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“Leave me be,” Beth said once again as she got heavier and heavier.
“No. No. Don’t you dare give up on me, Beth Turner,” Sophie said through the beginnings of a racking sob. Sophie was getting weary, her shoulders and back were killing her. And when her foot caught on a protruding rock, she felt them both falling and falling. She hit the deck with Beth on top of her. Exhausted, Sophie closed her eyes as fatigue overtook her.
16
“God fucking damn it!”Derek shouted as he watched the chopper disappear into the horizon. The Guardians couldn’t indiscriminately shoot at the helicopter because Sophie and Beth might have been onboard. It took forever to get the right people together for the mission. It took all of Derek’s willpower not to go suicidal and attempt the rescue alone, although he knew Jack would go with him in a heartbeat.
And then there was another delay because satellite images captured a small thermal blast in the area. AGS had to make sure they weren’t sending their people into a contaminated zone so they had to run some radiation readings before going in.
Derek was ready to jump out of his skin when their convoy finally made the trip to Culpeper. He normally had enough time to decompress and find his calm center before every mission, but the stakes involved were too personal this time. They caught sight of the UH-60 Blackhawk when they were about five minutes out on route 522, and he had a sinking feeling they were too late.
And now it looked like Bishop had managed to escape with Sophie.
“Search the house!” Maia ordered the Guardians who were with them. “And be careful—it might be booby-trapped.”
His friend walked up to him, regret on her face. “I’m sorry, Derek,” Maia said quietly.
She was gone. He failed her. And she could be gone forever. The files Brett pulled out of Opperman’s system indicated they had a chartered flight out of the country, but there were no details of location and route. “Fuck!” Derek growled. “Fuck!” he repeated. His gaze drifted to the darkened barn, the overwhelming hope he had felt snuffed out so cruelly in a span of a few minutes.
Suddenly, Manning strode out of the ranch house, his stony face alluding to a grim discovery, the urgency of his strides indicating Derek would be very interested in what he had to say.
“Pierce, Lockwood, you need to see this,” Manning said. The agent’s gaze flicked to Derek. His heart slammed into his chest as he took off in a dead run, charging into the house like a madman. His one thought and prayer in mind:don’t let her be dead.
Derek paused at the beginning of a seemingly endless hallway. Tunnel vision. All he could see was another Guardian, Edmunds, standing in front of an open door, hands on hips and keenly observing the scene before him. It felt like an eternity before Derek made it to the room as he shouldered past Edmunds in his attempt to get through the door, but he stopped short in disbelief.
Bishop was sprawled on a mattress, his shirt and pants were undone in the most indecent fashion. Blood was everywhere.
“His body is still warm.” Another Guardian was crouching in front of the body.
“What the fuck happened here?” Derek demanded even as his gut knew.
“Poetic justice?” Maia said behind him, disgust lacing her tone. “Looks like someone took my advice.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Long story,” Maia said. “Shut up and listen. There are bloody footprints on the hallway, barefoot, definitely female.”
She led him to the first room. “Leads here and then…”
They ended up in a kitchen. A surge of excitement fueled Derek with renewed energy and hope as he burst out the backdoor into the fading light of a summer night.
He impatiently whipped out a flashlight from his utility belt and illuminated the ground before him.
“There.” Maia pointed out. It was dirt-filled all around the farm house and there were fresh tracks leading into the field.
“Sophie!” Derek yelled as he ran straight into the lush, grassy terrain, shining his light all over. Endless questions raced through his head: How far had she gone? Had she reached the road? Was she hurt? “Sophie! It’s Derek!” Where was she?
"Derek.”
Derek turned toward the sound of his name and froze. His flashlight hit shocked gray eyes that squinted at the blinding intrusion. Relief so great swooshed through his lungs. Shifting the light quickly away, he briskly took the last few steps that would reunite him with Sophie.
“Maia, I found them!” Derek shouted behind him.
“I’m right behind you,” Maia snapped, pissed at him for yelling into her ear.
Sophie was sitting up, her legs tucked under her, Beth's head on her lap. She was covered with blood. Derek prayed none of the blood was hers and all of it belonged to that bastard. He sank to his knees beside her.
“Baby,” Derek whispered. He wanted to hug her and clench her tight to him, but he wasn't sure about her state of mind, of what Justin had done to her. His hand shook as he tentatively reached out to brush the blood-streaked tendrils from her face.
