Dangerous world, p.21
Dangerous World, page 21
“I thought he told us to keep walking? Back to the hospital?” Liam’s voice was small and a little hoarse.
“He did.” Laurel nodded. “But if everything goes to plan, he should make it here before nightfall. If it doesn’t, well, then we’ll leave.” In truth, she was still contemplating leaving Trent and Liam with the campfire, once they got set up, and going back to make sure Bear didn’t need her help. But as she looked at the boys, she knew she couldn’t leave them.
Nodding at her, Liam started to cough. It had been a while since he’d shown signs of his breathing problems, but stress could exacerbate all kinds of illnesses. Laurel just prayed that the trauma of losing his father wouldn’t undo all the progress Liam made at Lone Oak.
“How about we stop and rest for a moment?” She looked behind them. They were far enough away that they could no longer hear gunshots. But that might be because they’d reached the part of Bear’s plan where guns weren’t required.
Liam nodded, stepping away from Trent and sliding down the trunk of a nearby tree to sit on the ground. Shuddering, he wrapped his arms around himself. Laurel passed him a bottle of water.
On Trent’s front, Jess was starting to wriggle. “I don’t want to put her down in case she runs off after Bear.” Trent stroked her head and bent to whisper to her. “It’s okay, girl. Your pop will be along soon. I promise.”
Swallowing down the emotion that always surged to the surface when she thought of Jess and Bear being separated, Laurel lifted her pack from her shoulders and pulled out a pair of Arlo’s sweatpants, turning her back so Liam didn’t see. Holding up a finger to indicate to Trent “one minute,” she pulled the tie string from the pants, then pulled out the one from the bottom of her coat too. After tying them together, she waved them at Trent. “Use these as a leash.” She handed them to him.
Trent tied the cord loosely around Jess’s neck, just tight enough so he could stop her from running off, then unclipped the makeshift carrier and let her jump to the ground.
Instantly she peed on the pine-needle covered ground nearby, then started frantically sniffing, as if she might be able to figure out where Bear was.
Laurel crouched down next to Liam and put her arm around him. He coughed again, his breath making small white clouds in the cold air. Rubbing his shoulder, she said, “We better not rest here for long. We need to get to the edge of the woods so we can start a fire. Get you warmed up.”
“It’ll be a squeeze in the tent.” Trent looked at the small popup tent strapped to Laurel’s backpack.
Before she could answer, a voice she didn’t recognize floated toward them. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that. No one’s going to be sleeping tonight.”
Laurel jumped to her feet and stared into the undergrowth. In the shadows, a silhouette moved. Trent was watching it too but before he could reach for his gun, the silhouette jumped from the shadows and grabbed hold of him.
It was a man. A young man, perhaps mid-twenties, no older. He had a bloodied bandage wrapped around his leg and limped as he struggled to keep hold of Trent. With one arm around Trent’s torso, pinning his arms to his chest, the man pulled out a gun and pointed it at Trent’s face. Jess started to bark. Trent dropped her leash and she scampered backward to stand beside Laurel. The man stared at her, wide-eyed, as if he didn’t know who to point his gun at—Jess or Trent.
“Make her shut up,” he shouted.
“She’s scared.” Laurel raised her hands slowly, palms out. On the ground next to her, Liam had tucked his knees up under his chin and was rocking a little, back and forth.
Laurel tried to step forward but Jess was still barking and the man holding Trent waved his gun in the air. “Back off, and shut that dog up, or I’ll shoot him. I swear!”
“Okay, okay,” she said slowly, “you’re calling the shots. I’m going to crouch down and get hold of her leash, okay?” Laurel asked, maintaining eye contact.
The man nodded.
Bending down, Laurel patted her leg. “Jess, here girl. It’s okay.”
Jess looked at her, then trotted over. She was trembling. Taking hold of her leash, Laurel backed up slowly. “I’m going to give her to Liam. He’ll keep her quiet. Is that all right?”
The man bit his lower lip and said, “Do it.”
Without turning her back to him, Laurel did as she’d said she would. To Liam, she said, “Sweetheart, will you look after Jess?” As he nodded at her, she lowered her voice and whispered. “It’s going to be okay, just stay calm and still.”
