Breakthrough Page 18

  “This, right here, is a good start.” She closed her eyes and continued playing with my hair while I touched the velvety folds of my favorite place on her body. She relaxed and tensed under my stroking.

  When I pressed harder, she gasped. She was ready to come again. I lowered my head and followed the same trail as my fingers. She grabbed my hair and held it while I spread her apart and tasted her. The tangy sweetness of her filled my mouth as I sucked on her swollen clit. In the short time we were together, I’d learned exactly what to do to maximize her pleasure. I edged her a few times before giving her another orgasm. I loved hearing her deep moans and wanted to memorize her sounds. When she came, she was loud and held me close until she was finished.

  I rested my head on her thigh and waited until her body slowed. “This is a nice place to be.”

  We were both sluggish in the afterglow of our love making. It was definitely love but I didn’t want to ruin our close moment by blurting it out so I, for once, kept quiet and enjoyed the solitude of us.

  Chapter Twenty-six

  “Erin wants to have a conference call at ten.” I looked at Brynn and saw a flicker of panic before she masked it with a nod.

  “Okay, that’s good news, right?” She slid her belt around her waist and fastened it on the fifth hole. She sat on the bed to finish tying her shiny, black boots. She paused to buff out a smudge with the pad of her thumb.

  “I love you in your uniform,” I said. She froze. I froze. Even though it was said in a different context, it was there between us. She didn’t look at me. “It fits you so well.” She stood and adjusted her tie before she turned.

  “Thank you. I hate that I have to wear one, but at least it’s comfortable.” She pulled me into her arms. “So, I guess that means you’ll have to stay here today, huh?”

  I frowned. “Yes. That way I have access to everything if she has specific questions or concerns. I hope you don’t mind.”

  She kissed the tip of my nose. “I understand. Wally and I will just have to make it without you. We will celebrate whatever news you get tonight with great food and maybe another nice walk.”

  “I would like that,” I said. I made a mental note to stay away from the word ‘love’ until I was long gone from this place. “Have a good day, dear.” It was a joke, but it felt good to say. Brynn tilted her ranger hat at me and she and Wally disappeared down the drive.

  I grabbed my computer to read Erin’s mail again. It was simple and just said she wanted to talk. I was on edge yesterday when I didn’t hear from her. It was ten times worse today. Three hours. I had three hours to kill. My journal was up-to-date except for last night’s entry.

  I decided to see what was happening in Hollywood. It turned out that I didn’t care about who had a baby, or who trashed a hotel room, or who got engaged. That news was all boring to me. I was upset when I got to Alaska because I felt like I was being punished. Now, I felt like Alaska had cleansed me. No wonder people had a hard time getting back into the swing of things after a long vacation. A vacation was a peek at another possibility. I looked at the time. Only an hour had passed.

  What if they hated it? I thought I rocked it, but maybe Travis thought it was too emotional and not as informative as he expected it to be. Erin chose me for my celebrity interview skills. Maybe my reporting ability wasn’t up to the standard they were looking for.

  A walk was out of the question. If I missed Erin’s call, she would not be happy. The cabin was spotless so I couldn’t busy myself with housework. My laundry was caught up. There wasn’t a single thing I could do to occupy my time except watch a show or a movie. I started a movie on my laptop that I had seen a dozen times and did my best to ignore the time and my phone. When the call came in, I jumped and answered it immediately.

  “This is Kennedy.” Force of habit, even though I knew it was Erin.

  “So we read everything you sent.”

  “What did you think of the articles?” I asked.

  “Oh, the articles were great. Fantastic even. Travis has a few suggestions, but they can be handled when you’re back in California.”

  “Oh, that’s such a relief.” I relaxed for the first time all morning.

  “But that’s not what I called about.”

  “Okay.” I was missing something. “Why did you call?”

  “I think the real gem is your journal.”

  I was completely confused. “What are you talking about?”

