Dangerous Secrets (56 page)

Sitting down, he kept the beam to his back and
tried the nail in the middle of the handcuff that tied his feet to within six
inches of each other. It was too large to fit into the slot, but he felt
shavings fall into his hands. Pulling it out, he rubbed it against the coarse
fabric of his jeans, using the seam at the side of his leg, and hoped this
would dislodge the rust and leave him with something small enough to fit into
the key slot.

It took several attempts. Jack′s fingers
burned from the generated heat and his leg felt numb at the spot where
he′d rubbed it, but finally they were free. His hands required less work,
as if working on his legs had taught him what he needed to know for his hands.

Scrambling to his feet, he kept contact with
the beam. Listening, he tried to figure out which way would lead to the surface
and light. He froze, instinctively crouching in place, hearing sound coming
from behind him. He saw no light and wondered if some animal had crawled into
the cave.

Jack waited several moments. He heard nothing
further. He had to move soon. He didn′t know how long he′d been in
the cave or how long it would be before his captors decided to confirm his
death. If there was a way out, it had to be in the direction he′d heard
the noise. Waiting a moment longer, he listened for another movement. What
happened to the animal? Had it come in and decided to retreat?

Jack move forward cautiously. Beam by beam, he
made his way over uneven ground. The incline went up, reinforcing his belief
that this was the way out.

Then he heard it again, the quick scurrying of
something small and fast. He stopped.

‶
Jack.″ He heard the
tentative whisper.
‶
Jack, is that you?′′ His heart thudded
to a stop, then beat fast enough to drown out the sound of an on-coming train.

‶
Morgan!″

***

Who moved first wasn′t important. Morgan
found Jack as their two forms ran into each other in the darkness. They fell
into the coal dust on the mine floor. She didn′t think she′d really
find him, but he was there, in her arms, holding her, kissing her. She hugged
him, arched toward him, sealing her mouth to his as if she′d never been
kissed before. He was solid, warm and
alive
.
Tears gathered behind her closed eyes. Her hands raced over him, confirming
that he was there, checking every part like a new mother checks a newborn,
counting his fingers and toes.

‶
I was afraid you were
dead,″ she said on a heavy breath when they separated.

Morgan had been afraid they′d kill him.
When she′d broken contact with Jacob′s office she′d thought
it was a futile attempt. She didn′t think fate would allow her to find
him in this vast wilderness or that he would be alive when she did. Fate had
never been her friend, but tonight fate was with her. And Jack was in her arms.

‶
We′ve got to get out of
here,″ she whispered.
‶
They′re not far away.″

Scrambling to their feet, Jack asked,
‶
Which
way?″

Morgan held his hand, refusing to break
contact. She led them back the way she had come. She had a flashlight and used
it to retrace her steps until they could see the cave′s opening. Then she
doused the light in case the men from the house returned.

‶
It′s dark,″ Jack
said.

‶
Yeah. I had to wait hours
before I could get in here. They kept going in and out of the house. I saw them
bring you out and throw you in the mine. I nearly screamed.″ Morgan
looked at him in the semi-darkness.
‶
You look terrible,″ she
said. Her hand went toward his face, but he flinched and she stopped.
‶
It
must hurt.″

‶
It does,″ he agreed.

‶
The vehicle is this way.″
She pointed to the right. The small structure which used to house a guard when
this was an operating mine was lighted. Jack had been battered in there.

Morgan arrived in time to see two men carrying
him from the structure to the mine. It had been daylight then and activity in
and out of the small house was constant. Finally, when darkness fell she went
in to get Jack.

Crouching close to the ground, Morgan circled
away from the house. The ground had been cleared when the mine was worked, but
Mother Nature had returned to claim her land. The trees and bushes were thick
and hard as if she had indignantly set up a barrier against future poachers.
Yet Morgan went directly through it.

