The alarm went off on Cam’s watch at dawn, just as he stepped out onto the porch and into the chilly morning air. He wanted to head back to bed and wrap Julia in his arms, but work called. Literally.
The message on the watch was clear. People roamed nearby. Holt sent coordinates and photos. He was the only guy Cam knew who could give a briefing via watch.
He bolted for the door, ignoring the porch and its dangers. Opening the door, he caught Julia in the act of putting on her pants. She zipped, then froze.
“What happened?” The concern was right there in her voice.
“We need to move.” He didn’t have time to be more specific. He could fill in the details later. “Grab everything.”
He went to work on the duffel bag, repacking the weapons Holt had provided and reaching for two more to carry on him. Now he had guns to go with his knives.
As he loaded up on ammunition, she stared. After a few seconds she broke eye contact and then went to work. They moved in silence. When he looked up again, she stood there in jeans and a blue shirt, the darkest outfit he’d ever seen her wear. He guessed it matched her mood. It sure fit his.
Her fingers clenched the strap of her backpack and he didn’t see any sign of abandoned clothes or food. She’d gathered everything in record time.
“You’re quick.” He tried to make a joke, but it fell flat.
All the amusement and satisfaction that had played on her face even a half hour ago faded away now. Her lips stayed in a flat line and tension pulled around the corners of her eyes. She looked ten seconds away from blowing apart, but she didn’t whine or complain.
“I had a feeling we weren’t going to get to enjoy a lazy weekend morning today. Not after how the rest of our time together has gone. We think we’re in the clear, men come, we run, people get shot.”
“Julia—”
“A few die and then we start all over again,” she said as she adjusted the weight over her shoulder.
“Someday soon this will be over. You’ll wake up and things will be normal. We can probably even work in a shower. Go out for breakfast. Be somewhat normal.” He didn’t even know why he said it.
After this job he had to walk away and let her get back to her life. She had a job and friends. She didn’t move around and live in motels or worse. She’d probably never had anyone threaten her or aim a gun right at her until he came along.
His life was nonstop action with short breaks of boredom. He liked keeping on the move. It suited who he was and how he was raised. Talking about mornings and lounging flew in the face of his reality. Even mentioning the options seemed unfair to her.
But he wasn’t about to take it back. He knew it was wrong—he was wrong—but now that he’d given the promise he would make it happen, even if the calm only lasted one night. There was just something about her and the idea of lounging around with her and getting through the day without a surprise or telling a lie that intrigued him.
She took two more steps and loomed right above him. “Now that we got that out of the way, are you ready to tell me what’s going on? The whole packing-up-the-weapons thing was a little unnerving. Is that normal for you?”
“Yes.” That wasn’t really a lie. He checked the weapons every day as a security measure. Most days he also took them out and carried them to a job.
“Okay, then maybe nothing is happening and I imagined it.” She sighed. “I’ve handled guns my whole life but usually on the range, not on my living room floor.”
“No, you didn’t imagine it. Holt says someone is headed this way.” Cam stood up with the duffel bag in hand.
“Is the person we’re worried about here Ray?”
“Not sure, but we’re not waiting around to let him in for a chat.” Cam worked at keeping his voice even. He could feel the tension coming off of her in waves. There was no need to add to whatever anxiety pinged around in her since the name Ray had worked its way into the conversation.
“There’s nowhere else to hide.”
“We’ll be fine.” But just in case he took out one of the guns and handed it to her. “As a last resort only.”
She checked the gun and kept it tight in her hand. “Not to sound bloodthirsty, but if someone comes near me who is not you or your team, I’m shooting.”
He loved that about her. “That’s my girl.”
He cut off conversation then. He needed her quiet and focused and hoped the finger over his lips telegraphed that. Since she followed without question, he wanted to believe he got the point across.
They’d made it two steps when he heard the crack. He backed up to protect her and felt only air behind him. Spinning around, he watched her body drop as the rotten wood beneath her splintered. Her leg slid down and she let out a shocked cry.
The urge to drop to his knees and lift her out almost overwhelmed him, but he had to be careful. Too much weight in one spot and they’d both be stuck hanging there.
“Are you okay?” he asked, though he wasn’t convinced she was in a position to answer.
Her eyes were glazed with shock. “I think so, but I honestly can’t feel much at the moment. I’m blaming that on surprise.”
“Stay calm and very still.” He said it as much to himself as to her.
Not that she was moving. She balanced there, half in a hole with one leg tucked beneath her and the other hanging out of sight. He spied her backpack and the strap where it had wrapped around her neck. He did slip to one knee then, careful not to put too much weight in one place.
He kept up the steady stream of conversation, hoping to keep her calm. “We need to get you out of there.”
“No kidding.” She tried to move her arm, but the strap had it pinned to her side.
