The Defender Page 14

Her gaze moved past him to the dead bodies. “I missed the action.”

  “It was nothing.”

  “It was recent,” she said with a lift of a brow. “We need to move, don’t we?”

  He wished he could tell her no, but he couldn’t. “Yes.”

  “It’s getting dark, we don’t know the territory, and I’m wounded. We won’t get far.”

  “We’ll be fine.”

  “You should leave me.”

  He looked askance at her. “No.”

  “I’m only going to slow you down.”

  “I got you here and tended, didn’t I?” he argued. “I took care of the men.”

  Her hand moved to rest on his leg. “Thank you for all of that. However, the truth is that they know where we are. You’ve wasted too much time already. I’d leave you behind.”

  “No, you wouldn’t.” He’d come to know Reyna, and he knew without a doubt that she would’ve done for him what he did for her.

  Her dark gaze moved away. “It won’t do for both of us to get killed.”

  “The Saints don’t want us dead.”

  Her brows snapped together as her gaze returned to him. “What?”

  “In the attack, I went looking for more men. While I did, two came for you.”

  “What?” she asked in shock.

  Lev nodded. “They had the chance to kill you, but took you instead.”

  “But they shot at us earlier. I was hit.”

  “Nevertheless, they were taking you.”

  She gritted her teeth and tried to sit up. Lev knew better than to try and dissuade her, so he helped her instead. Reyna was breathing hard, and her face was pale again, but she managed to stay sitting on her own power.

  “You need the night to rest,” he told her.

  She shrugged one shoulder. “That’s not an option. We go together now, or you leave on your own.”

  “I’m not leaving you.”

  “Then we go now.”

  Lev briefly thought about arguing with her, but she was right. They needed to get on the move. He rose and put the backpack on as well as the night vision goggles. Then he looped two of the rifle straps over his head while Reyna gradually moved her legs over the side of the bed.

  She met his gaze when her feet were on the floor and smiled. “I can do this.”

  “Have you been shot before?”

  She shook her head.

  He had, so Lev knew exactly how painful it was. “You lost a lot of blood. The bullet went through the meaty part of your side, thankfully.”

  “In other words, I’m going to be weak.”

  “You need to rest to regain your strength.”

  “Something I’d gladly do if I was able, but I’m not. You continuing to tell me that doesn’t help,” she replied testily.

  Lev knew she wasn’t angry at him. She was frustrated with the situation and the fact that her body wouldn’t do what she wanted it to. He’d been in that same position before, which was why he didn’t take her words to heart.

  Reyna blew out a breath and set her hands on either side of her hips. “I’m sorry.”

  “There’s no need.” He held out a palm to her.

  She looked up at his hand. He could see that she wanted to refuse it, but thankfully, she accepted his offer. After she was on her feet, he shot her a smile.

  “Where do we go?” she asked.

  Lev walked to the open door and looked out. “I studied the map earlier. We’re less than forty minutes from the border. There’s a town five miles away. We can get a car there, or at least I’d planned on it before we were attacked.”

  “The Saints will be there,” she said with a shake of her head. “We walk across the border just as we did in Poland.”

  Lev looked back at her. “It’s a long walk.”

  “And they’ll likely be searching the forest.”

  “We’ll take as many breaks as you need.”

  She nodded and took the first tentative step toward him. She winced but took another. And another and another until she was even with him.

  Reyna met his gaze. “I can do this. I don’t want to fall into their hands, Lev. I can’t.”

  “I won’t let them touch you,” he vowed.

  She then took his hand and squeezed it before she stepped onto the porch. Before Lev followed her, he got the blanket. With her blood loss and the night temperatures, he didn’t want to chance her getting chilled and catching a fever.

  He flipped the goggles down to bathe the area in green light. The terrain wasn’t easy for Reyna to traverse, but he was there to help her whenever she needed it. Many times, it was by sheer determination alone that she remained on her feet.

  Their slow-going cost them three hours before they reached the border to Norway. Reyna was just about out of energy. She was breathing hard, and she favored her left side more and more. Lev needed to find a place she could rest.

  He set her up against a tree with one of the rifles as he went to have a look around to see if any Saints were nearby. Lev crossed the border and slowed his steps. There was someone near, he knew it. He palmed his handgun and listened to the night, trying to pick up on the location and how many were out there when he heard something close.

  Lev stepped around the tree and lifted his gun, only to come face-to-face with the business end of a rifle.

  The old man had tufts of white hair and bushy white eyebrows. He said something in Norwegian that Lev couldn’t understand.

  “I’d love to answer whatever it is you just said,” Lev replied, “but you’ll need to repeat it in English.”

  “I said, what the hell are you doing on my land?” the old man stated angrily in heavily-accented English.

  Lev lifted the goggles and held the old man’s gaze in the dark. He could get off a shot as he dove to the side. There was a chance the old man might miss, but the way he held his rifle told Lev that the man used it often enough that his reflexes might be better than Lev thought.

  “I don’t have a choice,” Lev said.

  There was a good chance the man was a part of the Saints. He could lull Lev into believing that he wanted to help, only to call in the Saints as soon as he had both Lev and Reyna. And yet, Lev needed to get Reyna to safety.

