“Dobby, there’s an Indonesian chopper inbound.Probably carrying aid.They can’t see us pick you up.”
He bit back the swear words.Dobby gave Radar the sign to go and pulled Mila behind one of the larger tree trunks, forcing her to squat.
The helicopter peeled away as gunshots rang out.Agus’s men were firing on it.
“Where are they going?”Mila called into his ear.
“Back to the ship.”He exhaled as he considered their options, listening to discern the sound of bike engines from the fading sound of the helicopter.He didn’t dare move.
“Are they coming back?”
A great question.In a normal situation he would wait until more rescue workers arrived and then blend in with them until he could get a ride out, but Agus’s man had seen him and Agus would have people looking for Mila amongst the aid personnel.
“Damien?”The exhaustion in her voice had him squeezing her hand.
“I’ll get us out of here.”The helicopter faded and the whine of the motorbike engine grew louder.Best-case scenario Agus’s men would assume they’d been picked up by the helicopter before they’d arrived in the bay.
He got his gun ready.
“Damien?”Mila whispered.
“We’re going to be fine,” he assured her.
Worst-case scenario Agus would have two fewer henchmen.
“Stay quiet and still.”He didn’t move as the bikes stopped on the shore only a few metres away from them.The engines idled and the two men shouted at each other.
Mila was curled into a ball though her eyes were wide open in fear.He couldn’t risk reaching out to her but he gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile.Maybe she’d reached her limit.She’d been through so much already, but she needed to hold it together until the henchmen left.
The engines revved again and the bikes rode off.Damien waited a few beats before he peered around the tree.Both bikes were heading back around the bay towards the village.
He exhaled.The men weren’t well trained.They should have at least searched the area, but maybe they realised they wouldn’t win a shoot-out against him.Either way he was glad.“They’re leaving.”He moved over to Mila and pulled her into his arms.She clung to him and her body trembled.
He closed his eyes.So close.
They’d been so close to getting off this godforsaken island.
He stroked her hair.“It’s all right.We’ve still got options.”Though if an Indonesian helicopter was about to fly overhead, they needed to find cover so it didn’t spot them.“Sweetheart, we need to move back into the jungle.Then you can rest.”
He pulled her to her feet and then turned so she could climb onto his back again.
This time he took a second to test the ground before putting his weight on it and moved fast, the whump whump of the new helicopter getting closer.
“Are they coming back?”Mila called.
“No.That’s not for us.”
She tensed and he stroked her thigh to soothe her as he dashed the remaining distance into the dense, undamaged forest.A moment later the helicopter tone changed.It was landing at the northern coastal village the next bay over.
He exhaled and let Mila slide off his back, before he pulled her into his arms again.
“I’m sorry,” she sobbed.“Give me a second and I’ll stop crying.”She waved her hands at her eyes.“It’s the exhaustion making me weepy.”
He shook his head in disbelief.“If anyone’s allowed to cry, it’s you, sweetheart.”He pressed a kiss to her hair, wishing he could promise her immediate safety.No matter what happened, he was getting her off this island.
Dobby scanned the forest as a matter of habit.
Agus would hopefully think they’d been rescued, but if anyone saw them, they’d report back to him and he and Mila would become hunted again.
