by C. R. Hill
“Sierra…”
“Most of the kids I came in contact with growing up used any weakness you had against you. The adults weren’t much better. But I won’t even go into all that.”
“I won’t use your weaknesses against you, Sierra.” He pulled her back into his arms.
“I’ll break your arm if you do.”
He chuckled. “Come on, I found us a place to sleep tonight.”
Chapter Fourteen
Sierra eyed the small area Jake had found them. It wasn’t quite a cave, yet it was an indention in the side of the hill with enough overhang to provide protection if it rained.
“You’ve checked it for snakes?” Sierra asked.
“Yep, all clear. Climb in. You need to eat, then sleep.”
“I’ve already eaten half of one of your protein bars. That’s all I can stomach.”
“You need food to help replace the blood you’ve lost. If you get anemic, it’ll just up your chances for getting an infection.”
“You sure are full of lots of advice when it concerns other people. I remember having similar concerns over you leaving the hospital, but you did what you wanted to.”
“I had antibiotics and a warm bed to recover in. At least you’ve eaten something.” He nudged her forward. “Now lie down. We’ll need to get moving early.”
Sierra did as instructed. “Do you think we’ll be safe tonight?”
Jake crawled in beside her and pulled her into his arms. She laid her cheek on his chest, resting her hand on his stomach. “I think so. Finding anything in these woods at night, even with infra red equipment is tough. Besides, Diaz can be patient. They’ll come behind us, make sure we don’t double back and be waiting for us on all sides.”
“You said you knew someone in Cotui who can help us.”
“A man by the name of Cirilo Flores.”
“How did you meet him?”
Jake chuckled. “He’s a mercenary. I met him when I was in Special Ops. I left him a message back at the coffee shop. If he got it, he’ll be waiting for us.”
“And what if he doesn’t get your message?”
“Then we’ll shift to plan B.”
Sierra was almost afraid to ask, “Which is?”
“I’m working on it.” Jake’s fingers massaged her scalp, then the back of her neck. “We should get some rest. Close your eyes, Sierra.”
Her eyes closed. Mostly because her eye lids were too heavy to stay open any longer than because he’d told her to. She wanted to tell him that. He shouldn’t think he could order her around and she’d listen. Instead, fatigue over took her and she slipped off to sleep.
~***~
Sierra fought against her bindings. Diaz circled her, smiling, his dark eyes filled with menace. Light glinted off of the nine-inch silver knife blade he waived in front of her. Where was Jake?
The door opened. One of Diaz’s guards entered, shoving a young dark-haired girl before him. The little girl stumbled, then caught her balance. She looked up, her sad brown eyes connecting with Sierra.
The air left Sierra’s lungs. The young girl was straight from the picture she’d seen.
“Don’t hurt her,” Sierra pleaded.
Diaz laughed and said something, yet his words were muffled. Sierra strained to understand him. Then he turned and touched the little girl’s cheek with his knuckles. He moved behind her and laughed.
Sierra’s stomach knotted and she fought harder against her bindings.
Jake appeared in the doorway. Fierce and ready for battle.
Then red exploded over Jake’s chest. Right over his heart. Diaz had shot him. A gun materializing from nowhere. Sierra met Jake’s disbelieving gaze as his knees buckled. He dropped.
Sierra screamed. Diaz didn’t waste time. He grabbed the little girl, his laughter echoing through the room. Sierra screamed again. Diaz brought the knife to the child’s neck.
“Sierra. Sierra, wake up.”
She blinked and looked up into Jake’s familiar face. Alive. He was alive. She’d only been dreaming. Her heart pounded so hard, she thought it might beat out of her chest. Perspiration bathed her body and cotton lined her mouth.
“It’s just a dream.” Jake spoke to her as if she were a frightened animal.
She sucked in air and nodded. “I’m fine,” she lied.
“You’ve been saying that since you woke up yesterday.”
