“I’ve got this feeling—” He shook his head, not sure if he should trust his gut or if he was overreacting.
“Whatever it is, go with it.” Sunny unfolded her emergency blanket, the silvery material crinkling in the small space. “I’m not about to second guess your intuition.”
Her trust in him eased some of the doubt. Could he ever believe in himself with such confidence again? He shook off the question and focused on protecting Sunny.
“We need to stretch these out above us, but it can’t be up against our bodies.” He pulled his blanket open and poked a corner on a broken off tree branch.
“Okay.” She didn’t even ask why, just got to work.
His sister, Piper, would pepper him with questions. Not Sunny. She obviously understood the need to follow orders, probably because of her time on Denali and Everest. Could be from her family and their upbringing too. All the Rebels were more than equipped for trouble.
“The way the helicopter veered our way has me worried they might be equipped with heat-sensors.” He shook his head, praying he was wrong. “These will help reflect our heat… hopefully. Probably.”
“Wow. More than three words. I’m impressed.” She speared her last corner onto a branch and turned to him with a strained smile.
He could barely make her out as the sunlight filtered through the cracks, but the way the light reflected off their silver makeshift tent onto her determined expression blew him away. He motioned her to him.
“We need to stay beneath these.” He patted the dirt beside him.
“So, more cuddling?” She wagged her eyebrows at him.
“Sunny.” He chuckled, rolling his eyes.
How could she possibly be this calm, shining brightness even in this dark moment? She laid down beside him, curling into him. Her body trembled against his. So, she wasn’t as unaffected as she let on.
“It’s going to be okay.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’m probably overreacting. As soon as they fly by, I’ll sneak a peek and see if we can show ourselves.”
“What if it’s the bad guys?” She pulled back and glanced up at him.
“Then they’ll fly right over and never know we’re here.”
“Okay.” She closed her eyes and nodded, tucking herself back under his chin.
The helicopter drew closer, and for the first time in a long time, Davis prayed. Not for himself, but for Sunny’s safety. The thump-thump drowned out all other sounds. Sunny shivered, and he pulled her tighter against him.
“Shh,” he whispered against her hair, though he doubted she could hear him. “It’s going to be ok—”
The rapid pop-pop from a M60E3 machine gun riddled the air, exploding in the downed trees just beyond them. Sunny shrieked, but quickly stifled it. Without hesitating, Davis rolled Sunny under him and shielded her with his body. Not that it would stop a bullet from piercing them both.
Bullets impacted on the other side of them. He took the chance of being seen and snagged his pack from where he’d pushed it just outside of their reflective protection. He’d never taken out the bulletproof plate lining the fabric against his backpack. It wasn’t much protection, but it might slow a bullet down enough to not go through both of them.
“See anything on thermal?” A voice barely audible over the rotors shouted above them.
The pause lasted what seemed like forever. Sunny muttered prayers as her hands trembled where they clutched Davis’s shirt. He focused on the noises above them. If he had to, he could use her gun to buy them some time and space. It wouldn’t do much good against a machine gun, but he was a decent shot. If he could take out the shooter, then the tail rotor, the helicopter would go down.
“Yes, I’m sure… movement over here.” The voice shouted again, anger and frustration lacing his words.
Bullets peppered down. They exploded trees and debris, sending shards through the open space. Something hit his cheek, and he flinched, tucking his head and body more around Sunny to shield her. If the bullets hit any closer, their chances of living through the next minute plummeted. No one would ever know what happened to them or to Justin.
A bullet struck just to the left of him. Dirt kicked up, and Sunny trembled beneath him. The swatches of sunlight opened wider with each barrage. Soon, the shooter would be able to see the reflective material of the blanket. Davis was surprised the man hadn’t already.
Davis had to act, do something to give them at least a chance at surviving. He stretched his hand to Sunny’s pack, reaching in the concealed pouch for her gun. He would no longer cower like a groundhog, just waiting to get shot in the back.
Sunny’s head snapped out from under his chin. Her wide eyes stared up at him as she shook her head. “Don’t,” she mouthed. His gaze bounced from one of her deep brown eyes to the other, probably pouring tortured soul all over her, but he didn’t care. All that mattered was that he did everything he could to keep her safe.
“Stay here,” he said, bending down and kissing her on the lips.
She wrapped her fingers into his shirt. “Davis, no.”
He kissed her again, not wanting to leave. But if he didn’t do something quick, they’d both be dead. He pried her fingers from the fabric and moved toward the opening.