Page 78 of Hunter

“I’m sorry. This is hard for you.”

“I’ll manage.”

“You can rest here for a little while,” he said, gesturing toward a dark hulking building just visible against the night sky. Cautiously, he led her to a high window. “I need something in here. I can get it—if you boost me up to the window.”

She eyed the building. “What is this place?”

“The garage where they store auto parts and vehicles that need repair. There is no guard.”

We hope,she silently added. After their two close calls, she wanted to beg him not to go inside, not to leave her alone. But she knew her best option was relying on his judgment, so she made a cradle with her hands and boosted him up to the window frame. She watched him open the window, then disappear into the darkness beyond. Straining her ears, she thought she heard him drop to the floor inside, but she wasn’t even sure of that.

After standing and staring into the opening for several moments, she decided it was foolish not to take his advice and get as much rest as she could. Sinking to the ground, she pressed her back against the cold metal wall and tried to relax.

But all her senses were on red alert.

A dry twig cracked in the underbrush, and she went rigid. Then the sound of movement through the woods receded, and she figured that some nocturnal animal was as wary of her as she was of it.

Minutes dragged by, and she felt her tension mount. Then she saw the figure of a man running toward her. For an awful moment her heart blocked her windpipe—until she recognized Hunter’s shape. As he drew closer, she saw he was holding a set of license plates.

“We will put these on the car we take,” he said. “That will make it harder for anyone to figure out which one we have stolen.”

“How did you think of that?”

He gave a low laugh. “They taught me to be devious—to use tricks to hide myself.”

“Good.”

“Now we must go to the motor pool, where the working vehicles are kept.” He hesitated. “We could circle around the main buildings, but we’ll lose time. It would be faster to go straight across the compound.”

“Won’t there be people?” she questioned.

“Yes. But they will not be looking for us there. And they will not recognize us.” He pulled two jackets and caps from his pack and handed one set to her. “Put these on. In the dark, we will look like men who work here. We will walk as if we have somewhere to go—but not as if we are afraid of being discovered.”

She nodded as she donned the jacket and twisted her hair into a knot before pushing it under the cap. Hunter looked at her critically, then reached to tuck in several wayward strands that had escaped her attention.

He stroked his finger against her cheek, and she turned her face to brush her lips against his hand.

“We will be away from Stratford Creek soon,” he said in a gruff voice.

“Good. I don’t like it here. The only good thing about it was meeting you.”

His face contorted, and he gave her a quick, rough embrace. “It is the same for me.”

Before she could say more, he turned and started toward the end of the garage. Her eyes widened as they rounded the corner. She hadn’t known how close they were to the center of the action. Now, she saw they were only fifty yards from several low buildings where lights shone through the windows.

Hunter started off at a purposeful pace. Trying to imitate his masculine gait, she strode along the road, swinging her arms briskly and keeping her eyes straight ahead.

They came to a sidewalk, and he stepped onto the pavement. She followed, feeling exposed and vulnerable. When a man emerged from one of the low buildings and stood at the top of the steps, staring into the darkness, she imagined he was looking directly at them. She wanted to dart around the side of a building, but she realized that would be a fatal error, so she forced herself to keep pace with Hunter. To her relief, they walked on past the watcher without being challenged. But before she could relax, she saw two men coming directly toward them on the sidewalk. And each step closer seemed to increase her heart rate.

She barely heard Hunter over the roaring in her ears.

“This way.” He gave a little tug on her arm. Stopping short, she followed him onto a side road, fighting not to turn and look over her shoulder to see if they were being followed. Several minutes later, she spotted a parking area ahead of them, surrounded by a chain link fence with razor wire at the top. Moving onto the grass, Hunter stopped under the shadows of some trees and ran his hand over her arm. “You did perfectly.”

She let her body relax against his. “I’m scared spitless. How can you act so calm?”

“I was trained for espionage.”

“But even trained agents have nerves.”

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