“All right.”
She stood up. Her gun was in her waistband, hidden by her coat. But going for it was far too risky while Trent had a gun to his head. “So, you’re in charge here. Tell me what you want me to do.”
“Damn right, I am. Move away from your stuff.” The man gestured to Laurel’s backpack. She stepped forward but he shook his head. “Not this way. That way.” He indicated for her to move sideways. Good, away from Liam.
The way he was handling his gun told her he was not an experienced fighter. Plus, he looked terrified. If she played this right, she might just be able to get them all out of it unharmed.
“You’re with Britt? Right?” she asked gently. “What’s your name?”
“Ryan,” he said defiantly. “Remember that. ’Cos that’s the name of the guy who’s going to kill you. Ryan.”
Pinned to Ryan’s chest, Trent’s eyes widened. Laurel caught his gaze and gave him the smallest shake of her head, hoping he knew she was telling him to stay calm. That everything would be okay.
“Kill us? Is that what Britt asked you to do?”
“No.” Ryan tilted his chin up as if he was trying to look more confident. “She doesn’t know I’m here. But I saw you sneaking into the woods, and if I go back and tell her I got two of Rambo’s men plus Arlo Staaf’s kid, well, she might just finally realize I’m good for something.”
Ah, so that was it. He was trying to prove himself to Britt.
“Ryan, you seem like a good kid.”
“Don’t patronize me!”
“I’m not.” Laurel remained calm, even though she could see Trent beginning to sweat with fear. His fingers twitched at his side, but his own gun was too far out of reach. “You really do seem like a good kid. I was a medic in Iraq. I’ve seen young soldiers, younger than you. A lot of them have a look in their eyes, like their soul has already been damaged. But you?” She examined his face. “You’re not there yet. There’s still hope for you.”
Frowning at her as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing, Ryan opened his mouth and closed it again.
“Trent’s only… how old are you, Trent?” she asked, widening her eyes to indicate he should answer.
“Fourteen,” he said croakily.
“And Liam is seven. Is that right, Liam?”
Liam nodded.
“Now, I’m sure you could shoot me if you wanted to. In fact, I don’t doubt it. But do you really want to kill a couple of kids?” She looked over at Liam, then back at Ryan.
His eyes flickered to the boy sitting on the ground. “His dad. Was I right? Is he dead?”
Liam let out a small whimper.
“Yes,” Laurel said solemnly. “Arlo is dead.”
Ryan sucked in a deep breath.
“I have a proposition for you.” Laurel still had her hands raised.
Ryan blinked at her.
“I’ll give myself up. I’ll even let you shoot me. But you have to let the boys go.”
Scoffing, Ryan rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Right. You’ve tried bargaining before and you lied. Remember? You told us you’d give us Staaf. And the whole time, he was dead.”
“Not the whole time.” Laurel pressed her lips together. “One of your men killed him.”
Ryan inhaled through his nostrils. He shuffled, his leg clearly hurting. “What’s in it for me?”
“You show Britt you’re capable of making calculated, clever decisions.”
He frowned.
“This way, I hand over my weapon. You let them go. They run off into the woods. Then you can shoot me or take me prisoner. Whatever you decide. Any other way we play this, well, it’ll get messy.”
Ryan was blinking quickly, as if his thoughts were racing. “You hand over your weapon. I let them go. Then you come with me?”
Laurel nodded.
After a long pause, in which no one moved, Ryan finally said, “All right. But you take the leash off the dog, and after you throw me your weapon, you tie your hands together. Right? I don’t want you thinking you can disarm me.”
“Clever.” Laurel made an I’m impressed face. “So, if I tie up my hands, we have a deal?”
Ryan chewed his lip. “Yeah. Okay. We have a deal.”
“In that case, I’m going to reach very slowly into the back of my pants and I’m going to take out my gun. I’ll lower it to the ground and kick it over to you. All right?”
Ryan pulled Trent farther in front of him. “Do it.” But when the gun was on the ground, as she was about to kick it, Ryan said, “Not to me. Over there. Into the bushes.”
“All right.” Laurel did as he’d said.
