her musings that the sound didn’t penetrate at first.
Slowly she became aware of a muted rushing roar. Her legs stiffened and her hands shook as the reality of what she was hearing sank in.
They were at the river. And the path they were walking was no longer smooth.
It was rocky and twisted.
And narrow.
“We’ll have to go single file in places, but we’ll be fine,” Aiden commented.
She could do this.
Her stomach was twisted into a tight knot.
Years of panic bubbled up inside her. It had been years since she’d nearly drowned as a teenager. The nightmares had stopped long ago, but now, faced with the swift current of the river, all the fear she’d felt that day flooded her mind. She remembered the feeling of being trapped under the water, knowing she was going to die.
How could she walk so close to the water? The path was so narrow, it would be too easy to fall into the churning water. All she wanted to do was run the other direction.
But she couldn’t. If she didn’t get past her fear, she’d be putting the lives of those she cared about—Celine, Aiden and Levi—at risk.
She had no choice.
NINE
Whatever Sophie was thinking about, it couldn’t be good.
Her face had grown chalk white. So pale, he thought she was ready to faint. Even the easy lope of her walk had changed. When she halted completely, he was ready for it.
“Sophie.”
He had to call her name twice before she answered him. When her eyes lifted to his, it was a punch in the gut. The terror blazing in her hazel glance was no mere fear of water.
“I really don’t like water.”
Suddenly Celine was there. He’d been so concerned with Sophie he’d forgotten about Celine and Levi. Celine took Sophie’s hand in hers.
That jolted Sophie out of her daze. Her gaze became intense as she turned it on her sister and her mouth tightened. He could feel the resolution pouring from her.
“I’m okay.”
“We’ll find another way—” Aiden said.
She shook her head, stopping his words in their tracks. “We’ll do this. It’s the best way. I’m not going to let a fear of the water hold us back.”
Celine watched her sister. After a moment, she nodded and turned back to start walking. The kid was seriously impressing him with her gumption.
He wished he could take Sophie’s hand to comfort her, but the path
was too narrow. He stayed at her shoulder.
“You can’t swim?”
She snorted out a short mocking laugh.
“That’s the irony. Yes, I can swim.” Her shoulders shrugged. “I went canoeing once with a group of friends. I’d never gone before, so I had no clue what to expect. When the canoe tipped over, I wasn’t prepared. I was trapped under it and had no air. Breathed in some water before they got me out. I’ve avoided water since.”
Listening to her voice, he could find no trace of panic now.
It hit him hard. She was ignoring her own fear, had deliberately shoved it aside in order to protect them. Admiration for her rose.
The river came into view. It was awesome to see the power of the rapids. He knew this river was famous for its white-water rafting tours. He’d even been on a few. When he was younger, he’d trained as a tour guide and spent a couple of summers working on the Youghiogheny River. It had been a great time, but not something for anyone who had a phobia of water.
A few pebbles came loose under Celine’s foot as she stumbled. Sophie lurched forward, but Levi was there to steady the child. Aiden put his hand on the small of Sophie’s back. “Levi will protect her.”
Just like I will protect you. Lord, protect us, guide us, and please help us to escape those who would harm us.
“I trust you.”
Those simple words were a balm to his wounded spirit. And a warning. Trust was one thing, and he prayed he would be deserving of it. The other thing—the attraction that was building between them—was not something he could allow to continue. He’d been trying to ignore it, but he was failing to control it. He’d never talked about his sister to anyone other than Levi. Not even to his partner.
He wanted to talk to Sophie, though. He wanted her to understand him. And he needed her to understand why he could never act on the attraction between them.
Just not now. Right now, he needed to keep them all alive. He said another prayer, asking God for wisdom.
The shrill ring of his phone blasted through the silence. Above him, the leaves rustled as birds were startled out of the trees.
The only person who had this number was Brad. It couldn’t be good.
“Another call went out on my pager. They’re bringing in dogs.”
Dogs. To track their scent.
It didn’t matter where they walked. Dogs would be able to trace them. And the dogs were faster than people.
It was only a matter of time.
However, even if dogs were tracking them, they could travel faster on water. Hopefully, they’d be able to get out of the river at a spot that was hard to get cars to. It was, truly, their only shot at evading capture.
But Sophie had a terror of the water. He couldn’t ask her to go in the water. But he didn’t have a choice. They were out of options.
“I’m sorry—”
She already knew what he was going to say. He could see it in the stillness of her face as she looked at him.
“We’re going in there, aren’t we?” She pointed to the river.
“If I can find a way for us to do it. It’s not swimmable here.”
Her lips tilted upward although the smile didn’t touch her eyes. “Is swimmable a real word?”
“It is now. Who decides who’s allowed to make up words?”
She chuckled softly. He nodded. Both of them knew the conversation was to take the edge off the anxiety hovering over them.
They walked on for another half hour. Aiden scoured the river and the surrounding area, searching for a way that they could get across the river. If they could just reach the other side, it would break their scents up. There, up ahead. What was that?
Hope sprouted in his soul. This might work.
“Look over there.” He pointed to the abandoned raft sitting on the side of the river. She bit her lip but did not reply.
