Hard to Kill (7 page)

"
I'm working undercover for the FBI. My real name is Kane Travis."

"
What?" Even as she asked, the question pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place.

"
I overheard Marco. You're getting picked up first thing in the morning. He's selling you to a guy who makes Attila the Hun look like Mother Teresa." He swore softly. "I had hoped to have more time, but he found out I lied to him about G and thinks I went AWOL. He's got guys out there looking for me as we speak. But I need to get you out of here."

She gulped, the fear crawling up her throat threatening to choke her.
"I have to get into Marco's computer first."

He perched his butt on the
floor and stared at her. "Why?"

She swallowed hard. 
"I need information. I can't leave without it. I need to know where the girls go."

Kane shook his head.
"Marco is too paranoid to keep that kind of sensitive information on his computer. He keeps all of his client transactions on a thumb drive he has attached to his wrist."

"
I'll cut his arm off if I have to. I need that information." Trusting people hadn't been part of her nature for a very long time. She wasn't about to start now. She didn't much care if he was part of the alphabet soup of US government agencies. 

"
I know you'd put up a fight. But it's not possible. At least not now. Especially with his back against the wall."

"
What happens to the girls who leave?" She knew the answer to the question but needed some time to process the recent turn of events.

"
I'm still trying to figure that out. But I've got to assume the worst." 

A shiver wormed along her spine as she pictured
Caitlyn alone and powerless and at the whim of some sick bastard. "Why should I trust you? This could be a trap."

He sighed.
"Put those clothes on. Anything is better than what you're wearing for what we're going to need to do. I also have a pair of boots for you." 

He turned his back while she dressed. She appreciated the gesture
, despite the fact he'd seen everything she had on more than one occasion. In fact, he'd been more intimate with her than most lovers she'd had.

Sabrina shook her head, not liking the direction this wa
s headed. Everything he said made sense, but she didn't want to go anywhere without figuring out where Caitlyn had been sent. "If it's all the same to you, I'll make this escape on my own."

He grasped her wrist.
"Your chances of getting out are less than zero." He stopped her protest with a finger to her lips. "I know you work for The Alliance and you have mad skills, but this isn't my first rodeo, and believe me when I say now is not the time. Our best bet is the underground tunnels."

Underground tunnels sounded suspiciously like a get
-out-of-jail-free card. Even though it went against her grain to go along with someone else's plan. Having him lead her to freedom sounded like a mighty good proposition for the time being. Besides, after getting some firepower, it would a great way for her to return and retrieve the information she needed.

But still something didn
't ring true. "Why would you risk your life to escape with me? If Marco's going to dog my every move when I get out of here, he'll do the same with you. So what gives?"

He blew out a breath.
"I set it up so he believes I stole one of the cars. All the roads out of here will be swarming with Marco's men. That's why we're going through the tunnels. He doesn't think I know about them." He reached to his back and pulled out two guns. He held out his hands, each containing one. "Are you okay with a Glock?"

"
I can hold my own."

"
I bet you can."

H
e ushered her out the door and past the body of Petre. Evan dragged him inside before he shut the door firmly in place.

She
grabbed the Glock and followed. He led the way, maneuvering through the dark hallways with his gun drawn. When they passed through the kitchen she had a nearly irresistible urge to snag a knife out of the block, but resisted.

"
Who's pulling Marco's strings?" she asked. "I know he's not bright enough to orchestrate this on his own."

"
The guy I mentioned earlier. They call him Trinity. But I'm no closer to finding out who he is than I was six months ago."

She was u
ncertain whether to believe him or not, but in the end, it didn't matter. He was her ticket out of here. And right now, "out of here" was one step closer to finding Caitlyn.

After twisting through a series of darkened hallways, they went up some steps and into the main area of the house. While dark, she could tell by his calculated movements
that he anticipated trouble around every corner.

He used
a pin trigger to unlock a door. Leading with his gun, he eased inside, pulling her behind him. She looked around at the bookcases and immediately began to rifle through the drawers of the desk.

"
What are you doing?"

"
There might be something in here."

"
I already checked. Even the file cabinets have nothing but office supplies—reams of paper, pens, paperclips."

She blew out a breath.
"You sure?"

"
Yep. We've got to get going. Rounds will be back this way in less than ten minutes."

Reluctantly, she stood behind him while he moved a picture, uncovering a series of buttons.

"This is when it gets a little tricky," he whispered. He clipped a device to the keypad, and after a series of beeps, he punched in the code displayed. The bookcase shifted open, revealing a passageway. "Try not to use your gun inside the tunnel. If you miss, the bullet will ricochet."

She grabbed at his shirt, pulling him close
. "Don't assume I'll miss."

"
If you do, it might very well bounce back and hit you in the ass. Or worse, in mine."

"
I'll keep that in mind."

It took her pupils at least twenty seconds to adjust to the dark inside the tunnel. The walls and ceilings were within touching distance, making it feel even more claustrophobic. He reached inside his back pocket and pulled out a folded-up piece of paper and a small flashlight.

"
A map?" She shook her head and laughed. "You really don't know your way out."

