Page 24 of Hearts Under Fire
The statement was grim and quiet. Kate bent down and pressed a small kiss between Alexis’s eyebrows.
“I’ll have to stop holding pressure on your wound. Don’t move until I get back. Stay out of sight and out of trouble and try not to die. Promise me you won’t do anything stupid?”
Nodding her agreement, Alexis thought it was unlikely she’d be able to do much but listen anxiously for the helicopter and the sound of flares being lit.
The pressure at her shoulder went away, and Alexis sucked a breath in between her teeth. Searing hot agony engulfed Alexis' shoulder in flames, and the drowsy, blood loss stupor she’d been in dissipated.
Kate was gone, sprinting north up the ditch. Alexis watched her for a moment until she disappeared into the dark. She waited for the sound of flares or helicopter blades. The deep reverberating thumping of the helo tickled Alexis’ senses, and she picked up the minute sound of their team coming for them from the south.
To the north, Alexis watched as a bright red flare hissed and emitted blinding red light in the distance. The sound of truck engines roaring into motion had Alexis’s heart racing in fear. The night grew brighter still as two more flares joined the first. Their red lights illuminated the northern section of the sky that Alexis could see, and she was impressed at how far Kate had managed to throw them. It would only buy them so much time, as the men in the trucks would eventually hear the helicopter, and they’d see the last flare being lit up to flag down their team.
Relief spread through Alexis as Kate reappeared at the northern end of the ditch, sprinting toward her silently. The exertion showed on Kate’s face, and she looked scared.
“We’ve got to gonow. There’ssixtrucks, not two.”
“Fuck,” Alexis swore and forced herself to her feet, the pain sending sparks of agony through her, threatening to make her pass out.
Kate came and wrapped her arm around Alexis’s waist.
“We have to run, Kate,” Alexis whispered, her tone hard, leaving no room for argument.
“You can’t! If you lose much more blood you’ll die,” Kate exclaimed in a furious whisper.
“Baby, if I don’t run, we are both going to die anyway.”
Kate’s mouth snapped shut, and in a burst of energy, pouring everything she had left into it, Alexis pushed herself into a run. It was the only way she’d get Kate out of there willingly, and Alexis had known the chances of making it out of the desert with such a severe injury wasn’t likely. So running and losing what was left of her blood volume meant nothing as long as Kate got out alive.
As their feet pounded toward the south, the sound of helicopter blades thumping in the distance grew louder. They weren’t trying to hide anymore, just be as fast as possible. The enemy seemed distracted by their flares, and Alexis hoped it would keep them occupied long enough for them to reach the extraction site.
The dry, dusty air choked Alexis, and her lungs burned with the effort exerted to stay upright and moving. Stars danced around the edges of her vision, and a wave of nausea rolled through her. At any moment her legs would give out.
Her gaze flitted to Kate, and she saw fear written in every crease of her beautiful face. She pushed harder, unwilling to go down before they reached the helicopter, knowing that Kate wouldn’t go without her.
At once, two things became apparent. The helicopter was landing about fifty feet ahead of them, and their diversion was no longer fooling the enemy. Kate’s head whipped around, and from the way her eyes widened and nearly popped out of her head, Alexis guessed the men in trucks were advancing on them from the north. The fear distracted Kate, and she stumbled slightly.
“Head forward, babe. Helo’s here. Run like hell.”
Kate’s head snapped back around, eyes falling on the helicopter ahead of them. Alexis dipped into the last of her energy, and they ran as hard as they could. Shots rang out behind them, the popping of rounds almost deafened by the helicopter’s loud rhythmic whooping.
Ten feet from the helicopter, Alexis’s knees gave out, and to her surprise, one of the men in the helicopter jumped out and ran to them.
“Get into the helo!” he yelled at Kate. She hesitated, and he yelled again.
“Now, Lieutenant! I’ve got Cole. Get in!”
The world disappeared from beneath her as the man lifted her, and Alexis realized she knew him.
“Hey. You’re not supposed to be here.”
Maloy’s face held concern, and Alexis knew she probably looked like a fresh corpse.
“Tough shit, Liuetenant. I wasn’t leaving you out here.”
Maloy lifted her into the helicopter and then was shouting at their pilot to take off. The sound of a machine gun offloading rounds near Alexis’s ear told her that the trucks were coming in close, and their aerial gunner had decided to return fire. The helicopter jerked, rising into the air, and Alexis’s vision swam. Kate was safe, and that’s what mattered.
I love you, too.
Shouting came from both sides of her in different voices. One was Kate’s, and the other she didn't recognize. The pain in her shoulder amplified, and Alexis let out a guttural scream before it finally became too much. She passed out, letting the sweet bliss of unconsciousness take over and release her from her pain.