He stopped at ten, and then made her repeat the numbers back again. Then, the alphabet one more time.
“I think that’s enough for one night,” he said. His body was too heated from their proximity and constant contact. He needed a break before he did something he regretted, like kiss her senseless.
She nodded, then yawned. “It’s learning a whole new language. I really had no idea.”
“Yeah, it can be difficult.” She was picking it up much faster than he had, though.
“Tomorrow you’ll have to teach me some actual words,” she said, bouncing with excitement.
He grinned with some bafflement. He thought she’d be bored after one session, but she seemed genuinely keen to learn more.
“Okay,” he agreed.
They got ready for bed, Mike with a reluctance that surprised even him. He wanted to keep talking to Jessica, about anything and everything. He liked their nights by the fire. They could talk then, as opposed to when he led them through the rainforest. During the long, boring days, he missed chatting to her. Part of the reason he called halts so often is so he could have an excuse to look at her, speak with her.
He’d never been like this with a woman before and it was as frustrating as fuck. Sex, he could do. No dramas at all. But this strange ache building in his chest? He had no idea what to do with that.
All he could do for now was ignore it. Hell, he might ignore it even after they escaped this damn jungle. He didn’t need complications in his life.
But did he want them?
Mike took a long time to fall asleep, his mind too full with Jessica.
Chapter 8
Around lunchtime, they finally spotted a bridge in the distance. It looked sturdy, and Jessica breathed a sigh of relief at the idea that they’d soon be across the river and continuing their journey. Made of solid wood, it rose high above the river, likely because the water would swell dramatically in the rainy season.
Jessica took a step forward, a new spring in her step. Once they crossed that bridge they’d be moving forward again, instead of sideways. Closer to getting home—and to a shower.
But Mike wrapped an arm around her waist to stop her, yanking her against his hard body. Jessica half-turned towards him in outrage, even as she reveled in the sensation of being pressed against such a strong chest. The feel of him made her even hotter than the humidity did.
She opened her mouth to ask what the hell he was doing, but froze as he pressed a finger to his lips, telling her to be silent. She frowned in confusion and bristled at being told what to do. She huffed, but logic quickly returned and she obeyed. Had he seen something?
He released her, dragging his hand over her stomach as he moved away. Jessica shivered, but Mike didn’t notice. He crept closer to the river, his footsteps quiet on the soft, springy earth. How did he avoid making sounds when he couldn’t even hear himself? It was remarkable.
Mike pushed aside the ferns and peered across the river. Jessica’s heart hammered in fear and confusion, but she didn’t dare get closer to see whatever he was staring at. She had no confidence she could move as quietly as he had. What was across the river? Maybe he’d spotted a panther in the trees, or some other predator ready to attack.
The bridge was minutes away, and she itched to move and continue on their journey. So close. But she held herself still.
Finally, after what seemed like an age, Mike backed away from the river’s edge and returned to her. He pressed his lips close to her ear, breath brushing over her skin. Her skin tightened at the sensation.
“The rebels are waiting for us on the other side.”
It took a second for the words to penetrate her lust-addled mind, but as soon as they did, she stiffened. “What?” she hissed. Thankfully, the running water of the wide river drowned out the noise they might make, but she still made sure to keep her voice low.
“It’s an ambush. They knew we’d need to cross the river eventually, and there are probably only so many bridges this deep in the jungle. I’m guessing they circled around once they lost us at the airport and have been waiting for us ever since.”
Jessica’s heart sank. It made sense. The rebels knew the jungle better than anyone. And since they had vehicles, they would’ve traveled quicker than Mike and Jessica, even if they had to hike some of the way. There were still some roads this deep in the rainforest, mostly for illegal loggers to use for their trucks. Jessica should’ve guessed the rebels would use them to get the drop on her and Mike.
“What can we do?” she asked, defeat creeping into her voice.
