“Stay here for a minute and rest. I’m going to hike up to the top of this ridge and see what’s on the other side.”
She wouldn’t argue with that. “Okay.”
He moved up the mountainside with long strides, rifle in his hands, disappearing from view among the trees.
It was the first real break she’d gotten since they’d left the camp this morning and it gave her time to think—about last night, about the way he’d made her feel and how he’d held her afterward. He was her fantasy lover come to life, the first man to make her come twice. She couldn’t help but feel connected to him.
Even so, she knew this wouldn’t last.Once they got back to The Hague, he would have his job, and she would have hers. They didn’t live in the same hemisphere, let alone the same country. That’s why she would gladly take whatever he gave her now and sort the rest of it out later. Of course, they had to survive first.
She glanced around, spotted a little creature that looked like a cross between a squirrel and a mouse darting through the underbrush. Above her head, orchids bloomed, somehow growing on the bamboo, the air full of the unearthly howls of gibbons. Then one of the branches on the bamboo moved, raised its head.
A green snake.
Shanti stepped back.
Was it a tree viper?
Connor appeared, moving toward her, silent and fast. “There’s a village just across a creek—a farming village with just a few houses and fields. There are soldiers. I couldn’t see how many. We’re going to have to veer to the west to avoid it. Remember that everyone here believes that we’re the enemy. We can’t be seen. Do you understand?”
Chills skittered down Shanti’s spine. “Yes.”
“Are you rested?”
“As rested as I’m going to get.”
“I know you’re hungry. Try to put it out of your mind. When we’re past that village, we can each have an energy bar.”
An energy bar. It sounded like a feast.
“The helicopters are going to be on top of us soon.”
They set out again, making their way to the top of the ridge. Because the trees were thinner there, they moved quickly over and down into dense tree cover again. Going downhill was easier than going up, though rain had left the ground muddy and slick, forcing Shanti to hold onto bamboo stalks and tree branches.
“Careful.” Connor took her hand and helped her down a particularly steep and muddy section.
They hadn’t yet reached the creek when the sound of a helicopter drew near.
“Time to disappear.” Connor took her hand again and drew her deeper into the concealment of the trees and sat. “Get down.”
She sat beside him, looking up, the helicopter beating down on them.
He got out his camo-colored rain poncho and threw it over the two of them, then pulled her close. “Relax.”
Heart pounding, Shanti closed her eyes, rested her head against his chest, the helicopter almost there.
“Breathe,Shanti. They can’t see us.”
She exhaled, her face pressed against his chest, and he could feel her fear.
If Connor had been alone, this would be a different situation. He’d been trained to control his fear, to push himself to the limits of his endurance, to go without food for extended periods, to hunt and live off the land if necessary. This wasn’t the first time he’d had to put those skills to the test.
But it wasn’t just his life on the line now. Shanti had none of his training or experience. She depended entirely on him to get her safely home again. That made him vulnerable in a way he’d never been before.
He didn’t blame Shanti. She’d done nothing to put herself in this position. She was doing everything he asked of her, giving it all she had. No, he blamed whatever had gone wrong at the airport and left Hatch and Davis dead.
Now it was up to him to make sure she made it out of here alive.
The helicopter sounded like it was directly overhead now.