by Mary Alford
Over the drumming of her heartbeat, Rachel heard the men working their way through the woods. They were almost right on top of them now.
Michelle came close to screaming. Rachel covered her mouth with her hand. They couldn’t afford to be found out.
“Do you see them? They were just here.” McNamara sounded as if he’d been running a marathon.
“No, but they can’t be far. They have Carlson with them and he’s injured. That should slow them down,” answered a man she didn’t recognize.
Silence followed while Rachel held on to a breath.
“Temple wants them found now. Who knows who they’ve contacted? We’re running out of time and our buyer is waiting. If we don’t deliver the sarin soon, it will be bad for us. These people don’t accept excuses,” McNamara said.
Rachel reached for Alex’s hand and held it tight. As an answered prayer, she heard the men slowly move away from the spot.
“I think they’re gone,” Alex whispered. “We need to get back to the station, where Jase is expecting us to be.”
Rachel looked down at Liam. He hadn’t regained consciousness. Tears filled her eyes. They couldn’t leave him here.
“I’ve got him.” Alex hauled Liam up beside him. It was going to take all of his strength to get Liam back to the station, yet he never hesitated. “You and Michelle head out. I’ll be right behind you.”
She shook her head. “I’ll follow you. In case those men circle back. Otherwise, you’ll be vulnerable.”
He slowly agreed. It was their only option. “Okay. Michelle, you know the way. Don’t try anything foolish.”
The woman was clearly terrified of McNamara. Rachel didn’t doubt for a moment that Michelle had suffered terrible things at Temple’s and McNamara’s hands.
With Alex all but hauling Liam beside him, it was slow going. It felt as if it took forever for them to make any time at all.
Rachel kept a close eye behind them. She was afraid the noise they were making would attract the men’s attention. So far, they seemed to have bought their decoy. But for how long?
Several times, Alex had to stop to catch his breath. Michelle kept a careful watch out for them. Whenever they stopped, she did, as well. As much as Rachel wanted to trust her, she couldn’t bring herself to fully. She’d worked for Temple. To what degree she had been involved in his organization was still undetermined.
Rachel eased up next to Alex and put her arms around Liam, too. “Let me help you. We can make better time together.”
He nodded and they slowly made their way along the path. They were still some distance from the station, but she could see it burning above the treetops.
Behind them, Rachel heard something. She stopped, as did Alex. “That has to be them. We need to hurry.”
They did everything they could to go faster, but it was impossible. They stumbled several times and almost fell.
“We’ll never outrun them. We have to find a place to take cover,” she told Alex.
He shook his head. “We’re almost there.”
Rachel grabbed hold of Liam again and she and Alex all but ran with his dead weight between them.
“I see them. They’re up ahead,” McNamara yelled. “Don’t let them get away.”
“We have to hurry, Rachel,” Alex urged.
She felt as if she were running blindly, not sure how much farther she could go.
Michelle grabbed the weapon Rachel had tucked behind her back. “Go. Let me cover you. I can slow them down for a bit to buy you some time.”
Rachel glanced at Alex. “It’s our only chance.”
Alex slowly nodded and they took off running again.
Behind them, shots ricocheted through the woods.
Once they reached the destroyed station, they found a safe place to hide.
“I don’t hear anything.” Rachel listened over the noise of her pulse and the fire raging, but there was only silence.
“I don’t, either. I hope she got out of there safe. Stay here with Liam. I’m going after her.”
Rachel clutched his hand. “Be careful, please.”
He smiled down at her and squeezed her hand before heading back to where they had left Michelle.
Rachel glanced over at Liam. Her brother was mumbling incoherently.
Lord, we need Your help...
She barely got the words out when she heard multiple shots fired. Alex!
Seconds later, more than one set of footsteps came their way. Rachel got to her feet and drew her weapon. She wasn’t going down without a fight.
With the rifle ready to fire, Alex charged into the wooded area with Michelle close behind.
He spotted the weapon and stopped dead in his tracks. “Whoa. Hang on, there, Rachel. It’s just us.”
She slowly lowered the weapon. Relief threatened to buckle her knees. She was on edge. They all were. They needed the nightmare to end soon.
* * *
“They’re almost here.” Where are you, Jase? He didn’t want to show Rachel how worried he was, but they couldn’t hold out much longer. McNamara and his men were almost right on top of them and Liam was fading fast. If they didn’t get help soon, none of them would be walking out of here alive.
“We know you’re in there.” McNamara stopped in front of their hiding spot. “Come out with your hands up and we might let you live. If we have to come get you, it’ll be a different story.”
Rachel was close enough to see all of Alex’s uncertainties. He didn’t know what to do. Should they keep fighting? Or give up? If they did, would McNamara let them live long enough for Jase to reach them?
McNamara ordered his men to fire on them. Shots riddled through the space where they stood, forcing them down to the ground.
Their time was now measured in minutes. Rachel took his hand and looked into his eyes. Seconds passed while he just took in her beauty. Was this the end for them?
She leaned over and kissed him tenderly. “It will be okay. We just have to keep believing.”
