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“We’ll go south. Did he shoot you?”
    “Just my calf.”
    “Bleeding?”
    “A little.” Actually, quite a bit. She was getting dizzy. Fight it. She couldn’t let herself go unconscious. Les might need her.
    And that shooter was still firing.
    Stay conscious.
    Help Les.
    Oh, God, they both needed help.
    The helicopter was plunging toward the rocks in the valley below.
    She couldn’t count on staying conscious.
    They were going to die.
    Unless she could get the help to stay alive.
    Unless he could help her.
    “Cameron!”
    *   *   *
    “Erin Sullivan has reached Hong Kong,” Hu Chang told Catherine. “But she’s not at Chen Lu’s palace yet. Venable is having her and Les Caudell taken there now.” He paused. “There were problems.”
    “Problems?” Her gaze flew to his across the library. “What do you mean problems?”
    “It seems that she was already targeted by the time Caudell got to her. There was a sniper.”
    Catherine’s heart leaped. “Erin?”
    “Leg wound. Caudell has a shattered collarbone. Unfortunately, a village priest was killed.”
    “My God.”
    “But Erin and Caudell are alive and will remain alive,” he said. “They’ll be safe with Chen Lu.”
    “Maybe.” She felt sick. “I need to talk to Erin.”
    “I’ll let her know that is your wish. Right now, it would not be wise.”
    “Because she’s already been shot, dammit.”
    “And you’re angry and want to reach out and punish Santos.”
    “You’re damn right I do. I’m feeling helpless. That’s not going to go on. What about that sniper? Can Venable catch him before he gets off the mountain?”
    “There was no other helicopter except Caudell’s on the mountain. That means the sniper’s on foot or in a vehicle. It’s a possibility we can catch him, but it appears to be doubtful considering the time lapse. Still, there may be an alternative. I will see what we can do.”
    “No, I’ll see what we can do,” Catherine said. “He’s our only lead, and I’m not going to let him get away.” She got to her feet. “I’m out of here.”
    “As you wish. May I ask where you’re going?”
    “I’m catching the first flight for Hong Kong, then on to Tibet.”
    “May I suggest you wait until you talk to Erin? She told Caudell she wasn’t staying at Chen Lu’s. She’s coming to you.”
    “No! She can’t do that. I don’t want her anywhere near me.”
    “That’s not going to happen. She’s your friend and feels she owes you a great debt. You saved her life.”
    “It was my job. I had to get her out of Tibet and away from that bastard, Kadmus.” She looked him in the eye. “Or you would have done it yourself. I’m CIA. I was trained to do it. You might not have made it.”
    “Oh, I would have survived. But it’s true that you’re more competent than I at killing and mayhem.” He paused. “But I would have had help from someone who is your equal, if not your superior. It was only fair that he be involved, since he was the one who brought Erin to my attention.”
    Cameron. He was talking about Richard Cameron. She couldn’t argue that Cameron was a superb fighter as well as having other psychic talents that were fairly incredible.
    And sexual skills that were absolutely mind-blowing.
    Don’t think of that. Her relationship with Cameron was in the past, and it had to stay in the past. They had been ships that passed in a night so tumultuous that it had shaken her to her core. Very dangerous. They had radically different beliefs, and she couldn’t trust him to be anything but what he was—the Guardian. It was the name by which the villagers in Tibet had known him. A mysterious man who moved in and out of the mountains, taught by monks and fighters to be expert in many disciplines and who had incredible skills.
    Hu Chang’s gaze was narrowed on her face. “You’ve not heard from him lately?”
    She shook her head emphatically. “Why should I have heard from him? We live in different worlds.