Her Mistletoe Protector

He couldn’t see much, but that was okay, since it helped keep them hidden, as well. When Rachel and Joey returned, he crossed over to them. “Be as quiet as possible, okay? Follow me...we’re going outside.”

Rachel snagged his arm. “Aren’t we safer in here?”

“No, we’re boxed in. Try to trust me on this, Rachel.”

He could barely see her in the darkness. “I do trust you, Nick.”

Whether or not he deserved her trust remained to be seen. But they had to move, so he simply led the way over to the front door. As quietly as possible, he eased back the dead bolt, although the click was louder than he liked. Without wasting time, he opened the door and cast a quick glance around the clearing.

Joey and Rachel crowded behind him, waiting silently for his direction. He took a moment to pray for their safety, before guiding them out onto the front porch, keeping as close to the cabin as possible.

Rachel sent Joey first, and then followed from behind. He didn’t have to tell her to make sure the door didn’t slam shut as she softly closed it before making her way over to where they stood. The night was so cold they could see their breath in the air, and the frozen leaves and brush would make it far more difficult to move silently through the woods.

First, he needed to figure out which was the best direction to go. He waited for a long moment, listening to the sounds of the night. It was too cold for any insects, but at least the wind had died down.

As much as he wanted to use the car to escape, he couldn’t deny the possibility that the intruder had already found it and disabled it. At least, that’s what he would have done.

No, their best bet was to stay hidden in the woods for as long as possible. He didn’t dare use his cell phone yet, as the light from the screen would only broadcast their position to whoever was out there.

The closest grouping of evergreen trees was to the left in the nine-o’clock position, so he bent down to whisper in Rachel’s ear. “Follow me to the evergreens.”

He could feel her head nod, her hair brushing his face. Satisfied, he inched across the porch, praying the boards wouldn’t creak.

The trek to the group of evergreens seemed to take forever, but the moment they reached them, he felt himself relax. Thank goodness they were all wearing dark clothing, and, without the moon, he hoped their pale faces wouldn’t attract too much attention.

“Stay here, I’m going to take a look around,” he whispered again, right next to Rachel’s ear.

“No, wait,” she grabbed his arm in a tense grip. “I smell smoke.”

He paused and tried to estimate how long the scent of smoke would linger in the air after he’d put out the fire inside the cabin.

“There!” Rachel whispered urgently, pointing to an area behind the cabin.

He saw what had captured her attention. Orange flames flickering in the darkness.

Fire!

FOURTEEN

Rachel stared at the small flickering flames in horror. The kidnapper must have found them. Who else would do such a thing? She knew Nick thought Morales had been ordered to kill her and Joey, but they’d managed to get away. The kidnapper must have come back to finish the job. And what if she hadn’t woken up from the thunking noise? Would they have died inside the cabin? Had that been the kidnappers’ plan all along?

Cold fear slid down her spine.

Thank You, Lord, for saving us!

“I think the outhouse might be on fire,” Nick whispered. “And if that’s the case, I’m afraid the fire will spread to the cabin.” He paused, looking out over the trees. “Looks like the wind is blowing north. We’ll need to head south so that we’re heading in the opposite direction.”

“Okay.” She wasn’t about to argue. Joey’s hand was trembling inside of hers, from the cold or fear or both. She tightened her grip reassuringly, knowing she’d do whatever was necessary to keep him safe. “Lead the way.”

Nick stayed between the trees, moving slowly and silently away from the cabin. She did her best to follow in his footsteps, but it seemed like twigs snapped loudly beneath her feet and her clothing brushed and snagged against the tree branches with every step. The cold night air blew sharp against her face, but she knew the fire was the bigger threat compared to the stinging cold.

Although both could be deadly.

They hadn’t made it very far when a loud crack echoed through the night.