“What a hero you are, Hunter Osborn. No lie, your instincts are amazing. All day climbing in the mountains, then coming on to a scene like that. I mean, I wish you’d shot their balls off, too, but you did great. Even shocked at seeing that awful sight, and getting clubbed on the noggin, you did what a hero does. You protected the innocent.” She kissed his chest, softly, a light brush of her lips, then his jaw, his chin, the bridge of his nose. “Autopilot is good. It means you function, no matter what. I think that’s awesome.”
“Jodi?” He didn’t understand her.
“You were appealing from day one, but now? How could I ever let you go?”
That got his brain processing again. “You can’t,” he said firmly, crushing her close. “Not ever.”
Her arms tightened, too, and she said softly, “Good.”
They sat like that for a while. Luckily, Turbo slept on undisturbed, and Hunter gradually regained his control. Jodi remained Jodi, quirky and surprising and, as far as he was concerned, absolutely perfect. For him. “I knew it’d be a while before help arrived, probably not until the morning. Honest to God, Jodi, I didn’t know if she’d make it that long.”
“Did you have a concussion?”
Funny that, under the circumstances, she’d ask about him instead of the woman. “I did, yeah. There were times I saw double, and my head felt like he’d split it open. I worked by rote, just doing what had to be done, however I could do it.”
“I understand.”
“I got her covered and put up a shelter, first.”
She lifted her head to see him. “From the supplies you had?”
“I had a survival backpack, so I had most of what we needed, including a two-person tent. Not fancy, but it’d be shelter if it rained. Small amount of rations, water, first aid kit, antibacterial wipes, heat packs, fire starter...” Seriously, Jodi didn’t need to know the entire contents of his backpack. “A stream wasn’t far away, and we could have used the water.” Blood was everywhere, and all over him. “But she didn’t want me to move. She was panicked by the idea that I wouldn’t come back. Even when I threw up twice, she wanted to be able to see me.” He let out a breath that was part laugh, part pain. “It was humiliating, showing so much weakness when I should have been stronger for her.”
“Eh, you’re mortal, dude, and a concussion is serious stuff. I think the fact that you stayed with her instead of seeking privacy, putting her needs over your own, is a show of strength.”
Figured Jodi would see it that way. “I dragged the bodies a few yards away, tied them to a tree, and covered them with branches so she wouldn’t have to see them.”
Curious, Jodi asked, “Why’d you tie them? Did you think either of them might still be alive?”
“There was no doubt they were dead, believe me.” Never would he forget the mangled, damaged bodies. “The smell of all the blood could have drawn in wild animals. I kept my gun and extra ammo close, just in case, but with a concussion, I didn’t want to chance passing out, only to come to and find them gone. I thought...” His mouth tightened. “I sensed that they had something to do with the other missing women, too, and possibly even women we hadn’t heard about. I knew investigators would need fingerprints, dental records... Hell, everything, probably.”
“See, you were still sharp as a tack. I love it.”
Love... He wanted that, and more, from her. “They had their own supplies. A bigger tent, backpacks with equipment. Other than the knife that I’d already touched, I used a stick to drag their guns closer in case I needed them. I didn’t want to touch anything else and maybe dick up evidence. I concentrated on cleaning her up a little. Some of her wounds—he’d made them deliberately shallow so she wouldn’t bleed to death, but there was definite infection and I knew she had to be in awful pain. Mostly she was in shock, though, as if she could barely feel herself anymore. I did what first aid I could, then got her covered and as comfortable as possible. She passed out shortly after that, gripping my hand.”
Jodi turned to get his hand, carrying it to her face and kissing his palm. “You were her lifeline.”
Yes, he had been. And he’d been so damned afraid that he’d let her down, that she’d be dead by the time help arrived. “If only I’d trusted my gut and done something on Saturday.”
“You’re not a mind reader.”
“She was hurt so badly. Literally everywhere. Anytime she woke, I tried to get her to eat, but she couldn’t stay alert long enough to get more than a few bites. I was afraid if I went to sleep, I might not come around when she needed me.”
“Because of the concussion?”
“Yes. So I waited. Even when I spoke through the radio, she didn’t stir. There were a few times I thought I’d lost her, but then she’d wail, remembering something, or she’d suddenly groan.” He opened his hand against Jodi’s cheek, cradling her precious face, thankful that she, too, had survived. “I had that man’s blood all over me, but I didn’t want to waste the rest of our water on me, and I didn’t dare leave her alone to go to the stream.”
“That had to be the worst night of your entire life.”
When Jodi hugged him, he spoke against her hair. “When help arrived at dawn, they found the other women, both nearby, their bodies in different stages of decay.”
Her slender arms tightened more.
“I was grilled endlessly.” With a sardonic twist to his mouth, he said, “The men were brothers from an influential family. Their mother tried to claim I was the madman and that I’d just blamed them. After all, I’d mangled them pretty badly.”
“Morons.”
“For three days, the woman didn’t talk. They kept her sedated while they treated her. She’d lost a lot of blood, but the infection is what almost did her in. For those three days, my name was dragged through the mud with endless accusations.” His jaw worked. “Memphis, Mom and Dad had to put up with reporters calling and showing up on their lawns.”
“I bet Memphis had a few choice words for them.”
“Actually, it was Mom who lost her cool and told them they were imbeciles who had no business reporting the news when they couldn’t get simple facts straight.”
Jodi grinned. “Oh, I like her.”
“On the fourth morning, the woman came around enough to clear up the confusion. I hated that she was put through that, and she was shaky on some of the details. But she made it clear, I saved her.” He smoothed Jodi’s hair. “Even though the brothers were eventually tied to other murders, some still whisper about it. They say I was involved or I brainwashed the woman. You know how that goes.”