Discovering Sophie (29 page)

“I’ll need to inject it in him?” he asked uneasily. His aversion to needles seemed to be lessening day by day. But he could do it—heck, it would beat trying to take the man down with his bare hands.

“Yes, but don’t worry. I can do it,” Sophie volunteered.

Jack scowled. “Absolutely not. I’ll do it. I don’t want him to touch you ever again.”

“Thank you.” Tears filled Sophie’s eyes, and her lips trembled as she gave him a soft smile.

He had to force his muscles to relax as Maria worked at the knots in the rope. Finally, the tension slackened, and Jack was able to wiggle free from his bonds.

“
Gracias
,” Jack said, standing up. He moved behind Sophie, immediately working on her bindings. They weren’t nearly as tight as Jack’s. Within thirty seconds, she was free. Jack swept her into his arms, hugging her close. “I thought I’d lost you,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her hair.

“I know.” Sophie’s grip tightened around his back. “Thank you for saving me.”

He pulled back, studying her bruised face. Softly, he trailed his fingertips over the discolored skin. “I can’t believe they hit you.”

She sniffed and blinked back her tears. “I’m okay.”

“Shh.” Maria glanced nervously at the door. She took one last drag of her cigarette and dropped it to the ground, crushing it with the heel of her shoe.

Right
. There would be time for this later. Jack released his hold on Sophie. “So, you really think this ketamine
will work?”

“Yes. It’s commonly used on large animals like horses.” Sophie quickly moved to pick up her medical bag. “I’ll get it ready while you round up a few of our supplies.”

Maria stood guard while Sophie drew up the medication, and Jack gathered what goods he could carry, shoving them into his backpack the thugs had taken. Among the mess, he found the compass Hector had given him for his birthday a few years back. Slipping the compass in his pocket, Jack didn’t allow himself to think about his friend. Deep down, he felt Hector was still alive—he had to be.

“Raul,” Maria said fearfully, “I think he is coming.”

Jack’s gut clenched tight with apprehension. “She said Raul’s coming.”

Sophie’s face paled as she handed him a syringe. He noticed she retained an identical one for herself. “Where should I try to inject it?” Jack asked, his hands shaking slightly from the adrenaline rush.

“He has lightweight pants on. Aim for the thigh muscle.”

Jack looked pointedly at the syringe in her hand. “I see you have back up ready.”

She gave him a wobbly smile. “Just in case.”

Maria crossed herself and prayed softly, moving away from the entrance.

Jack mentally prepared himself for what he needed to do. He was counting on Raul’s reflexes being impaired by his alcohol consumption. Hopefully it would give Jack the upper hand.

“Sophie, you need to get over there by Maria,” Jack instructed tightly. The last thing he needed to worry about was her getting hurt.

“Jack, please be careful.” She backed up, fear evident on her face.

“I will,” he said, his voice gruff. “Don’t stop praying.”

Outside, Jack heard heavy footsteps and Raul muttering to himself. They all took a collective deep breath, waiting for him to enter. Adrenaline surged through his bloodstream as the door swung open and Raul stepped inside.

Jack did the first thing that came into his mind. He stuck out his foot and tripped the drunken man. Raul fell to the floor with a thud, but he unexpectedly rolled away and was on his feet with agility Jack assumed he would be lacking.

Raul pulled out a knife. “You are a dead man,” he threatened through clenched teeth.

Not if Jack could help it.

The two of them measured each other, waiting for someone to make the first move. The needle Jack wielded wasn’t much of a weapon compared to the sharp knife the evil man brandished. But at least the guy didn’t have a gun.

From his peripheral vision, Jack could see Sophie and Maria back further into the corner. He took a step backward, hoping to lure Raul further away from the women.

In disbelief, Jack was horrified when Raul suddenly turned and lunged for the women. He shoved Maria down, thrusting the knife into her chest. Sophie screamed as he pulled the bloody knife out. Raul had gripped Sophie by her arm, impeding her escape.

Before Jack could even process what had just happened, Raul had his arm around Sophie’s neck in a choke hold. The knife, dripping with Maria’s blood, was pressed against her throat.

“First, I will slit her throat. Then you,
amigo
, will die,” Raul hissed.

