Fuck.
He eased out of the tent, found his lantern and clicked it on. Using the small ray of light to inspect Macy’s leg he saw her pants were soaked in blood. Hard to make a diagnosis without seeing the wound, but the way Macy tossed about he wouldn’t be able to get her pants off. If the wound had gotten infected she would need medical care immediately. His supplies were limited.
Only one option. Get to the nearest village and hope they had access to some. At the very least; a vehicle. Taking her to a hospital wasn’t an option. They would have those monitored.
Working quickly, he packed up camp, lifted Macy into his arms and broke into a swift walk. Her body burned against his and it wasn’t long before sweat broke out on his forehead. He’d spent enough time in these mountains to be fairly familiar with the villages not found on any map. Some people still lived off the land and denied modern conveniences. Exactly what he needed. He couldn’t risk anyone asking too many questions or going to the authorities because they saw Macy’s photo on the television.
It would delay them and take them miles off their path. What choice did he have? Macy needed medical attention. More than what he could give.
Concern snaked through him, squeezing his chest. If he didn’t bring Macy home Avery would never forgive him. He’d given his word and he’d be damned if he didn’t keep it. His family had lost too much already. He wouldn’t be the one to add more grief.
Determined, he pushed harder.
****
Nate stumbled to his knees, his body too depleted to feel the pain when he landed hard on a rock. Sweat rolled down his face, his back. Where the hell was that village? They should have reached it by now.
Sun beat mercilessly down on him, sapping his energy. He’d been in worse situations as this but damn if he fought to stay on task. Almost like…
Something moved in front of him. Nate blinked, trying to focus. What the hell was wrong with him?
He shook his head in an attempt to clear the fog. Swaying, he watched the figure grow closer. Letting Macy’s legs slip to the ground, he reached behind his back for his Glock. His fingers closed clumsily around the grip.
Before he could pull his weapon, the figure morphed into four.
“Stay back.” He warned, his words slurring.
As if he hadn’t spoken, the figures approached. He felt Macy being taken from his arms. The last thing he remembered was lunging for her and the ground rising to meet him before everything went black.
Chapter Nine
Nate woke with a start. He looked around him, taking in the thatched roof and mud and stick walls. Hot, but not sweltering. The Azbak people knew how to build homes to withstand the extreme temperatures of the mountains.
He lay on a thin bed. Lumpy, not at all comfortable. Probably stuffed with wool.
Macy.
He sat up, gritting his teeth when his head spun, and threw the thin, woven blanket off him. Where the hell were his clothes?
The fabric covering the open doorway lifted and an elderly woman shuffled in, holding a chipped pitcher and cup.
Nate grabbed the blanket and covered himself. The old woman tisked and set the items on a tree stump that served as a table. When she turned to him, shoulders hunched from age, she had one blind eye. In Azebek she said, “Sick. Stay.”
He didn’t feel sick. A little weak. Headache. Dry mouth. But not sick. “Where is the woman that was with me?” He asked in the same language.
She waved him off, turning away to pour liquid into the cracked cup. Not water. Something browner in color. Without answering, she held the cup out to him. “Drink.”
Her tone left no room for argument so he did as told and tipped the cup to his lips. Warm, bitter tasting liquid slid down his throat and he grimaced. The woman put her hand on the bottom of the cup, forcing him to finish it. He coughed and thrust it at her. With slow movements, she set it down and turned back to him.
Her gnarled hand clamped down on his forehead with surprising strength. Murmuring to herself, she moved her hand to his neck, then to his chest, over his heart. She said a soft chant and then without another word, picked up her stuff and left the hut.
Nate spied his gear at the foot of the bed and reached for it. Within minutes he was dressed and heading for the door. They hadn’t confiscated his weapons. In fact, his pack hadn’t been touched. Everything was where he’d put it.
He stepped outside and found himself standing on the side of a hill. The village scattered around him had been built on the side of the mountain. Some poplar trees dotted the landscape; otherwise everything was dirt and rock. Besides a donkey or two and a villager here and there he saw nothing.
