TAG (28 page)

“What are you doing, Cali?” Tango’s face contorts with anguish
when he spots me. “Get back. Go back with Kacen.”

“He’s going to cause us all to be fucking killed, Tango. I can
handle this.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. Stay with me, just keep your eyes open, and keep your ears alert. Try to sense where they’re coming from.” His eyes are locked on mine, and I can sense a hint of fear behind the blackness of his dilated pupils.

“I got it,” I whisper. I suck in a lungful of air and blow it out
slowly, easing my nerves. There’s no room for nerves. I follow in their steps, sensing Kacen approaching me from behind. I can see the shadow of his head darting in every direction. Nerves will get you killed, and he’s going down alone.

I spot a small patch of yellow in the distance. It’s behind a tree, but it’s moving subtly, as in, with each breath, I can see the slight rise of the fabric. I curl my fingers into Tango’s pocket and tug him back with a gentle force. His head twists to look at me and I point my gun
at the
moving yellow target. The corner of his lip curls into a proud grin. He taps Seaver and points his rifle in the same direction. We all hover behind a nearby tree and Seaver drops to the ground. He pulls
a scope out of his pack and twists it on to the end of his rifle.

“When this shot is made, all hell is going to break loose,” Tango whispers in my ear. “Keep yourself covered at all times. If you become nervous, hide.” He pinches his fingers around my chin and pulls my lips fiercely into his. He inhales my breath and pulls away
just enough
to look into my eyes. My cheeks briefly flush with embarrassment, knowing our secret is out. I doubt Seaver cares though, and I couldn’t care less about Kacen. Maybe he’ll back the hell off now.
“Please keep yourself safe. I can’t lose another one.”

Tango’s words bring on a wave of nausea. Nevertheless, I
swallow
the rising bitterness and straighten my posture against the tree. I
have this. I have this. Holy shit. I hope I have this.

“Ready,” Seaver whispers.

“Go,” Tango responds. His voice is so soft it sounds like a short stiff breeze.

The shot is fired and a groaning shout follows. I see the patch of yellow fall to the ground. When it disappears from my sight, I know he’s gone down, but more shouting commences. I try to decipher the number of voices, and I think I hear six, but it’s becoming difficult to tell as they near us.

I position my rifle, focusing my eye on the crowd running
toward us with a variety of weapons. Shots are firing around me and I use the tree as coverage.

Two shots. Two kills. Seaver and Tango took the rest down.
Twenty seconds and six are dead. I guess we won’t know whether they were after Dad or protecting him.

Seaver waves back at Tango as he crouches into the clearing where they all came from. Another shot is fired, and I hear
clear
yelled from the distance.

“Holy shit, Cali.” Tango scoops me up and swings me around. “You fucking saved our asses.”

I try to conceal my proud grin, knowing they did more than half
the work. But it felt good to finally put my skills to use, regardless of what the skills caused. Lucky for me, death and sadness are a numbness I won’t overcome. You know you’ve gone to a place you’ll
never come back from when you can stare death in the face while the rate of your
beating heart remains steady. The emotional wiring in my head doesn’t twitch, and I don’t feel remorse. “You didn’t do so bad
yourself,” I say, sliding myself out of his arms.

“Seaver and I are trained operators, Cali,” he laughs. “There’s something to be said about a chick who can accomplish two shots
and
two dead bodies in two seconds.” Regardless of the growing desire in Tango’s eyes, he shifts his attention over to Kacen. “You fall
asleep, dude? Need some help with that thing?” He nudges his head toward the fully loaded rifle in his hands.

Embarrassment creeps over Kacen’s face with a pink hue. “I
didn’t have the right shot. Didn’t want to waste any ammo.”

Tango arches an eyebrow. “Well, that’s one thing you did a good job at: saving ammo.” He throws his pack over his shoulders and looks back once more at Kacen. “Who knows, man, a huge bear
might attack
tonight. We’ll all be thankful you have ammo then.” The laughs
continue as Tango wraps his arm back around my waist, pushing me forward with his stride.

“Were they after us, or were they just a roadblock?” I ask.

“Your dad probably has many roadblocks set up. It’s hard to tell how many shit-storms we’ll be going through before we reach him. We need to stay alert.”

The energy is rushing through me, and I feel full of momentum. I want to shoot something else. I want to pave a path to what will save Tango.

***

Nightfall is upon us and my eyes are set on the sun bleeding into the canyons. I could almost consider this to be the most amazing place in the world, but in my life, where beauty lies, death follows.

 Seaver has started a fire and Tango and I have pitched a couple of tents. Kacen is fumbling around on his phone, which he’s been doing for the past two hours and I doubt it’s for any legitimate reason.

“Hey,” Tango whispers in my ear. I twist my head to find his lips only inches from my forehead. His eyes are hooded and peering
into mine. “Follow me. We’re getting . . . water.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, I follow him. I’m so wound up and speeding on adrenaline, I feel an extra hop in my step. How could I be happy in this situation? I don’t even know if that’s what
this is . . . happy. We turn the corner into a mess of trees, and when we’re out
of site, I feel Tango’s fingers slip in between mine. He pulls me harder, forcing me to jog instead of walk. I have to wonder how he knows
where
the water is. Maybe he smells it. Maybe he was trained to do that too.

We approach another pool with a lapping waterfall. It’s smaller than the one last night. It’s more private and secluded. The trees bow
over the water, acting as a roof, and its darkness is mixed with the
subtle glow of the sun’s rays swirling with the shine of the rising moon. It’s enough to cast a perfect shadow.

No second is wasted when we enter into the seclusion. His arms wrap around my waist, holding me so firmly against him it’s as if I hold the last bit of air left in this canyon. His lips crash into mine and his tongue reaches into my mouth. My heart swells and my stomach tumbles around like a pinball.

