In Enemy Hands (19 page)

“Better.”

“Okay. On the signal. As soon as you clear the plane, slow down your freefall by going spread-eagle.”

“I have to go. I think they’re coming back,” she whispered.

“Okay. It’s all clear?”

“Clear. And Dante …”

“Yeah?” He held his breath. Her voice sounded so soft and vulnerable, and he fought the urge to tell her about all the crazy stuff he felt for her, because he didn’t want her to think he doubted they’d make it out of this. Maybe she wanted to tell him the same thing. Maybe—

“If you drop me, I’m going to come back from the dead to haunt your ass.”

Where was it? Man, she was clueless. Nadia couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of the ringer before now.

It would be hard to explain a ringing bra.

Noise? What noise? That’s only my underwear. It rings when I’m supposed to change it.

Looking for the button, Nadia nearly panicked before she figured out the phone was already switched to vibrating mode.

Cahill was back. She could feel his eyes boring into her while he climbed back onto the plane.

God, she hoped he hadn’t heard her talking. She feigned sleep, tucking the phone under her thigh. He’d see her if she tried to transfer it now.

Then she heard Peterson’s voice as he climbed the steps. Cahill spoke to him. Nadia sat up in the seat and made sure their attention was diverted.

She pretended to stretch, and shoved the phone down the back of her jeans as she rubbed her lower back.

Just wait until Dante heard all the places his phone had been.

The thought made her grin. The man was crazy.

‘Trust me,’ he said.

‘I’ll catch you’, he said.

She shook her head. Heck, maybe she was the crazy one because ‘okay’ was what she’d said.

It’s going work out
, Nadia thought, because she was a big believer in ‘what goes around comes around’ and she had been a good girl.

Well, most of the time.

Surely fate wouldn’t be so cruel as to let her meet a man like Dante and then let her die before she had a chance to ravish him.

“What are you grinning about?” Peterson asked, ducking to keep from banging his head in the doorway.

“What do you mean, what am I grinning about? Is that a candy bar in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?”

“Girl, you’re crazy.” Peterson chuckled. He fished a chocolate bar out of his shirt pocket and tossed it to her.

“Why does everyone keep saying that?” Nadia demanded, snagging it with one hand.

Peterson had a can of soda in each pocket of his windbreaker. He popped the top and handed her one of those as well.

Nadia had no idea of how thirsty she was until the first gulp of the sweet cola hit her throat. She drank it too fast and paid for it with hiccups. And one burp.

“Excuse me,” she said, and hiccupped loudly.

“If you don’t stop that, I’m going to sit with Cahill,” Peterson threatened.

“You think-” hiccup “I’m enjoying this?” Nadia managed, but she wished he
would
go sit with Cahill. She didn’t want to hurt him.

That was an idea. Maybe he would go to the cockpit if she pretended to go to sleep. But first she’d have to get rid of these stupid hiccups.

Cahill’s takeoffs weren’t much better than his landings, but soon they were on their way again.

Nadia sucked in a deep breath and held it. She stared at Peterson and started counting off the seconds in her head. He laughed and Nadia was forced to release her breath. She glared at him and tried again. Again, he started cackling. His face reddened and he pinched the end of his nose as he laughed.

“Will you
stop
it?” she demanded, making her eyes wide. “Can’t you see I’m trying to concentrate here?”

“I can’t help it!” He wiped tears from his eyes. “I wish I had a mirror so you could see your face. You look like a demonic chipmunk.”

“Gee, thanks a lot.”

“Look, I don’t have any water, but you can have the rest of my soft drink if you think it would help.”

“No-” hiccup “-thanks. I might explode.”

Nadia looked at Peterson, judging him. She liked him; she really did. And she even thought he might help her now. But she didn’t know for sure and she couldn’t risk it. Too much was at stake.

Over half an hour later, her hiccups stopped.

Nadia knew the exact moment it happened. Her heart had leapt into her throat when she felt the soft vibration of the phone against her skin.

Once. Twice. Then it was gone.

There was so long between the first and second calls that she was afraid she’d imagined it.

One. Two.

By the time the third call started, Nadia’s nerves were singing. Her mouth went dry and her heart thundered in her ears.

“Hey, your hiccups stopped.” Peterson opened an eye and squinted at her. “Thank God. You were driving me nuts.”

Peterson had relaxed around her, was half asleep. He wasn’t expecting her move when it came.

Nadia sprang.

She had his gun out of his shoulder holster before he knew what was happening. With a shaking hand, she pointed it at him.

“What are you doing?” he asked, with the dazed expression of a man who’s been told a joke he doesn’t understand.

“I’m sorry. Please don’t move. I don’t want to hurt you.”

She backed to the emergency door. Cahill still hadn’t noticed.

“What are you doing?” Peterson asked again, when she grabbed the thick grip of the locking handle.

“He’s going to catch me,” she said, because she could think of nothing else to say.

The door yawned open.

The rushing wind dried her lips and threatened to yank her legs out from underneath her. She ejected the clip and sent the gun spinning to the earth.

Cahill had finally realized what was happening. He came out of the cockpit with his gun drawn.

Nadia licked her lips and questioned her sanity.

