Chapter 18
Mia stood on the porch, surrounded by darkness, her arms wrapped around her to ward off the cool breeze. Whenever she escaped to the cabin, it was because she wanted to hide from the world, but she’d always been able to go back to her life when ready.
Not only was that option not readily available now, but she also felt disconnected from everything without her cell phone. As soon as she’d gotten the message from Cullen, she’d tossed her phone out of the plane.
She’d taken a chance because the text might not have come from him. Then again, few knew they traveled together.
She was already hyper-aware, but it had kicked into overdrive after that text. Now, every sound out in the night was an enemy approaching. She kept her gun and knife close, but that would only be good if someone attacked her. It wouldn’t do anything if there were a sniper.
As a precaution, she’d flown low to keep off the radar. No one had come after her, so she assumed it worked. Her weapons gave her a feeling of control, but it was an illusion.
She knew better than most how a team of highly skilled individuals could come in quietly and take out their target within seconds. All without alerting anyone.
The cabin was isolated and situated deep in the mountains, surrounded by thick forest. Total seclusion was what she’d wanted when she bought it. Now, the difficult location could be the very thing that saved their lives.
She rolled her head from side to side, stretching her neck to help relieve the stress. It was a two-mile hike to her plane, which she’d landed on a short runway and covered with camouflage.
Normally, the walk helped to clear her head. This time, trepidation and fear of what might be following—or what awaited—her had her moving quickly.
Her stomach rumbled with hunger. She hadn’t bothered to eat. With her nerves stretched so thin, she knew food wouldn’t sit well.
And where the hell was Cullen?
She kept watch down the mountain for approaching headlights. So far, no one had come up the drive. With each passing hour, she grew more and more worried.
Had the Saints caught him?
Was he even now in their grasp?
It wasn’t as if she could remain at the cabin indefinitely. It was only a matter of time before someone figured out she owned it. She’d paid cash and used her mother’s maiden name, but that would only buy her a little time.
If Cullen didn’t arrive by morning, she was going to have to decide what her next move was. She didn’t have a vehicle, which would make traveling more difficult. Yet she couldn’t stop what she and Cullen had begun.
Follow the trail the Saints left.
That was her final order from General Davis, and she was going to follow through with it. For Orrin. For the team. For Cullen and his brothers.
For herself.
She wasn’t going to spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder, worried that a Saint was watching and waiting to kill her.
Either she would find a way to end the Saints, or she’d die.
There were many obstacles before her. In the cockpit of a plane, she could do anything. She didn’t have that same confidence on the ground amid a group that caused fear in a man such as General Davis.
She shivered at the thought of hunting the Saints alone. Against . . . shit. She didn’t even know who she was up against. And that terrified her.
First, she believed it was the Russians. After her conversation with Davis, she was sure it extended to the Colombians, and probably far beyond that.
The Saints.
It was a holy name, but she suspected their agenda was far from divine. Especially now, when they wanted Ragnarok. She frowned, thinking of the bioweapon. What was so special about it?
Something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw an outline of a man in the moonlight. It was heartbeat later that she realized it was Cullen who stood on the edge of the porch.
She was so relieved that she rushed to him, throwing her arms around his neck. He caught her, holding her tightly.
For several seconds, neither said anything as they held each other. His warmth enveloped her as his strong arms held her firmly. She closed her eyes, saying a quick prayer of thanks that Cullen was with her again.
Then she realized what she’d done. But his hard body felt heavenly against her. She drank in the feel of him, savoring it and putting it to memory, before stepping back.
Instantly, she missed him. Moonlight streamed around them, giving the scene an otherworldly feel. When she lifted her gaze, chills raced over her skin as she saw the blatant desire reflected in his eyes.
It became difficult to breathe under such flagrant need. With her body heating and her heart thumping, she couldn’t move. Longing unfurled low in her belly.
Dangerous!
Yes, Cullen was dangerous. To her body and her heart. But she still craved his touch.
But now wasn’t the time.
If she were smart, there would never be a good time to give in to the need to take Cullen as her lover. No matter how much she hungered to feel his hands run over her body or to have him fill her.
It had been such a long time since she’d tasted desire as exquisite and powerful as what assaulted her now. It made it nearly impossible not to act on it.
She swallowed and looked away. “I was getting worried.”
Silence stretched between them as he scrutinized her. What did he see? What did he think?
“I parked the Jeep below,” he replied in a deep voice laced with hunger.
She turned and walked into the cabin. It was imperative to put some distance between them before she did something stupid.
“Did you get rid of your phone?” he asked as he followed her.
The one-bedroom cabin was small. With Cullen inside, the building felt as tiny as a thimble, his presence was so large. Though there was electricity, she’d opted to keep the lights off and had lit candles instead.
“I did.” She walked to the fireplace and stoked the fire. “How did you know someone was tracking us?”
He lowered himself onto the couch directly behind her. “I always keep the GPS service off on my phone. Someone hacked my phone and turned it on.”
“Who are these people?” she asked in frustration.
“They’re very well connected. Over two hours east of here, I stopped for gas. I noticed a Suburban and a man inside with a particular interest in me. He was American.”
She turned to the side to see him, fear spiking through her. “What happened?”
