"Feehan, Christine - Leopard 02 - Wild Rain" - читать интересную книгу автора (Feehan Christine)

Barefoot, mud squishing between her toes, soaked and shaking with fear, Rachael
crawled over the marsh to the

WILD RAIN 9
edge of the tree lane. Only then did she try to see what was happening on the
opposite shore. She had been swept hundreds of yards downstream and the pounding
rain formed a nearly impenetrable curtain. Rachael sank down behind foliage,
peering through the sheets of rain as she donned her spare boots, brought along
for the very purpose of sacrificing her other pair should she have the
opportunity to go overboard. She hadn't counted on such a wild current, but the
chance to make an escape, in spite of the danger, was too good to turn down.
The bandits seemed to be angry, herding those remaining alive into a small
shivering group. They were all shaking their heads. Several men paced along the
riverbank looking for something... or someone. Rachael's heart sank. She had a
sneaking suspicion the raid had been aimed at killing her. What better way to
insure her death than to have her meet with a stray bullet while they rounded up
prisoners to ransom? Kidnapping was a common enough occurrence and the bandits
could be bought easily to perform an assassination. Rachael adjusted her pack,
took one last look at the river and headed into the jungle.
She couldn't stop shivering as she raced through the forest, searching for a
faint path leading into the interior. She had spent nearly a year preparing for
this moment. She ran every day, lifted weights and climbed rock walls. She was
not a particularly small woman but she learned how to turn every pound into
muscle. A private instructor worked with her on self-defense, throwing knifes
and stick fighting. She had gone so far as to search out survival books,
committing as much as she could to memory.
The wind whipped the feathery canopy in all directions, showering Rachael with
leaves and twigs and a multitude of flowers. In spite of the wind, the dense
canopy helped to shield her from the rain, breaking up the solid wall of water
so that it fell with a dull thudding rhythm. She hurried as fast as she dared,
determined to put as much distance between the river and her destination. She
was certain she could build
10

Christine Feehan

or find one of the old native dwellings. A hut with three walls of leaves and
bark and a sloping roof. She had studied the design and it seemed simple enough
to follow.

In spite of continually shivering, Rachael moved with confidence and hope. For
the first time in months the terrible weight pressing down on her shoulders
lifted. She had a chance. A real chance at living. She might have to live alone,
but she could choose how she would live.

Something crashed in the brush off to her left but she hardly glanced in that
direction, trusting her warning system to alert her should there be a real
threat. Water squished in her boots, but she didn't dare take the time to change
into dry clothes. It wouldn't do any good; she had to cross several waist-deep
streams, some with strong currents. She was forced to use creepers to drag