Chapter 16
Chapter
Sixteen
August 23 rd
1:02 A.M.
The room was dark.
It shouldn’t be.
The knowledge plucked Connor from sleep to find that the lights in the bedroom had indeed gone out.
After making love to Becca earlier they’d snuggled in one another’s arms, basking in their love that felt renewed and reenergized, almost like it had been reborn. Then he’d taken her to the shower, cleaned her up, made love to her again, then not wanting her to miss out on her S’mores, he’d thrown his T-shirt on her, put his shorts back on, and they’d gone back to the firepit.
Around eleven, they’d headed to bed, and he couldn’t not make love to her again, so they’d had another round of sex before exhausted, they’d fallen asleep in one another’s arms.
Becca was still sound asleep, and he was pretty sure that if she’d woken up at some point and got up to use the bathroom, turning off the lights before returning to bed, he would have known. One thing he’d learned in his years as a SEAL and working for Prey was how to train his body to wake at the tiniest hint of movement or sound. In the field, it could mean the difference between life and death.
He prayed tonight it wouldn't.
As much as he didn't want to wake her and worry her, he needed Becca to be prepared if something was wrong. There was every chance that he was overreacting. Connor could hear a storm raging outside, it must have blown up quickly because it had still been clear and mild a couple of hours ago when they came back inside.
The storm could have knocked out the generator.
It was definitely the more logical answer.
Yet …
Dangerous men were after him and his family, who would do anything to silence them, and who had already gone after Becca once before. It was nothing short of a miracle that he’d gotten her out of the camp without everyone waking up and realizing what was going on.
More than that, it was a miracle he’d proven himself to Becca enough that she was willing to give him a second chance. She’d never actually said the words, but her actions and what she had said were enough.
Nothing was going to ruin this chance.
Certainly not a bunch of powerful men who thought they could do whatever they pleased and then kill people to cover it up.
They weren't silencing him and his family, and they weren't taking Becca from him.
“Wake up, moonlight,” he said softly, nudging Becca’s shoulder.
She gave an indignant moan that made him smile and tucked her face tighter against his chest, which she was using as a pillow.
He’d worn his girl out with all the sex, but now he needed her awake and sharp. Just in case it was a worst-case scenario.
“Come on, babe, wake up for me,” he urged. Even though the storm was the logical conclusion as to why the lights had gone out, he wasn't going to be able to relax until he’d proven it to himself. “You wake up now and I’ll reward you with another orgasm as soon as I get the generator running again.”
“Mmm, orgasm?” she asked sleepily, lifting her head and blinking open sleep-laden eyes.
“Knew that would do the trick,” he teased, leaning down to kiss the tip of her nose.
“What's going on?” she asked, obviously picking up on his tension.
“Did you get up and go to the bathroom?” Just because he was pretty sure he would have woken if she climbed out of bed he had to check.
“No. Why?”
“Lights are out.”
“You didn't get up to go?” A hint of fear crept into her voice.
“No. There’s a storm, though,” he rushed on to add, wanting to alleviate her fears before he knew if there was anything to be afraid of. “So that’s probably what happened. The wind or the rain likely took out the generator. I just need to go out and check on it, get it up and running again.”
“If there’s a storm you shouldn’t go outside,” Becca protested. “We can do without the generator until morning. Then, if it’s still storming or you can't fix it, we can just go back to the city. I can always stay with you until it’s safe.”
A growl warred with a smile at her words.
While he loved that she was willing to stay with him, it wasn't going to be until it was safe. Once he had her in the home he’d bought because it reminded him of Becca’s dream house, he wasn't going to let her go.
“We can go back to the city if we have to, but I still need to check out the generator now.”
“Why?”
“In case it’s not the storm that took the generator out,” he said gently, knowing she already knew this but was holding onto denial for as long as she possibly could.
She swallowed audibly. “You don’t think it was the storm, do you?”
“I don’t know,” he assured her.
“But you suspect they found us.”
“I don’t want to think that, Becca, but I have to consider it as a possibility. If these men can contact a gang in remote Cambodia just because I hopped on a plane to go and see you then I don’t think there’s much they can't do. I won't take any chances with your safety. Which is why I want you to get dressed, get your prosthetic on, then take Cade’s weapon and find somewhere to hide.”
Because he knew if he didn't get out of bed he’d never leave her side, Connor stood and reached for his clothes. Hopefully, this would turn out to be nothing, and he’d be climbing back under those sheets and wrapping his naked body around Becca’s in no time.
But if not …
Then, he would do whatever was necessary to keep her safe.
“I should come with you, we can watch each other’s backs,” Becca said as she did as he told her and strapped her prosthetic back on.
“Absolutely not.”
