Chapter 15 – Emma
CHAPTER 15
EMMA
I heard two shots ring out and waited a moment before turning back to Nathan.
Blondie's bloodshot eyes stared blankly into the canopy. His lower jaw hung limply to one side.
I fell back, cupping a hand over my mouth, hyperventilating as I scrambled away from the gory sight.
Nathan hustled towards me. “Are you alr…” I blinked rapidly. “I mean are you–”
“I’m fine.” he calmly replied.
Nathan pulled me into a hug, tucking my head under his chin. “Are you okay?”
I nodded frantically.
“He was going to kill us, right? My chest heaved as an icy wave of understanding crashed over me. Cold and hollow, my heart feels like it's skipping beats, a strange numbness spreading through my limbs. My vision narrowed, making everything around me seem distant and surreal. Disorienting and unsettled, I felt even more vulnerable and exposed than when I was being chased, as if the ground beneath me completely vanished.
“Did I–”
Nathan pulled me out of the hug, put his hands on my shoulders, and said, "Hey. Hey!", waiting for me to acknowledge him with eye contact.
I just stared at the forest floor, noting that it felt a million miles away.
He tipped his hand under my chin, forcing me to raise my head and look him in the eye.
"You saved me, Emma."
I sniffled in a tear, wishing I could believe his words.
" You stopped him with a rock. I ended him with his gun, okay?"
I barely let out a nod of acknowledgment.
"I ended him, not you–okay?"
I nodded more assuredly this time, convincing him but not myself.
Nathan pulled me back into a hug and my teary face met his warm chest.
My heart slowed from feeling like a runaway train to just... beating with sadness.
I chose a career to help people...
How did I end up here?
Nathan was only saying what he thought I needed to hear.
I know I killed Blondie with that rock. Nathan could read me an entire book on self-defense, but that man's brain stopped working, thanks to me.
Nathan kissed me on the forehead, let go of our embrace, and took me by the hand.
An emotional wreck or not, I knew we had to continue.
I steeled myself and nodded at Nathan to let him know I was ready to go on. Without saying a word, we started off down the trail.
From time to time, we’d pass between houses or have to cross roads, but eventually, we moved away from civilization. The sounds of cars and people were replaced by birds and tree frogs.
What had once seemed so wild and dangerous now felt like the safest place we could be.
It took hours, but this time, even though my feet ached and were sweating in my sockless running shoes, it felt easier. My calves and thighs
hurt to move, but somehow I’d grown accustomed to the strain. The ten-mile hike along the edge of the jungle felt like a walk in the park compared to the treacherous valleys and peaks in the island's center.
“There she is.” Nathan took my hand and pointed through the trees at a bright red and white speck, the Cessna's tale barely visible behind the trees.
Looking more closely, the rocky outcropping where we’d begun our journey only a few days prior sparked memories of our brief time on the beach. To be back at the same spot where we started, with nothing to show for our effort besides a hose and some gum...
This has been one brutal full circle.
I waited in the shade of a tree while he circled the area to make sure no one had discovered our hiding place. When he gave me the signal, I ran down to meet him. While he worked, he explained that we lost some fuel, but he had a plan.
“It’s less than a hundred miles to Martinique, and we have enough fuel to drive along the surface like a boat for about twenty minutes… or to fly for about two hours. If we stay on the water for as long as possible, we might be able to stay off the island’s military radar. Then, at the last moment, we can lift off and fly out of range, coasting nice and easy all the way there.”
“By coasting, you mean flying without fuel?” I raised an eyebrow. “As in another crash landing?”
“It was–” He started to speak, but I cut him off.
“I know, I know…” I held up my hand. “It was a controlled .”
“Now she’s got it.” He winked at me, taking gum out of his mouth and pressing it around the area where he’d attached the rubber tubing to the fuel tank.
“Tell me we are not about to fly across the ocean on a plane that you just patched up with... chewing gum?”
“I–We didn’t see any insta-weld lying around.” He held his arms out. “I need something that will seal and hold the tubing in place. Besides, this is working perfectly.”
“Awesome.” I furrowed my brow and chuckled. “I mean we’ve come this far. Why not stick our engine together with chewing gum.”
“Plus it’ll make a really cool story to tell later.” He put his shades down.
Is he enjoying this?
“Thank you, by the way…” he added, “You’ve maintained good spirits, and I know it couldn’t have been easy.”
I swear, when he tries to go full tough-guy G.I. Joe hero-mode on me when I know full well I can bring him to his knees in the bedroom, it makes me wanna smack him silly.
“Well, this will hopefully be the last leg of our adventure together.” A wave of sadness came over me as I thought about saying goodbye to him. “There’s no sense spoiling it, worrying about things that we have no control over.”
“I guess.” He frowned and got back to work, attaching the other length of tubing.
“So.” I cleared my throat. “Would you like to talk about anything that’s happened over the last few days? It had to have been a pretty stressful time for you too, and it’s totally normal to–”
“Seriously?” He looked over his shoulder, wiping the sweat from his brow.
“What?” I squinted, using one hand to shield my eyes from the sun.
He closed the hood and climbed down to face me. “I’m not one of your patients, Doc.”
“I wasn’t treating you like a patient.” I crossed my arms and he just looked at me. I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. “Alright, maybe I went into work mode a little bit. It's what I do! Professionally! Still, you okay?”
“I’m always okay.” He winked, glancing down at his bruised knuckles. “I haven’t been shot, stabbed, or tortured yet. This has been a pretty chill mission so far.”
“So there’s nothing about any of this that you want to unpack?” I frowned. “Nothing that maybe needs a little clarity .”
He put his hands on his hips and took a deep breath, scanning the treeline as if he’d find an answer there.
“Nope.” He pressed his lips together and shrugged. “Nothing.”
“Nice.” A lump formed in my throat and I shook my head. “You open up just enough to make me feel like I’m getting to know you, but you don’t let anyone get that closer than you can throw a wrench. Is that all part of your playboy charm routine?”
His posture stiffened.
“I told you from the beginning I don’t let people get too close.” His brow grew severe. “ And I told you that I don’t do relationships. I'm no good for you–not anyone. My career's a dangerous one, and it comes first. You acted like you understood. But maybe that’s just part of your shrink routine.”
His words cut deeper than I expected, but I wasn’t about to let my feelings on the matter show–especially since Nathan's comments, as annoying as they were, hit deep. He was honest about not being interested in anything more than the job of keeping me alive. And I was the one who insisted sleeping together wouldn't be a huge mistake. Ugh .
“Right.” I walked away to sit in the sand. “Just get that heap of junk ready to fly so we can be done with this.”
His shoulders relaxed and he hung his head, the harshness of his posture fading.
With a defeated tone, he continued. “We should be good to go as soon as the tide rolls in.” He wiped his hands on something he’d pulled out of his luggage. “You may as well get buckled in. It won’t be long now.”
“Good.” I got up and walked toward the plane. “Thanks.”