I ached from head to toe, wanting nothing more than to lie down and sleep, so I pushed aside the mosquito netting and stretched out on Eli’s cot. My hand smacked down on something hard under the sheet. Fishing it out, I clutched it tightly in my hand, fighting a wave of dizziness as I dialed Riley’s number. I could feel the black void sucking me under and knew it would take me.
I just had to hear her voice.
The phone slipped from my ear and down my cheek when she answered. The darkness yanked at me, taking my chance to talk to her away. There were a million things I wanted to say, but the heavy pull of oblivion was too much, so I forced the only thing I could say out before I fell headlong into it. “Riley… so sorry.”
A loud beep squawked out of the phone before everything went black.
I woke to Eli hovering over me with a worried look on his face. Pushing myself up with a groan, I ran my hands over my cheeks, scratching absently at the prickliness with a grimace.
“You look like shit, Ace,” Eli said, hands on his hips. “What the hell are you doing here anyway?”
“Good to see you too, asshole,” I grumbled, trying to get to my feet.
Eli grabbed me before I keeled over. Helping me to a folding camp chair in the corner of his tent, he asked, “What happened? You’re supposed to be in Chicago.”
“Have you heard from Grant?” I asked. “Did Jared make it back?”
Eli rummaged under his bed, grabbed a water bottle, and then handed it to me. “He made it, but where the hell have you been?”
I drank the bottle and wiped my lips with the back of my hand, noticing too late that I’d smeared dirt all over my face by doing that. “In the damn jungle, that’s where.” A package of wet-wipes landed in my lap, and I fumbled to open them as Eli took a seat on the bed.
As he looked at the mattress, he frowned. “You could have at least taken your dirty ass shoes off before you lay down.”
I tipped my head back and slumped further in the chair. “Yeah, I’ll do that next time I’m passing out.”
Eli snorted as he gathered up the corners and carried it outside.
A bone-weary tiredness swept through me and I closed my eyes, listening to Eli shake out the blanket.
“Ace…”
“Yeah?”
“Come on, I’ll help you back to bed.”
“Mm…kay.”
When morning broke, I found not only Eli, but also Aiden standing beside my cot. They talked in low voices. I wasn’t sure if it was so they didn’t wake me, or if they didn’t want anyone else overhearing them. When I rolled over and tried to sit up, Aiden pushed the netting back and stuck his arm out. With one tug from him, I was jerked upright, cussing a blue streak.
Everything hurt.
Aiden hissed. “Shh! No one can know you’re here!”
I scowled back at him. “Who the hell would know I’m here?”
He shook his head, brows pulled together. “Whoever it was that shot down your helicopter. That’s who.”
I stabbed my fingers through my hair and winced when my fingers caught up in a mess of snarls. “The helicopter had a malfunction. I saw the control panel light up and the pilot fight to keep us in the air.”
“In that case, we’re lucky whoever tampered with the helicopter you rode in didn’t mess with the one Jared was in.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. “Is he okay?”
Aiden walked over and sat down in the camp chair. “Yeah, he’s back in Chicago.”
“And the others? Did they make it?” I asked.
Aiden shook his head. “Two of them got caught in the explosion. Baxter was picked up by one of Grant’s contacts as soon as he was able to radio in the crash, but he had no idea where you’d ended up.”
I pinched my eyes closed against those last few minutes when Baxter put his own life at risk so I’d survive.
Aiden’s foot nudged mine. When I opened my eyes, he was watching me intently as he asked, “Did you have a good wander through the jungle?”
I tried for a shrug, wincing at the pull of muscle in my shoulder. “I didn’t wander. I fell through the damn trees, and then I made my way here. I stopped a few times, of course, but only a few times.”
They weren’t about to cut me any slack. “You fell asleep, you mean?” Aiden tapped his fingers against his knee, biting his lip as he thought about what I said.
I didn’t like the look on his face. “I don’t know if you’d call it sleeping. I pretty much just dropped, and then woke up some time later. Why?”
