aHunter4Saken (aHunter4Hire) (13 page)

“So
that makes you insensitive to it.” Jake sneered.

“No
one gets used to death.” Niail walked to the truck. “Did you, when you were a
soldier?”

Jake
shook his head, his shoulders sagging. “No.”

“I
am not the enemy.” Niail reached the vehicle and opened the door. “These were
Kowal’s men and they meant harm.”

Jake
climbed into the front seat beside Kimi. Niail folded himself into the rear and
leaned his head back. The adrenaline leaving his body was being replaced with
exhaustion. His head continued to throb and he winced at the sharp pain that
shot through his temple.

“You
overdid it.” Kimi’s concern showed in her tone.

Niail
closed his eyes. “We have taken care of the threat. Now you need to get us to
safety.”

Kimi
put the truck in gear and started to drive. Within seconds, they were on the
road and speeding away from Jake’s house.

“How
am I supposed to explain this to my superiors?” Jake twisted around to face the
rear.

“Their
guns were pointed at Kimi.” Niail straightened his shoulders. “The last one had
his finger on the trigger.”

“You
can’t leave dead bodies lying around.” Jake crossed his arms and faced forward.
“Even if they are criminals, they deserve the benefit of the justice system.”

“They
gave us no other option.” Niail closed his eyes.

“Your
head aches.” Kimi glanced back at him in the rear view mirror. “Rest. It will
take us a while to get to Grandfather’s cabin.”

Niail
tried to speak, but exhaustion had already claimed him. He fell into a deep
sleep and it wasn’t until his body was nudged that he opened his eyes. Jake was
staring down at him, his hands on his shoulders. Niail started up.

“We’re
here.”

He
shook the sleep from his head, but the fogginess remained. He grimaced. The
vehicle had stopped and the interior lights were on. Kimi was watching him from
the front seat, concern written on her face. He needed to alleviate her fears
so he nodded and opened the door. There was no way he wanted her to know how
the last two encounters had sapped his energy.

Darkness
surrounded them. The night sky was full of stars that twinkled and shone with a
brightness that only a remote area would allow. He inhaled the brisk fresh air.

“The
cabin is in those aspens.” Kimi came up beside him. “My grandfather often comes
here alone.”

“The
truck needs to be hidden.”

Jake
reached for the keys from Kimi. “You open the cabin and I’ll park behind it.
The trees should protect it from prying eyes.”

“What
about your partner?”

“Mark
knows the drill. He’s waiting.” Jake pointed to a figure moving out from the trees.
“I’ll meet you there.” He jumped back into the vehicle and drove off.

Mark
walked with them to the cabin. Niail waited for Kimi to retrieve the key from
under a rock near the door. The pain in his left side had increased, but he
pushed it away. There would be time to focus on it later. Now he had to be
certain they were safe.

“You
guys wait outside until I get some candles lit.” Kimi opened the door.

Jake
followed Kimi in. “I’ll help.”

The
flickering flames of candlelight started to show through the windows. Mark went
in before Niail. A sharp stab of pain twisted Niail’s side. He leaned against
the door frame and waited for it to pass. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and he
wiped a hand over it before entering the cabin.

“You
need to cover the windows.” He pulled the first set of curtains. “The light can
be seen from the outside.”

Kimi
rushed to the next window and brought down the blind. “We can put towels over
the openings that don’t have coverings.”

When
they had finished blocking the outside Niail looked around the small cabin. It
was built of log. It had a central woodstove, with a food preparation area next
to it. There was a table, four chairs, and a couch in front of the fire. Bunk
beds were in an adjoining room. There was enough space for at least four people
to sleep comfortably.

His
head swam and his stomach churned with nausea. He pushed back the sensation and
took a step forward. His side screamed in protest. Now was not the time to
worry about an injury. He looked at Kimi and noticed her frowning.

“Are
you alright?” She took a step close to him.

“Keep
clear of him.” Mark pushed her away. “He’s one of Kowal’s men.”

“That’s
not true.” Kimi shook off Mark’s hand. “Kowal’s men are after him.”

“I
saw him with them yesterday when I was doing surveillance.”

The
world started to spin and Niail gritted his teeth. He needed to sit down. He
reached for a chair, but Jake pushed him back.

“You
son of a bitch.” He spat at him. “I trusted you.”

Niail
swayed and then everything went black.

Kimi
screamed as Niail fell to the floor. She rushed to him and pushed him onto his
back. That’s when she noticed the blood. She pulled his shirt up. He had made a
makeshift bandage from one of her kitchen towels. A strip of ripped fabric held
it in place. It was soaked in blood.

“He
said it was only a scratch,” she muttered under her breath. She hadn’t even
seen him take the towel to cover it. “We need a first aid kit.”

Mark
snorted. “Let him die.”

“How
dare you?”

Outrage
at Mark’s callous attitude ripped through her. All life was sacred. Her chest
tightened as she realized Niail must have been in great pain since the attack
at her house. He had continued to fight despite that.

Kimi
went to the cupboard and pulled out drawers until she found the kit. There were
a couple of bottles of water on the shelf. She grabbed one to clean the wound.
He had risked his life to save her. There was no way she was going to let him
die.

“He
was left for dead by Kowal’s men.” Kimi shot Mark a look of disgust. “He is not
one of them.”

“He
probably double crossed Kowal.”

“How
do you know?” Kimi went back to Niail and knelt beside him. “Kowal’s men are
after you and Jake. That doesn’t make you criminals. Niail needs help.”

An
eerie hush descended on the room.

Kimi
looked up.

