Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense March 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 by Dana Mentink (good fiction books to read .txt) 📕

but her voice sounded like a plea. For all Maya’s bravado, Nora’s heart twisted with compassion.

She reached for her sister’s hand. They both stopped and finally made eye contact. “What do you mean that you’ve been protecting me?”

Maya’s nose wrinkled in the way it used to when trying to decide something. Nora fought against impatience and waited.

“I got in this for the money, the freedom,” Maya said with a lift of her chin. “I know you could never understand, but I wanted something for myself. Haven’t you ever wanted that? I mean, we didn’t even get our own rooms growing up. Ever. Aunt Linda was so worried about seemingly giving us preferential treatment, she had us sleeping in the lodge with the other employees!”

“You have to keep in mind Aunt Linda never even knew Mom. She didn’t even know she had a half sister when she was asked to take us in.” The tendency to defend Aunt Linda’s choices took Nora by surprise. She didn’t want to admit that she’d fought carrying the same grudge for many years.

Maya threw a thumb into her chest. “I’ve been able to go places I’ve always wanted, Nora.”

Nora tried her best to smile but couldn’t.

Maya’s smile also dropped. “It wasn’t as much fun when I didn’t have anyone to tell, so I tried once to get… I did try. But…”

“They threatened to hurt Nora. Didn’t they?” Henry’s harsh voice broke the tenderness of the moment. “And your aunt?”

Maya pulled back, releasing Nora’s hand. “Listen, it’s safer if you stop asking questions. I’ll get you out of here, and you can do what you want. Just don’t mention me as part of any of it, if you want to keep Nora and Aunt Linda safe.”

Nora twisted to gauge Henry’s reaction. Maya had directed her words at him but turned to Nora as if to confide. “You can’t trust anyone. I don’t know who is on the payroll, but I know you’re being watched.”

Nora’s mouth dropped. “Is there one from the US Forest—”

“I don’t know who all is involved, I told you.” Her eyes flashed. “You mentioned Tommy. I don’t know any details about that, either. Promise me you’ll stop asking questions, Nora.”

“You at least know some of the payroll,” Henry interrupted.

“It’s not safe to talk about.” Maya eyed Henry. “For all I know, you’re in on it.”

“How ’bout we remedy that, and I get you set up with some witness protection? While I protect your sister. If Nora lets me know your aunt’s whereabouts, I can make some calls and get her safe, as well.”

Maya turned, looked ahead, and placed a hand on her forehead. “I need to focus. I can’t take you my normal route.” They came to an intersection where the tunnels split three ways. Maya stretched her chin forward. “Did you hear that?”

Nora strained her ears. Footsteps echoed through the tunnels.

“Carl found the entrance.” Maya turned to them. “I have an idea, but you’re going to have to trust me,” she whispered.

Nora almost groaned aloud. How could they do that?

* * *

Henry shivered, standing in the darkness. Maya killed the lights, flipping a switch at the intersection of the mine tunnels. A moment later, a bright spotlight shone from a headlamp he didn’t realize she’d been wearing. She beckoned them forward.

“I don’t like using this tunnel,” she whispered. “There are some vertical shafts that drop hundreds of feet farther down. We’ll stop way before that, but it gives me the creeps.” The tunnel they’d entered wasn’t nearly as modern—which was saying something—as they sidestepped trash in the form of discarded lanterns, a pile of seemingly old dynamite, a broken shovel and a four-foot wooden ladder. Pebbles and a few rocks the size of baseballs littered the path, as well.

Maya shifted her headlamp beam before he could look at the ceiling to judge the likelihood of being buried alive in a cave-in. They were only about forty miles from a known fault line. He hoped, if the tunnels had stood the test of time after so many earthquakes, that this one was sturdy. The moment they passed a precarious beam, Maya shifted her back against the wall and gestured for them to do the same.

Playing hide-and-seek from an officer five years his junior went against the fiber of Henry’s being, but Nora’s safety—and therefore her sister’s—took priority. The rattle of metal echoed. Maya’s headlamp went dark. Henry remembered his feet causing the same sound on the metal grates. Carl had to be roughly a hundred feet from the intersection of tunnels. Would the deputy turn around without light helping him lead the way?

There were thousands of abandoned mines in Idaho, many undocumented. In his short time as a ranger, they’d had one off-road vehicle unintentionally discover a nearby vertical mineshaft. Those types of hidden mines were the scariest. Thankfully, they’d rescued the two individuals without serious injury, though they’d been trapped for two days before the search party had found them. Henry’s throat tightened at the thought of being trapped inside a cold, damp environment for days.

Finding and entering the locations of discovered mines into a state database was one of the priorities of his job, but this particular set of tunnels was quite extensive, and he was sure they were not all on record yet. Copper or silver mines would be his guess. Whoever Maya’s boss was had likely discovered these mines and worked very hard to keep it a secret, from what Henry could tell. Otherwise, he and other nature enthusiasts would’ve discovered one of this magnitude by now. Maybe every exit and entrance had been camouflaged. He just prayed it would be easier to find ways out than in.

Nora’s breath shuddered next to him. Their shoulders touched, providing the only side-by-side warmth in the freezing tunnel. He adjusted his stance so he’d be ready to pounce if needed. Their hands brushed and it felt like electricity rushed up his spine, sharpening his senses. He bent his head and whispered into