He settled behind the wheel and pulled the seatbelt across his shoulder and lap. The click sent a panic through his body. What if it didn’t start? What if they were spotted? What if he missed the road entirely and flipped the ancient vehicle?

  So many things could go wrong. Why was he here again?

  Oh, yeah, the promise to Max. The dead man in the park. Unknown people with foreign accents chasing the lady next to him.

  That’s why he was here.

  Prayer. That’s what was needed.

  He closed his eyes and prayed as he turned the key.

  The motor fired up. The sound was quieter than he expected, which was a plus.

  With barely a push on the gas pedal, the RV lurched forward then stopped. Mae gasped.

  “Let’s try that again.”

  Levi pressed harder. There was a hump in the land. With a hard punch to the gas, the RV skipped over the ridged hump and bumped onto the other side. Then they were rolling toward the open area.

  Mae leaned forward and attempted to point in the direction he needed to go. Once they were in motion, the height of the vehicle allowed him to see the place he needed to be easily.

  He eased the RV onto the two dirt tracks.

  As long as nothing was in their path, and no people arrived to shoot at them, they should reach the road in no time.

  Tense minutes passed. Mae squeezed an arm rest and held her breath. He held tightly to the steering wheel. Dust still kicked up along the mountain road.

  Then suddenly they were there. The pavement greeted them by glistening in the bright morning sunlight. For all the problems they’d had, the RV rolled right onto the two lane road.

  Levi settled into a comfortable speed.

  “Why aren’t we going faster?” Mae had her hair wrapped around her finger again. Around and around, she twisted it.

  He turned his attention away from the action and back to the road. “Because we don’t want to look suspicious. We are just out for an afternoon drive.” He plastered a smile on his face and turned his head side to side as if listening to music.

  “That’s your strategy?”

  “Do you have a better one?”

  “Of course, I do! Fly like the wind out of this place and get back to town.”

  “Where we don’t have a safe house.”

  “Well…”

  “Or cash.”

  “Um…”

  “Or a go bag.”

  “Yes, but…”

  “Or a plan.”

  “Okay, I get it. But look, I have some people I can call. We just need to get to a phone.” She leaned against the chair and crossed her arms over her chest.

  He felt a little bad for pointing out the truth, but not much. If she had people she could have called, why hadn’t she done it earlier before chucking their phones? They could have been saved the mad dash over a mountain then down a mountain.

  Could it be because she wasn’t supposed to? Because the reasons she was following him needed to remain a secret.

  He opened his mouth to ask about that but quickly shut it and put his lips into a straight line. A black SUV with tinted windows was following close behind the RV. It looked like the one that had left Blake’s house but he couldn’t be certain.

  As they rounded a corner and the road straightened the vehicle whipped to the other side and flew around them. Levi dropped the visor and put his hand in front of his face.

  The car never slowed.

  “Humph. Guess your plan worked.”

  For now.

  That didn’t mean they were in the clear. They were miles from the city and they had no means to purchase gas. And she hadn’t cared to share where they were supposed to go to contact her people.

  Maybe she would open up soon otherwise he’d have to find another friend that might help.

  ****

  “No sir, I’m afraid we lost them.” Bill listened before responding. “It doesn’t seem the other agents found them either. They are searching all over the mountain.”

  More listening.

  “Yes, sir, I agree. Levi Anderson must be one heck of a double agent to keep alive so long. Agent Stone and I will continue to pursue them for as long as it takes.”

  The phone went dead in Bill’s hand and he placed it in the console.

  “They still think Anderson is a bad guy?” Ericka was questioning the higher ups logic on that one. He’d managed to escape the foreign agents twice and keep Mae alive in the process. Best they could tell from the park video Mae wasn’t being forced to go with Levi. So, was he really a bad guy? She didn’t think so.

  “They do.”

  “But you’re not convinced.” She hoped she was reading the situation correctly.

  “I’m not. After talking to Blake and finding out that Mae was there of her own free will, I think something else entirely is going on. I’m not sure what, but we need to find it out—and fast. Right now only one faction is after them, but if more find out that we have two people running around freely that know about OPAL, one who is maybe ready to sell what they know, another that just knows how the machine is supposed to work with all the right coding, then I have no idea what might happen.”

  Ericka leaned back in her chair and looked out the window. Mae had been her friend at the academy. She’d gone into the technical department for a reason. That girl didn’t have any outdoor skills.

  When they said Mae was being assigned to investigate someone with secret knowledge of a top secret government program, Ericka was shocked. Whoever made that assignment was clueless as to their employee’s talents.

  Mae could have hacked the pentagon, but running to the woods and surviving that was an entirely different story.

  Ericka would have been a much better choice. She would never have gotten caught, and she definitely wouldn’t be cavorting with the enemy. If he was the enemy. She just wasn’t sure anymore.

  Ericka leaned back in her seat and looked at the side mirror. They had passed an RV not that long ago. If she wasn’t mistaken it had looked like a young man and a young woman inside the cab. They seemed to be chatting in a jovial manner.

