Trinity: Military War Dog (42 page)

“Good, let’s move. I want to get home and thaw out before this storm goes blizzard on us.”

“Ain’t this a little late for a winter storm?” Candyman said with a growl. “Winter is over in three weeks.”

“Wasn’t too long ago,” Heath put in, “Afghanistan had their worst storm in fifty years. Maybe they’re trying to top it again.”

“Well, they can stop.”

“Okay, move out, people!” Watterboy said.

Trudging forward, his gloved hand gripping the readout, Heath realigned his thoughts with the mission. But there in the chaos of his swirling thoughts and the snow, he wondered what propelled him. What drove him to risk another blackout, to risk his life—and considering these elements, Trinity—to save a woman named Jia? A military operative who had hoodwinked one of the most powerful men in China.

Okay, that was a big leap, but considering what Haur mentioned, Heath couldn’t help but entertain the thought. What if she was that operative? Burnett hadn’t mentioned her occupation, just that she was military intelligence and needed to be found. But military intelligence could be anything. It didn’t mean she was the spy, right?

Even he knew he was reaching with that one.

“That’s the only name you need to know.”

The general’s words whispered on the wind of doubt. It implied she had other names. Who had other names besides operatives? Fugitives. Entertainers seeking to protect their privacy. Since she wasn’t in the latter group, and he couldn’t think of another category, Heath was left with the option of buying into the fact that Jia was a spy.

Clandestine, then, was her middle name.

Small Village in the Hindu Kush
15 Klicks from Chinese Border

Jolts of fire thrust Darci from the greedy claws of sleep. A scream echoed in her thoughts as she came fully awake. She blinked in the semidarkness, searching for the source of the cry. But as the resonance settled, she came to the gaping conclusion that the scream had been her own.

A shape shifted nearby, drawing her focus to that spot. The blurs morphed into the form of a man. With the light behind him, he stood as a perfect silhouette. Jianyu? He seemed to have the same build, but the angle made it impossible to know for certain. What she did know for certain was the glint and clang of metal told her what was on the menu. Her brain.

So, torture.

Fear wiggled through her gut. Weakened from the broken ribs, beatings, and no food, she wasn’t sure how long she’d last. Darci slumped back, fingers trailing what she lay on. A table? It wasn’t metal. Wood … thick enough to hold her but not too solid she couldn’t break it. If she could just move her feet—no go. Restraints pulled against her ankles.

God … I’m not even sure what to ask…. Just let me know You’re here
.

“Names, Meixiang,” came Jianyu’s voice from behind.

Eyes shuttering closed, Darci braced herself.

“I want the names of those who helped you gain access to the highest levels of security.” “I worked alone.”

“No! That is impossible!” His warm breath crawled along her ear and down her neck. “What you accessed required security protocols only someone in the highest levels could provide.”

“Maybe you provided it,” she said, feeling out of breath. Fire again wormed through her side, the spot where the soldier had cracked more ribs. “Maybe you talk in your sleep.”

A snicker made Darci still. Who else was here?

“You would like me to think that, but I do not sleep that hard.”

“That’s true,” Darci said. “You’re so haunted by your failings and insecurities you can’t sleep at night.”

Something touched her arm.

White-hot fury bolted through her body, thrashing her secured limbs. Darci clenched her eyes as the smell of burning flesh—her flesh—filled the frigid air. “You coward! Using electrical torture!” She arched her back as the electricity zipped through her body, using the water to conduct its fiery path.

Silence gaped as the current died, and Darci slumped back against the table. Panting and grunting against the agony, she willed herself to hold on.

Hold on for what?

A rescue? In all her years as a military intelligence officer, she hadn’t been rescued. No supernatural intervention. But she’d had a lot of situations that worked in her favor that convinced her God was watching out for her. She clung to the faith her mother had died for.

But that was just it: Her mother
had
died. Believing God.

Was that Darci’s lot in life, too? To die?

God, I don’t want to die
. She didn’t feel like her life was over. That her usefulness had dried up. Maybe her desire to continue this occupation had dried up, but her will to live, her curiosity over a certain guy …

Trinity.

