Hunted

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Hunted Page 18

by Theresa Beachman


  She dropped her forehead to the cold rock wall.

  “Isa.” Her name came to her on a breath of air.

  She raised her head not believing what she was hearing.

  “Isa.” The voice was hushed. She risked a sideways glance.

  “Heath?” Where was he?

  He was above her. “I said I would get you home. I keep my promises.”

  Hot emotion clogged her throat. Heath had come for her. “I thought… I thought…”

  “I know. Don’t move.”

  Her forehead hit the rough wall. “I’m not going anywhere.” Her fingertips were white and bloodless, bent like claws against the edge.

  “I’m going to get you out of here.”

  He’d come back for her—and he was hers. Not that it mattered right now. Her heart began to samba again at a crazy rhythm all its own.

  “There’s a shark in the sand,” she warned. “I barely made it to the wall.” Agony lanced through her rigid hands. “I can’t hang on much longer.”

  His voice was deep and reassuring. “I’ve got this covered.”

  Something heavy hit the ground behind her. The sand surged in a torrent of liquid gold, as the shark burrowed straight for him.

  “Heath!”

  An explosion shook the cave with a soft thump. The rock under her fingers crumbled, and Isa tumbled to the ground, viscera and chunks of shark raining on her. She spluttered, covering her nose and mouth with her hands.

  Heath sprinted for her, wiping blood from his jaw and he was smiling. A short distance away, a bloody depression marked the last position of the shark.

  She launched herself into his arms, still not quite believing he was here. Shaking sobs tore through her.

  He snared her close and burrowed his face in her hair. “You okay?”

  She hiccupped and kissed his neck. “Yes,” Words tumbled from her. “Buke did this…he used me and then the shark… and the wall… are you okay…I thought I’d never see you again.” She swiped at his shoulder. “Sorry, my nose, it’s bleeding.”

  “Doesn’t matter.” Hoarse gruffness tinged his voice.

  “I’m so sorry I didn’t trust you. I should never have listened to Buke.”

  He stroked her hair, crushing her against the hardness of his body. Nothin had ever felt so right. “It’s fine. I created my mess taking the job. Angie and Jack tried to tell me. I was just too pig-headed to listen.”

  He was here. She hadn’t dared to think she might ever see him again.

  His forehead bumped hers. “I’m sorry…I should have told you. If I’d been honest from the start you would have seen right through Buke’s lies.” He kissed her hard on the mouth, leaving her breathless. “I thought I’d lost you.”

  She cupped his cheek, her breath hitching. “Never.”

  He lifted the curtain of hair crusted with dried blood from her neck and shook his head, a smile crooking his mouth in admiring disbelief. “You cut the tracker out.”

  Isa touched the ruined gash with tentative fingers. “Seemed like a good idea. I won’t make a habit of it.”

  Heath kissed the line of her jaw, dropped her hair back over the wound. “We’ll get that cleaned up. But first, let’s get out of here.”

  Isa shook her head, tightening her arms around him. “Maybe this is where I’m supposed to be.”

  Heath’s brow creased. “Resu?”

  Isa mock punched him in the chest. “No. Here…with you.”

  “Really?” Heath grinned.

  “Kiss me again.”

  His lips claimed hers and a heady lightness filled Isa’s chest, dispersing the weight of the previous few days.

  “Guys. Less lip action, More getting the hell out of here.” A rope dropped from above and a blonde woman appeared in the gap, her cheeks smeared and dirty, but she was smiling.

  “Isa, meet Angie. She keeps us all in line.”

  Was this the woman Buke had called a droid? Angie flashed Isa a genuine smile. “Hurry. Jack’s waiting. We have a hopper.”

  Heath grabbed the rope. He pulled Isa closer and whispered in her ear. “Tonight, you’re mine.”

  40

  Heath climbed out the cave to air thick with the angry buzz of drones. The cameras swooped high and low, the Games Masters flickering like brilliantly ugly butterflies through the deepening dusk. He pulled Isa out of the dark crevasse, keeping hold of her when she was on her feet. He wasn’t planning on letting go anytime soon.

  “This way.” He led her through crowded trees, his hand clamped around hers, brushing his thumb against the stain-smooth skin of her inner wrist. The flicker of her pulse under his thumb soothed him.

  Angie’s voice was clipped. “I hacked Buke’s communications. Jack’s with his hopper. Hurry.”

  She crashed ahead, impervious to the whip of slender branches or the rough leaves. “There are hunters coming from the other direction. We need to take the long way around.” She held a razor-thin branch and motioned for Isa to follow, her silvered eyes scouring the undergrowth over Isa’s shoulder.

  Heath pivoted seeing the flicker of recognition in Isa’s gaze.

