Into the Lair (Falcon Mercenary Group #2)(71)

***

Ian pulled his way sluggishly from the heavy blanket of sleep. Someone was yelling his name and shaking him. His limbs were lead-filled, and none of them were cooperating with his command to move.

“That’s it, man, open your eyes. Look at me, damn it.”

“What the hell?” he slurred out then licked his dry, cracked lips.

A palm slapped sharply at his face, and Ian snarled in irritation.

“Get mad all you want. I’m not going away.”

“Tits?”

Ian opened his eyes to see Tits staring down at him, pain etched in his face and blood smeared over his shoulder and chest.

Remembrance slammed into him. He bolted upright, Katie’s name on his lips. He stared over to see Braden still unconscious on the bed.

“Where is she?” he growled.

Tits glanced warily at him. “Don’t try any of that shifting shit on me, man. I’ll knock your ass out again, and I’ll make sure you sleep for three days straight.”

“Where. Is. She.”

“She’s gone,” Tits said softly. “Now help me get your brother awake. We’re up shit creek without a paddle here. I’ll explain the best I can as soon as we figure out how the hell to get out of here.”

Ian looked around the darkened cabin in confusion. There was light from a flashlight standing upright on the nightstand, and another smaller light sat on the dresser. It was just enough that he could make out Tits and the area immediately surrounding him, but beyond that, there was nothing.

He saw the glass lying in a puddle of water on the floor, and then he saw the bulge of snow against the shattered window.

“What the ever-loving f**k?”

“Avalanche,” Tits said grimly. “We’re snowed in until Falcon gets here to pull our asses out. Eli’s on the horn with them now.”

Tits turned his attention to Braden, shaking him like a rag doll as he shouted at him to wake up. Ian shook the cobwebs from his own head and put the pieces back together in his mind. Katie had drugged them. She thought… She’d obviously overheard some of their conversation with Tits and Eli. It was the only explanation for why she thought they were using her to get to Esteban, or at least why she’d assumed the worst.

Hell.

“Does Esteban have Katie?” Ian asked hoarsely.

Tits shot him a grim look. Braden stirred and muttered as Tits continued to harass him.

Frustrated, Ian reached over and hauled Braden up by his shirt collar. He shook him then slapped him repeatedly on the cheek with his open palm. Braden’s eyes shot open belligerently, and he shoved at Ian.

“What the f**k is your problem, man?”

“Wake up. We’ve got problems,” Ian said brusquely.

Braden rubbed his eyes wearily and shook his head a few times. Then he bolted to awareness, grabbing Ian by the collar.

“Katie. Where is she?”

“Tits is just about to tell us.” He glanced over at Tits, not liking the uneasy look on the other man’s face.

“What the hell happened to you, Tits?” Braden demanded as he took in the blood all over his shirt.

“Took a bullet from Esteban’s men,” Tits said shortly.

“Katie?” Braden asked hesitantly.

Tits looked up in relief when Eli strode into the room. “You get Jonah?”

“Yeah, they’re on the move. ETA six hours. An extrication team will reach us first. No idea on the Falcon secondary who were with us on the mountain. Jonah’s afraid they were all buried by the avalanche.”

“Katie?” Ian asked again. He was beginning to sound like a damn parrot.

Eli shot Tits a scowl. “You haven’t told them yet?”

“I was getting to it,” Tits mumbled.

“Why don’t you tell us since Tits is having a hard time with the English language all of a sudden,” Braden said, his voice hard.

Eli ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair and shot the brothers a look of sympathy. “We don’t think she made it.”

A fist slammed into Ian’s gut, knocking the breath right out of him. Braden didn’t look any better. He paled, and his fingers curled into tight balls.

“What do you mean she didn’t make it?” Braden asked in a deadly quiet voice.

“When we rode up, she was on the porch with an assault rifle and her bag. She was about to bolt,” Eli began. “I shifted so I could gain position on her. Then Tits took a bullet. They obviously had staked out the cabin. Katie told me to let her go so she could lead Esteban away from you and Braden. She said you were unconscious and helpless. She asked for a chance to live. For all of you to live.”

“And you let her go?” Ian shouted.

“I had three men down,” Eli said calmly. “She was right.”

“What happened?” Braden snarled.

“She took off on the snowmobile, and Esteban’s men took off after her. Several minutes later as I was getting Tits into the cabin, we got hit by the avalanche. She couldn’t have been far enough away to have avoided it,” he finished quietly.

“Mother of God,” Ian said hoarsely.

No. She couldn’t be dead.

“What are you so worked up about, man? She screwed you over. Drugged your asses and was all set to ditch you.”