Hallowed Ground

by Mary Alford

  Do you think they know Blake was collecting evidence against them? Is that why they’re so determined to kill us?”

  Jax’s gaze locked with hers. “I’d say it’s a good possibility. I just hope they don’t know about the safety deposit box yet. If they do, the evidence may already be gone.”

  The thought was chilling. If Coleman and his friend at the embassy had been running drugs for a while, perhaps even back when Coleman was still in the field, then they could have dozens of men involved along every step of the way. Even here in this area. Every second they were out in the open, they risked being spotted by someone working for Coleman. Each step of the way they’d be walking a tightrope, trying to stay alive long enough to clear their names—running from their own people, who were determined to stop the threat they posed.

  ◆◆◆

  Jax tried to recall what he knew about the region surrounding Kohat. Mountains and foothills dominated the area. The town itself was centered around a British-era fort, various bazaars, and a military cantonment.

  The endless walking through rugged terrain burned his already-strained muscles. With too many miles ahead of them, and far too many unanswered questions rattling around in his head, Jax needed a break. “Mind if we stop for a second?” he asked, and she immediately shook her head.

  “Not at all. I could use a break as well. My legs feel as if they’re ready to give out underneath me.” She took off her backpack and used it as a seat. He did the same.

  Jax clicked on his flashlight and opened the backpack Al Hasan had given them. He took out two Afghan bolanis, their version of vegetable-stuffed flatbread, along with some grapes.

  He handed one to Erin who took a bite, then closed her eyes. “This is delicious.” She pointed to the spinach and cilantro filled flatbread. “Of course, Dawoud’s goat was pretty good as well, especially for someone living off power bars and water.”

  He chuckled at what she said. “You’re right. When we get back to the States, if I see another power bar, I think I might lose it.” He dug into the bolani with vigor, savoring the flavors.

  Erin joined in the laughter. “That’s one of the many things I plan to give up.” She stopped talking and he realized there was more to what she was saying.

  He finished chewing. “What do you mean?” With his heart pounding, he had to know.

  She wiped a crumb from her mouth, then faced him. “I want out, Jax. I don’t think I have it in me to do this anymore. I’m leaving the CIA for good.”

  The hopelessness in her eyes tore at his heart. He clasped her hand. “Are you sure?” Part of him was elated that she wouldn’t be in the line of fire any longer. The other part wondered where that left them.

  She squeezed his hand and nodded. “I am. I’m going to take Blake’s advice and get out. It’s time, and I think he knew it.” She stopped for a second. “I wished he’d taken his own advice and gotten out before he became involved in whatever ended up getting him killed.”

  Jax swallowed visibly. “Me too. I miss him. I don’t care what he was part of, he’s still my friend, and he didn’t deserve what happened to him.”

  She smiled. “He didn’t. None of them did.” She finished the last of her bolani and wiped her hands.

  “Do you have any idea what you’ll want to do once you leave?” he asked because he needed answers. Would she choose him? If not, would he ever see her again?

  She stared into space. “I have no idea,” she said as if she hadn’t contemplated the idea before. “Something plain vanilla, for sure.”

  He understood what she meant. Doing something mundane after the things they’d witnessed would be a welcomed relief.

  “Maybe I’ll work at a bank.” She laughed as she thought about it. “Or maybe I’ll write a book. I certainly have some interesting stories to tell.”

  He took her hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. “You’d make a good writer.”

  In the moonlight, he saw Erin swallow, her reaction to his touch there for him to see. She leaned close. He did the same. There were tears in her eyes, and he wondered why. He wanted to know. But he wanted to kiss her more.

  The moment their lips met, he knew that no matter what happened in the future, he’d always love her.

  She pulled away, touched his lips with her finger, then put space between them. “What about you?” she asked, her voice shaky.

  He couldn’t pull his thoughts together. “I beg your pardon?” All he could think about was how much he loved her.

  “When we get home. What are your plans? Will you stay with the CIA?” Her forehead crinkled in a frown as he continued to watch her.

  “Oh . . .” he stopped. Did he dare tell her his heart’s desire? “I don’t know. But to tell you the truth, I think I’m done as well.”

