He heard only one phrase before the connection died.
“Don’t move.”
Cullen squeezed the phone tight and breathed a heartfelt prayer of gratitude. Finally, their location was known. Wait for rescue, that was all they had to do. Better yet, there was a warm, comfortable trailer in which to do it. Awkwardness with Kit aside, they would be safe, which was infinitely better than climbing through tunnels.
And the cherry on the sundae? No more rats.
He chuckled to himself as he carefully maneuvered his way back, eager to tell Kit the news. When he was ten yards from the bus, the ground rattled and quivered. Earthquake.The movement rocked him back and forth, and he spread his arms for balance.
Not now,Ember. Keep yourcool.The shaking stopped and another tremor started, smaller but longer lasting. He didn’t wait, moving as carefully as he could over the shifting ground to the bus.
The vehicle’s windows were a mess, coated with muck from the dripping branches overhead. He felt a swell of affection for the battered bus as he pried open the doors and climbed aboard. Maybe this was similar to the love Kit lavished on her rig. If there was any way he could help restore her dream, he decided right then and there, he’d do it. Even if he wasn’t going to be a part of her life in the post-eruption world, Kit would have a truck, no matter what he had to do.
Since he was alone, he didn’t muffle the grunt of pain caused by his throbbing ribs. He had some aspirin in his pack. Might as well take some now and put a few more in his pocket for subtle access later. He didn’t have to advertise how beat up he was, did he?
As he pulled his supplies from the back seat and bent to retrieve the tablets, he saw a metallic gleam from the bushes at the edge of the flooded parking lot. He froze. What was that? With the binoculars yanked from his pack, he focused on the spot, and his pulse slammed his throat. Barely, he made out the rear of a white vehicle.
Nico’s.
Howhad he found them? He could not conceive of an answer as he dropped everything, grabbed his handgun from his pack, and leapt from the bus. He sprinted toward the trailers and skidded to a stop at the sight of boot printsstamped in the mud. One set, one brother. The other was probably providing backup.
Cullen ran closer.
The prints stopped at the trailer to their right and then ...
His throat closed.
They continued around the side of the unit where he’d left Kit and Tot. He forced himself to move carefully, slow his speed so he didn’t give away his position. The image of Kit and Tot unaware of the approaching murderer made him break out in a cold sweat. The side door was slightly ajar. Nico or Simon was inside.
Lord ... please don’t let mebe too late.He entered, crouched low, listening.
There was a crash, the sound of a boot smashing in a door. He ran to the bedroom in time to see Nico kick his way through.
Cullen plunged after him.
Inside the bedroom, Kit stood in front of Tot, who stirred on the mattress behind her. Cullen whipped his pistol into position as Nico yanked Kit to his side, the gun swiftly put to her temple.
“Put it down, cowboy,” Nico said.
“Don’t think so.” Cullen tried to get a clear line of sight, but Nico shrank behind Kit. There was no way he would take the shot, but he wasn’t about to let Nico believe it.
Her eyes were wide with fear and something else. He caught a glimpse of the wire in her hand, a coat hanger twisted into a point.
He swallowed hard. A few inches of separation, that’s all he needed.
“How’d you find us?” he asked.
Nico didn’t fall for the stalling tactic. “Your gun. On the floor now, or I kill her.”
When Cullen did not move, Nico cinched his arm around Kit’s neck and swiveled the gun toward Tot. “How about the baby goes first?”
Kit burst into motion. She arced her fist around and buried the tip of the hanger in Nico’s thigh. The point stuck in muscle or bone. He screamed, dropped his gun, ripped the wire from his body, and threw it aside in a spray of blood.
Kit dove for the gun before it vanished under the bed. Cullen fired, but the shot missed as Nico surged forward. He shoved Cullen backward and barreled for the door. Cullen grabbed his ankle, and he went down. They grappled, rolling and twisting, banging into the walls. Cullen worked desperately to keep Nico from imprisoning his gun hand. A round fired wildly would be disastrous in the confined space. Cullen thrust Nico away and put some distance between them, scrambled to his feet, aimed ... but his heel skidded on Nico’s blood and he went down on his back with a thud.
Nico raced past him and sprinted outside as Kit jumped from her knees with his gun clutched in her palms.
“Get Tot,” Cullen said as he regained his footing and ran outside after Nico. He emerged at the end of the path, scanning. He knew where his quarry would go. He headed for the flooded parking lot and was proven right as Nico leapt into his vehicle and sped around the water, heading straight for Cullen.
