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He slid something away and reached for her. He took her weight with ease as he lowered her to the floor. “Still sick?”
“Yes.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a packet which he ripped open. A moment later, he crouched and placed something cold behind her ear. “Anti-nausea patch.”
Well, wasn’t he the resourceful one. “Thanks.”
He patted her shoulder, then returned to his previous position, something in his hand again.
Unfortunately, it was too dark for her to see what it was. On second thought, maybe it was fortunate she didn’t know everything. Bridget didn’t want to be afraid of her rescuer.
He touched his ear again. “Copy.”
Unable to do anything to help except stay out of this stranger’s way, Bridget leaned her head back against the warehouse wall and gathered her strength for what came next. At some point, they’d have to leave this temporary sanctuary and go to a safer location. Once the sun would rose, the security of darkness would be gone and employees would arrive to begin their workday.
With her eyes on her rescuer, she noted the exact instant he became more alert.
“Where?” he whispered. A pause, then, “Focus on the other three. I’ve got this one.”
The man turned toward her and crouched to whisper, “One of the four men is heading this way. My friends aren’t in a position to help with this one. I’ll take care of him but you have to trust me and stay put no matter what.”
“Do what you need to. I’ll just take a nap or something.”
Another quick smile. “This will be over soon.”
A muffled curse from the alley had the man rising and pivoting to face the door again. This time when he turned, a sliver of light hit the object in his hands.
Bridget’s eyes widened. He was holding a big, black knife.
CHAPTER THREE
Trace glanced over his shoulder to be sure the woman was where he’d left her, then faced the door where one of the enemy’s foot soldiers fumbled with the knob in the darkness.
He hated that he’d scare the woman he brought to the warehouse. No help for it, though. If Torino’s man raised an alarm, Shadow would have to fight their way out of the area. Safer for all of them to end the threat in this anonymous, empty warehouse. If they were lucky, they’d be out of Chile before this man’s body was discovered.
The knob rattled again. A vicious curse filled the air before a thud reached Trace’s ears. He rolled his eyes. Seriously? Nothing like announcing his presence by kicking in a door. He should have tried to infiltrate the warehouse through stealth. Any hope of catching Trace off guard was lost with all the racket the thug was making.
Another thud and an ominous cracking sound as the door frame gave way. A man stumbled through the doorway and shined a flashlight’s beam into the warehouse’s interior. He stepped further into cavernous building, swinging the light from one end of the room to the other. A sweep to the left of the door would reveal Trace and the woman.
Trace moved in behind the thug, praying the woman would remain quiet. He clamped a hand over the man’s mouth and cut the thug’s neck with the blade of his Ka-Bar. A minute later, he dragged the body across the concrete floor to a darkened corner. The woman would know Torino’s man was dead, but at least she wouldn’t have to see his body on the floor.
He activated his mic again. “Tango is down.”
“So are the other three. We’ll join you in two minutes.”
“Roger that.” Knowing he couldn’t delay the inevitable any longer, Trace squared his shoulders and returned to the injured woman. He crouched, prepared to deal with either hysterics or disgust because of his actions. “How are you holding up?”
“Better than our friend over there.”
Her acerbic wit surprised a brief smile out of him before it faded. “I didn’t have a choice. I’m sorry.”
“I’m not. You saved my life. Thank you.”
Huh. No recriminations. “You’re welcome.”
She held out her hand. “Bridget Monihan.”
“Trace.” He shook her hand, the contact light. Her fingers felt delicate in his bear paw. Man, one good squeeze and he could crush the fine bones of her hand.