They traveled in silence for almost a mile, the
meager flashlight their only source of illumination. Morgan refused to think of
any natural enemies like snakes and bears might be present. She didn′t
even know if they were indigenous to this part of the country. She was a city
girl. She′d never lived in the country. Traveling through mountains,
camping out, even girl scouting was something she had never done. But tonight
she′d earned her merit badge. She′d gone in and brought Jack out.
Not quite in a gun-toting blaze of glory, but she′d accomplished her
goal. Her hand tightened in Jack′s.

The SUV was hidden in a grove of trees that
acted as a natural barrier. Morgan had enhanced it with branches that in the
night hid the vehicle totally. When they reached it Jack asked,
‶
How
did you find me?′′

‶
I called Jacob. He got somebody
named Morris Lovel to help me,″ Morgan explained.

‶
I don′t
understand.″

‶
I don′t either, but
because of the phone, Morris could find me and find other structures or
vehicles in the area. We narrowed the possibilities down to this one and he
gave me some directions to get here.″ She paused, thanking God Morris had
been right. Morgan shuddered to think what they would have done to Jack if this
had been the wrong location.

She climbed into the driver′s seat.
‶
We
can′t go far in the dark, but I′d feel better if we put a little
distance between us and them.″ She hooked her thumb over her shoulder.

‶
They have a helicopter and a
Jeep. They can find us if we use the lights. It′s better to stay put
until daylight.″

‶
The highway is only five miles
away.″ She pointed in the direction Morris had told her.
‶
If
we can′t leave here, you should get some rest″ She reached behind
the console between them and pulled out a first-aid kit, then got out of the
SUV and walked around to Jack′s side.
‶
Let me clean the blood off your
face.″

Jack got out and sat on a dead tree lying on
the ground. Part of it hung over a small body of water, forming a low bridge.
The water wasn′t a charted lake or stream, only a body that formed after
a recent rain. Many ponds developed because of the high water content and the
trees that liked to pull the moisture close to them.

Morgan opened the kit, and without even a moon
in the sky for light, she poured water from a bottle onto a cloth. Carefully,
she pressed it against his skin. The water was cold but Jack′s skin was
hot. The blood softened until it colored the cloth in huge red splotches.
Mechanically, she worked, refusing to allow her mind to think that this was
Jack, this was the man she′d fallen in love with, the one whom she might
have lost tonight if she′d chosen the wrong direction.

Jack grabbed her hands.
‶
It′s all
right,″ he said as if he could read her mind.
‶
We′ll get out
of this.″

Morgan waited a moment, staring at him in the
darkness. She smiled slightly then went back to cleaning his swollen face. She
took her time, being careful not to hurt him any further. When she finished,
she emptied the remaining water from the bottle and slipped their trash into a
plastic bag.

‶
Leave me now,″ Jack said.

Panic sliced through her at the thought of him
leaving before she realized he needed to be alone.

Going to the SUV, she replaced the first-aid
kit and dropped the plastic bag in the back of the van. Morgan stood there
fidgeting with the bag, the blankets, camping gear, waiting, trying not to
think of the possible outcomes this day could have had, but they crowded in on
her, forcing her to face them, stare them down. Her heart thudded as fear
threatened to overwhelm her.

Jack came up behind her. She could feel him,
his warmth seeped into her and the weight of their situation pushed her
shoulders down.

‶
I was never so afraid in my
life,″ he said,
‶
as I was when you went out that helicopter
door.″

Morgan worked her neck muscles in an attempt to
swallow. Emotion at his words was no match for the note in his voice.

He cared about her. Tears clouded her eyes. She
closed them. Morgan hadn′t cried in years, but she couldn′t stop
herself. Scalding hot rivers flowed from her eyes and rained down her cheeks.
Her shoulders shook. Jack turned around.

He′d washed up in the small lake. His
hair was wet and he wore no shirt.

‶
It′s all right,″ he
assured her.
‶
We′re
safe.″

‶
Jack,″ her voice broke.
‶
This
is all my fault. You would be safe if it weren′t for me. You could be in
Montana looking at your mountains, enjoying the life you want. I′m
sorry.″

Jack pulled her into his arms.
‶
Being
on that mountain isn′t going to mean anything if I didn′t do
everything I could to get you out of this.″

‶
I′m not your
responsibility.″ Morgan burrowed into his arms. She breathed in his
scent, mingled with coal dust, sweat and rubbing alcohol. He was warm. She felt
his heart beating under her ear, a strong, steady, slightly elevated tempo.

