Retribution (3 page)

Long auburn lashes and thick brows cradled deep-green eyes. High cheekbones and a straight, aquiline nose with slightly flaring nostrils completed the picture. Hot did not describe this man. His hair was hidden from view by a skullcap, but it was probably the same color as his lashes and brows. The beginnings of a beard covered his strong jaw, and it was as auburn as his brows. Taut, burnished-gold skin—
he must be in the sun a lot
.

His face blurred as red-hot coals settled in her hip and hand. She gasped for breath, and the action hurt so viciously she held it and struggled to gain control of the writhing pain. Finally it subsided, and she realized if she didn’t move anything but her eyes, she was able to maintain without passing out.

She closed her eyes and opened them again. Cammo-covered broad shoulders blocked out the sky so she couldn’t see farther than that. Her gaze shot to his. His mouth moved, but her ears still rang, and the sound of her heartbeat drowned out his words. He’d said they were American military, hadn’t he?

She found her voice and croaked in a whisper, “Hi.”

His smile showcased even, white teeth and luscious, throw-me-down-on-the-bed-and-lick-me-all-over lips. After a few moments, her vision cleared, the roaring in her head stopped, and she was able to breathe again.

“Hi.” He paused, his look intent. “My name is Captain Dray Bonner, and you’re in the company of Team12. You’ve suffered some pretty serious injuries, so you might want to just lie still. We’re in somewhat of a situation here, so I wouldn’t normally ask this of someone as injured as you are, but do you think you can answer some questions for me?”

He kept his voice low, but it carried what she thought was a New England accent, Boston maybe.

“I can try.”

Her throat was raw. As a result, the sounds she emitted were weak and rough from alternately screaming and holding screams in. His voice, on the other hand, was soothing. His eyes and tone of voice promised safety, compelling her to make the effort to talk to him. Her heartbeat threatened to jump again as her gaze met his.

“Here, let me give you some water.”

He lifted a canteen to her lips, but most of the water spilled over and ran down her cheeks. She managed to get enough down to soothe the rawness a bit, and then she cleared her throat. Even that hurt. She peered up at him as he wiped her face and set the canteen aside. In the midst of the cyclone that was her pain, his presence grounded her. It was irrational and not at all anything Sasha had ever experienced.

His green-eyed gaze roamed over her face again before he spoke. “What’s your name and how did you come to be at el-Din’s?”

Gonna get straight to it, huh?
She sighed inwardly as she gathered the pieces of her tattered mind to give him the information he requested. It took her long moments to piece the last few days together.

“Sasha Bennoit. I work for People for Freedom. I was abducted from the street, I think two or three days ago. As for how I ended up at el-Din’s? I guess the men who kidnapped me took me there.” She struggled through that little speech while taking deep breaths to stem the tide of pain that pulled at her. “Where are we?”

“About fifty miles north of Kabul. We’re trying to get you out as fast as we can. Your presence threw us for a loop, and we weren’t prepared for rescue operations.”

“How badly am I hurt?” She was afraid to ask. Verification of her injuries might make them hurt worse.

His eyes shuttered, the green banked by some unknown emotion. “You’re pretty broken up. Your left ankle, right shoulder, right hand, and possibly your right hip are broken. You have multiple knife wounds and bruises.” His nostrils flared and his face tightened; the flesh over his cheekbones went ruddy. “You’re severely dehydrated, and you have several toes that appear to be frostbitten. You’re running a slight fever that will probably only get worse. So, all in all, not too bad.” The corner of his mouth kicked up.

Sasha would have snorted but didn’t have the energy. The sound she made resembled a wounded kitten.
Maybe I shouldn’t have asked. It’s pretty bad
.
But I’m alive, yes, I am.

“Sasha? Who brought you to el-Din’s compound?”

It took her a second to draw a breath. She licked her lips, tasting the metallic iron of her blood there. “I’m not sure. Four men took me from the street. No one spoke. I’ve wondered about that. But you know, with the beatings and slicing me up and all, I didn’t have a lot of time for meet and greet chit-chat. Yeah, I’m thinking they didn’t even offer me any tea or crumpets.”

