by Aimée Thurlo
He stole a long, furtive look at her, feeling the weight of sorrow. He wanted to believe that no one would ever incite her passion as he had, or her anger or her loyalty. But he understood the realities of life. If he left her, eventually she would find someone else.
The thought of Fox with another man filled him with a sudden, intense jealousy that burned through his mind like acid. Travis stared at the road, forcing himself to focus on the job he had yet to do here.
“Do you really think McNeely will come after us at the lodge?” Fox asked, interrupting his silence.
“I don’t doubt it for a moment.”
“If he does, he’s going to want to kill me, and you, too,” she said, looking directly at him. “I’m right, aren’t I? And it won’t be just because of the account numbers. This has more to do with pride. McNeely feels that he’s got to be the only one left standing.”
“That’s true. But I’m a better fighter, and I’ll have better backup too. He won’t win.” Travis’s grip on the steering wheel tightened as he saw the worry on her features. “Don’t let this upset you, Fox.” He gave her a cocky grin. “Come on, you know I can tear him apart and, just for you, I’ll even put him back together in a new and interesting way.”
She laughed. “Lack of confidence was never a problem for you. But I’m worried that you may not be thinking clearly. You hate McNeely’s guts.”
“I resent him for the hell he’s put you through. You’ve got that right.”
“And if you get a chance to square off with him, you intend to take it, don’t you?”
“In a flash, but it won’t happen. I’ll never get that lucky,” he added, scowling.
Fox sighed. “Listen to me. Even if you do get the chance, I don’t want you to fight him.”
“Why? You think he can take me?”
“I don’t know who can take whom, and I don’t care. That’s not my point.” She paused, then began again. “I don’t blame you for feeling the way you do. I know this has got something to do with those boy-type hormones.”
“What’s this, a complaint? Here I thought you were quite happy with the way my ‘boy-type’ hormones work. I could have sworn you gave them rave reviews last night.” He held her gaze and smiled.
She blushed and looked away.
He didn’t have the upper hand often, but this round was all his. “Look, Fox,” he said, his voice gentle. “I won’t initiate a confrontation. But I won’t walk away from it, either. I could give you all kinds of assurances, but you deserve better than that from me.” Travis wanted to hold her, to do something to soften his words, but this wasn’t the time. “The one thing you can count on is that I will never make you any promises I can’t keep.”
He saw it on her face the second he uttered the words. She was remembering last night, and the words he’d never said. There had been no commitment between them. He’d shown her his love in every physical way he could, but he’d never offered her any tomorrows. Now, as he looked at her, he wanted to do just that. He wanted to ask her to go with him and stay by his side, no matter what his future held. But putting his needs before hers wasn’t his definition of love.
“It’ll be over soon, Fox. Just hang on tight,” he said, his eyes again on the road ahead.
“And after that it’ll be back to the Rangers for you,” she said with a thin smile. “It’s your passion.”
He shook his head. “It was at one time, but I don’t belong there anymore. The problem is that once I leave the Rangers, there isn’t much I’m qualified to do. I need a new challenge, something that’ll keep me going and moving. I’m not at all sure where I’ll end up.”
He wasn’t ready to discuss it with anyone, but he’d had one idea he intended to pursue. Maybe he could become a cop for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It would be a risky job, but then again, it would suit him. That was why he knew Fox and he would have to make a clean break long before then. But the inevitability of their final parting knifed at his gut If he could find the courage, he’d end it before he returned to his unit.
The cell phone rang and, as Travis got the go-ahead to put the operation in motion, a new tension filled him. “It’s time to head over to the Last Stop,” he said. “Casey and Ashe have turned over the phoney microdots to Andrews and Gray, as planned. Now it’s up to us to do our part.”
“After all these weeks trying to dodge these people, it’s finally my turn to go after them. I’ve been looking forward to this moment for a long time.” Fox paused, then added, “Let’s give them something to remember, Travis.”
“Count on it.”
THEY ARRIVED AT THE Last Stop Café, a popular eatery about halfway between Farmington and Shiprock, a short time later. The hot, fresh food renewed Travis’s energy though he ate light, knowing what lay ahead. As he looked at Fox’s plate, he saw she’d scarcely touched the green chile omelet.
Travis knew that she was frightened—though mostly for him—and he was determined to try to make it easier on her. He decided on the only strategy he knew for sure would work.
“Don’t start getting jumpy on me now, Fox—not after all we’ve been through,” he challenged, and had to suppress a smile when he saw the angry spark in her eyes.
“I’m not ‘jumpy,’ as you so eloquently put it,” she replied in her best “haughty” voice. “I’m cautiously anticipating what’s ahead for us. There’s a huge difference. Showing caution is a sign of intelligence.” She paused. “Are you getting this, or am I going too fast for you?”
He chuckled. “Welcome back,” he muttered.
“I’m eating light, by the way, for the same reason you are. I know I’ll need to be quick on my feet. I remember our lessons in fighting.”
Now he was worried. “Have a heart. Tell me you’re not considering the possibility of trying to fight McNeely or his pal.”
“Only if I have to.” She smiled, then added, “But don’t worry. If I’m too rough with them, you can hold me back.”
