Page 41 of Thin Ice

“There are two here.” Brookes couldn’t take his eyes off her. If this was Legion, then they were dead.

Her face broke into a smile. “Thank you, James.” She ended the call and hugged him close. “That’s our people.” Something shifted in her eyes. Her hand was covered in blood. “You’re bleeding.”

The world around him grew fuzzy. “I’m okay,” he tried to say but the words were slurred.

Abby grabbed him around the waist and all but hauled him toward the first vehicle. Several men came toward them.

“Help me.” She sounded so far away.

“I’ve got him.” Brookes didn’t recognize the voice.

Someone hauled him inside the back of the vehicle. His body grew light. He felt as if he were floating above everything. Brilliant light surrounded him. Enveloped him. For the first time in a long time, he was at peace.

“Go,” someone yelled.

“Brookes, stay with me.” Abby. She sounded so upset.

“I’m sorry,” he said in his head.

“Brookes, you promised not to leave me.”

“I don’t have a pulse.” Hannah. A tear slipped from his eye. His sweet sister sounded frantic. He hadn’t meant to worry her or Abby. He wished he could take the pain away.

“Keep fighting, Brookes. Remember the cabin. Our kids. I want that future.”

He smiled. He did as well. The light disappeared. Replaced by darkness. And pain. “No,” he murmured. Torn between the peacefulness of the light and the woman he loved. Brookes wanted to stay in the light, but how could he leave her? He wasn’t ready just yet.

“It’s not your time.” The words filtered through his mind. “Not your time.”

Pain shot through his chest like an electric current. His eyes snapped open. Faces surrounded him. Two men he didn’t recognize leaned over him with defibrillator paddles. Nearby, Abby’s distraught expression broke his heart. Clinging to her, his precious sister. He tried to get words out, but nothing would come.

“I have sinus rhythm,” the man with the paddles said.

Tears poured from Abby’s eyes. She clutched Hannah tight.

“I’m okay.” Brookes mumbled. And he was. Because it wasn’t his time yet.

Chapter Eleven

The driver peeled out onto the road at a fast pace amongst gunfire. Behind them, the car traveling with them opened fire on the advancing four-wheelers.

“Everybody, get down,” the driver yelled as the vehicle they were in made a U-turn and headed away from the shooting. The movement threw Abby against the side wall.

She fought her way back to Brookes’s side and latched onto his hand. He was in a fixed gurney against the opposite wall. Through the back window of what appeared to be a blackout ambulance, Abby watched the car speed down the road catching them quickly.

Brookes forced a smile and squeezed her hand. “It’s going to be okay.”

She so wanted to believe him, but at this point, they were still a long way from freedom. Abby addressed the men who had saved Brookes’s life. “Who are you?”

“Combat Medic Josh McCray, Air Force. This is First Lieutenant Henry Justice. That’s First Lieutenant Woody Elliott behind the wheel. Those men in the car behind us are with the Air Force Security Forces. We are stationed at the Grand Forks Air Force Base, ma’am. And we’re here to escort you to your new location.”

“You’re friends of James?”

McCray smiled. “Yes, ma’am. He saved my life. I’d do anything for him and this man.” He turned to Victor. “It’s an honor to serve at your command, Mr. President.”

Victor smiled and shook his hand. “I appreciate the support, but it’s just Victor for now.”

“Not for long,” Justice assured him. “Mr. President, you have wide-range support in all branches of the armed forces and former military. At our base, the numbers are growing. No one believes the lies Kincaid is telling. Those men and women would follow you anywhere. They’re just waiting for the word from you.”

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