Sophie’s eyes went large with fear. Jack didn’t know how to reason with this mad man. He did the only thing possible.

“You want to kill someone—take me.” Jack held his hands up and dropped the needle. “I’ll do anything, but don’t hurt her. Please,” Jack begged, kneeling down on the floor.

The silence was deafening as Raul slowly grinned. He kept his eyes on Jack as he moved his mouth to Sophie’s ear, his tongue flicking out like a serpent. “Perhaps I won’t kill her first.” He planted a slow kiss where his tongue had been.

Jack felt his blood boil as the rage mounted inside him. He prayed for some way to get Sophie away from the filthy man. Suddenly, Cruz let out a long moan. It almost sounded like he called for his mother. Honestly, Jack was surprised the man was still alive.

Raul’s face paled as he lowered the knife to look at the man laid out on the bed. Then his eyes went wide with shock as Sophie jabbed the needle in Raul’s thigh.

Stunned, he released her from the choke hold and looked down. The needle protruded out of his leg. Sophie tried to push him away and screamed out in pain when Raul sliced into her arm with the knife. He bellowed loudly and grasped the needle, pulling it out of his leg.

Sophie scrambled away, and Jack rushed to her, shielding her body with his own. Raul, full of rage, held up the knife and moved menacingly toward them.

“How long until the medication takes effect?” Jack questioned, pushing Sophie back.

“One to two minutes. But I’m hoping his alcohol consumption will hasten the effect.”

Jack prayed for a miracle. Right now, two minutes seemed like an eternity. Raul’s steps faltered, and he put a hand to his head. Growling, he shook his head like a wounded animal. He cursed and stumbled forward.

Jack kept pressing Sophie back toward the door. He could deal with Raul if he knew she was out safely. Raul swayed like a drunken sailor, his eyes glazed with confusion. He took one more step before collapsing to the floor.

“Finally,” Jack said, letting out the breath he’d been holding.

Gripping her injured arm, Sophie moved to Maria and checked for a pulse. It was clear the woman was dead. Next, she moved to the fallen man and pressed her fingers to his throat. Jack hated that she was even touching the man.

“Sophie, you’re hurt. Leave him alone.”

She glanced up at Jack. “I don’t remember the half life of ketamine, but I suggest we leave immediately.”

“I completely agree.” He reached down and helped her to her feet. “Let’s go.”

Nodding her head, she looked one more time at the fallen woman. “She saved us, Jack. I hate leaving her here.”

“Sophie, she’s with Cruz now.” The man’s chest was no longer moving and his lips were tinged blue. “We have to leave or she will have died in vain.”

“I know.”

Keeping Sophie behind him, Jack stuck his head out of the door and scanned the area for any men. Other than the low hum of a generator and the chirping of birds, the camp was eerily quiet. Jack figured by now the men would be passed out or too wasted to do anything to stop them. He had a suspicion Raul hadn’t been drinking the same thing as the other men.

Almost as if they were protected in a bubble, Jack and Sophie made their way to the riverbank. Quickly cutting the lines on the two other canoes, Jack pushed them downstream. Taking the third canoe, they made their getaway.

* * *

Sophie’s eyes flew open as the canoe rocked to the side. A small moan escaped her lips, and Jack whipped his head around. “Are you okay?”

“Yes.” She grimaced as a sharp pain shot up her shoulder. “Well, I guess I’m in a little pain.” They’d been traveling on the river for over an hour now, hoping to come across a village. After taking some pain medication, Sophie had fallen asleep.

Jack squinted, a hint of a smile on his lips. “I’ll bet it hurts more than a little. Come on, Sophie, you’re making me look bad.”

A grin tugged at her mouth. “Okay. I’m in a lot of pain.”

All traces of humor left his eyes. “What can I do for you?”

Moving her sore arm slightly, Sophie confirmed no muscle or tendons had been damaged. If the laceration required stitches, would Jack be up for the task? She also needed a shot of Penicillin, but she could do that herself.

 “First, I need the vial of Penicillin and one of the syringes.”

She tried not to laugh when all the color drained from Jack’s face. “I…you need me to give you a shot?”

“What happened to my brave assistant?” she teased.

“He, uh…works better under duress.”

“Don’t worry.” She chuckled. “I can give myself the shot.”