  What she wouldn’t give to be in their situation right now.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Don’t get too close to them!”

  “I’m not.”

  Mae was getting more and more antsy. A government vehicle had just zoomed past them. At first it looked like the people who had been pursuing them, but she recognized the tags after they passed. Maybe she could tell him to pull over and then she could get the help she needed right then. But was it a good idea? She wasn’t sure.

  She massaged her head. The RV was getting too close for comfort. Why couldn’t he just listen to her for once?

  “Just like a man.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “No ears.” She stroked her earlobes then crossed her arms over her chest.

  There was a slight deceleration as if he thought about slamming on the brakes but changed his mind.

  Silence ensured.

  The black SUV drove faster and pulled farther away from them. Finally, she started to relax.

  Darkness began to fall and the lights of town winked on. The RV had to be running on fumes by now. She thought about mentioning it then she noticed their route.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Home.”

  She turned sideways. “You can’t!”

  He cocked his brow. “Why not?”

  “Well—well, those guys they are hunting you. They probably know where you live.” She knew they did. Apparently, lots of people knew where and who he was.

  “What if I think they are chasing you?”

  She turned sideways and pointed her finger to her chest. “Me? Why would they want me?”

  “Well, why would they want me? I’m just an ex-soldier who now files things for a living. You think I filed something wrong?”

  She pursed her lips. He was going to drag it from her.

  “Look, your friend, Max Cooper, he—”

  The RV backfired. A rattle started in the front of the vehicle. Levi clutched the wheel and tugged hard, easing it off the pavement.

  Trees lined the side of the road. They hadn’t passed a car in hours and they hadn’t reached town yet. They were stranded on an abandoned highway in the dark.

  She hated the dark.

  ****

  Levi squeezed the wheel and used all his strength to guide the RV to a safe stop. Mae’s accusation of Max hadn’t been missed. Did this have anything to do with the Opal girl?

  He’d made some pretty vocal inquiries over the last year. So, now was she not only impossible to find but looking for her was going to get him killed.

  Figured.

  He exited the driver’s seat and climbed into the back. Every supply he could carry he placed in the backpack. It wasn’t much but they only needed a little. They were close to civilization; at least he thought they were.

  He pulled out his wallet.

  Fifty dollars in cash.

  When on the run using a credit could be dangerous. Fifty bucks wouldn’t get them very far.

  “What are you doing?’

  “You must drive your beau crazy.”

  “My beau?”

  “You know your boyfriend, partner, significant other, etcetera.”

  “I knew what you meant.” She lowered her head and her face flushed. “I don’t have one.”

  His next comment of, he wasn’t surprised, he kept to himself. Instead, he just told her what he was doing. “I was counting my money. I have fifty, what about you?”

  “Um, I gave all my cash to the waitress and my cards are in my purse in my car, in the park.” Her eyes widened.

  “You’re going to want to cancel those.”

  “No doubt.”

  Lots of other thoughts came to mind, but he didn’t voice them. The primary concern at the moment was leaving the RV and finding help. Since they couldn’t go home, that narrowed their options significantly.

  He needed someone he could trust.

  They exited the RV and began to look around.

  “This looks like the back of the city park.” Mae was walking around a metal barrier.

  He followed. The park at night could be more dangerous than the men chasing them with guns.

  Pack hitched higher on his shoulder, he tightened his grip on the strap. The other hand he tightened on the cane’s ornamental head. The fancy cane had been a gift from Leah when he graduated from the recovery ward. He didn’t want anything to happen to it, and if he needed a weapon it would suffice.

  “Have you been in this park before?”

  Mae kept walking. “Once. It’s rather large. The side near town has a carousel. If we can find that then we’ll know we’re close to civilization.”

  So, she was planning to walk through the dark park to reach town. Smart really.

  “I figure one of the small businesses will have a phone we can use. A landline preferably.”

  “Yes, preferably.

  They hadn’t discussed who they were calling. First chance he got, he was calling Leah and asking her to call the soldier’s group for help. Amongst the group were wealthy businessmen, writers, lawyers, policemen, and more. Surely one of them could assist with his current problem.

  He looked at the back of Mae’s head. She would probably call whoever had hired her to follow him. That meant he could be walking into a trap. For some reason his gut didn’t think so.

  Mae stopped and bounced on the balls of her feet. “There it is! We’re almost there.”

  Mae started to take another step, but Levi grabbed her arm and stopped her. Men with colorfully spiked hair and sagging clothes formed a semi-circle around them. They slapped long metal pipes against the palms of their hands as they stepped from the darkness.

  Mae backed up into him. “What now?”

  There were five guys. Mae might defend herself against one, but they would eventually lose. Even in peak condition five guys would have been hard for him.

  Levi eased the pack off his back. Currently, it held the canteens, beef jerky, and a few protein bars. Nothing they couldn’t afford to lose.

  He held up his hands in a surrender pose. “We don’t want any trouble.”

  The men didn’t respond.

