The Maze (ATCOM) (21 page)

Attie
was frozen in place, wanting him to do it, knowing he could. Then, in slow
motion, Carlos reached down and pulled a pistol out of a leg holster he had
hidden under his slacks. He raised it and aimed it at Noah.

Fear
gripped her like a cold fist. Carlos never played fair. Damn Noah for being a
champion.

She
lunged and screamed as a shot echoed through the air.

* * * *

Blood.

Everywhere.

On
the mat. On Noah. On Carlos. God help her, she’d gotten another agent killed.
Noah was dead and it was her fault. Because of her, he was here. Because of
her, Seth had been sent in.

Attie
sank to her knees as pain and regret surged through her. Carlos shot Noah. The
reality of it refused to enter her numb brain. Anguish so great it resembled
physical pain assaulted her, seeping into her muscles and turning them to
jelly. She dissolved into a limp heap against the ropes and wrapped her arms
around her waist to control her shaking.

Images
of Noah played through her head. Them making love, connecting to each other on
a level she had been afraid to face. The way he’d made her feel and the
emotions he evoked every time he touched her. The way he held her tenderly
afterward and didn’t break his promise.

In
her mind’s eye she saw him saving her life on that cliffside, in the water with
the anaconda, and on the bridge. He’d been there for her all along, silent and
strong, watching her back and protecting her. Until now she hadn’t been able to
admit how much she counted on his steady, powerful presence at her side and now
he was gone. He lay in a pool of blood.

She
hadn’t put Carlos away a year ago and now he had killed the one man she’d grown
to need more than anything else in her life. Noah was indestructible.

He
was The Rock, for God’s sake!

In
despair, she held out her hands in front of her and stared at them. There was
no visible blood on them, but she could see it, right along with Seth’s.
Somehow, she was going to make this right. One way or another she was going to
bring him down. For Seth and Noah and Brendan.

Feelings
that had been building and pushed down until now rushed up to the surface and
Attie felt a loss so strong she choked back a sob. Her feelings for Seth had
been professional, but the ones for Noah were tearing her heart to shreds. She
had known pain in the past but nothing hurt like this. Losing Noah felt like
losing a part of her soul. For that she would kill Carlos. No more blood would
be shed because of her.

“I’m
sorry,” she whispered as she was grabbed from behind, a needle jabbed into her
arm. The last thing she saw before darkness enveloped her was Noah’s blood
staining the floor and Carlos smiling at her.

Chapter
20

Attie
opened her eyes slowly, wishing someone would stop driving nails into her head.
She let out a tiny gasp when she realized she was hanging upside down. Her arms
hung six feet off the floor and blood puddled beneath her where it had dripped
from the wound on her shoulder.

She
stared at the puddle and felt her heart clench tight in her chest. Noah. Fresh
pain stabbed at her but she refused it. She couldn’t think about him right now.
Not if she was going to save her brother. Blinking tears out of her eyes, she
pushed the pain away and tucked it into the place she kept it all. Buried deep
so she could function. This was not the time to fall apart.

Looking
up at her feet she saw she hung by a rope from the ceiling of a cave. Fighting
dizziness, she moved her legs, testing the knot holding her. Too tight to slip
out of her boots. But she had a weapon. Noah had slipped his knife inside her
boot this morning before Carlos came for them, said she’d need it more than
him.

Loss
speared through her when she remembered his grin as he tucked the blade inside
her boot. He’d run his hand up her leg afterward and turned her into a mass of
quivering need by that simple touch. A touch she would never feel again. Jesus,
how things had changed since he had come to the ranch and told her about
Brendan. In truth, she had never expected any of this.

The
feelings she felt for him in the past were nothing compared to now. The
attraction had always been there, but not in her wildest dreams had she
expected it to be so intense. He made her forget the past and not worry as much
about the present. With him at her side, things didn’t seem quite so daunting.

Not
what she’d expected to get from him. A great roll in the sack, yes, but not
something so deep it scared her. Who would have thought Noah would be the one
she fell in love with? The man responsible for her past, who had broken her
heart. Never had she thought she’d fall this hard for him.

It
felt like a betrayal. To herself and Seth. Like she was selling out for her own
pleasure. Because Noah brought her an enormous amount of pleasure. No other man
had done that and no other would ever compare. But, deep down, in that place
she’d refused to accept, she knew. She believed Noah. He’d never lied in the
past, never had ulterior motives. Everything he did was on the straight and
narrow. He especially wouldn’t lie about this. Not when he knew how important
it was to her to have the truth. She had to decide to believe him.

