Выбрать главу

He shuffled his feet, wanting to get moving. It would be a good idea to check out the area where they were being picked up to see if there was adequate cover—in case they ran into trouble. After that, he could walk back to the safe house and see if he could find any evidence of who had been there.

And while he was there, he could get some gun oil and work on his weapon to make sure it wouldn’t give him any problems. But he couldn’t do any of that because he had no idea what the woman sitting across from him would do while he was gone.

When he saw that she was looking at him, he dragged in a breath and let it out. “If you want to take a shower, go ahead,” he said.

“Can I?”

“Yeah. We never did get that river water off.” And you can’t get off the boat without my knowing it, he added silently.

She stood up, glancing at him as she walked by, then disappeared from the room, and he heard water running in the head. She was back in twenty minutes, wearing the same clothes, her hair towel-dried.

“If I shower, will you run off?” he asked.

“I’ll be here.”

He wasn’t sure how much mischief she could get into while he was getting cleaned up, but he took a two-minute shower, then wrapped a towel around his waist and looked into the main lounge, relieved that she was sitting where he’d left her.

Satisfied that she hadn’t run out on him, he went back to the cabin where they’d spent the night and pulled a windbreaker and a pair of jeans out of the drawer under the bunk. The jeans had a tight waistband, suitable for carrying his Sig. And the jacket would cover the weapon. He donned the jeans and put the sweatpants back, then returned to the main lounge, where Elena gave him an anxious look.

“We’re going to wipe this place down, then get out of here,” he said.

“Every page of the magazines?”

“We can take them.”

After they wiped the surfaces they’d touched, he said, “Let’s go.”

“Where?”

“Not far,” he answered, unwilling to share even the smallest amount of information with her. With the magazines tucked under one arm, he exited the boat.

She had to be curious about who was picking them up, but she simply followed him off the boat, up the pier, and along the road. He didn’t walk on the crunchy gravel but stuck to the woods at one side, and she did the same, staying in back of him as he wove his way through the trees and around brambles.

In the woods, he tossed the magazines into a swampy area and pushed them out of sight with a stick.

As they approached the highway, he picked a spot well in the shadows that would give him cover.

* * *

Elena stayed close to Shane, silent and cooperative. Apparently the meeting place was close to the main road. But she still didn’t know who was coming for them. Maybe it was one of the men he worked with at Rockfort Security. She and Shane had apparently arrived early. Or maybe their ride was taking longer than expected to get here. After about twenty minutes, she saw a gray SUV pull off the highway and turn onto the access road to the estate.

Her heart started to pound because she thought she recognized the vehicle. That must mean it didn’t belong to one of the other men in the security company.

“Who did you call?”

He didn’t answer.

She gulped. “Are you sure this is someone you trust?”

“Yeah.”

When he started to step out from the trees, she put a hand on his arm.

“Don’t.”

He turned toward her questioningly. “Why not?”

She gave him a pleading look. “I have a bad feeling.”

“You mean—like maybe you’re going to jail?”

“No. It has nothing to do with me.”

Again he only answered with a snorting sound. The feeling of dread increased when she saw the man who got out of the car.

It was Bert Iverson, who had been assistant security chief at S&D when she’d arrived and who hadn’t tried for the head job when Ted Winston retired. She’d never liked Iverson, and she didn’t trust him. She couldn’t explain why, but she’d had that impression the whole time she’d been at the company. If she had to put a label on his behavior, he came across as sneaky. And he had shown up unannounced a lot of times when she was working late. Of course, maybe that was standard operating procedure for a security guy. She might even say the same about Shane.

“Wait,” she whispered.

Shane spared her a glance. “Why?”

“I don’t trust him.”

“Yeah, he was probably on your case.” He answered carelessly, as though he didn’t credit her judgment. And really, he was right in making the assessment. He’d worked with Iverson, and she’d had only cursory contact with the man. Before she could say anything else, Shane stepped out from behind the tree where he was hiding.

Chapter 19

Elena’s nerves tingled as she kept her gaze on the assistant security chief. His arm twitched, and she saw him pull a gun. Because she’d been ready for some kind of duplicity, she pushed Shane to the side. And because he wasn’t expecting an attack from the rear, or anywhere else, he lost his balance. As he went down, a bullet thunked into the tree where he’d been standing moments earlier.

Knowing he needed time to recover from the tumble, Elena shouted, “Over here.”

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Iverson growled as the gun swung toward her. More bullets thunked into the tree, but she had already ducked to safety.

Meanwhile, Shane rolled back into the shadows as two more bullets hit the ground where he’d been lying.

He found his footing and scrambled up.

“Come on.” He led them farther into the underbrush, back toward the river.

There were no more shots from Iverson, but she heard him moving through the woods. When they came to a duck blind, Shane stopped.

“Sorry,” he whispered. “How did you know?”

She turned a hand palm up. “I’ve always had a bad feeling about him. I can’t explain it.”

“He was always friendly to me. He showed me the ropes at S&D. I thought he was relieved not to take on the top security position.”

“I guess that was part of his job. Or his jobs.”

“Yeah.”

There was no more time for conversation. Iverson was coming through the underbrush, trying not to make any noise. But it was impossible to move silently through the woods, especially since he obviously wasn’t alone. He’d brought backup, and other men were spreading out, covering more territory.

Elena tensed for a confrontation. Then something totally unexpected happened. She heard a shot—followed by a man’s shrill cry. It was Iverson. “Jesus. What the hell are you doing?”

“You did the first part of your job,” another voice said. “Thanks for finding Gallagher and the woman. Too bad you couldn’t finish him off.”

A sick feeling rose in her throat as she heard another shot.

“They…”

“Killed him,” Shane finished. “Which gives you a good idea of what kind of men we’re dealing with. But I think we already knew.”

She knew something else, too. They intended to kill Shane, but not her. They wanted her alive because they thought she knew where the SIM card was, although she didn’t, not anymore, because Shane had hidden it. But she was sure they would never believe that. If they captured her, they’d try to torture the information out of her—the way they were torturing her brother.

When she drew in a sharp breath, Shane cupped a hand over her shoulder. “Yeah.” The one word told her that he’d followed her logic.