Falling Hard

by HelenKay Dimon

  “New plan.” He hated suggesting this but it was the right thing for her. It would keep her safe. He looked at Raheel. “You take Lexi and head out.”

  She pushed away from him. “You are coming with us.”

  Before his eyes she morphed into the strong, sure, confident woman he met that first night at the clinic and had run with since then. She wasn’t taking any of his shit. He loved this side of her. All sides of her, really, but he didn’t get her this far only to have her get clipped by a stray bullet.

  “They will fire on me,” Raheel said.

  Now was not the time to discuss international politics and the Alliance understanding that a specific ethnic background didn’t make you a bad guy. Hell, they’d been tracking Pearce, and he was an American asshole. Looked like Benton was, too. Being a bad guy knew no international bounds.

  Besides, Raheel would have an advantage. He’d be holding one of the assets Alliance needed, and Josiah knew not to shoot. “They’ll see Lexi and take her.”

  She waved a hand in front of West’s face. “I’m right here.”

  He grabbed her hand and pressed it against his chest. “I need to stop Benton.”

  “You need help. You’re injured and you said your men are right here. Let them handle this.” She did not give an inch.

  Not his style, but before he could come up with a response, a man popped out of the tunnel entrance in front of him and then quickly disappeared again.

  This was not the place for a firefight, but they had no choice.

  “Get back.” He shoved Lexi against Raheel and both fell against the wall. West pressed back as tight as he could but he was an open target.

  Three men came out shooting. Tom passed behind them and kept going, heading out into another tunnel that could go anywhere. West wanted to follow but focused on the targets he could see.

  Gunfire rang back and forth. Something stung the skin on his upper arm, this time on the uninjured side. Just what he needed. He could shoot with either arm but needed at least one. Good thing it felt like it skimmed the fabric and little more.

  They traded shots, Raheel and West taking turns firing and stepping back. The chaos and noise had Lexi wincing but she held out her hand in what West took to be a request for a weapon. He ignored that. But they couldn’t keep this pace up. Eventually other men would come running and they could get trapped. West knew he had to move out, draw fire.

  He looked at Raheel. “I’ll swing around and shoot everyone. You cover me.”

  “Damn it, no.” Lexi grabbed his arm.

  The move put her in the firing line, and West lost it. “Get down.”

  As he moved in front of her, one of the hostiles fell forward. Wrong direction. The other two spun around, and the move gave West the perfect shot. He fired twice, one to the back of each head, and watched them crumple.

  He heard shuffling then and prepared to unload again just as Javed stepped into view. He’d abandoned his uniform for street clothes. His pants and shirt were stained with blood and his eyes were wild, as if an adrenaline rush had him in its grip.

  He motioned to them. “Come.”

  “You’re here?” Lexi blinked but didn’t move. She had a hand wrapped around West’s arm, and her fingers tightened.

  West was willing to give the guy the benefit of the doubt. He could always put a bullet in him later if this turned out to be a ruse. “Any more hostiles?”

  “We’ll have to shoot our way through.”

  That worked for him. “Done.”

  Javed turned and ran right into another man’s chest. A familiar chest attached to a guy with a furious scowl.

  West almost smiled.

  Guns came up on both sides and the shouting started. Raheel looked ready to fire.

  “Everyone stop.” West pointed to Mike, Ward, and Josiah. “They belong with me. And, Mike, the guy you’re trying to strangle is Javed.”

  “So?”

  Ward stared at West. “You were a hard man to find.”

  “I thought we should leave you here.” Mike didn’t ease up on his grip on Javed. “And should I let this guy go?”

  “Javed and Raheel are with us.” Lexi straightened her shoulders and stepped up next to West. “They’re Fearless Five.”

  She acted like they were at a fancy dinner instead of in a shithole in Pakistan. West had to touch her then. He put a hand against her lower back, ignoring the twinge in his shoulder when he moved it. The stares from his team members also blew by him. He’d worry about that later.

  “Lexi, this is Ward, the boss, and Mike.” He then pointed to Josiah. “You know this guy.”

  Mike pushed Javed to the side and looked at West. “You done being lazy and ready to get back to work?”

  Lexi took another step. This one put her half in front of West. “He’s been tortured and needs help.”

  “Do you?” Ward asked him.

  Mike snorted. “That would be a first. Not the torture. You seem to get off on that.”

  West thought Lexi’s wording—that he needed help—bordered on offensive, but the way she rose to his defense definitely did not suck. He put a hand on her shoulder and leaned down with his lips close to her ear. “He’s kidding.”

  Mike’s eyebrow rose. “Well now.”

  Josiah nodded. “Told you.”

  “This isn’t an official Pakistani army operation.” West decided talking quickly and ignoring the byplay was the right way to go. Plus, he needed the information out there. “Benton is here.”

  Ward frowned. “You’ve seen him?”

  “Yeah.” The other men nodded. They had the facts and would all know this was good news. They had a face now and could get to tracking. But Benton wasn’t the only ass-wipe in town. “So is Pearce.”

  Ward waved that off. “Yeah, we let him out and sent him in your direction on purpose.”

