Page 81 of Hidden Raphael
Chapter 23
At the last tree that hid her from the men, Kimberly ducked. She bit her lip to slow her mind from its frantic pace. A calm, rational person would be the best person to free Raphael from his predicament, and she was far from the ideal.
Her heart raced. There was no one else. Peace and harmony hadn’t prepared her for the ache of falling in love with a medieval warrior. She had to do this. She clutched the Taser in her hand. Then the twig under Kimberly's foot snapped so loud that all the grunts and noises in the camp stopped.
She fought back a wave of dizziness.
Footsteps ran toward her. As they approached, she tucked the Taser under her shirt and pasted on her best smile.
Roger came behind her. "Boo."
She held back a scream and turned around. Instead she tried to cover her shaking hands. "I want to go home."
Harry called out, "Who’s there, Roger?"
"Kimberly." He stepped backward, realizing she wasn’t a threat. She took a small step into the clearing. Roger bared his crooked teeth. "Can I use the gun to kill her now?"
Harry lifted his hand and kept his focus on Raphael. "Bring her to me."
Her stomach was as hard as a rock. She walked toward them with unsure steps. Raphael was upside down and not facing her direction. She held his sister's bag as close as possible. She stilled her racing heart as best she could and turned to face Raphael.
Harry came beside her holding a gun at his side while the helicopter lay useless on its side behind him.
Raphael's stare was unreadable. The blackness of his eyes caused her to step back.
"Don't be afraid of him now, miss."
Afraid? She remembered Harry asking if she'd been raped. She shook her head. "I can't help it. I never asked for any of this. I wanted to get a ride home, to my mother."
Harry's arm wrapped around her shoulders. Her skin crawled from the touch. He then whispered, "Soon enough, this ends for all of us."
She pressed her lips together and looked right at Raphael. Harry had his gun in his holster. She needed to bide her time for Roger to be far enough away. No one saw her as a threat.
Harry pushed her toward Raphael. "We're having some payback with our jailor, girlie. He thought he was better and smarter than us."
Her fingers ached to rip off the black wires. Raphael simply needed to get free. She'd find a way. Her eyes went higher, and his ribs were black and red with fresh bruises and probably broken bone. Roger and Harry were true bullies, in every sense of the word. Instead she averted her eyes and tried to not give away her intentions.
Roger asked, "What's in your bag?"
"Clothes." She clutched the Valentino closer. "I streamlined my suitcase to bare essentials. The coast guard should arrive soon."
"Doubtful," Harry told her. Then he walked over to his brother and the pair of men whispered.
Kimberly's adrenaline kept her calm on the outside. She tried not to let her lips move as she whispered to Raphael, "What would cut that black wire?"
"It's steel cable."
"What cuts it?"
"Shears, but I'll take anything sharp."
She stepped back as Harry came closer. In the medicine bag, she had scissors. Roger walked in a different direction. With her head down, she clutched it close to her chest. The Taser was cool and still tucked in her back pocket. The second Roger was out of range, she'd zap Harry.
Her hands shook, but she breathed in, slowly.
Harry grabbed her arm. "Don't worry, the big man won't harm you."
She hadn't had the chance to give Raphael the scissors.
