by D'Ann Lindun
“Let me out you son of a—”
“Now, that’s not nice,” Coltraine interrupted. “And after I asked you to leave so politely.”
“Why’s he locked up like that?” Andy wanted to know.
“He’s a reporter.”
She looked confused. “So?”
“So he can’t follow us.”
Understanding dawned in her midnight blue eyes. “Oh.”
Coltraine turned back toward the reporter. “Hand over your phone and keys.”
Andy peered through the bars of the stall door. “Can I have them, please? I’ll leave then in my mailbox.”
Muttering threats under his breath, the reporter dropped the items in her outstretched hand. “There. Happy?”
“Yes, thank you.” She turned to Coltraine. “Are you ready?”
“Yep.” He pinned the reporter with a cold stare. “Stay put a full fifteen minutes after we drive away. Like Miss Baines told you, your phone and keys will be in her mailbox. Don’t try to follow us because the next time I see you, I won’t be as nice. Are we clear?”
“Perfectly.” He glared at them.
Coltraine flashed a smile. “Good.”
Andy led the way from the barn in stiff silence. “Was that necessary?”
He closed the barn doors behind them, then followed her to the waiting truck. Her disapproval bothered him more than he wanted to admit. “You know it was.”
She started the truck. “Let’s get this over with. Because the sooner we’re done, the sooner you can move on.”
He gave her a mock salute. “Yes, ma’am.”
CHAPTER THREE
Andy placed the reporter’s items in her mailbox as promised, then climbed behind the wheel of her pickup. She navigated the snowy road in stony silence. She wanted the people from the Sheikha’s flight home safely as bad as Coltraine did, but she wasn’t willing to alienate everyone along the way. Some of those people might be her allies at another time. The press had helped them more than once.
As if he’d read her mind, Coltraine said, “You’re obviously pissed. Get it off your chest.”
She glared at him. “Nice language, Coltraine. You might want to remember you’re not around a group of rough and tough men with no manners.” The truth was, Mooney, Howler and sometimes even Frank used off-color language. Gabriella had a mouth like a sailor. Occasionally, Andy had been known to curse, too. But Coltraine got under her skin, and she felt like lashing out at him.
“I haven’t forgotten for a nano-second, Miss Baines.”
His sarcasm bit at her. “Andy is fine.”
“I’ll try to watch my mouth, Andy.” His lips quirked, irritating her further.
“Thank you.”
“How far to the meeting place?”
“About a mile.”
“Better hurry, if you can. Our friendly reporter is following us.”
She shot him a look. “What? You mean your manhandling didn’t discourage him? If you did that to me, I’d be too afraid to move.”
“If I ever touch you, Andy, it won’t be with intimidation in mind.”
His words, the timbre of his voice, sent a quiver rocketing straight between her thighs. To combat the tingle, she said sharper than she meant to, “You won’t ever be touching me.”
His grin was cheeky. “Never say never.”
Jerk! She glared at him. “Never.”
His cocky grin broadened. “Trying to convince me, or you?”
Deciding the best way to deal with him was to ignore him, she glanced in the mirror on her side. The reporter had caught up to them and rode the tail of the trailer like an extra attachment. How could he see through the snow the trailer tires threw up? She couldn’t go any faster with the horses in tow. Swallowing her pride, she glanced at Coltraine. “I can’t shake him. What should I do?”
“Nothing. When you stop, I’ll take care of him.”
“Murder is against the law in Colorado.” She couldn’t take her eyes off the road long enough to punctuate the statement with a sarcastic look. “You just can’t tie the guy up and leave him to freeze.”
“Can’t I? I warned him off once. I won’t do it twice.”
His ominous tone sent a different kind of shiver through her, and Andy reached for the knob to turn the heat up a few degrees. The cab filled with warm air, but Andy didn’t think the warmth had as much to do with the forced air than the man next to her. He took up too much space, and he made her think about things she shouldn’t.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the turn-off into the forest. She had to slow to a near crawl to get the truck to climb the steep, snow-packed road. When she looked in the side mirror to check the trailer, she saw the reporter stuck by the side of the road. His two-wheel drive simply couldn’t go through the deep snow like her heavy, four-by-four. Plus, Andy had years of mountain driving experience on her side that he probably didn’t.
