Sam's Folly (Midnight Sons Book 1) Page 11

  Chapter 10

  ~ Nora ~

  Grrr … Grrr …

  Nora’s eyes popped open. She’d fallen asleep in Sam’s arms instead of taking off when she had the chance. As usual when she woke, she furtively scanned her surroundings. If she needed to fight, she’d rather take on her opponent when they least expected it.

  A hand covered her mouth, and she nearly bit it until she realized it was Sam’s hand. He held his finger up in front of her face as he slowly slipped his arm from behind her back.

  Arwen stood, hackles raised, eyes focused on the northern copse. Another soft growl emitted from deep within the vigilant shepherd.

  Sam reached for his rifle, then shifted to a squat. He held his hand out to Arwen, and she sat back. The dog’s stance remained alert, ready to bolt.

  Nora gripped the bear spray in her pocket. It hadn’t left her side since the lake. When she moved to get up, Sam held his hand out to her as well. She frowned, but followed his instruction. She swept the area again, looking for anything that wasn’t a tree. Nothing stood out. Then again, she hadn’t seen anything the last few times when Arwen had.

  She nearly cursed aloud when she realized she was able to see. She hadn’t just dozed off in Sam’s arms; she’d slept through the evening. Not that there were many dark hours. The moment it was completely dark, the eastern horizon would glow, the promise of a new day.

  Sam stood, bent slightly, his gun held at the ready. He silently canvassed the area surrounding the camp. As tall and muscular as he was, he barely disturbed a leaf.

  A soft whine escaped Arwen’s throat, but she didn’t move. Sam had told her to stay, and as much as she clearly wanted to be with him, she held fast.

  Nora wanted to reach out to her, but her father had taught her not to startle an animal, especially a guard dog. Never touch an animal when they’re on watch, Papa had said. They might mistake your touch as an attack.

  Sam inspected the trees, then stopped. His hand touched something, then pulled back. “What the hell?” He whipped his head back and forth, following a trail of something. One by one, he touched different areas on branches.

  Damned if she was just going to sit there. Nora moved to a squat, then slowly stood.

  Sam peered back at her, then shook his head. “Pack up,” he muttered.

  She stepped toward him. “What is it?”

  “Meat.” He shook his head again. “It looks old, but I’m not sure.”

  “Meat?”

  “Bait. Someone strung up pieces of meat.”

  “Why would —” She covered her mouth. “Oh!”

  “Yeah, some moron thought it would be funny to bait a campsite.”

  Nora shook her head. “But this isn’t a campsite. I thought …”

  Sam sighed, nudging her back. “I told you, Nora. Not everyone in these woods is nice. Maybe someone’s holed up out here, and strung it up hoping if hikers camped here, an animal might scare them away. It is a site, just not a listed campsite, since it’s not on the main trail. Or … maybe they were luring an animal here to shoot it. Either way, we can’t stay here. We need to head back to the main path. It’s dangerous out here.”

  Nora turned, heading for her hammock — the place she hadn’t slept. What would have happened if she’d left in the middle of the night? Was Sam right? Had someone purposely baited the area? And if so, had they done it as a joke, or was someone trying to dispose of her naturally?

  She rolled up her sleeping bag and hammock and stowed them inside her backpack. She packed her Crocs and slipped into her boots, cringing at the tenderness in her feet. Since she obviously didn’t have time to make breakfast, she grabbed a protein bar. Without a word to Sam, she strapped on her backpack and headed for the trail that wasn’t there, but was. She refused to head east. She was continuing west whether he liked it or not.

  “Nora, you’re going the wrong way. The trail’s this way.” He pointed in the direction from where they’d come.

  “I’m not going back,” she called out without turning around.

  Footsteps pounded the path behind her. In seconds, he’d reached her. He latched his hand around her biceps, stopping her. “I’m serious, Nora. It’s time to turn back. No more games.”

