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“I’m from Brooklyn,” she said. “I don’t know from tropical islands.”
“What’s the most beautiful place you can think of? Somewhere special.”
“The East River.”
As she spoke, her eyes took on a less guarded expression, and he knew that she had begun to relax. “Okay, Sierra. Tell me about the East River.”
“There’s a park in Brooklyn where you can look across the river at the Manhattan skyline. And you can see the Statue of Liberty.”
Most people chose a more secluded version of beauty, but he was coming to realize that she was unique. “Imagine you’re there. Overhead is a beautiful sky.”
“At sunset,” she said. “The air is soft and pink. Then the city begins to light up. It’s magical.”
“Feel the breeze off the water. Hear the gulls and the lapping of the waves. Close your eyes and see it.”
She nodded. Her lips formed a gentle smile.
“Now relax,” he said. “Start with your toes and your feet. Allow those muscles to release. Now your calves. Your thighs.”
“Feels good.” A soft moan escaped her lips.
“Relax your hips and your buttocks.”
Trevor glanced down at her full, sexy hips. Even in the shapeless garment, her hourglass figure enticed him. He longed to touch her, to hold her lush body against his.
This had to be the most unusual interrogation he’d ever done. He felt as if he was making love to her with his words, caressing her with his voice. “Feel your spine, Sierra. Relax each vertebra.”
He could see the tension leaving her body as she relaxed her arms, shoulders and neck. Breathing deeply, she was on the verge of sleep when he whispered a final suggestion. “When you wake, you will remember nothing of this interrogation. You’ll feel refreshed.”
For a few more minutes, he sat and watched, making sure she was asleep. Her rosebud lips parted slightly, and the slight frown lines across her forehead smoothed. She was serene and so damn pretty that he could hardly believe it. Trevor whispered two words he had never before spoken to an interrogation subject. “I’m sorry.”
LEAVING SIERRA TO SLEEP until the effects of the TD wore off, Trevor went upstairs to inform the others of the little he had learned from her.
It was unfortunate that she hadn’t been able to provide him with a solid lead on the Montana Militia for a Free America—the group of homegrown terrorists that Lyle Nelson, Sierra’s former fiancé, had belonged to.
When it came to traitors, the Militia were among the worst. They pretended to be fighting for a free America, while committing murder, sabotaging railroad trains and kidnapping innocent women and children. Their reign of terror had started five years ago, when the Militia had bombed a government building in an act of senseless terror that resulted in the deaths of two hundred people, including the sister of Cameron Murphy, the former Special Forces colonel who’d founded Big Sky Bounty Hunters.
With Murphy’s help, the Militia had been caught, they were tried and convicted. They should have been rotting in Montana’s Fortress prison, serving life sentences with no chance of parole. Instead, two months ago, they had done the impossible and escaped.
Though the bounty hunters had managed to thwart two of the Militia’s deadly schemes, these bastards were still at large, and nobody had a clue as to their whereabouts.
It was damn frustrating. The Big Sky Bounty Hunters were highly trained experts who had served in the Special Forces under Cameron Murphy. They should have been able to nab the Militia without breaking a sweat. Instead, they were thwarted at every turn.
In the kitchen, Trevor ran into Mike Clark, who was making a sandwich. Clark studied Trevor, reading his emotions. Then he frowned. “The interrogation didn’t go well.”
Trevor gave a noncommittal shrug. He sure as hell wasn’t going to talk about his attraction to Sierra. “Did you learn anything else at Lyle Nelson’s funeral?”
“Most of the townspeople hate the Militia, but there’s a growing faction of sympathizers. A backlash. It’s mostly young men who think there’s something cool about being an outlaw.”
Disgusted, Trevor said, “The Militia isn’t like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. They’re cold-blooded killers.”
“Terrorists.” Mike held up his sandwich. “Hungry?”
“Not now. Is Murphy around?”
“In the front.”
Trevor entered the large, pine-paneled room where Tony Lombardi and Jacob Powell were playing darts. Lombardi scored at the edge of the bull’s eye and broke into a victory dance. In his Bronx accent, he chanted, “Oh, yeah. I’m the champ. Oh, yeah.”
“You? Beating me?” Powell scoffed. “No way do I lose to a geologist.”
“You know what they say—Geologists got stones.”
