She shrugged, unsure which way to go. “Sure. Let’s go.”
He was smiling again, and she shook her head, sending pain through her brain. “What are you smiling about?”
“Nothing, really. I just like how serious you are, even with what has to be a massive headache.”
She snorted a laugh. “Ugh, it does hurt. But what other choice do I have? We have to get out of here.”
“We don’t have much of a choice. If we don’t leave, we’ll be in deep shit.”
They walked for another five minutes before they came to a set of stairs going up. She wanted to head up and have a look, but Link shook his head.
“We need to go farther away from the mess back there.”
“Fine, but I’m starting to lag.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got you if you go down.”
She grunted, glancing over at him a few times as they continued walking away from the mess they’d left behind.
“So who are you? SEAL? Green Berets?”
“Neither.”
“Really? I know you aren’t regular military. You have no markings, but I know the CIA wouldn’t be sticking their noses in to save us.”
“Nope, not CIA. I’m Army.”
“Oh, I’ve heard of you guys but never met any of you. You’re the ghosts, the ones no one will confirm or really talk about, but we all know you guys exist.”
His laughter felt good. It was weird joking about stuff while they were in imminent danger. The man was capable. He had gotten them out of a very bad situation. They weren’t being shot at, which was a very good thing. She wouldn’t push for more of an explanation of who he was. She was fine with limited information.
There was enough light in the tunnel from the emergency lighting that she could get a glimpse of him every fifteen feet or so when they were close to the lights. He was taller than her and had broader shoulders. He had a beard and mustache, and his eyes were brown, or she thought they were. So far, he’d been nice to her. It could all be an act, but she liked him.
After about a hundred feet, he stopped walking. She turned and held his gaze. “What are we going to do?”
“Look for a place to hide for a few hours or days. I’ll make sure we’re safe, then we’ll get out of here and catch up with my buddies.”
She glanced around. “Do you think we’re safe down here?”
“Maybe.”
She nodded. “Okay. That sounds reasonable.”
“Huh, reasonable. I don’t think I’ve ever been considered reasonable.”
“Well, I think you are.”
“Good to hear. How badly are you injured?”
She shrugged. “My leg is on fire, the same as my arm. My head hurts like a bitch.”
“You okay continuing on?”
She wanted to lie down and rest, but they couldn’t, not yet. “Yeah, I’m good.”
“We’ll check your injuries once we get to a place we can relax.”
“Do you think we’ll be able to relax?”
