Page 89 of Montana Heat

I cursed as a rain/snow mix started to fall. Conditions were deteriorating, which could be deadlier than the men with the guns if we weren’t careful.

“I’m moving Kenzie to the vehicle. Body temp is critical.”

I wasn’t sure if I was talking about hers or mine, but it didn’t matter because we were both in trouble.

“Roger.” Lucas was obviously still running by the sound of his breathing.

“Roger that,” Daniel said. “We’ll handle things here.”

We’d parked the car about three miles away and had come in on foot in order to make sure we were not detected. Now, I wished we had just barreled in hot.

Kenzie stumbled again. I wrapped my arm more tightly around her waist, trying to take as much of her weight as I could to help her. “Hang in there, City. You’re doing great.”

She didn’t answer. Her feet were dragging more with each step. We were going to be in real trouble soon.

And we hadn’t heard anything from Alan in way too long. That did not reassure me. The only reason I could think of that he would stop taunting Kenzie was if he was up to something.

Or maybe he was the second man Hunter had taken down—hopefully permanently. I wouldn’t lose a bit of sleep over that.

But either way, I pulled my Glock from its holster and kept it low at my side. Kenzie and I were making way too much noise not to be tracked if anyone was nearby.

We made it another half mile at a pace way too slow before I lost feeling in my feet. Just trying to keep us both upright was getting more and more difficult. Kenzie stumbled again, and I started to estimate how far I could carry her. Although I already knew the answer.

I would carry her however fucking far I had to.

There was no way I was leaving her. We would walk as far as we could, and then I would manage from?—

The tackle caught me completely unaware. My gun flew in one direction, and I pushed Kenzie in the other.

“She’s not worth it, you know.” Alan’s words penetrated my brain right before his fist connected with my jaw. He got in two more punches to my gut before I could react and roll to the side.

“I have to admit, I didn’t think Mackenzie was going to have her own rescue party here. Good thing I brought super soldiers of my own. How about if we let my guys take care of your guys? I don’t think it will be a problem for me to get rid of you.”

I didn’t wait for Ard to pull up his weapon and point it at me—I dove for him from my half-crouched position on the ground, knocking his gun from his hand.

I trained with the Resting Warrior guys on a regular basis, so my hand-to-hand combat skills were pretty finely honed. But the time in the cold with inadequate clothing was taking its toll. I was clumsy and slower to react than normal.

When he pulled out a knife, I knew I was in trouble. Even more so when one of his guys stepped out into our small clearing.

Once again, I didn’t hesitate to jump for the tackle. If the man had a chance to get his weapon up, it was all over for me and Kenzie. He was bigger than Alan, but I focused and used as much agility as I could muster. I would only have one chance to neutralize him as a threat. If I allowed him to get up, I’d be fighting a battle on two fronts.

And I’d lose.

I got in two punches to the gut while the guy was still stunned by the tackle. A third one had him winded enough that I was able to hop to my feet and grab the guy by the collar of his jacket. I put every bit of strength into my haymaker punch. It knocked him out cold.

But before I could turn around to face Alan, he had the tip of his knife at my throat. “Not so fast, lover boy.”

“I’m not here alone, Ard. Your men are being taken out one by one, and then you’ll go down too.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” His voice was smug. “But I’m afraid you won’t be here to witness that.”

“Fuck off, you coward.”

“Look at you. No coat, no shoes. You gave them to Mackenzie, didn’t you? What a Boy Scout.”

I shifted my weight slightly, ready to spin and try to take him down. But he wasn’t falling for that again.

“Nuh-uh-uh.” He pressed the knife into my neck. I could feel the tip piercing my skin, blood starting to flow. It stopped my movement. “If you’d kept your stuff, maybe you’d be in better shape to fight.”

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