His question had been terse, raising her hackles. She frowned up at him even as she tried to maintain her bravado. “You know, now that I think about it, I don’t even know how I knew el-Din was involved until I saw Kharima.” Her eyes watered and burned. She wanted to brush them away but couldn’t lift her arm. The tears left bitterly cold tracks down her temple. “We’d been warned last week el-Din was making threats to kidnap foreigners. We hear those things all the time. If it’s not him, it’s some other warlord.” She paused a minute, gasping as pain cascaded through her. “Sorry, um, Dray? I’m probably gonna drift off on you, and I know you need the information. I’m trying, so hang with me for a second, okay?”

He nodded and she swallowed. This whole scene was sapping strength she didn’t have. He should let her rest—why wouldn’t he let her rest? And why was she focusing on how good-looking he was?

She was broken and needed to find relief in sleep. Unable to fight it any longer, she didn’t even try to keep her heavy lids from closing.

She startled as he leaned closer and couldn’t keep the words from pouring out. “Good Lord, you are really hot.”

Then the blackness returned to sweep her under.

*

Dray felt his lips curve. The words “really hot” coming from a mouth like hers made him—well,
shit
. Hearing her say his name in that sweet Southern drawl had just about got him there. And
there
was a place he had no business traveling right now.

Snowflakes fell lovingly on her face, sprinkling her eyelashes. She was exquisite. Her big, golden eyes dominated a face that captivated him. They’d taken him in and stolen his breath. Expressive, soft with a tinge of stubbornness around her mouth, Sasha Bennoit was a spitfire. If he’d met her at another time in another place, he would have taken a few moments to lick those snowflakes from her skin. As it was, he removed his glove and brushed them off gently, lingering over the bruises. The feel of her skin under his fingertips was somehow…
right
. The air stirred behind him.

“Sir, Itchy and Bleak are bedded down. Surrey and I are taking watch. Is she awake yet?” Connor spoke in a barely audible tone, a touch of concern in his voice and on his face.

He ignored the unspoken question. “Yeah, but she knocked back out. I found out a little information, though. Let’s get Bleak and the rest together at next shift change, and we’ll discuss it.”

Connor nodded and turned to gather his gear for watch.

Dray needed to contact Post again before that team meeting. He needed as much information as Post could give them. This woman was sure to cause him problems he didn’t need right now.

Connor walked away to take up position, and Dray reflected on his First Lieutenant. Something had happened to Con during their last leave. He’d left them whole but returned a shell of his former self. He didn’t joke or laugh anymore, and the light seemed to have left his eyes. He knew when Con was ready he would talk. Dray had been giving serious thought to his own future in the military during his last leave. Changes in Command had been altering his overall perspective of military life, so he knew what it was to be conflicted. Dray hoped there was time to sort it all out later.

He glanced at Sasha, made sure she still slept, and took up his position a few feet away. He’d keep her safe.

* * * *

Hours later they reached the extraction point. Dray motioned to his men, and Surrey moved to his side to unload Sasha. He’d walked almost nine hours with her strapped to his back. She’d roused long enough to whisper, “Shit, shit, damn that hurts!” and since her blood pressure had stabilized, Surrey recommended they knock her out for the trek. Dray had readily agreed. His men were astounded the woman was still alive.

Her gaze, before she’d knocked back out, hadn’t left his. There’d been a tangible thread between them, and he realized she’d keyed on him as safety. Still, the punch of her gaze made sweat pool at the base of his spine and his heart jackhammer in his chest. So little contact between them for this to be there. It made no sense.

They’d hauled ass to make it to the pickup point, stopping only for water and to check her. Here, now, the little valley appeared relatively quiet. Con, Bleak, and Itchy scouted to ensure they were as protected as possible. Surrey stepped away once they’d placed her on the ground, so Dray had a moment alone with Sasha. She stirred restlessly. It was a testament to the amount of pain she was in that not even morphine could keep her out.

As she opened her eyes, Dray moved directly into her line of sight. He brought his face close to hers and waited for her to focus on him. She struggled against the pull of the medicine, but her eyes finally cleared.

“Hi again,” she whispered, lips curving into a small, pained smile.

“Hi, yourself.” His hands clenched as he stared at her, trying to commit her face to memory even as he wondered at the need to do so. “Sasha, I need you to listen close, yeah? A U.S. helicopter will be here shortly to get you to safety. They’ll transport you to the USS
Alabama
in the Persian Gulf. You’ll get the very best care there, and they’ll send you home. I’m glad we were here to help you.”

