Dangerous world, p.15
Dangerous World, page 15
Pulling away from him, she growled. Under the cover of the trees, it was almost pitch dark, impossible to see ahead. But this time, she hadn’t relied on sight. As the others had scrabbled around looking for a trail to follow, Britt had stood stock still and just listened.
“Quiet,” she’d snapped.
The others had fallen still.
“That way.” She’d pointed. “He’s heading that way.”
Now, as Bert stood shivering behind her, she didn’t need to use her ears anymore. Ryan was right; there was light up ahead. Firelight.
“Britt. I don’t feel so good—” Bert’s teeth chattered as he spoke.
“Maybe you should have thought of that before you plunged into a frozen lake.” Britt’s stomach twisted with rage. She still couldn’t believe they’d fallen right into such an obvious trap. And she couldn’t believe Bert was the only one who’d seen it.
“He needs to get warm.” Ryan took off his scarf and offered it to Bert.
“Well, I think we’ve established there’s a fire up ahead. Help me take this guy out, you get a seat front and center.”
“Britt, I don’t think I can…” Bert’s words petered out. He slid to the ground, leaning against the nearest trunk. Britt was pretty sure that if it wasn’t too dark to tell, his face would look blue.
“Leave him,” Karl snapped. As he turned his head, his scar caught a slash of moonlight. Britt would have shuddered if she hadn’t been so sure that he was on her side. He and Murph went way back. And Karl was still pissed that he’d missed the opportunity to fight at the hospital because he’d been scouting the area looking for Arlo.
Arlo… Britt’s jaw twitched. As soon as they’d taken care of this Army guy, Arlo was next.
“You think he’s alone?” Ryan asked.
“Why would he stop and light a fire? He knew we were on his trail.” Karl adjusted his gun on his shoulder.
“He’s an arrogant jerk.” Britt pulled her hat down over her ears. “Thought he’d fooled us twice.” She gestured for the others to stay put. “I’ll be back. Wait here.”
“Britt. You shouldn’t go alone.” Ryan’s whiney voice made Britt’s skin twitch. She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to resist the urge to turn around and tell him to shut up.
“Stay. Here.” She repeated herself as firmly as she could and stalked into the undergrowth.
Slowly, she inched toward the light. As it flickered, she blinked to push the image of Murph’s face from her mind. Now, whenever she saw him, it wasn’t the real him. It was the cold, unmoving, wrapped in a black body bag version of him.
She stopped when she heard voices, crouched down, and moved so she could see through the branches up ahead.
There he was. Him. Standing there with his arm around some kid.
Britt blinked. He’d moved to one side and in front of him… it couldn’t be. It was the woman. The doctor from the farmhouse. The one who’d been with… “Arlo Staaf.” Britt’s mouth became instantly dry.
At first, a flutter of panic rocked her gut; Arlo and the guy who killed Murph knew each other. They’d joined forces. Of course they had. And now she had to take them both out at once.
But as she stayed and watched, and listened, she realized she was wrong; Arlo had never met this guy before. They hadn’t joined forces, they’d just been thrown together. And they all looked the worse for wear.
The doctor was limping. Arlo’s kid looked like he was about to keel over. And was that a dog in a pink coat? Geez.
Britt smiled to herself as she slipped back into the shadows. While they were busy playing catch-up, this was her chance.
As quietly as she could, in case the dog heard her, she returned to the group. Karl was standing, like a general, in front of the others. Ryan was crouched down in front of Bert. He’d wrapped a blanket around him and taken off his own jacket to put around Bert’s shoulders.
“Well?” Karl strode forward.
“It’s him, but not just him.” Her lips spread into a grin; Karl would like this. “Arlo Staaf is with him. Looks like they just stumbled on one another. And the doctor. The one who killed Marianne and Rachel.”
Karl’s expression didn’t change. “Staaf is here?”
“Just up there.”
He nodded slowly, his jaw setting into a determined line.
“They’re totally off guard. If we move now, we’ve got them.” Britt turned to the others but before she could rally them, Ryan stood up.
