Uncharted by Adriana Anders

Chapter 19

Winded, Elias lay back with a frustrated sigh. “Could you uh…could you help me with this?” He lifted the shirt as far as he could manage. “Can’t quite get it up.”

“I’d beg to differ.” Leo’s hand flew to her mouth, cutting off a laugh.

Meanwhile, half the blood in Elias’s body flooded his cheeks while the other half returned to the subject of her mirth. Unconsciously, his eyes raked their way up and down her newly clothed body.

Looking awkward, she cleared her throat. “Sorry, that was uncalled for.”

“No. No, it was called for.” He smiled and watched her. Her skin was a radiant umber in the sunlight, her eyes on him so warm he forgot, for a shell-shocked second or two, how much danger they were in. “Absolutely called for,” he repeated roughly, ensnared by the sight of her top teeth biting into her lush lower lip.

Bo came up and nudged him with the top of her head, snapping him out of Leo’s spell and reminding him that distractions like this were lethal.

Her eyes narrowed at him. “You’re flirting and you can’t even stand up.”

“Wasn’t flirting,” he mumbled.

“Right.” She rolled her eyes at his efforts to get up. “Stop that. You’ll hurt yourself. First…” She grabbed the canteen, then sat behind him and helped him get into a leaning position, right in the V of her legs. “Water.”

She put the canteen to his lips and dammit, he tried grabbing the stupid thing, but he would’ve lost it if she hadn’t also been holding on. “Body’s not working yet.”

“Okay.” She leaned, dug around in his damp coat pockets, and pulled out a couple of protein bars. “Eat.”

He ate the first in two large bites and scarfed down the second bar.

“All right.” She scooted away, taking her heat with her. “I’ll be back. Don’t go anywhere.”

He grunted and tried to put the shirt on again. Though every cell of his being understood the urgent need to get up and out of the bag, he couldn’t do it, could barely turn onto his side and watch her head into the sparse pine cover.

He gave up and shut his eyes.

He’d almost died back there. Twice. Hadn’t even felt the damn gunshot wound, with all the adrenaline pouring through him. But between that and the shock of the water, he’d be dead if she hadn’t gotten him to safety.

With his eyes closed, he listened for signs of pursuit—not that he’d hear with the noise the ice was currently making.

They had to move. If he couldn’t, she’d have to go without him.

With a deep inhale, he pushed up to sitting and worked the shirt over his head.

He shoved the sleeping bag aside and took a second to examine the long, ugly gash the bullet had put in his hide. He’d need to disinfect that and bandage it before taking off. Another nudge of the covers revealed his penis, only half-hard now that she’d gone.

“Least you’re doing okay.” He shook his head, disgusted at himself.

“Who?”

Quickly, he covered up again. “Shit, you move quietly.”

She smiled vaguely and eyed the tight thermal stretched across his chest. “You got it on.”

“Yeah.” He lifted his chin. “Think you could, uh, grab me something for the bottom half?”

She got him his things and busied herself putting his pack back together while he struggled into pants.

“Where’s your bag?”

“My bag?” She spun in a circle. “Oh, crap.”

“Not much in it. See our boots there. Your coat.” He lifted his chin toward his bag. “Mine. With my pack, we’ll be okay.”

“Thanks to your overpreparedness.”

“If the…” He supported himself on one hand and made it to standing. “…gear’s necessary for survival, then it’s not overprepared, is it?” He reached for his coat, found it wet, and spread it out onto the stones. “Just prepared.”

She snuffled. “Guess you’re right.”

“I am.” He grimaced at the sun peeking over the mountains. “Getting to be that time.”

Her eyes flicked up his body before making their way down again—as if seeing him for the very first time. Which, in a way, was the case, now that daylight had chased the shadows away. “To move, you mean?”

At his nod, she cocked her head. “Where are we headed exactly?”

“Where do you want to go?”

“Like I said, I want to talk to Campbell Turner.”

Thatwould be a problem. Rather than focus on it, he deflected. “How’s your head?”

“Fine.”

He didn’t believe that for a second. “Figured we’d get you some medical care first.”

“I need to see Turner. I need to get to that virus before the Chronos people—” She stopped, mouth still open. “Hear that?”

He shook his head and listened. The most obvious sound was the grind and pop and crash of ice breaking up, running water its undercurrent. He frowned, concentrating hard and then… “Shit.”

