Sexy/Dangerous (18 page)

“So they want their own enclave.”

Again he nodded.

Max shook her head. “Do they believe the South African army is going to just let them do this?”

“The group has weapons and pledges of support from military officials in the West. If there is a fight, they believe the present government will eventually capitulate and agree to their demands in order to restore peace.”

“Tell me about this western support.”

“Many of your own generals are not happy with the way your country has evolved, either.”

“Our President, you mean?” Max knew that some Americans refused to accept the reality of the great-grandson of slaves being their duly elected commander in chief, but members of the Pentagon, too?

“Yes.”

“So unhappy they’d risk treason?”

“Yes.”

“How many?”

“Three, as far as I know, but we are gaining new supporters every day.”

Max didn’t like the sound of any of this. Even three rogues was an unacceptable number. “So why go after the prototype?”

“One of our scientists is convinced that in addition to its energy benefits, it can be converted to a powerful weapon. The sales of both would form the basis of the new country’s economy.”

Max had to admit it was a grandiose plan, but it wasn’t
going to work, not if she had any say, and from where she stood, her say was all that mattered. She studied him, the fear in his eyes plain.

“What’s Pearl’s real name?” she asked, hoping he was bleeding to death.

Rumpled Suit seemed surprised by the question and again hesitated. Max’s gun blew out a portion of the wall a few inches to the right of his head, then took out the wall to the left. “You don’t want to play chicken with me!” she barked. “His name!”

His eyes were wide as plates. “Jan Kruger!” He was covered with plaster dust, and the wet stain covering the front of his pants revealed just how terrified he’d been by the weapon fire.

“Country of origin?”

“South Africa. He works for the ambassador to the U.S.”

“I want the names of those generals.”

He hesitated only long enough for Max to tighten her grip before firing. Seeing that, and knowing she wouldn’t hesitate to reduce him to plaster, he cringed. “Brunner. Calhoun. Brice.”

“Thank you.”

She glanced around at the rest of them. Each man seemed to be holding his breath. “Adam, are you ready?”

He answered grimly, “Yeah.” He’d never seen anything like the display she’d just put on, and again he was glad she was on his side.

Max hoped Adam now understood why fearing for her safety was unnecessary. She could take care of herself. Carrying the guns that had belonged to Crane and Gibbons, he joined her at the door.

She told the men, “If I were you, I’d stay here until we’re gone. I’d also find another line of work.”

That said, she and Adam departed. As they hastened to the Escalade, Max took a moment to blow out the Hummer’s tires.

Finished and satisfied, she looked to make sure they weren’t being followed when fire exploded in her back and shoulder. The force buckled her. Surprise and confusion filled her face, then she saw the staggering Pearl, gun in hand, poised to fire again. Fury overriding her pain, Max gritted her teeth against the agony and opened fire, hoping to blow him to hell. Blood spewed from his chest and he went down. Apparently they’d had guns stashed away in both rooms because now the others were firing too. Turning on them, she sent lead their way. They ducked back inside the doorway, out of sight, as Adam was yelling, “Max!”

Then he was at her side, helping her to the car and in.

While she rested against the door, each breath seemingly made of fire, Adam was behind the wheel. He roared them away while the shooting furious men did their best to make them stop.

Adam’s adrenaline was pumping overtime. Shocked and shaken, he tried to keep one eye on her and one on the road. He looked for signs that might lead him to a hospital. The dogs were whimpering and crying, and he was so blown away he couldn’t think.
He told her this could happen! Told her! Dammit!

Max was having trouble breathing, “Stupid,” she whispered. “I should’ve checked the rooms. Stupid and cocky.”

“I’m taking you to an E.R.”

“No!” she protested. “Portia. Portia.”

“Hospital!”

“Portia’s or so help me I’ll get out and walk.”

Adam sighed with frustration. There was no doubt in his mind that she’d do just that.

“Call her from my phone.”

By now the dogs had jumped into the row of seats behind Adam and Max and were doing their best to see Max for themselves. Max wanted to reassure them, but reaching up sent heat hot as napalm up and down her arm and back. She gritted her teeth. “Don’t worry,” she told them. “Adam will get us to Portia and everything will be fine.”

They whimpered. Ruby threw back her head and her mournful keening filled the interior.

Adam met Max’s sleepy-looking eyes, and she gave him a soft crooked smile, then whispered, “This is what I get for showing off for the smart cute boy next door.”

He lowered his head, trying to hide his smile, but couldn’t do it. “You’re a mess, do you know that?”

“No other woman like me in the world.”

“You got that right.”

She then asked, “Portia’s?”

“Let me look at the wound first.”

“I’ve been shot before, Adam,” she said sluggishly. “This is bad, but not fatal. I’d know, I think.”