“That’s ‘cause it’s true.” She sat up and rubbed her eyes.
“Want to talk about it?”
“Would you?”
“No.” He chuckled. “Can you go back to sleep.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. The image from her dream haunted her. Watching the life seep out of Jake’s beautiful eyes would kill her. Getting involved with another agent was stupid. Jake had been right to begin with. She swallowed and settled back beside him.
They lay so close, Sierra could hear his heart beating. “I don’t really have bad dreams that often.”
“You’re lucky,” he said quietly.
She turned her head. “Do you dream about Katherine?”
“Yeah. I dream about arriving at that warehouse and watching the flames destroy it.”
Guilt was a powerful emotion. Jake carried more than his share.
He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. “Go to sleep, Sierra. Morning will come too soon.”
She snuggled against him, knowing even as she drifted off that falling for Jake was stupid.
~***~
When Sierra woke again, dawn filtered through the trees. Jake was already awake.
“Eat something, then I’m going to check and re-bandage your wound and we’ll get a move on,” Jake said as he knelt in front of her with the back pack. “I’ve already run surveillance around the area. No sign of Diaz’s men.”
Sierra pushed upright. “You should have woken me when you got up.”
“You needed to rest.”
“You’re getting soft, Harding,” she said, but she did feel a little better. The sleep had definitely helped. Her side was extremely sore, but she didn’t feel feverish and she was actually hungry.
Jake unwrapped a protein bar and handed it to her. “Eat the whole thing.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Yes, sir.”
“You’re worrying me with all that compliance,” he said dryly.
“There’s just no pleasing you, is there?”
“Now that sounds more like the woman I’ve come to know.”
Sierra smiled and bit into the chewy bar, she watched him dig around inside the bag. He pulled out the canteen, the bottle of aspirin and the first aid kit.
“Aren’t you going to eat?” she asked.
“Already had mine.” He lifted her shirt and shook his head. “You’re bandage is bloody again.”
Sierra glanced down. “I thought bleeding was good. Keeps it clean.”
Jake’s lips quirked. “But having an open wound out here running around isn’t good.”
She picked up the canteen and took a swig of water to wash down the dry bar, conscious of how little they had left. Jake had purification tablets, but she wasn’t looking forward to using them. They made the water taste like crap.
Jake removed her bandage. The wound was puckered and red. With the tips of his fingers, he pressed the skin around it.
“Some swelling, but doesn’t look infected. I’d feel better if we had antibiotics.”
Sierra set the canteen down. “I’ve never had anyone worry over me.”
Which seemed a little sad when she said the words out loud. But it was what it was. From the time she was old enough to have memories, she didn’t remember anyone really caring about her.
He met her gaze. “What happened to your parents?”
“All I know is that my mom dropped me off at the city orphanage one day, saying she couldn’t take care of me anymore. Never heard from her again.”
Jake frowned. “How old were you when you went into social services?�
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“Three.”
That seemed to trouble him even more. His scowl deepened.
“It’s not a big deal, Jake. Kids enter the system all the time. Some are lucky, they get adopted out and others…” Sierra shrugged. “Well, they do the best they can.”
“Is that what you did?”
Images from her childhood flashed inside her head. Sit down and shut up, Sierra. Can’t you just stay out of trouble? You’re nothing but a brat. A trouble maker. You’ll never amount to anything.
She couldn’t remember many kind words spoken to her during her trip through the system. Of course, she had been head strong and hard to deal with on her good days. “Yep. That’s exactly what I did. It wasn’t always pretty, but I survived.” She shoved away the memories Jake was intent on making her dredge up and chuckled. “And here I am. Running around the jungle with you.”
Jake’s eyes narrowed, but he must have decided she wasn’t going to talk anymore about it. He was right. Focusing on the past made her feel vulnerable. Protecting herself—and not just physically—had been a way of life. Anytime, she’d let someone get too close, they’d eventually turned that against her.
