Pressing himself deeper into the bushes, Nick watched as a black, jacked-up pickup approached from the direction of the camp. It skidded to a stop, and he reached for the gun at his waist. Keri swiped her hands over her cheeks before turning to greet the newcomer.
Russ Carson jumped from the truck and joined her at the guardrail. Nick couldn’t hear the conversation, but an alien emotion squeezed his chest as the militia leader slipped an arm around her shoulders. When Keri dropped her head to his shoulder, all the air whooshed from his lungs.
The sting of jealousy hit him hard. A direct jab at his heart and his ego. He didn’t want any other man touching her, comforting her. He’d never been the possessive type, but Keri stirred a whole wealth of unfamiliar emotions in him. So did Carson—all negative.
He watched in frustration as the two of them quietly talked. Carson pointed to an area of the ravine, and Nick supposed he knew exactly where her car had crashed. He hoped Keri didn’t share any of her recollections with soldier boy. The man couldn’t be trusted. Of that, he felt certain.
After a few minutes of quiet conversation, Carson dropped his arm and turned toward his truck. Nick heard him offer her a ride back to the cabin. She shook her head but thanked him. Soldier boy climbed in his truck, revved the engine and roared past him in a cloud of diesel fumes.
Once the truck moved out of his line of vision, Nick started backtracking to the cabin. He’d made it to the edge of the clearing when Keri hailed him in a loud, hissing whisper.
“Lamanto!”
He turned and gave her a grin, disguising his emotional upheaval with the playboy façade. Jealousy still roiling inside him, he kept a smile locked in place while waiting for her to catch up with him.
“I thought I told you it wasn’t safe to follow me.”
He ignored the intended reprimand, choosing not to discuss the subject at all. “You could call me Nick, you know.”
The change of subject gave her pause, then she said, “Russ happened by. What if he’d seen you?”
“It’s my given name. It’s a nice name.” He kept his tone matter-of-fact while carrying on a totally separate conversation. “Nick is short for Nicholas, you know.”
“You took a big risk!”
“I think once you’ve shared a bed with someone it’s okay to be on a first-name basis,” he continued the teasing vein.
“You’re impossible!”
He laughed at her indignation and shot her a wink then bumped shoulders with her as they climbed the steps to the porch. She put a hand behind his back and patted the gun.
“Did you really think you might have to rescue me with gun blazing?”
“Nah, I just took it as a precaution against bears.”
“Well I hate to burst your macho bubble, but that pistol would only madden a bear.”
Nick pushed open the cabin door and waved her ahead of him. “Nice day for a walk, wasn’t it?” he said, studying her face for some clue to what she’d felt at the ravine.
“Nice day,” she agreed, turning her head while she tugged off her jacket. “I guess we both needed some fresh air, but I hope you didn’t do any damage to your shoulder.”
“You said I needed to use it more. It didn’t hurt to walk.”
“Maybe not, but getting into those jeans must have been a challenge.” The fleeting glance she shot at his lower body shouldn’t have affected him, but it heated his blood.
“They are rough and stiff. I’m ready to get out of them again. Wanna help?”
“You got into them, you can get yourself out,” she chided.
“Spoilsport.”
“I can still see some of the blood stain down the left side. I’ll wash them again this afternoon. The sun should dry them pretty quickly.”
“Good, because I’ll need ’em again tomorrow.”
She finally looked him in the eyes. “Why?”
“Because it’s time for me to take an up-close look at the militia camp.”
That had her propping her hands on her hips. “Are you totally insane? At best, someone will sic the dogs on you. At worst, someone will shoot you again.”
“I’ve stayed here long enough. It’s time for me to get back to work. I need to see what’s happening at the camp before I report back to my lieutenant.”
Her tone turned chilly. “You’re impatient to leave?”
He didn’t care for the closed expression on her face and hoped she wouldn’t shut him out completely. Belatedly, he realized she might be thinking he wanted to leave because she’d ruled out sex.
Reaching out, he cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look him in the eyes. The soft warmth of her skin encouraged him to gently caress her cheeks. As their gazes locked, an unsettling realization hit him. He could easily lose himself in this tiny, sexy woman and say the hell with everything else.