He pulls away, his lips tracing a line from my ear down to my collarbone. “You were so fucking hot today. Watching you handle that rifle turned me on more than I could ever explain.”

“Show me,” I demand.

A shallow and soft growl rumbles in my ear and the sound electrifies my nerves. His hands reach down my sides and he grips
the hem of my
shirt, ripping it over my head. I tuck my hands under his shirt and skate them up his bare chest, pushing his shirt up to his neck. He pulls it off and then moves down to his belt. I unclasp it for him,
slowly. But with
his impatience growing, he nearly rips the button off my shorts, trying to yank them off quicker than they’re cooperating. He scoops me up before running off the rock and catapulting us into a pool of
cold water. With my legs wrapped around him, he treads us over to a shallower end where we can place our feet down over the glassy smooth rocks
below. My body tenses against his, shaking uncontrollably from the mixture of temperatures. With our noses pressed against each other
and our eyes locked in a gaze, the only thing I feel is desire.

His hands squeeze my breasts as his lips move hungrily around my chest. His fingers trace the coolness prickling my exposed skin . . . the sensation he drives through me is incredible. With his erection pressing against me, my mind has shut off and my body is focused solely on his cock and what it can do to me.

My panties are floating in the water beside us and his hands are sliding up and down my legs. His grip is tight and unforgiving but wonderful at the same time. He enters me, squeezing me tighter with each thrust. I slide my entire body up against him, letting my bare skin melt into his.

With his fullness filling me entirely, I can’t stop the soft moans crying from my throat or the sounds that erupt when his teeth gently bite down on my shoulder. The sensation becomes overpowering, sending currents through my body. His fingertips grip harder
around my thighs and he pushes himself in even farther.

“I’m . . . I . . . “ Oh my God.

“Cali,” he breathes. His eyes open and he’s looking me straight on.

“Sit there,” I point to the top of the rock that’s flirting with the water line. He does as I say. I move between his legs and wrap my lips around his shaft while gazing up at him. My tongue traces up
and down and in
a circular motion. He tangles his hands into my wet hair, guiding my head down and causing him to breathe heavier. I suck him into the back of my throat and his hands slide down to my breasts as he
teases my
nipples with his fingertips. I pull my mouth upward, letting my
teeth gently graze his length and then I go down once more. His warmth runs down the back of my throat and he groans with pleasure. I pull
away and lick my lips, needing to lap up every bit of what he gave me. “Holy shit,” he says, pulling me up on his lap. He closes his lips
over mine and wraps me in his arms. “You’re fucking amazing.”

We sit together, our bodies entwined in a knot as our erratic
breaths blend beautifully with the sounds of the soft breeze. He pulls away slightly and looks down at me. “Carolina,” he pauses.

“Yeah,” I breathe, waiting for what he’s about to say.

He continues looking between my eyes, almost as if he can’t choose one to focus on. Then he slowly closes his lips back over mine. I prefer
this to words. Spoken emotions aren’t my strong suit. This I can
handle—this I
love
. . .

TANGO

ALL I WANT
to say to her is:
Even if I die tomorrow, you have made my life worth living.

CALI

“Hey man, can we talk for a minute?” Seaver looks at me with a
straight
line carved across his face. “Alone.” We’ve only been back from
getting water
for a minute, and Seaver doesn’t look too happy.

Tango gives me a subtle look with a slightly raised brow and
briefly places his hand on the small of my back before walking over to the growing flame where Seaver’s resting.

“Where were you two?” Kacen asks, walking up beside me and
leaning his back against the same tree I’m leaning on. Too close.

I move to the side and cross my arms over my chest. “We went to grab water.”

“Nah. You didn’t. I mean, you brought back water, but you got something else too.” His dark eyes are feeling me out as if I didn’t
make it clear enough earlier that he should keep his distance. “You giving handouts?” His eyebrows dance around his forehead and I catch on to his intended pun.

“Sure, Kacen.” I wrap my fingers gently around his shoulder in a
caressing manner. I look him in the eyes and jerk my knee up firmly into his balls. He drops to the ground and curls up into the fetal
position,
moaning and whining. “Would you settle for a hand . . .
up
?” I
stretch my hand out to him. “Here, I’ll help you up when you stop crying.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” He curls his legs into his chest tighter. “You’re a fucking psychopath. No wonder your dad is
hiding out here. He’s probably hiding from your demented ass.” I press my
boot down over his throat until he twists his head to the side, giving in to the pressure. His chest is heaving in and out, and I can see his mind searching for something to say, but the tightness around his throat won’t allow words to sound. I move my boot, allowing him to
move away from me.

It’s at that moment when I’ve lost his attention that a hand slaps
against my mouth and an arm wraps around my waist. I’m sure I’ve
pissed Tango off, but I have a feeling if he were dealing with this
asshole,
he would have reacted the same way. He’s dragging me away again, out of the main camp area. Maybe he hasn’t had enough yet. Maybe this is all for fun. I let him continue dragging me, and I don’t put up
a fight.

The hand smells weird, though. Different. I can’t see anything due to the tight grip, but I’m now wondering if this is actually Tango?

We stop in the center of a small patch of grass, and I whirl
around, hoping to find Tango.

When my vision sends the proper signals to my brain, my mouth
opens and my bottom lip drops. My eyes soften and my limbs feel
like jelly. Maybe I’m hallucinating. I don’t . . .

I reach over slowly, unsure if I want to confirm this sensation, or if I only want it to be a hallucination.

My fingertips brush against soft skin before I jerk my hand back
against my body as if I just touched a flame. At this moment, my
chest feels heavy and I’ve forgotten how to breathe and talk.