Final Target(98)
“Or I could have been shot and killed. Who the hell knows?” He closed his eyes. “ Now, if you don’t mind, I think I’ll go to sleep. I’m very tired.”
“Just so you don’t die on me.” Her voice was shaking. “ I went to a lot of trouble to keep you alive.”
“ Wouldn’t . . . think of it.”
He was unconscious. Keep the pressure on the wound. She’d put a makeshift bandage on her own leg wound before she’d crawled over to Travis. How to get them both help? Andreas probably wouldn’t come near this place. He wanted Travis and Deschamps to both die.
Galen.
She fumbled in Travis’s pocket, pulled out his phone, and began to dial.
The door was flung open. “Hands in the air!” A half-dozen men streamed into the room.
Suits. Indisputably CIA. For God’s sake, it was like that break-in yesterday morning at the cottage.
“ I’m not putting my hands in the air. If I take my hand off this compress, he’s going to bleed to death. Where the hell is Danley? Let me talk to Danley.”
“ I’ll have to do. Danley’s busy securing the area.” Andreas walked into the room. He looked down at Deschamps. “ Is this our man?”
“ Yes, I’m sure Danley’s shown you pictures of him.”
“ But it’s difficult to tell with half his head blown off.”
“ It’s Deschamps. Travis got rid of him for you.” She added fiercely, “So you get him some help.”
“ I have every intention of doing that. How is he?”
“ The bullets went through his shoulder. He’s lost some blood, but he’ll live . . . if you don’t screw up.”
“I don’t dare screw up. You look like you could use some help yourself.” He motioned to one of the men. “Paulding, you get a medical team out here.” Then he knelt beside her.
“Leave me alone. I’m okay.”
“Let Travis go. We’re not going to hurt him.”
“How do I know that?”
“Cassie won’t let me.”
“What?”
He smiled. “She woke up.”
“Oh, my God.”
“That was my reaction. I felt like I could walk on air. . . . It was damn wonderful. Even though she was almost hysterical and screaming at me to save Travis. She must have overheard us talking about him last night.”
She had overheard all right. But not the way Andreas meant. “I told you how she felt about him.”
“Yes, you did.” He stood up. “We’ll get you back to the house and get the bullet taken out.”
“Not unless you bring Travis with me.”
“You don’t trust me?” He smiled. “Ipromised Cassie I’d bring him back to the house. It was the only way I could get her to quiet down. Do you think I’m about to send her spiraling away from me again? I’d move the whole damn world to keep that from happening.”
She studied his face and then slowly nodded. “I can see you would.”
“And now I’d better get back and tell Cassie that her hero is safe.”
“But what about after Cassie is better? Will Travis be safe then?”
“We’ll just have to see, won’t we? I still want to break his neck.” He moved toward the door. “I’ll see you at the house.” He stopped beside the body and bent down to pick up the Wind Dancer Deschamps was still clutching. “There’s blood on it.”
“Deschamps said the Wind Dancer liked blood.”
“Ridiculous. How could it like or dislike anything?” He wiped the blood off the Wind Dancer and then smiled down into its emerald eyes. “After all, it’s only a statue.”
“Melissa. The monsters . . . Michael!”
“Shh. They’re gone. Michael is safe. He’s hurt, but he’s right here beside me. We’re in a van on the way back to the house.”
“That’s what Daddy said.”
“Believe him.”
“But I saw Michael—”
“I know what you saw. But it didn’t happen. It doesn’t have to happen if we fight it.”
“Scary out here. Maybe I’ll go back in the tunnel.”
“Don’t you dare! I’ll go in and drag you out again. What if Michael or your daddy or mom needs you? What if I need you? You didn’t like having your daddy go help Michael, did you? You wanted to do it yourself.”
“Yes.”
She had known a child as strong-willed as Cassie would have that response. “So would I. And how can you do anything while you’re in there hiding?”
Silence. “I’ll stay awhile. It’s kind of . . . nice to be back with Daddy.”