Against the Sky (27 page)

More shots echoed from the back of the house. Didn't sound like Jimmy's rifle, and it was coming up the hill from below. He smiled grimly. Looked like Nick had joined the party. Derek hoped like hell the kid didn't shoot him.

Out front, the men must have realized things were going sideways. The last two men fired off a couple of rounds as they helped their injured buddies limp over to the car. One of them jumped behind the wheel and started the engine. Gravel sprayed as the tires spun and the car shot off down the road.

Another man rounded the corner of the house from the back, blood oozing from a wound in his shoulder. Running flat out, he reached the second SUV and climbed behind the wheel. The car shot backward, whirled around, and roared off, disappearing down the hill.

Derek pulled his AK back through the window, turned and ran to the rear of the house. Jimmy was still pointing the rifle out into the darkness.

“Nick's out there,” Derek said calmly, not wanting to rattle the boy.

“I saw him,” the kid said. “He shot one of them. I shot one, too, but I didn't kill him. He took off into the trees.”

As they looked out the window of the mudroom, Derek spotted the guy heading down the hill, moving through a cluster of pines. He was dragging his leg, frantically waving his arms, trying to flag down the second vehicle. The car finally slid to a halt, the man jumped in, and the SUV roared off down the road.

Nick appeared on the porch, his pistol holstered, his hands in the air. “Don't shoot, kid. It's me.”

Derek smiled with relief. He'd done his job. All of them were safe. And he didn't even have to kill anyone.

Nick took a step back as Jimmy jerked open the back door and raced out onto the porch. “Nick!” The boy engulfed him in a bear hug, acting once more like the twelve-year-old he was instead of the man he'd been forced to become.

“I almost shot you,” Jimmy said.

Nick just smiled. He'd signaled as he'd come up the hill, used an owl call they both knew to make sure the kid realized it was him. “It's okay, you didn't. You helped save your aunt and Samantha. You did good, Jim.”

As they walked back into the house, Mary rushed forward. “Oh, Jimmy.” She pulled the boy into a hug. “I was so afraid you'd be hurt.”

“I'm okay, Aunt Mary.” He hugged her back, then turned away, a little embarrassed. “I recognized one of them, Nick. It was the man who came to my dad's study the day before he was killed. You think that's why they were after me? Because he thought I knew who he was?”

Nick nodded as another piece of the puzzle came together. “Yeah, I do. I think they were afraid you'd figure out who he was, connect him to your dad, and go to the cops. Getting the police involved is the last thing they want.”

“What . . . what are we going to do?”

Nick turned at the sound of Samantha's voice, saw her standing in the kitchen doorway. She was dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a sweatshirt, ready to leave at Derek's command. Her face was pale but her chin was firm.

His expression changed from relieved to fierce. He'd never forget the murderous rage that burned through him as he'd heard the echo of gunfire and drove wildly toward the top of the hill. He would have killed every last one of them if they had hurt her.

He drew her carefully into his arms. “You scared the hell out of me. You know that?”

Samantha leaned into him. “I knew you'd come. I never doubted it.”

He would have come. No one could have stopped him. He closed his eyes, grateful he had arrived in time, and that Derek had made sure they were safe until he had.

He looked over Samantha's head to his friend. “I owe you one, buddy. A big one. Thanks for keeping them safe.”

Derek just grinned. “I needed the practice. I was getting a little rusty.”

“Derek and Jimmy held them off,” Samantha said, clearly proud of the boy. “If it hadn't been for them. . . .”

The thought of what could have happened made a hard knot ball in Nick's stomach. “They were great.” He tipped her face up and softly kissed her. “You okay?”

She nodded. “How did they find us?”

His jaw hardened. “Good question.” On Monday when he'd gone to his bank in Wasilla, instead of going by his house for clean clothes, he'd driven to Walmart and bought jeans and T-shirts for him and Samantha. And he'd made damned sure he wasn't tailed.

“Who knew about this place besides you and Cord?” Derek asked.

“I don't know. Cord said Captain Taggart was trying to track us down. I'm beginning to think I know why.”

“You don't believe the police are involved with the Russians?” Samantha said.

Nick rubbed a hand over his jaw, felt the roughness of his late-night beard. “I don't know what to believe.”

Samantha turned, took in the destruction in the cabin. “You don't think they'll come back?”

“They were pretty well shot up,” Derek said, “but they might regroup, bring in more men and hit us again.”

