Marching Orders by Delores Fossen

Author:Delores Fossen [Fossen, Delores]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2003-12-22T23:00:00+00:00

A BULLET RICOCHETED OFF the branches of a dead oak, sending a spray of splinters into the air. Anna ducked her head down, but somehow managed to get her feet on the ground so they could run even faster. She let Rafe lead the way.

She risked a glance behind her. The sun had just risen, but she didn’t need the morning light to see the angry coils of black smoke and fire that rose from what was left of the cabin. It confirmed what she already knew—they’d barely made it out of there alive.

Buchanan and the others were nowhere in sight. Hopefully, they’d made it away from the attack, as well. Like them, they were probably running for cover. Anna didn’t want to think beyond that.

They scrambled over a rocky outcropping. She saw a cactus, a mound of low-growing, flourishing spikes just as Rafe hurdled himself over it. She hurdled, too, but not before one of the needle-like teeth syringed its way through her jeans and into her leg. She clamped her teeth over her lip to keep from crying out in pain.

More bullets.

These sprayed into the ground around them, kicking up dirt and small pebbles. Rafe shoved her in front of him, keeping a tight hold on her shoulder. He was pushing her to save them both, but in doing so, he had also put himself in the direct path of the bullets.

She thought of the baby. The risk, not just from the bullets but also from the exertion. Thankfully, she still jogged three times a week, and the doctor had assured her that it was all right to continue for months to come. But this wasn’t a jog. It was a run for their lives. If she stopped, those rebels would kill them. At least if she ran, they stood a chance. Right now, a chance was all they had.

They hurried through a curtain of thick trees, sending them from the sunlight into near darkness. The air was damp and moldy. It smelled of rotting leaves and other disgusting things. Tree trunks twisted into sinewy coils. There were no animals in sight. No sounds, either, except their gusty breaths and their shoes digging into the spongy ground.

The sweat slipped off Anna’s forehead and stung her eyes. Behind her, Rafe maneuvered her in the direction he wanted her to go. She felt limp, but she never stopped moving. To do so would mean surrender, and she had no plans to do that anytime soon. She would survive for her baby’s sake.

The cloak of trees didn’t last long. As much as Anna had disliked that eerie forest, she’d felt slightly safe there. It didn’t last. They soon exited the other side. And were forced to come to a dead stop.

Their chances of survival just went from slim to none.

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