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.He would have loved nature too; I’m sure of it because he was always picking up bugs and studying them.He would have been a good man.” The sullen tone in her voice was unmistakable.She remembered her little boy—Andrew, often, but for some reason this moment it was hitting her hard.Maybe she knew why she felt like crying—it was because she was worried something bad had happened to Cody.She always got a feeling lingering down her spine right before something bad happened; she had that feeling before she lost her son and she had it now.Something was wrong and she knew it.Chapter Nine“That was my boy!” Farley raged at the sight of his dead son.He had gone off behind him because he knew he was the weaker hunter.Sure, he was good and well trained, but he lacked what his brother had—he lacked greatness.He had given him a head start and figured he would catch up to him after he executed his kill and took possession of the injured female he decided he wanted.That woman had caught his attention and like a buck in heat Jed had wanted her.He had wanted to take her on first sight.He was the reason Farley hadn’t put the first arrow through her heart.He had asked him to spare her.An injured doe served no use to Farley.But for Jed he would do anything.For Jed he would let him have the woman for as long as he wanted her under the condition that when he was done with her he released and hunted her.He didn’t know how long his boy would want to play with his new toy, but when he got tired of her she would have to be put down.Now his boy was dead and the bastard who killed him was going to pay—he was going to pay big.Sahara’s eyes fluttered open.Her vision was hazy as she tried to adjust to the dimmer lighting.She could see a ray of light shining through something, but she hadn’t been able to focus.Her mind was still piecing everything together.The last thing she remembered was seeing Cody running away from her.He had left her.She felt a calloused finger trace her lips.Great, she was prisoner to the hunters.Maybe they were going to use her as bait.She tried to move and realized she actually could.Her hands weren’t tied which meant they were either extremely sure she wouldn’t try to run, or they were very much ready to shoot if she did.Given the condition of her ankle she would bank on the first option because they had to know she wouldn’t be able to outrun them.She tried to sit up and a firm hand touched her shoulder, holding her down.“Just relax.You’re okay.”The familiar voice rang in her ears.She blinked a few times before being able to make out the face of the man hovering over her.He was back lighted by the light coming into wherever they were but she could see enough to know—“Cody,” she whispered with a smile.“I thought you were gone.”“I circled around.He’s one man who won’t bother us again.” His voice was harsh, angered by the situation and maybe even a little by his concern for her.She could see his concern etched on his face.The laugh lines around his eyes were now lines of anger, not happiness.“Thanks for not leaving me,” she placed her left hand over his hand that still rested on her shoulder.“What did he hit me with?”“Tranquilizer dart,” he said absently.“I can figure that part out.What kind?”“Don’t know.”“Oh, so you don’t know how long this tingly feeling in my legs is going to last then?”“Tingly feeling?”“Yeah, it’s how I felt, but all over, before I fell to the ground.”“Side effects,” he shook his head.“You are going to have to be ready to move soon, Sahara.We can’t stay in this cave.”“Cave?! What about bears?”“This one’s empty…for now.But I’m worried there might be more hunters behind us.I don’t know how many men we’re dealing with here and I can’t assume only one came after us.Do you understand?”“Yes,” she blinked.She understood perfectly.They were still in danger.This was definitely not the hiking adventure she had in mind.She and Cody could end up dead out here and for what?—some crazy family’s need to up their hunting game.Boys who needed to pretend to be men by killing anything that moved.If they wanted to hunt then they should have hunted each other and left their hiking group alone.“The others?”“I’m hoping they’re surviving,” he admitted.There was no way for him to know.They were headed in opposite directions and Sahara wondered if he wished he hadn’t had to break away from the group just because of her.“I’m sorry you got stuck with me, Cody.You should be there helping your friend and getting the others to safety.You shouldn’t have to protect just one.If it weren’t for me—”“Don’t you dare tell me what I should and should not be doing,” he growled so fiercely she felt as if he could have taken her head off with a sword just by the tone of his voice.“I do what I want and I protect who I want.Everybody is important, even you.This was my choice, not yours.”She opened her mouth to say something and then closed it.There was nothing she could say that would calm his recent heightened level of anger.She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to think of her next words carefully.When her eyes slowly opened she still saw the look of anger etched on his face.Perhaps keeping her mouth shut on the topic was for the best.Instead, she attempted to sit up again.“How are you?” His low voice permeated the cave with a silent sense of resolve—survival for them at all cost.“Tingly,” she admitted.“My legs still tingle, but we need to move.I’ll be okay, Cody.Just help me up please?”“I’m sorry,” he placed one open palm on her thigh [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]