“Roger that.” Frowning, he shoved the radio and hand-held device into his backpack and shot her with a dark look. “You heard the man, blondie. Let’s pick up the pace.”
For a crazy instant she considered making a run for it. Now that her hands were free, she would be able to run unencumbered. With a storm approaching, maybe her captor would be forced to return to the chopper without her. She envisioned herself barreling down the ravine to her left. If she could reach the stream…
“Don’t even think about it.”
Mattie glanced at him. Fifteen feet separated them. Not much of a head start, but suddenly she knew this moment would probably be her last chance for escape.
“I can’t go back,” she said.
“Don’t do anything stupid.”
“I know you don’t believe me, but I’m innocent. I swear on my life. All I need is the chance to prove it.”
“You’re not going to get the chance out here in the middle of nowhere.”
It’s now or never…
Mattie broke into a sprint toward the stream at the base of the ravine. She crashed through the brush, veered left to avoid a stand of sapling pines. She could hear his occasional curse behind her as his heavy boots pounded the ground. She ran as she had never run before, hurdling over fallen logs and rocks the size of basketballs. Her only thought was that if he caught her, her life would be over.
The next thing she knew, his strong arms were wrapped around her from behind. She screamed as he dragged her down. She fell hard on her stomach, twisted and lashed out with both feet.
He grunted when her heel caught his chin. She saw his head snap back, caught a glimpse of his angry eyes and a slash of blood where her heel had cut him.
“Stop resisting!” he growled.
But Mattie was fighting for her life. She’d been locked up for four months like an animal for an unspeakable crime she hadn’t committed. Her only hope of salvaging her life was escape. She’d decided a long time ago that she would rather die than spend the rest of her life in a cage.
But he was incredibly strong. An animal sound tore from her throat as he pinned her to the ground. He was sitting on her abdomen, his hands manacling her wrists above her head.
“Pull yourself together,” he snapped.
“I’m not going with you,” Mattie panted.
“You don’t have a say in the matter.”
Helplessness and impotent rage burned through her. To her horror, tears welled. Humiliated, Mattie tried to turn away, but he held her flat.
“You’ve left me no choice but to cuff you,” he said.
Mattie hated the cuffs; they made her feel like a criminal. He snapped the nylon restraints into place—in front—which made them marginally more comfortable.
He rose and helped her to her feet. “If you have a beef with the verdict, you’ve got to handle it through the courts. Not out here. There’s a dangerous storm on the way and four killers who will stop at nothing to get whatever secrets you have locked inside your head. Do you understand?”
“What I understand,” she said in a trembling voice, “is that neither justice nor my life means anything to you.”
He studied her as if she were a puzzle missing a vital piece, then he motioned toward the trail. “When we get to the chopper I’ll clean up that cut on your temple.”
The cut was so inconsequential when her life was destroyed that Mattie choked back a hysterical laugh. “Like that’s going to make everything all better.”
“Lady, I’m just doing my job the best way I know how. If you’re as smart as your file claims you are, you’ll make it easier on both of us and cooperate.”
“I will play no role in the ruination of my life.”
“You should have thought about that before you got involved with those thugs.” He jammed his thumb in the direction from which they’d come. “If those bastards get their hands on you, you will find out the true meaning of brutality.”
“I’d rather die than spend the rest of my life in prison.”
“Keep it up and you’ll get your wish.” He looked at his watch. “Now let’s move out.”
He set a grueling pace as they trekked toward the pick-up location. Mattie felt as if she were walking toward the firing squad. She couldn’t believe she’d blown her only chance of escape.
Within minutes, the Whop! Whop! Whop! of the chopper’s rotor blades rent the air. Through the trees she spotted the large craft perched on a rocky ridge in a clearing. The fuselage was yellow with black lettering.
They were twenty yards away when a man in khaki pants and a parka opened the chopper’s hatch and stepped out. “About damn time,” he said, his eyes going from her captor to her and lingering.
Mattie looked away, wondering if this would be the last time she saw trees, the last time she breathed in mountain air and freedom.
“She give you any problems?” the man asked.
Her captor gave her a measuring look. “None I couldn’t handle.”