Protecting His Kidnapped Family - Leslie North Page 0,22
of the stick to put pressure on the guy’s windpipe, but it was just as effective. While she took the baby several feet away, he growled down at the stranger, “Who the fuck sent you?”
“Who the fuck do you think?” the man wheezed, clutching Noah’s heavy boot and having no luck dislodging it from his neck. “They want the girl and they’re willing to pay.”
“How did you find us?” Noah pressed hard on the man’s chest, making him cough and gag. “Are there others watching us?”
“Like it’s hard,” the guy said, the words scratchy and painful sounding. “American gringa with a baby stands out like a sore thumb. And hell yeah. Half the bounty hunters in South America want her. For a million bucks, ain’t a whole lot people won’t do.”
Noah cursed and kicked the guy hard in the side of the head, knocking him out. Serena swallowed hard against the bile burning her throat. There was a million-dollar bounty on her head and everyone was looking for her. There was no way out. No way to save herself or Gracie.
As she struggled to keep her inner panic from spiraling out of control, Noah frisked the guy and took his wallet, money and weapons before pulling off the guy’s boots and tossing them into the forest. Finally, he walked back over to where Serena stood, rocking Gracie back and forth to keep her quiet.
“Our cover’s blown. We need to figure out where to go from here.”
“What about our next stopping point?” Serena asked, fearing she already knew the answer.
“No. It’s too risky now. If what he said was correct and there are more people searching for you, then we need to keep moving and change course.” Noah took off the baby carrier and helped her get into it, then slid the baby into it for her, snuggling Gracie against her chest before taking Serena’s hand. “Come on. We’ll figure out somewhere else on the way.”
After walking for what seemed like forever, Serena eventually lost track of the scenery as it passed. She just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward. They stopped once or twice for her to feed Gracie and get her changed while Noah patroled the area and adjusted course.
Now she had no idea where they were or when they might stop again. Her throat was parched and her stomach hurt from hunger, but she’d be damned if she’d complain. They were in the thick of it now and she refused to be one of those spineless women who did nothing but cry and whine when the situation got tough. She and Noah were a team here and she fully intended to hold up her end of things.
“Any clue where we might spend the night?” she asked a short while later when they stopped for a drink and an energy bar. “Not even sure where we are.”
“About fifty miles outside Frederickston,” Noah said, fiddling with his satellite phone. “According to my GPS.”
“Huh,” she said, then swiped the back of her hand across her mouth before screwing the lid back on her water bottle. “What towns are close by?”
“The map says the closest village is Santa Juanita.”
“Really?” She couldn’t contain a small smile. Maybe fate was going their way for a change. “I know of a bed and breakfast in Santa Juanita I’ve always wanted to stay at. Super quaint with a butterfly garden and everything. It’s small and out of the way, so it might be off the radar enough to work.”
Serena rattled off the name for him and he typed it into his phone to pull up their website.
“Found it,” he said a few moments later. “Looks nice, but it’s pretty expensive.”
“Oh.” Normally, cash wasn’t a concern for Serena, but now she had basically nothing. “Well, forget it then. I’m sure you’ll find something else.”
“No,” he said, frowning down at the screen as he typed. “I like this place. And the location is perfect. I’ll cover it, don’t worry.”
It took them two more hours to reach it, but it was worth it. The pictures Serena had seen didn’t do the place justice. It looked like something straight off a movie set, with its lush verandas and beautiful landscaping. Inside, it was full of Victorian details, and the owners were overjoyed to have unexpected guests who could pay in full at check-in. Their hosts were even kind enough not to mention their ragged state after hiking through the rainforest all day. They