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“Uh-huh.” Again, she didn’t nod, but slowly, her surroundings were becoming less foggy. The cacophony of crickets and other questionable critters filled the night.
Toth stood and went to the upturned SUV. Savannah pressed her palms into the dirt to hold herself up. Her arms wanted to give out, and her body craved sleep, but Toth was right—they had to hustle. A minute or so later he returned, his arms looped through his backpack and her small duffle in his hand. He set down her bag and stretched out both of his hands.
Tattoos covered his knuckles, the dark ink illegible without proper lighting. Intrigue filled her. Mustering all her strength, she accepted his help and he pulled her to her feet. Chilly dirt touched her toes and she glanced at the ground. “My shoes... I must have lost them in the car.”
“We don’t have time to look for them. Did you bring something besides those damn heels?”
She would have rolled her eyes if her head weren’t throbbing. It wasn’t as if she’d planned to lose them in the accident. “I have runners in my bag.”
“All right. I’m carrying you anyway, so we’ll get them out when we stop. We need to get out of here.”
She couldn’t argue, and there was no way she was dumb enough to refuse being carried either. Just the idea of having her weight off her legs was enough to make her want to climb up his tall, stacked form like a cat.
He leaned down and swept his arm behind her knees, just as he’d done in her father’s office, only this time he lifted her more carefully. He grunted slightly and she winced. Was he hurt?
“You can prop yourself up on my backpack to keep the blood from rushing to your head. If you get dizzy or anything, just tap me. We need to be quiet until we get somewhere secure, so don’t talk unless you have to.”
She did as he suggested and rested her forearms on the top of his backpack. He scooped up her bag and strode through the woods.
Savannah stared at the wreckage they’d survived. A large pine tree had stopped the vehicle from tumbling further down the mountain. Broken branches and bushes carved a path up the mountain’s side.
Her mouth went dry at the sight. The fact that they hadn’t died was a miracle. One that Red Eyez would rectify as soon as they found the empty SUV.
She’d escaped death twice in one day. Next time she might not be so lucky.
CHAPTER 5
Adeep achesettled into Toth’s bones, but he didn’t slow in his trek through the woods.
“They must be on foot!”
Savannah’s sharp intake of breath told him he wasn’t hearing things. They’d gotten away from the wreckage minutes before the headlights of a vehicle appeared on the dirt road that snaked down from the interstate above. He’d hoped it was just some kind civilian who’d witnessed the accident.
No such luck.
Toth picked up his pace, ignoring the scream of his muscles. He hadn’t had time to assess his own injuries, but as long as he could breathe, he’d make sure the assholes chasing them didn’t get to Savannah. He needed to turn on his flashlight—one gnarly fucking tree root could end them both. But he couldn’t risk the beam alerting their pursuers. He kept his gaze on the ground, weaving around tree trunks and hopping over treacherous rocks. The voices faded behind them, and a few minutes later, Savannah tapped his shoulder.
He squeezed her thigh so she knew he’d understood then took shelter behind a huge tree. He heaved out a breath as he lowered her to the ground, keeping his hands on her waist for her balance as well as his own. “You okay?” he whispered.
She held her side but nodded. “Just needed some air.” Her voice was fainter than a whisper. In the moonlight he could see her pale face, squinted with strain. She needed rest. Shit, so did he. Not yet.
“We have to get away from the road,” she continued, nodding to the dirt path thirty feet away.
He grunted. “If we do that, we’ll get lost.”
“If we don’t, we won’t lose them.” She dragged her tongue over her top lip. Fear was evident in her features. “We’re basically surrounded. We can’t go south—that’s the steepest part of the mountain. It’ll be impossible to climb. And with the road running alongside our path, it’s only a matter of time before they find us.”
He squeezed the bridge of his nose. She was right. But he wasn’t equipped for a backcountry hike. They had little water, barely any food, nothing but the clothes and toiletries in their bags. And that was to say nothing of the wildlife they might encounter. He had the handgun and the knife that he always carried, but those wouldn’t get them very far if they encountered a grizzly.
He could call Rami on his encrypted phone, but speaking in anything but a whisper would be too risky until they were somewhere secure. “Fine,” he said, nodding. “We’ll cross the road and go farther west. Since that’s the direction they came from, they might not look that way.”
“I should get my shoes.” She bent to the bag, but he caught her hand.
“Nah, we don’t have time.”
She shook her head. “You can’t keep carrying me and all our things. It’s—”
A low whistle sounded in the distance.