Not happening.
No way.
No how.
Not in a million lifetimes.
“But—”
“No, Becca,” he said in a tone that brokered no arguments. “I won't put your life in danger. Don’t ask me to. You'll stay in here, hide, keep a weapon and a cell phone in your hand, use it if you have to, and stay safe. Do you hear me?” Connor stalked around the bed until he reached her then dragged her into his arms. “I need you to be safe.”
“Okay,” she agreed, her voice muffled as her face was pressed against his chest.
“This is what I do. I’ll be fine,” he promised as he made himself release her and shoved his feet into a pair of sneakers.
“Okay,” she said again, a slight wobble in her voice.
“I love you, moonlight.” With his weapon in his hand and his cell phone in his pocket, Connor paused only long enough to crush his lips to hers in a far too brief kiss before he was stalking toward the door.
“I love you, too.”
The whispered words followed him down the stairs. It was dark down there as well. Even though there had been no lights on when he locked up and took Becca back upstairs to bed, there should be the glow of the clock on the microwave and the one on the oven.
Both were dark.
Which meant there was definitely no power in the cabin.
One step outside was all it took for him to be completely drenched. The wind was horrendous, and he could hear thunder rumbling in the distance although he hadn't spotted a flash of lightning yet.
Since Cade had owned this cabin for years, and he’d taken the whole family out there on several occasions, Connor knew exactly where the generator was and it didn't take him long to get to it.
Once he did, his worst fears were confirmed.
This wasn't storm damage.
It looked like someone had gone to town on the thing with a baseball bat. It was broken beyond repair and would have to be replaced.
Someone had wanted to knock the power out, had done it deliberately, which meant he and Becca weren't alone. It had to be the people his family was hunting, there were no other logical conclusions to draw, but how had they found them? And so quickly. They’d only been there a matter of days and yet they’d already been found.
Whoever it was hadn't gone straight to the cabin after destroying the generator. Even if he’d woken as soon as the lights went out, it had taken him several minutes to wake Becca, get dressed, and get outside.
What were they waiting for?
Were they watching him right now?
Were they wanting to separate him and Becca? If they were, he’d just given them exactly what they were after.
What was the end goal? To kill them? To abduct them? To torture Becca in front of him until he agreed to back off? To torture him in front of her until her screams and pleas forced him to give in?
Whatever it was, he had to get to Becca, had to get her to the car and out of there.
Just as he turned to head back to the house, the sound of a gunshot roared above the howl of the wind, and pain stabbed through him.
August 23 rd
1:09 A.M.
That was a gunshot.
Wasn't it?
Becca froze, unsure what she was supposed to do.
Connor had insisted she stay inside, hide somewhere, remain armed, and call for help if they needed it.
They needed it.
Gunshots meant bad news.
It couldn’t be anything else.
Wearing the same jean cut-offs, T-shirt, and sweater she’d been wearing yesterday, her prosthetic was back on, and she’d just finished shoving her feet into her sneakers when she’d heard the unmistakable crack of a bullet being fired.
It was a bullet being fired, wasn't it?
Had it been a crack of lightning instead?
Or maybe it was just her imagination working overtime.
The wind howled outside. If someone fired a weapon, would she be able to hear it from inside?
She wasn't sure.
Her legs shook so badly she could hardly walk, but she had to. Had to figure out what she was going to do. Connor had told her to hide, but where was she supposed to do that?
It was the same problem she’d had when he first arrived, and she hadn't known it was him and she’d panicked and armed herself. There had been nowhere to hide then and there was nowhere to hide now.
Especially given that the cabin was remote.
If Connor was right and someone had tracked them to the cabin, then sabotaged the generator to plunge them into darkness and even the playing field, or separate them or whatever the reason had been, no one was going to be able to get to them in time to help them.
And Connor could be hurt.
Could be …
No.
She couldn’t even allow herself to think that.
For all she knew, it was Connor shooting at someone. Maybe he needed her help and she was just standing in the bedroom frozen in fear.
Come on, Becca.
Pull it together.
Connor needs you.
Why hadn't she said the words she’d already decided on? She should have told him that she was giving him a second chance. It was true, and she thought her actions had shown it, there was no way she would have had sex with him if she wasn't willing to try to work things out and rebuild what they used to have, and she was sure Connor knew it.
Didn't he?
There was no way to be sure, and now, all she wished was that she’d said the words. She wanted Connor to know for certain, especially since he’d gone running out into danger to protect her.
Palming her cell phone as she crept down the stairs, she wished she could walk as silently as Connor did. It must have been some super skill he learned as part of his training because he hadn't been able to walk without making a sound back when she’d known him. With her prosthetic, she doubted she could ever do what he did, but she wished she could.