Aiden spoke to Eli. “Did you look him over when you found him?”
Eli shook his head. “Other than a six-inch layer of dirt on him, he didn’t have any bites or major wounds.”
Aiden dipped his head. “No fever?”
“No, he just suffered from dehydration and exhaustion. At least that’s what I think, as far as I could tell. Dude looked like shit, and he slept like the dead for almost two days. I’m pretty sure he went through a really bad case of shock too,” Eli said, speaking over his shoulder as he rooted through a small backpack. Popping the cap off a bottle of aspirin, he shook two out and handed them over, along with a bottle of water. I accepted them gratefully, hoping to take the edge off the head-to-toe ache I sported.
“Two days?”
“Yeah, bro. Two damn days. You had me a little worried,” Eli said with a forced smile.
Aiden kicked his feet out and draped his arms along the armrests of the chair. “Well, that makes sense, I suppose. We’ve been looking for him since the crash. If he was here for two days, that means he was in the jungle for the other two and a half.”
“There’s no way I was in the jungle that long after the crash,” I said as my mind raced to remember everything that happened after the helicopter exploded. The truth was that I couldn’t remember much about it. What I did recall was pushing myself off the jungle floor and making myself walk no matter how badly I just wanted to lie back down and curl up into a ball.
Aiden sat up, draping his arms on his knees as he gestured to me with a flick of his finger. “Yes, you were. I spent several days looking in trees and sheer drop-offs for your ass. Trust me, it’s been that long.”
I didn’t want to think about it anymore. “You found me. Now can we go home?” I asked, sagging over to rest my elbows on my knees.
Aiden snorted. “Not without help.”
“Meaning?” I asked.
He pointed at Eli. “Grant needs you to find the three of us a boat that will take us to Jamaica.”
Eli scuffed the toe of his shoe against the floor. “I have to go too?” He sounded more than a little aggravated.
I didn’t blame him. He’d set out on his own path and there we were, showing up in his life and changing his course like a freak storm that took out everything in its path.
Aiden cupped the back of his neck. “It’s too dangerous to stay here, Eli. Especially with all the help you’ve provided so far. If someone should make the connection…”
Eli let out a long sigh and crossed his arms. “I can get us a boat, but why Jamaica? Why not fly out of here?”
“All flights are canceled due to an upcoming storm. We need to be on a boat as soon as possible to get the hell out of here before it hits. Once we’re in Jamaica, we’ll catch a charter flight to Mexico to confuse anyone tracking us. Grant said he’ll have a plane on standby in Mexico that will take us to Chicago,” Aiden answered.
I breathed deeply. Oxygen swelled my lungs as I shook off the need to lie back down and go to sleep. I was ready to get the hell out of Haiti and find a way to see Riley. “Eli, how soon can you get us a boat?”
Water sluiced over me as I stood under the shower, ridding myself of the last few days of non-stop traveling. I swayed on my feet, tired from lack of sleep. Which was funny, considering I’d slept as much as I did after the crash.
As weary as I was, I wouldn’t complain. I’d been lucky.
How many others could say they’d walked
away from a helicopter crash and survived? Not many, I was sure. But I had a reason, a will to survive, that even something as demanding as death wasn’t going to steal from me. Riley. She needed me, and there was no way in hell I’d let her down.
We’d left Haiti and boarded a small fishing vessel that took us to Jamaica. From there, we were off again to Mexico. All of it, the whole trip, was nothing more than a blur in time until we taxied in on Cole Enterprise’s private airstrip.
My nerves hummed in anticipation. As soon as I could, I’d call Riley and hear her voice. The thought spurred me on as I finished my shower. Dressing quickly, I stepped out of the bathroom and made my way down the hall where Aiden waited for me.
When he saw me, he pushed off the wall, falling into step beside me. “Your lip is bleeding.”
Using the collar of my shirt, I pushed against it to get the bleeding to stop.