She looked at her side, where Jake gently cleaned her wound with an antibiotic wipe. Somehow, Jake had slid under her radar. She’d never known love, so she couldn’t say that’s what she felt.
Nevertheless, the feelings churning inside her chest deserved a label other than desire. Trust maybe? She knew she cared about him.
Jake applied some antibiotic ointment, then bandaged her. He picked up the bottle of aspirin and shook out a couple tablets. “Take these and we’ll get going.”
Sierra washed them down with a mouthful of water, pulled her shirt in place and stood. “Give me a minute in the bushes and I’ll be ready.”
Jack shoved the canteen and first aid supplies into his backpack. Sierra talked as though not having parents was no big deal. What had she been like as a little girl? She was smart and tough now, but had she been so tough when she was three?
Visions of a small girl, scared and lonely, ran through his head. How could a parent simply abandon their child? Jake shook his head, and zipped his pack closed. More visions of Sierra being backed into a corner entered his head. She hadn’t merely taken it. She’d come out swinging and hadn’t stopped. Her smart mouth had probably been a result of that too. A way to cover her hurt.
“Okay, I’m ready,” Sierra said behind him.
Jake nodded and stood. “Me, too.”
He turned to face her. “The traveling’s going to be a little tougher today. There’s a small ridge we have to cross.”
She shook her head. “I can do it.”
Jake shook his head and smiled. “I know you can. Come on.”
~***~
Sierra concentrated on Jake’s back as they trekked up the ridge. Perspiration dampened her shirt. At least Jake’s shirt was wet, too. Her stamina wasn’t a hundred percent, but she felt better than she had yesterday. Still, she worried she was slowing him down.
Finally, they made it to the top. Jake stopped.
Sierra leaned over and placed her hands on her knees, letting her breathing return to normal. She looked down the hillside. A sea of trees covered the landscape. “How much farther?”
“I think we can get there by nightfall if we keep moving.”
“What about Diaz’s men?”
“They’re out here. I can feel them.” His mouth was set in a hard line. He looked at her. “How you feeling?”
She straightened. “I’m okay.”
Jake’s right eyebrow hitched up.
“Really. A little winded, but I can go,” she reassured him. She’d keep telling herself she could make it and she would. She had to.
He nodded. “Keep your senses on alert. It’s been too quiet.”
Sierra glanced around them. The squawks and screeches of native parrots echoed through the trees, and beneath that the quiet hum of various insects. Wind rustled the leaves and cooled her neck.
The calm before the storm. She’d been in tight spots before, but this was by far the most dangerous situation she’d ever encountered. She’d done this to herself though. The only thing that really bothered her was the thought they might die and anything they’d gotten on Diaz would be lost. She couldn’t let that happen. Daniel deserved retribution. And those poor children. The ones he took and sold, they deserved something different too.
Somehow, some way, they would get out of this and bring Diaz down.
Chapter Fifteen
Jake crouched low behind a Cypress tree. Three men in camouflage fatigues hunkered down twenty-five yards ahead of him. They were talking quietly and sharing a flask. One of the men he recognized from Diaz’s compound.
Jake needed to get back to Sierra. He’d been gone longer than he’d expected, but so far he’d counted fourteen men in all.
Without guns, he and Sierra were sitting ducks. Which meant they needed to acquire some weapons. But taking on the three bozos in front of him wouldn’t be that smart. Not by himself. Two, he was pretty sure he could handle, but three armed men, would be pushing his luck.
And he couldn’t leave Sierra alone out here to battle them. Plus he had the backpack with him. Getting that cell phone and the other documents back to headquarters was their priority.
He turned and made his way quietly back to where he’d left Sierra.
~***~
Sierra leaned against a large tree and listened. Jake was running a check around the area, looking for signs of Diaz’s men. Why she’d let him talk her into staying here, she didn’t know. Somehow, he’d convinced her she’d be better off to him if she rested. And since she felt weak, she couldn’t very well argue.