He shrugged. “I don’t know how many are over there. I won’t attack them head-on, particularly not when I can’t do any recon. If I could get across the river and circle around, I might be in with a chance if I took them by surprise, but since this is the only bridge we know about I don’t think that would work.”
“You must have some kind of plan,” she pleaded. “If we keep walking, we’ll eventually come to another bridge, right?”
He nodded. “But I’m not sure how long it’ll take to find it, particularly given how slow we’re moving through the undergrowth. It could add weeks to our journey.”
“Weeks?” she hissed. Oh, this was turning out to be a total disaster. She wanted to sink to the forest floor in defeat. She’d die out here, like a hamster on a treadmill that couldn’t dismount. She’d keep walking forever as the jungle threw more obstacles in her path until she accepted her fate.
He gazed steadily back at her, an ocean of calm. Warmth radiated from him, crossing the small gap between them. Despite the heat in the air, she took comfort from it, from him. Surely this wasn’t it? Surely she wouldn’t have to return to the rebels after all this work?
“I guess there’s nothing else we can do, right?”
He squeezed her hand. “Maybe we’ll get lucky. You never know.”
Her heart tumbled. By now, Jessica should want to be a million miles away from him, if her previous relationship experiences were anything to go by. Instead, she wanted nothing more to stay by his side, even after they left this damned jungle.
They set off, Jessica conscious of moving more quietly now she knew the rebels were across the water, waiting for them.
As they walked, Jessica counted the different species of plants around her. For the first time, the rainforest felt menacing. She didn’t let herself believe the malevolence surrounding her. The oppressive atmosphere was a trick of her mind, caused by the intense humidity, and knowing the rebels were so close and the jungle was so deadly. But no matter what logical reason she gave herself, it didn’t stop fear from slithering down her spine.
At least there were no snakes. None that she could see, anyway.
To distract herself, she practiced the sign language letters and numbers Mike had taught her. She did them again and again until they were like second nature to her. She spelled her name a few times, then Mike’s, until it was second nature.
About twenty minutes later, Mike stopped and turned to her with a grin. “Look,” he pointed, and Jessica peered through the trees. “I think that’s another bridge a bit farther up.”
“Really?” Jessica asked, his excitement infectious, the strange foreboding from earlier instantly disappearing. She looked closer, finally seeing the hint of rope he was pointing at. “Thank God,” she breathed.
They crept closer, and Mike pulled away to peer across the river.
“Are there rebels on that side?” she hissed.
“Not that I can see,” he said, coming back to her side. “They must believe no one in their right mind would use this bridge when they have a perfectly good one back that way. And they’d be right, if we hadn’t spotted them waiting for us in the shadows.”
“Or maybe the bridge is unusable?”
“We won’t know until we test it. But to do that we’ll have to climb. Probably tonight, so the rebels don’t catch sight of us.”
Jessica stared up—and up. “Climb?” It hadn’t occurred
to her that climbing would be the only way to reach the bridge. She moved forward to get a better view, parting the lush undergrowth near the water.
The bridge was tied halfway up two trees on either side of the river, about seventy feet in the air. It was made of rope and planks of wood, like something out of a b-movie or a video game. Even from her vantage, the rope look frayed and green with moss, and a number of the boards were missing, having long ago broken off and fallen into the river below.
She glanced back the way they’d come, where she could see hints of the solid bridge through the trees. The bridge where the rebels were waiting to ambush them. She sighed wistfully. Though there was no way she’d risk crossing it, that bridge was so temptingly sturdy. It had obviously been built to withstand the rising river water, and wasn’t nearly so far above ground level as the one hanging precariously above them.
“Why is it up so high?” she moaned.
“They must have put it up that high so it wouldn’t get washed away in the flood, since they’d have to rebuild after every rainy season.”
She returned her gaze to the bridge Mike intended them to cross. “It’s so high,” she said in a small voice.
“Yeah. But you’re not afraid of heights. Right?”