The fury he'd felt as he'd driven up the hill returned. “If they do, they won't find us. We're getting the hell out of here.”

 

 

They loaded their bags into Derek's Jeep Cherokee and Nick's Explorer. Then everyone piled inside the vehicles, including the dog, and they headed for the Salmon Lodge.

Nick roused his friend, Noah Devlin, out of bed, all six-foot-five, two-hundred-thirty pounds of him. Noah had thick brown hair and striking blue eyes. If he hadn't been solid as a brick and former Delta, his dimpled cheeks might have gotten him called pretty. As it was, no man would dare.

Noah made coffee while Nick dumped wood on the embers in the hearth, and the fire blazed to life. Then they all sat in front of the flames to decide their next move.

Noah took a sip from his steaming mug. “What about the woman you met with in Anchorage? You figure those guys are onto her?”

Nick mulled that over. “If they followed her to the bar, she's in trouble. She seemed pretty canny though and I didn't see any sign of anyone outside. But we need to move on this as fast as possible.”

They were sitting in the owner's cabin, a spacious log house behind the front office. Alaska Native artwork hung on the walls and a big rock fireplace dominated the room. The fire had burned down a little, lighting the room with a soft orange glow.

Noah sipped his coffee. “Clearly, they're willing to go to any lengths to get hold of the boy. It's not my call to make, but I think you might be better off splitting up.”

Nick had been thinking that same thing. “Maybe. Depends if we can find a safe place for Jimmy and Mary to hole up while we deal with the problem.”

“I know a place Jimmy and I can go,” Mary said, speaking up for the first time since they had arrived at the lodge. “We can go to Mountain Village, where I was raised.” Her Yupik village up along the Yukon. “We have relatives there, people who will protect us.”

“Are you sure they'll take you in?” Nick asked.

“Jimmy has an uncle who's been wanting to meet him for a very long time. And we're family. They'll protect us. They've never forgiven themselves for what happened to Cora. They'd give their lives for us if they had to.”

“With any luck, we'll get these guys before it comes to that,” Nick said.

“Uncle Audrac told Aunt Mary he'd teach me stuff,” Jimmy said, sipping a mug of coffee laced heavily with cream and sugar. “Like how to track big game and be a really good hunter.”

Reminded of their conversation down by the lake, Nick squeezed the boy's shoulder. “I remember. You'll have to miss a little school, but with the information we've got, this'll all soon be over, and you and Mary can come back home.”

Jimmy just nodded, his features glum. This was hard on everyone. Sensing the boy's distress, Duke curled in a ball at his feet.

“I'll fly them up,” Derek offered as he walked back from the kitchen into the living room. “I've been up to Mountain Village so I know the route.”

“What about the weather?” Nick asked.

“I just called. Weather's supposed to break. We can leave at first light.”

Mary spoke to Samantha, sitting next to Nick on Noah's comfortable brown plush sofa. “Are you feeling well enough to fly home?” she asked.

“I feel pretty much back to normal. I'm a little tired, but other than that, I feel fine.”

“She isn't going back,” Nick said firmly. “Samantha was with me when I talked to Taggart so he knows she's involved. We don't know who we can trust anymore. We don't know how far this reaches. I want her with me. I want her where I can keep her safe.” He pinned her with a look. “You okay with that?”

“Before tonight, I would have argued I'd be safe in San Francisco. Now the only place I really feel safe is with you.”

Nick cupped her face between his hands, leaned down and softly kissed her. “I won't let them hurt you.”

She gave him a tremulous smile. “I know.”

Noah rose from his chair. “You've got a big day tomorrow. Why don't you all get some sleep? This time of year, we've always got empty cabins. I'll get you some keys.”

For what was left of the night, Jimmy, Mary, and Duke bunked in one of the larger cabins with Derek, while Nick and Samantha took the smaller cabin next door. They hadn't been followed to Goose Bay. He and Derek had made sure of that. He felt safe, at least for now.

As tired as he was, Nick's mind churned. How had they been found? Who was responsible? What would the Russians do next?

It was almost dawn when he finally fell into a restless slumber.

 

 

Samantha lay in bed next to Nick in one of the lodge's rustic cabins. It was just getting light outside, the sky turning from black to a dark shade of purple. Nick was finally asleep, a heavy troubled slumber that made her want to hold him, comfort him.

Even as she'd slept, she had sensed on some level that he was awake. Perhaps knowing he watched over her was the reason she had been able to sleep so soundly.

