Man of the Mountain (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Rosemary J. Anderson

  Hooking the field glasses back onto his belt Hawk turned to face her.

  “Anything?” she whispered.

  Shaking his head, he crouched before his pack and took out some jerky. “Nothing as far as I can see.” He handed her the stick of dried meat. “However, I daren’t risk a fire, so this will have to do.”

  Staring at the vile bit of brown stuff in her hand she wanted to protest, but he was the expert, so feeling as if she’d not eaten in a month of Sundays she took a tentative bite and, grimacing at the taste, chewed with determination.

  “Maybe you made a mistake?”

  “What?”

  “No offense but maybe you didn’t see anyone. Maybe it was a trick of the light or an animal or bird of some kind.”

  “Are you questioning my expertise?”

  “No, no of course not.” She shook her head. “It’s just as you can no longer see anything, maybe it wasn’t there in the first…” She bit her lip at the look of fury on his face. “Never mind. I was just thinking out loud.”

  “Well, don’t!” He took a drink and quickly shouldering his pack he rose to his feet. “Come on. We’ve rested long enough. I want to put some distance between us and our, imaginary friends.”

  He had to be joking! They had rested for all of ten minutes, and she was tired. Just because she’d sought to question him, he’d decided to punish her by making her move. Well, for once she was going to do what she wanted, not what a man wanted.

  “No.”

  He swung around to stare at her. “No?”

  Nodding she sat back, resting against a convenient rock.

  “Yes, that’s right, I’ve said no. We’ve barely stopped since we set out this morning, and I’m exhausted and this, this sudden and urgent need to get going, is because I, a woman, has dared to question your expertise. Well, I’m sorry…” She took a deep breath. “But I’m not moving, not for at least an hour.”

  “Very well.” He raised an eyebrow. “I’ll see you on the other side of that ridge, then.”

  Strolling off, his stride loose limbed, she stared after him in amazement. He was leaving her. Actually leaving her!

  Scrambling to her feet she tossed the jerky to one side and picking up her pack dragged it behind her as she raced after him. “Hawk, please wait. I’ve changed my mind.”

  Chapter Ten

  The afternoon wore on, and finally, Alice began to relax. Since this morning there had been no sign of them being followed. Hawk had kept up a punishing pace, and still feeling he had imagined movement on the ridge she knew better than to give voice to her thoughts.

  The temperature was dropping, and she found her breathing was becoming labored with every passing minute. Hawk had warned her that the higher up they climbed the colder it would become and the thinner the air. Suddenly Hawk stopped and placed a warning finger against his lips. Fear returned tenfold, filling her head and whooshing into her chest like water from a hose. Wanting to ask what was happening, with an effort she stayed silent, waiting and watching. Rounding an outcrop of rocks he suddenly began climbing, moving quickly away from her. Confused she stared up after him as he disappeared from view.

  The waiting for Hawk to return became unbearable. Where was he? Sliding down she sat and wrapped her arms comfortingly around her drawn-up knees. Huddled against the rock she silently admitted to feeling more than a little worried. In an effort to pass the time she began singing, little snatches of songs from her childhood. Halfway through “What’s New Pussycat?” she heard the crunch of pebbles underfoot. Rising to her feet she sighed with relief, a happy smile playing around her lips.

  The smile dropped from her lips, and her chest felt tight and constricted. Turning to run her arm was caught in a fierce grip. Her eyes filled with terror as she looked up into the cruel and angry eyes of Abdul.

  “So, Aliceee, you ’ad thought you could get away from me. The man that gave you everything. A roof over your ’ead, beautiful clothes to wear, and even the food that you eat, and this is ’ow you repay me. By running away.”

  Attempting to extricate herself from his grasp she struggled wildly, kicking out at his shins and trying to pry his fingers from her arm. Nodding to two of the men that accompanied him they held her whilst he tied her hands together.

  “Where is ’e? This man who ’elped you get away.”

  “I don’t know, and even if I did I would never tell.”

  “It is no matter. ’E means nothing.” Abdul spat on the ground. “’E ’as left you ’ere alone. So it seems ’e is more interested in saving ’imself than risking ’is life for a woman. Now you will come back with me, and you will be like the other girls and make me much money.”