  The old man raised a brow. “There’s always a choice, son. I’ve had men on my property for two days now, and I’m not going to have it anymore. If the authorities won’t help, I’ll do it myself.”

  “I’m not part of the others,” Lev told him. Then, he made the decision to take a chance. “They’re after me.”

  “And the woman with you.”

  Lev frowned.

  The old man snorted as he lowered his gun. “I saw you two an hour ago. She’s hurt.”

  “Yes.”

  “Then you best lower your gun and get her before the others find you.”

  Lev hesitated, his weapon still trained on the old man. If he made the wrong decision here, it could be the end of them.

  The old man sighed. “Son, I’m too old for this. If you want my help, you have it. But you’re going to have to trust me.”

  Trust. The very thing Lev had told Reyna she needed to do. That had worked out well. He only hoped this did, as well.

  “Thank you,” he said as he dropped his arm to his side.

  22

  “Reyna.”

  She lowered the rifle when she heard Lev’s voice. He wasn’t alone, however, and that worried her.

  “It’s okay,” Lev said. “Helge is a friend. He wants to help.”

  Reyna trusted Lev, but she also knew how deep the Saints went into communities. It was the very young and the very old that people never expected, and yet that’s exactly who the Saints sent after you.

  Lev squatted beside her. He smiled in the darkness and put his hand over hers that held the gun. “Trust me.”

  “I do.”

  “Then let’s get you to Helge’s.”

  “If he’s a Saint, it’s a trap. If he isn’t, then we’re signin
g his death warrant.”

  Out of the darkness came a deep Norwegian voice, rusty with age. “It’s a chance I’ll take.”

  Lev gave her a nod.

  What choice did she have, really? She was bleeding again. She’d felt it seep into the bandages. It wasn’t a lot, but it was enough that it caused her to worry.

  Reyna let Lev help her to her feet. The next instant, she had him on her bad side, and Helge was on her other. The Norwegian was bent slightly with age, but his gaze scanned the area as stealthily as an eagle.

  The three were silent as they crossed the border. Reyna didn’t brush Lev’s hand away when he wrapped it around her to help support her. She was concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, so she was surprised when Helge suddenly stopped and motioned them behind him.

  Lev moved to a large boulder seconds before two armed men came into view. The three stood as still as the dead until the men passed. After, their pace quickened to Helge’s.

  They followed the Norwegian, who took them around boulders to the smoothest part of the mountain. Reyna was shaking from exertion by the time they finally reached Helge’s house.

  They entered through the back door with Helge closing and locking the door behind him. Lev led her into the kitchen where she sank gratefully into a chair before her legs gave out.

  She lifted her shirt as Lev knelt beside her so he could get to the bandage. His lips flattened when he saw it stained with blood, but he didn’t admonish her.

  Reyna closed her eyes as he cut through the bandages with the first-aid supplies. She hadn’t noticed the pain too much while they were dodging the Saints, but now that she was sitting down and relatively safe, it slammed into her.

  “Good work,” Helge said.

  She opened her eyes to see him peering over Lev’s shoulder at her injury.

  Then Helge’s blue gaze met hers. He gave her a nod. “How about some soup?”

  “That sounds delicious,” she replied as she realized how hungry she was.

  He smiled and turned to the stove. Reyna closed her eyes once more. Lev’s touch was light and quick. When he finished, she lowered her shirt but remained leaning back in the chair.

  Lev’s lips touched her forehead in a quick kiss that made her smile. She opened her eyes to look into his. Once more, she found herself thankful that luck had been on their side so they could make it this far.

  “How much time did we lose while I was unconscious?” she asked.

  He shrugged and took the chair beside her. “About four hours.”

  “We could be at the coast by now.”

  Helge snorted, his back to them as he stirred the soup in the large pot. “There are roadblocks everywhere. And you saw them in the forest. They don’t care whose land they’re on.”

  “Why are you helping us?” Lev asked.

  Helge shifted to the side to face them. “I don’t trust these people. They say they’re part of my government and the police, but something isn’t right. Why are they after you?”

  Lev didn’t reply. He looked at her, letting Reyna decide how much to tell the Norwegian.

  She took a deep breath and released it. “They’re called the Saints. They’re a global organization that has infiltrated every government around the world. Their reach now extends to the military and other authorities, as well as common people such as yourself.”

  “You think I’m one of these...Saints?” Helge asked with a frown.

  Reyna looked into his face lined with age. “I was undercover with them for five years. The Saints turn people you would never suspect.”

  “Like my grandson,” Helge said. His gaze dropped to the floor as his eyes became unfocused with memories. Then he blinked and drew in a deep breath. “I didn’t know the name of them, but I knew whatever he was involved in, no matter that it was for the government, wasn’t good.” He looked at Reyna then Lev and touched his chest over his heart. “I knew it here. I tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen.”

  “Every person makes their own choices,” Lev replied.

  Helge sighed loudly. “I lost my grandson to them. I won’t lose anyone else. Not even you two.”

  “They’re after us,” Reyna said. “They know I was spying.”