  “Your diary or journal or whatever you want to call it. I read that all day. I couldn’t put it down. All of the issues you’ve had there. It was fantastic. The best I’ve ever read from you. I think you should write a book.” Whatever she was talking about, she was dead serious.

  “Wait a minute. How did you get my journal?” Did I send it to her by mistake? I pulled up my sent files.

  “It was in your Dropbox. I just assumed you wanted me to read it,” she said.

  I wanted to die, I was so embarrassed. My boss read my most intimate details, my thoughts, my feelings about Brynn, our sex life, the poaching, the sanctuary. That journal documented every single thing I did in Alaska. “I didn’t mean for you to read it. The sanctuary and the fishing articles were the only thing that should’ve been shared.”

  “Kennedy, relax. I thought you meant for me to read it. I never would have read it otherwise. You should know it is a beautiful story. You should absolutely turn it into a book. I know that’s asking a lot, but if you agree to this, you can have anything you want.” Erin wasn’t kidding.

  “I just can’t believe you read all the things I put in that journal.”

  “Please. It’s not like we have many secrets,” Erin said.

  “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Nikki Toles, a girl I hadn’t thought about for weeks, popped in my head. I snorted. She was a lifetime ago.

  “The feature is perfect. People are going to read it and appreciate what is being done there. They will donate. I’ve seen it happen before. It’s your best work. So heartfelt. And people love saving animals,” she said.

  “Except for the poachers,” I said.

  “You really care, don’t you?” Erin didn’t give me time to answer. “Of course you do. I already read how much you care. Here’s something. Do you feel comfortable writing about poaching? Maybe just how it’s a problem and the consequences? I think it would enhance the importance of the sanctuary and the rangers. I could give you a few more days there.”

  The wheels in my head started spinning. She was right. I already had enough information about illegal hunting. I lived it for the past week. And it was something concrete I could do to help. “I could do that.” Plus, I would get more time with Brynn.

  “I’m also serious about you writing a book about how a city girl survives the great outdoors. You could make it a self-help book or turn your journal into a memoir and expand more. I can’t tell you how many times I laughed out loud.”

  I calmed down quickly at the realization of me not only hitting a home run, but a grand slam with this entire Alaskan experience. I couldn’t stop smiling. “So, a book, huh?”

  “Yes, but let’s get everything done for Antlers & Anglers first.”

  “You said Travis liked the articles?” He was a kid, but he was also one of my bosses so I needed his approval.

  “Oh, he was excited, especially about all of the photos. You’re right. We’re going to have a hard time narrowing down the pictures. He even talked about adding a few pages of just photos.”

  “Okay, give me a few days and I’ll get you the poaching bit.” I already had the ever important lead paragraph written in my head.

  “Thanks. Hey, Kennedy? Great job,” she said.

  I hung up and did a happy dance all around Brynn’s cabin. I wanted to celebrate and I wanted it to be with Brynn. I grabbed the car keys. I couldn’t cook, but I knew how to bake and nobody said no to my German chocolate cake. I shot Brynn a text message to let her know where I was going and carefully headed to the grocery sto
re. I was wary of animals and humans. As I drove into town, I waved at people I didn’t know who waved at me first. When I saw Mandy walking to Lucille’s, I slowed to make sure she saw my wave. She stopped in the crosswalk and motioned me over. I rolled down the window.

  “Hey. How are you? How are the articles coming?” Her smile and demeanor were so genuine I kind of melted a little. My new friends were awesome.

  “Better than I expected. I just heard from my boss. It’s good news. I’m baking a cake to celebrate. Do you and Lisa want to come over for dessert later?” I was holding up traffic, but nobody seemed to care.

  “I’ll check with her and call you later, okay?” I nodded. She tapped the car and continued on the crosswalk. I waved my hand out of the window to apologize for delaying the cars behind me. Several of them nodded in understanding.

  I pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store and pulled up the recipe on my phone. I had no idea what Brynn had in her pantry so I started from scratch. My cart was full by the time I checked out. Still no message from Brynn. She must have been in a dead zone. I spent the drive back thinking about the poaching article and wondering if I should make it personal, too, or just a general informative piece about poaching.