A man approached, his eyes guarded. “Come.” He said.
Nate followed him down a dirt path to one of the lower houses. His stomach churned, making him feel a little sick. At one of the huts the man stopped and motioned for Nate to enter. Hesitantly, he ducked through the doorway.
It was similar to the one he’d been in, but this one had more of a woman’s touch. Colorful, tattered rugs covered the dirt floor. More pottery. A crude chair. But it was the woman lying in the bed across the room that caught his attention. Her dark hair had been brushed away from her face, her eyes closed. She lay perfectly still, almost serene.
For a moment he froze, heart pounding, waiting for the rise and fall of her chest beneath the blanket pulled up to her shoulders. When he saw it, the breath rushed out of his lungs. Relief like he’d never felt washed through him, making his knees go weak.
Recovering, he set his pack down and walked over to her. She looked so frail lying there. Dark circles lined her eyes, her skin pale. He reached out to caress her cheek, the need to touch her overwhelming. A voice stopped him midway.
“Do not touch. She needs rest.”
He turned to see the elderly woman who had made him drink the disgusting tonic. “Her wound?”
The woman shuffled toward him. “She was with fever when they brought her to me. The wound had infection. She is healing now.”
Just as he’d suspected. “You treated her?”
The woman nodded, resting a hand on the bed next to Macy’s arm. “I give her something to make her sleep. Heal.”
“Thank you.” He said, bowing his head slightly as a show of respect.
She waved him off. “You must rest.” She reached over and pinched the back of his hand, surprising him. “Not enough water. Sick, too.”
Dehydrated. That explained his symptoms. He’d drank the last of their water during the search for a village. With the heat and amount of sweat he produced it didn’t surprise him. Macy had been the only thing on his mind.
“I’m not going anywhere.” He said. Macy was his responsibility and he wasn’t leaving her side.
The woman clucked her tongue at him and shook her head. She pointed to the chair next to the bed. “Sit.”
He did, hating the weakness in his body. His legs felt shaky, his head foggy. Dehydration or the tonic? Either way he didn’t like it.
The woman fussed with Macy for a few minutes, lifting the blanket and inspecting her wound, hovering a hand over Macy’s chest and forehead, murmuring things he couldn’t understand. When she finished she tucked the blanket snug around Macy’s shoulders and hobbled out of the hut.
Just before disappearing out the door she said, “She is the one.”
Nate went rigid. Shit. Did the old woman know who Macy was? He knew damn well there wasn’t electricity out here. This village was in the stone age. They didn’t even have running water.
No way.
Then what did the woman mean?
Uncomfortable with the cryptic comment, Nate rose to his feet. They couldn’t stay here. He wouldn’t risk Macy’s safety. For all he knew these villagers were working with the IPA and had already sent word to Diakameli that his bounty was here. They didn’t need modernization to be terrorists. God knows he’d been in many villages just like this that weren’t what they seemed. On the outs
ide, it looked like a poor, underprivileged village. On the inside it hid weapons of mass destruction and IPA connections, prepared to die for their cause.
He put a hand on Macy’s shoulder. She didn’t stir. Unable to resist, he caressed her cheek. Warm. Not as hot. A good sign. Beneath his hand her skin felt soft as silk. He gently ran his thumb across the fading bruise on her jawline. Anger and the urge to protect and defend surged through him. Except, it felt more personal. Not just a bodyguard protecting his charge. More…
Nope. Not going there. The reasons stuck like a knife in his heart.
He dropped his hand to his side, sobered, and put his thoughts in proper order. First things first. Get Macy dressed, then grab her and go. They may not have confiscated his weapons, but that could be a ruse to keep him off guard.
His supply of clothing for Macy was running low. Only two shirts and one pair of pants left. Foregoing the undergarments, he grasped the edge of the blanket, prepared to dress her and make a run for it.
“Nate?”