Travis cursed himself for ever having taught her any self-defense moves. “There’s McNeely’s cousin, Lori, manning the cash register. Let’s go.”
As they stopped to settle their bill, Travis could see from the woman’s eyes that she’d recognized them, though he’d avoided making eye contact. As Lori rang up the tab, he turned to Fox. “It’s a good place for us,” he said softly. “One bad experience there shouldn’t keep us from going back. Ever since high school, it has been our family’s special place. I think we should use it now. With those log walls, the building is like a bunker.”
“I agree with you,” Fox said. “And, it’s so quiet up there, it’s easy to hear anyone come up.”
As they headed out, Travis glanced back and saw McNeely’s cousin already on the phone.
“You really think it’ll work? Will she figure it out?”
“It doesn’t matter. McNeely will, from what she tells him.”
“Your training and his are identical,” she said slowly. “That really scares me. In a fight, you’re evenly matched.”
“I need you to believe in me, Fox, okay?”
“Of course, I believe in you. And I’ll be there, ready to help.”
He groaned. “Thanks for the reassurance.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Despite the lightness of her tone, Travis could see the lines of worry still etched on her features. He found himself wishing he could pour out his love for her now while he still had the chance, but he remained silent. Despite what he’d said, he suspected that neither McNeely nor he would walk away from the fight. No matter who won, they’d each inflict damage on the other. But Fox was wrong about one thing: They weren’t evenly matched. Travis knew that to fail would mean leaving Fox to McNeely’s mercy; that knowledge would give him all the edge he needed.
As he hardened his thinking, Travis forced his feelings for Fox to fade into the background. He was still the only major obstacle that stood between her and her enemies, and he wouldn’t let her down.
/> “It’s time for me to call my brother and let him know when we expect to arrive. Then I want to do a little reconnoitering and make sure we’ve picked up McNeely.” He turned off onto a dirt track that led to the cabin, took out the cell phone and called his brother. After he was finished, he parked the vehicle in an area beneath some pines. “I’m going to check and see if I can spot McNeely anywhere.”
Travis and Fox walked to a place below the crest of a hill from where they could see the entire valley stretching out below them. A vehicle several miles behind was approaching slowly, its dust trail barely visible.
“You think that’s McNeely?” Fox asked.
He nodded. “It’s either him or his partner,” Travis said, hurrying back with her to their vehicle. “Things are going according to schedule.”
By the time they reached the lodge, Travis’s muscles were taut. He could sense the danger pressing in on them. “I can feel McNeely itching to make his move.”
“Let’s lead him over to Casey and Ashe’s position, then.”
“We need to make it look as if we’re going for a hike. Otherwise he’ll suspect something’s up,” he said.
Travis found a knapsack in the cedar chest and placed a blanket inside to bulk it up. Fox rolled up another blanket, tied it with a rope, and strapped it to her back. They worked wordlessly, the tension between them an almost-palpable presence.
“Fox, stay close by me,” Travis said, his voice hard and deadly. He checked the clip on his pistol, made sure he had spare ammo in his pocket, then placed the gun into his belt.
He had to think like a soldier now. Their survival was at stake. Any mistake could be fatal.
“Wait. I want to add icing to the cake,” Fox said, producing a pencil and sticky notepad from her purse. Quickly she wrote a message.
Ashe, in case you come up tonight instead of tomorrow, we’ve gone for a short hike, looking for piñon nuts. Hope you’ve brought plenty of food. We should be back before dark.
Fox
Travis grabbed a tack from an old note somebody had stuck on a log ages ago. As they stepped outside, he attached the note prominently on the door, then led the way across the small clearing in front of the cabin.
Chapter Twenty-One
Making sure they left tracks McNeely could easily follow, they entered a narrow, winding canyon lined with piñons and brush, proceeding at a brisk clip. A clear stream flowed beside them, sparkling in the sun as it bubbled swiftly across the rocks.
Travis led the way toward the scooped out amphitheater-like cave that formed the dead end of the canyon. It had been a favorite picnic spot of theirs once.
“I remember this place,” she said. “I’ll keep up, but don’t forget it’s been a long time since I’ve done any rock climbing.”
“There’s a foot-wide hidden trail to our left that was placed there by my ancestors,” he said, gesturing ahead. “Ashe and I never told anyone about it. That will take us above the cave, and eventually lead us to the top.”
Though Travis had climbed the hidden trail many times before, it still took a few minutes for him to locate it among the rocks and brush that had grown there since his last visit.
Parts of the ancient trail consisted of steps cut out of the rock face, and the rocky terrain and stunted pifions clinging to the steep sides helped their passage. They picked their way carefully across the hard sandstone. Their footsteps, and even their breathing became amplified by the concave surface of the cliff. Travis knew from experience that anyone farther down the trail would hear them easily, but there was nothing that could be done about it now. With luck, Casey and Ashe would move in before McNeely came after them.
Halfway up the secret trail, Travis stopped and looked below. Two figures in tan and light green clothing were coming up the creek bed, and both had shoulder-held weapons.
