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Typical man. Make all the rules, then break them and ignore the woman who points out the hypocrisy. Deb returned to reading, trying to ignore the sound of snow crunching, nails screeching, saw rasping and muttered curses coming from outside.
The light through the windows softened and her tummy rumbled. Then the thump of a helicopter sent her running to the door. Flinging it open, she peered out. Michael wasn’t on the porch. “Michael!” She kept her volume low, but tone urgent. She crept out on to the porch, peering around the ends of the house. “Michael!” He couldn’t have gone far. Sprinting to the bathroom, she climbed on the toilet and tried to look out the tiny window, but saw nothing. It didn’t open, so she tapped a finger nail on it, just in case he was out there.
“What are you doing?”
She spun, too fast, and her stocking feet slipped on the toilet lid. She fell, but Michael caught her, staggering back under her weight to slam into the doorway. Her stocking feet slipping on the vinyl flooring, Deb clung to him. Michael’s arms wrapped around her, holding her tight against him. They both fell to the floor outside the bathroom, Deb landing half on him, and half on the floor. “Oof.” She sank into the comfort of his embrace, enjoying the strong arms and solid chest pressed against her body.
But he’d made it clear; they weren’t anything but friends. Her feet scrabbled for traction. Remaining pressed against Michael was very dangerous; she might be tempted to do something stupid, and he’d reject her again.
“Wait. Just stay still.” He squeezed her tighter. Deb stopped moving and his arms fell away from her. “Now roll away rather than trying to get up.”
How practical. She did as he suggested, and climbed to her feet. “Are you okay? I’m sorry, I was trying to warn you about the helicopter.” The thump-thump of the aircraft grew louder.
“Thank you, I think.” Michael grimaced, then rolled to his front, slowly pushing to all fours, then getting up, one hand on the doorframe.
She’d injured him. Shame churned her stomach and heated her cheeks. She was too fat for any man to pick up, let alone one with back problems. “I’m sorry. You should have let me fall. I’m too heavy.”
He turned to her, scowling. “Not going to happen, cupcake. Besides, us falling had nothing to do with your weight, which is definitely not too heavy. It has everything to do with slick floors, stocking feet and physics.” He scanned her from head to toe and back again. “You’re perfect.”
The heat rolling through her changed from shame to desire, but he turned away. Striding to the side window, he stood just outside the window frame and looked up. “They’re circling. Shoot. They’re going to send someone here to investigate for sure. At least it’s too late in the day for them to land safely.” He turned and pointed at the box by the door. “Get your boots and body armor on. I’ll adjust the straps. Then check that you’ve got everything you need in your backpack.” He stepped to the table, grabbing his medications and dropping them into his pack. He pulled energy bars and other items from the shelf, loading those as well. “Deb! Move it.”
She shuddered and ran for her boots. Even in the cabin, she couldn’t do anything right. Surviving a run down the mountain and an escape in an ATV seemed impossible. But she couldn’t stay, because the too-honorable Michael wouldn’t leave her behind. She had to try, despite knowing the outcome would be terrible. She tightened her laces, shrugged into the stiff, uncomfortable body armor and tried to adjust the side straps. As Michael predicted, the thump of the helicopter moved away and quieted. The red glow of sunset shifted the cabin into an unfamiliar landscape of gray lumps.
“Stop.” Michael batted her hands away. “It’s hard to do this by yourself. I should have fitted this to you last night.”
As Michael’s hands brushed against her side rolls, heat rolled down her face and into her chest. He adjusted both sides, then stood in front of her, grasping the vest on either side of the front piece, and shifted it back and forth. “Good enough. Put your jacket and hat in the backpack, and anything else you’ll need. Take nothing optional.”
She took her coat and hat from the hooks by the door, stuffing them in the small pack, then grabbed her toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush and sunscreen from the bathroom and added a set of undies and a sweater. On her way to the door, she grabbed the e-reader too.
“Leave it. It will only slow you down.” Michael barked the words while shoving energy bars in his pack. “Got meds?”
“I don’t have any.” She forced a smile. “Except chocolate.” She shoved the e-reader in her bag despite his command. He tossed a rectangle to her, and she almost dropped it, but managed to catch it. Dark chocolate—guess he thought she was serious. But she dropped it in her pack regardless, and slid her arms into the straps. It wasn’t too heavy, but she felt unbalanced since it rested against the back of the stiff vest rather than her back.
He plopped a strange headband contraption on her head, adjusting the fit. “Look down. Does it fall off?”
She looked at the floor. “No, but it’s not comfortable.”
“If it’s painful, we can loosen it. But you don’t want it falling off or pulled away by brush.” He slid the same headband on his head, then grabbed the big, black rifle and fastened it to his vest, and gripped both pistols, sliding them half out of the holsters, then back in.
She put both hands to the headband and tried to move it. It slid against her hair, so she probably couldn’t loosen it. “It’s okay.”
“When it gets too dark for you to see the trail, flip the eyepiece down.” He put a hand on the cylinder fastened to the top of his head, and rotated it. “It’s a low-light monocle.”
“Night-vision goggles?” Wiz really did think of everything.
He nodded, but his mouth twisted to the side. “Yeah. It amplifies low light. If it’s too dark, it won’t help.”
“Okay.” Not much of a difference to her, but clearly the distinction meant something to him.
He scanned the cabin, threw his backpack on with a grunt, and trod to the door, then spun back, almost crashing into her. “Almost forgot the sat phone.” He picked it up from the side table and slid it into a pocket on the front of his backpack strap. Reaching out, he put a finger under her chin. “Stick close to me and we’ll be fine. It will take time for them to get anyone here and we’ll be long gone. Let’s go.”
He turned and walked out the door. Deb swallowed hard and followed him into the fading light, the sunset staining the landscape red as blood. Hopefully, that wasn’t a bad omen.
Chapter 13
Michael cursed when his feet crunched through the snow. Their pursuers would know exactly where the two of them had gone. But they were better off leaving; setting false tracks would take too long. The warm day had melted a lot of the snow, and it wasn’t long before they reached the rocky, south facing slope. He started down the barely-there game trail, hoping Deb wouldn’t trip and fall. His back ached, sharp pains shooting randomly too, probably from the work he’d done on the porch and the tumble he’d taken with Deb. Maybe he was a bigger fall risk than she was.
A few minutes down the trail, a voice hailed them. “Ace!” He looked up the hill where the hail had originated, but couldn’t see their mountain man friend. “Saw the helo. Think they’re sending someone?”