“Britt, seriously, Bert needs help.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Ryan, you don’t see anyone else complaining. Just leave him here.” Britt’s eyes flashed wider. “Have you forgotten what we’re doing out here? What we’re trying to do? For Murph?”
“Britt, Murph’s dead.” Ryan’s face paled as he spoke. “I mean, it’s just…” he stuttered.
“You want out? Then why don’t you stay here with him? Play nursemaid. Leave the fighting to those of us who can handle it.” Britt turned and put her hand on Karl’s arm. “Let’s go.”
“No….” The voice came out of nowhere, shaky but loud. Bert was staggering to his feet.
“Shhhh,” Britt hissed at him. “What are you doing?”
“No one’s—” Bert sucked in a deep breath. “Going anywhere.” Then before Britt had time to realize what was happening, Bert lifted his gun and fired into the air. One. Two. Three shots.
“What are you doing?” Britt pointed her gun at him but before Bert could mirror her, another gun shot. Bert clutched his chest and fell to his knees.
Britt turned to look at Karl.
“You shot him!” Ryan looked from Karl to Bert. Bert had slumped over, face first on the frozen forest floor.
“Yeah,” Karl replied. “I did. And now we gotta move. ’Cos your friend here just told our other friends that we’re following them.”
Britt reached up and grabbed a fistful of her own hair. Letting out a loud growl, she spun around and kicked at the ground.
“You shot him.” Ryan was still staring at Bert’s body. Slowly, he looked up. “You’re going to let him get away with that?”
“Do you have a problem with me, kid?” Karl broadened his shoulders. His thick neck twitched.
“Guys. Stop.” Suze stepped forward, looking from Ryan to Karl as if she was actually pleased about what was happening.
“Yeah, I have a problem.” Ryan reached for his gun. “I have a big problem.” He lifted it but before he could fire, Karl did the same.
BANG.
Britt jumped back and slammed her hands over her ears. When she opened her eyes, Ryan was writhing on the ground clutching his leg. “Britt, he shot me.” He rolled over, groaning.
Karl didn’t move, just watched him with an amused expression on his face.
“Dammit, Karl.” Britt rolled her eyes and bent down to look at Ryan. Snapping her head back up to Karl, she said, “Go. Follow them. Lay a trail so I can find you. Don’t start shooting until I get there.”
Karl opened his mouth to speak but Britt didn’t give him chance.
“Do it. The rest of you, with Karl.” She stood up slowly, still looking at Ryan. “I have business to settle here.”
“Britt?” Ryan mumbled, his eyes widening as he looked at her.
Next to Karl, Suze grinned and licked her lower lip. “You gonna shoot him, Britt? Put him out of his misery?”
Britt tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Why are you still here?” She looked from Suze to Karl. “Go!”
As the others hurried off into the undergrowth, Britt closed her eyes, breathed a deep breath, then opened up her pack. Dropping it to the ground, she muttered, “Keep still. It’s not that bad.” She ripped Ryan’s pants leg open and examined the wound.
“How’d you know?” Tears were streaming down his face.
“Because I’ve been shot before and this ain’t bad.” She pulled the first-aid kit from her bag. “Now, keep still.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then Ryan lightly touched her hand. “Britt? Why’d you help me?”
She paused. He was watching her intently, an almost hopeful look on his face. She swallowed down her desire to pull her hand away. “Because we’re friends,” she said tightly.
“We are?”
Ignoring his question, she lowered her eyes and concentrated on sterilizing Ryan’s wound, ready to stitch up the bullet hole. But as she looked at the bloodied mark on his skin, the only thing she could think about was Murph. Getting revenge for Murph.
Which was precisely why she needed Ryan; he was the only one she could trust to do exactly what she told him to when she told him to do it. She was so close to justice, and she was not going to let it out of her grasp. Not this time.
22
LAUREL
As they began to run, Laurel looked sideways at her husband. Her husband who had appeared, like a ghost, from the woods. Who’d come all the way here, with Jessamine and a teenage boy in tow, to find her.
