“Yes. Whatever you do to me is nothing compared to what they’ll do if I talk.” Then he pressed his lips together and tipped his head as if to say do your worst. Only the trembling of his body revealed how terrified he actually was.
Connor stifled a sigh. Shit. He wasn’t in the mood to torture anyone, especially a kid who probably hadn’t even screwed his first woman yet.
But damn it, he needed that location.
And he was willing to go to any lengths to get it.
Hudson’s stomach was in knots as she waited outside the mill. She’d been pacing for the past fifteen minutes, straining to hear what was going on inside, but if the men were talking, their voices were too soft to make out. She didn’t dare get too close to the door, which was gaping open. She couldn’t risk the Enforcer recognizing her.
Lennox had given up on making conversation with her. He was now lying on the dirt with his head propped in his hands and tilted up at the clear blue sky, his eyes closed as he basked in its rays.
She grew more and more nauseous with each passing minute. Worst-case scenarios flashed in her mind, and she could practically see the deserter regaling Connor and Rylan with the story of how Dominik’s twin sister had escaped the compound, how everyone was looking for her. Connor would casually ask, “What’s her name?” and the kid would say, “Hudson.”
And then the only person staring down the barrel of Connor’s gun, begging him not to pull the trigger, would be her.
When she heard the men’s footsteps, her heart lurched and her breathing quickened, but there was no gun in Connor’s hand when he walked out the door. It was poking out of his waistband instead. And rather than the fury and betrayal she’d expected to find in his eyes, all she saw was sheer disgust.
“He’s not talking,” he announced.
Lennox’s eyes snapped open. “Told ya. He’s a stubborn little bastard, huh?” He hopped to his feet and approached the group. “I didn’t hear any screams.”
“Didn’t have the heart to wail on him,” Connor admitted. “He’s just a kid.”
“How old is he? If he’s that young, he might be a trainee.” Hudson was surprised by how calm her voice sounded when her windpipe was clogged with terror.
Rylan shrugged. “I’d put him at eighteen or nineteen.”
“Can I go in to see him? He might talk to me.” Her stomach churned. “Actually, there’s a chance I might even know him. I didn’t have much contact with the recruits, but I did meet a few of them when I was working at the hospital.”
Lennox sucked in a sharp breath. “You’re from the city?” His head swiveled to Connor. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me that?”
“Because it’s not important.” Connor shrugged. “She’s one of us now.”
Her heart soared when he said that, but it didn’t stay airborne for long. It plummeted even faster than it had flown, twisting in the pit of her stomach. She had to tell Connor the truth. She had to. But not here, and especially not in front of Rylan and Lennox.
It would have to wait until they got back to camp, but no longer than that, because he considered her one of them, damn it. If she didn’t come clean soon, the guilt was liable to eat her alive.
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to give it a shot,” Connor said in reply to her offer. “C’mon.”
He took a step to the door, but she stopped him by touching his arm. “Let me talk to him alone,” she said quietly.
“What for?”
“He obviously doesn’t trust you guys,” she pointed out. “If you come in with me, he’ll probably clam up again, but if I go in there alone…” It was her turn to shrug. “He might respond better to a woman. See me as less of a threat.”
Connor thought it over. “Yeah, you could be right about that.” He quickly affected a stern tone. “Don’t get too close to him, and keep your gun on him at all times. He’s tied up, but those fuckers are well trained. You never know what they’ll do.”
Nodding, she withdrew the pistol she’d tucked into her boot, then released the safety and headed for the building. She felt Connor’s eyes boring into her back with every step she took. Not suspiciously, but protectively, as if he was worried that the deserter might find a way to hurt her. She was worried too. Who knew what the kid would do if he recognized her? He might shout out her name loud enough for everyone in a five-mile radius to —
She didn’t know him.
Relief flooded her body as she encountered a total stranger. Light brown hair, wiry body, and completely unfamiliar features.
But the relief drained away when the kid’s eyes widened at the sight of her.
Shit. They might not have met before, but like Tamara, he’d clearly picked up on her resemblance to Dominik.
“Holy shit,” he blurted out.
Hudson instantly raised her finger to her lips. “Keep your voice down.”
He looked alarmed, gazing past her toward the open door, then shaking his head as if he couldn’t fathom what was happening. “You’re…”
“Shut. Up,” she hissed.