“Nothing personal,
la mia infermiera d’angelo
but the longer I stay here, the more you’re at risk.”
“Nobody’s gunning for me.”
“Yet.”
“Why would they be?”
“What did you tell Carson? Did you mention your returning memory and suspicions?”
“You think whatever Mom and I encountered that night might make me a target?”
“If they killed your mother to silence her, they won’t hesitate to do the same to you. If anyone believes your memory is returning or you’re questioning the details of the accident, you become a liability to the cause.”
Her sigh tugged at his heart again.
“I told Russ it’s all still a total blank.”
“That’s my girl,” he said, relieved and pleased to know she hadn’t trusted anyone but him with her secret.
The feel of her pleased him too, so he sank his fingers deep into her hair and pulled her close for a kiss. Just a little kiss, he promised himself until their lips met and hers parted in sweet invitation. An invitation he accepted with enthusiasm, dipping his tongue into the sweetness of her mouth. The need to lay claim on her, however minimal, urged him to deepen the kiss.
Keri shifted closer and lifted her hands to his chest. Her touch was light, but it seared him like a brand. She smelled of sunshine and mountain air. The scent and feel intoxicated him. Too quickly his pulse accelerated, and the blood surged through him in a heated rush.
They kissed until they grew breathless, and then kissed again as passion slowly escalated. He used his tongue to explore the sweetness of her mouth and shuddered when she did the same to him.
“You go to my head,” he whispered against her lips. He loosened his hold and met her sultry gaze. She dropped her lashes to conceal her eyes, but he’d already felt their heat.
“Maybe it is time for you to move on, city boy, before we make the mistake of succumbing to this insane attraction.”
“Would that really be so bad?”
Her lashes flew up, and she stared into his eyes. “I don’t know. I’m still considering all the options.”
Her quick smile eased the tension a little. He fought to regain control of his desire and return the smile.
“Not the impulsive type?”
She slowly shook her head.
Stepping away from her, he said, “Let me know when you’ve reached a decision.”
“Will do, Lamanto.”
“Nick,” he corrected.
Instead of repeating it after him, she laughed. “I’ll have to think about that too.”
Chapter Nine
Just after midnight the following night, Lamanto looked at her and asked, “Do you have any ski masks around here?”
Keri threw him a questioning glance. They’d both dressed in dark pants and dark, hooded sweatshirts for their late-night excursion. He’d planned to leave her behind, but she’d convinced him he needed her knowledge of the woods and surrounding properties.
“We don’t do much skiing on this mountain,” she taunted. Just thinking of the covert trip had her adrenaline pumping.
“Smartass. I mean something that covers most of our faces.”
She went to a storage bin on the back porch and pulled out a couple of stretchy toboggan caps with holes for eyes, noses and mouths. “Like these?” She tossed one to him.
“Exactly like these,” he said, pulling one over his head.
“Less skin showing means a less conspicuous target.” Before covering his whole face, he drew her close and gave her a swift, hard kiss. “Be careful and don’t take any unnecessary chances.”
He’d warned her to abandon him if the situation turned dangerous. When she’d caught her breath again, she said, “Stop worrying about me. You’re the one they’ll shoot on sight.”
With that, she pulled the cap over her face, and they quietly left the cabin. Outside, they took time to trace circles around the yard, trees, fire pit and propane tank, spreading their scent over a wide area. If dogs tried to track them, they’d get tangled in a crazy circular pattern and hopefully discourage their handlers.
They’d discussed the best plan for checking out the camp. Keri would lead the way, but they’d depend on hand gestures to communicate and take a long, circuitous route through the woods. The trip back would be a straight shot. Should anyone follow them, she’d return to the cabin while he went to the safe room.
A full moon lit the clearing directly behind the cabin, but inky darkness descended once they plunged into the woods.
Lamanto drew her close and whispered in her ear.
“We’d better stick to a straight shot there and back.”