Jake
was frowning. His hands were on his hips and he was staring at his partner.
Mark had his arms crossed and eyes narrowed as he returned Jake’s gaze.
Suspicion and distrust flowed between the two.

“You
told me you were going home.” Jake broke the silence.

Mark
shrugged. “It was a last minute thing.”

“Why
should I believe you?”

“I’m
your partner for God sake.” Mark shook his head. “You’re paranoid.”

“True.”
Jake held up his hands in a conciliatory manner. “This business of Kowal’s men
showing up at my house has me a bit antsy.”

Mark’s
hands ruffled his hair. “I saw this guy talking to Kowal himself. If he isn’t
one his men, then he knows something.”

“He
can’t remember.” Kimi pulled the towel away from Niail’s side. “Someone shot at
him and left him for dead on the side of the road.”

“Is
that why he’s hurt now?” Jake walked over to her.

Kimi
shook her head. “No. He only had the gash on his head and scrapes and bruises
when Bobby brought him to me. This is new.”

“Looks
like a gunshot.”

“It’s
from the men who came to the house.” Kimi bit her lip. “He rushed them even
though they had guns.”

Her
fingers shook as she touched the ragged edges of his wound. The bullet had
grazed his side, but it still looked ugly and raw. She didn’t want to consider
what would happen if Niail didn’t make it. She had to focus. She took a deep
breath and poured bottled water into the gaping hole in Niail’s side.

“He’s
certifiable.” Jake held his hand out for the water. “Give me that. I have
emergency first aid training.”

Jake
used gauze to examine the wound. “The bullet passed along the side of his
chest. It barely missed his ribs. It looks worse than it is.”

Kimi
released the breath she’d been holding. Her whole body trembled at the thought
of Niail dying. In just a couple of days he had become important to her. She
watched Jake clean the edges of the wound and then pull it together with
steri-strips before putting another dressing on it. Niail had lost blood, but
he should recover.

“Can
we get him up on the couch?”

“He
weighs a ton.” Jake closed the first aid box. “Put a pillow under his head and
get a blanket. He can sleep on the floor.”

Kimi
brushed the hair from Niail’s forehead. “He’s still suffering from a
concussion.”

“A
hard surface isn’t going to make him worse.” Jake stood. “Besides, what if he
falls off the couch? It’s pretty narrow for a man his size.”

He
was right. She stood and grabbed a pillow and afghan from the couch. She would
stay with Niail. The thought of leaving him was unbearable. She was connected
to him.

He
wasn’t like any other man she had ever known. She abhorred violence, but she
didn’t blame him for what he’d done. There were few choices once the men had
barged into her house.

He
had saved her life.

She
couldn’t abandon him.

She
put the pillow under his head and covered him with the blanket. She would wake
him in a couple of hours to be certain that the concussion was cleared. Now she
had to concentration on their plan to get help. Hiding here wasn’t getting them
any closer to safety.

“How
long before Kowal finds us?”

Jake’s
voice interrupted her thoughts. She pulled her gaze away from Niail. “Why
should he find us?”

“You
tell me Mark.” Jake stood in front of his partner.

Mark
crossed his arms. “I am not working with Kowal. I’m undercover and trying to
put him behind bars just like you.”

“Why
didn’t he visit your house?”

Mark
shrugged. “I wasn’t home when you called. Who knows? He might be there right
now.”

Jake
grunted. “You had better not be lying.”

“Look
man, we have to trust each other, or we’re lost.”

“Why
can’t you call your commander and explain what you were doing? Once he knows
that Kowal is after you, he’ll understand.” Kimi went to the woodstove and
started to stack paper and kindling inside. “He’ll send someone to help.”

“We
don’t have enough evidence.” Jake sighed. “Besides, Mark and I have been doing
this undercover stuff on our own. No one sanctioned it.”

“So
someone might think you both are working with Kowal?”

“Bingo.”
Jake threw back his head. “I can’t believe we let ourselves be hoodwinked like
this?”

“I’m
telling you, it’s this guy.” Mark pointed at Niail.

Jake
shook his head. “He brought my sister to my place. He’s the one who noticed the
men outside. If he was working for Kowal he wouldn’t do that.”

“You
said he lost his memory.”

“He
knows who he is.” Kimi struck a match and lit the kindling. “He just can’t
remember what happened before he was beaten up.”

“That’s
pretty convenient.”

Kimi
sat back on her knees. “It’s common in concussions. From what Bobby said, Niail
was thrown off a vehicle at high speed. He hit his head on a large rock, and
shots were fired at him. It’s a miracle he’s alive.”

The
flames started to lick up to the larger wood pieces. In a few minutes the fire
would be blazing and adding heat to the cabin. The only other thing they would
need was water, but they would have to go to the creek for that. Kimi wasn’t
venturing out of this place until daylight. She stood and stretched her hands
over her head.

“I
don’t think we’ll solve anything this evening. We need sleep.”

“One
of us will stand guard.” Jake pulled his pistol out of its holster. “I’ll take
the first shift.”

Mark
yawned. “I’m not going to argue. I was awake all last night watching Kowal’s
house.”

Kimi
went to a small shelf along the wall near the door and pulled out a couple of
blankets. She threw one to Mark. “You can sleep in the other room. There are
two bunks in there.”

When
Mark had gone to bed, Kimi gathered a blanket around her and turned to Jake.
“Do you trust him?”

“More
than I trust that guy.” He nodded toward Niail.

“Let’s
hope you’re right.”

Kimi
walked over to Niail and sat down. She had no intention of leaving him alone
tonight. She didn’t trust Mark. Jake’s intentions toward Niail weren’t clear either.
Niail deserved to be protected until he could fend for himself.