Page 12 of The Forgotten Wife

Someone crouched behind her.

She squeezed her eyes shut, terror flooding through her.This is it. This is it.

Then a deep, masculine voice purred in her ear, “Hello, Tinkerbelle.”

CHAPTER 3

No.

It couldn’t be. Belle knew she must have slipped into some sort of fugue state. Because only one person called her that. Only?—

“Nick?” she croaked. She spun around and tried to see through the smoke, but her eyes still burned, and her mind wouldn’t let her hopes blossom or her heart believe.

“Nick? Is it really you?” But how could he be here? How had he found her?

“In the flesh,glikia mou,” he confirmed in his husky, slightly accented voice as he scooped her up into his arms and rose.

With long strides, he carried her outside.

Oh, my God. ItwasNick. She would recognize his voice anywhere, even after six months of separation. The arms that secured her, protected her, were painfully familiar.

“But how can you be here? H-how did you find me?” she asked in wonder, looking up at him in the moonlight. The strange binocular-like contraption strapped on top of his head notwithstanding, the face looking down at her was one so imprinted on her memory, sometimes she feared only death would erase it.

“There’ll be time for explanations later.” He set her down gently on her feet. “Right now I need to know, are you hurt?” Without waiting for an answer, his hands began investigating for broken bones. They skimmed over her neck, probed her diaphragm and ribs. By the time they reached her hip, a fire had started within her. A fire she’d thought herself immune to by now.

“No, I’m fine.” She tried to pull away from him, but he held fast and continued his examination. “I couldn’t see earlier, and my ears are ringing, but other than that I’m fine. Is that Alex?” Stunned, she stared at the familiar figure of Nick’s cousin.

Similar in build to Nick, the two were often mistaken for brothers.

“Yes, he pestered me into letting him come along.” Nick took a pen torch and flashed it into her eyes. Her immediate flinch seemed to satisfy him. “Sorry, the noise was the result of the flashbangs we used. It causes dizziness and temporary blindness, but the effects normally pass after a few minutes. I regret it, but it was necessary.”

“But Father Tom…he couldn’t see either. He might be hurt.” Again she tried to pull away.

A strong arm clamped around her. “Don’t worry, he’s fine. Alex and my men will take care of him,” Nick replied softly. His hands continued to roam over her, as if to establish she was indeed unhurt.

“Your men…?” With the aid of the fire-lit cave, she counted seven of them, all dressed in black, with powerful guns, harsh faces, and a multitude of weapons strapped to their bodies. Alex crouched next to Father Tom, holding a water bottle to his lips, and two men stood with Hendrik and Edda. Another knelt next to an injured rebel soldier, only this one wasn’t being as gentle as the others.

She took in the scene, her heart lurching wildly when she realized Nick had mounted a full-scale rescue.

For her.

Tears welled up in her eyes. She fought to remain calm, but it was no use. When he pulled her against his chest, she gave up, relief from pent-up fear erupting in huge, racking sobs.

“Shhh, it’s all right. You’re safe now,” he murmured in a deep, soothing tone.

In some distant part of her brain, she knew she shouldn’t display such weakness, and she definitely shouldn’t lean on Nick, of all people. But she couldn’t help it. The last week had been horrific. She’d been certain either death or an even worse fate had awaited her.

When her sobs subsided to sniffling hiccups, she wiped her nose on her sleeve and raised her head.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lose it like that.” Her voice faltered as he lifted her chin with one finger. Her gaze collided with steely grey eyes.

“Don’t you dare apologize. You’ve been through a harrowing ordeal. I would be more disturbed if youdidn’tlet it out in some way.”

Nick’s voice was a firm, reassuring hope amidst all the carnage surrounding them. Sighing, she burrowed into him, the need to lean on him too great to ignore. She closed her eyes as his lips brushed her temple.

“Are they…are they all dead?” She refused to look toward the cave and the bodies within.

“Don’t think about that now,yineka mou,” Nick replied with another soft kiss. Her heart skipped a beat at the familiar endearment.His wife, he’d called her. God, how she’d loved it when he’d called her that.

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