  Her surprise was easy to see. “Really?” He could almost believe she was pleased by his answer, yet she shook her head. “I can’t see you doing anything but this. I figured one day you’d take over Coleman’s job.” She smiled.

  That she thought of him only as a career agent hurt, and he struggled to keep that to himself. “Naw, I want to live in the sunlight. I’m tired of the shadows.” He hesitated, then told her his dream. “My grandfather left me his spread outside Billings, Montana. Almost a thousand acres. I haven’t been there in years, but after this, well . . . I can see myself getting snowed in for months on end with nothing to worry about besides how I’m going to bring in food.”

  She stared at him as if seeing him for the first time. “That sounds amazing. Tell me about the ranch.” Her voice held a wistful note that he understood completely. They didn’t know if they would walk out of here alive. The odds were against them on every turn.

  “As I said, it sits on a thousand acres of pristine country. The cabin itself is small, but roomy enough. My grandfather built it for my grandmother as a wedding gift. They lived there for going on fifty years and raised two kids.”

  “They sound like a wonderful couple. How long have they been gone?”

  Jax still missed his grandparents every day. “Grandma died about twenty years ago. Grandad lived at the cabin until his death six years ago. He taught me a lot of things about surviving, and life. He was a God-fearing man who brought me to the Lord when I was a teenager.”

  “Oh, Jax,” she took his hand again, looping her fingers with his. “He sounds like a special man. I wish I could have met him.”

  He kept his focus on their joined hands. “Grandad would have liked you a lot. He’d say you had spunk.” He laughed. “That’s how he used to describe my grandmother.”

  Their eyes held. His chest grew tight. He so wanted a future with her. He could almost picture it. He and Erin living at the cabin. Raising a family together. Living in the light.

  Before he could wrangle his straying thoughts, a noise in the distance captured his attention. A twig snapped beneath a footstep, and his heartrate accelerated.

  Erin heard it too. With his heart racing, he leapt to his feet and grabbed his backpack. “Hurry,” he whispered.

  Jax grabbed her hand and together they raced through the woods as fast as they could run while he prayed they’d have enough strength to survive one more attack.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The world blurred around her. Erin wasn’t sure how much farther she could go. She was grateful for Jax’s hand around hers, his strength beside her. He wouldn’t let her fall.

  “Don’t stop, Erin,” Jax urged, his voice laced with tension. With those words still ringing in her ears, gunshots drowned out the sound of her labored breathing. Multiple gunshots. Helpless tears filled her eyes, making it impossible to see anything. She could no longer think clearly anymore. How was she supposed to fight off an army of soldiers who were intent on silencing her and Jax?

  “Over there. That rock outcropping. If we can make it there, we can hold them off until we figure out our next move.” Jax all but dragged her along with him, diving behind the cover of the rocks. He took out
his weapon and returned fire.

  The sound of gunshots so close snapped her out of her daze. She wanted to live. Wanted to see that cabin in Montana for herself. Wanted Jax forever. She grabbed her rifle and shot in the direction of their attackers. Silence followed her deluge.

  “I don’t hear anything. Where are they?” Jax took out the binoculars. “I don’t see them.”

  While they both reloaded, Erin glanced behind them. She could just make out that the ground behind them sloped downward. If they could keep low enough, they had a chance to escape unnoticed by their attackers. She pointed behind them. “If we can make it down without getting shot, we might be able to get away.”

  “Go. I’ll hold them off until you reach the valley.”

  Erin didn’t let him finish. “I’m not leaving you behind. We do this together or not at all.”

  A hint of a smile touched his lips. “We do this together.”

  Ducking as low as possible, they started down the mountainside as fast as they could. Once they were a safe distance away, they straightened and ran.

  Behind them, Erin heard more gunfire. The enemy still believed they were holed up on the mountain.

  “It won’t take them long before they realize we’re not returning fire, and they’ll come after us.”

  Gathering her waning strength, Erin ran as fast as she could. Jax raced beside her, his labored breathing matching hers.