Except
now was too late.

Attie
shook her head to clear it, making herself dizzy. She had to focus on getting
out of here. This was yet another of Carlos’s tests and she had to run it all
alone. Noah wasn’t at her side helping her along with his steady presence,
giving her the reassurance she never knew she needed. That reality weighed
heavily on her and she swallowed the lump in her throat. So many things had
been left unsaid between them and now the words burned a path through her
heart. Her stubbornness had really gotten her in deep this time.

Stifling
a sob, she lifted herself into a sit-up position with muscles protesting, and
reached inside her boot, holding onto the rope with one hand for support. She
had to work the knife out of its hiding place against the tightness of the
rope, but she managed and was sawing at the rope in no time.

The
rope snapped and she fell, landing hard in a cloud of dust that knocked the
breath out of her. She was really getting tired of falling. This entire mess
was getting old. She had never been so desperate for clean air in her life. Or
natural light.

Struggling
to catch her breath, Attie coughed as dust settled in her lungs. She lay there
with tears floating in her eyes and pain vibrating through her body. She had
hurt like this before and knew she could handle physical pain, but the agony in
her heart was almost more than she could bear. It felt like someone had a fist
around her heart and squeezed tight. How was she supposed to go on without
Noah?

How
had she come to rely on him so much?

When
she could breathe without coughing and see past her despair, she rose into a
sitting position and replaced the knife in her boot to look around. Another
cave. Big surprise. Antonio had really outdone himself this time. He should be
proud of this house of horrors he’d built with such care.

There
were two openings in the cave. One to the left and one to the right. A fork in
the road. One would lead to a reward and one would lead to more pain. Her head
was already pulsing, her cheek swollen and tender. She couldn’t decide which
part of her body hurt the most. More pain didn’t sound like a great idea right
now. She’d much rather crawl up in a ball and sit in a corner until this was
over.

But
it wasn’t going to be over. Not until she ran Carlos’s maze. He wasn’t going to
let her go, no matter what. Since she had never quit anything in her life, she
rose to her feet and pushed her pain deep so she could finish this. She owed
that to Seth and Noah both. She wasn’t about to let Carlos win, or else their
deaths would be for nothing.

A
boot scuffed against rock and Attie stiffened. Slowly, she rose to her feet and
saw a man walk out of the shadows. He was tall and dressed to perfection in
black trousers and turtleneck.

A
shiver filtered down her spine.

Antonio.

With
a sniper rifle.

He
smiled at her and rested the rifle casually across his shoulder. “Hello,
Chryst-I mean, Atalanta. Are you ready?”

Attie
went cold. “What are you doing with that rifle?”

Antonio
glanced down at the powerful weapon. “She’s a beauty, isn’t she? I guess you
could say that architecture isn’t my only talent.”

The
pieces fell into place. The buried background, the dead ends. “You’re a
mercenary,” she said with sinking dread.

“On
occasion,” he said, meeting her eyes. “I’ve been waiting for this for a long
time. Ever since I met you in South America. You’re a very intriguing woman.”

“No
offense if I don’t thank you for the compliment.”

“None
taken. You are much more beautiful like this. The other just wasn’t you.”

“Again,
no offense.”

Antonio
nodded.

“So,
what do I do?” she asked, wearily. She hadn’t even begun the game and she was
already tired of it.

Antonio
cocked his head at her. “You’ve lost your spark. What is this about?”

He
had always been very intuitive and well-mannered. A gentleman. Always inquiring
about how she was feeling and how she was doing when he visited. He never posed
a threat directly, though he’d always made her uneasy. Now she knew why. He was
a professional killer. She’d certainly missed the boat on this one.

She
had missed the boat on a lot of things.

“Nothing.
Can we get on with this?”

“Of
course. Have you figured out what we’re going to do yet?”

She
could take a stab in the dark and probably hit the mark but she wasn’t ready to
admit it. She didn’t want to do this. Never take a knife to a gunfight, that’s
what Uncle Jed always told her and here she was armed with nothing but a knife
against a sniper rifle.

“I’ll
give you a head start because I like you so much. Cheer up, Atalanta, this is
going to be fun. I’ve designed some pretty amazing things down these tunnels.
I’ll even let you choose which one you want to take first.”

An
accommodating mercenary.

“You’re
too kind,” she said.

“You’ve
earned it. Tell me, did you have feelings for Noah?”

Attie
reared back. “That’s none of your business.”

“No,
I guess it isn’t, yet I feel a need to ask. The two of you looked pretty cozy.
Don’t worry, I’m not asking for Carlos. I’m curious. I won’t tell. If you ask
me, I was always rooting for you.”

