Page 39 of Close Protection

She scanned the ravine walls, assessing options. To their right, the embankment rose almost vertically, offering no viable path. To the left, a marginally less steep slope presented a possible, if challenging, ascent.

"Can we go back?" Ivy asked.

"Negative. There’s a secondary team likely following our trail." Julia nodded toward the left embankment. "We go up and around. The ground will be unstable—roots and rocks only. Follow exactly where I step."

Without waiting for acknowledgment, Julia began the ascent, using exposed tree roots as handholds. The mud made each grip a gamble;some roots held firm, others pulled free at the slightest pressure. She tested each handhold before committing her weight, creating a safe path for Ivy to follow.

Halfway up the embankment, a root tore from the mud with a soft, sucking sound. Julia's foot slipped, sending a cascade of small stones tumbling down the slope. The noise seemed thunderous in the quiet forest.

Below, Ivy pressed herself against the embankment, freezing in place. They both waited, listening for any indication the operative had heard.

Silence held for three heartbeats. Four. Five.

Then, the unmistakable sound of movement from around the bend as swift, purposeful footsteps approached their position.

"Up. Now," Julia commanded, abandoning stealth for speed.

They scrambled up the remaining embankment, mud caking their hands andclothing. Julia reached the top first, dropping to a prone position and drawing her weapon in a single fluid motion. Below, Ivy struggled with the final few feet where the exposed roots thinned.

"Hand," Julia directed, extending her arm while maintaining her firing position with the other.

Ivy's fingers closed around her wrist just as the operative appeared at the bend in the ravine. From her elevated position, Julia had a clear view of their pursuer—a man in his thirties with the compact build of someone trained for endurance rather than show. His movements were economical, his eyes constantly scanning.

He spotted the disturbance in the mud immediately, gaze tracking up the embankment to where they had ascended.

Julia tightened her grip on Ivy's wrist, pulling her the final distance to level ground. "Move," she whispered, already rising to a crouch. "Ten o'clock, thirty yards."

They fled through the underbrush, abandoning the relative ease of the ravine path for the denser cover of the forest. Behind them, the operative began his own ascent.

A fallen log provided momentary concealment. Julia dropped behind it, pulling Ivy down beside her.

"He's alone," she assessed, quickly checking her weapon. "Likely has communications with the main team. If we can disable him before he reports our position..."

"How?" Ivy asked, her voice steady despite her rapid breathing.

Julia's mind raced through options, rejecting each as too risky with Ivy to protect. Standard procedure would be to maintain distance, avoid engagement, and reach the extraction point. But standard procedure assumed open terrain and backup resources. Here, they had neither.

"We separate," she decided. "I'll draw him off. You continue northeast, following the path I showed you on the map. The Jeep is concealed beneath a camouflage tarp near the logging road junction."

"You want me to leave you?" Ivy's expression hardened. "Absolutely not."

"This isn't a debate."

"You're right, it's not." Ivy glanced around, then grabbed a fallen branch about thelength of her arm, testing its weight. "I'm not trained, but I'm not useless either."

Before Julia could respond, movement to their right snapped her attention away from the argument. The operative was closing fast, more skilled at tracking than she'd anticipated.

"Stay low, circle left on my signal," Julia instructed, accepting the revised parameters. "When he focuses on me, you approach from behind. One chance. Make it count."

Ivy nodded, gripping the branch with white-knuckled determination.

The operative paused thirty yards away, head tilted as he listened. Julia recognized the tactic; silence sometimes revealed more than active searching. She remained perfectly still, controlling her breathing to near silence.

Beside her, Ivy followed her example, becoming a statue behind the fallen log. The only sound between them was the gentle patter of raindrops on leaves.

The operative advanced cautiously, weapon drawn but held low, a professional technique that prevented silhouettingagainst the forest backdrop. Twenty yards. Fifteen. Ten.

Julia caught Ivy's eye, nodded once, then burst from cover firing two precise shots—not to hit, but to drive the operative toward Ivy's position.

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