  Buke emerged a few feet away from the shadow of a towering Exorizza tree. He was a mess. His clothes were ripped, one sleeve of his suit torn free, exposing his scrawny white arm. Without the armor of his suit he looked like what he was: a vicious old man. He swayed, his face a bloody mess of tiny cuts, pointing a boxy laser gun at them.

  “I think that’s far enough.” His lips contorted in a feral snarl. The refined sophisticate was long gone. He cocked the weapon with trembling fingers. “If it’s the last thing I do—”

  Heath tensed. “Buke, back off. It’s over.”

  Buke shook his head in a slow side-to-side motion. “No one is leaving with my property.”

  Heath stepped in front of Isa. “That’s not happening.”

  Buke laughed. “You’ve changed your tune.” His face went serious. “Give me the woman or I’ll take both of you down. It’s all or nothing.”

  Heath shook his head. He wasn’t moving. An easy calm settled over him and for the first time that he could remember he didn’t doubt the veracity of his actions. Protecting Isa was the only thing that mattered.

  Isa darted around his side, quick as wildfire. A raw scream ripped from her throat as she threw herself at Buke, her fists colliding with his paunch as she rammed him back under the root canopy of the tree. He skidded underneath on his ass, his gun skittering free. Isa grabbed it and slugged it into the Exorizza trunk with everything she had.

  “I am no one’s property,” she screamed.

  Buke stared up at her from under the tree, his face white with shock but he was scrabbling onto his hands and knees, ready to launch himself at Isa. A tremendous shudder wracked the tree and Buke froze, knowledge dawning on his thin face. Isa slammed the trunk again, and the roots contracted with a crash. Buke’s high-pitched scream rent the air. Branches swung low, and cones and needles fell in a shower that stung Heath’s face as he ripped Isa clear.

  Isa dropped Buke’s gun with a clatter. Blood leaked from the base of the tree. She wiped her hands on her thighs and pushed her hair out of her face. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a while.”

  Heath tugged her close as the tree creaked and settled. He stroked loose hair from her eyes. Something wound tight in his belly relaxed. Buke was dead and Isa was safe.

  A volley of laser fire lit up the sky above their heads. The hunters were closing in. more gunfire sounded and the crashing sound of splintering wood echoed around them.

  Angie cleared her throat. “Buke won’t mind if we steal his hopper and skip the hunt.” She picked up Buke’s oversized laser and pointed. “This way. Jack’s waiting.”

  “Come on.” Heath grabbed Isa’s hand and pulled her away from the grisly scene and the commotion tracking closer. Trembles thrummed through her skin but he tightened his grip and pulled her to his side as they followed Angie to the hopper.

  This
time he wasn’t letting go.

  41

  Prium Star Liner

  Destination: Earth

  Isa was on the opposite side of the table to Heath, toying with a teaspoon. A fitted pale blue shirt hugged the swell of her breasts making his mouth water. They’d spent most of the last two days in bed naked. He just couldn’t get enough of her and he didn’t see that changing soon.

  They were sitting with Angie and Jack on the meal deck, their tickets courtesy of Buke’s hacked account, which Angie used to get them off Resu and on a star liner back to Earth.

  Heath watched Jack spear yet another bite of pancake laced with maple syrup. “You give a new meaning to making the most of all-inclusive.”

  Jack widened his eyes. “What?” he mumbled through his already full mouth. He gestured at his stomach. “You think they were treating us to haute cuisine while we were waiting for you to turn up on Sith’s ship? That kind of eating takes a toll on a man.” He rammed in a loaded forkful. “Ask Angie.”

  Angie raised an eyebrow at Heath from across the table. She sipped her drink. “Don’t drag me into your arguments.”

  Jack wiped at his mouth with a napkin. “We’re not arguing. We’re discussing.” He heaped sugar into his third cup of coffee. “It just so happens I’m always right.”

  Angie lifted a silver pot from the table. “Want any coffee with that?”

  “What? I like sugar.” Jack raised his hands in disbelief as he nabbed another bread roll.

  “Well breakfast has been lovely.” Angie pushed back her chair. “But, I think I’ll go relax on the beach holo-deck for a while.”

  Jack carved some butter to put on his bread roll. “Enjoy yourself.”

  Angie tutted, forcing him to look up. His face creased with confusion when she frowned, but then he glanced at Heath and Isa. “Oh. Right.” He stood up, scraping his chair against the tiled floor, nearly knocking it over. He patted his belly in a mock display of fullness and stuffed the buttered roll in his pocket.

  Angie jerked her head and headed for the breakfast room entrance, her heels clicking with impatience on the gleaming tiles. Jack jogged around the table and grabbed a handful of strawberries. He trotted after Angie, calling out over his shoulder, “Later, lovebirds.”

  Under the table, Heath caught Isa’s hand. “I thought he would never leave.”

  Isa squeezed his fingers. “I like him. I like both of them. Jack’s a hoot and Angie’s awesome. She’s different.”