“Right,” she said, unconvincingly. She wasn’t, not like she was afraid of snakes. But she still wasn’t exactly confident climbing that high onto a death trap of a bridge, above what Mike claimed were crocodile-and-piranha infested waters.
“Is this the only way?” she asked, searching his face for a sign he held something back.
“Yes. But it’ll be okay. Hopefully.”
“That doesn’t give me a great deal of confidence,” she protested.
“I don’t want to lie to you,” Mike told her.
“I want the lie. Tell me the lie.”
Mike hesitated. Then, after a second, he stepped forward and gripped her hands. He stared straight into her eyes, and for a second Jessica forgot what she had to be afraid of.
“It’ll be fine,” Mike stated, voice firm. His gaze never wavered from hers.
“Wow,” Jessica breathed, as her heart somersaulted in her chest. “You’re a really good liar.”
“You know how I know it’ll be okay?”
She shook her head.
“Because I won’t let anything happen to you. No matter what.”
Warmth filled her at his words. Her heart beat double time as she continued to stare into his eyes. That was a hell of a thing for him to say. Particularly here and now, when she couldn’t do anything about it.
“Okay,” she said, having no idea where the sudden burst of confidence came from, but knowing it had something to do with Mike.
“We’ll wait until tonight. Unfortunately, this bridge is in full view of where the rebels are waiting for us. Hopefully they won’t think to look up, but we give ourselves a better chance if we go in the dark.”
“What happens if they see us in the moonlight? It’s pretty strong out here.”
“It took us about twenty minutes to reach here from the other bridge. Presumably it will take them a little less. That still gives us both enough time to cross the river and then disappear into the rainforest.”
Jessica eyed the bridge with trepidation. “We don’t have much of a choice, do we?” she asked.
“Not really. Not good ones.” He held up his hand to count off the numbers. “One, keep going and simply hope we find another bridge, one that’s sturdier and out of view. Two, swim across the river only to most likely get swept downstream and eaten by something. Or three, cross the bridge and confront the rebels head on.”
Jessica straightened her spine. He was right, this was the best option. As dangerous as it was, staying in the rainforest would be more so in the long run.
“Okay,” she said, infusing as much confidence and determination into her voice as possible. “I know we were lucky to find this bridge at all, so I’m game.”
Mike grinned at her. “That’s my girl.”
Warmth washed over her at the words. Mike was proud of her, and that meant more than she could have imagined.
They settled in to wait for the early hours of the morning. No fire this time, in case the rebels saw the smoke. Not that they needed it for heat. But it also meant they couldn’t boil water to replenish Mike’s canteen, or ward off the creatures determined to land on them now they were still. Jessica hoped none of them carried any nasty diseases, and that Mike’s insect repellent was doing the trick.
Once it grew dark, they didn’t even have conversation to entertain them, since Mike couldn’t see her. Barely enough moonlight filtered through the dense canopy for her to see Mike’s shape and know she wasn’t alone. No one had told her the waiting—the terrible anticipation—was the worst part of a mission. Knowing what was coming and having the tension build and build until she was a bundle of nerves with no outlet.
Again she cycled through the sign language she knew, taking comfort in the repetition.
Finally, after hours of waiting, Mike leaned forward and gripped her shoulder. It was time.
Slowly, carefully, they ascended to the bridge. Jessica struggled without Mike’s upper body strength, falling behind a few times. Mike noticed and slowed each time, but Jessica’s stamina quickly waned.
She was panting by the time she squeezed herself through the last of the branches to sit heavily opposite Mike. She determinedly didn’t look down, not wanting to know how bad the fall would be if she slipped. The moonlight was stronger here, without the trees and leaves blocking its path, enough for her to see Mike clearly. Instead of thinking of the drop below, she focused on Mike’s face. His gaze was steady and he wasn’t even breathing heavily. Bastard.
