Sworn to Protect (Vows of the Heart) (23 page)

Fighting pain and dizziness, Ethan crawled to his feet, hefting the backpack over his shoulder. He clutched his bleeding side and looked at the vehicle parked on the edge of the road, its headlights still on, its engine running. If they had left a man to guard it, he was awful quiet. Ethan shifted direction and began an arduous climb up the steep incline. Considering the shape he was in, it felt like Mount Everest.

He finally reached the vehicle. No guard. Summoning the last of his reserves, Ethan crawled in and drove away.

****

Bethany had resorted to pacing and chewing her fingern
ails. Again! It approached 3:00 a.m. of the second night and she was at wits end. Where was Ethan?

“That’s a bad habit
, you know,” Nathan said.

“What?”

“Chewing your fingernails.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “I didn’t have a problem until after I met your brother.”

“I know how you feel,” he replied with a grin. “Remember, our mother held me responsible whenever he got himself in trouble.” He glanced at the clock and scowled.

“You’re worried too,” Bethany accused. “Don’t deny it.”

Nathan remained silent for a long moment then slowly nodded. “But will give him another hour or two.”

“Why? Why wait that long?”

“Do you have any idea where he went? Where we should start looking?”

“No,” she replied, her shoulders slumping.

“There is one good thing about this. If he was killed or captured, it would be all over the news in a heartbeat.”

Bethany shivered. “Your optimism is contagious.”

Nathan shrugged.

“Besides, if Cordova killed him, we might never know. Cordova has a great talent for making people vanish without a trace.”

He thought for a moment and shook his head. “I don’t think he’d do that in Ethan’s case. My brother has been a big thorn in his side for a long time. Cordova strikes me as a fellow who would want to make an example of him...a warning to others. If he killed Ethan, he would want the body found.”

“There you go with that optimism crap again.”

He rose and crossed the room, gently gripping her shoulders. “Bethany, relax, I’m sure my brother is fine. He’s not easy to knock down, I know from experience.”

A thump on the door nearly made her jump out of her skin.

Nathan’s grip tightened on her shoulders and he practically lifted her in the direction of the hallway. “Stay out of sight.”

A second thump sounded and Bethany hurried into the hall. Nathan made sure she reached it and drew his gun. He stared through the peep-hole.

His eyes widened and he practically tore the locks off the door. He flung it open and Ethan staggered through. Bethany almost screamed. His face and right side were covered in blood and he held his left arm awkwardly to his belly. Nathan caught him before he fell.

She sprinted back. “What happened?”

Nathan eased him to the floor. “Get something to stop the bleeding.”

Bethany shifted direction, grabbed a towel from the kitchen and returned. Nathan folded it then pressed it over the wound on Ethan’s side. Then he grabbed Bethany’s hand and forced her to hold the towel in place. “Keep pressure on this. I’ve got to do a perimeter check.”

“Car,” Ethan gasped, dropping the keys. “Take care of it.”

“Gotcha, bro, but first we have to take care of you, then I can dump the car.” He sco
oped up the keys and stepped to the door.

“Nathan,” Bethany protested. “We can’t just leave him like this. He needs help, he needs a hospital.”

“Keep pressure on the wound, slow the bleeding. I’ll be right back as soon as I make sure he wasn’t followed.”

Nathan vanished through the door, leaving Bethany alone with a man who was bleeding to death before her eyes.

“Ethan,” Bethany called. “Ethan, can you hear me?” She removed the blood stained ski cap he wore, noticing he was dressed all in black. Then she found some of her lock pick tools on him. Anger rose within her. What in the hell had he done? With her free hand, she wove her fingers through his hair, gently pushing the soft locks away from his face. “Ethan, open your eyes.”

He groaned, blinking furiously,
then focused on her. His mercury eyes were glazed, lacking their normal spark.

“It’s all right, Ethan, you’re safe now.”

“Get the backpack.” He tried to move.

“Stop,” she said sternly.

“The backpack,” he said again.

Bethany noticed it beside him, the strap still around his shoulder. She carefully tugged it free.

“The files,” he whispered, his voice growing weaker. “Keep them safe. They will keep you alive even if....”

“Ethan, what are you talking about? Nathan couldn’t find the files.”

“I have them.”

“What?”

Just then the door opened and Nathan quickly stepped through, locking it behind him and returning his gun to his holster. “We’re clear.” He darted into the hallway and returned a moment later carrying a large pack. He opened it and Bethany was grateful to see medical supplies. Of course, as a SEAL, Nathan would have also been trained in some sort of emergency first aid.

“Was he shot?” Bethany asked as Nathan examined the wound.

“No, it looks more like an injury from a bad car accident. Help me get his jacket and arm brace off.” She did so, noting Ethan’s brace was badly mangled. Nathan cut his shirt away. Bethany choked on a sob, seeing the wound on his side. It appeared as if a jagged piece of metal had ripped through him.

The terrible cold descended on her. Bethany sucked in her breath as the hairs on her arm stood on end. She glanced around, searching for Aaron’s ghost
, but didn’t see him. Instead, it felt as if two spectral hands gripped her shoulders.

Traitor!
Aaron’s voice sounded in her ear, a soft breath that stirred the strands of her hair.

She strangled back a cry of terror.

Her nightmare forced itself upon her vision. Over the scars on Ethan’s chest, she saw the bleeding wounds.

Your fault!

“No!” she gasped.

Nathan looked at her in surprise. “Bethany, easy.”

Betrayal!

She
recoiled, the pressure she held on the towel easing, blood flowing anew.

“Bethany,” Nathan barked. “Keep pressure on the wound.” He grabbed her arm and his eyes widened. “Holy hell, Bethany, you’re as cold as ice.”