  The sun was just cresting the mountains behind Sam, highlighting the bronze in his hair. Gorgeous … even when he was angry. As hard as his eyes drilled her, she couldn’t keep a smirk off her face. He thought this was a game. He thought she was toying with him, as she’d done the first day.

  “I’m heading west, Sam.”

  He dropped his head, but held onto her arm. “There’s nothing west, Nora.”

  She unlatched his hand from her arm and started walking again.

  “Dammit, Nora! What are you running from?”

  She ignored him and continued hiking. Each step she took burned, but she’d get used to it. Over the years, she had learned to deal with pain. If she hadn’t, she wouldn’t have been able to finish a fight. No matter how good you were, someone could always land a punch. The key was outlasting your opponent. And that’s what she planned to do now. She’d hike through the pain; she’d outlast any team Sergio sent after her. And she knew, as sure as she was breathing, that he would send a search team.

  Even if authorities claimed she had three weeks to return from summiting Denali, he wouldn’t wait that long. Within days of not hearing from her, he would have someone tracking her.

  She stopped her steps, looked back. Sam was following her, as she figured he would. But … what if Sam was following her for a reason? Had Sergio paid Sam to bring her back?

  She’d found Sam by Googling hiking instructors. When his site popped up, she’d discovered that he headed up the top search-and-rescue team in Alaska.

  Sergio would have done the same thing.

  While she stared, Sam caught up to her. His face puckered as if he smelled something. “What?”

  “Nothing. I just figured you should lead.”

  Jaw clenched, he released a heavy breath. “You’re right; I should lead. I should lead us back to the main road, but since you obviously don’t intend to follow me out …” He waved his hand as if he were shooing away a gnat. He started moving, and Arwen darted to his four o’clock again.

  Nora didn’t have a choice. She wasn’t going back, and Sam insisted on accompanying her, so she might as well let him take the lead. While she didn’t think Sam would hurt her, something wasn’t right.

  She didn’t believe in serendipity. Sam was here for a reason, and the only reason that made sense was that Sergio had paid him to bring her back. One way or another, she needed to get away from Sam.

  ~ Sam ~

  Sam’s head was pounding. He hadn’t been drinking enough, and now he was hiking again, this time without caffeine. In haste to leave the site, he hadn’t wanted to even waste time sifting through his pack for caffeine pills.

  He reached for his SPOT and clicked. Nothing. He clicked again. Nothing. He unhooked the carabiner from his backpack and inspected the device, shaking it. Nothing. It couldn’t be dead; he’d charged it the night before he left. The blasted thing was only six months old. “Dammit,” he seethed under his breath.

  “Something wrong?” Nora asked from only a few feet behind him. He’d been keeping a steady pace in front of her, but the moment he slowed, she would catch up. He had to admit, she was good. He’d yet to meet a woman who could keep his pace.

  “No,” he grumbled. “Just hungry.” Which was true.

  He stepped up his pace, anxious to get to the next vista before the sun was too high in the sky. As beautiful as the heavens looked, he didn’t like what he saw. The old adage, Pink skies at morning, sailors take warning, wasn’t an old wives’ tale. While the bright pink hues dancing off the white-capped mountains were beautiful to look at, his senses were on high alert. A storm was brewing.

  Sam clambered over rocks and logs, occasionally turning to make sure Nora was keeping up. The farther west they traveled, the more
rugged the terrain became.

  Another hour behind them, they made it to the stopping point he’d had in mind. He loved coming here. He stepped within feet of the ledge and stared out at the amazing view. Rows and rows of white-capped mountain ranges, as far as the eye could see, awaited him.

  “Oh … Sam … it’s … amazing.” Nora unhooked the strap from around her waist, so he helped her remove her pack.

  He rested his hand on her shoulder. “No words. All of Alaska is beautiful. But up here, it feels like you’re the only person in the world.”

  She nodded, her head turning from left to right, taking in the expansive valley. “It looks like an entire state could fit in this one valley.”

  Sam laughed. “Considering that Alaska is as wide as the Lower 48 and larger than Montana, California, and Texas combined, you probably could.” As much as he didn’t want to turn away from the view, his stomach growled.

