Harlequin Intrigue, Box Set 1 of 2 (50 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY

Kino walked beside Lea, his hand light on her elbow. As he walked, he surveyed the desert, searching for some weapon, and found only patchy rock and sparse, tufted grass. The stash pickup was parked beside the outcropping, covered with camo tarps to make it less visible from the air.

His eye caught movement and then he saw it, his chance. Rattlesnakes. A whole lot of them, writhing and undulating over one another. And there at the base of the outcropping, one or two of the serpents had slithered out to sun themselves. One large one sat with the surety of a creature well camouflaged and with few enemies. Kino's idea blossomed in his mind. The irony of using a snake to fight a viper was not lost on him. If it worked, that was, and he figured the chances were fifty-fifty.

The rattlesnake was coiled with its great diamond-shaped wedge of a head resting on its body. Only its tongue moved, flicking in and out as it checked the air for the heat and taste of warm prey. Kino estimated it was three inches in diameter at the center and might be up to four feet in length. Most important, it was still silent and Kino would reach it first.

“Nest is right there,” said Barrow.

He hoped Barrow's attention was momentarily directed toward the shallow rock den of snakes as Kino released Lea's elbow using two fingers to push her gently away. Her eyes flashed to him, but she moved as he directed, giving him a narrow gap between them. Under ordinary circumstances, Kino would never willingly engage a snake this big or this deadly.

“Far enough,” said Barrow.

Kino didn't stop. He needed two more steps.

“Stop.”

He did but he slid his foot into the sand as the rattlesnake gave a warning shake of its tail. But Kino already had his foot under the closest coil. The snake hit the side of his knee-high moccasin and released with such speed, Kino didn't see or feel the strike. As the snake recoiled, Kino got his foot under its thick ropelike body. He whirled on the other foot and kicked. The snake sailed into the air, twisting as it flew in a high arch right in the direction of Captain Barrow.

Barrow's attention shifted from Kino to the imminent threat of the snake. The gun tracked the reptile, and Kino launched himself at the captain. The snake, Barrow and Kino all landed in a heap together. Kino rolled, wrestling for the gun. Barrow screamed and his hand went slack. Had he been bitten? Kino hoped so as he wrenched the gun away and rolled to his feet.

A quick glance toward Lea gave him a glimpse of DeClay dragging her toward the ATV. When Kino flashed his attention back to Barrow, it was to see that he had already drawn Kino's semiautomatic from the waistband of his trousers and was scrambling behind the pickup. It was the stash truck, the one he had parked dangerously close to the nest of rattlers. A moment later Barrow fired from beneath the truck. The rock beside Kino's foot sparked as the bullet ricocheted off the stone.

Kino had no shot at Barrow but he did have a shot at the rattlers' nest tucked into the low ledge beside the truck. He fired at the rock above the den, knowing snakes, although deaf, were highly sensitive to vibration. In response, rattlers began pouring out of the nest and onto the ground behind the pickup.

Barrow gave a shout.

Kino expected battling the serpents would keep him busy.

Kino took off after Lea. DeClay had her around the throat and was holding her in front of him as a human shield. Kino aimed Barrow's pistol but did not shoot. There was too much chance of hitting Lea. DeClay turned the handgun on Lea, pressing the barrel against her temple.

Kino's heart slammed into his ribs at the thought that DeClay might kill Lea. Was this how it was going to end? Two more bodies in the desert?

He had to stop DeClay and rescue Lea. But DeClay already had Lea at the ATV.

Her eyes met his as he closed the distance between them.

“Stop right there,” ordered DeClay.

Lea's attention swung from Kino to the pickup.

“He's behind the gate,” she yelled.

Kino rolled as the pistol shots began again with steady rhythmic cadence. Kino made it to the opposite side of the ATV from DeClay, giving him good cover from Barrow's barrage of bullets. With the metal frame now shielding him from attack, he turned his attention to Lea. She struggled, her face red from the effort and lack of air. DeClay swung the pistol in Kino's direction. He heard the sound of banging, as if someone was pounding on the side of the truck. A quick glance showed Barrow scrambling over the camo tarp that covered the pickup bed. Kino took a shot, but Barrow managed to swing through the cab's open rear window and into the truck. The engine started a moment later.

