Ryshia Kennie - Desire In The Desert

Kate put her fingers to her lips and the woman nodded while avidly watching her. She pointed at Tara and then back at the tunnel where she crouched so that it was clear what she wanted her to do and where she wanted her to go, once she managed to free her. It was a backup plan, nothing else. So that if anything happened to her, as long as she was untied, Tara could still get out and to safety.

Kate looked toward the campfire and saw that there were three men. She could hear their voices and laughter and, as the flames danced, she could also see that they were sitting with their backs to her. The tricky part would be getting Tara free, for they could see in the moonlight as easily as Kate could.

She slid down the path that wound steeply from the tunnel to the hill. She kept low and used her feet to control and steer her way while remaining hidden from the men by the shrubbery growing up against the hill.

With a bump she was on her butt on level ground and the only thing that stood between her and discovery was a grassy bush and another palm tree. She looked over and Tara was watching her. Kate shook her head and the woman looked away.

She could see that Tara’s hands were tied behind her back and secured to the trunk of a palm tree. She could also see that they’d only used rope. They obviously hadn’t expected much resistance and she hadn’t expected that it would be that easy. She fished the knife she always carried out of her pocket. It couldn’t be called a pocketknife but it couldn’t be called a hunting knife, either. All she knew was that it could slide through any kind of rope with ease.

She held her breath, watching the men. They were caught up in their conversation, and none was paying attention. She’d be in the open for a minute, the time it took to get to Tara. She just needed Tara to back up against the palm tree. She waited until the woman glanced at her and she motioned to the tree. Tara moved until her back was pressed against it.

Smart, Kate thought. So far she was following every cue with ease.

Kate moved in swiftly, keeping low to the ground. Within a minute Tara was free and Kate had given her whispered directions and she was off.

Kate turned on her heels, moving to face the kidnappers; it only took a second but it was enough. As she went to follow Tara she was grabbed roughly from behind.

“What are you doing?” the male voice snarled in Arabic.

“Run!” she yelled at Tara and saw her scramble up the last few feet and disappear into the tunnel.

His grip on her arm was so tight Kate bit her lip against the pain as he twisted her around.

“Where’s the sheikka? Where is she?” he roared, his face half hidden by a shaggy beard, his eyes wild, not focusing on her as his hand bit into her arm.

Her other arm was free and with it she quietly moved to reach her gun without drawing his attention to what she was doing.

But as he looked up toward the tunnel, he yanked her arm hard, ramming it up between her shoulders and making her bite back a shriek of pain, causing her other hand to drop from where she had been inching toward her weapon.

“Get her back! Get her now!” he shrieked into her face.

“Run, Tara!” Kate screamed and it was the last thing she did as her captor’s fist connected with her jaw.

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