Harder but not impossible. “Unless they already know where we’re going.”
“Unless they already know,” Gage conceded.
“So what do we still need to do?”
“Get our gear together. There’s a storage room full of equipment downstairs. In the morning, I’ll go through what’s there and pull out what we can use. Anything else we need we can buy in Arizona.”
“How soon will we be ready to leave?”
“Ready or not, we’re leaving tomorrow.” He glanced down at the heavy stainless watch wrapped around his thick wrist. “It’s late. You’d better get some sleep.”
That was a laugh. She had almost been kidnapped, might have been tortured or even killed. “After what nearly happened, I’m not sleepy.”
Those intense blue eyes locked on her face. The same heat burned there that she had seen in the photo she’d taken. I can give you what you need to make you sleep, those amazing eyes said.
Abby’s stomach contracted. She wanted to go to bed, but not alone.
“Go . . .” Gage said softly.
Abby turned and practically ran down the hall to her bedroom.
* * *
Gage was up at first light. He hadn’t slept well, had spent the night on the sofa in case the men who had gone after Abby managed to find a way to breach his security system and break into his extremely secure apartment.
It hadn’t happened. His brother Edge had tested the system after Gage had it installed. Edge had been army Special Forces, a Green Beret. He had skills beyond anything Gage had developed in his years of self-defense training and boxing workouts. Edge knew security up, down, and sideways, handy for a soldier who wanted to get inside without being caught.
Though Gage could take care of himself and do a more than adequate job of defending the people he cared about, he was no Green Beret. With any luck, the problem would be left behind when they departed Denver for Arizona.
Gage locked the apartment, then headed downstairs to the office and went to work, assembling as much of the gear they would need as he could find. Expeditions required a good deal of equipment. He grabbed the satellite phone out of his desk and the solar battery charger, a must whenever he was out of cell range, a lesson he had learned when his vehicle bogged down on a muddy back road in South America.
From his office, he went to the store room, pulled out sleeping bags, backpacks, tarps, kerosene burners, flashlights, batteries, bungee cords, a pack of Bic lighters—the list went on and on.
His personal gear included a vicious-looking machete and a pair of lightweight Zeiss binoculars, a good pair of wraparound Ray-Ban sunglasses, a Leatherman multi-tool, plus his .45 caliber S&W sidearm, 30.06 Winchester rifle, and ammo for each.
Once he had what he needed, he went back through and pared it all down. The outfitter, with Mateo’s help, would be in charge of meals. They were headed into very rough country. It was essential to be prepared while carrying as little as possible.
Gage and Walt Jenkins had discussed going in on horseback, leading a couple of pack mules loaded with equipment and supplies, but Walt had warned that the horses could only go in so far. Once the group headed off the trail, the terrain would be too steep and dangerous for the animals.
They would take a wrangler to take care of the stock; he would bring the horses out when the animals could no longer handle the tough terrain.
None of it was unexpected. This wasn’t his first rodeo.
Gage looked up at the sound of footsteps in the hall and spotted Abby walking toward him in jeans and a pink long-sleeved T-shirt with a floppy-eared rabbit on the front. She had pulled her hair into a ponytail that swung against her back.
How anyone could look sexy in a pink rabbit T-shirt, he had no idea, but the stirring in his groin said she did.
“Good morning.” She smiled, held up a red thermal mug. “I brought coffee. I figured you’d be ready for a fresh cup.”
“I’ll have to add mind reading to your growing list of talents.” He accepted the mug and took a healthy swallow, enjoyed the heat and freshly brewed taste. “You’re up early.”
“You said we were leaving today. Some of my clothes are still at Tammy’s—those that weren’t destroyed—but I’m guessing you don’t want me going back there to get them.”
He shook his head. “They could be watching the place, figuring you’ll be back sooner or later.”
“Then I need to go shopping.”
He nodded. “You can do that in Arizona.”
She studied the pile of equipment he had pulled off the shelves. “Looks like you’re ready to go.”
“I talked to Maggie earlier, told her we were moving up the timetable, and asked her to arrange air transportation.”
“We’re flying?” Abby asked. “I thought we’d be driving.”
“Private charter,” Gage said. “We need to get down there. We’ll be carrying weapons along with our gear. Dealing with the airlines would take too much time.”
“So you’re waiting to hear from Maggie.”
“That’s right. We’ll have a chance for another look at the maps and with any luck, your FedEx delivery will arrive. As soon as we get the flight information, we’ll load the car and head for the airport.”
Abby looked up at him with those big golden eyes he was beginning to find nearly irresistible. “What if they’re watching us? What if they follow us to the airport?”
“We’re going to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
“How?”
Gage couldn’t stop a grin. “My brother’s on his way over. He’s going to run interference.” Twenty minutes later, Gage’s cell phone rang, signaling Edge’s number.
“Fifteen minutes out,” Edge said.
“Take your time. We’ve still got work to do here.”
“No problem. I’ll just hang around, keep an eye out for the bad guys.”
Gage grunted. God forbid Edge got his hands on the men who had attacked them last night. “Just don’t kill anyone.”
“You mean unless I have to.”
His lips twitched. On the other hand, at least one problem would be solved. “I’ll see you soon.”
* * *
Abby went upstairs to take another look through the stuff she’d brought from Tammy’s and make sure she had everything she could use. It was still cold in Denver, but in March, the weather in the Superstitions was warmer, with daytime highs in the seventies, lows in the forties at night.
Unfortunately, in the desert mountains, the weather was highly unpredictable. The days could climb into the nineties, the nights drop to near freezing. Clouds could bring an unexpected downpour and flash flooding. The wind had been known to blow up a sandstorm.
Abby had just zipped the bag when she heard Gage calling from the living room.
“Abby! Come on out; there’s someone here I’d like you to meet.”
She hurried down the hall and saw a tall, lean-muscled, blade-haired man standing next to Gage. Recognizing the blue eyes, hard jaw, and notched chin, she knew it had to be Gage’s brother.
“Abby, this is Edge,” Gage said. “He’s going to make sure we get to the airport without any trouble.”
She smiled up at him. “Nice to meet you, Edge. Thank you for helping.”