Alpha Pack 4 - Hunters Heart (27 page)

“I’m going to cut your shirt off. It’s the only way.”

“Okay. Ryon, I—”

“Shh. Stop talking.”

“Hurry.”

Slipping a hunting knife from his boot, Ryon fought to

quiet his racing heart. Hands trembling, he pushed her

ponytail aside, grasped her T-shirt at the collar with one

hand, and positioned the blade of the knife pointing

downward. Slowly he began to cut, splitting the shirt open

at her back. Her lacy white bra peeked at him from

beneath, hugging perfect bronze skin. His gut knotted and

he forced himself not to think of what would happen to that

perfection if he failed.

Next he made a cut from each armhole in order to let the

garment fall away from her skin without jostling the snake.

Last, he tugged the shirt from her waistband, inch by

torturous inch, until all that remained to be done was lift it

away—hitchhiker and all.

Moving around to her front, Ryon knelt between her

splayed legs. Sweat trickled into his eyes. He swiped an

arm across his brow, then began to pull the shirt off,

gathering it at her stomach. He looked into her white face

and nodded.

“I’m going to put my hand underneath the snake to

support it as I lift it away. Here goes.”

Ryon carefully slid one hand under the bundle, the other

on top. He had to resist the strong urge to lurch to his feet

and sling the creature. A sudden move, however, would

result in one of them getting bitten. Legs shaking, he stood

with agonizing slowness. As he did, part of the mutilated

material slid off the creature to reveal its head and color

pattern.

Red and yellow kills a fellow, red and black, friend of

Jack
. His heart slammed painfully against his ribs. Death

rested in his hands. Awake now, the coral snake raised its

head to stare at him with cold, beady eyes, tongue flicking.

Never taking his attention from the serpent, Ryon

continued to back away from Daria until he was positive

she was out of danger.

With all his strength, he flung it far out into the forest.

“Oh God!” Daria’s voice broke and she buried her face

in her hands, elbows on her knees. “I sat down to rest and

that thing crawled up my arm and into my shirt. I couldn’t

move.”

Ryon reached her in two long strides and sat on the log

beside her. Without thinking, he wrapped his arms around

her and gathered her against his chest. His body leapt to

painful awareness of hers pressed close, trembling, her

skin smooth as silk under his roughened palms. Her dark

head was tucked under his chin, one hand clutching the

front of his shirt as though she’d never let go. Fierce

protectiveness swelled around his heart, making his chest

ache.

“It’s all right,” he crooned. “You’re okay. I’m here,

baby.” He murmured other things too, lilting words he

knew she didn’t catch—but she didn’t have to know their

meaning to allow them to soothe her. She began to relax.

“Never run from me again,” he rasped. “Never. Swear

it to me.”

“I swear.”

For a while she was content to let him hold her,

accepting the comfort he offered. At last, she drew away

and wiped at her face. He felt the loss of her warmth,

immediate and disconcerting.

She heaved a deep, shaky breath and Ryon tried not to

stare at the ample swell of her creamy breasts. The lacy

scrap of material posing as a bra didn’t do much to hide

them, and now wasn’t the time to indulge in some

afternoon delight. With an effort, he moved his gaze north

and kept his attention focused on her face. Mostly.

“Thank you.” She sniffed.

He cleared his throat. “You’re my mate. There’s no way

I’d let anything happen to you.”

“I’m sorry I left without telling you.” She stared at the

ground, miserable. “But I can’t give up, Ryon. I can’t just

leave without getting the information we need.”

Ryon gaped at her. “Are you kidding me? Daria,

meeting up with a poisonous snake is only one of a

hundred dangers you could’ve run up against. You

promised me you wouldn’t run again.”

“And I won’t. But what August is doing is terrible, and

stopping him will save lives. I need your help to bring him

down.”

“To help Ben, you mean,” he said bitterly. Instantly, he

regretted letting out the green-eyed monster, but she took

his hand, shaking her head.

“Not just him. Everyone who’s been ruined by him,

Bowman, and Malik. This might be our only chance.”

Exasperating woman! “I’ll think about it, but that’s all

I’m saying.” Ryon stood and offered her his hand. “Do you

have an extra shirt?”

A flush colored her cheeks and anger flashed in her

eyes, but she nodded and took his hand, allowing him to

help her up.

Daria fished through her pack for the garment. Ryon

was disappointed when she brought forth a camouflage T-

shirt and slipped it over her head, covering her beautiful

skin. He didn’t know what he wanted to do more—

strangle her or make love to her. Then she walked the few

yards to where her mangled black shirt rested on the

ground, poked it with her foot, stooped, and retrieved it.

“Never know when a rag might come in handy,” she

speculated, stuffing it into her pack.

Ryon didn’t answer. Had he detected a sound to the

west? A movement? The hair on the back of his neck

prickled, but it could be his overwrought imagination,

nothing more.

A flash of metal through the trees caught the corner of

his eye a split second before he spun, bracing the M16 at

his shoulder.

“Daria, go!” he shouted.

To her credit, she didn’t hesitate. She swept the pack

onto one shoulder and bolted in the opposite direction as

the forest came alive with bodies.

The figures seemed to detach themselves from the forest

wall like demons from the underworld, come to claim his

soul. And he should know.

But not today, dammit. He sprayed the area with a round

of ammo to buy them precious seconds. The men fell back,

ducking behind cover, giving Ryon an instant to whirl and

sprint after Daria before they returned fire.

She negotiated the undergrowth like a swift deer and he

had to work to catch up. He barely heard the rhythmic tap

of the gunfire over the blood rushing in his ears. He’d

almost reached her when she stumbled over a root and

went sprawling with a cry. He paused a beat long enough

to grab the back of her shirt, yank up hard, and drag her in

his wake.

