Her Baby’s Bodyguard Read online

  Having an infant along wasn’t one of them.

  Eva stepped closer and poked her index finger at Jack’s chest. “I made a bargain with the American government, Sergeant Norton. Safety and asylum in exchange for my cooperation. I expect you to honor it.”

  He snapped his gaze to her face. Could she think they would leave her here?

  One look in her eyes told him that she wasn’t thinking at all. She was terrified. That’s why she had concealed the kid and why she’d refused to part with the disk. Those shivers he’d felt through her arm probably weren’t all due to the cold. She didn’t trust him. His reaction to her excess cargo wasn’t helping matters.

  She’d taken him by surprise, that’s all. But damn, a baby? Even when he wasn’t on a mission, he kept as far away from those as he could.

  Jack took her hand from his chest and gave it a squeeze. “You’ve got me confused with the politicians, Dr. Petrova. I’m a soldier. We take our honor seriously.”

  She didn’t relax. Instead, her expression tightened further. It made her look more like the photograph that intel had provided.

  Like the rest of the team, Jack had committed that picture to memory during their briefing. The shot had been more than ten years old, taken when she’d been awarded a doctoral degree in chemistry from Moscow University when she’d been nineteen. In it she’d looked far too serious for her age, as if she’d been trying to prove something. She’d stared unsmiling at the camera, a regular ice princess with her pale blue eyes and platinum hair. Her high cheekbones and delicate jaw hadn’t changed since then, though her lips seemed fuller. He wondered briefly whether she still wore her hair long, yet nothing showed from under the thick cap that she wore.

  But as he’d just discovered, winter clothes were good for hiding all sorts of things.

  “The major sent the word, Norton. We’re moving out.”

  He shifted his attention to the truck. Tyler Matheson stood in the center of the back opening, one hand on the canvas and the other on his weapon. He would be covering the rear as they moved. Tyler was Eagle Squadron’s new ordnance specialist and was proving to be the best marksman the team had ever had in spite of his rookie status. Jack acknowledged Tyler’s warning with a nod. “Be right there, junior.”

  Tyler hopped to the ground with the agility of the cowboy he used to be, then moved around the truck to the driver’s door to exchange a few words with Kurt Lang. Sergeant Lang would be doing the driving on this mission, as he usually did whenever something on wheels was involved. The man had an affinity for machines, which would have been spooky if it hadn’t kept proving so useful. Specialist Vic Gonzales would be riding shotgun beside Kurt once he finished his forward sweep of the area. They would pick him up on the way. Like Tyler, though, Gonzales would only open fire as a last resort. They were counting on intelligence to steer them away from trouble. To that end, Duncan Colbert, headphones clamped to his shaved head, knelt in front of the communication equipment he’d set up on the truck bed.

  Quick and clean, that’s how Eagle Squadron liked to operate. They were usually long gone before anyone realized they’d been there. The five members of the team who were taking part in this mission had run through the plan until they could have done it in their sleep. Every man knew his role in it, including Jack. As Eagle Squadron’s medic, he’d been put in charge of their passenger.

  Make that passengers.

  Jack was confident the other guys would do their jobs. It was up to him to play the hand he’d been dealt.

  He firmed his grip on Eva and led her forward. “We’ll try to keep you and your daughter comfortable,” he said. “But it’s going to be bumpy.”

  “Neither I nor my child will break, Sergeant Norton.”

  She was using a tone that would go with the ice princess picture, he thought. It was probably an attempt to distract him from the trembling in her fingers. “This will go easier if you remember we’re on your side, Dr. Petrova. We’re the good guys.”

  “You’re soldiers.”

  “Same thing.”

  “You’re only as good as the orders you follow.”

  What kind of men had she been around to have gained such a low opinion of them? “My orders are to get you and what you’re carrying safely to American jurisdiction,” Jack said. “I interpret that to mean everything you’re carrying, not just the disk, so you’ve got nothing to worry about.” He stopped at the back of the truck, took one look at the height of the tailgate and then leaned over to scoop Eva into his arms.