She nodded in agreement, having forgotten how pitch-black the woods could get. The penlight she’d found to illuminate their path wouldn’t be much help in the darkly shadowed gloom. Depending on instinct and a thread of light, she followed the path she’d used to get to the orchard. They scared a few small animals from their nests. Keri shuddered when bats swooped close, but they didn’t run into any unexpected problems.
They left her dad’s property just beyond the orchard and crossed onto her uncle’s land. The closer they got to the compound, the better they could see. High-powered pole lights shone over the entire camp, illuminating impenetrable security fencing.
Lamanto pulled her close again and whispered, “Electrified fence, motion sensors and cameras. Stay at least twenty feet back.”
Keri followed his instructions and kept a safe distance from the fence. As they circled behind the new metal buildings, they took stock of what they could see without taking needless risks. Although no expert, she realized everything in sight went beyond what she’d imagined in Russ’s operation.
The high radio tower stood in the center of the camp with a red warning light flashing atop it. Two big, military-style jeeps were parked between long, narrow buildings. Three fuel tanks stood in the center of the camp. Keri knew the collective cost had to be more than Russ would earn in a lifetime.
What looked like a firing range ran the length of one building. At the far end of the property, a smaller building appeared where the old shack used to stand. Lights blazed from the small windows, despite the late hour. A heavily armed man stood guard outside the door. Several pickups had parked in front of it, but she couldn’t get a clear enough look to identify any except Russ’s.
While they watched, the door opened and several men exited the building. Keri tried to move closer to see if she recognized them, but Lamanto grabbed her by the arm and tugged her backward. She started to argue when three large Doberman dogs came charging out of the house.
“Night patrol,” he hissed near her ear, pulling her deeper into the natural cover. They backtracked to the orchard before they heard the frenzied barking of the dogs and the sudden wail of a siren.
“Run.”
She didn’t need his terse command to shift into a faster gear. The threatening sounds coming from the camp scared her spitless. The adrenaline she’d experienced earlier was nothing compared to the panicked rush she felt now. Using a forearm to protect her face from low-hanging branches, she raced toward the cabin. Ducking and dodging as best she could, she tried to lead Lamanto back without leading him into harm’s way. The sound of him following closely kept her momentum pumped.
It felt like an eternity before the cabin clearing came into sight. Her lungs burned. The raggedness of her breathing roared in her ears, so loud she could no longer hear Lamanto breathing. When they hit the edge of the clearing, they separated. He ran toward the propane tank, and she raced to the cabin, slamming and locking the door behind her.
Propping her hands on her knees, she bent double, chest heaving as she pulled in gulps of air. Her side ached from running so hard, making it even harder to catch her breath. Damn, she hadn’t realized how out of shape she’d gotten these past couple years.
No time, no time,
she told herself, jerking off the cap and her jacket to stuff them into the trunk. Her shoes followed, and then she headed to the bathroom and switched on a light. The image in the mirror staggered her breathing even more.
Sweat matted her hair flat to her head. Her cheeks had a deep blush of exertion. She needed to find a way to disguise both. If Russ showed up at the door, she had to look totally innocent. Stripping down to her underwear, she tossed her sweaty clothes into the shower and searched for something concealing to wear.
Her mother’s old, full-length terry bathrobe still hung on the back of the bathroom door. Keri shook the dust off it, pulled it on and cinched the belt at her waist. She wrapped a towel around her head turban style. Body shaking with nerves and still struggling for breath, she searched the bathroom cupboard. After finding a jar of pasty white cleansing cream, she slathered it on her overheated cheeks.
Now she looked as though she’d just climbed from the shower except she smelled of sweat and fear. The dogs would tear her apart if the militia men didn’t shoot first and ask questions later. Another quick search unearthed some old talcum powder. Partially caked, she thumped the container against the sink and then powdered herself liberally.
The suffocating cloud of sweet-smelling dust gagged her and threw her into a coughing fit. She’d just caught her breath again when the banging started at the front door. Someone yelled her name. Russ. He’d sure made good time.
“Coming!” The walk to the door helped her steady her nerves and breathing. Switching on the living room light, she approached the front door with one last deep breath.