Page 47 of Extracted

She puckered her lips to stop the grin that wanted to take hold of her face. Only he could make her laugh in a life-threatening situation. “’Course,” she said, shrugging. “What did your brother say?”

“He offered to have one of his connections meet us. It’s going to cost him ten grand. Apparently, there’s only one road through here,” he said, gesturing to the east. “They’ll make better time than we will traveling by vehicle, so hopefully we’ll get to town before dinnertime.”

Her shoulders sagged. “Oh my god. That sounds heavenly.”

Eli took a swig of his coffee and tossed the remainder on the fire. “Your brother has contacts in Ecuador? Kind of work is he in?”

Dallas tucked the phone back in his pocket. “He’s a businessman.” Turning to Gemma, he stretched both hands out at his sides. “Let’s get the hell out of here, shall we? Pack as much food and water as you can.” He walked toward the plane and Gemma fell in line behind him.

Eli packed up their things that lay around the fire. Inside, she began stuffing her backpack. “That’s really good Dare knows someone who can meet us,” she said, as Dallas packed his bag.

He grunted. “It’s actually Cole’s contact, but no one needs to know that.”

She lifted her eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“Cole’s my twin.” He zipped up his bag and met her stare. “He’s the brother we don’t mention under any circumstances—to anyone.”

She bobbed her head slowly. “Are you concerned about Eli?”

He lifted a shoulder. “Nah. But I don’t like it when people ask questions. So let’s just watch what we say, okay?”

“Okay.”

The stairs outside rattled, and the metal squeaked in protest. “Who’s ready?” Eli called with a wide, bright smile.

“I am.” Gemma grabbed another handful of protein bars and stuffed them in her bag. She’d packed four liters of water, which would be heavy but hopefully enough if she rationed it.

Dare had packed twice as much and carried a bottle in his hand. They checked over the plane, grabbed a few more survival tools they might need, and headed out.

As they entered the foliage, Gemma glanced over her shoulder. The white plane was just visible among the greenery. Something tugged in the pit of her stomach.

Now they had no haven. No roof over their heads. No mattress. Nothing to shield them from predators or insects.

Until they made it to Ecuador, they were as vulnerable as an exposed nerve.

CHAPTER 13

Dallas swung the sharp end of the stick through the foliage, stomping over the ground and ignoring the pests that skittered away. They’d been on their trek for a good two hours, and the mosaic of trees, vines, and greenery was hypnotizing. He glanced over his shoulder for the third time in the last ten minutes.

Gemma was holding up. Her pace was stronger than it’d been yesterday, and her cheeks less pale. He hadn’t gotten to re-dress her wound before they left, so he had to be mindful to take more breaks than he would’ve otherwise.

She must have sensed his questioning look because she shot him a reassuring smile.

“We’ll break in about fifteen,” he said.

“I’m okay. It’s starting to get warm, but we’re making good time.”

He hadn’t told her that if, by some twist of fate, they missed Cole’s men, they’d be fucked. Their chances of reaching town before dark were slim. They couldn’t stop for more than ten minutes at a time. Which would be pushing it.

Minutes later, Dallas stopped and sat on a fallen tree. Gemma dropped beside him and pulled a water bottle from her bag. Eli lowered to a rock and did the same.

Dallas took a sip and nodded at Eli’s arm, still strung up in a sling. “Do you think it’s broken?”

He shrugged. “Hurts like a motherfucker, but the pain’s in my shoulder. Hard to say.”

Gemma glanced around. “How far do you think we are from the road?”

Dallas held out the GPS. “About twelve miles. I think we should stay off the road, though—close enough to hear someone coming but not close enough to be seen unless we want to.”

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