He gave her a skeptical glance before setting aside the paddle, allowing the current to pull the canoe downstream, and rummaging through her bag. When he had the requested items, she instructed him how to reconstitute the powder medicine with normal saline, and then had him roll it in his hands to completely mix it together.

“I’ll do this if you really need me to,” Jack offered as he handed her the syringe.

“Thank you, but I got it.” She moistened her lips. “I may need your help later on with something I can’t do for myself.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“Let me do this, and then we can talk.”

Jack smiled grimly as if he might have guessed what it was she was going to ask of him. The poor guy hated needles, but suturing her wound by herself wasn’t possible. His troubled gaze remained locked on her, waiting for her to proceed.

“Jack, I need to give the injection in my leg—and not through my dirty clothing.”

One side of his mouth lifted in a wry grin, a mischievous glint lighting his eyes. “On second thought, I think I better give you the shot after all.”

She couldn’t help laughing. “Jack Mathison, you are shameless. Now turn around like a gentleman, and let me do this.”

Chuckling, he did as she asked.

Sophie struggled with the sweats, grunting with the effort.

“Sure you don’t need help?” Jack asked as he paddled down the river.

“Nope. I’ve almost got it.”

After a few moments of silence, he said, “You do realize how hard this is for me not to turn around?”

Actually, she did. “I know, but thank you for using restraint.”

“You’re welcome,” he said with a chuckle.

After giving herself the injection, she pulled her sweatpants back up. “Okay, Jack. You can turn around.”

He still wore a grin. “I didn’t even hear you make a noise. Either I’m a wimp or your pain threshold is much higher than mine.”

“Yes—well, we’ll see about that.” She gripped her wounded shoulder and could feel the gauze bandage was already soaked with blood again. “I think I might need stitches.”

The lines in Jack’s forehead creased as he swallowed. “I’m guessing this is what you can’t do for yourself, right?”

“Yes.”

“Sophie,” Jack said, running a hand over his short hair, “how on earth am I supposed to stitch up your arm?” He sighed heavily. “The only time I’ve even attempted to sew anything was to put a button back on a shirt, and that was in college.”

Whether Jack attempted to sew the wound closed or they used the steri-strips tucked into the front of the backpack, Sophie would need to see a plastic surgeon once she was back home. The important thing now was to stop the bleeding

“Let’s try using butterfly bandages first. If it works, then you’re off the hook.”

Relief flooded his handsome face. “Okay, but if it doesn’t, I promise I’ll do what I have to do.”

She couldn’t resist touching his face and lightly brushed her fingers over his whiskers. The cut below his eye had started to turn purple, but at least he wouldn’t have a full blown black eye. “I believe you would do anything for me,” she whispered, recalling the crazed look in his eyes while pleading for her captor not to hurt her.

“Yeah,” he said gruffly. “You have me totally wrapped around your finger.”

“Do I now?” She wondered if that meant he would be willing to move to Colorado until her contract was up.

“Oh, yeah.” He bent his head and covered her mouth with his. The kiss was gentle, but just as powerful as every other time their lips met. The heady sensation, mixed with the effects of the narcotic she’d taken earlier, eased the pain considerably. Love was a potent pain reliever.

They both jerked apart when they heard an unfamiliar noise. Jack put a finger to his lips, and they listened to the sound of a diesel engine chugging in the distance, drawing closer.

Shaking, Sophie clutched Jack’s arm. “What is that?”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Fear
seized Jack, squeezing him around the middle . How could he protect Sophie without a weapon? “It sounds like a boat. Get down on the floor and lie flat.”

She didn’t listen to him, instead pressing her body closer. Jack scanned the bank, looking for a place to hide. Since their uneventful escape, part of him had been expecting Raul and his men to come up on them any second.

“What if it’s Alberto?” Sophie whispered, her voice quivering as bad as her trembling body.

Using the paddle, Jack maneuvered the boat to the side. “It can’t be him. Listen, you can tell the sound is coming from up ahead.” He tried convincing himself as much as her.

The underside of the canoe scraped along the bottom as Jack hid the watercraft behind the foliage lining the river. He wrapped his arm around Sophie’s shoulders, careful not to touch her injury.

“Please don’t let them take me again,” she said, burying her face against his chest.