  The strangled sound came first. Then Lexi brushed by West to stand right in front of Ward. “What is wrong with you?”

  One of his eyebrows rose. “Excuse me?”

  “West almost died.”

  “I’m fine.” He understood the plan and admired Ward for taking the risk. And watching Ward handle Lexi when she was spitting mad was something to see.

  West knew he should step in but he liked seeing her all fiery. He also knew since Ward lived with Tasha, he had plenty of experience with pissed off women who didn’t back down. They were a special breed. West never thought he’d get lucky enough to spend time with one.

  Then she turned on him. “You are not okay.”

  But there were limits to how much West could take in front of the other men. He had a reputation to uphold. “Enough.”

  “Interesting.” Mike whistled and glanced over at Josiah. “You were right.”

  Josiah nodded. “Told you.”

  And that was likely the end of peace as West knew it. Once these guys got hold of something, they chewed it until they choked on it. He had never been in the hot seat but feared he’d take that role now.

  Fine. He would not apologize for wanting her. That was something they could deal with back at the office. Right now they needed to find fresh air. “We need to move.”

  Ward held up his hand as he looked at his watch. “Wait for it.”

  “What?” Lexi asked.

  The second explosion rattled the rock walls. Pebbles cascaded down and the ground shook as if an earthquake had hit. The team members stood there and rode it out. Raheel and Javed flattened themselves against the tumbling walls.

  West had the best job. Holding Lexi, even as she squirmed to see what was happening.

  He looked over her head at Ward. “Diversion?”

  Ward smiled. “You impressed?”

  “Pretty much.”

  21

  THEY FANNED out in front of her as they led her through the cave tunnels. No one jumped out at them and the guns stayed silent.

  Lexi went from trying to calm the fear bouncing around inside of her to battling back a f
alse sense of being completely safe. Probably had something to do with the wall of hulking men surrounding her.

  They were not out of trouble. Men and explosions and guns all wound around them, but as she held onto the back of West’s shirt in a tight grip, she felt real hope for the first time in hours. The worries about West being electrified in front of her fell away. This group, the men and how they joked with each other through the stress, how lethal they all looked, had her mind turning from survival to something more. She wanted the men who hurt West to pay.

  He called to her over his shoulder, “You okay back there?”

  She wanted to hug him. Give him another kiss. Since Mike kept smiling at her, she refrained. She had a feeling he was waiting for a public display of affection so he could bug West about it.

  She settled for leaning into him, almost touching her lips against his neck. “I’ll breathe better back at the clinic.”

  For the briefest of seconds he rested his head against hers. “I’ll be happy when you’re on a plane to DC.”

  Not exactly a location that popped into her mind. “What’s in DC?”

  “It’s where I live.”

  A new kind of hope bloomed inside her. Blame it on the adrenaline or the danger, she didn’t care. Something was happening between them. What she felt for him was not gratitude for being alive. She wanted him. Wanted to get to know him and give them a chance. To do that, his comment would have to mean something.

  “Do you two want to be alone?” Josiah asked as he and Mike shifted positions and Mike took point.

  Accent or not, she was not in the mood. “Do you want me to kick you in the shins?”

  Josiah shot Ward a quick look. “I like her.”

  Ward laughed. “You’re not alone.”

  She decided that was a good sign and didn’t push it. She also had to step back because she kept running up West’s back and kicking the back of his boots with the front of hers.

  They got to a fork and the first two men repeated the system they’d been using the whole way through this exit strategy. They checked first, and when they gave the all clear signal, they all turned the last corner. This time they broke into an open area just inside the tunnel maze. They’d made it the whole way from the back to the front of the cave without running into more gunfire.

  When they moved into the fading sunshine, flames rose into the sky in front of them. She stared in awe at the destruction around her. It was as if a bomb had gone off. Overturned trucks and debris littered the area. There was a huge hole off to one side with scorched earth around it.

  She saw bodies and a line of trucks driving away from the compound. “What happened?”

  Mike gave her a quick smile. “That was us.”

  “We have men to catch.” Ward looked at West. “We need to break apart, and you’re the only one who’s seen Benton.”

  “Raheel has too.”

  “Good.” Ward grabbed Raheel by the shoulder. “You’ll come with me and I’ll take Mike.”

  West shook his head. “We need to get Lexi out of here.”

  Interesting how he could compartmentalize and forget all that happened to him. If he wasn’t going to fill his team in on what happened, she would. “You still need a doctor.”

  “Aren’t you a doctor?” Mike asked.

  West cut him off. “Don’t ask.”

  “There’s no time for any of this.” Ward glanced into the distance. “We have to handle the remaining area and do it fast because the rest of Delta can only hold off the Pakistani army for so long.”

  Javed stepped forward. “What should I do?”

  Seeing the exhaustion on her friend’s face was a harsh reminder. She thought about all she’d been through over the last few hours, but it now looked like she’d be able to walk away. Javed and Raheel would be mired in this. There could be serious repercussions.

  Ward continued to issue orders. “You need to figure out how to buy us time before more people come.”

  West shifted her behind him and stepped toward his boss. “Ward—”

  “Sorry, man. She’s still your asset.” Ward blew out a long breath. “She’s in this with us until we can get her out, and that’s not now.”