  “Hungry?”

  “Starving! Tell me you brought something other than protein bars.”

  “Of course. Oatmeal for breakfast. Rice for lunch.”

  “Good … ’Cause I’m not sure if I was willing to share.”

  She smacked his arm.

  “Although, I might be tempted to trade one of my MREs for a couple packets of your coffee mix.”

  Nora fished in her pack, pulling out her mess kit. “Heads up!” She tossed him a couple packets of the Starbucks instant coffee.

  “Sweet!” He snatched them up midair. “I know I’m supposed to be a typical guy … I take my coffee black and all that macho-man stuff, but I like the finer things in life, including cream and sugar.”

  Nora peeked up at him through her long strands of curls as she heated water.

  Why was it everything he said in her presence came out sounding sexual? Sure, he’d meant a few of the things he’d said to sound sexual, but not everything. Still, something about her stirred him — in every way. Good and bad. As much as he wanted to curl up inside his small tent with her, he wanted to know why she was running … And whether someone had purposely baited their campsite while they’d slept.

  He’d tried to play it off at the time, hoping someone had, in fact, done it the day before. The meat was old, dried out a bit, but it hadn’t been there more than a day. He hoped that whoever had done it was long gone.

  Nora sat back against a tree trunk, bowl in her lap, mug beside her. “Sam?”

  He looked up from his task of stirring the oatmeal. He liked his steel-cut oaks cooked well, until they were literally a bowl of mush. “Yeah?”

  “Why didn’t Arwen take off after whatever was around camp this morning?”

  Arwen raised just an eyebrow at the mention of her name, but didn’t move from where she was basking in the sun.

  Sam noticed that Nora had said whatever, meaning she must have assumed it was an animal sniffing around and that the meat hadn’t been strung up while they slumbered. He wasn’t so certain.

  “Because even though she’s a search-and-rescue dog, she’s also trained to guard me. She’s taught not to stray, but to protect. She wouldn’t be much help if she took off after every sound and scent. If someone had come within twenty feet, she would have attacked. Provided that I’d given her the command, that is.”

  “Like she did with the bear?”

  “Exactly. She’s very good at what she does. The only reason she even took off from me at the lake was because you were her mission.”

  Nora dropped her spoon. Thankfully, it landed in her bowl. “Me?”

  “Yes, I’m pretty sure she thinks you’re still her mission. She’s accustomed to bringing home her rescue. She still seems on-guard, which is why every time you jump up, she jumps up.”

  Nora stared at Arwen. “Are you supposed to bring me home, girl?”

  Sam stared at his food, grateful that his dog couldn’t talk. Arwen was such a trusting soul she’d more than likely spill the kibble if she were able to speak.

  “Speaking of Arwen …” He let his oatmeal set while he prepared her breakfast and water bowl.

  Nora laughed as Arwen tore into her food as if it were her last meal.

  Sam carried his bowl and mug and sat down next to Nora. “She’s not really that hungry. She does it because if she doesn’t finish her food before Strider finishes his, he’ll tear into hers. I’ve tried separating them, but somehow, they know the other is close by, and then neither of them eats their food.”

  “Hmm … they love each other.”

  “They do. In a brotherly and sisterly way. I took care of any chances of pups right away.” Sam sipped his coffee. It was as good as it smelled. Better than he smelled, he was certain. Then again, with the amount of clothes he was wearing, maybe the stench wouldn’t seep through. He’d used bath wipes and had put on deodorant last night, but with the excitement of the early morning, and then the fast-paced hike to put distance between whoever had left that mess, he could use a cleanup.

  Nora shifted her gaze to the vista again, and he wanted to ask what she was thinking, but he’d promised her he wouldn’t push her.

  Instead, he reached for her empty bowl. “I’ll do dishes this morning.”

  She turned to him. Although she forced a smile at his words, he could see sadness lurking in her eyes. “You do dishes, too?”

