Page 86 of In The Trenches (Owens Protective Services)

“Eli, do you copy?” Still nothing. “Fuck.”

“What’s wrong?”

“We’re cut off from everyone.”

“Then we should go back,” she said urgently. “Fox was back there.”

Jealousy rose up inside me that she was so worried about Fox. But then again, he had been good to her when I thought she was a fucking terrorist. “Fox can take care of himself, and so can everyone else.”

“Then we should go back to them,” she repeated.

“No, we have no idea how bad it is. They’ve been in a firefight before.”

“But it’s my fault they’re in it.”

“They’re in it because they choose to be,” I snapped. “We came after you because it’s what we do. You’re the asset!”

She flinched back, hurt filling her face. “I’m an asset?”

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that I’d hurt her feelings, but we didn’t have time for that now. We had to find a secure location and lay low until we could get back to safety.

“Fuck, that’s not what I meant. It’s just…look, I need you to pay attention right now. My job was to get you out of there safely. Everything else needs to be shoved aside until I achieve that. We’re separated from everyone else. We don’t have a vehicle. Until I can make contact with the rest of my team, we’re on our own. So, I need you to hold it together and do as I say for just a little while longer, okay?”

She gave a tight nod, but I could tell she was on the verge of breaking down. I pulled out a map, flicking on my flashlight to check our location. Fuck, we were running the wrong fucking way. Glancing around the forest, I did my best to find a way out. It wasn’t going to be an easy hike, and the shot I gave her would most likely wear off long before we reached safety. I had to get the most out of her now while she was still functioning.

Folding the map, I nodded to her feet. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m…okay. I think they yanked my shoulder out of place again.”

I pressed my lips together. “I can reset it. It’ll hurt less now than if I do it later.”

Staring at me, she gave a tight nod. “Do it.”

I found a thick stick on the ground and handed it to her. “Bite down.”

She took it from me and shoved it between her teeth. I got into position and jerked her shoulder back into the socket. I could have slowly worked it back into place. It would have been less painful, but we didn’t have time for that. She cried out around the stick, breathing hard, her nostrils flaring with every breath.

I took the stick from her mouth, watching her curiously. “Better?” She nodded quickly. I grabbed her good arm and helped her to her feet. “We’re going to have to run. I need you to tell me the minute you’re starting to crash.”

“To crash?”

“Trust me, you’ll know what I’m talking about.”

“Alright, let’s do this. Do I get a gun or something?”

I laughed. “No, kitten. Not without training.”

“Kitten?” she said in disgust. “Is that supposed to be a cute nickname? Because it’s not.”

“Kitten, because one day you’ll be a full-grown cat with sharp claws. You just have to give yourself time to get there.”

A small smile split her lips, though she tried to hide it. Reaching out, I took her hand in mine, trying not to think about the fact that I liked it. There were bigger things to worry about right now.

“Let’s do this,” she said, blowing out a breath.

We took off running through the forest for several miles. I ran at a slower pace, knowing that even with the shot I gave her, she wouldn’t last long at a faster pace. It was better to get more out of her and go further than to spend all that energy running hard, but not getting as far.

I stopped near a river, splashing some water on my face. “Don’t drink it,” I warned her. After cooling down, I pulled out the map again, trying to judge where exactly we were. If I was correct, we were only a few miles from a small town. They might have a motel we could stay at for the night. It wouldn’t be too much longer before the shot I gave her would wear off.

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