The murmured question came from Macy. He froze, his gaze flying to her face to find her eyes open. Glazed, confused.
Letting go of the blanket, he leaned over her. “Hey. I’m here.”
Her beautiful blue eyes that reminded him so much of Bleu Lake back home, met his, radiating with pain. “Don’t leave me. Please.”
The impact of those words went straight through his chest. At that moment, he knew they couldn’t go. Not until she was healthy enough to go. They’d pushed hard already and look where it got them.
Bending, he pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m not going anywhere. Go back to sleep. You’re safe.”
That seemed to work because the tension went out of her muscles and her eyes drifted closed. Seconds later her breathing evened out, indicating she slept peacefully.
Nate straightened and scrubbed a hand down his face. He returned the clothes to his pack, dragged the crude chair in front of the bed and dropped down on it. His Glock now rested across his thigh, finger near the trigger as he settled in.
Whomever, or whatever, came through that door they would have to go through him first in order to get to Macy. And he’d die before he let another person hurt her.
Chapter Ten
“Uncle.” Bailey bent over, hands on her knees, drawing deep breaths into her lungs.
Her brother, Kell, sprinted the few paces back to her, jogging in place. Sometimes she really hated having so many fit brothers. “Come on, sis. Two more miles to go. We’re barely getting started.”
They had already run three miles this morning. Their normal was four. She didn’t love running like her brother did, but it kept her strong and in great shape so she did it. Even on the days she had to drag herself out of bed to go. Running with Kell was different than with any of her other brothers. Kell was relentless. Merciless. And very possibly, a sadist. At least in her mind.
She knew he’d never let her turn back and return to her cute little cabin on the lake where her steam shower waited. Oh, how she longed to let the heat relax her muscles from this workout.
“Two, huh?” She asked, straightening.
Kell grinned. “If you can handle it.”
Bailey narrowed her eyes at the challenge. She’d grown up watching her brothers compete with each other. Her mother used to tell her it was the testosterone that made them play until one or more of them were bleeding. Bailey suspected it was a competition to see who was more alpha. Ridiculous, but she loved them.
“Oh, I can handle it.” She said. Challenge accepted. She’d never backed down and didn’t plan on starting. She was, after all, a Wolff.
Before Kell could sprint ahead of her, she elbowed him in the ribs and took off like a bullet. She heard him grunt then the sound of his light, agile footfalls behind her. Seconds later he fell into step next to her. They finished up the next two miles in record time. When they finally reached their cars, her legs felt like jelly.
They cooled down and stretched. Kell tossed her a bottle of water, looping a towel around his neck.
She took a drink, letting the cool liquid slide down her throat, and leaned against her car. “Want to tell me what’s eating you?”
Kell wiped sweat off his face with the edge of the towel. “What makes you think something is bothering me?”
“Because we just ran five miles in twenty-two minutes.”
Kell took a swig of his own water bottle. “Let it go, sis.”
She took another drink of water and changed tactics. “I think Dani is pregnant.”
Kell’s head snapped up. “How the hell did you find out?”
Her eyes widened. “I knew it! Is that why you took her to the doctor a couple days ago?”
Realizing he’d been outsmarted by his younger sister, Kell sent her a look. “Damn you. She isn’t ready to tell anyone yet. I’m not sure she’s wrapped her head around it completely.”
Stunned, Bailey tried to wrap her own head around it. Dani pregnant? That meant she was going to be an aunt. And Ryan would have been a father.
Tears filled her eyes and she rapidly blinked them away. Life really could be cruel sometimes.
“She’s going to keep it, right?”
Kell shrugged. “I don’t know. She was pretty distraught when she found out.”
Bailey pushed off her car. “She has to. This baby is a piece of Ryan. The only thing we have left.”
“It’s not our decision.”
“The hell it’s not. I’m going over there to talk to her.”
Kell caught her arm before she could swing around and get in her car. “You can’t. You don’t know.” He emphasized the last two words to make his point.
Grief knifed through her heart. She hated showing weakness but couldn’t stop the waver in her tone. “What if she doesn’t keep it?”