  Heath stared at the empty doorway. Angie was different. Something inside her was softer. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but it was there all the same—tenderness. “She’s been through a lot.”

  “She thinks the world of you.”

  “We’ve been friends since forever. I would put my life on the line for her. But… that’s it. Angie’s the sister I never had.”

  Isa nodded, biting on her lower lip. Her eyes shone with tears.

  Heath kissed the back of her hand and tugged her to her feet. Now would be a good time to show Isa just how much she meant to him. “Come on, I’ve got something I want to show you.”

  “What?” she asked, folding her napkin.

  “I can’t explain it. I have to show you.” He led her out the restaurant.

  “Where are we going?”

  He touched a finger to her lips. “So many questions.” He grinned. “All will be revealed.”

  It was a few minutes walk to the viewing deck, but it was dark and silent when Heath pulled her into the vaulted space. The solar shields were closed, and the room was in darkness. He steered Isa to the bench in the center of the room. “Wait here.”

  Isa’s grip tightened on his hand and he bent to kiss the top of her head.

  “Dark spaces still freak me out,” she said.

  “There are no sharks here. Hang on.” He palmed the controls on the wall to raise the shields then stepped behind Isa and covered her eyes. She squealed and bumped back against him, the smooth curve of her ass fitting against the top of his thighs, setting his body alight. Heath stifled a groan.

  “Okay. Now you can look.”

  Isa opened her eyes, her skin still tingling from the warmth of Heath’s hands on her skin. She grasped his forearms and drew them around her waist as shields lowered in a complete three hundred and sixty around the small room. The breath stalled in her throat. It was as if she was standing in space. She had to slide her foot along the glass floor to reassure herself it was still there. “Oh my God,” Her voice was little more than a breathy whisper. Everywhere she looked was dusted with stars.

  “What do you think?”

  “It’s just as I imagined but a million times more beautiful.” She craned to see the flanks of the Prium liner but the inky darkness was all encompassing. “Where’s the Prium?”

  “Ship’s computer wipes her image and replaces it with the stars she’s blocking to give a more immersive experience.”

  Heath’s arms tightened around her waistline in a hug of warm possession. He kissed the sensitive spot under her ear. “I want you to have this. It’s yours. Space. All of it. I want you to come with me Isa.”

  This was what she’d wanted her entire life, but she’d never had the strength to pursue it. Could it really be this simple?

  “It’s amazing, but…your ship’s gone.” She turned to face him, soaking up the heat of his palms as he cupped her jaw.

  “Angie did more than book us tickets home. She siphoned off enough for a deposit on a new freighter. It’s waiting in orbit around Earth. For Angie, Jack, me and…you. I’ve already made enquiries and lined up work. I want to do it right this time. Everything above board.”

  Warmth blossomed inside her. Heath cared for her. Despite all her mess-ups he still wanted to be with her. The real her.

  “What about your mom?”

  Heath looked sheepish. “Well, Buke only put a deposit down on the new freighter. I reckoned the least he could do was look after an old lady for a few years.”

  Isa nodded. It would take time for the memory of what Buke had put her through to fade. Knowing he was paying for Heath’s mom would help.

  He lifted her hand and kissed the pale band of skin where her wedding ring used to be. “So what do you say? The pay’s not great but I always have need of a good engineer.”

  Her throat went dry.

  “I want you by my side.” He nodded at the brilliantly scattered stars. “This is yours if you want it. Just like you dreamed of.”

  “Really?” Tears stung her eyes. Isa swallowed hard. No one, Karl especially, had ever understood her dreams but in the short time she’d known Heath he knew her better than anyone. She fought to maintain her composure. “I’d like that.”

  She leaned into him, the reassuring thud of his heart against her cheek. “I have one condition. No more secrets.”

  His voice rumbled through her when he spoke. “No more secrets. I can do that no problem. I want to know everything about you.” He stroked a finger down her spine, arrowing heat straight between her legs. “And I want to call you honey. Or sugar babe?” He flashed her a grin. “Is that too weird?”

  She balanced on her tiptoes and brushed her lips against his. “Show me all the weird you’ve got.”

  Thank you for reading Heath and Isa’s story.

  I really hope you enjoyed it.

  If you loved the book and have a moment to spare, a short review would be much appreciated. Thanks!

  Also by Theresa Beachman

  EARTH RESISTANCE SERIES

  Garrick : Earth Resistance Book 1

  Sawyer : Earth Resistance Book 2

  Darr : Earth Resistance Book 3

  Hardy: Earth Resistance Book 4

  Earth Resistance Omnibus Books 1-3

  OCEAN WOLVES SERIES

  Ocean Wolves

  About the Author

  I live south-west of England with my family and a crazy cat.

  I spend far too much time watching sci-fi B movies, mainly one
s with dodgy special effects. I’m still gutted that Ripley never got it on with Hicks.

  Drop by and say hi!

  theresabeachman.com

 

 

 


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