Shaking,
furious with him for bringing up Noah’s death after she’d barely gotten a
handle on it, she glared at him. She wouldn’t give Carlos the satisfaction of
seeing her true feelings for Noah and she certainly wasn’t giving it to him.
She didn’t care why Antonio was asking or why he was interested. Right now he
was the enemy. Here to kill her. He would get nothing personal from her.
Especially when she’d just figured it out herself.

Only
now it didn’t matter. Carlos had stolen him from her.

“Do
you have permission to kill me, Antonio?” she asked, pushing her thoughts away.
They would weaken her and she couldn’t afford that right now. Brendan was still
here. Still alive. And she wasn’t losing him too.

He
shrugged. “Maybe.”

“I
doubt Carlos would let you steal his glory.”

“Carlos
and I have an understanding.”

“I
see.” But she didn’t. She was upset and confused. Her insides were wrung tight.
Everything she thought she’d known and been sure of was suddenly unclear.

She
tried not to think about what Carlos would do to her brother if she disobeyed.
He didn’t hesitate to kill Noah and she was certain he would do the same to
Brendan. He was a man without conscience. Killing was a way of life for him.

Antonio
gave her a gentle nudge toward the caves. Attie had no choice but to choose
one, so she veered left and started running. She heard Antonio counting behind
her. When the tunnel suddenly ended, she heard him following behind at a slower
pace.

Cursing,
her heart pounding, she banged her fists on the rock. Why did she have to pick
the one that turned into a dead end? Damn, her instincts were off.

Hearing
the slow, easy scruff of Antonio’s boots getting nearer, she bent to retrieve
her knife to protect herself when a door suddenly opened behind her. It was
more of a crawl space than a tunnel, but she wasted no time diving through it.

Sliding,
she shimmied head first down a darkened tunnel, arms flailing.

She
flew out the mouth, rolled into a ball as she hit hard on a hard floor, jarring
her shoulder and cracking her knee in the process.

Ignoring
the pain, she sprung to her feet, wavered, and waited for Antonio to come down
after her. She waited five minutes and nothing. Giving up, she looked around
her and scoffed at the ridiculous room.

A
fun-house from hell. Mirrors hung on all four walls and each made her
reflection change. Holding the knife in a defensive position, she began to walk
slowly around the room. Her reflection grew tall and thin as she passed one
mirror and then short and fat in the next. The third one made her stop and
stare as the blood drained from her face. It made her look like she was
pregnant, her belly swollen.

Attie
took a horrified step back, but couldn’t tear her eyes off the image. She had
never had thoughts of settling down with a family and having kids; she’d always
seen herself as a soldier, not a mother. And suddenly she was thinking about
it. The image suited her, as much as she hated to admit it. Reality slammed
into her and practically knocked her off her feet. She stumbled back against
the wall, a hand clamped over her mouth.

What
had she done?

She
could be pregnant. She and Noah had made love more than once without
protection.

Attie
touched a hand to her stomach where a life could be growing at that very
moment. Noah’s child. A child conceived under nightmarish circumstances and out
of love for a man who would never know she loved him. She sank to the ground as
a weight settled on her shoulders she couldn’t bear. She may be pregnant with a
child who would never know his father.

Her
body trembled uncontrollably. She wanted to cry, to scream; she wanted to grab
Noah by the shirt and shake him for leaving her here alone. Numb, she stared at
the wall, rocking back and forth. She would take physical pain over this kind
of pain any day. This was debilitating.

“Damn
you, Kincaid,” she whispered.

Something
moved on her left. Attie froze, her heart tripping in her chest. Without
moving, she glanced sideways. Nothing. Only the sound of her own breathing. She
buried her troubled thoughts and went into soldier mode. She needed to survive
and that was the only way she knew how.

Like
Noah, she turned into a machine, pushing the hurt down, so she could fight.

A
sound came from farther down the cave. Past the mirrors in the darkness. A
scrape. Antonio must have found another way in. She was at a distinct
disadvantage since he’d designed this house of horrors.

Time
to go on the offensive if she wanted to survive. Wrapping her fingers around
the knife, Attie rose to her feet and crept toward the sound. This time she
ignored her reflection in the mirrors.

Darkness
wrapped around her as she made her way toward the sound. Faint light kept her
from losing it completely, but familiar fear gripped her anyway.

A
door opened above her and a shot rang out in the tunnel. Rock splintered above
her head. A mirror shattered beside her. Glass peppered her back as she broke
into a run.