There were so many things she wanted to ask him; how long ago he left Thunder Bay, why he’d come looking for her, what had happened at South Minneha, how her mother was, what he’d been planning to do once he found her.
But there was no time. Bear had brought danger right to their doorstep. Britt, who they’d already fought off once, was back. And if she found out that Bear was now traveling with Arlo—well, Laurel didn’t want to be around when that happened.
“I’m sorry,” Bear panted, as if he could read her mind. “I’m sorry I led her here.”
Laurel shook her head at him. “It’s not your fault.” She smiled a little; caught between being so pleased to see him she wanted to do nothing but stop and look at him, and feeling like she should hold back. “I’m glad you found me.”
From up ahead, Arlo spun around and snapped, “Less talking, more moving.” Next to him, Liam was struggling to keep up. Arlo looked at his son and then, without warning, stooped and picked him up. Liam tried to object, but Arlo simply shushed him and strode forward.
“Any idea where we’re headed?” Bear asked. Laurel could tell he was struggling to slow himself to her pace. She wished she could ditch her stick, but her ankle simply wasn’t strong enough yet.
“We were going to a survivalist camp. Jim helped me out of a ditch and in return we agreed to help him get his stuff to his friend’s camp.”
Bear’s jaw twitched but he didn’t say anything.
“When I last checked the map, it looked like we weren’t far out. A couple of hours.” She looked up at the sky. “Obviously, I hoped we’d be making the trip in daylight so I could navigate properly.”
Bear stopped and gestured for Laurel to take out the map. She held it into the fading light and indicated the camp and the road they were on. In a low voice, Bear said, “We could leave him. Laurel, he’s a thief and a liar. You do not have to keep your promise to this guy.”
Laurel adjusted her glasses on her nose. “That might be true,” she said. “But right now, a survival camp, people with guns… that sounds pretty good to me.”
Breathing in heavily, Bear nodded.
“Do we have time for this?” Jim had stopped up ahead and jogged back toward them. He looked at the map, then glanced behind Laurel and Bear.
They couldn’t see or hear anyone. The gunshots had stopped. But that didn’t mean Britt had disappeared.
“Here.” Jim jabbed his index finger at the map. “It’s right here. We know where we’re going, so if this woman’s as crazy as you say she is, let’s go.”
23
BEAR
“There. There it is.” Bear pointed at a tall fence with no sign and barbed wire along the top of it blocking their way in.
Silhouetted against the dark, star-spattered sky, the camp was bigger than Bear had expected.
“How do we get in?” They stopped in front of the entrance. Bear looked at Jim.
Ignoring him, Jim strode forward and banged on the gate. As he did, it opened. He hesitated, looked back at the others, then straightened his shoulders and strode through.
“Cal?” he called.
Bear put his hand on Laurel’s elbow and nudged her forward.
“Cal?” Jim called again. “Where are they?” Jim spun around, as if tents and people might spring up from nowhere. But they were met by nothing but a large empty field.
Bear looked back at the gates. No guards. Wide open. The place was abandoned.
“Is this some kind of joke?” Arlo was still holding Liam but was looking around, staring through the moonlit field with a look verging on disgust on his face. “You said it was a survivalist camp? There’s nothing here!”
Jim opened his mouth to reply but nothing came out.
Moving a little farther into the field, up ahead, Laurel pointed to something. “There’s the remains of some tents over there.”
Bear followed her gaze. She was right; a collection of abandoned tents lay collapsed on the ground, blending into the dips and humps of the landscape.
“Looks like your buddy moved on to survive elsewhere.” Arlo lowered Liam to the ground and patted his son’s head. Liam leaned into Arlo’s side; the kid was exhausted.
“They can’t have gone.” Jim strode forward, ignoring the tents. “They can’t have.”
“Maybe they didn’t have enough supplies for the winter.” Laurel bent down and nudged a piece of tent fabric to look underneath it. “I wouldn’t want to try and survive the cold out here.”