“Here.” With quick and efficient movements, he unwrapped the strap and lifted the bag from her shoulders. “Are you cut? Did it break the skin?”
She already had a swollen ankle. Early this morning before she drifted off, he’d elevated it and packed it with ice before feeding her more painkillers. He’d thought it would help her walk, but now the injuries could be much worse.
She shook her head. “I don’t feel any pain.”
He wasn’t convinced that was a good thing. “Do you feel anything?”
“Anxiety and mind-numbing fear.” She put her hands on either side of her hips and pushed up. The move had her wrist crashing through another piece of wood. “Now I feel a little pain.”
“Stop.” He wanted to yell but kept his voice to a whisper. Holt and Shane might be close enough to create a diversion and lure whoever skulked around away, but most likely not. Cam refused to take the risk.
She just waited there, shaking her wrist. “That wasn’t my best move.”
“You think?” He pulled the board away that trapped her hand. The old wood crunched and crackled under his palms.
She yanked the arm out and rubbed her opposite hand up and down it. “Thanks.”
They still had work to do. He glanced into the hole and saw the sharp edges of the broken planks digging into her leg. He knew she felt that. She covered the winces and didn’t whine, but that had to hurt.
“Can you lift up at all?” He put his hands under her arms and tried to pull.
She shook her head. “Don’t, stop. Okay, that will lead to slicing and cutting. I’m pretty sure.”
He had to break more of the wood. Grab her before she slipped farther under the porch. “We can—”
The voice stopped him. Faint and male but there. A steady chatter as if someone was answering questions. Cam only heard one person, but that was enough.
They had company, and he’d be willing to bet it was of the unwanted variety.
The color drained from her face as she grabbed for his hand. “Go. Leave and find help. Just give me weapons so I can scare them off.”
“No way.” He mostly mouthed the words, but he meant them as if he’d screamed them. He would not abandon her to whatever visitor was headed right for them. Her suggestion made him want to punch someone.
The voice got louder. The guy wasn’t doing anything to cover his tracks. That could mean this amounted to nothing more than an innocent hike, but Cam doubted it, since the message on his watch kept flashing a warning for him to leave the area.
Anything they did now would make noise. Attract attention. There could be more out there. Too many gunmen and it wouldn’t matter what his skill level was. He couldn’t take on fifteen and promise survival.
That meant he needed an alternative plan. He looked at Julia again. “Do not move.”
She glared at him over that comment.
He took the duffel bag and slid it behind her, half obscuring it from view and balancing it against the door. Her backpack went next. Then he took a large step back, making sure his foot hit a solid plank before going any farther.
The warped wood wobbled but stayed intact. Then Cam froze. He needed to figure out where the voice came from. It took two seconds to locate the noise. Back of the house and coming around to the front.
Taking cautious steps, Cam headed in the opposite direction. The entire time he held eye contact with Julia, sending the silent signal that he would not go far.
He held up a finger as he moved, not more than a few inches at a time. His steps fell without making a sound. He slipped his gun out of its holster, then put it back in again. He needed this takedown to be quiet and simple.
He lifted one leg, then the other over the cracked railing at the side of the porch. It was a five-foot drop to the grass. No big deal, and the overgrown weeds should cover the sound of his landing.
When his feet hit the ground, he ducked down and waited. It didn’t take long. A man walked around the opposite side of the building. He held a gun and a radio. That explained the one-sided conversation. He was reporting back. To where was the question.
He got to the bottom step of the porch and stopped. He shook his head as if he couldn’t understand what he was seeing, and then a smile spread over his face. “Well, look who’s here.”
“Help me.” Julia’s voice shook.
Cam had to block the fear in her tone and the memory of her shocked face as her body fell in a whoosh. She needed him clear and focused. He would dig her out with his bare hands if he had to. He just had to get rid of this guy first. And that meant biding his time until the right moment, so Cam pulled back and continued to sneak a limited peek at the scene unfolding in front of him.
The guy’s gaze toured over Julia, then traveled to the porch. When he glanced around the area, Cam pulled back and out of sight. He had to do some scanning of his own to make sure no one sneaked up behind him.
“Where is he?” the man asked in a rough tone. “You were with a man yesterday.”
Cam tried to place this guy. He hadn’t been at the ferry, but there was no question he moved around the island with Ray. They shared the same dark pants, dark shirt wardrobe.
“He took off for the ferry, leaving me here to wait.” Julia sold it. She sounded convincing and scared at the same time.
Cam figured she probably was both.
The man unhooked the radio from his belt. Cam couldn’t let him click that button. He tore around the side of the house and hit the guy just as he turned to follow the sound. The knock vibrated through Cam. This guy was not little, but the hit sent them both flying.
The grunt registered as their bodies crashed to the ground and the guy’s gun tumbled away. Cam bounced on top of the guy’s side, then scrambled. He had to grab the weapon first. Get to that radio.
