Chapter 15
Ren swallowed a groan, and sat up. Everything ached.
“Halle?”
“I’m all right.” She moved her shoulders and winced. “But it’s going to hurt tomorrow.”
He leaned over and cupped her cheek.
Then she looked down, and her blue eyes went wide. “Ren, you’re bleeding.” Panicked, she tugged at his shirt. “There’s blood.”
“It’s okay. I just got nicked by the knife.”
She sucked in a sharp breath. “You mean stabbed.”
“No, nicked.”
“Just like a man.” She huffed out a breath. “Dad does the same thing. Downplays all his injuries.”
She yanked Ren’s shirt up and uncovered the wound. The cut was bleeding sluggishly.
He didn’t have the heart to tell her he’d been both stabbed and cut before, or that this didn’t even rate a mention.
She grabbed the backpack, and tore it open. She found the medical supplies he’d stuffed in there from the lodge. She ripped open a packet, and carefully pressed a bandage over his skin.
Then she leaned against him.
He hugged her close. “It’s going to be okay.”
She sniffed.
“You’re not hurt? You didn’t break anything in the fall?” He patted down her arms and sides.
“I have a few bumps and scrapes, but I’m fine.”
He pushed her hair back from her face. It was loose and tangled. She looked so young.
But when her gaze met his, it was steady, gleaming with that intelligence of hers.
“Now what?” she asked.
“We climb out of here.”
She groaned. “I figured you were going to say that.”
Ren rose and studied the rock wall. He pointed. “This part here isn’t as steep. There are a few good handholds.”
She nodded, gnawing on her lip as she studied the wall.
That’s when Ren heard noises above..
He moved fast, and pushed Halle against the wall. He pressed a finger to his lips.
It was their attackers. They were speaking Mandarin. Ren listened as they moved around above the cave entrance. Finally, the sounds faded.
Beside him, Halle released a shaky breath. “They’re gone.”
Ren nodded. He hoped they stayed gone. “I’ll climb up first, and find the best path.”
“Be careful.”
He pulled the backpack on, then faced the wall. He reached up, and ran his hands over the rock. He got a good grip, and pushed himself up. Then he started climbing.
He moved slowly and steadily. His cut tugged a few times, and he had several other aches that he tried to ignore. Sore muscles were nothing. Thankfully, he hadn’t broken anything in the fall. It was a damn miracle.
He had to get Halle out. That was the most important thing.
He moved past the halfway point. At a trickier spot, he paused, searching for his next handhold. Reaching up, he moved to haul his weight upward when his boot slipped.
“Ren,” Halle cried.
He caught himself, hugging the rock. “I’m all right.”
He took a second to catch his breath, then kept climbing. He was getting closer to the top. He gritted his teeth. He wasn’t stopping.
Reach up, pull, climb.
Reach up, pull, climb.
Finally, his hands curved over the top of the cave entrance, and he hauled himself up. He pushed several fern fronds out of the way.
“Made it,” he called down.
“Thank God.”
He carefully poked his head out, and checked the vicinity. There was no one around.
He turned and laid flat on his stomach. He stuck his head over the edge. “Okay, Halle. Follow the path that I used.”
“Ren… I’m not sure I can do it.”
“You can do it, Halle. I’m pretty sure you can do anything.”
She dragged in a deep breath, then pressed her hands to the wall. She started climbing, but she was moving very slowly and cautiously. He understood how scary this was for her.
She was about a third of the way up when she stopped to catch her breath.
“You’re doing great, baby.”
“I appreciate the lie.” She reached up and kept climbing.
Ren watched her getting closer. Every time she glanced up at him, he could make out all the angles of her pretty face.
She smiled up at him and that’s when her hand slipped. She yelped.
Ren’s heart leaped into his throat. “Halle!”
She slid a foot or so down the wall, then caught herself. She clung to the rock, shivering.
“Take your time, baby. You’ve got this.”
“I’m not sure I do.”
“You do, Halle Bradshaw. You didn’t give up on me. You forced me to face how I feel about you. You wouldn’t let me keep running. You wouldn’t let me keep lying to myself.”
Her blue gaze locked on his. “How do you feel about me?”
“Come up here and I’ll tell you.”
“You’re evil, Ren Santoro.” She reached up and kept climbing. Her movements were even slower now, deliberate. She checked every handhold before she put weight on it. He could see her arms were shaking from the strain.
She inched closer to the top. He could almost touch her.
Her foot slipped.
Ren reached out and grabbed her wrist.
“God.” She pressed her feet to the rock, but her other arm was hanging out over the cave.
“I’ve got you.”
She pressed her hand to the wall again, and he pulled her up. A second later, she was in his arms.
She burrowed into him.
