Page 57 of Evening Shadows

“Son of a bitch,” he burst out, reaching in his ear and removing the listening device.

“What?”

Soothing Sam’s alarmed voice, he smiled. “She figured out those were microphones. I just had a blast of heavy metal in my ear.” Sticking his finger in his ear and rotating it around in hopes of reversing the effect of the loud music, Ken started. Dropping their voices back down to a whisper, he leaned close. “Why would she do that if you told her no one was around here?”

Sam appeared to have the same question and no answer. “I don’t know.”

“I don’t think she trusts you as much as you think she does.”

“I think you’re right. Do you think she’s overheard us?”

Doubtful, since they’d done quite a bit of talking across the room, even if softly. Their plans and strategy had been whispered. “I don’t think so, but we’ll keep talking low.”

“Are you sure we can’t get out tonight?”

Wishing he could agree, Ken shook his head. “If there are patrols—whether inside or outside the jungle—they probably have NVGs. We don’t, so we can’t escape any pursuers.”

“Maybe I should leave now and give Bev some bullshit so I can find our equipment.”

He shook his head. If only it’d be that easy. “No, I don’t trust how she’ll treat you now, and I don’t want to be separated. We have to hope since she told you morning, we have that much time. We’ll break out when the sky begins to lighten, when it’s not so dark so we can get over the wall and into the jungle before dawn breaks, and Beverly comes looking for you.”

Having to put faith into something that maniac promised bothered the hell out of him. He didn’t see any other choice. If they left in the black of night, they wouldn’t get far enough away to make it worthwhile. And that was if they didn’t run into any other trouble, which was a big possibility.

“Do you remember all the turns from the front door to here?”

He hadn’t fooled her with his pretending to be unconscious when they’d dragged his sorry ass in here. “Sure. I can get us out. I just wish we had more than your knife.”

“I’m more worried about finding the rendezvous point without a GPS to get us through that foliage,” she admitted.

A grin of satisfaction crawled across his face. “If I know Jesse like I do, he anticipated our losing everything. He probably tossed almost every piece of his equipment to Franks and Cowboy with directions to get it to Doc before he and Stone departed with Cody.”

That still leaves them in captivity for a while—maybe days. With no lunch or water, his apprehension grew. Was Beverly playing out the ruse and treating Sam like a prisoner? Or had she realized Sam’s deception? His gut clenched at either possibility. He only hoped they brought some drug-free dinner because he needed something to rebuild his energy. He also needed fluids. Badly.

To pass the afternoon, they reminisced about their lives with Lance, and even times with Adam and Beverly. With each story, Sam relaxed and a lightness appeared to fill her. Her freshly cleaned face shone with a glow of happiness.

While some of the stories involved only the two of them, neither brought up the two times they’d kissed before the other night.

Hearing steps approaching, Sam moved away from him. He reached over and slid her knife from her boot. A small surge of fear zipped through him. If Beverly had come for Sam, he’d die before allowing it a second time.

Instead, a man accompanying Jose appeared, carrying a tray with their evening meal. Ken’s stomach rumbled with hunger, but eating food provided by a crazy woman bent on vengeance meant hunger reigned supreme.

Jose allowed the man to scramble in and out, placing the tray on the floor. Seemingly satisfied, the man retreated. When the footfalls stopped, he and Sam looked at each other.

She broke first. “Are you hungry?” Moving to the tray, she continued. “This looks good.”

“I am. I’m even thirstier.”

After setting the tray on the cot, Sam picked up a water bottle and began examining it while she prattled on to appease anyone listening. “There’s this perfect red dress that I have my eye on back in Baltimore. Do you think Kate would like to shop with me?”

With great effort, he held back the laughter at the thought of either of the two women spending their time in a dress store except for a special occasion. Then he remembered the red dress she’d worn the night they met, not the specifics, but that it’d been red and fit her perfectly. “I don’t know.”

“I know you and Jesse are close, so you could help me find out. Maybe I could go over to visit.”

He rolled his eyes at her poor acting skills. “Maybe. Let’s eat.”

At his cutting off the conversation, footfalls continued away from them. He hoped Sam’s questioning of him would be satisfactory enough to keep Beverly from coming early.

Sam put down the water bottle and shook her head. Knowing if he didn’t drink his water a second time, they’d know he’d caught on to them, he hobbled over to the bucket and poured out the contents. The two of them would be long gone before it’d be noticed.

---