Commando by Lindsay McKenna Page B

been here three months, and I knew all about Hernandez! Everyone said he was a killing bastard. Well, he is! The Indians never had a good word to say about him. I should have listened to them, Jake.” Sobbing, she tore out of his grip. She stumbled backward, off-balance, then caught herself. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she forced herself to look up into his grim features. “I should have listened,” she sobbed again, and spun away.

    Jake stood there, angry and helpless, as Shah walked hurriedly down the path toward the carnage in the village below. He wanted to run after her, to grab her and hold her. That was what she needed right now—a quiet harbor in the terrible storm that surrounded her. His wife had taught him about the safety of an embrace early on in their marriage, and he’d never forgotten that wonderful facet of their relationship.

    Kicking at sand with the toe of his boot, Jake decided to go on into the village anyway. He wanted to see if the six-year-old girl who had been in Shah’s arms yesterday was safe. He hadn’t seen her up at the hospital, so he figured she was fine, but he wanted to make sure. He knew that he needed sleep, too, but his nerves were taut and his senses were screamingly alert. Anyway, he wouldn’t put it past Hernandez to try another attack tonight. First, he’d check on the little tyke, then he’d grab a quick nap, and then he’d talk to the chief about preventing another surprise attack by Hernandez.

    Frowning, Jake shoved his hands into his pockets. What he really wanted to do was go after Shah. But she needed sleep, and perhaps when she was more rested she would realize that this carnage wasn’t her fault. Throughout the dawn hours and into the morning, he’d watched her work tirelessly with the survivors at the hospital, always offering a kind word, a soft smile, her healing touch. He believed that her passion for protecting Mother Earth was just as fierce and genuine as her compassion for the people around her, and that was admirable. At first, Jake had been concerned that she might be one of those ecofanatics who couldn’t see beyond their own narrow views, but she’d proved that theory wrong. No, Shah Travers was a woman of incredible courage linked to a giving heart. That discovery did nothing but make Jake want to know her—to explore her, to chart the vast, hidden territory of her compassionate heart.

     

    When Shah awoke, sunlight was slanting low through the western window. With a groan, she eased herself into a sitting position on the grass mat that served as her bed. She rubbed her eyes, which were puffy with sleep, and allowed the village sounds to filter into her awakening senses. She didn’t hear the usual sounds of children’s laughter, dogs barking and the singsong Tucanos language filling the air. Glancing at her watch, Shah was alarmed to discover it was nearly 4:00 p.m.

    How could she have slept so long? Hurriedly she got to her knees and opened the trunk where she kept her toiletry items. Retrieving a pair of tan gabardine slacks and a white tank top, she rummaged around some more and found a pair of white cotton socks. Her hair was a tangled mass that desperately needed to be washed and combed. Forcing away her sleepiness, Shah got to her feet and pulled the cotton away from the door.

    “You’re up.”

    Shah jerked to a halt. Her eyes widened momentarily. Jake Randolph sat on a decomposing log not more than fifty feet from her hut.

    “Jake…”

    Jake smiled when he heard her use his first name, glad that the previous stiffness that had existed between them was no longer there. Perhaps it was because she had just awakened. Her features were softened, her lids half-open to reveal drowsy golden eyes. Disheveled, her hair mussed, Shah looked absolutely beautiful, in a natural sort of way.

    “I figured I’d play bodyguard,” he said teasingly.

    “I don’t need one,” Shah groused in return. She frowned and walked toward a