As she turned the corner, Coltraine looked out his window and spotted the stuck reporter.
“Looks like I don’t have to worry about my persistent friend, after all.”
“No.” Relief filled Andy that she wouldn’t have to witness any acts of violence. At least for now. Even with a four-wheel drive, she couldn’t make it very far up this road. The forest access road wasn’t plowed, and if the other SAR members hadn’t gone first, she wouldn’t have been able to come this far.
They would be waiting at the trailhead.
Could she make it?
Already the trailer tires were beginning to spin.
She geared down and placed both hands on the steering wheel. “C’mon, baby.”
“Keep her moving.” Coltraine sounded suddenly tense. He should be. If they slipped off his side of the road, the steep slope would send the rig careening, killing all of them.
“I know,” she muttered. Sweat beaded on her brow. The trailer hit a deep rut and jerked violently to the right. The tires came dangerously close to the edge. With a careful turn of the wheel, Andy eased the rig back into the middle of the road.
Inch by inch, they moved forward, the tires digging into the deep powder. Edging forward, they gained enough momentum to take them around a corner.
Rounding the curve, the road flattened out. Andy drew a deep breath. “Whew.”
“Good job,” Coltraine said.
She shot him an incredulous glance. He complimented her? “Thanks.”
He shrugged. “You drive well. Don’t let it go to your head.”
Before she could think of a smart-Alec answer, she spotted the others’ vehicles parked in a wide spot at the side of the road. “They’re here.”
Pulling the rig in beside them, she killed the engine and sat for a moment. Relief washed over her, leaving her a little weak in the knees.
Coltraine didn’t give her time to recover. He had already opened the door, allowing a blast of frigid air to blow through the truck. “Let’s move. Time is of the essence.”
Andy climbed out and moved to the back of the trailer. Already, the others had started unloading the horses. Feeling slightly out of place, Andy stood by and waited until Frank handed her the lead rope of her paint gelding. She snapped into action. Leading her horse to the side of the trailer, she tied him and went to help with the rest.
Coltraine handed each one of them a lead rope, then led the three packhorses to the trees near Howler’s Jeep and tied them. “What goes on which horse?”
“I’ll show you.” Gabriella took his arm and pulled him toward the stack of equipment.
Although the SEAL didn’t react to Gabriella’s touch, Andy’s stomach twisted. Telling herself she was being silly, she picked up a sack of food and placed it in the panniers of the big gray packhorse.
With each of them stowing supplies on the animal, it didn’t take long to get it all loaded on the horses.
After making sure her cinch was tight, Andy went to her pickup and retrieved her rifle from the backseat. Locking the truck, she carried the rifle to her h
orse and placed the gun in the scabbard hanging from the saddlehorn.
“Can you use that thing?”
She turned at the sound of Coltraine’s voice. “Yes.”
He looked around. “Does everyone have a weapon with them?”
“I don’t know. Not rifles, if they do.”
“Have you ever shot at a man?”
“No.”
“Could you if I gave the order?”
She swallowed hard. “Yes.”
Frank approached her. “What horse do you want me to ride, Andy?”
“They’re all gentle. Pick one.”
Frank frowned at her sharp tone and turned away a little abruptly.
A few minutes later, they were all mounted except Andy. She had to suppress a grinwhen she looked at Mooney. He couldn’t have looked more out of place if he had been perched on top of the Empire State Building. Everyone else looked surprisingly comfortable. All of them had ridden her horses, except Gabriella, who was mounted on her prancing Friesan, and Coltraine. He, too, looked as if he had been on a horse before. Although gentle, the sorrel gelding he had chosen took a firm hand, and Coltraine had the horse doing exactly as he wanted.