  Lev then said, “And I’m working with a group from the US who is fighting them.”

  “Good,” Helge said with a smile. “People need to stand up for what they believe in. We don’t need another world war.”

  He walked out of the kitchen then, leaving them alone. Reyna found her gaze sliding to Lev, who watched her.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked.

  She took stock of her body. “I’ve felt better, but I’ll be fine with a bit of rest.”

  “You heard him. We’ll have a hell of a time getting to the coast.”

  “We can’t stay here, and we can’t backtrack.”

  Lev rubbed his eyes with this thumb and forefinger. “Then I don’t know what to do.”

  “Here,” Helge said as he returned to the kitchen and handed clothes to her and Lev. Then he jerked his chin to Lev. “Go take a shower and change. It’ll be another hour before the soup is ready.”

  Reyna nodded when Lev glanced her way. She had a handgun in the waist of her pants if Helge tried anything. Lev walked from the kitchen and disappeared around the corner.

  “He cares a great deal for you.”

  Her head snapped to Helge. “We’re in this together.”

  “Together, yes,” he said with a nod. “But I see it in his eyes. Just as I see it in yours.”

  “What do you see?” She couldn’t help but ask.

  “A deep connection. There is love growing.”

  He said it as if he spoke about the weather, then turned back to stir the soup.

  Reyna glanced in the direction that Lev had disappeared. “I loved once.”

  “You are again.”

  How could this stranger see what she couldn’t? She knew she cared about Lev. That much was clear by how far she’d come with him. Then there was their night in Sweden.

  When she glanced at Helge, he was grinning at her. “What?” she asked.

  “You’re blushing.”

  Her hands went to her cheeks that were indeed warm. She lowered her arms. “He’s amazing. I wouldn’t be here without him.”

  “The two of you are a good team. I suspect, in all things. My wife and I were the same. The best day of my life was when I met her. The worst was when she passed.”

  “I’m sorry,” Reyna said.

  He grinned and shrugged. “I’m not. We’ll be together again soon.”

  She realized that as much as she’d loved Arthur, she didn’t feel that way about him. She could’ve had a good life with him. But when she thought of a future with Lev, she knew it wouldn’t be good. It would be great.

  Spectacular, actually.

  “This may be the only time I have with Lev,” she said.

  Helge’s lips twisted as he frowned. “Then I suggest you take every second you can. Everyone should do that with the ones they love because they’re gone all too soon.”

  She was thinking about the Norwegian’s statement when Lev returned. His hair was wet, but he had on clean clothes. The navy sweater was a little frayed around the edges, but the khaki pants were in excellent condition. And the fit was good, as well.

  “The food smells delicious,” Lev said.

  Helge smiled and jerked his head to Reyna. “Take your woman and get her changed.”

  She laughed but took Lev’s hand. They walked to the back room. As they did, she couldn’t help but pray that Helge was indeed on their side and not with the Saints. She liked him, and she didn’t want to have to kill him.

  “I can remove the bandage if you want a shower,” Lev said.

  She shook her head. “As good as that sounds, I’m not sure I could stand up for it.”

  “You’ll feel better after some food.”

  “I’m so hungry, I think I could eat the entir
e pot myself.”

  Lev laughed and reached for the hem of her shirt. Then he paused. “Your skin is chilled.”

  “A little.”

  “I think you should keep the tee shirt on and put the sweater on over it.”

  They put the cream sweater on together, and as soon as it was in place, she sighed. She’d had no idea how cold she was until then.

  “I can’t wait until I can remove your clothes instead of putting you in them,” Lev said with a grin.

  She laughed and lifted her face for a kiss. Their lips met and lingered before she pulled back. “I can’t wait for that either.”

  Reyna swayed, but Lev easily caught her. “Whoa. Let’s get you sitting down.”

  They returned to the kitchen to find three bowls of soup on the table, but Helge was nowhere to be found. He came back in a moment later with a bottle in one hand.

  He lifted it up and said, “I thought we could have some akevitt.”

  Lev frowned as he glanced at her.

  Reyna nodded to Helge and told Lev, “It’s schnapps.”

  “I won’t pass up that offer,” Lev replied.

  23

  They just might make it. Lev didn’t want to hope too hard because life had a way of kicking his feet out from under him when he became too cocky. But things were certainly looking up.

  The schnapps was good. Or maybe it was the company. It could be because, for the first time in days, there seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel. It was faint, but it was there.

  Reyna smiled at him as she ate her second bowl of soup. She had only sipped her schnapps, preferring water instead. The warmth, food, and safety did her good, though he knew they couldn’t remain with Helge too long. Already, they’d put him in danger. It didn’t matter that he wanted to help them. Lev couldn’t have the old man’s death on his conscience.

  Lev looked at the clock on the wall, tallying up the time they’d been at Helge’s and figuring out when they should leave.

  “Stay,” the old man said. “You could both use the sleep.”

  Lev’s gaze slid to Reyna. She needed the rest, that was for sure.

  As if reading his mind, she shook her head before she looked at Helge. “We’ve already stayed longer than we should. The Saints will come looking for us.”