  She gasped. “Sergeant!”

  She was lighter than he’d expected, even with her extras. Instead of simply lifting her into the back and getting in after her, he carried her with him as he climbed inside.

  Duncan looked up when the truck dipped with their weight. The moment he saw the bulge beneath Eva’s coat, he pulled off his headphones. “Ma’am, are you pregnant?”

  Jack spoke before she could answer. “Nope. Not anymore. Ma’am, this is Duncan Colbert.”

  She acknowledged the introduction with as much dignity as she could, considering her position.

  Duncan frowned and looked at Jack. “What’s that mean, not anymore?”

  “Dr. Petrova brought her kid along.” Jack picked his way through the loose bark that littered the rusty floor. Apparently, the truck he’d acquired had been last used for hauling firewood. He set Eva on her feet where the cargo bed met the truck cab. “Stay here, ma’am. It should be the most sheltered spot.”

  “I need no special treatment.”

  “Well, with Lang and Gonzales up front, the cab’s going to be crowded, and you probably don’t want to get too close to Matheson when he’s armed, so this is the only spot left.” He stuffed his gloves into his pocket and put down his gun so he could peel off his coat and spread it in front of her. “You can sit on this.”

  “Thank you, but as I said, I need no special—”

  “There might be spiders in the bark.”

  She hesitated for less than a second before she sank to the cushion Jack’s coat provided and wrapped her arms around her baby. Her lips trembled. She pressed them together and inhaled hard through her nose.

  Jack amended his assessment of her mental state, adding exhausted to terrified. He had a crazy urge to sit beside her and pull her, baby and all, into his arms. She’d felt good there. But that would probably bring out the ice princess again. He took one of her hands and guided it toward a loop of strapping that hung from the truck’s short side wall. “You might want to hold on to that once we start moving.”

  She nodded and threaded her fingers through the loop.

  Tyler returned and climbed into the truck, pulled up the tailgate and dropped the canvas into place. He spoke without turning around. “I heard you talking through the canvas, doc. It sounded like you said she brought a kid. Tell me I heard wrong.”

  “Sorry, junior, you heard right. We have a baby on board.” Jack glanced from Tyler to Duncan. “Hey, either of you wouldn’t happen to have one of those signs to stick on the windshield, would you?”

  Tyler grunted, donned a pair of night-vision goggles and swung his weapon to his shoulder to sight through the back opening. Duncan muttered something about Murphy and put his headphones back on.

  Their lack of reaction didn’t surprise Jack. They didn’t have the luxury for anything else. He leaned past Eva to rap at the window to the cab. “Okay, Kurt. We’re ready.”

  The truck jerked into motion. Eva knocked into the side of the truck with her shoulder. Still holding the strap, she shifted her position so she could draw up her knees and put her back to the low wall for support.

  “Are you all right?” Jack asked.

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “It won’t be long now. If you need anything, let me know.”

  She opened her coat just enough to slip her hand inside. “We’ll be fine.”

  He regarded her for a while to make sure she had steadied. Now that she was sitting, the sacks o
f baby clothes would be resting on the floor and her drawn up legs would take most of the baby’s weight. She still looked exhausted, but some of that could be due to the green glow from Duncan’s instruments. Jack went over to squat beside him. “What’s the latest intel on the rendezvous site, Duncan?”

  “Not good. Weather’s coming in.”

  “Lang will get us there.”

  “We have to hope the bird can land. It could get messy.” He tipped his head toward Eva. “Are you sure she’s got a baby?”

  “Saw her myself. She was asleep.”

  “My sister’s boys used to sleep as long as they were moving. Especially on car rides. She told me they’d be out like a light as soon as she left the driveway. Sometimes she’d stuff them in their seats and take a drive around the block just to get some peace.” He pressed the transmitter on his headphones. “Say again, Gonzales?”

  The truck hit a bump, jolting Jack into the air. He glanced back at Eva to make sure she was still hanging on, then shoved aside a stray piece of wood and braced his knuckles against the floor. “What’s going on, Duncan?”

  “Gonzales spotted a patrol.”