Andy hooked the three packhorses together, then picked up the first one’s lead. “Let’s go. Frank, you take the front. I’ll bring up the rear. Give the horses time to make their way in the snow. Let Mahogany rest when he needs to.”
Frank nodded and turned the steady bay toward the trail.
~*~
As they fell in line, Coltraine took the opportunity to scout around the edges of the parking area. He didn’t see anything suspicious, but it was hard to tell with all the feet and hooves churning up the ground.
“Looking for the reporter?” Andy asked from beside him.
“Something like that.”
When she gave him a sharp look, he put on his most bland expression. There wasn’t any hard evidence of terrorists in the area, but he knew better than to take chances. “I’ll follow you.”
She looked as if she were going to argue, but then snapped her mouth shut and turned her horse after the others. If she could handle that rifle as well as she did her own saddle horse and three packhorses, then she was in good shape.
Snow continued to fall, showing no sign of letting up. The pine trees boughs drooped with the weight of it, and the horses’ hooves made soft plopping sounds as they walked. Other than the snow that fell from the trees as they passed, nothing moved. Coltraine was more impressed than he wanted to admit by the way the SAR team slipped silently through the wilderness. He wondered if this was the norm, or if it was the cold making them so quiet. His men would be impressed by the stealth of this bunch.
If the terrorists Sheikh Dul Fiquar feared were after his daughter, and they had somehow made their way here, Coltraine had a slim chance to outfox them. So far, he hadn’t seen any sign of the rebels, but he wasn’t foolish enough to think that meant they weren’t hot on his trail. A determined terrorist was like a hound on the scent; nothing would deter them until the prey had been caught. If Coltraine didn’t get to the Sheikha first, she wouldn’t survive five minutes at the hands of Sheikh Dul Fiquar’s enemies. Woman or not, she was good as dead.
The horses stopped to rest, their breath white plumes of frost in the cold air.
Coltraine observed the area around them.
Nothing moved.
His gaze landed on Andy. She surprised him at every turn. The way she handled the truck, the horses and then the rifle. Her reply when he asked her if she knew how to shoot surprised him. He wouldn’t have taken her for a woman who handled guns. She seemed so fragile, but maybe there was steel under the glass, holding her together.
He hoped so; the last woman who’d been in a combat situation with him hadn’t come out alive. Thinking of Lauren made his gut churn, and he forced himself to close off that part of his mind. He couldn’t afford to be unfocused right now.
Frank lifted his hand to let them know they were moving, and they again strung out along the trail.
A rabbit burst out of the bushes near Gabriella’s horse’s nose, and the black gelding reared. Gabriella sawed on the reins but came unseated, landing on her butt in a pile of snow. For a minute no one moved, then Frank asked, “You okay, Savedra?”
She threw him a furious look, as she struggled to stand in the deep snow. Howler stepped off his horse and hurried to the steaming woman’s side.
Andy’s lips twitched, but she didn’t laugh.
Mooney wasn’t so nice, he burst out in shrill shrieks of laughter. Long and loud.
“Shut up,” Coltraine ordered harshly.
Andy caught his eye. “Mooney, that’s enough.”
The kid quit laughing. “It’s funny seeing Savedra land on her butt like that.”
“Pig,” she hissed. Howler helped her to her feet, and when he tried to dust her off, she slapped at his hand. “I’m fine.”
Coltraine slid off his horse, approached Gabriella’s spooked gelding and spoke quietly. “It’s okay. Just a harmless little bunny.” When he was sure the horse was calm, he picked up the reins and led him to Gabriella. “If you’re okay, we better get moving.”
Giving him an agitated glare, she grabbed her horse’s reins and jerked them. The black animal threw up his head, eyes rolling. Coltraine put his hand on the reins. “That’s enough. He didn’t mean to toss you. Don’t take out your embarrassment on him.”
She didn’t respond as Howler lifted her back on the horse. Her lips were tight and her eyes sparked with anger. But when she reined the horse, her hands were gentler.