“But he said…” Jim seemed truly shocked. “He said they were building cabins. Like a commune. He said—”
Putting a firm hand on Jim’s shoulder, resisting the urge to squeeze too hard, Bear said gruffly, “Looks like he lied to you. Not great, is it? Being lied to?”
Jim shrugged out of Bear’s grip and wrapped his arms around himself. As he strode off through the snow, his orange coat reflected the moonlight.
“He’s like a walking flare,” Bear muttered, stepping up next to Laurel.
“Maybe he should read Liam’s Boy Scout book,” she replied, meeting Bear’s eyes and smiling.
Heading forward, Bear adjusted Jess’s weight on his front. He was tempted to set her down but didn’t want to risk her running off again.
“We’re not staying here, are we?” Arlo asked, his arm around Liam’s shoulders.
Laurel turned to survey the camp. “I don’t see that we have much choice. If Britt’s behind us—”
Bear nodded. “We should find something to block the gate with. If we can seal it off, we’ll be pretty secure in here.” But it was dark, and they were surrounded by nothing but open space and abandoned tents. It would take them hours to scour the place in the dark.
“There are some trees over there.” Trent pointed to the outskirts of the camp. “Maybe we could find some logs or something.”
Bear looked at Laurel. She was biting her lower lip. She looked cold and tired, and he wished he could put his arm around her to warm her up. Snapping out of his thoughts, he shook his head. The thick forest of trees that hugged the outer rim of the camp stood in ominous darkness. It afforded them some protection. But the chances of finding something big enough to block the gate, and being able to drag it back here in time to use it, were slim to nonexistent.
“There. Cal could be in there.” Jim was a little way ahead and had turned to call back to the rest of them. In the distance, Bear could make out a cabin. Squinting, he realized it was in front of a lake, positioned on some sort of struts so it was raised from the ground.
It was hugged on one side by limestone bluffs and the lake on the other. The bluffs almost gleamed in the moonlight.
“Maybe everyone’s sheltering in the cabin.” Jim gestured for them to follow him as he moved quickly forward.
Laurel and Bear exchanged a skeptical look. Leaning toward her, he said, “I’m telling you now, this place has been abandoned. But if we need somewhere to hide for the night, that cabin looks to be as good a place as any.”
Laurel was nodding in agreement when Trent came jogging up behind them. “I can hear them,” he said, taking hold of Bear’s arm and waving toward the gate. “I was looking for something to block it with. I heard them. Behind us. They can’t be far.”
Bear looked at Laurel to see if she’d heard what Trent was hearing. She was stock still, straining her ears. Then her eyes widened. She waved to Arlo, then pointed back in the direction of the gate.
As Arlo scooped Liam back into his arms, Bear heard what the others were hearing. Shouts and hollers. Threats floating toward them in the darkness.
“Ready or not, here we come… I hope you’re ready for us, Rambo.”
Bear shuddered. There was no time for the gates. Laurel was right, they’d be better off in the raised cabin or whatever it was. With the lake and the bluffs shielding it, it was the best protection they were going to get.
Jim was already heading for it, so Bear beckoned for the others to follow and moved as quickly as possible through the snow with Trent and Laurel at his sides.
They made it to the steps. Laurel was limping badly. She’d ditched her walking stick but was clearly in pain from pushing herself too hard. Bear wished he could scoop her up and carry her, but she’d probably hit him over the head for trying. Plus, he still had Jessamine strapped to his chest.
“Be careful.” Arlo tugged Liam back and looked around at the others. “I’ll go first. Someone watch Liam.”
Behind him, Jim stuttered, “Ah, guys, don’t you think I should go first in case Cal is up there?”
No one answered him.
“I’ll help Liam.” Trent hurried to Liam’s side while Bear gestured for Laurel to go next.
As Arlo started to climb, it became clear that the cabin wasn’t what it used to be. The wooden steps that zig-zagged up the side to the sheltered platform above were slippery and Bear didn’t trust that they wouldn’t give way.
“Test each step before you put your full weight on it,” he told the boys. “And make sure you’ve got a good grip on the step above.”
