Chapter Thirty-Three

First, she had to get Rosa to safety. Then, she had to help Kade.

But how?

Even if she was correct, that Diego was the only one left in the cabin, he had a gun. Not only didn’t she have one, but she had absolutely nothing available to her that might constitute a weapon. Except her body. And the element of surprise.

Sitting in the chair, Diego was barely six feet away from where she perched on the edge of the bed facing the window. She stood. As expected, the movement caught his attention.

“Sit down,” he ordered.

“My leg is cramping.” She shook her leg out, pretending to limp slightly as she started pacing back in forth in front of the window.

Diego leaned forward in the chair. “I said, sit down.”

“Oh, come on.” She stopped to massage her thigh. “It’s really cramping. Besides, where would I go?”

Grumbling, he settled back in the chair and readjusted the butt of the gun sticking out from his waistband.

After shaking her leg out one more time, she resumed pacing again between the side of the bed and the window. With each circuit, she inched just a little closer to where Diego sat.

A dark shadow caught her eye outside the window, barely visible in the distance through the trees. Something black. A bear? Wonderful. If she could get herself and Rosa out that window, she might very well have to fight off a black bear.

By the time she’d made half a dozen circuits between the bed and the chair, Diego seemed to pay her less attention.

I can do this. I can.

Never in her life had she intentionally inflicted harm on another human being. But this sonofabitch sat between her and freedom.

She uttered a quick gasp and snapped her head up, pretending to hear something. “What was that?”

Wait for it.

“What?” Diego’s eyes narrowed.

“Oh my God.” She pointed to the door, hoping this guy fell for her lousy acting job. “It came from inside the cabin.”

Wait for it.

Diego stood, then set the radio on the chair and pulled the gun out. He went to the door and placed his hand on the knob. When his back was completely to her, she dug deep and summoned up the courage she prayed was in there somewhere.

Now!

She raced forward, hurling her body against Diego’s. His forehead crashed into the wood door with a loud crack. She jumped back, fisting her hands and readying to punch him in the face.

To her shock, he slid to the floor. Blood spurted from his nose, and there was a bloody gash in the middle of his forehead. The gun remained in his hand, but his fingers had loosened on the handle.

For a second, she stood there, breathing heavily. I did it. I actually did it!

He could wake up at any moment. Every second counted.

She pried the gun from his hand, grabbed the radio from the chair, then set them both on the floor in front of the window. Casting a quick glance over her shoulder to verify he was still out cold, she set to work on the old window latch. She pushed with her fingertips, ignoring the pain as the edge of the rusty latch bit into her skin. Eventually, it snapped open with a squeak.

The metal handles at the bottom of the window were equally old and rusty. She put her fingers beneath the handles and tugged upward, straining until it felt as if her shoulders would pop. “C’mon, open!”

But her hands were sweating too much. Her fingers slipped off, and she cried out.

A moan had her turning her head to see Diego’s arm move.

“C’mon, c’mon!” She tugged again. The window started to move. She pulled it up as far as it would go, then went to the bed and picked Rosa up in her arms. “Wake up, sweetie. Wake up.”

Her lids fluttered. “Are we going home now?” she asked sleepily.

“Yes.” She glanced at Diego, who hadn’t moved again, then sat Rosa on the window ledge so her legs dangled outside. “We’re going for a walk in the woods first.” Carefully, she eased Rosa off the ledge, then lowered her by her arms to the ground and plopped her on her bottom.

Another moan came from behind her, and she whipped around. Diego slid his hand along the floor, holding it to his nose.

Oh no. Her pulse galloped.

Not wanting to leave it behind for Diego to call for help, she twisted the knob on the radio, turning it off before dropping it on the ground outside the window. She grabbed the gun, then slipped her legs over the windowsill, grimacing as the sharp ledge scraped against the backs of her thighs, tearing her capris. The second her feet hit the soft ground next to where Rosa sat, still looking somewhat dazed, Laia turned to see if Diego had figured out they were gone.

So far, so good.

Except Rosa was still too out of it to walk. Unable to carry the gun, the radio, and Rosa, she hurled the gun and the radio as far away from the cabin as possible.

“C’mon, baby. Let’s go.” A moment later, Rosa was in her arms, and she was trekking up the wooded incline behind the cabin.

A hundred feet or so later, sweat trickled down her temples. The slope had grown steeper to the point where she could barely take another step. Every muscle in her arms, shoulders, and legs screamed in protest. She set Rosa down, steadying her when she wobbled on her feet.

“Mommy, I’m tired,” she whined. “I want to take a nap.”

“Not yet, baby. We need to keep going.” She reached down, intending to pick Rosa up again, when shuffling sounds came from behind her.

Diego was charging up the hill behind them, close enough that she could see the blood from the damage she’d inflicted. His lips curled back, exposing his bloody teeth. If he caught up to them, there’d be no escaping his rage.

“Rosa, let’s go! Wake up!” She grabbed Rosa’s hand, knowing there was no way she could outrun Diego.

The shuffling sounds of him charging closer grew louder.

They wouldn’t stand a chance.

A low growl came from up ahead, then a large black blur shot past them. That bear?

“Smoke!” Rosa pointed.

Smoke crashed into Diego’s chest, sending the man flying backward and sliding down the slope on his back. The dog latched on to the man’s arm, issuing another low growl from his throat.

More sounds, this time from ahead of her. Jamie charged down the hill, a gun in his hand. Behind him were Deck and his Belgian Malinois, Thor.

Laia knelt, tucking Rosa into her embrace.

“You okay?” Deck said quietly, holding his finger to his lips in a shushing gesture.

She nodded, trying to calm her racing heart and process the fact that Jamie and Deck were there, in the woods behind the cabin.

Kade hadn’t come alone.

Jamie dragged a struggling Diego to his feet, keeping his hand securely over the guy’s mouth.

“Wait here.” Deck pulled out a small roll of duct tape from one of the large pockets on his vest, then walked down the hill. As Jamie removed his hand, Deck quickly strapped the duct tape over the man’s mouth.

Jamie handcuffed Diego, then started pushing him up the hill. Smoke trotted over and licked Rosa’s face, nuzzling her chin when she didn’t respond with her usual excitement at seeing him.

“Wait!” Laia whispered as Jamie and Deck escorted Diego up the hill. “We can’t leave. We have to help Kade.”

“We will.” Deck nodded, then pointed.

Laia followed the direction Deck indicated to see three more men—Evan with his dog and two other men she didn’t recognize—taking cover behind the trees and facing the cabin.

“Why aren’t they going down there to help him?” Laia looked from Jamie to Deck, not understanding how they could leave Kade alone.

“Because,” Jamie said, “he’s not ready.”

“Not ready?” She shook her head. “I don’t understand. What is he waiting for?”

Rather than address her concerns, Jamie looked straight at her and said, “Kade. We have Laia and Rosa. They escaped on their own. They’re safe and unhurt. We’re just waiting on your signal, buddy.”