Was it a foolish hope that his dog would help him find Darci?

Right. Twenty-four thousand feet above sea level, in a snowstorm?

Might as well expect angels to float down and cut her restraints right now.

Darci held her next breath, her mind trained on the bindings on her wrists and ankles. Waiting for them to be loosed.

She wriggled her hands. They didn’t budge.

Didn’t think so
.

“Names. I want names, Meixiang.”

Humor. She had to keep her humor, keep him operating out of anger so he didn’t have time to put thought into what he was doing. “Pinocchio, Cinderella, Aurora—she always was my favorite.”

Volts snapped through her body. Her teeth chattered. Bit into her tongue. Sweet warmth squirted through her mouth. It lasted longer, stronger than the previous time. He was escalating. Another indication he wasn’t here for the long haul. He had to get answers fast and move on.

That both pleased and worried her. Pleased that she wouldn’t have prolonged torture. Worried because he could pull out some big guns of torture. And while she thought she could survive it, Darci would prefer to keep her body parts intact.

Slumped against the wood again, she tried to swallow but found her mouth parched. She stroked the salivary gland beneath her tongue, trying to wet her mouth. As she sucked in heavy breaths, she heard a creaking.

Footsteps.

Quiet.

Lifting her head, she looked around. The light still glared at her. But shadows sulked in the corners. Alone? She dropped back and let out a grunt-whimper.
Get it together, Darci. You can do this. You
have
to do this
.

Soft rustling to her right drew her head around, then a clanging.

She stilled.

“Darci.”

She let out the breath she’d held. “I thought he shot and killed you.”

“Just my leg.” He angled it toward her.

Sympathy wound. Still working her. She groaned. “What do you want, Toque?”

“Hold on, Darci. You’re doing great.”

Twisting her neck to see him didn’t help much. She couldn’t see all of him. “If I’m doing so great, why don’t you switch”—pain stabbed her side, and she jerked with another grunt—“with me?”

“He’s still soft on you.”

“I’d hate to see your definition of hard.”

“He killed the guy who hit your side. Shot him on the spot.”

Darci hesitated. He’d killed one of his elite?

“And just now, you couldn’t see his face, but I could. I’ve never seen the guy look so tortured. It was killing him.”

Darci laughed at his choice of words. “I think he’s killing me.”

“Listen, I have people on the way. Just hang in there.”

“Yeah?” She hissed as her still-tingling extremities ached and her head pounded. “Well, forgive me if I don’t buy that.”

More clanging, and this time he shifted into view. “I think we can use his sympathy for you. Milk it, get him to stop torturing you. Buy time till my people arrive.”

“Your people?” She snorted as the room began to darken. She was fading. “Who? How do … know?”

“I have a tracking device. I activated it when the Black Hawk went down. They use it to home in on my location.” His voice grew animated. “They’ll be here.”

“And what if I kill you?” came Jianyu’s voice.

Darci snapped her eyes open and looked in the direction of the new voice.

Shadows. All she saw were shadows.

“Jianyu, no.”

Bright muzzle flash blinded her.

         Thirty-One           

Deep in the Hindu Kush
15 Klicks from Chinese Border

T
ucked into a tiny cleft and shielded from the raging elements, Heath tugged Trinity onto his lap to get her paws off the bitter, freezing terrain. From his pack, he tugged out the collapsible bowl, dumped a packet of food in it, and held it while she chowed down.

“We got a feed from Command,” Watterboy said as he crouched beside them, munching on a protein bar. “There’s a village just around the next rise. We’ll reconnoiter.” He jutted his jaw toward Trinity. “How’s she holding up?”

Heath rubbed her head as she sat back, licking her chops. “Better than me, I think, in this freezer of a mountain.”

Watterboy nodded with a smile, then clapped him on the shoulder. “She’s gotten us this far. Take care of her so she can get us back.”

“Hooah.” Heath smiled as he buried his hands in Trinity’s dense fur and, unbelievably, found warmth.

Someone landed next to him, shoulder to shoulder, leaving no room. Heath frowned, then saw who it was. Haur.