“Levi, Celine.” He waited until they turned around. Not caring who saw, he grabbed one of Sophie’s hands and held it close. It was trembling and cold, but her eyes were resolute. She would do whatever he asked her to do to protect her sister.
Had to admire that.
“They’re bringing dogs. We have to get in the water.” His heart ached at the way the kid’s face paled. If only there was another way.
There wasn’t.
“There’s a raft down there.”
“Do you know how to work one of those?” Sophie asked. One would never know how terrified she was. He could feel it in her hands, although her face was still.
“I do. I was a white-water rafting guide for two years. I’ll get you through this. We don’t need to do the whole river. I just want to get us far enough down that when we come out on the other side, the dogs won’t be able to find us.”
At least, he hoped they wouldn’t. Once they were far enough away, he’d take a chance on contacting his chief.
He led them down to the raft. Inspecting it thoroughly, he was relieved to see that whoever had abandoned it had left two oars with it. When he was convinced that the craft was sturdy, he gave them a quick demonstration of how to sit balanced on the edge with a foot wedged under the inflated log-shaped items anchored in the middle. People often thought those were to sit on, but they were really to help the raft keep its shape.
When Celine removed the processors from either side of her head and handed them to her sister to store in the backpack, pity, mingled with an additional dose of dread, surged through him.
His job to protect her would be more complicated if she couldn’t hear. He recalled what she’d said. She couldn’t hear anything without them.
“Levi.”
Levi nodded. “I will not be able to row. Not with this arm.”
“Can you handle it?” he whispered to Sophie.
Her chin rose a notch. “I will do whatever you need me to do.”
He accepted her answer. “Okay, let me go through the commands.”
He showed her how to row, and then what the different calls he’d say would mean. He knew they needed to hurry, but this was too important to skip. Going into the water without basic knowledge could be deadly. It was also important for her to have some feeling of control. Giving her a task and directions could be the difference between success and failure. Which wasn’t an option. Failure meant injury or worse.
“Everyone ready?” He shoved off and then climbed into the raft. “Forward!”
Sophie picked up her oar and paddled the way he’d shown her, her strokes strong and sure. Only the tightness in her posture showed how terrified she truly was.
They were approaching another rapid. He needed to gauge it right so they didn’t get caught on a rock. “Back!”
She reversed the oar.
“Stop!” He shouted, lifting his voice above the crashing water around them. She lifted the oar out of the water.
The raft lifted, then dropped and bounced as they hit the rapid. Icy water crashed over them. He shook it from his eyes. No one had fallen out, and he would take that as a win. They were far from out of danger, though, so he kept alert.
He paddled quickly, pushing hard to swerve the raft around the rock. It brushed up against the large boulder. Celine bobbed on her seat. Levi caught her.
Aiden grimaced. Then they were past. One down. Unfortunately, there were many more to come. Setting his jaw, he poured all his energy into the task of maneuvering the dangerous waters.
The water beside them exploded with a loud blast. A second later, a bullet bounced off a nearby rock.
He shouted to Levi to get Celine down as he dove for Sophie. Sophie screamed as she lost her balance and began to topple off the edge of the raft.
* * *
She was going in! Sucking in a deep breath, she closed her eyes to keep the water out.
Strong hands gripped her upper arms and dragged her back onto t
he raft. Instead of sitting on the edge, she found herself pushed into the interior, shoved up against the inflated cushion. She craned her head and nearly cried with relief when she saw that Celine was uninjured. Scared, absolutely, but unharmed.
A litany of thanksgiving fell from her lips, praising God for His care.
It was cut off by a shriek as another shot rang out.
“We’re being shot at!” she yelled.
“It’s not the police,” Aiden yelled back.
Which was much worse. Phillip’s men had found them. “How did they find us?”
“Probably the same way that Brad knew we were in danger.”
The mole. Someone had a pager or access to police channels. They must have alerted Phillip to the search and the location.
Before she could think too deeply about the situation, they hit another rapid. She refused to allow Aiden to do all the work. Pushing herself back up on the edge, she shoved her foot into the crevice on the side to secure herself then grabbed her oar, which had fallen to the floor. Aiden frowned, but didn’t protest. How could he? He needed another person to paddle, and she was the best one for the job. The cold water smashing into them and the boulders they had to skirt kept her from getting bogged down in her own panic.
She’d almost fallen in, and he had protected her. Just as he had promised he would.
They came out of the second rapid none the worse.
They could do this.
Another shot rang out and Levi shouted, clutching at his shoulder. Red bloomed out and spread across his shirt. Celine cried out and sobbed.
“Levi!” Aiden bellowed.
“I’m gut. Don’t worry about me.”
Except his pallor belied his words. He was losing blood and would need attention fast.
She glanced back at the shoreline. The two men shooting at them were trying to run along the rocky land beside the river. Not with much success, she was relieved to note. Nor with any sort of speed. The rough terrain prevented that. She risked another glance back to check their progress. The man in the lead tripped and tumbled into the water. He managed to catch himself on a branch before the flowing current carried him more than a few feet. His partner caught up with him and helped him, sputtering and choking, to shore. Their mingled shouts were drowned out by the roar made by the mighty river.
