Christ. How were all these people so damn cold-hearted?
“Ready to rock and roll?”
No. She was perfectly fine exactly where she was. “Where are we going?”
“Somewhere fabulous. There’s water and trees and no one within a fifty-mile radius.”
Yeah, Quinn was sure it was a real paradise.
Carter moved across the room.
“Wyatt will save me, you know.”
Maybe if she said it out loud enough, her brain, which was clouded by a thick fog of panic, would start to believe it.
“Oh, I’m counting on it. Because it means he’s played by my rules. While he saves you, I’ll be so far gone they won’t see so much as a print in the dirt.”
Quinn frowned. “So, you’re not going to kill me?”
She watched as he rummaged in a bag. His body blocked what was inside so she had no idea what he was doing.
“Not if I get what I want. Your future lies in their hands.”
When he appeared to be done, Carter tossed the backpack onto his back and moved in front of her. She had to stop herself from moving away when he bent down, a mere inch separating their faces.
“So you see, I’m hoping you live. Because if you live, my boss gets what he wants.”
In the next moment, Carter threw her body over his shoulder. The air was temporarily knocked out of her by the impact. There was also a pang of pain.
She struggled to catch her breath as he began moving outside. “Why did you call Wyatt an ‘old friend’? Who are you?”
Carter laughed. “Because once upon a time, we were both SEALs. Supposedly fighting for the same cause.”
“Supposedly?”
“Your boyfriend Wyatt is a Boy Scout. His whole team is. Whereas I never enlisted to help people. I enlisted because I like the feel of a gun in my hand. The power that surges through my body when someone else’s life is at my mercy. You should see the desperation that shows on a man’s face when he wants to live. It’s pathetic.”
Okay. If it hadn’t been confirmed before, it was now. The guy was a homicidal maniac. “So you like scaring people.”
“I like control. And power. That’s what Hylar has given me and my team. Unrivaled power. He gave that to Wyatt’s team, too, and the guys just threw it back in his face. They should have gotten down on their knees and thanked the man.”
There wasn’t a chance Wyatt, her brother, or any of those men would have “thanked” Hylar for what he did.
“Hold on, darlin’.”
That was the only warning Quinn got before Carter sped up. He began moving so fast, everything passed in a blur.
Quinn gripped him. She doubted he would drop her. But then, she didn’t really know what he’d do.
It felt like a good fifteen minutes, maybe more, before she was dumped on the ground.
There was a moment of relief that she no longer had a rock-hard shoulder pressed to her stomach. Then she heard the water. Rapidly moving water that was loud and angry.
Turning her head, she saw a river with powerful rapids behind her.
“What are we doing here?”
Carter pulled his shirt over his head. “You sure you want to know? I can tell you, but sometimes a surprise is easier.”
No. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know. But whether he told her or not, she was sure she would be finding out soon enough.
When Carter began removing his shoes and pants, her heart started to race. “Please tell me you aren’t taking me into the water.”
Carter’s mouth pulled into a smile. The guy was enjoying her fear way too much. “You’re a clever girl, aren’t you. I am taking you into the water. There’s no need to be scared, though. I told you you’d probably survive this.”
It was the “probably” part that Quinn was concerned about.
“I don’t understand what you hope to gain by doing this. If you sent them the address to the cabin, the guys will easily be able to track us here.” Quinn’s voice betrayed her shortness of breath. Her palms were sweaty.
Carter was now naked, bar a pair of underwear. “Oh, darlin’, I won’t be meeting them at the cabin or here. The location I sent is a twenty-minute drive north. They won’t find you unless they play by my rules.”
Standing, Carter lifted a gun that looked to be straight out of fiction—some kind of grappling gun, with a lethal-looking steel hook protruding from the end.
Was Arma in the business of developing weapons other than men and drugs?
Before she could ask, Carter turned toward the river and aimed the weapon at a huge boulder that sat in the middle of the water, then pulled the trigger. The hook attached to the rock. Connected to the hook was rope leading back to the gun. To Carter.
Shoving the gun in his bag, he returned the bag to his back. Carter took two steps toward Quinn. “You ready for a swim?”
Absolutely not. She was pretty sure it wasn’t optional though.
Carter lifted Quinn into his arms, her chest pressed to his, and moved toward the untamed rapids. The hold was almost intimate, and Quinn wanted to lean away. The moment he stepped into the water, however, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and her legs around his waist.
A violent trembling began in her limbs. Her stomach was doing twists and turns. There was no part of her that wanted to continue into the water, even if she was being carried by a genetically altered super-soldier. “What if we don’t make it across?”
“Then you’ll probably die.”
There was no remorse in the man’s voice. Not even a hint of it.
Asshole.
She probably would die, too. The water looked like it would suck her in and steal the life from her body. Completely unforgiving.
Carter navigated his way through the river, using the rope to pull them across.
The journey was wet and dangerous. The water beat at her body. Unrelenting in its fury. It was impossible not to ingest mouthfuls when it hit her full force in the face.
She hated using Carter’s body as a shield, but it was the only remnant of protection she had.
