The Unseen (8 page)

Kent turned toward her. “We’re going to have to move this back, okay.”

“Sure thing.” She strode toward him. Shoulders touching, they dragged the armoire back across the carpet so he could open the door. Then Kent stepped toward the bed and grabbed his pistol from the nightstand.

“Stay right behind me, okay? I think those sounds came from Tom’s room.”

“Oh, no, really?” Amanda was probably in there with him.
What if that horrible thing went in there and got them?

“Don’t worry—they’ll be all right.” Kent held her hand behind his back as they slowly crept down the hall.

Tom’s door pushed open when Kent knocked on it. His grip on her hand tightened to nearly bone crushing.

She winced, afraid that if she made a noise, something or someone in that room might launch an attack. Her throat tightened. She didn’t feel ready to face another bout of terror. Under normal circumstances, she’d hear Amanda’s good-natured laugh. Instead, she heard only eerie silence and her heartbeat drumming away inside her eardrums.

“What the hell?” Kent shoved the door open until it banged against the wall. He leaped inside the room and pointed his gun around. The rattan chairs were tipped over and an empty glass lay on its side in the middle of the room.

Kent crouched to look under the bed and then stepped inside the tiny bathroom. “No one’s here.”

She sighed, initially relieved that no one jumped out to attack them. But then fear for Amanda’s life jumped to the foreground and her eyes welled with tears. “Oh, Kent, this looks bad. Do you think they were kidnapped?”

He turned and faced her, gripping her arms with his strong hands. Compassion radiated from his warm blue eyes. “I’m not sure, but it looks that way. I understand how frightening this is for you. My friend Tom’s in danger, too. But we’ll find them—don’t worry. Let’s go check on Bunny first.”

They ran toward her room and knocked on the door.

“I think she’s in there,” Rebecca whispered. “I hear her crying.”

Kent’s booming voice broke into the eerie silence. “Open the door—it’s Kent and Rebecca.”

Kent heard the sound of furniture scraping across the floor. “What is it with women and blocking doors with furniture?” His plump lips curled up in a smile, deepening his dimples.

She traced a finger over one of the sexy grooves in his cheeks. “Hey, it keeps people out, doesn’t it?”
Or whatever the hell it was . . .

The door opened with a creak and a red-eyed Bunny peered out. “Are you all right?” Kent asked.

Bunny’s voice shuddered and she sobbed in between words. “No, they almost got me. I know they took Tom and Amanda. I heard them.”

“You heard who?”

“The smugglers. They busted into Tom’s room and then Amanda screamed. The men told her to shut up and threatened to kill them if they didn’t cooperate.”

“Kill them? Oh, my God. This is all my fault—it was my idea to come back here.” A wave of nausea assaulted her and she reached for Kent’s arm to steady herself.

He leaned in and grazed her cheek with his lips, speaking in a gentle tone. “Bec, it’s not your fault. You told me earlier Amanda wanted to be here with Tom. Those two are tough—and they’re more likely to survive together than alone.”

He pursed his lips and scratched the side of his broad forehead. “Now let’s get going—we need to go after them now.” He strode into the hallway, pointed toward the exit door and started walking.

Rebecca gripped his arm. “How do we know where they’re headed?”

He slowed and turned toward her. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to track their footprints outside since the ground’s so wet. But before we go, let’s grab some supplies. Bunny, I’ll call a taxi and have them take you someplace in town where you’ll be safer until I can book you on another flight.”

Bunny pursed her lips together and wiped her tear-stained eyes. “Are you sure you don’t mind going to all that trouble?”

“No—I think it’s best. This whole situation is completely out of control and I don’t want Bec in the middle of this either, but she’s too stubborn to listen.”

Bunny gave him a grateful smile. “Yeah, well, she loves you way too much to leave you on your own in this mess. But if I could go someplace crowded, I’d feel much safer. Being in this place alone is creeping me out.”

“Okay, so pack up your stuff fast and meet me in the lobby. I’ll call a car for you.” Kent scratched the tip of his broad nose.

Once Bunny disappeared down the hall, he turned his attention to Rebecca, the look on his face all business. “Grab some clothes and put on your hiking boots. I’ll gather the supplies we need, give Rich a quick call, and then we can soak our boots in DEET when we meet up.”