“I thought you’d look a little better after a shower, but the bruises are a nice touch,” he said, pointing at my face.
I scowled at him, blotting my lip. “Is it still bleeding?”
Aiden gave me a once over and nodded. “You’re good. Come on. Let’s get you something to eat before you talk to Grant.”
Several voices floated down the hall. The noise coming from the kitchen sounded like a damn party. I wanted no part of it. I just wanted food and a phone so I could call Riley. I’d probably scared the shit out of her when I’d called and only said I was sorry before I passed out.
We made it to the threshold of the kitchen and there she was, standing there as if I’d called her right out of the clear blue sky. Riley.
My knees threatened to buckle when she cried out, shoving people out of her way. I caught her when she launched herself in my arms and clung to me, sobbing against my chest. My heart stuttered as I heard her say, “I knew you weren’t dead.”
Ignoring everyone around me, I scooped Riley off her feet and carried her down the hall to my room.
Her hold on me was crushing as I closed the door behind me with my foot, and then carried her over to the bed. Sitting down, I held her, enjoying her body pressed close to mine as her sobs turned to an occasional shudder while I ran my fingers through her hair and up her back.
“I didn’t believe it. I wouldn’t believe it when they told me you were dead,” she whispered against my neck.
I hugged her hard against me. “I’m sorry, Riley…”
She swatted at me. Gripping the fabric of my shirt in her hand, she shook me. “Don’t you say you’re sorry to me ever again, Jake Aceton! Not after that damn phone call and the hell I’ve been through!”
I bit my lip, holding back another I’m sorry, and nodded.
She sagged against me, wiping her face with the bottom of her T-shirt. It took me three times swallowing before my throat cleared enough for me to speak. “I love you, Riley, and I know there is no apology that will be good enough for what happened, but I apologize regardless. There’s so much I want to say to you, but for right now, I just want to hold you and know that everything is all right.”
Her head bobbed against my chest as she drew in a deep, ragged breath and let it go on a long whoosh. “I love you too, Jake. But if you ever put me through that again, I’ll kill you myself.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. When I did, she halfheartedly punched me in the gut, warranting a pained groan from me. She pushed herself back, eyes wide, and then slapped her hand over her mouth, wincing when she thought I was hurt. “I’m sor—”
Her muffled words cut off when I snatched her hand away, replacing it with my lips. She wiggled on my lap, sending an instant flood of want through me. I had her flat on her back in seconds, pressing the lower half of my body against hers.
“If I can’t say it, neither can you,” I warned, nipping at her lip.
She gasped, sliding her fingers through my damp hair. “I’ve been so worried about you.” She sighed softly, tracing a finger along my cheek. “I don’t ever want to feel that helpless again.”
My jaw clenched as her eyes searched mine. She deserved to know all of it. Even if it meant she’d change her mind and leave. I didn’t want her to go, but I loved her enough that I’d respect whatever decision she made. I’d cemented my life with Cole Enterprise when I signed on. Had I known then what I knew now, I would have stayed in Alabama and made a life for us.
It was ‘water under the bridge’ as my momma would say. Nothing could hold us in place; we just had to go along for the ride. Selfishly enough, I decided to wait to tell her. I needed the time we had to show her just how much I loved her. Needed her to understand I was still the same person as I’d always been even if everything else around us had changed.
I leaned down, brushed my lips against hers, and said, “I’ve missed you so damn much. I’ve ached for you for so long. You’re my everything, Riley.”
I sat up, bringing her with me. My fingers slipped under the hem of her shirt, brushing against her ribs as I slowly lifted it up and over her head. Her hair fell in waves against her back when she moved to her knees in front of me. In one swift move, I had my shirt off. I pulled her against me, trailing kisses from her cheek to her neck.
Her hands shook between us. Her need made her body vibrate as if she were a jumble of live wires. With every touch, a spark jolted through me. Shifting to the side of the bed, I stood and pulled her up to stand beside me, undressing us with quick, efficient moves.
