Page 66 of Trapped with the Covert Ops Soldier

“No one came looking for them. No one returned to this cave, even though there was a perfectly good entrance they could have gotten in through.” He looked down at the exposed parts of the body. “I wonder if one of these men originally owned the plot of land your grandmother left you? You’ll have to check the title history, maybe the owner went missing and your grandmother bought it.”

“No, she inherited the land from her grandparents. She didn’t know anything about this, or she would have told me.”

“You sure about that?”

“Yes.”

“She did ask you to get rid of the old dynamite.”

“In a safe manner. Using it in here doesn’t qualify.”

“Point.”

“I know we thought it would be a good idea to lure Virgil away from the entrance by making him think we’d found gold,” Abby said, thinking it through. “Well, we’ve found gold, but I don’t think we should tell anyone about it. This place would be crawling with people in a heart-beat, and I don’t think more blasting is going to make it any safer.”

Smitty looked at the gold and crossed his arms over his chest. “That greed problem again.”

“Yeah.” She sucked in, then let out a deep breath. “So, what should we do? We still have to find a way out of here that doesn’t involve getting shot.”

“Part of me wants Virgil to see this then blow it to hell,” Smitty said with a grin that had a cruel edge to it. “It would probably give him a heart attack.”

“What if we surprised him? Couldn’t we overpower him?”

“He’s old, but there’s nothing wrong with his strategic thinking. He’s had a long time to think about how he would keep control of the situation. I’ll bet there have been other people who’ve misjudged him based on his age in the last few years.”

“What do you mean?” Abby stared at Smitty, horror freezing her insides solid. “Like he’s killed other people since coming home?”

“Yeah, people who are only here for a short time like hunters or weekend warriors. I wonder what the missing persons stats are like in this part of Montana?”

“A serial killer?” She had to force the words out of a tight throat.

“He’s too easy with the concept of killing you and me and even Jack.”

Abby’s stomach rolled over, and nausea tried to fight its way up her throat. She swallowed, breathing hard through her nose, while trying to smile as wide as she could. “Let’s not borrow trouble.”

“Abby?” he asked. “That’s the creepiest smile I’ve ever seen on your face.”

“Smiling helps to suppress your gag reflex.”

He frowned, then came over to crouch next to her, and put his hands on her shoulders. “Hey, we’re going to be okay.”

“You can’t promise that,” she said, struggling to keep the corners of her mouth pushed up and out wide.

“You’re right I can’t, but I can promise to put everything I’ve got into it. I can promise to not give up. Ever. I can even promise to be careful with my own life as well as yours.” He leaned forward and kissed her. “Promise me the same, pretty please.”

She rolled her eyes. “You and your pleases.” She breathed easier as the nausea faded. “Yes, I promise to do all that too.”

“Come on,” he said standing up and holding out his hand to her. “I have an idea.”

There was a hint of humor at the corners of his eyes and determination in the set of his jaw. “Do I want to hear this idea, or will it give me indigestion?”

“I think it’s okay to share. Your morning dynamite habit has inspired me.”

“Oh dear, this is going to be interesting.” She took his hand and allowed him to lift her to her feet. “Okay, give it to me straight.”

He grinned at her. “We really are going to blow this whole place up.”

“That’s what I was afraid you’d say.” Was there anything rational in this idea? “How does blowing up this cavern help us get out of here alive? Because, I’ll be honest, I’m not seeing a happy ending for us so far.”

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