"
Nope. But I did know where to find the map." He pointed to a spot on the map. "Some of these lead to dead ends, some circle around underneath the mountain. One, maybe two, will get us out of here."

"
Are there guards down here?"

"
More than I care to think about. But the good news is, most of them are out looking for me right now." He grasped at her arm. "I estimate maybe twenty or so might be milling about down here." His glanced shifted, taking in the scene before them. "We need to be careful."

"
I'm all about being careful." And losing this so-called partner as soon as possible.

For the most part they both stayed
close to the slime-covered walls as they inched their way through the maze. Sabrina didn't want to think about all the critters and rodents residing peacefully in this dark home. Give her a trained assassin and fear didn't even come into the picture. Put her in a room full of creepy crawling things and she was a hot mess. Instead, she focused on getting out of there as quickly as possible.

Kane
had the penlight to illuminate the way. He was in charge, since he had the map. For now, she'd be more than happy to play things his way.

He stopped s
uddenly, shut off the light, and turned, holding a finger to his lips. Seconds later she heard footsteps approaching. Based on the number of voices, she'd guess two, maybe three people.

She followed his lead, and pressed herself against the walls.
When he yanked out his gun, she did the same. She rested the handle against her thigh.

The men laughed and spoke mostly in German
about Marco's predicament with Trinity, confirming what Kane had said earlier. Then they talked about her inferring she must be a witch since she was able to kill Arte with her bare hands. Under different circumstances, she might have found her villain status laughable, but not now.

Then they said something that let her know their shaky window of safety was about to come to an abrupt
close. One of the men was off to relieve Petre. Since Petre was currently lying on the floor of her former prison cell, it wouldn't be long before they discovered her missing.

S
he felt a heightened sense of urgency in Kane as they wound through the hallways. Once the men were far enough away, she put the gun back in the waistband of her pants.

"
They'll figure out you're missing any second now," Kane whispered.

"
We don't have much time."

Seconds later, an alarm began to pulse. The piercing sound seemed to bounce off the claustrophobic space, making her ears ring. Feet stampeded against the crude stone floor, but it was impossible to decipher what direction they were coming from.
The hair on her arms stood at attention, as she and Kane raced through dark hallways that suddenly became even more ominous without the benefit of his penlight and with thundering steps as a backdrop.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The shrill tone reminded her of a death march as it reverberated down her spine. The blood thumped in her veins while they continued to run their way, hopefully, to freedom.

She charged into Kane
's back when he jerked to a stop. Then he turned and signaled for her to wait. Seconds later she heard the crash of a body hitting the floor.

Kane returned and grasped her hand, yanking her along while footfalls echoed through the hallways. Between the ever-present blare of the siren and the tunnels shooting in every direction, tracking movement seemed impossible. They
'd have to depend on luck, which seemed to be in short supply lately.

But she had to give kudos to Kane for the takedown moments ago.
No unnecessary noise. Maybe he was a fed with some skills after all. If she had to pair up with somebody temporarily, he'd be as good as any. At least he could carry his own weight.

Kane swore seconds before his fingers disengaged from hers. The darkness was so pervasive she couldn
't see, but heard a scuffle a few feet away. Her heart rate tripled as she fought the frustration of not being able to help.

She trailed the curve of the wall with her fingertips, and finally spotted Kane. He was in a mess of trouble, trading punches with two guys but still managing to somehow hold his own. Deciding to even the odds, she snuck behind one guy, landing a kidney kick, bringing him to his knees. From there, a chokehold put him out of the picture.

Kane was giving it to the other guy, but had yet to finish him off. As she was about to help out, the barrel of a gun poked into her temple.

Instinct had her grabbing his forearms, misdirecting the angle of the gun in case he was stupid enough to shoot. While she had him bent over, she delivered a series of quick kicks to his groin, driving him back until she could deliver a chop to his vagus nerve to subdue him
. When he collapsed onto the floor, she relieved him of both his gun and dagger.

Now Sabrina felt in control. Glancing to her left, she saw Kane
finishing off the guy while the blare from the alarm continued to slice through the air.

Footsteps seemed to be coming from all directions when Kane grasped h
er hand and yanked. They slipped together down yet another corridor. He hadn't looked at the map so she could only hope he knew where he was going.

While she had faith in her abilities, t
rouble seemed to be escalating. Pretty soon, if things continued on this disastrous course, she'd be dead and Caitlyn would be left floundering on her own.

Kane felt along the wall then rubbed his fingers together.
"This way," he whispered, then added, "I think."

Nothing like a bout of confidence to settle her nerves. But she wasn
't about to quibble, especially since she didn't have a better idea. "I hope there's some logic behind your decision."

"
The dampness isn't quite as pronounced. We've been on an incline for the last few minutes. I think that means we're heading out of the mountain. Besides, I'm fresh out of intelligent answers."

She chuckled despite the circumstances.
"Gotta like a man who admits he doesn't know where he's going."

The strike came out of nowhere, catching her across the cheek with a blow that nearly took her head off. Her
already sore jaw vibrated. Her teeth ached. When she recovered from her position on the floor, Kane was standing with a gun pointed at his head.

"
I have your boyfriend, so you might as well surrender." The guard spoke with cockiness.