Adam steered the car to the shoulder, got out and ran around to her side. He pulled open the door and she slowly leaned up so he could see. The gray upholstered seat was red with her blood. The thin blouse had been no match for the bullets. The fabric over her shoulder was as torn up as her flesh. It was an ugly wound. He probed it gently, using his medical training in an attempt
to determine if she were in mortal danger. “Let’s clean it up, if we can.”

He went around, looked into the cooler built into the well between the backseats and grabbed a bottle of water.

“Lean forward again for me, sweetheart.” He gently poured a slow stream of water over the black-edged wounds, and she sucked in a long breath that let him know how painful the bathing was. “Sorry. I have to clean it.”

“I know.”

He could see how much effort she was using to move and speak, and he wanted to get her to a hospital so bad he could taste it. Using some clean toweling from a roll resting on the backseat, he did his best to mop up her wet back, but stopping the bleeding was a priority. Because he had nothing else on hand, he immediately stripped off his shirt, bunched it up and gently placed the mass against the wound. “Lean back now.”

She did and said, “Hurts like hell, but it feels better.”

“You need to go to the E.R. How far are we from Portia’s?”

“Two hours, tops.”

“You could bleed out by then.”

“Only if we stay here arguing.”

He sighed. Her point taken, he fastened her seat belt, then closed her door. Getting into the driver’s seat, he told the dogs. “Guess we’re going to Portia’s.”

He put the car in gear, merged it back into the evening traffic, and headed south for the drive to Dayton.

Jan Kruger was dying and he knew it. Every inch of his body was in pain. His life’s blood seemed to be pouring
from everywhere.
Damn that bitch!
He could see Oskar and the others standing over him. They were wavering as if they were made from smoke. It wasn’t supposed to end this way. He was supposed to be triumphant and feted for restoring the glory of a new world, not lying on the grounds of a ramshackle motel. He wanted to scream his rage! He wanted to curse that bitch through time! Instead he closed his eyes, thought about his wife and sons, and then the world went black.

Adam got Portia on Max’s phone. He put her on the
speaker so he could concentrate on driving. She sounded surprised to hear his voice. “Has something happened to Max?”

“She’s been shot and we’re headed your way.”

“Oh dear. How bad is she?”

“Bleeding pretty bad, and she won’t let me take her to the E.R.”

“That’s because she shouldn’t. Technically, Max doesn’t exist. Unless she’s near death you’re right to bring her here. I’ll have a surgeon ready.”

Adam shook his head. “What do you mean she doesn’t exist?”

“All of her records have been purged. Because of her job, she isn’t registered anywhere anymore. No Social Security number, legal billing address, none of that.”

Adam remembered Pearl mentioning the same thing. At the time, he hadn’t seen that as something he needed to be worried about. Now? “How do I get to you?”

Portia gave him the directions, and he punched the coordinates into the GPS system. Once that was set, he
relaxed a bit, safe in the knowledge that he could get where he needed to be so Max could get help.

“Tell me what happened,” Portia said.

Adam told her the story. He began with their capture at the checkpoint and ended with their escape. She asked a few questions to clarify some of the tale, then took down the names of the rogue generals: Brunner. Calhoun. Price.

“I’ll put this on the wire right away,” Portia said. “It shouldn’t take long to get this mess cleaned up now that we have some names. Thank you.”

“I’ll celebrate when I know she’s okay.”

“She alert?”

“Not really. She’s been nodding off and on.”

In truth, Max could hear the entire conversation quite well, but she felt as if she were floating miles and miles away. Getting too close to full awareness unleashed the dragon fire in her upper back and shoulder, so drifting was better.

“How’re the dogs?” Portia asked.

“As worried as I am.”

“Hang in there. You’ll be here shortly. Call back if you need to.”

“Thanks, Portia. I’m looking forward to meeting you.”

“Same here.”

And she was gone.

Adam glanced over at Max. Her eyes were closed but her breathing appeared to be as even as it could be, considering the circumstances. He looked up into the mirror at the dogs and saw that their attention was trained on her. He shook his head.
What a crew.

For the next two hours he drove as fast as the early
evening traffic would allow. He kept an eye out for Ohio Highway Patrol cars because the last thing he needed was a ticket and to explain Max’s condition. He hadn’t checked the bleeding since giving up his shirt. He didn’t want to take the time to stop.

He finally saw the signs for Dayton and followed the GPS prompts to the suburbs west of the city. After passing them, he found himself driving through farmland down a pitted and rut-filled dirt road that caused Max to moan every time the Escalade rocked. Concerned, he reached over and placed his palm on her forehead. It was dewed with sweat and her skin was hot with fever. He didn’t dare drive faster for fear of causing her more discomfort, so he grimly plowed on. Five miles later he made one last turn and came to a stop before a two-story farmhouse sitting beside a large weathered gray barn. He punched up Portia. “We’re here.”

“Great,” she said, her voice filled with relief.