“What could be more exciting than wetting our feet together?”

Still walking, he turned his head back toward her. “I can think of many, many things.”

While Bunny rode in a taxi to the Dong Hoi Sheraton, Kent and Rebecca set out in pursuit of their friends.

Falling rain slapped against the leaves as they slogged their way through the muddy jungle, following the trail of wet footprints. Rebecca tightened the strap on the hood of her rain jacket to keep water from dripping down her front.

Rebecca clung close to Kent, focusing on each breath to take her mind off her fear. Still, she jumped when Kent’s boot cracked a twig, and her neck muscles constricted when leaves rustled nearby.

Maybe it’s just rain dripping from a tree, she told herself, before an invading thought suggested it could be a ferocious jungle animal, poisonous viper, or one of those terrible men. Even a shrill bird’s call made the hair on the back of her neck prickle.
Maybe it’s a signal and not really a bird.

She wanted to talk more to Kent about the ghostly presence she’d sensed in the room. But the whole scenario sounded so unbelievable, even to her. How would she convince him? He needed to know what they faced was much worse than what he’d originally anticipated.

Still walking, Kent held his satellite phone to his ear. Then he shook his head and stuffed it back in a pocket. “Damn, I still can’t get Rich on the phone. I asked Bunny to try a few times today, too, so hopefully she’ll have better luck.”

She huffed out a breath, wishing she could stop trembling. “I hope they weren’t ambushed.”

“Yeah, me, too. Hey, love, what’s the matter?” Kent rubbed her arm.

“Nothing, I’m fine. Just a little shaken by what happened earlier. Hey, look at that.”

Footprints dented the muddy ground near where they walked. “The men must have stopped to regroup. I wonder why they stopped here?”

Kent’s face was slick with rain. He scratched his chin and wiped water from his lips. “I don’t know. Maybe there was some kind of altercation. Let’s scan the area.”

Rebecca shivered, realizing the subtext behind what he’d said.
He wants me to be on the lookout for bodies . . .
Her stomach clenched at the thought that the men might have hurt her friend.
Please just let her be okay.

“I don’t see anything suspicious. Maybe it was just a rest stop. Let’s keep moving.”

“Wait, what’s that?” Rebecca pointed to a small plastic vial that lay on the ground, spattered with mud.

Kent bent over and picked it up. After wiping off the mud with his bandana, he popped off the lid and looked inside. “That’s weird. It looks like some kind of powder.”

“Powder? What do you think it’s for?” Rebecca’s face brushed Kent’s cheek as she peered inside the container. Prickly electricity numbed her face, making her forget her fear for an instant.

“I’m not sure.” Kent tipped some of the powder into his palm.

“Holy crap.” Rebecca jumped back, blinking again and again to see if her eyes were tricking her. But still she saw nothing except empty space.

“What’s wrong?” Kent’s voice seemed to project from nowhere. “God, it feels like ants are crawling on me.”

“It’s not that—the powder made something happen.” Rebecca wanted to pinch and slap herself. “I can’t see you anymore. Oh, Kent, I’m so freaked out. That must be what those men had when they snuck into our room. I heard them, but I couldn’t see them.”

“What do you mean, I disappeared?” He paused and then spoke again, this time his voice registering alarm. “What the hell?”

His body was no longer visible. He ran a thumb over his palm and felt its pressure, but saw nothing but empty air. His skin continued to feel prickly and not quite right.

“Something in that powder made you invisible, Kent. But that’s just weird. Where would those men get their hands on something like that?”

“I’m betting somewhere in the cave where Bunny was kidnapped. She overheard the men mention hieroglyphics depicting people with unusual powers. They must have found the source of it. I’ll run some simple tests on this powder to see if I can learn anything.”

Kent unzipped his backpack and removed some tools. He poured some hydrochloric acid on the powder. “It’s reacting to the acid so more than likely it’s some kind of cave rock. But I’ve never seen cave minerals with that eerie shade of blue before. Once we get back to camp, I’ll run this thing under my X-ray fluorescence machine.”