He nodded. He so wanted to believe that, but desperation made it difficult to hold on to his faith. He loved her. He didn’t want to die without letting her know how much.
Alex cupped her face. There were tears in her eyes. She understood what possibly lay ahead for them, as well. “I love you, Rachel. I love you so much.”
A sob escaped and she hugged him tight. “I love you, too, Alex.”
“Last chance. Surrender or die.” McNamara’s ultimatum interrupted the intimate moment.
Alex brushed a tear from her cheek. “I know that, and I never stopped loving you, either. I’m just so sorry I messed things up between us before. I should have listened to what you needed. I should have been there for you.”
She shook her head. “No, you were right. I had no business putting demands on you. Just because I was ready to leave the CIA didn’t mean you were, too. I should have listened to what you wanted. I shouldn’t have run away from you.”
He tugged her closer. “None of that matters now. We love each other. That’s all that matters. I love you so much and with God’s help, we will get through this.”
She smiled up at him. She had enough faith for the both of them and he was grateful. “You’re right. We will.”
But they both knew there was only one option left for them. Giving themselves up was their only chance, but convincing Michelle of this would not be so easy. Alex told her what they must do.
Her reaction wasn’t a surprise. “I can’t. He’ll kill me.” Alex didn’t doubt for a second that her fears were justified.
“You’re right, he will. You should head out,” he told Michelle. “We’ll turn ourselves in. They still need us to find the sarin. Take the gun. My team should be here soon.”
Michelle was stunned that Alex would let her go. “Thank you for trustin
g me,” she said with heartfelt gratitude. “I don’t know how to repay you.”
“You saved our lives,” Rachel said. “You don’t need to repay us. But you need to hurry. We can’t hold them off much longer.”
As Michelle went deeper into the wilderness thicket behind them, Alex prayed he hadn’t made a terrible mistake by letting a person go who was at the very least an accomplice to Temple’s crimes.
When he was satisfied she was a safe distance away, he looked down at Rachel. “Are you ready for this?”
She didn’t hesitate. “Yes. I’m ready. We’ll get through this, Alex. I know we will.” Her strength reminded him of all the times they’d fought side by side.
Alex let her go and they got to their feet. “McNamara, we’re coming out. Hold your fire. I want your word you’re not going to shoot us. Otherwise, you’ll never find the sarin.”
A tense silence followed. Alex wondered if McNamara and the rest of Temple’s goons had already located the sarin. If so, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill all of them.
“All right, you have my word. Put your weapons down and come out with your hands up.”
Alex blew out a sigh. They hadn’t found the gas yet.
Rachel didn’t seem at all convinced. “Do you believe him?”
He didn’t, but he didn’t want her to give up. “I do. He has no idea where the sarin is. They need us. Follow my lead, okay?”
She slowly nodded. “Let’s do this.”
Alex lowered his weapon to the ground and Rachel followed his lead. With one final look into her beautiful eyes, and a prayer for safety chasing through his head, he took Rachel’s hand and stepped out of the coverage to face five armed men.
McNamara stared at them through narrowed eyes. “Where are the others?”
“Carlson’s injured. He’s in there. Your friend Michelle got away.”
McNamara stepped inches from Alex’s face. “You’re lying. She’s working with you. I saw her helping you.”
Alex shook his head. “I don’t know what you saw, but she tried to shoot us.”
McNamara motioned to one of his flunkies. “Check it out.”
The man clearly wasn’t thrilled to be heading into what could be a bloodbath, but he knew better than to disobey McNamara’s command. He eased through the opening. He wasn’t in there long before he returned. “Carlson’s in there. He’s unconscious. He won’t be telling us anything. She’s gone.”
“You expect me to believe Michelle overpowered both of you and got away?” McNamara asked. When they didn’t answer he said, “It doesn’t matter, she won’t get far. I’ll take care of her soon enough.”
Alex wasn’t going to let McNamara hurt Michelle. They’d need her to help them fit the pieces of Temple’s crimes together and put them away for the rest of their lives.
“So with your friend in there unable to help us find our product, why should we keep you two alive? You’ve been useless so far.”
“Because Carlson told me where he hid the gas. If you want your product, you’d better hope we both stay unharmed,” Alex told him.
McNamara didn’t believe him, but he was all out of options. “All right. Let’s say you know where it’s hidden. Tell me where, and I’ll have my men check it out. If you’re telling the truth, I’ll let you both live.”
Alex’s thoughts churned like crazy trying to come up with a believable location. There was only one that came to mind. “It’s at the lodge.”
McNamara grinned his disbelief. “Nice try, but we’ve already been there, remember? There’s nothing there but a decaying old building.”
Alex kept his expression blank. “That’s because you didn’t look in the right place.”
McNamara’s interest was piqued as he tried to determine if he was telling the truth. “And where might the right place be?”
Alex could think of only one option the man might buy. “Under the floorboards in the great room. Carlson told me he hid it there.”
McNamara looked as if he hadn’t heard him correctly. “The floorboards,” he said doubtfully. “You’re lying. There’s nothing there.”
“Am I? Do you want the sarin or not?”