“I knew you’d make it.” He pressed a kiss to her hair.
“You gave me good incentive.” She sounded a little shaky.
He covered her mouth with his and kissed her. Then he peppered kisses over her cheeks, her eyelids, her forehead. “Halle, God, I—”
That’s when they heard voices. Getting closer.
They both stiffened.
“Fuck. Relentless bastards.” He pulled her to her feet, then he pointed to the trees. “We have to go.”
They ran into the trees. He heard shouts, and knew that their pursuers had heard them.
They dodged through several trees, but he heard voices ahead of them, too, and swiveled left.
Damn, there were too many of them.
Ren pulled the backpack off his back. He saw a tree ahead with a hollow in the center of its trunk. As he jogged past, he stashed the backpack in the hollow.
They continued on, but as they slapped some fern fronds out of the way, he saw movement.
Suddenly, they were surrounded.
Halle stumbled to a halt and gasped. Ren stopped behind her, his hand curling into a fist.
Four men in black masks formed a semi-circle in front of them. They all had weapons aimed at him and Halle.
No. No. No.
Halle looked around, fear choking her.
The men had guns aimed mostly on Ren, but one was aiming his weapon at her.
Ren raised his hands in the air, and Halle did the same.
One of the men circled around them, and then he kicked Ren’s legs out from under him. Ren dropped heavily to his knees.
Then Halle felt a gun barrel jab her in the lower back.
“Down,” the man bit out in slightly accented English.
She lowered slowly to the ground.
The man roughly searched them. She watched him take Ren’s handguns.
Another man stepped forward. Something about the way he held himself made her think he was the boss.
“Where is the fuel cell?”
Ren just glared at him.
The man lifted a boot and kicked Ren viciously in the chest. Halle cried out.
“Where is it?” the man repeated. “Give it to us, and we’ll let you live.”
Ren made a harsh sound. “No, you won’t.”
The men all turned and talked to each other in Mandarin. Halle tried to calm her rapid breathing.
Then the leader nodded.
Suddenly, she was dragged up by her hair. She cried out. Ren lunged for her, but one of the other men hit him with the butt of his rifle.
Then a second man kicked Ren in the back.
“Stop it!” she screamed.
She watched Ren curl over as they attacked him.
The man behind her was holding her tight. She tried to pull free, but he jerked her back roughly.
She tried to ram her elbow back into his stomach, but his hand snapped out and he hit her in the face.
Dazed, she glanced down at Ren. Two of the men were holding him back. He was fighting to reach her, his face fierce.
She knew he’d try to save her. And they’d kill them.
Swallowing the jagged lump in her throat, she forced herself to relax.
It was hard when she was so afraid. Afraid for herself, and for Ren.
She heard a snick. Then a knife was held up in front of her face. Her pulse took off like a racehorse.
“Tell us the location of the fuel cell,” the leader said again. “Or we’ll start cutting her.”
The blade pressed to her cheek. She couldn’t stop her sharp exhalation.
On the ground, Ren’s jaw worked.
“Don’t say anything,” she told him.
The man holding her moved his wrist, and she felt a quick sting on her cheek.
She gasped and felt blood slide down her skin.
Ren growled.
Then her captor moved the knife to her throat, and she stilled. He pressed the tip against her skin.
Her chest was rising and falling quickly. She locked her gaze on Ren’s brown eyes.
“Perhaps we’ll cut her throat next,” the man said. “Or…” He nodded at the man holding her.
The knife moved to her ear.
“I will give you a nice souvenir.”
“Leave her alone,” Ren gritted out. “I swear I will kill you. I’ll kill you all.”
The man laughed, then straightened. “Where is the fuel cell?”
The knife pressed deeper against her ear and she bit her tongue. She wasn’t going to scream.
“It’s back there.” Ren jerked his head toward the tree. “The tree with the hole in the trunk. There’s a backpack in there.”
“Ren, no!” she cried.
“Your life is more important.”
But they’d kill them anyway. She really didn’t want to die. She wanted to live. She wanted a life with Ren.
One of the men went back down the path. A moment later he returned with the backpack. He unzipped it and tipped the contents on to the ground in front of them.
There was a dull thud as the fuel cell hit the dirt.
The men all spoke excitedly. One of them lifted the fuel cell.
“You two stay back here,” the leader ordered two of his men. Even with a mask on, she could tell he was smiling. “Kill them.”
Halle’s chest locked tight. No. The asshole had spoken in English so they could understand, and be afraid.
“Meet us at the vehicle when you’re done.” The man spun and stalked off with the man holding the fuel cell.
She looked at Ren.
He knelt there in the dirt, yet seemed so calm.
She was about to have a panic attack. They were going to be executed.
Then he winked at her.
What the hell?