Page 7 of SEAL's Resolve

“I’m tired and weak, and my legs feel like limp spaghetti at the moment. I have a massive headache, and I’m sore everywhere.”

Rafe frowned. “Did the kidnappers drug you?”

“They gave me a shot when they tied me to the bed. I woke up a short time before you arrived.”

His stomach knotted. Not good. “You said you had injuries that could wait. What happened?”

“I wasn’t cooperative enough to suit the men who grabbed me.”

Rafe analyzed what she said and what she didn’t. “They hit you?” Had they done something worse? She needed to see a doctor as soon as possible. Those men could have assaulted her while she was unconscious, and Kristi wouldn’t have been able to stop them.

“Several times. I have bruises on top of bruises. I don’t know what they wanted although I can guess.” Disgust filled her voice.

“Money. A lot of it.”

“How much?”

“Five million dollars.”

She groaned. “I hope Dad didn’t pay.”

“He didn’t. That’s why I came for you.”

“You said Dad sent you. Why you specifically?”

He hesitated. How much should he tell her? No point in hiding the information. She’d find out soon enough. “He didn’t ask for me. He contacted Fortress Security and asked for a team to extract you. I work for Fortress.”

“Fortress has teams of one?”

Rafe chuckled. “In this case, yes. I was hiking an hour from the cabin. My boss called me back to active duty.”

“You were on vacation?”

“You could say that.”

“No matter why you were nearby, I’m grateful to you. Thanks for rescuing me, Rafe.”

“Thank me after we’re off this mountain, and you’re safe.” They weren’t at the extraction point yet, and men scoured the mountain, looking for their golden goose.

“I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”

“Do you remember what happened when you were taken?”

“I remember eating dinner in the suite, then pushing the food cart with my dishes to the hallway. I heard something behind me. Pain shot through my body, and I hit the floor. I woke up in the dark in a van, but my muscles wouldn’t cooperate. By the time we reached the cabin, I had enough muscle control to attempt an escape.” She gave a wry laugh. “Obviously, I didn’t get far. After they hit me several times, one of the men carried me into the cabin and tied me to the bed. That’s when he drugged me.”

Rafe couldn’t speak for a moment, enraged at her mistreatment. When he’d tamped down his temper, he said, “One of the kidnappers zapped you with a stun gun.”

“How do you know?”

“I watched the security cam footage of your abduction on the way to the cabin.”

“You can identify the men who took me?”

He shook his head. “The man who knocked you out knew the location of the security cameras. The cameras never caught his face.”

“Of course not. Nothing is ever that easy.” She sighed. “How long ago was I abducted?”

“Five hours.”

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