  Pulling her behind him, Abdul began to lead her back down the mountain. Two of the men with him at a nod of his head turned to follow in the direction Hawk had taken.

  Hawk! Where was he? Had he deliberately left her because he was afraid? She didn’t want to believe it, firmly trusting he wasn’t that kind of man. But what other explanation could there be?

  * * * *

  Time passed, and Alice despaired of ever seeing Hawk again. One of the guards had returned and giving a negative shake of his head had fallen into line behind her. The other guard was nowhere to be seen, and Abdul appeared unconcerned at his lack of return. Falling for the umpteenth time, Alice gave a cry of pain as she was hauled back on her feet by the guards’ savage grip on her upper arm. Her knees were sore, and she could feel blood trickling down her shin to mix with the blood seeping out of her flimsy shoes. Her feet were swollen, blistered, and grazed, which made every step excruciating torture.

  Alice’s mind was blank as she was aimlessly dragged behind Abdul. The heat of the sun burned her shoulders and unprotected head. Abdul conversed in Arabic with his men, and she was for the most part completely ignored. Suddenly, it was as if hell broke loose. Falling to the ground Alice scurried to the side of the rock and, pushing against its hardness, tried to make herself as small as possible. Men seemed to be everywhere appearing as if out of thin air. Screaming, the clack of gunfire, and the thud of flesh upon flesh made the whole scene primitively disturbing. It felt like hours but must have only been minutes before there was a sudden primal scream and then utter silence. An eerie intense silence that seemed to crawl along the length of her spine. Then came the noise. She frowned attempting to recognize the sound.

  Looking up she shielded her eyes from the dust that was being churned up by the helicopter! The sound of the rotors filled the air, and people ran for cover not wanting to be caught in the undercurrent that could send them toppling off the mountain. Not daring to move she hunched against the rock hoping to become invisible, but of course that was like wishing for the moon, and it was with a feeling of intense fear she felt herself once again hauled to her feet.

  Opening her eyes she started to struggle only to stop in joyous surprise as she felt the ropes on her wrists being cut.

  “Hawk, it is you.” She threw herself into his arms.

  “Who else would be riding to your rescue again, princess?”

  “But, you left me, and now there are bandits.”

  “I left you because I saw Abdul and his thugs were closing in. I knew that there was no hope for us if they found us together. We were pretty much outnumbered, so the only thing to do was leave, but I wasn’t far away. I knew these guys were just over the ridge, so I called on them for their assistance and…” He shrugged. “You know the rest.”

  “But they are bandits, Hawk, bandits,” she whispered.

  “They can still hear you, Alice, and yes, they are bandits but friendly ones, well, at least to me, us. I knew them from some time ago when I was extracting a government official, anyway—well, that’s a story for another time. Let’s just say I was of help to them and they have now returned the favor.”

  Alice looked all round and smiled shyly. But suddenly feeling overcome she buried her head in Hawk’s shirt.

  Some conversation later, Hawk
indicated that they were leaving. Abdul was lying dead at the bottom of the mountain, but unfortunately, his henchmen had escaped in the helicopter that had obviously been called to remove Abdul and herself from the mountain. Regrettably it would now be bringing more men, more dangerous than Abdul.

  Soon they were climbing, and Hawk kept a protective arm around her, reassuring her that they would be stopping shortly and he would then tend to her injuries. The bandits had invited them to spend the night. Their hideaway was well concealed, and they would be safe should more of Abdul’s gang return.

  The climb was steep, but Hawk stayed at Alice’s side, which gave her a warm and reassuring feeling. The bandits were surefooted and obviously knew the terrain well, but for Alice each step was a lesson in dexterity and agony. Hawk appeared to trust the men. carrying on an easy conversation in a dialect she was unable to comprehend. However, she had serious doubts about their safety, after all, they were in the company of bandits, cunning and wily criminals. There were about twelve men in total, ranging in ages, but all were toting a rifle and a nasty machete, and all were dressed in dirty trousers and baggy shirts with a bullet belt carried across the chest.