Kino stood and saw DeClay shove Lea into the ATV. Lea's head was down as she fell against the wheel well.

“Get up!” roared DeClay as he hoisted her by her collar.

Lea screamed as she rose. Kino saw something black gripped in her hand. A gun?

No, he realized. His stun gun. She only had to pull the trigger, but if one of the electrodes missed, the weapon would be useless.

The pickup barreled toward them with Barrow behind the wheel. Kino had time to dive away as the truck hit the back of the ATV, rolling the vehicle. DeClay and Lea tumbled out and away as the truck dragged the mangled vehicle for several yards before pushing it clear.

DeClay stood and dragged Lea up in front of him once again. But this time Lea's face showed no pain. Instead her expression was as stoic as any Apache woman engaged in the Sunrise Ceremony. Unlike most women, Apache females had to prove their toughness through action. Kino had no doubt what she would do.

She raised the stun gun and flicked the safety up to the armed position with her thumb, just as he had shown her. Then his little Apache pacifist pressed the contacts to DeClay's biceps, which even now encircled her neck, set her jaw and squeezed the trigger.

DeClay went rigid and fell.

Lea remained standing, a shocked expression on her face, as DeClay's nervous system went haywire. She seemed to remember then that the current continued until the trigger was released. She dropped the unit and DeClay's body went from twitching in the sand to complete stillness. Lea fell to her knees, hunching as she clutched her ribs.

Kino ran in their direction as the pickup turned in a wide half circle.

He took a low, ready stance, squatting in front of Lea as the captain barreled toward them. Kino raised the pistol and took aim. The first shot went right through the windshield and through the space where Barrow's head had just been. But Barrow had ducked down. He popped back up and aimed Kino's weapon out the side window at them, squeezing the trigger with one hand and holding the wheel with the other. The truck was barreling straight at them.

Kino had time for one single shot. But this time he aimed at the tire. The resulting explosion of air and rubber threw the truck into a skid that sent Barrow broadside to Kino's position. Barrow released the pistol in favor of a two-handed grip on the pickup's steering wheel as it careened out of control.

Kino aimed high and fired. Blood sprayed and Barrow slumped. Had he hit him or grazed him? The truck rolled on, stopping only when it collided with the rock face where the snakes now slithered in front of their earlier-disturbed nest.

Kino looked at the crumpled hood and steam that billowed from the engine block. Then he glanced over at Lea. She lay on her side on the ground and her stillness frightened him into motion.

Kino scrambled to Lea, lifting her into his arms. Her body sagged and her head lolled. Her eyes rolled back in their sockets as her body went slack. Kino's heart pounded so hard it deafened him.

“Lea?” He lowered his head to listen to her heart but could hear nothing beyond the roar of his own blood in his ears. His stomach roiled as he pressed two fingers against the vessel at her neck. He could feel her pulse, steady and fast. Kino slumped.

Had she fainted?

Beside him, DeClay moaned. Kino left Lea for as long as it took to retrieve DeClay's gun and tie his wrists and ankles, leaving the stun gun, which could be fired only once.

When he returned to Lea, he found her breathing shallow and her color chalky. Her ashen face bore an eerie resemblance to the white paint used to turn a young girl into the representation of Buffalo Woman in the Sunrise Ceremony. Only this wasn't paint; it was shock.

He glanced toward the ruined truck and then the mangled ATV. How would he get them out of here before the desert heat killed them both?

* * *

A
RATTLESNAKE
SLITHERED
by and Kino decided Lea could not remain on the ground. He lifted her into his arms and set her in the passenger seat of the ATV. The vehicle was ruined, but the metal frame had done its job, protecting the passenger compartment.

“I have to check on Barrow. I'll be right back.” He received no reply from Lea but knew he had to see if Barrow was still a threat.

He held the gun at the ready as he approached the stillness of the truck cab. His gun lay in the dirt beside the back tire. Kino used his toe to bring it well clear of the range of a striking snake before stooping to retrieve it. He tucked Barrow's gun into his waistband and reclaimed the familiar semiautomatic. Rattlesnakes continued to undulate across the sand, seeking alternative shelter from the morning heat. Some rattled from beneath the truck, their tails lifted near the back tires.