“I knocked him out so he couldn’t follow me.”
She felt a little better at the news. “Did he know you would be there?”
“These people knew where I was before I ditched my phone. Most likely, they had others spread out, searching for me.”
She put down the poker and sat on the opposite end of the couch since it was the only furniture besides the bed and kitchen table and chairs in the cabin. Being so near to him was making it impossible for her not to want to be closer.
“I flew low to avoid the radar, but anyone could’ve tracked me,” she said.
“Meaning, anyone could’ve seen you land?”
“Yes. The plane is two miles away, and I paid cash for the cabin and used my mother’s maiden name.”
“But they’ll still find it,” Cullen said with a nod. “It gives us two days, max. We should leave tomorrow morning.”
She turned her head to the fire, staring at the flames. “Where do we go next?”
“I don’t know.” He sat forward and ran a hand down his face.
It was then that she saw his fatigue. Neither of them had gotten much sleep the night before. If they didn’t get proper rest, they wouldn’t last long.
She rose and walked to the kitchen. The candlelight had been a precaution so no one would think she was there. Now, it set a romantic mood, reminding her of the attraction that continued to grow the longer she was alone with Cullen.
In an effort to forget such thoughts, she began to fix them something to eat. The pantry was stocked, but the fridge only had a few items. That left little with which to cook.
“I got you a burner phone,” Cullen said.
She filled a pot with water and put it on the stove to boil. “Good. I feel weird not having one.”
“There isn’t service up here.”
“Part of the appeal of buying this place,” she said as she found him holding up his phone, looking for a signal.
He sighed. “I’d hoped to talk to my brothers. We’re flying blind here. We can’t go back to the base, and even returning to Dover is chancy.”
“I’ve been going over what Sergei told us. He was quick to send us away, but I don’t think it was because Orrin is there.”
Cullen’s brow furrowed. “Why do you think that?”
“I think he knows where Orrin is. He sent us away to try and point us in another direction.”
Cullen scrunched up his face and shifted on the sofa to better see her. “I suppose that could be one option. The docks seem like a good location to hold my father, though. It’s close to the base, and in the hands of a Russian.”
The water began to boil. She dumped the pasta into the pot and began cutting up cubes of cheese.
“I thought that same thing when we thought it was the Russians controlling everything. Davis and Sergei told me about the Colombians’ involvement.
Now you say Americans might also be a part of the Saints. ”
“We know nothing of this group.”
“I don’t think they took Orrin far from Dover. Sergei sent us away, and Davis said to follow the Saints’ trail.”
Cullen nodded as he listened.
“Sergei knows these people, this secret group who works from the shadows. I’ve never seen him or General Davis fear anything, and yet, in the space of one day, I saw it on both of their faces.”
Cullen grunted. “The Saints seems to have a long reach. That means unlimited money. If they span two continents and three countries, who’s to say it’s not even larger than that?”
“Why did they name themselves the Saints?”
“I’m more interested in why they want Ragnarok.”
She finished with the cheese and rinsed off the knife in the sink. “Orrin knew something was off. He couldn’t figure out what it was.”
“He knew enough to send the bio-agent away. That’s the only thing that saved his life.”
“But how did he know?”
“Instinct,” Cullen said with a shrug. “Both you and Callie mentioned that Dad wasn’t completely comfortable with the mission. It went so deep that he traveled to Dallas and spoke to Owen’s high school sweetheart, Natalie. Dad didn’t ignore his gut, but he couldn’t find anything concrete to go on.”
“If only Davis would’ve told me something, given us something to go on regarding this organization,” she said with a sigh.
He scratched his forehead. “You said yourself that Davis wanted you gone immediately. He told you what he could, knowing you would figure it out. His motive was to save your life. Which he did.”
“I’m a pilot, Cullen. I can fly anything. I do no one any good on the ground,” she told him before dumping the cooked noodles into a colander to drain the water. “We’re walking blind in unknown territory surrounded by enemies.”
Then she mixed the noodles and various cheeses together. Only then did she pull out a package of smoked salmon from the pantry and add it.
Once mixed together with salt and pepper, she dished them two bowls and brought it to the sofa.
He grabbed her arm when she handed him his food. “First, this is nothing new for me. Second, you’re more than capable. I saw you with Sergei.”
“Because I know him.”
“It was more than that. Trust yourself.”
The current that passed between her and Cullen was thick and strong. It was becoming more and more difficult to ignore the need pulsing within her.
“This place will give us the time we need to sort things out,” he said and released her.
She sank onto the couch. Slowly, she began to eat.
“This is really good,” he said around a mouthful of food.
She smiled and sat back, cradling her bowl. In the hours before his arrival, she’d gone over what Davis had told her. Then she’d tried to piece together the information Sergei had given. There were too many holes to make any sort of sense of it.
But there was one connection—Yuri.
If she told Cullen about Yuri, then the secret she wanted to keep hidden would be revealed. Yet what choice did she have? The Saints needed to be stopped.
“There is someone we can ask about Orrin.”
Cullen’s gaze lifted to her. “Who?”
“His name is Yuri Markovic. He’s a major general in the Russian army. I saw him with Davis earlier.”
“You think this Yuri will help. Why?”
“Because he and your father used to be friends.”