  With each agonizing step, Alice felt like they would never reach the bandits’ camp. Time seemed to have lost all meaning, and she knew she was becoming more and more of a liability. However, she now lacked the strength and the will to help herself. Stopping briefly when Hawk shouted to the leader, the men all began talking and gesticulating at once. Alice’s head began to spin with the befuddling sound of it all, and sinking to the ground she leaned against the rock face and closed her eyes waiting for whatever was to happen next. Feeling the press of a canteen against her mouth she opened her eyes. Staring into Hawk’s face she wondered at the look in his eyes, but too exhausted to think about it she instead took great gulps of water. Suddenly she was swung up into strong arms, and finally giving into the need for sleep she just closed her eyes and relaxed against him, feeling the reassuring thump, thump, thump of his heart under her cheek.

  Chapter Eleven

  Alice opened heavy, tired eyes. Her vision was blurred, and she blinked several times to clear the mistiness. The light was dim, and she turned her head. She appeared to be in a cave, and light flickered across the dark rock walls. The flickering oranges and yellows of flames danced up the rock, casting shadows and lighting hidden crevices. Then the noise penetrated her consciousness, the babble of voices, raised high with excitement and sounding strange, the crackle of the fire, and the shifting of feet. Sniffing delicately she tried to recognize the smells that assailed her nostrils, a cornucopia of odors. There was a fusion of scents, the dampness of the cave, the smell of earth and of body odor and of wood smoke and something else, something exotic yet familiar—the smell of cooking, of a tajine. Her stomach rumbled. It seemed ages since she’d eaten anything substantial, and the thought of the rich stew made her mouth water. Now fully awake she became aware of her body, of every ache and pain, her sore feet and shoulders, skinned knees, broken nails, and the cooling of sweat on her body making her feel sticky and uncomfortable. She was lying on the silver-backed blanket, but she could feel the hard, cold earth and small pieces of grit penetrating its thickness and digging into her sensitive skin.

  “Ah, so you’re awake.”

  Alice blinked and squinted up at the figure in shadow looming over her. “Hawk?”

  “Who else? Fancy something to eat?”

  Gingerly sitting up and wincing as her hurts made themselves felt she licked dry lips and nodded. “Please, and could I have some water?”

  Gulping down the water Hawk had fetched her, Alice looked around. The band of bandits consisted of around twelve in all. None appeared to speak English and conversed at a rate of knots, laughing and thumping backs in a sign of camaraderie. Surreptitious glances were sent her way by some of the men, looks that she studiously ignored.

  Handing her a bowl of the flavorsome-smelling stew, Hawk sat beside her on the blanket. No cutlery had been provided, but there was a big hunk of bread that was used as a scoop. Lifting the laden bread she inhaled deeply and her stomach growled in response to her watering mouth. Chewing slowly, savoring the spices, she began to relax—some decent food at last and no more rats, cockroaches, or snakes this time. Silence ensued as the meal was eaten, and when replete she placed the empty bowl on the ground. Smiling into her eyes, Hawk lifted an inquiring eyebrow. “How was it?”

  “Superb. Honestly I think it’s the best meal I’ve ever tasted.”

  Nodding Hawk offered her a piece of fruit.

  “Melon!” she exclaimed in surprise. “How is it they’ve managed to get such delicious food all the way up here?”

  “The food tonight is in your honor. They don’t always eat like this. However, most of the food as everything else they have is stolen. Otherwise they make do with whatever’s on hand.”

  “How did they know I was coming? I mean, as the food is in my honor and all?”

  “They didn’t. The melon had been saved for a special occasion and the head man”—he nodded in the direction of a savage-looking individual—“decided that tonight was one such occasion. However, the meat, well, that discussion is best left to another time.”

  “What do you mean? It was lamb, wasn’t it? Oh no…” she cried when he remained silent. “Please tell me it wasn’t snake or…” She swallowed. “Rat!”

  Hawk grinned. “No, that I can reassure you on. It wasn’t snake or rat.”

  “Then what?”

  “Think of it as being something like a chicken.”

  “A chicken?”

  “S’right.”

  Alice frowned, wondering what could be like a chicken but not be a chicken.