  “I’m a thirty-eight-year-old bachelor. I certainly can’t expect my mother to clean up after me.” Nora tilted her head a fraction, asking without words, so he continued. “Yeah … I still live with my mom, but then, so do my brothers. My dad died ten years ago. None of us could bear leaving home. Like most things in Alaska, the house is in the middle of nowhere, so the thought of leaving her there alone … And — never mind.”

  “What is it, Sam? You can’t start something and not finish it.”

  He narrowed his eyes, but held his tongue. She’d started plenty and not finished. At his training, at Grizzly’s. And then she’d stood him up. He’d been foolishly chasing Nora since the first time he’d seen her, hoping she’d finish what she started. Nora had no way to know that he’d been dead inside. For the last ten years, he’d done nothing for himself, had given up his dreams …

  Nora sighed instead of pushing him to finish, so he moved to get up.

  Arwen lifted her eyebrows again, but he gave her a hand signal to stay, followed with the command, “Bleib.” He turned his gaze on Nora, letting her know without spelling it out that he needed privacy. “I’ll be right back.” He lifted the small mesh bag that held his body wipes, deodorant, and toothpaste, and headed off.

  He walked just far enough away where Nora couldn’t see him, but he could hear her talking to Arwen. The two of them had hit it off, just as Nora and he had connected from the first moment he’d challenged her to tie a knot instead of sneaking out of his class.

  And now they were in the woods, running from something from her past. It wasn’t a legal issue; otherwise, it would have popped up when he’d researched her and her last fight.

  So what was it? Sergio? The man had seemed concerned, but maybe his concern hadn’t been for Nora, but because of something she knew … about him. Bigwigs didn’t get to where they were by playing nice, especially in the world of sports where gambling played a major role.

  He hadn’t pressed the subject of why she was determined to stay off the beaten path, but maybe he could discover more about her career. Every time he’d started to talk about anything in her life, she’d shut down, though. But there had to be something she’d share.

  Bowls clean, and his own body and mouth back to smelling like a human from the 21st century, Sam made his way back to camp.

  Nora had laid out the items from her pack on the tarp she’d used as a rain guard the previous evening. He had to admit, she’d prepared herself well. As he approached, he watched her count her protein bars, storing them back in the bear canister. She glanced at her watch, then ticked up her fingers.

  Fourteen? Fourteen, what? Days? Was she insane? How much farther did she pl
an to travel into the wilderness? Hiking Denali was one thing. At every bend you were likely to meet someone who could help if you needed assistance. If one of them got hurt out here, they’d never make it back to civilization.

  No more games. He wanted answers. “Everything in order?” She jumped. Good. She should have been watching her surroundings better.

  Her hand flew to her chest. “Sam! You scared the hell out of me.”

  “Who’d you think I was, Nora?”

  She dismissed his question with a waved hand. “Marty Moose.”

  Despite himself, he laughed, then settled down beside her, pulling her into his arms. “Tell me, Nora … What made you get into fighting?”

  She immediately tensed, but then shrugged. “It just sort of happened.”

  He stared down at her. “How does fighting … just sort of happen?”

  She twisted her mouth. “All women are fighters; we’re just fighting for different things.”

  “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Even my mom. While she’s never had to physically fight, she told me how hard it was for her to get accepted on a SAR team when she was starting out. Of course, then she met my father, and they became the best team in Alaska.” He touched her arm. “But … fighting … other women. I just don’t understand how that just happens.”

  She sighed, and he felt her body actually loosen. He turned her so she was looking at him. Was she going to start telling him the truth? Finally?

  Nora shook her head. “We needed money. My mother moved us to Buenos Aires so she could find work, but it was hard to make ends meet on a maid’s income. I dropped out of school and started working with my mother in the daytime, cleaning fancy hotel rooms. But … it still wasn’t enough. I was only fourteen. Not a lot of jobs available to uneducated women.”

  Sam gulped, suddenly wondering if he could handle hearing her story.