Powell’s eyes narrowed as he took aim, then flipped his dart. Dead center. “The champ? You’re the chump.”
“How’d you do that?”
Powell—a decorated fighter pilot and aviator—pointed to his green eyes, then flared his fingers. “Eye-hand coordination. I’m the best. That’s why you can call me Bull’s-eye Powell.”
Lombardi rolled his eyes. “That’s some bull, all right.”
“Admit it. I beat your sorry ass.”
“Hey! This is a fine ass,” Lombardi protested. “Ask any female.”
He used his geology training in tracking, but Lombardi’s real talent was finding ladies who were susceptible to his charms. “Maybe you guys should come with me tonight. There’s this little tavern in Helena where the beer is cold and the ladies are hot.”
“Isabella wouldn’t like that.” Powell couldn’t help grinning as he said the name of the woman he loved.
“She’s got you on a leash,” Lombardi teased.
“There’s no place else I want to be,” his friend admitted.
Lombardi groaned and turned to Trevor. “You want to come to Helena tonight?”
“I’m busy.” He needed to wait a couple of hours be fore taking Sierra home. After that, he wanted to keep his options open in case she needed more assistance. Cameron Murphy, who was sitting in a rocking chair near the window, interrupted. “Blackhaw, what did you learn from the subject?”
Though they were no longer in the military, Trevor had the feeling that he should snap to attention. He respected his former commanding officer more than any man alive.
“Sierra Collins,” he said. “Formerly engaged to Lyle Nelson. She hates the Militia. And Lyle. He stole the money she’d been saving to move back to Brooklyn.”
“She’s a Brooklyn babe,” Lombardi said with a knowing grin. “Smart. Tight-lipped. Tough. How the hell did she end up in Montana?”
“She’s wondering the same thing,” Trevor replied.
“Any information,” Murphy asked, “about the Militia’s hideout?”
“No. But after the jailbreak, Lyle returned to her house for one night. Our prior assumption that the Militia stuck together was incorrect.”
“Hold it,” Lombardi said. In an instant, his smart-aleck attitude transformed to seriousness. “My analysis of the soil samples from Lyle Nelson’s boots led us to the deserted copper mine. That’s where they stayed after the jailbreak.”
“After that,” Trevor said, “they dispersed. Lyle Nelson went to Sierra’s house.”
“If she hates him so much,” Lombardi asked, “why didn’t she turn him in?”
“She was in a hostage situation,” Trevor said.
“Do you believe her?” Murphy probed.
“She wasn’t holding anything back.” Trevor vividly recalled the agony she’d gone through in revealing her most closely held secret, about her miscarriage. “She doesn’t know where the Militia is hiding out.”
“Nonetheless,” Murphy said, “Sierra Collins might be of value to us.”
“How so?”
“If she hates the Militia as much as she claims, they might feel the same way about her.”
“Are you suggesting they might come after her?”
“Revenge,” Murphy stated. “It’s part of the Militia’s creed.”
“I agree,” Clark said as he joined them. “Sierra didn’t make any friends at the funeral when she spat on Lyle Nelson’s coffin and said he should burn in hell.”
“That took nerve,” Lombardi murmured. “She’s a Brooklyn babe, for sure.”
Trevor hadn’t been thinking of Sierra as a potential victim, but it was a strong possibility. If the Militia wanted to teach her a lesson… “Damn it!”
“Problem?” Murphy asked.
“I might have made her situation worse. I might have antagonized a couple of sympathizers at the funeral.”
“Might have?”
“Three men threatened her,” Trevor said. “I took them down.”
“Geez,” Lombardi said. “Good way to keep a low profile, Blackhaw.”
Though the bounty hunters didn’t go out of their way to keep their identities secret, they didn’t advertise their presence. Outside of law enforcement, most people weren’t aware of their existence as an organized group.
“I’ll keep an eye on Sierra,” Trevor said. “If the Militia comes after her, I’ll be ready for them.”
Murphy nodded. “That’s as good a plan as any. Those snakes have gone underground, and we’re not having much luck in finding their den.”
Powell went to the board and gathered his darts. He grumbled, “This should have been over. The Militia isn’t smart enough to keep evading us.”
“Don’t underestimate them,” Murphy warned. “We’re not the only ones in the dark. State and national law enforcement are also involved.”
