Read Serving the Soldier - Part 5 (An Alpha Military Romance) for Free Online Page A

Ajmal’s grasp when I froze. I saw Khalil go down, his head exploding in a gush of red. Tears blurred my vision, and then I felt Ajmal’s arm dropping away.
    My knees nearly gave way and panic threatened to overwhelm me. I felt like I was going to vomit. I trembled violently, not knowing what to do or where to go. Run? I could barely stand on my own two feet. Fall to the ground? I might be hit by a stray bullet. Then, arms wrapped around me again. Ajmal! I grunted with fury, thrashing, kicking, and twisting my body back and forth, trying to escape my captor’s grasp.
    “Angie! Angie, it’s me!”
    My ears rang with the echoing sound of gunfire. The acrid scent of gunpowder filled my nostrils. My eyes wide with panic, I twisted my head around and nearly sagged in relief when I saw Jax standing behind me, holding me by the waist. I uttered a sound that was somewhere between a sob and a scream, and in the next instant, I was in his arms and he was racing toward the cover of the trees.
    I glanced over his shoulder and saw Ajmal lying where he had fallen, his head twisted at a funny angle. The blond was down on one knee, still firing shots randomly. The other two lay still and I knew they were dead. I closed my eyes, not wanting to see any more. I couldn’t believe I had gotten out of that alive.
    Jax took shelter in the trees and slowly lowered me to the ground. Shaking overtook my body to the point I felt like I was having a seizure. He grabbed the sides of my face, stared deep into my eyes. I saw the worry and anxiety there. He wasted no time, but pulled a knife from a sheath tied to his thigh and cut the bindings holding my hands together behind my back, and then removing the gag.
    “Angie,” he said, his voice cracking with emotion. “Angie, are you all right?”
    I couldn’t say a word. His hand stroked my hair, gently caressing the wound near my temple. My throat hurt, everything hurt, and all I could do was throw my numb arms around him, pulling him close to me. Then the sobs came; great, heaving sobs of relief, fear, and adrenaline. He gently pushed me away.
    “Can you stand?”
    I tried to get my emotions under control and nodded. “I… I think so.” My voice was barely more than a rasp.
    The next instant, I saw two shadows approaching and cringed back in fear, a scream issuing from the depths of my throat. Then, I realized that the figures were Michael and Jakob. They too hunched down beside Jax, and although their gazes weren’t quite as filled with worry and anxiety as Jax’s had been, I could tell that they were relieved that I was alive. Michael glanced apologetically at me.
    “Angie, sorry, no time for reunions. We’ve got to get out of here. Now.”
    Without a word, Jax nodded and lifted me into his arms. We quickly made our way through the trees. I held onto him as if my life depended on it—which it did—until we emerged near the shoreline of a lake, I wasn’t sure which one. There, Jax once again settled me on the ground. Quickly, he gave his handgun to Michael, and Jakob also relinquished his automatic rifle.
    “I’ll dispose of these.”
    Jax nodded. “We’ll meet back at the safe house in one hour.” He glanced at Michael. “Make sure the others aren’t following.”
    The others? I wondered. There were more terrorists?
    Michael and Jakob both nodded. Then, without another word, they separated and disappeared through the trees, taking different paths. Jax watched them go before turning to look at me. For a second, I thought he was to say something, but instead, he merely wrapped his arms around me, held me tight for a moment, and then once again lifted me into his arms.
    “No time for niceties right now, Angie. We’ve got to get the hell out of here.”
    I didn’t care. I didn’t care where we were going or how we were going to get there. All that mattered to me was that I was alive. I was in Jax’s arms, and for the first time in days I felt safe, secure, and protected. I