There were a few moments when Carter seemed to physically strain at the effort to get them across. Quinn just held him tighter, until her fingers ached from her grip on his neck.
When they finally made it to the rock, Carter pushed her up first before following. There was just enough room for both of them.
She watched in dread as he unstrapped the bag from his back and pulled something out. Something large. A vest, maybe?
Carter crouched in front of her.
Yep. It was a vest. But not a regular vest.
He shoved it over her head before she got a good look at it, then quickly secured the straps on the sides. The thing was heavy. Almost like it was weighed down with stones.
When the vest was firmly in place, he reached into the bag and pulled out a small device, which he swiftly pushed into Quinn’s hand. He pressed her thumb to the top. His own thumb remained above hers, applying pressure.
“Now, Quinn, I need you to listen carefully. The item I’ve just placed on your chest is a bomb.”
At the word “bomb,” fear stabbed at her heart and stole her breath.
“There are a few ways for it to detonate. The first is if I press the button on this remote detonator right here.” He took a remote out of his bag and waved it in front of her with his free hand before putting it back. “The second way is for time to run out on the timer. The third and final way for you to blow up is if you remove your thumb from the detonator in your hand. Nod if you understand what I just said.”
It took about five seconds for his words to sink in. To grasp the fact that she was wearing a bomb on her chest. That there were three separate ways it could detonate. Three! And one was literally in the palm of her hand.
“Quinn?”
Was there humor in the asshole’s voice?
Even though tears built in Quinn’s eyes and fear pulsed through her veins, she couldn’t help but fee
l the all-consuming anger that was bubbling to the surface. Anger that the man in front of her had put her in this situation. That he was enjoying her absolute terror.
“I heard you.”
“Good. Now, because I’m going to make a promise to that boyfriend of yours that you’ll live if he gives me what I want, and I’m a man of my word, I’m going to tell you something. Something important—green signifies life.” He laughed. “Guess that’s why I’ve never been a fan of the color. I’m more a gory death kind of guy.”
Quinn barely registered his words. She was more focused on his thumb lifting from hers.
Suddenly, it was just her holding down the button. The button that could blow her up on the spot.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she felt the trickle of a tear slide down her cheek.
You’re okay, Quinn. Everything will be okay. Just focus on maintaining the pressure.
When Quinn opened her eyes, she shot fire at the man in front of her. “They might not kill you today, but make no mistake, they will kill you. And when they do, I hope you regret every terrible thing you’ve ever done in your life.”
One side of his mouth lifted. “I like you. If circumstances were different, I may have even kept you.” Carter stood. “Unfortunately for you, they won’t kill me. Eventually, they’ll either join us or die. The good news for Boy Scout is that it will probably be his choice. Hylar loves the guy. He loves all of them, actually. No idea why.”
Quinn didn’t believe any of that for a second. Wyatt and his team would find a way to destroy Carter, Hylar, and everyone else helping them. She knew it with absolute certainty.
She watched as Carter detached the hook from the rock and shot it back toward the riverbank.
It took him less time to cross the river without her. He quickly dressed before disappearing into the woods.
The vest felt like a giant manacle tying Quinn to the spot. Every wave that crashed against the rock jolted her into sitting a bit straighter. She couldn’t afford a lapse in attention. That’s all it would take. One moment of distraction, and she would be gone.
Lifting her other hand, she placed it over her thumb.
Focus, Quinn.
Closing her eyes, she tried to push away the fear and uncertainty. Trick her mind into believing she was somewhere else. Somewhere safe.
She was with Wyatt. They were by the ocean. Sitting on the sand. Her big protector. The man she never asked for or expected, but now, never wanted to lose. The man who listened to her heartbeat every single day and knew that it beat for him.
Chapter 28
Every minute that passed fueled Wyatt’s rage.
Where the hell was Carter?
The location he’d sent them to was an empty field about ten miles off the highway. The place was deserted. They’d been waiting at least fifteen minutes, and Carter and Quinn were nowhere to be seen.
Oliver and Kye had joined them ten minutes ago. Kye had been shot in the shoulder with a tranquilizer gun. The stuff was fast-acting but clearly had a short duration. Which meant he was now fine, just angry as hell about what had happened.
Tanya, Darren’s wife, had shot him.
Tanya, who Quinn had been adamant was innocent in all this.
Well, that definitely wasn’t the case.
The bag of stolen materials sat at Wyatt’s feet. There wasn’t a chance he was parting with the stuff until they knew Quinn was safe.
His frustration was just about to boil over when the sight of a car caught his attention. Wyatt watched closely as Carter parked a few feet away before stepping out.
The moment Wyatt realized Carter was alone, the fury he’d only just been containing rose to the surface.
Wyatt was in the other man’s face before he’d stepped away from the car. “Where is she?”
Carter’s expression remained neutral. “Wyatt, in case I wasn’t clear on the phone, every decision you make pushes your girlfriend closer to living another day…or dying within the hour. Guess which way you’re tipping her right now.”
The anger was like a living, breathing species inside him. Even though it was the hardest damn thing he’d ever done, Wyatt stepped back from the man.