“Don’t I know it,” Powell said. His beloved Isabella was Secret Service. “I think there’s somebody else working with the Militia, pulling their strings. Somebody has got to be financing them.”
Though the other men nodded in agreement, Trevor’s mind was elsewhere. He’d heard all these arguments before and agreed with them. The Militia might have started out working alone, but it seemed they could now be part of a larger terrorist campaign.
His thoughts returned to Sierra. How could a single, innocent woman hope to stand up to the Militia, much less to a greater force of evil? Her actions at the funeral had been gutsy, but not wise. It would be his job to protect her now.
While the other men made plans and divided up duties, Trevor returned to the basement interrogation room, where Sierra still slept peacefully as a tawny kitten with a full belly of sweet cream. This kitten had claws, he reminded himself. When it came to defending herself, she was more like a tiger cub than a domesticated tabby cat.
Carefully, he unfastened the restraints on her arms, legs and waist. With light strokes, he massaged her hands to encourage circulation. Though the skin above her wrist was soft and pale, her palms were callused from hard work. She’d mentioned that she had two jobs. Where? What kind of work?
Trevor frowned. Sierra had an active schedule. Keeping an eye on her was going to be difficult unless he could convince her to invite him into her life, to let him get close…but not too close. He needed to maintain emotional distance. Getting personally involved with her would be a mistake.
Yet as he settled down to watch patiently while she slept, his heart stirred. She was different. She touched him in ways no one had before.
SIERRA WAS STUCK in a nightmare—aware that she was dreaming but unable to wake. Surrounded by thick fog, she spun around and saw Lyle stalking toward her. This was only a dream. Not real. Lyle was dead and buried. He could never hurt her again. Yet he reached out with long skeletal fingers.
His face was horrible. His eyes bulged from their sockets. His chin hung slack, and there were purple bruises around his neck. They said he’d hanged himself in his prison cell, but she didn’t believe it. Lyle was too mean to commit suicide.
His jaw creaked open. He spoke. “Sierra, find my killer. You owe me that much.”
“I don’t,” she protested. “I don’t owe you squat.”
She started running. Her feet were numb. She could hardly move. But she couldn’t let Lyle touch her and pull her into the grave with him.
She ran as fast as she could, into the trees. The forest closed around her. Then she saw another man, tall and still. His long black hair fell to his shoulders. His startling blue eyes drew her toward him. “Trevor,” she whispered.
His arms enfolded her. This felt so real; she could hear his heart beating, could smell his masculine scent. Her fingernails scratched against the cotton of his shirt. When she looked up at him, she was amazed by how handsome he was—his high cheekbones and straight nose. And his lips…
She wanted to kiss those well-shaped lips. Well, why not? She could hardly blame herself for dreaming. “Kiss me, Trevor.”
His mouth joined with hers. An incredible warmth flowed through her veins. Oh God, this was good. It seemed right. She felt alive and strong.
His mouth moved against hers, and she darted her tongue across the surface of his lips. He responded with the skill and strength she had come to expect from him after knowing him for only a few short hours. Pure sensation washed over her. This kiss was sexier than anything she’d felt before, sexier than going all the way with most men.
With a sigh, she separated from him. Awash in pleasure, she leaned back and enjoyed the fantastic awakening of her sensuality. “Oh, Trevor.”
She lifted her hand to her tingling lips. So good. So very good.
Then Sierra opened her eyes and blinked. Trevor was nowhere in sight. She was alone in the square, featureless room. Her arms were no longer tied down, and she raised her hands to her face. Her cheeks felt warm, probably because of her sensual dream. Or something else? What was it? Though she was refreshed and alert, her mind was blank, as though recent memories had been swept clean.
She knew that Trevor had brought her to this place. He had tied her up and asked her questions, and she remembered feeling angry and sad. But why?
“Lyle,” she said.
Sierra pushed herself out of the chair, went to the door and twisted the handle. Trevor stood in the hallway outside. He nodded to her.
He was as gorgeous as in her dream. Tall and lean and muscular. His black hair, pulled back in a ponytail, glistened. And those blue, blue eyes!
But he wasn’t her fantasy lover. This man was her captor, and she hated his guts. “I want to go home.”
“Sure thing,” he said. “Come with me.”