Kino walked with a slow, careful step.

He could not see Barrow through the window, but he knew he was in there because he hadn't seen him exit. When he moved close enough to look into the compartment, Kino found Barrow slumped to the right. He was tempted to put an insurance bullet in the back of his head. He knew if the situation was reversed, that was just what he could expect from this man. Before he'd met Lea, he would have taken Barrow out. No question. But now he questioned everything he'd once wanted.

He reached in with the gun and poked Barrow. A low moan issued from the downed captain. Then Kino saw the man's hand. The snake that had hit Kino first in the leg had obviously got Barrow, too, when he'd raised his hand to defend his face. Judging from the swollen purple flesh, Barrow had got a fair share of venom. The soft tissue was now already twice its normal size. No wonder his aim had been off. Kino was surprised Barrow had even been able to hold the gun. He grasped Barrow by the shoulder and heaved him upright in his seat. He needed to get back to Lea.

Barrow's forehead showed the deep gouge of Kino's bullet. Blood poured down his face, but the wound was superficial. Barrow opened his eyes and Kino met the cold terror glimmering there.

“Twice,” he whispered.

“What?”

Barrow tried to lift his arm. “Hand and shoulder. Twice. You have to get me help.”

One snake bite was hard to survive, especially from a snake as big as the one Kino had kicked at Barrow. Two? Well, you'd have to be very close to the antivenin and very, very lucky.

“You took my radio. You trashed the ATV and the truck.”

Barrow groaned. “My phone.”

Kino took it from the captain's front pocket and flicked it on. “No service. Radio? Satellite phone?”

“No.” Barrow's head fell back to the headrest. Blood continued to flow from his head wound down his neck, soaking into the cotton of his shirt. “It wasn't supposed to end like this.”

“No?” said Kino. “Looks about right to me.”

“Get me out of here.” Barrow's eyes closed and he started panting like a rabid dog.

Kino knew he'd be lucky to get Lea out of this alive. He wasn't dragging Barrow along, too. He stepped away from the truck.

Barrow's eyes flashed open. He must have understood Kino's intention to leave him because he struggled to rise, reaching his swollen hand toward Kino. The skin had stretched tight. The wound around the bite marks oozed clear fluid. Soon the tissue would begin to rot.

“Don't leave me here like this.”

Kino knew a few people who had been bitten. Each said it was the worst pain of their life.

“I can't take you and Lea. I'll send help.”

Their eyes met and both knew it would be too late.

“Then shoot me,” said Barrow through gritted teeth. “It's what you wanted. Shoot me to avenge your old man.”

Kino's jaw ticked as he raised his weapon and aimed. Barrow relaxed into his seat. Kino lowered his weapon. All Kino wanted was Lea's life and he was wasting precious seconds with a dead man.

Kino holstered his pistol and stepped slowly away through the settling snakes.

“No!” howled Barrow. His words became curses and then moans.

Kino kept walking toward Lea so he could get them out of the desert.

As he walked he thought how strange that he had come to kill this man and now, when it would be so easy, he had lost his will to do so. Lea said she had forgiven her father's shooter. Could he find the strength to do the same?

Kino returned to the truck. Barrow stopped screaming, panting as he stared at him, his face dripping with sweat.

“I forgive you,” Kino said.

Barrow squinted at Kino through bloodshot eyes. Kino left him, trailed by animallike shrieks mixed with curses.

* * *

L
EA
WOKE
TO
the sound of screams. She opened her eyes to find she sat in the ATV. Kino stood beside the truck, returning his gun to its holster before pivoting and heading toward her. Her eye caught movement and she turned her head, the simple motion making her ribs throb to life with a pain so fierce it turned her stomach. She gagged and folded at the waist, thinking she would be sick. Even the pain was momentarily forgotten as her eyes came to rest on the wiggling, squirming body.

Beside her, on the dusty ground, her Oasis director writhed uselessly, his hands secured behind his back and his ankles pinned together with what looked like white plastic bands. A snake slithered from beneath the ATV, straight at DeClay, who screamed “Get me up!”