****
Lux spent two hours secreted in her room. Josh thought about going up and speaking to her but decided against it. She would come down when she was ready. In the meantime, he waited in the family room his ears on alert for a sound of her.
She must have been walking on tip toes because she made so little sound, but he heard her. Josh wanted to see what she was up to, so he waited before approaching her.
She had the front door open and was about to walk out the house when he spoke. “I know I told you not to leave this house without me!”
Lux jumped at the sound of his voice, but came back fighting. “Well, you better hurry up and get your coat because I’m going for a walk with or without you.”
Amused by her comment, he should have known better than to think she’d be willing to follow his order.
As they walked through the wooded area that ran behind the house, Josh took a surreptitious look at the woman at his side. He wondered what she was thinking, but refrained from asking. He could tell she was still mad at him and decided, for now, silence was probably his best friend.
Using the time, Josh took the opportunity to contemplate how he could move their relationship back to the position reminiscent of when they were first married. Back then, their lives had seemed so uncomplicated; just two young people loving each other without restraint.
He hoped, if he played things right, Lux would at least give their marriage a chance. They might fight at the drop of a hat, but he was sure she still had feelings for him. Sexual attraction wasn’t their problem. Her lack of trust in his commitment to them as a couple was what stood in their way. More accurately, his association with her brother and her stubborn refusal to talk openly with Sam was the problem.
The vibration of his cell phone pulled Josh out of his introspection. Reaching into his pocket, he withdrew and glanced at the screen.
“Hey–”
“Get out of the house, now!” Jason said with a seriousness Josh wasn’t prepared to ignore.
Taking hold of Lux’s hand, he turned and began to pull her back the way they’d come. His steps increased in speed even as he still held the phone to his ear.
“What’s going on?” He asked as his eyes shifted from side to side, attempting to take in their whole surroundings at once.
Jason’s voice faded in and out and Josh only caught portions of his response. The one factor that was abundantly clear was the urgency in his brother’s voice. Josh knew whatever Jason was trying to tell him was important, and he wasn’t about to take any chances with their safety.
The line went dead and Josh stuffed the phone back into his pocket. The lengths of his strides increased further and he realized he was practically dragging Lux behind him. But he didn’t let up. With each step, his feelings of urgency increased. “We need to get out of here!”
“I thought this was private property,” Lux responded.
“It is, but Jason was trying to tell me something. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but I know we need to hurry!” Josh said taking his eyes from their surroundings in the hope of transferring his urgency at the precariousness of their situation.
When she balked in response to his demand, his gaze finally followed the direction she was looking in. Two men were now on the path, and they were coming at them, fast.
“Shit!” Josh mumbled under his breath, worry taking hold of him. “Run!” He shouted, spinning them both around. Although she was having difficulty keeping up with him, his lady could move quickly.
Even as their strides ate up the ground, Josh knew they were in trouble when three more people emerged from the trees. On his own he wouldn’t have given the odds a second thought. With Lux beside him his anxiety grew in direct relation to his heartbeat.
“Stay close to me,” Josh whispered.
“What are you going to do, there are five of them?”
Josh spared her a half smile as adrenalin pumped through his body. “I’m about to kick some tree hiding ass,” he muttered, his grin widening.
Choosing to ignore her shocked expression, Josh readied himself to protect his wife.
“Are you crazy?! If we hurry we may still be able to get away from them,” Lux cried, holding on to his arm.
“Yeah, but one of them is a girl and the other four look like flat-footed pussies!” Josh shouted his last words.
“For God’s sake don’t antagonize them, suppose they have guns!”
“If they wanted to shoot us they would have done it already. We’ve been in their sights for a while.”
“I guess you’re right,” Lux agreed dropping down on flexed knees much the same as Josh.
“What the hell are you doing?!”
“Protecting your back, what does it look like?”