His words were short and clipped, ensuring his tone didn’t convey how scared he was for her. Hell, he was scared
of
her and this animalistic, protective instinct she brought out in him. Why her and why now? This was the worst possible scenario for this to happen. He couldn’t follow her to guarantee her continued safety, and he had no idea when he’d be able to get track of her in the future.

“Dray, where will you be? You’re coming with me, right?”

The panic was there in her voice, and everything in him tightened.

“No, baby, I won’t be coming. You’ll be safe, though. I wouldn’t let you go if I didn’t trust your pickup. I’ll find you, Sasha. Go home and heal. I will find you.” He allowed himself a moment to enjoy the silk of her skin under his fingertips as he traced her face.

“Dray, please go with me. You won’t be safe.”

Her fear wrapped around his heart and squeezed. He breathed deeply at the strange feeling. Dray cupped her face in one hand, stroking her head with the other. Desperation moved under his skin, wicked, painful. He wanted to soothe her but had no real way to accomplish it.

“Dray, her pulse is getting erratic. Move back,” Surrey urged as he stepped forward.

The anxiety in Surrey’s voice led Dray to do just that. In the distance, the
whump-whump-whump
of the helicopter breaking the sky echoed down the pass.

“Sasha, hello pretty lady. My name is Surrey. The rest of the team is dying to meet you as well, but we’ll have to catch up later, okay? You’re going to be fine, just calm down for me. I’m going to push some more medicine through your IV here, and we’ll catch you later, all right?” Surrey’s voice was melodic, calming.

Irrational anger choked Dray as Sasha’s gaze searched Surrey’s face.

“Hey, Surrey. Shame to meet you this way. And no offense really, but I want Dray back, ’kay?”

Her words slurred and she was rambling in an out-of-her-head way due to the medicine Surrey had placed in her IV. In spite of all that, she continued, and Dray watched the entire team lean in to hear her next words.

“Surrey, don’t be upset, but I really want Dray—you know, I really kind of
need
Dray…” her words ended as she drifted off.

As one, his men turned their gazes to him.

He had a slight smile on his face, which smoothed out immediately as heat rose up his neck. A grown-ass, thirty-two-year-old man, blushing? What. The. Hell? She didn’t even know him.

He grabbed for sanity, felt it slipping a tiny bit, and cleared his throat. “Everybody get ready. Con, Bleak, travel the ridge to make sure no uninvited people come to this little party. Itchy, Surrey, get your asses behind that chopper when it lands. Get her loaded and off before these fuckers realize we’re here.”

Dray walked over after they’d loaded her onto the transport gurney and leaned down close to her ear. The helicopter rotors effectively drowned out the potential for any words, but he had to do one thing before she left.

He leaned in close and inhaled deeply, drawing her scent into him before he lightly touched his tongue to her neck just below her earlobe. Her flavor, that unique scent and taste that could only be her, exploded over his tongue. Damn if she didn’t taste just like she smelled: lemon drops.

“
T
ǘ ata cheannsa
,” he whispered the Gaelic vow before he stood tall to let her go. His heart clicked, and it was a sound in his soul. The language of his grandfather had been pulled from him.

Hands clenched, body strung tight with worry, he watched the bird lift off, knowing it carried something infinitely precious to him. As the helicopter drifted from sight, his mind echoed the words he’d spoken to her:

You are mine.

Aboard the USS Alabama

Sasha pried her eyes open and winced as the low light stabbed her retinas.

The pain hadn’t disappeared. She’d woken up two days ago aboard a naval ship and, after speaking with the ship’s doctor, had concluded she was a mess. He’d given her a run-down of her numerous injuries, but she was most worried about her hip. Her hand would require surgery—no more guitar for a while—and her ankle would mend well thanks to the medic’s setting of it. Her shoulder would eventually return to almost normal.

She moved her legs cautiously, hissing as pins and needles pricked every muscle in her lower body. She had serious frostbite on the toes of her left foot, but she wasn’t going to lose any. Her hip, however, was going to, more than likely, have to be replaced. That would take valuable recovery time away from her mission to keep her promise to Kharima.