Curt nearly cursed as he felt how light she was. He’d seen a recent picture of her, taken at her farewell dinner before she’d left. She’d practically shone with health. Pleasantly curvy, her skin glowing, and her face filled with happiness. No hint of fear.
The way she should always look.
He moved out behind Travis, eager to get her out of the tiny, dirty hut. Jace kept watch as they exited. Curt pressed Jenna’s face against his chest as they walked past the guard, whose neck he’d broken. Not that she could probably see that in the dark. Jace quickly pulled the body into the hut and shut the door. It wouldn’t take long for it to be found, but they planned to be long gone by then.
They only encountered one guard on their way out, which Jace and Travis quickly took care of. Curt pressed her face against him once more, protecting her. She shivered.
He found himself wanting to reassure her, feeling such a surge of protectiveness it took his breath away. This was Jenna, of course he was going to be protective. He’d known her since she was three. Played with her, watched over her. She was practically his cousin. Yeah, that was it. She was family. That was why he cared so much about her. Why he was so filled with rage over what had happened to her.
He’d feel the same if any other members of his family had been kidnapped and terrorized. Not that he had much left. Just a few distant cousins.
They hastily made their way towards the rendezvous point where Josh, his teammate at Black-Gray, and Gable, who was one of Travis’s men, would meet with them. He tried to shelter her as best he could from the vegetation slapping at her as he moved quickly. They didn’t have much time before the dead guards were spotted. When they reached the rendezvous point, they paused to wait for the others, who would be covering their backs. He set her down, crouching in front of her. It was still dark out, the moon only at half-mast. He drew his night vision goggles off. The moon provided enough light to see as Josh and Gable joined them. She let out a small gasp as she noticed the other men, then slammed her hand over her mouth and looked up at him. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. At least he hoped it was reassuring.
“Where are you hurt, little bit?” he asked.
“I’m just bruised,” she replied. “Nothing’s broken as far as I can tell.”
He frowned but nodded then grabbed her ankle, examining it.
“She hurt?” Josh asked, coming closer.
“No worse than we thought,” Curt said quietly. “This ankle will need to be wrapped.”
Josh nodded and quickly pulled out a bandage, winding it hastily around her ankle. Curt didn’t like the other man touching her, but stopped himself from snapping. This possessiveness was crazy. He needed to get himself under control.
“We can’t stop long. We need to get
further away from here before they spot their dead,” Travis ordered.
Josh grabbed a bottle of water and a protein bar from his pack, holding them out.
Jenna just stared at the other man. Curt felt her tremble. Christ, he was an idiot. In his hurry to get her safely out of there, he hadn’t taken any time to explain who these guys were.
“Take the water and bar, Jenna,” he told her. “That’s Josh, he works with me and he has some medical training. You met Travis, and that big guy is his brother Jace. The other one lurking around, keeping watch, is Gable. We were hired by your dad to find you.”
“Oh.” Her hands shook as she took the items from Josh. “Thank you.”
Josh nodded and moved away.
“I’m going to carry you on my back, all right? Think you’ll be okay?”
“I’ll be fine.”
The steadiness in her voice impressed him. He’d fully expected her to be hysterical. That they would have to sedate her. Instead she was a bit shaky but otherwise composed.
“I have something for you.”
She looked on curiously as he pulled something out of the bag he had strapped to his front. Her eyes widened as she took in the worn, brown fur of the old teddy bear.
“You brought Sergeant Teddy with you?”
Embarrassment filled him and he shrugged. “Asked your father for it before we left. No big deal.”
He handed it over and she pulled the old bear tight against her chest. She blinked. Oh hell, she wasn’t going to cry, was she?
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“I want you to drink all of that and eat every bite, understand me,” he ordered in a gruff voice as he gently picked her up, and they started to move out again. “I don’t want one crumb left behind or else.”