Then she dove.

S
he was free.

Bound by nothing, burdened by nothing.

She was free … and it was exhilarating.

The roar of the wind deafened Nadia and her entire vision filled with a view of patchwork earth. It hardly looked real.

The sun was rising and the eastern skyline was a masterpiece of riotous color. Red, gold, and orange exploded against the backdrop of dark gray clouds. It was more than beautiful. It was heaven.

Distracted by the beauty, Nadia almost forgot to follow Dante’s instructions. With some effort, she righted her body, then splayed her arms and legs wide in an open jumping jack position.

She wanted to look behind her, to see if he was coming, but the force of the wind was too great. Nadia couldn’t turn her head.

Oddly, she wasn’t afraid. Something inside her knew Dante wouldn’t let her down again. It was a strange feeling for someone who had always been taught to be on guard, but she trusted him.

Sure, you can trust him—to do his
job, the wary, suspicious voice in her head mocked.
That doesn’t mean he loves you
.

Nadia felt a little sick inside when she wondered how much of what they’d shared was real and how much had been designed to get close to her.

But Dante had told Vandergriff he didn’t want the money. He’d come back for her. Didn’t that have to mean something?

It meant he was trying to do the right thing
, the cynical voice argued.
It had nothing to do with you
.

Nadia pushed the thoughts away and again lost herself in the rushing wind. As it had on her previous jump, it struck her that she didn’t really
feel
like she was falling. It was more a sensation of wind and pressure. Even though she knew she was hurtling toward the earth at a speed somewhere around 110-120 miles per hour, it hardly felt like it.

She saw a flash of movement to her right.

Dante was here.

Nadia caught another glimpse of him in her peripheral vision an instant before he grabbed her. His hands grasped her ankle and worked their way up to her waist. Dante pulled her upright, against him, and attached himself to her with some sort of harness. Nadia shivered at the feel of his big body wrapped around hers.

Nadia wanted to see him, to touch his face, but she had to be content with being held in those arms. Dante hugged himself around her and buried his face in her hair.

Neither of them tried to speak. Not only because it would’ve been impossible against the roar of the wind, but because a human voice would’ve been almost sacrilegious in such a setting.

Dante started to play, guiding her with his arms and legs. They flipped and twisted in the air. Nadia felt her soul drift beyond the clouds, beyond the sun as she reveled in being young and alive and in love with the man who held her. He flipped over onto his back and Nadia found herself staring straight up into the dark gray clouds. It was calm, tranquil, almost like floating on water.

Then he pivoted.

Suddenly, they plummeted headfirst toward the ground at breakneck speed. Nadia couldn’t restrain the squeal that escaped her lips, part exhilaration and part pure terror.

The patchwork expanded beneath them, coming into sharper focus. Nadia wondered if her heart was going to tear its way out of her chest.

Then she gave into the pressure Dante was exerting and they were upright once again. He pulled her arms toward her and Nadia nodded, understanding he was about to pull the cord. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited. The chute deployed with a loud whoosh and they were yanked upward.

Abruptly, the roar around them ceased, bathing them in a sudden quietness that was almost eerie.

Dante’s body created a delicious friction against hers when he began to steer.

The desert.

They were going to land in the desert.

Nadia took in her surroundings in awe. The gray, jagged hills, the rocky terrain interspersed with yellow grass and gray clumps of sagebrush. It stretched out endlessly before them.

She was a country girl, used to wide open spaces, but she had never seen anything like this. It looked like another planet, barren as Mars.

There was absolutely nothing around. No people, no buildings. Nadia had been out in the Pacific Ocean once. All around, as far as the eye could see, there had been nothing but water. She felt the same sense of isolation now that she had then.

Nadia’s racing heart, which had finally begun to slow, speeded up again as they prepared to land.

Too fast. They were going too fast.

“Get ready to flare,” Dante said, his breath tickling her ear.

“What?” She was disconcerted, couldn’t remember what that meant.

“Lift your knees.”

She watched Dante’s fingers grip the loops. All at once, they slowed. Nadia’s feet brushed the ground and nearly tangled with Dante’s as they did an awkward sprint and nearly fell.

They were safe. He had done it.

Adrenaline rushed through her veins, stealing her breath, stealing her voice. Almost stealing her legs.

Dante unhooked her and Nadia spun around to face him. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish’s, but she couldn’t say a word.

“You okay, princess?” Dante asked. He unhooked himself from the parachute and shrugged out of the big backpack he wore beneath.

When she didn’t respond, he glanced up at her.

She literally took his breath away.

Nadia’s wild eyes sparkled like no jewel he’d ever seen, and her cheeks were flushed with excitement. In that instant, Dante saw something in her face that he’d never seen in another’s.

He saw a kindred spirit, and his soul responded to her.

Dante seized her waist and pulled her to him, crushing his mouth to hers. Nadia was more than ready for him. The desire between them was something hot, something tangible. And spiked by the adrenaline rush they both were experiencing, it was almost violent.

Nadia’s nails dug through his shirt. One of his hands twisted in her hair. Dante sank to his knees in the dirt, pulling her with him and then pushed her backward onto the hard, pebbly ground.