Lawless by Helenkay Dimon

kicked up a few feet away from her, and birds swooped out of the trees in a rush.
    “Get down!” His full body smacked into her before he finished talking.
    The ground rushed up and she put out a hand to stop the free fall. Her legs twisted with his and the second before she slammed into the ground he turned them.
    Landing on his side with a grunt, he absorbed the majority of their combined body weight on his shoulder. His body bounced and she tried to move away and let him brace for impact, but he curled her body into his. Still, the jolt rattled her teeth and she heard him swear under his breath.
    She could taste dirt and feel sharp sticks jabbing into her bare legs and ripping off her bandage. Her mind finally focused and the sounds of the forest came rushing back. “Joel—”
    “Don’t move.”
    It had sounded like... But it couldn’t be. “What was that?” She whispered the question as she frantically looked around.
    Before she could scramble to her feet, he shoved her against the ground and covered her body with his. His fingers slipped into her hair as he held her down. She heard a steady stream of reassuring words, but they barely registered over the fear and panic pounding through her.
    She expected shouts and more pops. When nothing came, she glanced up. His gaze scanned the area, and his gun was up and ready. She swallowed hard at the vulnerability of their position. Right there on her makeshift path with nothing covering them or blocking their view in any direction.
    “A gunshot.” He was so close the words vibrated against the side of her head.
    Adrenaline pumped through her, and her heartbeat hammered in her ears so loudly she thought for sure she’d give away their position. “Where did it come from?”
    “I’m more worried about who and how many.” He shifted his weight until most of it fell away to her side. “Stay under me.”
    “Are you wearing a bulletproof vest?”
    “Didn’t think I’d need one.”
    She waited for the attacker to rush them. Listened for another shot. “I can’t hear or see anything.”
    “I need to get to the helicopter.”
    A vision of him running and getting shot hit her with the force of a crashing train. The horror of it stole her breath and had her fingernails digging into the dirt. “No.”
    “I have a vest and binoculars in there.” He slipped farther off her. “Other weapons.”
    “You can’t risk going into the open.”
    With barely a touch he moved them to the left. She felt his deep inhale before he rolled them over and stopped close to a large tree trunk. He tapped the back of her legs. “Curl up.”
    When the world finally stopped spinning she looked up and saw rough bark right in front of her face and threw a hand out to touch the surface. “What are we doing?”
    “You are going to make yourself as small as possible.” He gave the orders without looking at her. His head kept moving as he glanced around them. “Then you’re not to move.”
    “You can’t—”
    “I’m serious. You move and I will come back, which is more of a threat to me than racing over there.” With a hand between her shoulder blades, he lowered her closer to the ground. “Stay down.”
    Before she could grab on or call him back, he was gone. In a crouch, zigzagging he broke through the last line of trees. He hugged close to the helicopter as he lifted a hand. The door must have stuck or his angle was off because she saw him pulling and tugging.
    With all her concentration, she focused on him. Her teeth clicked together as terror spun through her. She waited for footsteps to fall and a hand to pull her up. The only thing that kept her from screaming was watching Joel. Even as her vision blurred around the edges, she stared.
    After some fiddling and a yank, he got the door open and bonelessly slipped inside. One minute his dark hair provided a beacon and the next he was gone.
    Her breath hiccupped in her chest as she fought the urge to run after him. She’d just