After everyone remounted, they started up the trail again. Coltraine feared all the commotion had given their location away to any followers. His skin prickled and his fine-tuned instincts all screamed a warning. The forest seemed to close in around him, smothering him. He’d been in wide open spaces for too long. Although the enemy was no more visible there than here.
They broke out of the forest into a meadow. Like a picture from a postcard or a calendar, a small area, only about the size of a football field, was circled by pine and aspens with a stream rushing through the middle. A small cabin, nearly hidden by the trees, sat on the eastern edge of the meadow. On any other day, Coltraine would have liked to sit and enjoy the view. Hand him a fishing pole and he’d be in heaven.
“What is this place?” he asked Andy.
She shifted in her saddle and looked over her shoulder at him. “It’s called the Highline cabin. It belongs to the Bureau of Land Management. They let us use it for emergencies.”
“We don’t have time to linger,” he warned.
“I know. But the horses need to rest and so do we. We need to eat. A hot meal will help keep up our strength. The cold saps it quicker than you realize.”
He knew. Too well. But he also knew the sheikha and her people were woefully unprepared for the weather. If they had survived the plane crash, he couldn’t let them freeze to death. “As long as it’s quick.”
She held up her hand and crossed her fingers. “I’ll make sure no one takes a nap after lunch.”
“Good.” He touched the horse with his heels, urging him forward. Drawing even with her he said, “Because if the sheikha dies, it will be on our heads.”
CHAPTER FOUR
The team moved quickly. In spite of himself, Coltraine was impressed. Andy and Gabriella took charge of the horses while the men dug in the packs and found MREs—ready to eat meals. He took one from Painter with little enthusiasm. He’d downed more of the pre-packaged dinners than he cared to admit.
His mind wasn’t on food, though. He looked around at the peaceful surroundings. Were they sufficiently hidden? Or was there a terrorist sitting on the ridge above with a high-powered rifle aimed at them? He glanced at the others, and all seemed calm. But they weren’t what he was, they hadn’t been where he had been, and they hadn’t done the things he’d been forced to do.
Coltraine turned his thoughts from that path befor
e they went to Lauren. He couldn’t lose focus. The sheikh depended on him to get his daughter and her people out before they were murdered.
The SAR team hadn’t moved inside the small cabin, instead choosing to kneel or squat. He walked to the door and looked around for tracks, but found nothing in the pristine snow. He opened the door and stepped inside.
For a minute, he let his eyes adjust to the gloom. Then he rocked back on his heels. In front of him, sprawled across the lone rickety chair, was a man of Mid-Eastern descent. Eyes and mouth open in surprise, he stared sightlessly ahead. In his forehead was a bullet wound. Blood and brain matter spewed over the back wall. The familiar scent of death permeated the air.
“Damn it.” Coltraine backed up a step. From the pictures he’d been sent of the people aboard the plane, he recognized the Sheikha’s uncle.
“What is it?” Andy came up next to his shoulder and peered inside. She reeled back. “Oh, no. Who is that?”
“One of the sheikha’s family members,” Coltraine said grimly. “I’m guessing he tried to walk out, and Sheikh Dul Fiquar’s enemies found him before we did.”
The others crowded around, and Painter spoke Coltraine’s fears aloud. “This may have just turned into a recovery instead of a rescue.”
“Who the fuck is shooting these people?” Painter demanded. “And why? You come clean with us, Lieutenant. We’re putting out lives on the line, and we deserve to know the truth.”
He was right. Coltraine sighed. “We don’t know for certain. Probably ISIS, or another terror group. Whoever they are, the sheikh was frightened enough to send his family out of the country to safety here and in Canada.”
“We’re up against ISIS?” Mooney’s eyes went wide. He made a slashing motion across his throat. “Those dudes who chop guys’ heads off for fun? Man, I didn’t sign up for this. I’d like to keep my head attached to my body, thank you very much.”
Painter stepped forward. “I vote the ladies go back with the body. If we were to be captured—”