Ghostwalker 04 - Conspiracy Game

bigger jackass of yourself than normal.
    Jack sent Ken a repressing glare, but it didn’t stop the grin spreading across his twin’s face. “Let’s go. The helicopter is circling back.”
    Briony nodded and fell into step beside him. Jack still pushed their speed, but he’d slowed it enough that she could keep up, forcing one foot in front of the other, counting her steps to keep her mind away from the pain flashing through her side and head.
    Sporadic shooting left them in no doubt they were being followed, but the twins’
    confidence never wavered. They moved through the forest as if it were their backyard, taking narrow animal trails, once walking behind a small waterfall. They climbed up boulders and sprinted over bare ground back into the protective canopy of the trees.
    By late afternoon, Briony’s legs felt rubbery. She didn’t even try to think anymore, clinging only to the fact that they had to get away and their enemies seemed tenacious.
    Jack slowed and came to a halt right on the edge of what appeared to be open meadow.
    Up ahead she could see a canyon, the sides steep, a ravine sloping down into thick brush, and the mountain rising with sheer walls on three sides.
    “Jack, we can’t cross in the open, and if we do go in there, how can we get out?”
    He pulled off his pack and switched weapons. “This is the canyon I told you about. We’ll make it out.”
    “Even if we could climb those walls, they have a helicopter,” she protested.
    “Have a little faith, baby,” Jack said. “Rest for a few minutes. When we run across the meadow, you’re going to be running full out, so be ready. Once we’re in the canyon, no one’s going to see us, the brush is too thick. We’ll be able to stop and sleep for a while.
    We’ll be climbing up to the pass at night.”
    Briony studied the sheer cliffs rising above the canyon. They didn’t look like anything she wanted to climb, but both Jack and Ken seemed certain. Her mouth went dry just looking at the distance. Even with enhanced speed, the helicopter could be on her in seconds.
    Jack caught her face in his hand, forcing her to look at him. “You have any sight at all in that eye?”
    “No. It’s too swollen.” She didn’t want to do this. Jack was looking at her as if he had complete faith that she could sprint across the meadow in the face of the enemy, but she was tired, sick, and—truthfully—scared to death.
    “I need you to do this, baby. Look at me. Look me in the eyes.” When she complied, he traced her soft cheek with his thumb. “I would never let anything happen to you. You came to me believing I’d protect you, and I will.”
    The helicopter circled above them, a hovering menace she couldn’t ignore. She wanted to scream that it was different, that this time he was asking her to bet her life—the lives of her children—but she knew she’d been doing that all along. She had to make a decision and put herself fully in his hands. Briony took a deep breath and nodded. “I can run. You tell me where, and one eye is all I need.”
    “That’s my girl.” He bent down to press a kiss to the corner of her mouth. “Tell me when, Briony.”
    He gave her confidence. And he made her feel safe. She rested her head against his chest, just leaned against him as if it was the most natural thing in the world to do to another human being—something she couldn’t do with her own mother. There was no flash of pain, no distress at all, just a feeling of tranquility in the midst of chaos. The throbbing in her face lessened, as did the pain in her side.
    Jack wrapped his arms around her, rifle and all, holding her close to him. He brushed several kisses into her hair. “We’ll get out of this.”
    “I’m sure we will.” Briony pressed close to him, absorbing his strength and confidence.
    “Tell me where I’m supposed to run.”
    “You go straight across the meadow to that log on the far side, the one close to the straggly tree surrounded by boulders. You see the log I’m talking about?”
    She nodded. It looked a long way from them. The meadow was a wide expanse of grasses, flowers, and rocks, and seemed endless. With the helicopter circling overhead, she wasn’t certain just how Jack thought they’d make it into the canyon.
    “Slide under the log, you’ll disappear from view into the scrub. We’ve got a trail there.
    You can start down the trail. We’ll be right behind you.” Jack caught her chin and tilted her head up to