  Asset? That was the one thing Lexi clued in on. “I have a name.”

  “We can spend more time chatting later.” Ward clapped his hands. “Go.”

  West watched Ward and the others split off to the right. Then he took Josiah and Lexi and went left. Not that he could concentrate. Part of him needed Lexi out of the firing line. So many shots and none had hit her. That was pure luck. He didn’t want to push it.

  Not that he had a choice, but he could be clear on his expectations. “You don’t move without me telling you it’s okay, got it?”

  Josiah shook his head as he stepped away and gave them a few feet of space. “You need to work on your romance.”

  As if he didn’t know that. He hadn’t even tried romance until her. “Shut the fuck up.”

  Josiah’s head shot up again. “We ready?”

  That depended on her answer. West looked at her. “Lexi?”

  She shrugged. “I heard you.”

  “There.” Josiah clapped. “Let’s go.”

  They weren’t even close to an agreement. “She’s purposely not agreeing.”

  “Gee, I wonder why.” Josiah turned around. “If I were Pearce, where would I hide?”

  West wanted to stay on this topic. He thought about pushing the issue, but the determined look on Lexi’s face told him she was not open to a reasonable discussion. “Wherever a weasel would go.”

  Josiah wiped a hand over his mouth. “Take a truck and—”

  “He’s in the caves.” Lexi pointed at the opening to the tunnels.

  They both looked at her. “What?”

  “I saw Tom when West was shooting at those other men.” She talked and her hands moved as she explained. “He slipped into a tunnel on the other side of where we are. We didn’t pass by him again, so I’m thinking he stayed in there.”

  “I saw him, too.” West searched his memory for Tom’s exact location the last time he saw him. “Pearce isn’t moving without Tom, so I’d bet they’re together.”

  Josiah frowned. “He had to get out.”

  “Why?” No, this strategy made perfect sense to West. When he got trapped here years ago, he had to find a place to hide. The army and search teams looked for people buried under the snow. He went from hiding place to hiding place and waited everyone out. “You hunker down and wait it out. Let us clear and then slip out before the army comes looking.”

  Josiah hummed. “Risky.”

  That didn’t convince West. “Safer than dealing with us.”

  “I like your lack of ego,” she said in a dry voice. “And I’m coming with you so don’t even try to come up with some weird place to stash me.”

  Josiah smiled. “Time to rope-a-dope.”

  “What does that mean?” she asked.

  They ran this drill all the time. West usually did it with Bravo, and he’d practiced with Delta before they got on the plane to come to Pakistan. But it all came down to the same point. “Josiah is going to try to get himself shot.”

  Lexi sighed. “I don’t understand you guys at all.”

  “Not the first time we’ve heard that.” West shifted again Lexi until she stood behind him. “You stay between us.”

  “You just do what you have to do and I’ll be fine.”

  Josiah took over. “Here we go.”

  They stepped back inside. The whole thing struck West as nuts. It was like climbing out of hell then turning around and jumping back in. Of course, that described most of his time with Alliance. They were always walking in while others ran out.

  After a few turns the caves all looked the same. West guessed Pearce was counting on that. Hoping they’d get lost while he snuck out. And he needed to go soon or risk getting trapped in there when the army arrived. That meant time and the advantage were on their si
de.

  Lexi tugged on his belt. “Right.”

  The sensation had West’s brain cells misfiring for a second. “What?”

  She leaned in and whispered right against his ear, “It’s the one on the right.”

  He thought so, too, even though nothing about the rock formation looked familiar. Every cave had the same things except for the few with the chemicals and rockets stored in them. West wanted to remove all of that but there was no way to do it. And finding his way back to the tunnel with those crates would involve a huge mental exercise.

  He put her back against the wall and he and Josiah took positions on either side of the opening. He couldn’t talk and risk being found out, so he lifted a finger to his lips and stared at her until she nodded.

  Josiah signaled and held out three fingers to start the countdown. They went on one. Josiah slipped in low and moved fast. West followed, ready to fire. The area stretched before them. The space was long and thin. West couldn’t see the endpoint at the dark end but he didn’t want to stray too far from the opening and from Lexi.

  Just as he thought about her, he turned around. Even though he told her to stay still, the silence bothered him. Something felt off. With a signal to Josiah, he headed back to her. He looked out into the hall and she was gone.

  He snapped his fingers and Josiah turned around. He frowned in question. But whatever he saw had him hurrying back to West’s side.

  “She’s gone.” Fighting back the rage inside him, West managed to keep his voice calm and low.

  “What the fuck?” Josiah mouthed the words more than said them.

  They moved back into the hall. Nothing moved. No footsteps or talk. Anxiety ratcheted up inside West. He tried not to panic. Listened, hoping she would call out and give away where she went.

  God, he wanted to believe she wandered off or was just standing somewhere nearby, but nothing about the woman he knew suggested that would happen. She was smart and understood the area and its dangers. Respected the people and did not take anything for granted.

  He’d once thought her reckless, but he was dead wrong. She was pretty fucking brave, and all his. And he’d fight to hell and back to get her back.