Branches and vines tore at their faces and clothing,

scratched their arms. Wouldn’t matter much with a bullet

in each of their backs, though, especially if the men were

using silver. But that paled in comparison to the horrors

August was capable of should they be captured alive.

Ryon pushed harder. Taking a detour south, he hoped to

throw the men off the trail. They would look for him to

stay close to the river, so he’d do the opposite. After a

while, the shouts and curses disappeared, so it seemed to

have worked.

He stopped, holding fast to her arm, and listened.

Time stretched out and the whistles of the colorful birds

all around them resumed. Ryon let out the breath he’d been

holding. Thank God, they’d lost the goons.

Daria tugged her hand free of his and put her hands on

her hips, shooting him an annoyed look. The stance made

her the very picture of a perturbed dark angel and he had

to resist the urge to grin.

“Well, I hope you’re happy with yourself.”

Ryon’s jaw dropped. “Me? You’re the one who—”

She stepped close and touched his right arm. “You’re

bleeding.”

Ryon glanced at himself. A gouge marred his biceps

where one of the bullets had grazed him. Blood trailed in a

thin line down his arm and dripped off his fingers. He

shrugged. “I’ll heal. Let’s get moving.”

Giving her a quick kiss, Ryon caught a glimpse of the

exasperation that flashed across her face before he took

her hand, turned, and strode through the trees.

Ryon pushed them east as fast as he could hack through

the dense undergrowth. Daria had been silent for several

hours, holding her own without complaint or asking him

again to consider turning back. They’d stopped only twice

for a quick drink of water and a brief rest.

By the second break, he could see exhaustion taking its

toll on her. Long strands of dark hair had escaped from her

ponytail, and floated around her face in disarray. She sat

on the spongy earth, legs drawn up to her chest, and

hugged her knees, staring into the forest with an expression

that had taken his breath away. The look went deeper than

grief, more eloquent than tears, and it had cut Ryon to the

bone.

She hated to give up. He was forcing her to abandon

finding the cure for Ben, at least temporarily.

“When are we going to turn north?” Daria asked.

“Tomorrow we’ll head that way gradually, and make

our way toward the rendezvous point at an angle. If we

push hard, we can still reach the team before August

intercepts us.”

“How long will it take us, at this rate?”

“By the afternoon, maybe sooner. Provided you don’t

lead me on any more wild-goose chases.”

A soft groan sounded at his back. They’d have to haul

ass to stay one step ahead of August and reach the Pack

that fast. Still, she offered no complaint.

Ryon had to admire her courage, and he understood her

need to bring down August all too well. Yeah, he’d get the

sonofabitch even if he had to come back here alone to do

it. The last few years had been about healing, then starting

his new job with the Pack.

He’d tried to keep his mind off the nightmare of his past

by diving into one dangerous assignment after another.

Rebuilding his life, securing his future. Then disaster had

blindsided him yet again when his team had been

ambushed months ago, and he’d driven himself even

harder.

“When will we make camp?”

“As soon as I find a good spot. It’ll be dark shortly.”

She muttered, “About time.” He couldn’t help smiling to

himself. That his mate allowed the smallest gripe to pass

her lips testified to how wiped out she must be.

He wasted no time finding a secluded area similar to

where he’d pitched the tent last night. Working to beat the

coming darkness, he quickly erected the shelter, making

certain the material couldn’t be seen easily.

“Looks good,” Daria approved. “I don’t think anyone

passing by could spot it.”

“Let’s hope we don’t have to find out.”

“Yeah. Hungry?” She waved a hand at the ground

behind her. The two metal bowls had been placed on a

blanket, along with a strip of jerky for each of them.

“Instant beef stew. I’m starving and somehow getting less

picky by the hour.”

“Me, too,” he admitted. His stomach grumbled as he

joined her. “I appreciate it.”

They sat cross-legged on the blanket facing each other.

Daria picked up her bowl, sniffed, and wrinkled her nose.

“You know, this stuff isn’t that bad and I’m used to it,

but there’s something mildly disturbing about food that

poofs out when you add water. How do they
do
that?”

Ryon laughed, and she smiled back. His heart did a

funny leap in his chest. “One of life’s great mysteries, I

suppose.”

“I’d say you’re one of those mysteries,” she retorted,

waggling her spoon at him. “Every bit as interesting as

old, dried up beef, and twice as tough.”

He barked another laugh, nearly choking on his stew.

“Gee, you’d better stop with the compliments before my

ego explodes my brain.”

“Sorry. Guess I’m getting punchy.” She hesitated, then

observed him thoughtfully. “Tell me about you, or your

family.”

“What’s to know?” He stared, admiring the way the

corners of her eyes crinkled with tiny crow’s-feet when

she smiled. Her full lips, the graceful curve of her jaw.

“Where did you grow up?”

“Atlanta, Georgia, armpit of the South.” He didn’t offer

more, and she put down her bowl, throwing him an

exasperated look.

“You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

“Nope. You compared me to dehydrated meat. I’m still

recovering.”

“Jeez, we’re touchy.” She leaned forward, peering

intently into his face. As she did, Ryon tried not to stare at

the perfect roundness of her breasts pushing against her T-

shirt.

“What?”

“You told me some about your mom and sister. What

about your father?”

His throat tightened. “He was a Marine lieutenant. He

was killed in action in Operation Desert Storm when I

was a boy.”

Daria laid a hand over his. “I’m sorry,” she said softly.

“It was a long time ago. And I had Mom to put up with

me, bless her.” He smiled. “Lisa came along later, from

her marriage to my stepdad.”

Daria cocked her head, an odd look on her face. “Do