“Drive into the barn. The back wall will open. Follow the tunnel.”

Adam was confused. During the ride, he’d taken on the habit of talking to the dogs the way Max often did, and he asked them now, “Did she say follow the tunnel? What tunnel?”

Ruby barked excitedly. Ossie, miserable from the ride, looked up once then laid back down.

“Okay,” Adam said, shrugging, and slowly steered over to the barn. The door looked to be made of a corrugated metal. While he waited for whatever might happen next, the barn door began to rise as if it were a window shade. He drove in.

The lighting inside revealed hand tools hanging neatly on the wall. In the corners were heavier
equipment like tillers, lawn mowers, and snow blowers.

As he sat there trying to figure out where this tunnel Portia mentioned might be located, the wall in front of them slowly split in half and opened like the doors of an elevator. Before him now stood a metal-clad passage that shone under the bright lights mounted on the walls. “This must be it,” he said aloud, but inside he asked himself,
Where the hell am I?

Adam slowly steered down the incline and past the shiny walls. It reminded him of one of the top secret installations in Hollywood movies, but this was real, and so were Max’s injuries.

He gave her another concerned glance, and seeing her lying against the door so silent and still, his heart twisted. He drove another few feet and saw the tunnel end. A middle-aged woman with Hispanic features and long black hair threaded with silver was waiting there. Beside her stood two men and a woman, all of them wearing what appeared to be white medical coats. Propped against the wall was a stretcher.

Filled with relief but still worried about Max, he opened his door and stepped out. The medical people rushed to the passenger side, and while Adam and the dogs looked on, they helped Max out and gently assisted her into lying down on the stretcher. She opened her eyes, smiled at Adam and whispered, “Thanks for getting us here in one piece. I told you you were a great sidekick.”

He took her hand and gave it a tender squeeze. He placed a kiss on her fevered brow and knew in his bones that he wasn’t going to be okay until she was better. She squeezed his hand back with all the strength of a baby bird, then gave him another smile before they
whisked her away. Adam knew he’d take that parting smile to the grave.

“Dr. Gary?”

He’d all but forgotten the presence of the woman he knew by the sound of her voice to be Portia. He shook her outstretched hand. She was very beautiful, but the long scar running from just below one eye to her chin was startling. He forced himself not to stare. “Thanks for your help,” he said genuinely.

“No problem, and don’t worry about my face. The cut draws attention wherever I go, so I’m used to the stares.”

“My apologies.”

She waved him off. “Not necessary.”

She then said to the dogs that had trotted to her side, “Hello, my babies. Dr. Adam got your mama here in one piece. It’s good to see you.” He could see the happiness in their eyes as they jostled to be the one she petted the most. She scratched their necks affectionately. “Jesse and James aren’t here,” she said, “so you’ll have the place all to yourselves.”

They barked. Portia grinned and said, “Dr. Gary, come, let’s get you settled so you can relax.”

He was more than happy to comply. Still looking around in wonder, he followed her and the dogs up a short flight of stairs. To his surprise, they exited inside of a large well-stocked pantry and then stepped out into an even larger kitchen.

“Are you hungry?” she asked.

Adam checked out the old-fashioned wooden table in the center of the room and the sleek modern appliances. “I am, but I need to come down for a minute first. Where’d they take Max?”

“We have a small operating theater here.”

Adam found that amazing. “I’m medically trained. I can help.”

“If they need your assistance they will let you know.”

Adam supposed that was true but it didn’t diminish his worry. “What is this place?”

Portia said simply, “My home.” She then said, “Come with me and we’ll find you a room you can use while you are here.”

From the impressive gadgets and software Portia had developed, Adam knew that the house was more than just her home, but he didn’t press for a deeper explanation. He was her guest, after all, and he respected that.

Portia let the dogs out to play in the large field surrounding the farmhouse, then took him up the stairs to a bedroom on the second floor. It was decorated in dark blues and grays. There was an attached balcony that looked out onto the open fields and a small stand of trees. In the corner of the balcony there was a small table and a chair, in case the room’s occupant wanted to sit outside.

Portia asked, “Will this be okay?”

“This is fine. Thanks. How long do you think they’ll be working on Max?”

“When they’re done, they’ll let us know.” Portia smiled. “Dr. Gary, relax. She is in good hands.”

Adam’s lips thinned. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay. You’re worried about her. I am, too, but we can help more by staying out of the way and letting the doctors do their job.”

Adam wasn’t accustomed to feeling so powerless, and he was having a hard time with it.

“You got her here, safe,” Portia reminded him. “Give yourself credit for that.”

“It’s not enough.”

Portia didn’t respond for a moment, and then, after studying him silently, asked, “You care for her, don’t you?”

He didn’t lie. “Yes.”

Portia nodded. “Then it will work out, you’ll see.”