  Levi grabbed Mae’s hand as he dropped the pack on the ground. The gang went after it like rabid dogs. Levi looked at Mae and mouthed, “Run!”

  Before the frustrated cry of their potential attackers, Levi and Mae burst back into another tree line. He hoped they were running parallel to the road and that they would still reach town eventually, but he couldn’t be sure.

  It was becoming more and more obvious that they weren’t going to make it on their own. They desperately needed help.

  ****

  “You lost them?” The voice was low, but the anger was definitely there.

  “Yes, sir. But we think we know where they are headed.” The words weren’t exactly true, but what else could he say and hope to live.

  “You understand that I want that program.”

  “I do.”

  “Levi Anderson is the only man other than Max Cooper to not be part of the program yet know about it. We need to get him before the FBI or the NSA.”

  “What about the girl?”

  “What about her? Kill her. She is just in the way.”

  The phone went dead in his hands. Phone pocketed, he radioed the others in his group. After Sisco, not his real name, had fallen to his death on the rope bridge the rest of the group had raced down the hill but couldn’t find evidence of the couple. They were able to secure aerial footage after much hassle which showed the couple getting into a stationary RV.

  Now they just needed the route they took. If he was a betting man, and he was, then he thought they would return to town.

  He called the men at Levi’s house but no luck. The man had not returned to his home base. The girl might be a different story, but they had yet to identify her. The boss said to kill her, but he wouldn’t do so without knowing who she was. She might yet have the intel they needed. Ivan needed to be sure first.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Throughout Mae’s life she’d been scared. When she wrecked her bike. When her grandparents passed within a week of each other. When she entered the police academy. But nothing had prepared her for the fear of facing down a group of men holding iron pipes with the hope of bashing in her skull.

  Levi.

  Levi had handled the entire situation without hesitation or fear. If the time ever came when he was accused of being a traitor she would stand up and defend him.

  Aside from the other things she’d learned, he didn’t do anything without a reason.

  She could tell.

  A concrete culvert was buried beneath a row of trees and partially covered by kudzu. Levi dragged her inside. Surprisingly, they were alone.

  Lightning struck followed by thunder and rain. If the men had pursued them, they would have given up now. But how had he known when to hide?

  “Are you all right?”

  “As well as I can be.” Her chest hurt from the rapid breathing.

  “The hairs on my arms were standing straight up.”

  Ah, that’s how he knew about the storm.

  “We’ll wait here until daylight and try your plan again.”

  She nodded, although he couldn’t see her in the dark tunnel.

  “I’m starting to wonder if we’ll ever get out of this.” She spoke the words, allowing her worry to show through. She needed comfort.

  His hands went to either side of her face. His thumb gently touched her cheekbone. “I don’t want you to worry. I will do everything in my power to protect you.”

  She wanted to ask why. She’d done nothing but try to pursue him and take him down.

  A tear slipped from her eye. Despite the lack of light, he swiped it away. Unexpectedly, his soft lips were on hers. Sensations of pleasure rippled through her body as he tangled his hands in her hair and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close and deepening the kiss.

  How long it lasted, she wasn’t sure. Seconds, minutes, it could have been hours. She’d never experienced anything like it. When he pulled away, she was distraught. Why did it have to end?

  He didn’t speak. Instead, he pulled her to his side and wrapped his arm around her middle. She laid her head on his chest and he planted a tiny, unsatisfying peck on her forehead.

  She lost track of how long she lay there before his breathing became rhythmic. More tears flowed, and she tried not to wake him.

  There was nothing about this man that screamed traitor. She believed him wholly when he said that he thought OPAL was a woman. Others might not, but she did. Somehow, she needed to help him prove his innocence.

  The first stepped was asking about Max Cooper. She needed to know what Levi knew before she told him too much. If she did, he might be implicated by something that she said.

  Somehow during their harrowing two day journey running from various factions, she’d developed feelings for this soldier. They’d started suddenly, but she had a feeling they wouldn’t end anytime soon.

  Once this was all over, then she would analyze them. For now, she just needed to find a way to stay alive.

  ****

  Levi could feel Mae’s mind whirling. Was she thinking about Max? Or about their kiss?

  The kiss wasn’t something he was likely to forget anytime soon.

  He had no idea what possessed him. Maybe it was the fear of death. He’d faced it often. Guns had been pointed in his direction more than once.

  One of the bullets meant for him had taken out Max instead. He’d jumped in front of Levi. Blood had pooled on his chest, and Levi caught him before he struck the ground. Fellow soldiers fired, taking down the insurgent, but the damage had been done.

  Max had actually smiled. He’d clutched Levi’s hand and begged for forgiveness. Levi had told him to shut up, they could talk about it later. He’d kept going.

  Opal. Opal. You need to take care of Opal. Danger. Danger.

  Then he was gone. Levi had screamed, stood, and started shooting. The shot to the shoulder sent him flying backwards and onto a landmine. It flung him across the open yard and came close to blowing off his leg. If not for the surgeon on duty he would have lost the leg for sure.