Here Comes the Rainne Again (Invertary 6)

“What the hell are you doing back here?” Joe snapped when Megan literally ran into his oversized chest as he came out of the kitchen.

He held his gun tight in his hand. His shoulders were tense and the happy-go-lucky smile was gone.

“Trouble?” Megan nodded to the kitchen.

“The guys are scouting the exterior, but they haven’t made a move to come inside. Yet. I counted three, but there’s probably more. Now, want to tell me why you’re here instead of on your way into town? You’re supposed to be getting help. And where’s Claire? If anything happened to her, I may as well shoot myself right now. It’ll save Grunt the trouble.”

Megan stared at him for a second. “Has anyone ever told you you’re really tense?” She held up a hand when he opened his mouth to answer her. “Claire’s on her way to the pub. And there are definitely more than three guys. One of them is tied up in the downstairs loo waiting for us to interrogate him.”

Joe gaped at her, which made Megan

wonder if he was really cut out for life as a soldier for hire.

8

* Rainne and Alastair *

Rainne’s bout of anger disappeared as fast as it had flared. She covered her mouth with her hands as she gasped. She’d hit a man with a head injury. She started to hyperventilate. This was not good. Not good at all. Alastair had blood caked to the side of his head and his pallor was grey. He swayed on his feet, but was too damn stubborn to lean on the truck. And she’d hit him. On the head. His injured head.

“What the hell, Rainne?” He rubbed his cheek.

“Sorry?” She shook her head. No, she was definitely sorry. “I snapped. I hope I didn’t damage your brain further. I’ve never hit anyone before, and I realise this is not the time to start. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. You hit like a girl.”

“I am a girl.” Now she was a confused girl.

“Never mind that.” Alastair waved a hand, dismissing her. “We need to start walking into town.”

“No. We need to get out of the cold and tend to your injuries. The closest place is the guardhouse beside the castle gate.”

Alastair shook his head, then flinched. Very carefully, as though trying not to move, he looked at her. “Are you nuts? There’s a guy with a gun at the castle. We don’t know how many friends he has with him. We need to get away from the place, not move closer to it.”

Rainne could feel herself wilting under his indomitable will. Every cell within her wanted to back off and avoid a confrontation. But she’d spent three years growing a backbone, and she was damn well going to use it.

“There hasn’t been any sign of life at the guardhouse. I’ve been watching. No noise. No light. Nothing. If you want to walk to town, on you go, but you can barely stand, so I don’t know how you’ll make it through the snow. You’ll probably pass out and die of hypothermia, but hey, you don’t need help, so you’ll be fine. Meanwhile, I plan to head to the guardhouse, where there’s warmth, shelter and hopefully a landline so I can call the police.”

When she finished her rant she stood before him, shaking but determined. She hoped desperately he wouldn’t call her bluff, because there was no way she’d let Alastair walk to town alone, not when he was injured and needed her help. Even if he couldn’t admit it.

“What happened to you?” He stared at her as though she was incomprehensible. “You were sweet and colourful. You worried about offending everyone.”

“In other words, I always did what anyone told me to do.”

He snorted. “Guess that’s where I went wrong. I should have told you to stay instead of asking you nicely.”

Rainne took the flashlight from where it was balanced on the wheel and thrust at it him—when what she really wanted to do was lob it at his head. Apparently the new Rainne had no problem with anger or violence. “You’ll need this more than I will.”

With that, she went for the big exit and turned towards the castle. She really, really hoped she wasn’t shot when she got there. And she really, really hoped Alastair didn’t die in the snow without her to protect him.

Alastair watched Rainne stride determinedly through the snow in the direction of the castle. Her purple moon boots were swallowed by each step she took, and she wobbled on her feet. But the stubborn mule kept on going. He could practically hear her thinking. She’d be grumbling about how unreasonable he was—while at the same time worrying about him. He shook his head and instantly regretted it when pain shot through his temple.

She didn’t have an ounce of common sense. What was she thinking going back to the castle? What was she going to do if the guy with the gun was waiting? Lecture him on how to stage a peaceful protest? She was too soft-hearted. Ignorant of the evil people were capable of doing. He was pretty sure her head was filled with unicorns and rainbows.

The snow was falling so thickly now he could barely see her. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He couldn’t let her go alone. It was like abandoning a kitten.

Damn it to hell.

With unsteady steps, he followed the woman who’d ripped out his heart and left him to rebuild a life without her. The woman he’d promised to never let near him again. Aye. That was the woman he was chasing through the bloody snow like an idiot.