Wavering, McNamara grabbed his cell phone and tried it, then raged at the lack of service—the fire must have destroyed the phone lines. He turned to two of his men. “Head back that way. Tell Blake where the sarin is supposed to be.” He tossed Alex a threatening glance. “Let me know if it’s not there as soon as possible.”
The two men headed back in the direction of the lodge. McNamara came over to where Alex stood. Taking the butt of his gun, he slammed it into Alex’s midsection. Alex doubled over in pain as air evaporated from his lungs. It took forever for him to be able to breathe normally again.
“That’s for all the trouble you two have caused us so far,” McNamara growled heartlessly. Alex slowly straightened, trying not to show any reaction.
“You’d better hope for your sake and hers that you’re telling the truth. Otherwise, your deaths will be slow, and you, little sister, can watch your brother die a very painful death.”
SEVENTEEN
Rachel put her arm around Alex’s waist to help him stand. McNamara saw it and yanked her away, dragging her over to one of his men. “Keep an eye on her.” To the other man he barked, “Get Carlson out here. I don’t trust him out of my sight.”
The man rushed to do McNamara’s bidding while Rachel’s mind went crazy with worry. Liam was so weak. He could have internal injuries they didn’t know about. He needed to be kept as still as possible.
The man returned, dragging Liam in his arms. He dumped him on the ground at McNamara’s feet.
Rachel broke free of her captor and knelt close to her brother. She cradled Liam’s head in her lap.
“Leave him alone. He can’t help you with anything.” She stared up at McNamara in defiance.
“Then your friend had better be telling the truth. Otherwise, I’ll force you to watch him die.”
It took everything inside of her to hold it together. She was terrified Liam would die up here on the mountain and there was nothing they could do to help him or Deacon.
McNamara took out his phone again. “Keep an eye on them. I’m going to try to get a service spot. I need to talk to Blake right away.”
Rachel watched as McNamara walked a little ways from them. She glanced over at Alex. This was their only chance. She could see he understood.
She motioned to the man standing near her. Alex gave a tiny nod. She silently counted off three and then jumped to her feet. Before the man knew what she had planned, she struck him hard in the stomach with her fist. He bent over in pain and she grabbed his weapon easily enough.
Once she’d gained the upper hand, she turned. The man guarding Alex charged for her, but Alex grabbed his weapon and he froze.
The man she’d disarmed yelled at the top of his voice. Right away, McNamara jerked around. Seeing what was happening, he came rushing back to the site.
Alex grabbed the man closest to him and pointed the gun at his head. “That’s far enough. Unless you want your friend to die.”
McNamara stopped dead in his tracks, hesitating. Then he grinned. “You think I care about him?” Before they knew what he had planned, he shot the man through his chest. Alex just had time to jump sideways before the bullet struck him, as well. The man fell to the ground dead.
Alex fired one shot, striking McNamara in the upper arm near his shoulder. McNamara’s weapon flew from his hand. He grabbed his wounded shoulder, screaming in pain.
“You shot me,” he raged as if he couldn’t believe what was happening. Alex grabbed the weapon he’d lost.
“Don’t you dare try anything.” Rachel kept her weapon trained on the one remaining man. The man slowly nodded.
Rachel moved to Alex’s side. “We need to get out
of here before Temple’s men realize we were bluffing about the sarin gas.”
“We can’t leave Liam here. They’ll kill him,” Alex said.
Rachel turned to the remaining man. “You, get him up.”
“I’ll help.” Alex grabbed Liam’s legs and the man took hold of his arms.
Rachel motioned to McNamara. “Get moving.”
Before they’d managed but a few steps, Michelle appeared out of the woods.
She pointed her gun straight at McNamara. “You, you deserve to die.” All of her anger and hurt was written on her face.
Rachel couldn’t let Michelle kill McNamara. They needed him and she would have to live with what she’d done for the rest of her life. “Drop the weapon, Michelle.” She zeroed the gun in on the woman. “If you kill him, you’ll be just as guilty as he is.”
“He and his buddies murdered my husband,” she said with tears in her eyes.
Rachel couldn’t believe it. “What are you talking about?”
“Shut your mouth,” McNamara raged.
“My husband was Robert Ludwick. You know him as the Chemist. He created the recipe for the sarin gas Temple used. Temple and his men promised to pay him for the recipe and his client list. Instead, they killed him and forced me to work for them.”
Now it made sense why Michelle had helped them.
“This one, he shot my husband in front of me.” She waved the gun at McNamara. “He deserves to die.”
Rachel took a step closer. “You’re right, he deserves to pay for what he did to your husband, but don’t let him destroy you in the process. He’s not worth it. You still have a chance at a life, Michelle. Don’t throw that away for him. It’s too precious.”
Tears spilled from Michelle’s eyes and she sobbed, her heart breaking. Slowly, she lowered the weapon.
Rachel went over and put her arm around her. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll make sure they all pay for what they’ve done...thanks to you.”
Michelle finally managed a smile as she brushed away her tears. “Promise me?”
Rachel gladly gave that promise.
“Ladies, we need to get out of here now. We don’t know where the rest of Temple’s goons are.” Alex motioned to McNamara to get moving.