  I parked Brynn’s car where I found it and lugged the groceries inside. Baking a cake from scratch took about three hours. I planned on having it done by the time she got home. I sat on the couch for a moment to read through the instructions.

  My email chimed as my laptop connected to the slow Wi-Fi. I pulled it up and saw an email from Travis about the photographs I sent in. He marked the photos he was going to use. I was ecstatic the photo of Brynn and the elk made the pile. Other winners included Tina fixing the puffin’s wing, the rangers wrestling with the elk, the impressive entrance to the sanctuary where Melissa and Yogi were grazing close-by. Alaska, in all of her wilderness, was beautiful. Travis ended the email with praise about the articles I’d already sent. I had to be careful or Travis was going to ask me to come over to A&A permanently.

  I was momentarily sidetracked by a shadow that drifted across the kitchen wall. When I looked up, I saw a person peeking in the kitchen window. Thank God the groceries were piled high enough on the counter to hide my body. I slid to the ground and waited.

  “I know she’s inside. I followed her here after I called you all.” It was a whisper, but because Brynn’s place was so quiet, I could hear every word.

  Fuck. The poachers found me. How the fuck did they find me? They had to have seen me at the grocery store or talking to Mandy. I reached my phone and realized it was on the counter. They would see me for sure if I grabbed it. The handle on the front door jiggled slightly. I had to make a decision. I crept to the counter and reached for my phone.

  “I see her.” His shadow made circling motions. He was probably telling the others to surround the place.

  I grabbed my phone and headed down the hall. I dialed Brynn’s number with shaky fingers. When she didn’t answer, I was at a loss at who to call. The second I heard glass breaking, I dialed 9-1-1, ran into the mudroom, and locked the door. The window on the door was too small for anyone to climb through, and the door was thick lumber. It would take them some time to break through that. When Brynn was giving me a tour, she told me about a crawl space under the house. There was a small trapdoor in the floor. That had to be where it led. It was my only option. The operator finally picked up.

  “Hello?” I whispered so the poachers wouldn’t immediately know where I was in the house. Brynn kept all the doors closed because of Wally. “I need you to patch me through to Trooper Lara Ridgley right now.”

  “What’s your emergency?” I felt like I had the same operator as the day Martha destroyed my car. Was my luck that bad?

  “This is Kennedy Wells. I witnessed a group of poachers last week. Trooper Lara Ridgley said they were dangerous. They just found where I’ve been hiding. Please patch me through or let her know right now.” I swore if I ever met this person I would wring his neck.

  “I’ll get her on the line.”

  While I waited, I grabbed the handle to open the trapdoor and struggled to open it. It was heavy, especially since I was juggling a cell phone. They would get through the door eventually and I needed to not be in this room when they did.

  “Kennedy, what’s going on?”

  I teared up when I heard Lara’s voice. “They’re here. At Brynn’s. She’s at work and they found me, Lara.” I was squeezing the phone.

  A voice came from outside the mudroom door. “Come on out. We just want to talk to you.” I got chills at the sound of the poacher’s voice. I knew if they caught me, I was a goner.

  “I’m sending units. They’ll be there in less than ten. Stay hidden.”

  “Thanks, Lara.”

  “Don’t hang up. Keep the line open, okay?”

  “I can’t talk. And I need my hands,” I said.

  “Just put it in your pocket. We’ll be there soon, Kennedy. Hang on.”

  I slipped my phone in my back pocket and finally levered the door open. It was heavy and dusty and before I had a chance to investigate the darkness below, there was a loud bang at the mudroom door. I jumped at the noise. A moment later, there was another bang and the hinges on the door bent as he threw his weight against it.

  “She’s in here.”

  I crawled into the space and closed the door behind me. It would be obvious where I had gone, but my plan was to find a hiding spot underneath the cabin and hope they thought I ran off. I scurried along the underbelly of the cabin, tearing my jeans on jagged rocks, scraping my palms on the dirt and tiny rocks. I had no idea where I was going.