“McNeely is the one in the rear, partially hidden,” Travis indicated in a whisper. He knew that for the moment they wouldn’t be heard because their pursuers were beside the running stream. “He’s always playing it smart, taking any available cover and letting someone else take point.”
“Is it training or intelligence?” Fox asked.
He knew she was hoping to find at least one Achilles’ heel in her enemy, but he couldn’t lie to her. “McNeely’s no rocket scientist, but he’s good at what he does. He’s cunning and that’s what makes him dangerous.”
As they continued their climb up the cliff, Travis stayed close to Fox. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. The shooting would start soon. He tried to keep her in the shadows while making himself a slightly clearer target. Though it was possible the Russian ex-soldier would try to take Fox alive, he had a feeling McNeely’s plans were different that he wanted Travis now. In his eyes, killing Fox would weaken Travis and it was an edge Travis was certain McNeely would use.
“Quit trying to screen me with your body,” Fox snapped. “You’re making yourself an obvious target.”
Before he could reply, a bullet impacted into the rock just above her, and the echo of a rifle shot rang across the canyon.
“They’re trying to keep us from getting to the top,” he said. “Don’t try it. Just get behind cover.” He gave her a nudge in the right direction.
“Where are Casey and Ashe?” she asked, fear in her voice.
“They’ll be here for us,” he assured, though he had wondered the same thing. “Keep moving.” Maybe his brother had encountered problems of his own. The thought worried him, but he couldn’t dwell on it now.
Another round hit perilously close to Fox. As flying bits of rock stung them both, she yelped, and ducked her head. For one heart-stopping second, he thought she’d been hit. He reached her position, putting his body between the sniper and her. “Can you move?”
“I could until you shoved me against this rock,” she said. “Under different circumstances this might be fun, but right now, I’d like to be able to get out of here.”
Grinding his teeth, he pulled her with him into the shadows beneath a rock overhang.
He started to say something to her when the sudden roar of a helicopter drowned out all other sounds. The agile scout craft swooped over the ridge to their left, dropping down and hovering above the creek. Gunfire from the police chopper raised puffs of dirt around the two men below, and they dropped their rifles, raising their hands. As the aircraft closed in, the rotors churned up a cloud of dust. One of the men suddenly took off, sprinting uphill, and Travis lost sight of him.
“It’s McNeely. He’s coming up. He knows that the only chance he’s got to finish the fight is to close in on us. The chopper won’t fire on him if he’s near us. We have to get farther off the trail. Hopefully, he’ll think we ran on up to the top of the cliff when the helicopter arrived.”
The helicopter’s engines slowed then, and died out quickly, leaving only the distant whoosh of blades. Travis knew the helicopter had landed, dropping off reinforcements to take the prisoner and pursue McNeely. Now, with backup on the ground as well, the odds seemed more in their favor.
Travis pulled Fox into a large crevice in the rock face as the sound of footsteps from below grew louder. Travis listened to McNeely’s labored breathing. He was almost upon them.
As McNeely reached their position, Travis suddenly stepped out and delivered a hard, fast punch to his stomach, dropping McNeely like a bag of grain onto the trail.
Travis heard Fox come out of hiding as he pressed his pistol into McNeely’s back. McNeely, on hands and knees and groaning in pain, still gripped his own weapon in one hand.
“Don’t even think about it, McNeely,” Travis growled.
“You couldn’t have done this without bringing in reinforcements, Redhawk.”
Travis never took his eyes off McNeely’s pistol. “Ease your hand off that weapon.”
Fox moved farther out onto the trail, grabbed the pistol, then tossed it down the cliff. “Let’s get that out of the way before somebody gets hurt.”
Travis was struggling to regain his balance when McNeely pulled out a small backup pistol from his shirt pocket and grabbed Fox’s arm, swinging her toward Travis so she was between the two armed men. McNeely held her tightly just below her breasts, effectively pinning both her arms. His grip nearly choked the air out of her lungs. She had no room at all to try any of the moves Travis had taught her.
“I may not win this battle, Redhawk,” McNeely said, laughing grimly, “but you’re going to lose, too.” He aimed his weapon at Fox’s head. “I’ll kill her unless you do exactly as I say.”
“Don’t listen to him. He’ll kill us both anyway,” Fox said raggedly.
Travis aimed his pistol at the top of McNeely’s head. “If you shoot her, there won’t be a place safe enough for you to hide. Even if you manage to get off this cliff, I’ll find you.”
“I’m trembling.”
“You should be. Suicide missions were never your thing.”
McNeely pointed with his chin toward the helicopter that was hovering a hundred feet away. “Better wave them off, Travis. I always get an itchy trigger finger when I’m nervous.”
Travis gestured for the helicopter to back off, and it dropped down out of their view. They could hear it below, possibly landing. “Okay. Here’s my deal, McNeely. Let her go now. You can have me.” He placed his pistol on the ground in front of him.
“Kick it over the side.”
“Don’t you dare do that!” Fox cried. “He’ll kill you!”
Travis slid the weapon down the slope, still watching for an opening.
McNeely eased his hold on her slightly then. Taking full advantage of the little mobility she suddenly had, Fox reached back and pinched McNeely as hard as she could in the thigh.