Carter straightened his shirt before looking back to Wyatt. A smile stretched across his lips. A smile that was nowhere close to reaching his eyes.
“Lovely day for a catch-up, isn’t it?”
Mason stepped up beside Wyatt. “If you don’t tell us where my sister is, we’re going to tear you apart limb by limb.”
He chuckled. The sound was soul-wrenching. “You won’t. Not if you want her alive. You kill me, she dies. I guess you could always try to torture the information out of me, but we both know that, just like you, I’ve been trained to withstand it. By the time you have what you need, she’ll be long gone. Don’t believe me? Go ahead and try.”
Wyatt forced his body to remain where it was. To not grab the guy by the throat and throw him against the vehicle.
“I assume by your silence, you understand.” Carter turned his head and looked at the rest of the team. “We’ve got almost the whole gang here. That’s great. Unfortunately, I’m under strict instructions from the commander not to kill any of you. Something about not being able to afford any more losses. Shame, really. I wouldn’t classify the death of any of you as a loss.”
Luca stepped forward. “Just tell us where she is, Carter.”
“Patience, my friend. If I get what I need, I’ll give you her location. And I really hope I do, because she wasn’t in the best position when I left her.”
Wyatt lunged forward, but Mason stopped him. Barely. “I’m going to destroy you, you asshole.”
The smile slipped from Carter’s lips. For the first time since stepping out of the car, the friendly facade fell and Wyatt got to see the real Carter.
“I should be the one destroying you.” He took a step closer. “You decimated our army, killed just about every soldier we had. Every soldier I’d trained. You freed our prisoners. You imprisoned our lab technicians and medical staff. If the commander wasn’t so set on keeping you alive, you’d be lying in a pool of your own blood right now.”
Not a chance.
“So why does he want us alive?” Kye asked.
“Because he places inflated value on you. Because his ego is blinding him. He created you. He owns you. He doesn’t want to destroy what he’s created. He wants to control it. He just hasn’t clicked onto the fact that you’ll never fight his war. But soon, he’ll come around.” Carter’s eyes swung to the bag behind Wyatt. “Today, all he wants are the drugs you took from him. The drugs that will be used to make more soldiers like us. To rebuild what you tore down. They’re the last of their kind in the country. Time is of the essence. Hence their importance.”
None of Wyatt’s team moved a muscle.
“How do we know that if we give you this bag, you’ll give us her location?” Mason asked.
“You don’t.” Carter almost looked happy about that. Wyatt took deep breaths, forcing his body to calm. “But even though I have very few positive qualities, one thing I do possess is loyalty to the commander. He told me to keep her alive unless you didn’t follow my orders. And that’s what I intend to do.”
“Why would he let her live?” Oliver asked the question, and it damn near tore Wyatt in two.
“The same reason he ordered the hit on his sister. Because family—love—is a liability. Something that can be used against you, should the need arise. We want as much of that as possible.”
Killed his sister? Wyatt didn’t even know Hylar had a sister.
“Ticktock. Quinn has,” Carter looked at his watch, “less than an hour. That’s if she hasn’t blown herself up already.”
“You put a fucking bomb on her?” Wyatt was seething.
Oliver stepped forward. He pressed one hand to Wyatt’s shoulder and used the other to shove the bag into Carter’s chest. “Take it. Now, where is she?”
Carter opened the bag a
nd inspected the contents before looking up. “In ten minutes, I’ll be pulling over and checking the bag. If I find any trackers, or anything else that shouldn’t be there, I blow her up. If, in the next twenty minutes, I realize someone is following me, I’ll blow her up. You get what I’m saying?”
Oliver nodded. “We got it.”
“Good. She’s a twenty-minute drive away. I’ll text you the exact location when I’m in my car.” He opened the door and placed the bag inside. “Well, it’s been fun, boys. Until next time.”
He was just bending to slide into the car when Luca’s question stopped him. “How did you know the materials were in our possession?”
He only paused for a moment before sliding the rest of the way into the car. “Maybe when you join us, you’ll learn our secrets.”
Quinn’s entire body shook violently. She wasn’t sure if it was from the cold wind blowing on her wet body or fear. Probably both. It was all she could do to keep her thumb pressed to the button in her hand.
It wasn’t just the button that was causing terror to paralyze her. It was also that damn timer.
Nine minutes. That’s how long the countdown timer said she had until the thing blew up. Nine minutes until her life could be over.
She watched as another minute ticked down. A small whimper escaped her lips.
The timer had probably been the worst part of this whole thing. Watching time tick by was torture. Every minute that passed brought her a minute closer to her death.
Every so often, waves hit her back. Threatening to push her right off the rock.
God. What a nightmare.
If she died, she prayed that Wyatt was okay. That her brother was okay. That they didn’t spend their lives punishing themselves over her death. The entire blame lie with that damn organization they were fighting. She really hoped they remembered that.
Wyatt and Mason deserved to be happy. Wyatt deserved to find someone who would love him as long and as hard as he deserved.
Wyatt: A steamy contemporary military romance (Project Arma Book 5) Page 21