  I pulled out my phone and turned on the flashlight for a moment to get my bearings. The call was still live. I ignored the cobwebs and whatever the hell was clinging to them and focused on staying alive. There was a pile of stacked wood and a small wheelbarrow ten feet ahead. That was going to be my hiding place. I army crawled to the pile and hid behind it the best I could. I moved the wheelbarrow a bit to cover my legs.

  My heart hammered and I had to hold my breath for fear they would hear my panting. I just needed to stay hidden for seven more minutes. That was it. There was a crash when they got through the mudroom door. Moments later, I heard the trap door open. I pressed flat against the dirt and prayed.

  “She’s either under the house or escaped. Take a look around.” He yelled to one, two, three, a dozen men surrounding Brynn’s cabin. I had no idea how many there were. I just knew I was not moving from this spot. If they found me, they would have to drag me out kicking and screaming.

  Six more minutes. I saw a beam of light flash over my head, bounce on the back of the wall, and swirl around. He didn’t see me. I heard him shut the door and walk across the cabin. His steps were heavy and hurried. I heard him murmur to others. Their feet shuffled overhead as they expanded their search for me.

  Four minutes. I was almost in the clear. I heard the rumble of engines and tires crunching over gravel and my heart jumped, thinking Lara was finally here. I peeked out, but was crushed when I realized it was the poachers. They must have hidden their trucks and walked up to the cabin to surprise me. It worked. My leg was cramping and I very carefully and very quietly stretched it out, but it was exactly at the wrong angle.

  One second. That’s all it took. In slow motion, the stack of logs I brushed with my toe tumbled and scattered. The sound reverberated. I looked up to survey the damage and was greeted with the barrel of a gun.

  “Hello, sweetheart.” Fuck.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  I scurried to the other side, but the sound of the gun hammer cocking made me freeze.

  “Come on out. Enough of this. If you make me crawl under there, you’re going to regret it.”

  My mother always said my mouth would get me into trouble one day. Today was that day. “How many people talk with guns? Let’s see, umm, criminals. Guilty people,” I said.

  “You’re only making it ha
rder on yourself.”

  I thought about staying put, but I was afraid they would just kill me instead of wrestling me out from under the house. I purposely left my phone by the wheelbarrow. I didn’t want them to know I called 9-1-1. They would find out soon enough. Hopefully in three minutes. I needed to stall until then. I took my time crawling out. When I felt somebody’s hands on my ankles, I knew I was in serious trouble. They yanked me out and dragged me, my face scraping the ground. I felt my cheek swell up. When we were far enough away from the house, they stopped and tossed my feet down.

  “You can stop manhandling me. You caught me, okay?” I said.

  “So, you’re the one who’s caused us all sorts of problems, huh?” The guy who spoke was a nice looking older man. I assumed he was the leader. He was probably somebody’s grandfather. The kind who bought his granddaughter a pony or taught his grandson how to hunt at age five. His clothes were expensive and his hands manicured and clean. That scared me. Somebody else did his dirty work. If he was letting me see his face, he wasn’t planning on letting me live long enough to identify him. This ring was bigger than Brynn, Lara, or anybody thought. I counted seven men total. Three I recognized from our initial run-in.

  The leader reached out to help me up. I spit on it. It was the first time I’d ever spit and I was pleased with the results. My few victories the last minutes of my life were going to be small, but meaningful. His response was to laugh. The sound was wicked. He pulled out a bandana and wiped his hand. “Take her to the truck.” He nodded at the guy I remembered as Randy and one of his other thugs. They grabbed me and pulled me to my feet.

  “Look at what you did to my jeans,” I said. They were torn at the knee in two places. I could complain about my jeans for a long time. “I can’t wear these again.” I leaned over to pluck at the torn fabric.

  Randy laughed. “You have bigger problems than that, lady. Maybe you don’t realize the trouble you’re in.” He twisted my arm and pushed me in front of him.