They still had several hours before night fall and probably fifteen miles to cover.
Sierra tried to make herself relax. She wasn’t used to sitting idle while someone else took on the danger. She was used to action.
She hadn’t said anything to Jake, but she thought her fever was back. Her skin was prickly and she felt achy again. Jake would be better off leaving her behind.
The important thing was getting the evidence to Trent, stopping Diaz and finding out who was selling them out.
She’d just closed her eyes, when she was jerked up. A hard arm went around her neck and a sweaty beefy hand closed over her mouth. The stench of sweat clogged her nose. One of Diaz’s guards. He was as big as a tank.
She instinctively kicked out, catching him in the shin, but she’d been caught off guard. He grunted, cursed in Spanish and tightened the arm around her neck.
Black spots danced in front of her eyes. He threw her to the ground, knocking the breath out of her. Before she could react, he was on top of her. He was damn fast for someone so big.
He told her in Spanish what he was going to do with her. Revulsion swirled through her belly. She bucked against him. She would scream for Jake, but she feared that would only bring more of Diaz’s men.
She threw a punch that collided with his nose. “Puta!” He grabbed her right hand. Then he got her left hand as she swung that one. Both of them were secured over her head.
The pain in her side was nothing compared to the fear that she was about to be raped by this sweaty, revolting man. She bucked against him.
He just laughed. “Go ahead. Fight me. It make it better,” he said in heavily accented English.
Where was Jake? Damn it! She’d let her guard down. She struggled more, but it only seemed to excite her attacker.
A hand went up her shirt. Her skin crawled from the contact. He squeezed her breast and then leaned down and tried to kiss her. She turned her head and he connected with her jaw.
Her strength was waning as she fought. She might have finally ran out of luck, because she had no idea how she was going to stop him.
Without warning, the big man was off her. Jerked away. Sierra sucked in a breath and scrambled to a sitting position.
Jake had his arms
around the man’s neck. He twisted and the guy went down. Sierra met Jake’s gaze and she shivered at what she saw. It was almost uncivilized.
And Sierra actually started to cry.
Jake couldn’t ever remember being so angry. A few more minutes and he would have been too late. And seeing Sierra break down twisted his gut into a knot. Since he’d known her, she’d made sure to appear so tough and capable.
He went to her, pulling her against him. She burrowed against his chest. Her body shook. “It’s okay,” he whispered against her hair. “I’ve got you.”
Several heartbeats later, she took control of her emotions. He felt her body still as she sucked in air. Then she pulled back. Seeing the tears against her lashes unleashed emotions he’d buried for years. She was all tough talk and bravado.
She’d long ago learned to hide her feelings, but they were there. He could feel the heat radiating off her skin. Her fever was back and she’d just been brutalized by one of Diaz’s men. He knew that was why her emotions were so close to the surface. But she was human. A woman, beneath all that steel.
She scrubbed the tears away roughly. “I’m okay.” She blew out a breath. “You have good timing, Harding,” she said and he could see her gathering all her defenses to put them in place.
Jake didn’t think. He leaned in and kissed her. Trying to erase whatever Diaz’s man had done. She stiffened for all of five seconds, then she melted into him. Kissing him back with the kind of passion he’d come to expect from her.
He pulled back, enjoying the slightly dazed look in her eyes. He knew she wasn’t on top of her game. Between the loss of blood and the fever, she was only running about seventy percent. Which was still a lot more than most people. And he was a bastard for taking advantage of it.
“What was that for?”
“Because you were about to put your tough girl image back into place and pretend you’re weren’t rattled.” He touched her cheek. “You don’t always have to be so in control.”
She stared at him and he could see the wheels in her brain working.
“I would never use your weaknesses against you.”
“Good to know,” she said and pushed up to her knees. “But I told you I’m fine. Not that I’m not thankful. I think you’ve more than repaid your debt to me for rescuing you in South America.”