Kate Allenton by Guided Loyalty Page A

deepened. “I’m sorry. We can’t stay, and neither can you.”

          Ethan pulled out a gold medallion coin from his back pocket, flipped it through his fingers, and tossed it to George. The old man’s eyes widened. His mouth parted, but he nodded just the same. He pulled the keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Ethan. “Get going, son. You don’t have any time to waste.”
          Cathy exchanged a concerned look with Tessa. Was this old man the contingency plan? Ethan pulled Jonah’s arm around his neck and clasped him by his waist. “Ladies, let’s go.”
          Instead of following blind, she moved up next to him. “Who’s the old guy and what’s with the medallion? Is that like a super-secret code? And exactly where are we going?”
          “You ask a lot of questions.”
          Cathy shrugged. “And you don’t answer nearly enough.”
          “The old guy is the first commander I had when I joined the military and the medallion is more than just a coin. It’s a sign we came up with a long time ago that means it’s time to get the hell out of dodge and to destroy any proof I’ve been there. As to where we’re going, you’ll just have to wait and see.”
          A tractor drove by them and stopped next to the helicopter. The blades spun to life, and Cathy turned, walking backward as she watched George give her two thumbs-up before he piloted the craft, landing it onto the back of the rig. “What are they doing with the helicopter?”
    Ethan didn’t even look back. “They’re moving the chopper to a new location to destroy the tracking devices.”
          They continued walking, crossing the field toward a shiny, brand-new black chopper sitting like a sore thumb in a cornfield. Out of place didn’t begin to describe the shiny surface surrounded by corn stalks. Evening hours were approaching and quickly. The sun had begun to lower behind the horizon, and the heat of the air was shifting into something a bit cooler. Ethan pulled open the door behind the pilot seat and helped Jonah inside. He moved around to the passenger side and opened the doors. “Ladies....”
    He slid behind the controls, threw on a headset, and began pushing buttons until the blades whirled to life.
          Cathy slid the headset over her ears. “Mighty convenient to have another one waiting.”
          He glanced at her, and his eyes twinkled with mischief. “Growing up around Black, I learned early on to have a backup plan.” He shrugged. “Just in case.”
          What could she say to that? Thank god? Nope, she had nothing. Cathy remained quiet the rest of the ride. She’d get answers whenever they finally got where they were going.

         Cathy glanced down at Ethan’s watch that she still had around her wrist and twirled it to read the face. Thirty minutes later, they were landing. Not at an airport like she’d imagined but behind a log cabin situated on a lake. The lone house was dark and desolate. Trees surrounded the house and camouflaged it from above. She wouldn’t have seen it from the air. Cathy looked up. The sky was hidden from view directly above.
    She followed quietly behind Ethan, glad she wasn’t still with Edward, glad she hadn’t called Black and agreed to the nut job’s plan. Ethan took out the keys the old man had thrown him and unlocked the door. She stepped in behind him and looked up while turning in place. It looked
    smaller from outside. She would have never guessed there were vaulted ceilings inside. She ran her hand across the wooden wall and stepped down into a living room. Plush cream-colored carpets covered the area and met the stone fireplace on the wall across the room. The coffee-colored sofas looked comfortable enough, although if she knew anything about Ethan, they were there to sit on, and the decorative ambiance was for his guests. She turned back to him. “Nice place. Is it yours?”
         Ethan’s lips