Spy Hard by Dana Marton Page B

down his offer to share each time, but he didn’t seem offended. As far as he was concerned, that meant more for him and the puppy.
    Jase moved around their small campsite to collect wood. She went to help him, but before she could pick up the first fallen branch, he froze and lifted a hand in warning, his other hand going for his weapon.
    Stopping half-bent like that sent a bolt of pain shooting across her lower back. She straightened slowly and stepped back to the edge of the clearing, sank down on a large rock as she listened for any suspicious noise and scanned the forest around them.
    Then she did catch some leaves moving in a patch of bushes, in the direction when Jase was staring. She held her breath, not knowing what to expect. The picture of an attacking jaguar flashed in her mind, but when the branches suddenly parted, Alejandro stepped out of his green hiding place.
    The man held two guns, one aimed at Jase, the other aimed at her. A terrifying grin spread on his face.

Chapter Seven
    “What the hell did you do to her?” Alejandro’s eyes narrowed as he gave Melanie a double-take, his face twisting into a grimace.
    Not the sort of comment a girl could take as a compliment. She had the sudden urge to cover her face, but the moment didn’t allow for vanity. She scanned the ground, her gaze coming to rest on the machete, about equal distance between her and Jase. He only had eyes for Alejandro, the two men squaring off, weapons aimed.
    “You yellow-bellied bastard.” The man spit on the ground. “You ran from the fight.”
    “So did you,” Jase pointed out with a shrug. “It’s between the bosses. I came here to make a decent living without being harassed by the policía every day like I was in the city. Why should we have to die just because those two bosses decided to squabble, eh, amigo? We go someplace else,” he said, immediately reverting to camp talk. “How about that? You come with us. Plenty of bosses in the jungle. Plenty of work.”
    “I ain’t no traitor.” Alejandro spat again. “I’m here to bring Don Pedro’s woman back to him.” He glanced at her again, but couldn’t quite do it without wincing.
    How had he caught up to them so fast? Well, okay, she definitely slowed Jase down. Quite a bit. But still. This meant that Pedro must have noticed that she’d gone missing shortly after Jase had broken them out. And Roberto had probably remembered that Jase had been up in her room before. Maybe they’d put two and two together.
    The man kicked at Chico—who barked at his feet, having somehow escaped his leash—but missed. Mochi ran over to scoop the dog up and carried it to a safe distance.
    “No gringo bastard will outsmart me,” Alejandro growled at Jase. Then he gestured with the gun he held on Melanie. “Up. Get over here. You, too,” he told the boy.
    She stayed where she sat. “I can’t. I’m too exhausted. Everything hurts.” God’s honest truth.
    The man scowled at her. “Try harder. I’m here to save you from this hombre. ”
    For a second she didn’t know what he was talking about, then realized that he thought Jase had kidnapped her. Don Pedro had probably made that claim to save face. He would never admit that she’d run away from him. But if Alejandro took her back, Pedro would punish her in private, about that she had no doubt.
    The last thing she wanted was to be saved from Jase, but she kept her mouth shut. Maybe she could use the fact that Alejandro thought she was here under duress to her advantage.
    She made a show of pushing herself up. Groaned. She rubbed the side of her belly. “I don’t think this is good for the baby.” She sank back down. “I can’t do it. Sorry. I need time to rest. He’s been pushing me too hard.”
    Instead of going to Alejandro as ordered, Mochi moved closer to Melanie.
    The man’s scowl darkened. He hesitated, probably weighing his options. He had to know that if anything happened to the baby while he brought Melanie