  They reached the bottom of the mountain that opened up into a valley where thick grass grew. “Keep going, Erin. Whatever you do, don’t stop.” His voice sounded winded, little more than a whisper.

  Voices resounded behind them followed by gunshots. The men had stormed the place where they’d hidden and knew they weren’t there any longer.

  “I see them. They’re getting away.” That voice. There was something familiar about the man who spoke. It took everything inside of her not to look back.

  She ran as hard as she could. Nothing but open space stretched out before them. There was no place to take cover. Their only chance was to outrun the men coming after them.

  With hope fading inside her, she glanced at Jax. She loved him. She didn’t want to lose him like this. He turned, sensing her watching him, and managed a smile. A shot splintered the night. Jax’s smile turned to horror. He grabbed his leg with one hand. The other stretched out in front of him. He stumbled—tried to catch himself, but couldn’t.

  Erin screamed and raced for his side then knelt next to him. He’d been shot in the leg and was losing blood rapidly, but there wasn’t time to tie off the wound.

  “No, no, no,” she whispered. “We have to keep going.” She saw more than a dozen men racing toward them. She wrapped her arms around his waist, trying to lift him to his feet.

  “Go on without me,” Jax mumbled. “Save yourself.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not leaving you behind.” She continued to try and help him to his feet, but she wasn’t strong enough. “Jax, stay with me,” she said, when he closed his eyes. “We have to go.” She grabbed him beneath his arms and began dragging him. It took all her strength to move him a few yards, yet she didn’t stop. She wasn’t leaving him behind to die. They were in this together. She’d die for him.

  “Erin, please, you have to go on. I don’t want you to die like this. Go. Find the evidence Blake left you and bring them to justice. I love you, Erin. I love you.”

  Her footsteps faltered. He loved her. Tears sprang to her eyes. Jax loved her. And she loved him. It was a bittersweet realization that might have come too late for either of them, but she had to try. Had to make him understand how much she loved him too.

  Before she could get the words to come out of her mouth—tell him how she felt about him—someone ran toward her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw an object coming her way, then something hard slammed against her temple. She dropped to her knees. Her vision grew hazy. She was kicked hard, and she fell to the ground. Her eyes weighted down. Closed. She was inches from Jax. She peered over at him and realized he’d lost consciousness. A tear slipped from her eye.

  “Get them out of here.” That voice! She’d been right, she did recognize the voice. Her fuzzy brain struggled to bring the name to mind. It sounded like . . .

  She knew the man who ordered Jax to be hauled away. Her heart thundered against her chest. It was impossible. It couldn’t be. Erin rolled onto her back, forcing her eyes open. He stared down at her. The world spun, and she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be.

  “Goodbye, Erin. You should have died when it was your turn.” Before she could formulate a response. The butt of a weapon struck her head again. Her eyes slammed shut. Consciousness slipped away. Her last coherent thought was nice guys couldn’t always be trusted.

  ◆◆◆

  His eyes felt glued in place. Jax struggled to open them. The tiniest movement sent searing pain up his leg. He’d been shot. Where was he? He remembered running from the enemy and then . . . Erin!

  Jax forced his eyes open. Nothing but darkness surrounded him. He felt around and realized he was lying on a dirt floor. He tried to stand, but his injured leg wouldn’t allow it.

  “Erin, are you here?” he called out because he had to know. Silence followed. He somehow managed to pull himself up using only one leg.

  Where was she? He had to find her. Standing upright, his head touched the roof. Using one leg, he hopped around. Felt stone walls close. He was in a small enclosed space. He hopped around some more, then slammed into something and stumbled to the ground.

  Someone moaned. Erin. He felt around until he found her. She was lying on the floor. She wasn’t moving.

  Jax shook her hard, and she moaned again. “Erin, wake up.”

  “Jax? Thank God, you’re alive.” She sounded so weak, her voice barely audible.

  “I’m right here with you,” he told her, trying to keep the panic from his tone.

  “What happened?” she asked and then gasped, and he knew something bad was coming. “Oh Jax, I know who’s behind this.” The terror in her voice had his full attention.

