Page 74 of Shelter (The Wanderers 4)

Rush listened closely, trying to remember if there might be a stream or a river nearby. He pictured the map in his head. “Yes. Let’s go.” He helped Haley to her feet and turned toward the water. He figured it was about half a mile ahead of them.

Sure enough, they made it to the river ten minutes later. It wasn’t easy. The terrain was rough, and they had to climb over branches and downed trees. The last thing they needed was a sprained ankle.

Rush stopped at the edge and stared across before turning to the others. “We have to cross.”

Haley gasped. “We’ll get soaked, and it’s too cold.”

Storm grabbed her hand. “It will cut off the dog’s scent though, princess. He’s right. We have to cross.”

Rush set his pack down. “Thank God for those nice expensive backpacks you rich guys managed to commandeer,” he joked. “They won’t be completely waterproof, but mostly. Take your clothes off, stuff them inside, and let’s get across. We’ll have to move fast, get dressed again, and keep going before we’re spotted.”

The men pulled their shirts over their heads and went to work kicking off their shoes and unbuttoning their pants, stuffing everything into the packs.

Haley was heaving for oxygen, staring at them.

Rush met her gaze. He hated this for her. He hated all of this. But she needed to find the strength. “Can you swim, love?”

She shook her head.

“It’s okay,” Storm said. “The rest of us can. We’ll get you across. And we’ve seen you naked. Get out of those clothes, Hales. Fast,” Storm ordered.

His demand seemed to kick her into gear. She stripped out of her shirt, jeans, and shoes, tucking all of it into Bray’s pack.

“That’s good enough, Hales,” Bray stated. “Keep your bra and panties on. You can take them off on the other side and go without.”

She nodded, blowing out a relieved breath.

“Let’s go. It doesn’t look too deep,” Rush informed them. “It’s going to be chilly, but we can probably hold the packs above our heads and wade across. If we can keep our heads dry…” He grabbed Storm’s pack and lifted both of theirs up as he stepped into the running water, leaving Storm’s hands free to help Haley.

Storm was the tallest and the strongest. He grabbed Haley around the waist and picked her up. “Wrap your legs around me. Hold on to my neck with your arms. Don’t let go.”

She did as he instructed while Bray and Riggs waded into the water, each holding up a pack.

Thank goodness the water wasn’t moving too fast. It was cold, but it wasn’t deep and the current was manageable.

Rush glanced at the others several times to find them making their way without incident. It only took about five minutes to get across, and Rush jogged into the tree line on the other side. He dropped both backpacks and unzipped them. Yanking out his shirt, he used it as a towel to dry off as best he could before handing it to Storm.

While Rush shrugged into his jeans and found a spare shirt, Storm stripped Haley out of her bra and panties and dried her off. He tugged a shirt over her head next. By then she was in less shock and took her jeans from him.

She was shivering. Her lips were slightly blue, but she was moving well enough to keep Rush from worrying.

Soon, they were ready to move again. Rush glanced across the river, grateful that they couldn’t hear or see anyone, especially not the dog. “We have to keep moving.”

They jogged again, but he slowed the pace some, feeling more confident they would escape and not wanting to push Haley any harder.

After about an hour, Haley stopped. “Can’t… Can’t keep…going.” She was breathing heavily and sat on a rock.

Bray dropped his pack in front of her and sat behind her, straddling her and wrapping his arms around her.

She was shivering. Even though they’d been moving, she was cold. Probably sweating and damp and scared.

Rush tipped her head back to see her eyes.

“I’m fine.” She was panting. “Just tired. My legs are shaking.”

“We can rest a while.”

Storm was pacing. He glanced behind them. “You think we’re safe for a bit?”

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