Matt knew what Hannah had been asking of him. He knew that getting her to her feet wouldn’t be a matter of real aggression, and more one of channelling her thoughts and reactions towards one clear aim. But he still couldn’t do it.
It had been more than twenty-five years since he’d cowered before his father’s wrath. Everything he’d done and said had been calculated to please, because when his father had got angry it had been over the smallest things. This wasn’t the same, and pressuring Hannah back to her feet wouldn’t have been the same kind of aggression that his father had dispensed so freely, but he still couldn’t bring himself to do it. It wasn’t who he was. What he’d made himself be.
When she took her bag back, he caught the scent of her sweat. Not stale or pungent, but an exciting sweetness, which spoke to his body on a level that he’d learned to ignore.
He should ignore her touch, too. Something about the way that she snatched her hand away from his when he gave her the bag told Matt that she felt something too, and he couldn’t help but smile.
‘We split up?’ They’d reached the edge of the woodland, and Hannah took the map from him, spreading it out on the ground. The trees formed a wide band that stretched out ahead of them.
‘I think so. I’ll walk along the ridge, there, and you take the path.’ Matt chose the more uneven, sloping terrain. Physical effort might take his mind off her auburn hair, glinting in the sunlight, and the way that her sweat-dampened T-shirt didn’t hide her curves as well as it had.
‘Giving me the easier route again?’ For a moment her expression told him that she might well argue with that.
‘Don’t worry. I reckon there are enough challenges ahead of us to go round.’
Hannah grinned suddenly. ‘Probably. Thanks, I could do without climbing to the top of that ridge.’
They walked more slowly now, keeping each other within sight and scanning carefully for any signs of the man they were looking for. Matt caught a glimpse of blue, between the trees on the other side of the ridge, but when he scrambled down towards it, he saw that it was an abandoned plastic carrier bag, fluttering in the breeze.
‘Anything...?’ He heard Hannah’s voice, calling to him.
‘No. Nothing.’ Matt shouted back, and she started walking again. As the woodland area started to narrow, the ridge wound down to meet the path.
‘Where is he? Suppose we’re wrong, Matt.’ She seemed suddenly exhausted from the effort it had taken to get here.
‘Suppose we’re right?’
Hannah nodded, straightening suddenly. ‘We’ll walk through to the end of these trees, and then double back for a second look, shall we? When we’re sure he’s not here, we can think again.’
They walked for another ten minutes and then he saw it. Deep amongst the trees, in a patch of bright sunshine, the body of a man propped up against a tree stump. They forced their way through the undergrowth and Matt felt a bramble tear at his arm, catching at the supple branch before it hit Hannah straight in the face. She ducked ahead of him, jogging towards the man and falling to her knees beside him.
Matt wasn’t sure what to expect right now. Surely they weren’t supposed to carry out resuscitation procedures on what was presumably a perfectly healthy volunteer? Then the man opened his eyes, grinning up at Hannah.
‘Hi, there. You made it, then.’ He jerked his thumb behind him. ‘Go over there.’
Hannah didn’t move. ‘Are you all right?’
The man snorted with laughter. ‘Yes, of course I am. We try to make everything as authentic as possible, but I draw the line at having a real heart attack.’
She frowned suddenly. ‘Have you got some water?’
Matt felt for the water bottle in his bag. They’d both been caught up in the illusion, but Hannah had stepped out of it for a moment and seen a real issue. The man had been sitting in full sunlight, and it was a hot day. His face was already a little red.
‘Actually, I could do with some. Looks as if I’ll be here for a while.’ He took the bottle from Matt. ‘Thanks. Now go on, will you? Five minutes in that direction.’
Hannah got to her feet, staring ahead of them. She turned questioningly to Matt and he shrugged. He couldn’t see anything either.
They walked downhill through the brush, and he saw something amongst the trees. The shape of an expertly camouflaged tent. They approached it, and Matt ducked around the tent flap, seeing a busy crew and four tables, each bearing one of the team colours. He turned to Hannah, holding the flap aside for her.
‘Great.’ A young woman approached them, beaming. ‘Go over to your table...’
‘In a minute.’ Hannah’s grim determination to get the job in hand completed seemed to have deserted her. ‘I’d like to speak to whoever’s in charge.’
‘You’re still being timed.’ The young woman frowned.
‘Then I’d like to speak to them straight away, please.’ She shot an apologetic look at Matt and he nodded. He knew now what was on her mind, and he wasn’t about to tell her to forget it and hurry her over to the table.
A man responded to the woman’s beckoning hand, and hurried over. ‘Is there a problem?’