“Leave me alone!” she cried, not at Nathan, but at the vengeful spirit tormenting her.

“Damn it, Bethany!” Nathan snapped. “Pull it together! I need your help or he will die.”

He will die!
the spirit murmured, echoing Nathan’s words, but with a far different meaning.

She squeezed her eyes closed. “Leave! Now! I don’t want you here!” She opened her eyes, willing Aaron’s spirit to be gone.

Nathan stared at her as if she had completely lost her mind. Then his eyes widened in horror and he pulled his gun, pointing it directly at Bethany.

Wait! He wasn’t pointing it at her
, but just over her head. His face turned ashen.

“You…you see him too?”

The wild look in his eyes told her everything. He swallowed hard and nodded once.

Traitor!
the voice shrieked in her ear.

“No!”

You betrayed him!

Her heart screamed at her and she finally listened. She gazed down at Ethan’s blood spattered face. Agonizing pain cut through her as his state forced her to examine the emotion she
had tried to bury.

“I love him, Aaron.”

You will destroy him!

“No! I love him. Leave now!”

The dead hands on her shoulders released and the cold slowly faded.

Bethany drew a deep shuddering breath.

Nathan blinked rapidly. “What in the hell was it?”

“Not now! Please, Nathan.”

He shook himself and returned his gun to his holster. Nathan focused on his brother, but his hands shook terribly. He quickly placed a pressure bandage on the wound. Nathan then cautiously felt Ethan’s arm. Ethan stirred and groaned when Nathan touched a sensitive spot, but he didn’t flinch or jump violently.

“Thank God,” Nathan said softly. “It’s bruised
, but not broken again.”

“What about his side?”

“That’s going to take a bit more than what we have here. The pressure bandage will slow the bleeding long enough for us to get help.” He rose and fetched his cell phone from the table.

“We need to get him to a hospital.”

“If we take him to a hospital, he will be arrested or one of Cordova’s people will find him.”

“If we don’t take him, he will die.” Her voice cracked and tears blurred her eyes.

“Not on my watch,” Nathan growled, dialing his cell. “Hello, Tommy? This is Nathan.” He walked away a few paces, speaking softly, and Bethany couldn’t make out his words. She focused on Ethan and placed a bandage on his head.

Nathan clicked off his phone and again crouched by the med-pack, rummaging through it. “He’ll be here in a few minutes.”

“Who?” Bethany’s heart pounded in alarm. This had to be bad if Nathan was bringing someone here.

“Tommy...Brad Thompson. He was the medic on our team. When I left, they
dissolved our team. Tommy didn’t re-up. Instead, he went back to school and became a triage doctor.” Nathan pulled out a syringe and filled it.

“What’s that?”

“Morphine. Tommy said I could give him a little for the pain.” He wiped Ethan’s arm with an alcohol swab and injected him. He then checked Ethan and shook his head. “He’s lost a lot of blood.”

Bethany’s stomach coiled into a sickening knot. “We should get him into bed.”

Nathan shook his head, instead grabbing a blanket from the couch and putting it over Ethan. “I’ll wait until Tommy gets here. He’s stronger than you and we can move him more easily. The bleeding is slowing, I don’t want to do anything to make it worse.”

Bethany found a small pillow and put it under Ethan’s head.

Nathan rose, walked to the table and poured more tequila into a shot glass. He stared at it a moment then growled and set the glass down. “Bethany, what in the hell was that thing?”

She tried to push down her terror, her hand stroking Ethan’s face. Ethan had said he had felt the cold but never actually saw Aaron’s ghost. But
Nathan had seen him. She frowned. Nathan had also been drinking quite a bit today. She opened her mouth to reply, but a knock on the door sounded and she flinched.

Nathan, his gun in hand, answered the door.

Tommy entered then stopped short, staring at Ethan on the floor.

“Damn,” he muttered. “I thought the guy on the news was your brother.”

Bethany swallowed hard. Nathan may trust the man, but he was a complete stranger to her.

“That’s why I had to call you. A hospital is out of the question.”

“I understand.” He placed his bag beside Ethan and immediately went to work.

Bethany watched him silently as he started an IV. It didn’t take him long to have Ethan patched back together and he and Nathan moved him into bed.

“Nathan, do you know his blood type?” Tommy asked.

“Yes, it’s the same as mine. I’ve given him blood before.”

“Anything I should know about?”

“I’ve been drinking today,” Nathan replied.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have a choice.”

Nathan rolled up his sleeve. “Where do you want me?”

“Next to him. I really don’t like doing this but....”

“Like you said we don’t have a choice.”

“What are you doing?” Bethany asked worriedly.

“Blood transfusion,” Tommy said. “I don’t like doing a direct one, but he needs it.”

Once Nathan relaxed beside his brother, Tommy set up the direct blood transfusion. Bethany’s teeth worried her lower lip. She sat beside Ethan and took his free hand in her left and lightly caressed his face with her right.

Finally, the blood transfusion was finished. Tommy helped Nathan stand then move to a chair. “You need to take it easy, Nathan. You’re going to be light-headed. Ethan’s out for the night,” Tommy said and stepped away from his patient.
“I only have a couple bags of saline for his IV, but with the blood loss he’s going to need a lot of fluids. See if you can wake him up to drink every four hours or so. You can also give him the morphine at the same time. He’s going to be hurting for a while.”

Bethany rose and gently gripped Nathan’s shoulder. “Didn’t I see some orange juice in your fridge? How about I get you some?”

Tommy nodded as she spoke and pulled up a chair next to Nathan, checking his pulse against his watch.

“That would be great, Bethany, thank you,” Nathan said with a weak smile.