Page 37 of Defending You

The thug was getting too close to Cici.

Asher got low and eased toward him, picking his way around bushes and over fallen limbs and tree trunks.

He was about ten feet away when the man turned toward where Pretty Boy should be. He froze. Then scanned his surroundings.

Their eyes met.

The man’s mouth opened to yell.

Asher sprinted forward and barreled into him.

They both went down.

They wrestled for the upper hand, but this guy was huge. And strong, and trained.

Asher aimed for his eyes, but the guy jerked away and kidney-punched him.

Pain momentarily blinded him, but he couldn’t give in to it. He fought hard, punching and kicking, but the guy was made of iron.

Nothing fazed him.

In seconds, Asher was on his back, the linebacker’s meaty fist poised to put Asher’s lights out.

There was athwack, and the man’s eyes widened. He slid off Asher and landed in the dirt.

Behind him, Cici held a tree limb like a baseball bat. “You okay?”

“Uh, yeah.” Because of her. Holy cow, that could’ve been…fatal for both of them.

He shoved the heavy man off and stood.

The guy was out cold.

“Good hit.” Who knew the prom queen had such a powerful swing?

“Now what?” she asked.

After ridding the thug of his cell phone, ammunition, and guns—he’d carried two—Asher looked around again but didn’t see any more enemies. Either Baldie and the boss were waiting back at the burning barn, or they’d searched in the other direction.

He returned to the boulder for his duffel, then handed Cici one of the handguns. “You know how to use that?”

She checked the magazine for bullets, popped it back into place, and engaged the safety like a pro.

That was a yes.

“Let’s move.” They continued to the south side of the pond, where he tossed both thugs’ cell phones into the marshy water before they continued into the woods.

He prayed they would reach people and cars—houses, a town, a strip mall—and soon. “Don’t slow down, and don’t look back.”

Cici kept pace, barely breathing hard, even though he moved fast. She was in good shape, not just slender but strong. He liked that.

“How are we going to get to the airfield?”

“We aren’t.” They’d been so close to safety, to the end of this mess. “I don’t know how, but they knew where we were going.”

“If we could just?—”

“What?” He stopped to face her, not bothering to hide his frustration. “Please, if you have an idea, I’d love to hear it.”