  “How far away?”

  “Less than a mile ahead.”

  Ahead? If there had been a pursuit, it should have come from behind. This was either bad luck or someone had guessed they were coming. The first possibility was just par for the course, but the latter could scuttle the mission before it got started. They could only hope that Eva had been as careful with her preparations as she’d claimed.

  Duncan glanced at the map on the laptop and spoke into his transmitter. “Lang, we’ll try to go around them. There’s a track coming up on the left about a hundred yards.” He tensed and grabbed the equipment. “Sharp turn, everyone.”

  Jack dove for Eva and landed beside her just as the truck lurched to the left. He put his hand over hers to grip the packing strap, cushioning her from the impact as they slammed against the side. The truck slowed only long enough to allow Gonzales to jump into the cab, then began accelerating uphill even before the passenger door slammed. Bark and bits of wood slid backward. Jack dug the edge of one boot into a row of rivets in the floor, braced his legs and twisted to lock his free arm around Eva. “Hang on!”

  Her face was mere inches from his, so he could clearly see the fear in her eyes. She didn’t protest about his help this time. She would have heard Duncan as well as Jack had, and she was obviously bright enough to have understood the danger they were in.

  A muffled wail rose from her coat. One tiny, mittened fist knocked against Jack’s sleeve where his arm stretched across Eva’s chest. Despite the rocking of the truck, she dipped her head toward the baby, caught the tiny fist in her hand and brought it to her lips. “Shh, kitten. Don’t cry. I won’t let anything hurt you. I promise.”

  The change in Eva’s voice was startling. It was as tender as a kiss, completely unlike the brittle tones she’d been using with Jack. And in spite of her fear, the promise to her daughter hadn’t sounded like idle words that had been spoken in order to comfort. The vow had vibrated with courage any soldier would understand.

  She would need all the courage she could scrape up, Jack thought. In the next instant, something whizzed past their heads. Moonlight winked through a scattering of new holes in the truck’s canvas side. Over the grumble of the engine and the crunching of tires on the rocky track came the staccato pops of automatic weapons.

  So much for quick and clean. Murphy must be working overtime tonight. Jack pushed Eva to the floor and curled himself over both her and the baby.

  Chapter 2

  Pain seared through Eva’s side. She fought to control it, forcing herself to inhale in short bursts, but her ribs stung with each heartbeat. If only the ground would stop moving, yet it kept bouncing and shifting beneath her. It smelled like wool and soap.

  She blinked hard and concentrated on her surroundings instead of the pain. She was lying on her side on the floor of the truck. Sergeant Norton’s coat was beneath her cheek. She could feel the pressure of his thighs at her back and the weight of his chest on her shoulder. With his hands braced in front of her and his knees behind her, he was caging her beneath his body because…because…

  Her brain clicked back into gear. Oh, God! She could hear gunfire. Katya!

  Before panic could take hold, she felt movement against her breasts. Katya was squirming in the confines of the cloth sling. Over the gunfire and the roar of the truck’s engine Eva heard the baby’s restless wails. She sounded cranky, not hurt. Thank God. If anything happened to this child because of her decision…

  The thought was too terrible to consider. She dragged her arm around the baby, then pressed her nose to Katya’s head, drawing strength from the familiar, powder-sweet scent of the baby’s scalp. “There’s my brave girl,” she murmured. “Mommy’s here. Everything’s fine.”

  Either her one-armed embrace or the sound of her voice penetrated Katya’s temper. The wails tapered off to weary sobs. Eva drew up her knees, curling her body around her child the same way Sergeant Norton was using his own body to shelter the two of them.

  He had probably saved their lives when he’d knocked her over. And he was continuing to risk his own by shielding them. Who did that for complete strangers? What kind of man was he? She had seen he wasn’t happy when he’d discovered Katya, yet he’d sounded almost amused when he’d relayed the information to his companions. His voice could be gentle, and he had laugh lines around his eyes and mouth, though she could feel nothing soft about the rest of him. With his size he would likely crush them if he wasn’t strong enough to hold his weight on his arms.