  “What do you mean?” Before she could answer, the door flew open, slamming against the opposing wall.

  Jax swiveled toward the sound, blinding light forcing him to squint and shield his eyes. Several people entered the tiny space. It took a few seconds for his eyes to adjust to the light.

  When he could see clearly, he stared in horror at the person standing before him. It was impossible. He was seeing things. He blinked, then blinked again, but the image remained the same.

  “Peter? But . . . I thought . . .” Peter smiled as realization finally began to dawn. He was nothing like the man he considered a friend. The person standing before him had never been his friend. Peter was the one behind the attack that killed all their men and the one who killed Blake. Peter was the mastermind behind the heroin smuggling, not Coleman.

  Next to Peter, Kabir stood guard, along with four other men whom Jax didn’t recognize.

  “So, you figured it out,” Peter finally spoke. “Well, it was only a matter of time. Not that it matters now. You two aren’t going to walk out of here.”

  Beside him, Erin managed a sitting position, edging closer to Jax.

  “Why?” was the only question Jax could formulate.

  Peter scoffed at the question. “Why do you think? The money. It’s always been about the money. And we had the perfect setup. We smuggled the heroin out of the country with the help of Ahmed Sediqi, the Afghan ambassador’s driver. He made sure no one from the embassy caught on to what we were doing and the ambassador stayed in the dark.” Peter stopped, his expression distasteful. “Then Blake grew a conscience. Wanted out. I told him to keep his mouth shut and everything would be fine, but he didn’t. That’s why he had to die. It would have been over with Blake’s death, but you couldn’t let it go, could you, Jax.”

  Another piece of the puzzle fell into place. “You found out I was looking into B
lake’s death. You had Sediqi keep tabs on me and Erin because you were afraid we’d find out the truth behind Blake’s death.” Jax stopped as something else dawned on him. “When I went to the embassy and started asking questions, you knew the ambassador would be curious. That’s why you had both him and Sediqi killed. You were afraid if Sediqi were questioned, he’d fold and tell them everything.”

  Peter seemed surprised. “How did you find out about that?”

  “Coleman,” Jax said and couldn’t believe they’d thought Coleman responsible for Peter’s crimes. “You almost had me convinced he was behind this.”

  Peter’s expression turned cold. “Well, it doesn’t matter. You two will be dead soon enough. The ‘real traitors’ will die. Al Hasan will be branded a terrorist responsible for bringing in illegal arms into Afghanistan, and Coleman will be dubbed incompetent.”

  “And you and Kabir will become heroes,” Erin finished for him.

  Peter’s mouth curled into a smile. “That’s right. I’ll probably get a medal. Maybe even Coleman’s job.”

  “Why’d you frame Al Hasan?” Jax asked because he had to know. If they were going to die here, he wanted to know everything.

  Peter shook his head. “What choice did I have? He saw my face several years back. I was talking to Blake’s asset, a man by the name of Ghaazi Niazai. Ghaazi was one of Al Hasan’s men that I’d recruited to work for me. Ghaazi provided the safest routes to move the heroin out of the country and the weapons back into Afghanistan. One day, when I was meeting with Ghaazi, Al Hasan saw me. Even though Ghaazi said he’d smoothed things over with Al Hasan, I knew it was only a matter of time before he figured out I was CIA. I had to find a way to eliminate Al Hasan, but I couldn’t do it myself.”

  “So you made up the story of him being a terrorist to have the CIA do your dirty work,” Erin said, revulsion in her tone.

  “That’s right,” Peter said, unmoved by her disgust. “It would have worked, too, if you two had died when you were supposed to. I took out Ghaazi because I could no longer trust him not to spill his guts to Al Hasan for mercy. After I got rid of Blake, and you two kept digging into what happened, well, I had to act fast, so I faked the evidence that pointed to someone from your unit being a mole. Later, I set up the offshore account in Erin’s name. She was the perfect target. Sam found the evidence easily enough. He brought it to my attention. Everything was working until Sam drew me aside and started asking questions. I knew then I had to take your entire unit out. It was the only way to cover my tracks.”