But this one wasn’t going quietly or easily. He shouted for help as he took to his knees and crawled in the dirt toward the weapon. Cam grabbed the guy’s leg, then his shirt and pulled him closer. His face scraped against the rocky ground. Cam didn’t care if the guy’s skin peeled off.
Just as Cam moved to straddle his back, the guy threw an elbow and connected. Cam felt the shot to his toes but ignored the shuddering through his body. He lunged again. This time he put his full weight behind it as he reached for the gun by his ankle, since the other had gone missing in the fall.
Cam hit the guy in the center of his back and sent him sprawling in the dirt. He pressed a knee into his spine as he crawled over him. Without waiting another minute, Cam snaked his arm around the guy’s throat.
The guy kicked out and pushed his weight back, which sent them rolling. But Cam didn’t let up on the pressure. He wasn’t aiming to make the guy pass out. He needed him gone as a threat. That meant holding and tightening the grip as the guy slapped and choked.
Then his body went limp. One minute Cam fought and held on. The next the other man’s body slipped out of his hold, boneless and unmoving.
Still fueled from the fight and ready for battle, Cam sat back hard on his butt and held up his gun. He shifted around, ready to fire if anyone else came running, but the morning stayed quiet.
His gaze shot to Julia. “You okay?”
She shoved against the wood around her. “Get me out of here.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cam checked the guy for a pulse and when he didn’t find one went for his pockets. He came up empty there, but he got the radio, and that would help.
“Cam?”
He glanced up at her again. “Yeah?”
“Now.”
He knew the look of a woman on the edge, and she hovered right there. Without another second of thought, he walked up to the porch. With the danger past, the noise didn’t matter. Cam held one board after the other, breaking them as he made space to lift her out. When he ripped the third one out, her body bounced. He took that as a sign.
Reaching down, he dragged her out while his hands still shook. “You’re okay.”
She fell against his chest with her arms wrapped around his waist. “I thought he was going to gain the advantage and I’d have to watch him attack you.”
Cam smiled into her hair. “Have a little faith.”
She pulled back and looked up at him. “We need to leave.”
“Yes.” Ignoring the aches and pains that now held his body tight, he held up the radio. “But now we have this.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “Advantage us.”
“Exactly.”
* * *
RAY STOOD AT the outline of a wall near the main staging area of the old shipyard property. With supply low but demand high, Ray had come in to see what was happening. Instead of following the work production, he watched Ned shout into the radio with his voice rising with each sentence. Ray didn’t know what was wrong, but something clearly was. Not a surprise, since after months of smooth drug production, things had started to break down.
First, one of the workers asked too many questions and had to quietly disappear. Then Rudy balked at running errands and started to call in reinforcement. He’d had to be put down, and they were almost too late.
Now Ray had to deal with Cameron Roth and his team. The same team that had him driving around in circles, chasing the wrong car. This Cameron turned out to be a bit smarter than Ray had originally thought. He’d thrown off the tail without trouble.
Tired of being ignored and having his time wasted, Ray walked over to Ned. With each step Ray tried to remember the name of the guy who seemed to be missing from his informal mental check-in.
“Where’s your sidekick?” Ray decided that was good enough to get the point across.
Ned shook his head. “He’s not checking in and I don’t understand it, because he’d been giving me a play-by-play.”
“You were just talking to him.” Ray had heard the conversation as the other man fanned out, checking the area in and around the old shipyard.
Not that taking the lead on the search made up for losing sight of Cameron Roth and the woman. Ray didn’t like losing and hated being made fun of even more. Now he had to sit through a meeting where the boss ranted and raved.
The only way to appease the guy was to catch someone. Grab the woman or one of the team members. Ray still wasn’t sure how many lurked around, but he guessed at least two.
When Ned didn’t offer any additional information, Ray raised his voice. “Start talking.”
“Craig cut off.” Ned shrugged. “He was talking and then just stopped.”
The shrugging almost got Ned shot. If Ray could afford to lose more men he might have done it. At least he now had a name to go with the stupid face of the guy Ned had brought with him to the operation.
“I am familiar with the concept of being cut off.” It was the incompetence Ray couldn’t handle. With every passing hour, it became clearer that losing Bob would cost the operation something. “Where was Craig when you lost contact?”
“Scanning the area.”
Ray ground his back teeth together. “Be more specific.”
“Checking some of the small outbuildings on the edges of the shipyard property. Apparently the place is lined with them. Construction workers used to live there and now some hunters do during season.”
Now, that sounded promising. The island had numerous seasonal and low-residency houses. Roth and the woman could be anywhere, but for some reason he sensed they’d stuck close. Though it was only a hunch, he played it.
“Show me on a map.”
“It’s not on a map. Locals talked about these construction trailers all along the border with—”
That was enough talking for Ray. Besides, it was time he ventured out. “Show me and stay off the radio just in case.”