Something thumped in the distance.

“That’s a helo,” said Leo, looking truly frightened for the first time since he’d met her. “They’re here.”

He’d hoped for more time. His eyes flew to Leo. “Go,” he said.

The look she gave him was confused. “No.”

“Go, Leo. I got this.” He bent from his waist but couldn’t quite reach his rifle.

“Forget it.” She gathered the pack and started stuffing their remaining things into it, haphazardly mixing wet with dry. “I’m not—”

“Come on, Leo. They’re close.” Another try, and though his side felt like it was tearing open, he managed to grab the weapon, pull back the slide, and focus on the sky. “I’ll hold ’em off. You leave. Now.”

***

“What are you doing?” Leo took another wild look around. Their boots. Shit, his coat.

“I’m staying. You run.” The Ruger Guide Gun he held was a bear shooter, best for taking down large beasts at fairly close range. It wouldn’t make a dent on their aircraft. They, however, could easily pick him off from the air.

“Like hell.” She shook her head, heaving the heavy pack onto her back. “Not leaving you.”

“They only want me.” He lifted his chin to indicate more items strewn around them on the rocks. “Damn breakup covered up the sound of their approach. Can’t…” He grimaced, as if his side hurt. “Go! Now! Take Bo. Get some distance. There’s a chance you’ll make it out alive.”

“And what? You just…go with them? Let them kill you? Torture you till you give them Turner’s location?” His lips lifted in the strangest little half smile. “What am I missing, Elias?”

“Get out of here.”

“Make me.” She moved toward him, snapped up the blanket and bags, and shoved them at him.

The thump of rotors thundered around them, echoing off the peaks across the lake.

He opened his mouth and shut it, staring at her like he didn’t get her at all. In the next split second, something vulnerable softened his eyes.

Taking advantage of the hesitation, she shoved the stuff into his open arms. “You don’t come now, we’re both toast.” Her “Come on!” was drowned out by the helicopter, whose shadow now stretched at the edge of her vision.

Bo, who clearly didn’t like the sound of the aircraft any more than Leo did, scurried into the woods, hunched close to the ground. She barked once, as if to say, Come on, you silly bastards! Hide from the big scary thing!

Whatever he said next couldn’t be heard above the sound of the helo, though she assumed it was something like Whatever, lady, because he followed her up the rocky lake’s edge, toward the woods. It wasn’t until they’d made shelter that she spotted her pack. It sat right beside the water, about twenty-five yards from where they stood, disgorging items like some kind of beached monster.

If the team in the helicopter spotted the bag, they were dead.

Without a second thought, she dropped the big pack and sprinted—barefoot and half-dressed—to the bag, which she picked up, shoving the loose items inside and hauling it up onto her shoulder with a cold, wet slap, while she raced back uphill.

The rotors boomed now—above, in front, all around. The once-comforting sound suddenly screamed doom. She trained her eyes on the ground, focused everything she had on keeping upright and on the move.

She barreled under the trees and into Elias, who caught her around the waist, spun her, and pressed her against a trunk, covering her body with his. Throwing her head back, she saw nothing but pine needles and then—shit, that was close—the ship flew directly overhead, close enough to make out the seams in the metal.

Elias bent low, put his mouth against her ear, and yelled. “Almost gave me a heart attack.”

The helicopter flew past, over the lake, and away. Still, he didn’t move. And she didn’t want him to.

As she caught her breath, details emerged—like the hard press of his muscles and the rough scrape of bark, the heat of his deep exhalations. His neck was still bent, she realized, his face still pressed to her cheek. She should move. They should move.

But, hell, she didn’t want to.

By the time her pulse was back to something approaching normal, the aircraft was probably close to a mile away, hovering over the center of the lake. Running a rescue operation, she’d guess. Though killing the enemy wasn’t something she took pleasure in, it was hard to feel regret for the people who’d been caught out there last night.

She turned and rose up on tiptoe, getting her mouth as close to his ear as possible. “Don’t do that again, okay, Elias?”

“What?”

“Try to take one for the team. We’re in this together now, got it? Survive together, get out together.” Her nose grazed his jaw and she pretended not to notice how good he smelled. “Go down together.”

He sighed, shifting away. “You’re a pain in the ass, Eddowes.”

She smirked. “Takes one to know one, Thorne.”