‶
You′ve been my
responsibility since my off-handed comment landed you in this situation.
We′re going to get out of this.″

He lifted her face, wiping her tears aside with
his thumbs, then, cradling her face between his hands, he kissed her with such
tenderness, Morgan thought she would die. His lips brushed over hers as his
arms circled her. He didn′t crush her to him, but held her gently as if
she were fragile and needed careful handling. Morgan thought the only thing
holding her together was Jack′s arms. If he released her, she′d
scatter into molecules, microscopic, invisible, floating into the atmosphere,
never to be reconstituted, never to be seen again. Jack′s mouth teased
hers, his tongue swept lightly over her inner lip. She moaned as passionate
emotions pumped in her bloodstream.

She wanted to press her body into his, show him
how much she loved him, show him that in all the years they had been separated
her love remained intact, shining, bright and hopeful. She wanted him inside
her, his body joined with hers, his life completing hers. Morgan leaned into
him, forgetting his swollen skin. Her arms raised and her body pressed into his
as the kiss changed. His mouth grew more passionate, carrying her into the
storm that built around them until it was raging, warring with her feelings and
her need of him.

Somewhere in her consciousness, she knew this
was not the time or the place, but she forced her mind away from that thought
and let her hands smooth over Jack′s heated skin. He felt great, hot to
the touch, and his mouth was doing things to hers that sent signals to other
parts of her body. Her hands couldn′t stop moving, just as her mouth couldn′t
stop caressing his. Morgan felt her feet leave the ground as Jack lifted her.
Only slightly mindful of his sore face, she deepened the kiss, waving her head
from side to side as she kissed him over the good places of his face. Her legs
wound around him as strong arms supported her. Morgan felt the moans in her
throat join with those in Jack′s.

‶
I need you, Jack,″ she
stated, unmindful if she spoke aloud.

‶
You′re driving me
insane,″ he said, his voice laced with need. Setting her down on the
available space in the back of the vehicle, Jack pushed her back, following her
onto the floor of the SUV between sleeping bags, food supplies and guns.

Morgan′s hands went to the snap on his
jeans and pulled it free. She unzipped them, keeping her eyes on his face. She
could see the pleasure of her hands written on his features and she skimmed
them across his body. Back and forth she continued the effort until his hands
grabbed hers and stopped the action.

He wasn′t hurting her, but she could feel
the effort it took for him to hold back, control himself. Morgan didn′t
want control, not tonight. She wanted the rules suspended, forgotten. Above
them was a brilliant sky. Around them the forest primeval. They were Adam and
Eve before the fall. Alone, together, in love. This might be their last night
in Eden. Tomorrow. . .she wouldn′t think about tomorrow. Instead, she ran
her hands up Jack′s chest, circled his nipples with her flattened palms.

In seconds they were dragging each other out of
their clothes. When they were naked, he stopped and looked at her. Morgan
didn′t feel the need to cover herself. She wanted him to look at her. She
wanted to stand and dance and walk and let him view her from all angles.

He touched her shoulders, his rough hands
lighting fires wherever they roamed. When he kissed her again, she raised her
arms and swung them around his neck. His hands came to her breasts. The shock
of pleasure that raced through her pierced her core. Her head fell back and
guttural sounds came from her throat, primitive cries, mournful moans that told
him what he was doing with his hands and his mouth was pleasing. More than
pleasing. It was sinful. And she didn′t want it to ever stop.

Every inch of her ached for his touch, craved
the tease of his fingers. Morgan moved closer to him, hampered by the confines
of the small space. Jack reached into one of the containers over her head and
came back with a foil square. Morgan smiled when she saw it. Taking it from
him, she broke the seal. A slight hissing noise accompanied the tear as she opened
it. Reaching between them, Jack gripped the vehicle′s floor when her warm
hands caressed his erection.