A muscle jumped in Kell’s jaw, telling her he’d thought the same thing. That, at least, made her feel a little better.
“We just wait and see. Support her decision. Whatever it is.”
She knew he was right. Their hands were tied. The decision belonged to Dani and Dani alone. That didn’t mean she had to sit back and leave the fate of her future nephew or niece in a grieving fiancée’s hands. Not completely anyway. She knew Dani wasn’t in a good place. Heck, none of them were. Losing Ryan had blown them all away and they were still picking up the pieces. Sleep had become almost nonexistent for her. Almost every night she woke up in a cold sweat calling for her brother and reaching for him. Only to awaken to an empty bedroom that had once been her sanctuary. Losing a sibling stole a piece of you that no one could replace.
“Are you going to tell Mom?” She asked, knowing their mother’s sixth sense about matters of the heart. If Bailey had suspicions, so would Mom.
“Not my place.”
Damn his strict moral code. Sometimes, she wanted to shake him and tell him to react. To feel. Then she remembered how sensitive Kell really was. Much like Quinn. Playing his cards close to the vest. That kind of control needed an outlet. Kell’s was running, putting himself through brutal workouts and in dangerous situations. Whether it be free-climbing a mountain or on a mission. Evan was the one of the few who could keep up with him. And all of her brothers were in top physical condition.
“It’s not yours either.” He added.
Bailey slid into the driver’s seat of her car. “I have to do something.”
Kell put a hand on the doorframe, preventing her from closing it. “Bailey.”
The warning in his tone did little to deter her. He’d be pissed if she went to Dani’s with her knowledge of the pregnancy.
Screw that. He’d get over it. This was their nephew or niece. Ryan’s child. The only one he’d ever have. The only remnant of him they had.
Bailey turned over the key and brought the engine to life. She sent Kell a pointed look. “I hear what you’re saying.”
That telltale muscle jumped in Kell’s jaw. Yep. He knew her well. And he wasn’t happy ab
out it.
He rapped his hand on the frame twice before closing the door and taking a step back. “You’re a pain in the ass, sis.” He said without censure.
She cast him a smile and drove off with a wave out the window. She might be a royal pain but she wasn’t wrong in this. One way or another they would see Ryan’s child brought into this world.
****
The thin material covering the door to the hut rustled as someone came through.
Instantly alert, Nate sat up straighter, hand wrapping around his weapon.
A man stepped inside, lines of strain on his face. “You must go.” He said. “Quickly.”
That brought Nate to his feet. “What is it?”
“No time. There is a car outside.” He tossed Nate the keys. “Take it. Go now.”
Nate pocketed them, then tucked his gun in his waistband. “Thank you.”
The man nodded. “Hurry.” He ducked outside.
Wasting no time, Nate grabbed Macy’s clothes and dressed her as quickly as possible. She didn’t rouse, her limbs limp as noodles, slowing the progress. He didn’t bother with undergarments or shoes. Then he shrugged on his pack, lifted her into his arms and moved swiftly to the waiting car. To say he was surprised they had a running vehicle didn’t cover it. As he laid Macy in the backseat of the tiny car, he wondered what else they had hidden in the village.
It was sweltering inside when he climbed in the driver’s seat. Nate rolled the windows down before giving a two-finger wave to the people who had helped them. They had saved Macy’s life. Possibly his. He owed them more than taking their transportation and leading an army to their doorstep.
The man waved him off before turning and running down the hill. Nate gunned the motor and shot forward down the narrow road. In the rearview mirror, he saw a dust cloud form behind them, enveloping the village until he could no longer see it.
Slowing for a curve, he glanced back at Macy. She slept soundly, but still looked like hell. She was far from being out of the woods. The village woman had helped, but Macy needed a hospital.
He scrubbed a hand down his face. It would take days to reach China. And that’s if he drove straight through, without trouble.
Not Without Risk (Wolff Securities Book 2) Page 7