Chapter 48
Chapter Forty-Eight
When a blood curdling scream tears through the darkness, I’m hit with a jolt of adrenaline that stands every hair on end from my crown to my toes.
Oh my god. Someone is dying.
Evan grabs my arm, his grip biting as he holds me close to him. “Shhhh.”
Is that keening whimper coming from me?
Shoving my gloved fist into my mouth is the only way to stop the sound.
I know what the term scared to death means now. My body isn’t made for this. My heart apparently agrees because it’s trying to break out of my chest.
But Evan is locked on, scanning the darkness with that eerie stillness that I now understand is from his training. His guys are the same. Machines. Emotionless. Stoically scanning the darkness through those special goggles.
I didn’t even realize that they were moving, or I was moving. I don’t know how it happened, but quickly they have me in a knot between the three of them.
More screaming. Grunting sounds come from ahead in the forest.
I bury my face in Evan’s back, pressing my face against his black T-shirt. Please make it stop.
I don’t know how long we stand clustered together. Too long. Forever.
Sucking wind, I promise every higher being that exists I will never, ever go in the woods at night again.
Scout says something in a low voice. Evan and Justice both reply, but it’s all too quiet for me to hear.
They all tense at the sound of footfalls. Heavy. Crashing through the trees. My breath freezes in my lungs as my pulse goes wild.
Why aren’t we running?
Evan and Scout train their weapons in the direction of the noise. Justice is still facing the way we came. None of them are moving.
But Evan’s muscles vibrate against my forehead when he calls out. “Identify yourself!”
In surprisingly perfect English, Vik’s man whispers, “It’s me, Gregor. Rory was caught in a snare, he’s hanging in a tree and badly injured.”
Fear clogs up my veins, chugging through plumbing, making my hands and feet go cold.
Evan mutters and shakes his head. “Fuck. I don’t like this.”
After cursing in Russian, Gregor flips back to English. “One of our men will stay with him, the rest of us are moving on. Be careful. The trap was very well hidden.”
As soon as the man stops talking, we’re in motion.
My legs are noodles with wooden blocks where my feet used to be.
Now our movement is slower, more precise. Evan doesn’t have to tell me to be careful. I’m scared mindless.
“Don’t look,” Evan commands as we near the moaning man.
I keep my eyes on the ground. Until my peripheral vision catches something moving and I jump. Instinct makes me look up.Evan catches me as I stumble.
But it’s too late. My stomach is in my throat. “ Ohmygodohmygodohmygod. ”
“Keep moving, Mari.” Evan’s command is a growl in my ear.
I’ll never forget what I saw. The blood. The agony on the man’s face. His hands clutching at his bleeding body. “He had a stake sticking out of his stomach.”
“Keep moving.”
“But…”
“His teammate is going to get him down and take care of it.”
Black dots wave in front of my vision.My legs aren’t cooperating.
Evan stops abruptly and flips up his night vision equipment. His gloved hands cup my face as he forces me to look up at him. “Eyes right here. Focus on me.”
It’s hard to see him through the wavy tears.
“I need you to concentrate on what we have to do.”
“I…I’m trying.”
His eyes soften. “You're amazing. You’re part of the team now. Keeping yourself in check helps keep us all safe.”
Emotion swells my chest, making my throat so tight, I can barely swallow. I never thought of it like that. But it makes absolute sense. They need to focus on what they have to do.
I have to help keep all of the men safe.
He drops his lips to mine for the lightest kiss. “I know you can do it.”
“I won’t let you down. Let’s go.”
But I sure am grateful when we reach our hide. Or so Evan calls it. To me it’s a spot behind a big fallen tree.
I almost kiss the ground. My knees haven’t worked right since I saw Vik’s guy hanging in a tree with a bloody spike sticking out of his lower belly.
My stomach coils at the memory. I hug myself as a shudder rocks me.
Evan grabs my coat and tugs me to him. “Good girl. You did it. Now we watch for anything that looks like trouble for the others.”
He digs in one of those mile-deep cargo pockets on his pants and pulls out a small oblong device and passes it to me. It’s bigger than a cigar, but smaller than the cardboard center of a paper towel roll. It’s very heavy for its size.
He shifts into position, laying down on the ground with his rifle pointed at the compound. “That’s a night vision scope. With it, you can help me keep an eye on what’s going on down there.”
I put it to my eye. Mind blown, I whisper, “Wow.”
“Shhh. We need to be quiet.”
Mimicking him, I stretch out on my stomach, resting on my elbows, and direct my scope toward the metal garage.
Off to one side, I see Vik’s team approaching the fence.
Suddenly it feels like I’m in a Mission Impossible movie. Only there are real bullets and snares and bloody stakes.
And s-snakes.
“Evan. Evan!” My voice shoots up ten octaves and I don’t give a damn that the whole forest might hear me. The most venomous snake in Vandemora is slithering across my arm.