“I’ll go first,” he told her. “That way, if the bridge isn’t stable, I’ll be the one to fall.”
Jessica blanched. “You think you’ll fall?”
“No, but better me than you.”
“Then what the hell would happen to me?”
“If I die—” He ignored her sound of protest. “I want you to go back to the rebels and turn yourself in.”
“What?” she hissed.
“Hear me out. They want you alive. You’re no good to them dead. You have a better chance of survival if you’re with them instead of alone in the jungle, right? It’ll give Soldiering On more time to send someone else to rescue you.”
“Mike, if there’s any chance you’ll die crossing that bridge, don’t do it. Please.”
Her heart pounded. His words drilled deep into the fear center of her mind, clamping a vice around her lungs. She didn’t want a contingency plan, couldn’t bear to think of it. She wanted him alive and safe.
“We gotta cross,” he said firmly. “It should be fine.”
“I don’t believe you.”
He grinned, his usual picture of fearlessness. How did he do it? Why did he never freak out?
“I know,” he told her. “But we have a better chance of surviving this than crossing through the river, or walking into an ambush. Those aren’t bad odds.”
“Mike—”
He gripped the back of her neck and pulled her forward into a kiss, cutting off her words. Jessica froze in shock. What the hell was he doing? But after a second, she didn’t even care. She kissed him back just as fiercely, even as her fingers locked tighter on the branch she sat on.
The kiss lasted barely a second before Mike pulled away, determination etched on his features. Jessica nearly yanked him back to her before remembering where they were. She didn’t want to overbalance him.
He stood and tested the first plank, keeping his weight on his back foot.
Jessica clambered to her feet, heart in her throat, as Mike transferred his weight to his front foot. The bridge groaned and shifted, the sound echoing down the river in the still night, and Jessica hoped it didn’t reach the rebels. But the plank didn’t instantly collapse, and Jessica breathed a sigh of relief. First hurdle jumped.
H
e stepped forward, keeping his steps light. He ran his hands over the ropes on either side, but didn’t grip them. Smart move, since Jessica was convinced they’d rot to nothing at the slightest touch. How long had this bridge been here? Decades, at least.
Mike kept moving forward. Jessica’s eyes riveted on his feet as she silently pleaded for him to make it across safely. Every now and again he had to take a larger step to skip a broken board or two, and the bridge would rock, making Jessica freeze in terror for him.
She kept half an ear out for a shout from below. They had to hope the rebels wouldn’t bother looking up, but it was impossible to know. They could be waiting for Mike on the other side at this very moment.
About two-thirds of the way across, he paused. Jessica’s only indication something was wrong was an ominous creaking, but Mike clearly sensed something wrong. He quickened his pace, moving across the remainder of the bridge at the speed of a walk instead of a crawl. As he neared the end, one of the boards cracked beneath his feet, tripping him. He gripped the ropes that passed for handrails to stop himself falling.
Jessica’s fingers dug into the bark of the tree where she gripped its trunk, her eyes fixed on Mike and her heart in her throat.
The rope on the right snapped under his weight, making the whole bridge shudder. Cross the last bit. Get to safety. She clamped her jaw shut to stop herself saying it aloud.
The rope dangled useless in his hand, so Mike dropped it. He eased his foot up from the cracked board and tested the one ahead of it. Apparently it must have been safe, because he eased his foot down and then resumed the crossing. Jessica nearly cheered in relief as he finished the remaining few steps to the sturdy tree beyond.
Until she remembered it was her turn now, and the blood drained from her cheeks. She had to do what Mike had done, but with fewer boards and only one handrail.
She swallowed, fear making her hands tremble. More than anything, she wished she could stay exactly where she was. But Mike beckoned her from across the river, and she had to move.
She kept her eyes focused on Mike as she maneuvered herself into position at the start of the bridge. Then, she looked down at her feet. Her head spun as her eyes focused on the dizzying height below her.
On the Move Page 10