“She’s a very unique lady.”

Portia chuckled. “Oh yes. One of the most unique women I know.” She then asked him, “Do you need anything? Clothing, toiletries?”

“I have stuff in my bag in the truck. Is it okay for me to go back down?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll bring the prototype, too.”

Portia grinned happily. “Good. I’ve been wanting to see it.”

“Then let me go and get it.”

“And in exchange, I will show you my lab.”

It was Adam’s turn to grin. “I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll meet you down in the kitchen.”

The two scientists spent the next two hours discussing their work. Adam was impressed with Portia’s lab and the room she used as her communications hub. She was impressed with his prototype. When the dark-haired Dr. Maria Lorenz walked in a few minutes later, both Adam and Portia waited tensely for the prognosis.

“She came through the surgery just fine,” the lady doctor said reassuringly. “We were able to remove the bullets and repair her shoulder. She’s going to be real sore for a while, and there will be a pretty ugly scar,
but she should make a complete recovery, providing she takes it easy so she can heal.”

Those were the best words Adam had heard all day, until Dr. Lorenz said, “She’s asking for you, Dr. Gary. You get five minutes. No more. She needs to rest.”

Inside, he shouted for joy. He looked over at the dogs lying on the floor by the stove and asked, “Can the dogs come along?”

The doctor seemed amused by the request. “Sure, why not? But they have to share your five minutes.”

Adam didn’t care. He knew how Max felt about her babies and he was sure that Ruby and Ossie wanted to see her as badly as he did. “Come on, guys, let’s go see your mama.”

They got up immediately, their eyes bright. Realizing how far he’d come in dealing with the two rottweilers since they first entered his life, he was happy to have them trotting alongside while they followed Portia and the doctor to where Max was waiting.

She was lying in bed in a small bedroom filled with monitors. IVs were hooked into her veins and a young Black man in a white coat was taking her pulse. As Adam neared the bed, he could see that her eyes were closed, and he thought she might be asleep. Unsure if he should disturb her, he looked to the doctor for direction.

She responded kindly, saying, “Call her softly. It’s okay.”

“Max?” Adam waited tensely for a response, and a few moments later she opened her eyes.

She gave him a groggy smile. “Hey,” she whispered. “If it isn’t the cute boy next door.”

Happy and relieved inside and out, he replied softly, “Hey. How are you feeling?”

“Like a woman who’s been shot,” she tossed back with dry amusement, “but the doc says I’ll be fine and I’m holding her to that.”

Adam doubted she knew how relieved and moved he was to see her and to hear her voice. “Portia and the dogs are here, too.”

Ruby and Ossie took that as their cue to come to the bed. Both animals stuck their large heads on top of the bedding, and she stroked their muzzles weakly. “Hi guys,” she said to them. “You two okay?”

They barked in response, and that made her smile. “Good,” she whispered. Her eyes drifted closed for a few long seconds. When they opened again, she said to Adam, “Portia spoils Ossie and Ruby. Make sure she doesn’t let them run too wild while we’re here.”

Adam looked over at Portia and saw the secretive smile on her face. Amused, he turned back. “Okay.”

Unable to resist the urge, he slowly traced a bent knuckle down the smooth warm planes of her brown cheek then kissed it gently. Adam was immediately struck by the myriad emotions the contact evoked. He and Max might have come together in lust at first, but what he was feeling now was different, stronger, wondrous. “We should let you rest.”

She nodded almost imperceptibly.

Adam placed another tender kiss, this one on her forehead, as a farewell. “Get some sleep.”

“I will. Can’t wait until you can kiss more.”

Chuckling at her indomitable and, yes, scandalous spirit, he shook his head. “We’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay.”

Lord knew he didn’t want to leave her, and it must
have shown on his face because when he turned to Dr. Lorenz, she was smiling, but told him quietly yet firmly, “No.”

Busted, he hung his head, and Portia didn’t bother hiding her amusement. Adam gave the now sleeping Max one last parting look, then he and the others slipped out, so that the medical team could continue her care.

Later, as Adam lay in bed in the dark, he glanced over at the luminous face of the digital clock on the night table. Midnight. Although he’d had a hellacious day and was very tired, he was still too wound up to sleep. Unable to conquer the problem, he got up. Hoping it might help him to relax, he walked out onto the balcony attached to the bedroom. Above him was a velvet black sky studded with stars. Back home in Michigan the night had always been accompanied by the sound of the waves, but here he heard a symphony of insect songs and the wind blowing through the chimes hanging on the balcony’s edge. Thinking about the house in Michigan made him realize what an amazing two and a half days it had been. The day before yesterday he’d awakened in his own bed to the sounds of surf and the cries of gulls, and now he was in the remarkable home of a remarkable woman named Portia in the farmlands of central Ohio. It was one more entry on an increasingly long list of amazing events.