  “Anyway, let’s get your feet seen to, then you need to get some sleep. We’ll be moving again at first light, and you can bet Abdul’s men would have got reinforcements by now.”

  Biting her lip as Hawk eased the sandals from her bloodied feet she tried to take her mind off the pain by thinking of birds or animals that were like chickens.

  “Luckily your feet haven’t become infected. The straps of your sandals have cut deeply into your flesh, and you’ve blisters on your heels. I’ve bathed them and treated them with some antiseptic cream. However, you’ll have to keep them bandaged, which means you can no longer wear these useless things.” He threw the sandals to one side.

  “But what will I wear? I can’t go barefoot.”

  “One of the men has made you these.” He held out a pair of boots made with a kind of suede crudely sewn with strips of leather laced through holes cut in the cloth. Rather like babies’ knitted booties.

  “Not very substantial but if I strip off the straps of your sandals the sole can be put inside as added protection.”

  Alice nodded barely aware of what he was saying. Her feet throbbed in time with her heartbeat, and tiredness had washed over her like a great wave. Wanting nothing more than to lie down and sleep the nightmare that was her life away, she pulled the pack that was her pillow closer.

  “No, before you sleep, Alice, I need to take a look at your shoulders. Your T-shirt has blood on it where the pack appears to have rubbed, so you’ll have to take your top off.”

  At his words her eyes snapped open, and she became alert. “You cannot be serious,” she hissed, looking around. “There are men everywhere, and if you think I’m exposing myself to this lot you can think again.”

  “Relax.” Hawk grinned. “From this angle they can’t see a thing, and with me kneeling in front of you it would be impossible for them to get a glimpse of any of your…attributes.”

  Biting her lip Alice reluctantly removed her shirt and the flimsy harem bra, the gossamer material now soaked with her blood.

  “You can’t put that on again. I’ll burn it on the fire. Anyway going without will ease the chafing. Brace yourself, this is going to sting a bit.”

  * * * *

  Hawk gently and carefully washed away the blood
and, applying the antiseptic salve, placed a thick sticking plaster on each shoulder. Inadvertently his gaze dropped to her bountiful breasts, the firelight adding a peachy glow to each pearly crest. Her nipples had hardened under his gaze and were almost begging him to take one into his mouth. Wanting to reach out and fondle her breasts he resisted the urge to throw her back onto the blanket, spread her legs, and sink into her soft yielding body. However as this wasn’t the time or the place he curtailed his overactive libido, and helping her back on with her shirt he dropped a light kiss on her lips.

  “Get some sleep, princess, and don’t worry, you’re perfectly safe. I’ll be here to protect you.”

  “My hero,” she mumbled sleepily.

  Chapter Twelve

  Alice came awake by the insistent hand shaking her shoulder.

  “Whatisit?” she mumbled, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

  “Come on, princess, it’s time we were going. If you want to use the, err, facilities, such as they are, they’re back that away.” He nodded his head toward the back of the cave. Dropping a torch beside her he grinned wryly. “Be quick, and I’ll get you a coffee and something to eat, then we must be off. Our friends will accompany us for a short time, then we’re on our own.”

  Having completed her toilette, Alice had a quick wash in a minute amount of ice-cold water and scoffed a piece of stale bread covered with some kind of spread before gingerly shouldering her pack. Her shoulders still felt sore, but the agonizing burning pain had diminished. Wrapping the rope around Alice’s waist, Hawk preceded the bandits from the cave.

  Blinking rapidly at the glare from the sun, Alice stumbled along behind Hawk.

  The going was hard, climbing over rocks, scaling almost vertical precipices, and scrambling down crevices. The day wore on and except for short breaks for a rest, a handful of trail mix, and gulps of water they kept moving. Alice paid no heed to where they went. She was focused on just staying upright. Her feet hurt, not with the burning intensity of before, but with an incessant throb, and she felt like there was a blazing trail of fire running over her shoulders and down her arms. Sweat beaded her brow, and perspiration ran persistently down her spine to pool like a chilled lake in the small of her back. The air was thinner now, and she felt each and every labored breath.