Because someone could already be in the cabin.
It had been at least three minutes since Connor left the bedroom, and close to a minute since she heard what she was still sure was a gunshot.
Whether she was right or wrong it didn’t matter.
Calling for help was the smart thing to do. Whatever was happening someone needed to know, even if it was just the storm. Flooding from the river, the torrential rain, or the screaming wind could still wind up putting them in danger.
As she reached the main floor, she scanned the space, looking for any signs that someone was in there. The front and back doors were both closed, but it was hard to see much of anything because it was so dark.
Pitch black.
Because of the storm, there wasn't even any moonlight to filter in through the windows, and there certainly wasn't any light from neighbors. From what Cade had told her on the drive up there, the nearest neighbors were almost two miles away. Nowhere near close enough for her to easily reach in a storm.
When nothing moved and she didn't hear any other sounds than the wind, Becca crept over to the back door. The generator was around the back and off to the right a little. Cade had shown it to her just in case she needed to know where it was, although neither of them had thought she really would.
Since Connor was outside, there was no use calling him. She was close with all of his brothers, they’d all grown up together, but this was Cade’s cabin so she brought up his number and hit call.
The phone rang three times before it was answered.
“Becca? What's wrong?” Cade asked without preamble. She appreciated him just jumping into the issue and not wasting time on small talk, after all, she wasn't going to be calling him in the middle of the night for small talk.
“There’s a storm and the generator went out,” she blurted out.
“Where’s Connor?”
“He went out into the storm to check it out. He hasn’t come back. It hasn’t been that long, but I thought I heard a gunshot.”
Silence met her.
“Cade?”
More silence.
Moving the phone from her ear she saw that the call had been disconnected.
Quickly redialing she waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Nothing.
The call wouldn't go through.
Had to be the storm messing with the reception. She was probably lucky she’d been able to get through to him at all, but had he heard what she’d said about Connor and the gunshot?
If he hadn't, he might just think she was letting him know about the storm and not worry about it until morning.
By morning it would be too late.
That she was certain of.
If it was just the storm taking out the generator, Connor would be back by now. He wouldn't leave her to worry about him, he’d come back and let her know and then go back to see if there was anything he could do to fix it, or they’d just wait out the storm together.
But he hadn't come back.
That meant he couldn’t.
Because of the gunshot.
She couldn’t stay in there if he was outside somewhere hurt, maybe even dying. What if the people who had taken out the generator had shot Connor and were now trying to kidnap him? They might have come to take him so they could use him to blackmail his brothers into backing off in their search for answers.
If there was a chance he was alive she had to try to go to him.
Mind made up, Becca put her hands out in front of her and worked her way through the cabin to where Cade had told her the emergency kit was stashed. There was a flashlight in there, and if she could get it, she could go looking for Connor.
It didn't take her long to locate it, and once she had the flashlight in her hand she felt marginally better. The cell phone was useless without reception, so she left it on the kitchen counter and switched on the flashlight.
The beam of light bolstered her and as she swung it around the cabin, searching for any other presence, she saw no puddles of water inside. Anyone coming in would be drenched so she knew for certain she was alone.
The question was, how many people were outside the cabin?
Only one way to find out.
For all she knew, it was only Connor, and he’d just been hurt somehow in the storm and it was his weapon that had gone off. Calling out to her and telling her he needed her.
After that first step out the back door, she was drenched.
Soaked to the skin.
Walking with her prosthetic across the muddy, slippery ground, with the rain beating down upon her was difficult, but she headed for the generator with the same determination that she had approached all the operations and therapy she’d faced after her assault.
When you put your mind to it you could do anything.
So she kept going, ducking her head, following the thin beam of light from her flashlight, steadfastly putting one foot in front of the other.
She was most of the way toward it when she saw something on the grass that made her stop.
Was that …
No.
It couldn’t be.
Yet it looked like …
Blood.
It was dark red and a large puddle of it was only two yards away from the generator. The torrents of rain were quickly washing it away, but she would have bet anything that she was right and it was blood.
Bending down beside it, she set her weapon down on the ground and reached out a trembling hand toward it. Touching her fingers to the puddle, she lifted them to her face and sniffed.
The metallic smell of blood assaulted her nostrils.
She was right.
Someone had bled out there and recently.
Connor. Where was he? Had they already taken his body? Was he dead or alive?
Jerking to her feet, she spun in a circle, screaming his name over and over again. The beam of light danced around her, but it wasn't enough to cut through the utter darkness of the combination of the night and the storm.
Then she saw them.
Shadows.
Multiple shadows.
Moving through the dark.
Toward her.
Circling her.
Closing in on her.
A scream fell from her lips as they grabbed at her.