Now she wanted to do the same for him, to let him rest and regain his strength. He had pushed down the covers, leaving him naked to the waist. Watching the rise and fall of his hard-muscled chest, the tightening of the sinews across his abdomen, she felt desire flare for the first time since she had lost the baby.

Last night, as tired as they both were, she had felt an urge to join with him, simply to feel safe and protected, the way he always made her feel. But he didn't try to make love to her and in a way she was glad.

This morning was different. As she watched him, she felt a need that reached deep inside her. For a while that need had been buried beneath the loss she had felt, but she was young and strong. And whether she wanted to be or not, she was in love with Nick.

Her gaze wandered over his sleeping figure, his lips curved softly in slumber, thick black lashes forming crescents on his cheeks. Just looking at him made her heart ache. She had wanted Nick Brodie since she'd seen him in that Las Vegas hallway, tall and dark, with the most gorgeous blue eyes she had ever seen. She wanted him now.

Smiling at the thought, she dozed for a while, just to give him more time to sleep, awakened again and watched him a little longer. Knowing it was time to get up, she slid from under the blankets and headed for the bathroom to get ready for the day. Cranking up the heater, she spent a few minutes taking care of her needs and brushing her teeth while the room warmed up, then she turned on the shower and climbed beneath the fine hot spray.

The door to the bathroom opened and she heard Nick at the sink. She had just tipped her head back to rinse her hair when the plastic curtain slid open and Nick stepped into the shower. At the sight of his hard, naked body, her breath caught. He was just so completely beautiful.

She smiled up at him. “Good morning.”

Nick leaned down and gave her a slow, very thorough, peppermint-flavored kiss. “I saw you watching me while we were in bed,” he said, his eyes on her face.

“You . . . you did?” She felt warm all over, and it had nothing to do with the water.

“The way you were looking at me . . . it really turned me on.”

She glanced down, saw he was aroused, and her breathing went shallow.

“I think you wanted me,” he said softly. “Did you?”

Her heart was pounding. She'd wanted him then. She wanted him now. “Yes . . .”

Nick claimed her mouth in a ravaging kiss that grew deeper and hotter by the second. Bending his head beneath the warm spray, he suckled her breasts, first one and then the other, while his hands slid over her water-slick hips, slipped between her legs to stroke her. She was wet and ready, had been all morning as she had watched him.

“God, I want you,” he said, and then he was lifting her up, wrapping her legs around his waist, sliding himself deep inside. He was big and hard and he filled her completely. With a whimper of longing, Samantha locked her arms around his neck and let him take her, let him drive deeper, harder, until her body began to tighten around him and she was reaching the crest, climbing the peak and tipping into glory.

“Nick . . .” she cried out the instant before she convulsed around him, the pleasure so deep and intense she felt as if she drowned in it.

Nick kissed her deeply and let himself go, his muscles tightening as his own release struck. At the last moment he withdrew, spilling his seed outside her body, ending any chance of another unplanned baby. Samantha felt a moment of loss that disappeared as she looked into those blue, blue eyes.

Resting her head against his shoulder, she clung to him as the seconds ticked past. Then the water began to grow cold and the moment was lost.

Nick kissed her one last time and turned off the shower. He stepped out first, grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, grabbed one for her and gently enfolded her in the softness.

“I didn't hurt you or anything?”

She shook her head. “No.” He'd been careful. He was always careful with her, always looking out for her. Knowing she would have to give him up made her feel like crying.

“We better get dressed,” he said. “We've got a lot to do.”

Samantha towel-dried her hair as best she could, leaving it to dry in curls that hung down her back, then followed Nick out of the bathroom. Grateful he had gone shopping for something clean to wear, she'd been only a little surprised the clothes actually fit.

“What are we going to do first?” she asked as she pulled on soft blue jeans and a long-sleeve pink T-shirt. She smiled at the words Girl Gone Wild stamped on the front, and figured it had come from the teen department.

“First I make sure Derek gets Mary and Jimmy off safely.” Nick smiled darkly. “Then I call the FBI.”

 

 

Nick followed Derek to the airport. It didn't take long to get the plane loaded and ready to leave.

Mary walked over and hugged him good-bye. “Thank you for everything you've done, Nick. I don't know what would have happened to us if you hadn't been there to help.”

“Just stay safe until this is over.”

She nodded, turned and headed for the plane.