Page 41 of Deceptive Lies

“Are you hurt?” he asked, kneeling in front of her.

Shaking her head was automatic, in reality, she had no idea if she was or wasn't.

“We have to get out of here. I got all the others.”

This time she nodded but made no attempt to move.

For now, she’d lost all control of her body.

“Come on, honey, you got this,” Cooper whispered softly as he rezipped her jeans, then gently took her hands and pulled her to her feet. “We have to get out of here in case there are more of them around. If nothing else, we don’t want anyone spotting us with a trail of dead bodies.”

That she could agree with no matter how much shock was muddling her thoughts.

But it was already too late.

Before they could move more men appeared.

These ones weren't as young, and they had the air of seasoned soldiers.

Their chance of escape vanished like a puff of smoke.

Chapter

Eleven

July 12th

1:53 P.M.

“You try anything stupid, and I’ll start shooting any tourists I see.”

Impotent frustration rolled in Cooper’s gut.

Best as he could see, there was no other option but to do what one of the men dressed in black had just ordered them.

The only weapons he had were no match for the AK-47s pointed at him and Willow. He might have eliminated the five young men following them, but they were child’s play compared to this. Those men had been kids, untrained, unskilled, too eager, and too undisciplined.

But these men …

They wore their training like armor, their skill evident in the calm way they held their weapons. There were at least half a dozen of them, maybe more he couldn’t see. The chances of him taking them all on with a single knife without getting shot—worse without Willow getting shot—were as close to zero as it was possible to get.

“Drop the knife, and hands in the air,” the same man, who Cooper had to assume was the leader, ordered.

It killed him to do it, but there were no other options.

At least not yet.

For the time being, he had to play along, make sure he wasn't eliminated as unnecessary baggage, make sure he stuck close to Willow, and protect her however best he could. If he fought now and got himself killed it wouldn't do Willow an ounce of good. All it would do was leave her once again powerless and vulnerable against a man who wanted—needed—her dead.

Slowly, he forced his fingers to uncurl, and the knife hit the sand with a muted thump.

Without it, Cooper felt naked. Of course, he could kill with his bare hands, but these men probably had close to the same level of training he did. They wouldn't be easy to catch unaware, and as long as they remained armed, his chances of getting close enough to do damage with his hands were slim.

“Good.” The man gave them an approving nod.

Something dispassionate in them scared Cooper almost more than walking up to see Willow on the ground, a man’s hand in her pants. Those kids had been driven by emotion. These men lacked all emotion. They were merely doing a job, one they would do to the best of their abilities.

“Now, hands in the air. Both of you,” the man added with a glance at Willow.

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