Flesh to flesh, I held her close to me. There were no words, only the joining of two souls kept apart for too long.
Chapter 5
The rustle of sheets woke me as Riley shifted, getting out of bed. I didn’t sleep like I used to. Before boot camp, I slept like the dead, but there was no such thing as a deep sleep anymore. I’d been trained to pop up from wherever I was laying, fully awake, and ready to run if need be.
The room, while dark, still had enough light to see the shadowed obstacles of furniture and the opening to the adjoining bathroom. It was enough for me to see, but I wasn’t exactly sure how good Riley’s night vision was.
I could have called out to her, had her turn on a light, but there was something about watching her when she didn’t know I was looking that warmed my heart. Seeing the way she tiptoed across the floor until she made it to the bathroom, the slow progress of the door closing, and then the strip of light that shot out from underneath it was comforting, knowing she was inches away.
And scary, because it could all be taken away at any moment.
I pushed myself up, stretching as the sound of water hissed from the showerhead and beat against the tiles. Yawning with a full-body shudder, I plucked my jeans from the floor, sliding my legs into each hole. I’d no sooner got them buttoned when there was a sharp knock on the door.
Damn it.
The floor was cold on my bare feet as I crossed it and pulled the door open, revealing Jared’s face as he beamed a grin at my appearance. God, it was good seeing him standing in front of me, even if he hadn’t fully healed and the shadows of what he’d been through still hovered over parts of him like a cloak. There wasn’t anything any of us could do but be there for him and not treat him with kid gloves. He deserved more than that.
“You look like shit,” we said, our voices overlapping one another.
“Look at us. Me—the kidnapping victim, and you—the walking dead. We make a good pair, huh?” Jared said, snorting as he shook his head.
“What’s up?” I asked as he took in my sleep-rumpled appearance.
“Breakfast is ready. Grant and Nadia want us all there so we can have an impromptu meeting,” he answered with a slight roll of his eyes.
“Did it hurt you to say that word?”
“Shut up. I’m just relaying the message.”
“So you’re calling your parents by their first names now?”
It felt good to joke with him again like we used to. Hell, it felt good just to stand in front of him, knowing he was alive and well after all the shit we’d been t
hrough.
Jared sighed, leaning against the doorjamb when I backed into the room and grabbed my socks.
“Well, I damn sure can’t run around here calling them Mom and Dad.”
“Why not? They are your mom and dad.” After I said it, I realized what he meant. We weren’t home. We were in a private sector—an underground facility that tracked down terrorist. And sometimes, we did all of that before breakfast. Jared using those terms would seem a little weird. Even for Jared.
I waved off my question as Jared scanned the room. “Where’s Riley?”
I pointed in the general direction of the bathroom. “Shower.”
Jared nodded and pushed himself away from the doorjamb. “I’ll see you two in the cafeteria.”
He walked off before I could reply, leaving me staring at the spot he’d occupied. Jared was by no means ever the quiet one. If anything, he was the one who always stirred things up. He wasn’t one for dull or boring moments. Seeing the change in him after he’d been kidnapped was like watching a pilot light go out. One minute, there was a burning energy, and then the next… poof. It made me wonder if he’d ever go back to being the way he used to be, or if so much had changed that he never could.
The shower shut off, taking away my thoughts of Jared with it as I listened to Riley towel off and get dressed.
When she cracked the door open to let the steam out, I walked in and brushed a kiss to her lips. Her cheeks had a healthy pink glow from the hot water, making it look like she’d been out in the sun.
I pulled out toothbrushes, toothpaste, and a stick of deodorant from the cabinet under the sink, setting them on the counter.
Riley rubbed a towel against her hair, watching me. “How did you know that stuff would be there?”
I grinned at her in the mirror. “All the rooms down here are stocked.”
Relevance (The Six Series, book 2.5) Page 5