“Okay, fine. But for now, will you please pour that stuff back in the vial? I’d like to see you in the flesh again instead of floating around like some ghost.”

“All right, I will in a second. But first, try to touch me—I want to know if the invisibility offers any kind of protection.”

She swiped her hand through the air until it met his flesh. She skimmed her fingertips over the contours of his biceps and shoulders. “Your skin feels the same way it always does. Very, very good.”

“And your touch excites me as much as ever. Now we know they’re vulnerable to attack. But shooting at blind targets is going to be a challenge—even for sharpshooters like Rich.”

* * * *

Rebecca held her breath and waited for Kent’s shape to reappear in front of her eyes. The instant he appeared, she dove into his arms. “I’m so glad to see you back as . . . well, you.”

Kent turned his hands over and wiggled his fingers as if he was trying to convince himself he was flesh and blood. “That was weird. I didn’t even notice I disappeared at first. And then I looked down and saw only empty space. My skin felt really weird, like there were insects crawling on it or something. The sensation dissipated as soon as I poured the powder back. I never even considered anything this off-the-wall when I briefed the troops. If only I could warn Rich and the others. Let me try him again.” He pulled his phone from his pocket, dialed and waited. “Nothing.”

“I’m sure Rich and his men will handle learning about the invisibility powder much better than I did. I’ve never been so terrified in my life.”

Kent placed his hands on her shoulders and rubbed his hands up and down her arms. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe your story at first. But you have to know how strange it all sounded.” He tipped his head toward her, his blue eyes wide with remorse.

“I know. I felt like I couldn’t trust my own eyes.”

Kent kissed her on the cheek, massaging her back with his hands. “After that, I’ll never doubt you ever again. I’m really sorry.”

She reached for his face, tracing one of his wet dimples with her fingertip. “Don’t be—I understand why it was difficult to believe.”

Teaming up with the man she loved felt so right. They were much better together than alone. And she knew Kent would do everything in his power to protect her.

Kent’s hands drifted down beneath her waistband and a roguish grin crossed his face. “Right now my instincts tell me we better get back on their trail before you distract me any more.”

Amanda huddled close to Tom, using his proximity for comfort, as they were gun-butted through the woods. The towering canopy of jungle trees and the heavy gray storm clouds threw them into near-darkness. A monkey shrieked from high up in the trees and falling rain pelted her face. Tremors of terror rippled through Amanda’s body.

The men had appeared like phantoms. She and Tom had been sitting at the table when the room door had squeaked open. She’d sensed an ominous presence just before rough hands clutched her waist and cold steel poked into her ribs.

She still didn’t understand how the gemstone smugglers could vanish one minute and appear in full flesh the next. They’d mentioned a powder. But really—a powder that made people disappear?
This has to be some kind of nightmare. This can’t be real.

The elephant grass sliced through her pant legs, chafing and slicing her skin. As she drew in another lungful of heavy humid air, she somehow knew she wasn’t going to wake up
.

If everything had gone as originally planned, she’d be sound asleep in her Tucson apartment now instead of a prisoner in this godforsaken jungle. But still, if she’d left, where would Tom be now? He might have been kidnapped and killed without her even knowing, while she’d imagined him at his mother’s bedside.
We’re going to think of a way out
.

Tom kept glancing her way, trying to reassure her. But he wasn’t as adept at appearing calm as he imagined—she knew him well enough to see fear in the depths of his blue eyes, the tight lines that tugged apart the corners of his lips.

The kidnapping had happened so quickly and they hadn’t been left alone for a second. She wanted so badly to talk to Tom out of earshot of those men so they could plan something.
If only I knew what they did to make themselves disappear.
Rain pelted the leaves around them until the only sound she heard was falling water. Water soaked her hair, trickling down her face. Thirsty, she swallowed a mouthful before spitting the rest out.

“It’s going to be okay.” Tom leaned in toward her ear. Water dripped from his mop of blond hair, wide jaw, even his eyelashes.

Amanda hoped the men couldn’t hear them. “I’m okay.” She placed her hand on his shoulder. It felt so muscular, so solid and for an instant she felt less frightened.

“Just stay calm—I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”