  The truck hit a rock, tossing her into the air. She collided with the sergeant’s body before slamming back down on her side. She clenched her jaw to keep from crying out at another stinging jab of pain. She must have fallen on a piece of wood when the shooting had started. Or there could have been splinters in the bark that covered the truck bed. That must be why her side was still hurting. The bouncing was making it worse, but she didn’t dare try to sit up. She had to protect Katya.

  Had she made a mistake? If she’d stayed at the complex, Katya would be sleeping peacefully in her crib. No one would be shooting at them. They would be safe.

  No, she told herself. They wouldn’t have been safe. Unless she kept going, no one would be. Their own lives weren’t the only ones at stake. The information on the disk she carried could lead to the deaths of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands. The moment she’d learned where her research was truly leading, she’d begun looking for ways to halt it. Making a deal with the American government had seemed like the best solution, but what if there had been another way?

  Eva touched her lips to Katya’s forehead. The decision had been made, so she couldn’t allow herself any second thoughts. She could only pray this child wouldn’t be made to pay for her mother’s choice.

  The truck lurched, then straightened and steadied, as if they had regained the road. As the noise lessened, Eva realized that she could no longer hear any shooting.

  The pressure on her shoulder eased as Sergeant Norton straightened his arms, but he didn’t move away yet. His voice came from just above her head. “What do you see out there, junior?”

  “Not much except lots of dark,” the man at the rear of the truck replied. “I’d say we lost them. There were three men, maybe four. Vehicle looked like a big sport utility, handled heavy so it’s probably armored.”

  “Any damage?”

  “It’s hard to tell with this rust bucket, but there’s nothing obvious. They had plenty of firepower but not much accuracy.”

  “I’m picking up some chatter.” It was the bald man who spoke, Colbert, the one with the electronic equipment. “It sounds like we ran into a patrol from the research complex, not government troops. They’d be the only paramilitary in this sector. They thought we were smugglers.”

  “Then they weren’t trying to hit us, only scare us off,” the man a
t the tailgate said. Matheson was his name, Eva remembered. As before, he spoke without turning around. “That’s why they broke off the chase. We wouldn’t be their problem once we got out of their area.”

  “Hard to say what they would consider their area,” Colbert said. “Intel warned us Ryazan’s enforcing a no-drive zone that covers more territory every year.”

  “Well, technically, we are smugglers, Duncan,” Sergeant Norton put in. “The only difference is our contraband came to us.” He brought his head close to Eva’s. His breath was warm on her ear. “Sorry about the excitement back there, Dr. Petrova. How are you doing?”

  Unexpected tears sprang to her eyes at the kindness in his tone. She blinked them away, impatient with herself. This man may have saved their lives, yet regardless of his heroic actions, his motive for protecting them hadn’t been personal. He was just following orders. His government wanted her almost as much as they wanted the disk she carried.

  She couldn’t afford to trust him. She knew better than to trust any man. “I am fine, thank you.”

  He was silent for a moment, then pushed himself off her and patted her shoulder. “Okay, then. And the baby?”

  “She appears unhurt.”

  “Great. Let me help you sit up.”

  “I can manage. We need no special treatment.”

  “Dr. Petrova…”

  “How much longer—” she grimaced as the truck swayed around a bend “—to the helicopter?”

  “Hang on, I’ll find out.” He got to his feet, stepped over her legs and went to crouch beside the electronic equipment. “How’s our timetable?”

  “Tighter than I’d like,” Colbert replied. “The detour cost us.”

  “Let me see that satellite shot.”

  While the men spoke, Eva turned her attention to the task of sitting up. The extra weight from Katya and her bundles of supplies made it more difficult than she’d expected. She groped for the strap that was attached to the side of the truck and used it to haul herself upright. The change in position helped clear her head, but it brought fresh stinging from her waist to her armpit. Though she was no longer being tossed into the air as violently, the road was far from smooth. She felt every rut and pothole. Adding to her discomfort, the wind seemed to have increased since they’d started out, causing the truck to shake with each gust.