“Now, you, Liam. Untie the dog, then get over here and tie up her hands.”
Liam looked wide-eyed from Laurel to Ryan and back again.
“It’s okay, honey.” She held out her wrists. “Go ahead.”
Shaking, Liam unlooped the leash from Jess’s neck. Instantly, she started to bark again. Binding Laurel’s hands together, Liam’s fingers could barely tie the knots.
“Tight,” Ryan yelled. “Tighter than that.”
“It’s okay,” Laurel whispered. “It’s going to be okay.”
When he was done, Liam sat back down and pulled Jess into his lap. Her bark quieted to a deep, throaty growl.
“Now it’s your turn.” Laurel looked at Trent. “I trusted you to keep your side of the deal, Ryan. It’s time to let the boys go.”
Ryan looked at Trent. He was stock still. “When I let you go, you run straight for the bushes and you don’t look back. Right?”
Trent nodded. “Right. I promise. Straight for the bushes.”
“You too, kid.” Ryan pointed at Liam. “Get up. Get ready to run.”
Slowly, Liam rose to his feet, lifting Jess in his arms. She was still growling, looking from Trent to Ryan as if she couldn’t understand why no one was doing anything to get Trent out of harm’s way.
Laurel met Trent’s eyes. Very purposefully, she moved her gaze from his face to his side, where she knew his gun was tucked into his belt. In return, he offered her the smallest nod.
“Go!” Ryan released his grip on Trent and shoved him forward. Trent made a show of stumbling a little but as he righted himself, Laurel saw his hand go for his belt. Swiftly, he pulled out his weapon and raised it.
“What the—?” Ryan yelled and pointed the gun back at Trent. Then he fired. He missed, the bullet ricocheting off a nearby tree.
Liam cried out. Jess had leaped from his arms and, in a flurry of fur and barking, charged at Ryan.
Ryan fired again, this time, pointing at Jess. A high-pitched yelp bounced off the trees.
“Jess!” Trent lifted his gun and, with fury in his eyes, pointed it at Ryan.
“Put the gun down or I’ll shoot!” Ryan’s gun wavered as he tried to hold it steady.
“You shot her!” Trent was almost growling.
“Trent, give me the gun.” Laurel was at Trent’s elbow and started tugging at the leash with her teeth. If Trent shot another person, he’d never be the same again. She’d seen it before, too many times. With her hands finally free, she put her fingers on Trent’s arm. “Trent, give me the gun now.”
On the ground, Jess whimpered. Finally, Trent looked at Laurel and pressed the gun into her hands.
“Get out of here. Now.”
In front of her, Ryan was shaking. He was moving from pointing his gun at her, to Trent, to Liam. But he seemed unable to fire it.
“Take Liam, I’ll bring Jess. Go!” Laurel gave Trent a shove.
He took one last look at Jess and bolted, taking Liam with him.
Silence settled. Jess wasn’t making any noise at all now. “All right, Ryan. Now it’s just you and me. We’re both armed, but I’m a quicker shot than you so I’m giving you a chance to—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Ryan’s trigger finger twitched.
But Laurel’s was faster.
He wavered for a moment, then fell to the ground.
32
BEAR
For a long time, Bear was unable to move. As the cabin turned into a tinderbox, and flames licked the sky, it became impossible to tell ash from snow. After the cabin caved in on itself, the strut was the next to go. The entire structure tipped sideways, crashed into the bluffs, then crumbled so it was nothing more than a heap of burning wood. A giant bonfire, lighting up the darkening sky.
He knew he should move before darkness set in. If he was fast, he might even be able to catch up with Laurel; having Liam in tow, and with her still-sore ankle, she would be moving at half his pace.
But by the time he tore himself away from the edge of the cliff, the sun had dipped below the horizon, and it was far too dark to attempt the climb down.
Pulling his sleeping bag free of his pack, he huddled beneath the shelter of the trees. It was still snowing, but not hard. Not enough to make the next day’s journey more treacherous, but enough to make his night cold and uncomfortable.
With the cabin still smoldering down below, it felt strange to light a fire, but he needed hot food, a hot drink, and something to keep him warm as the temperature plummeted.
Slowly, he gathered kindling and stones, shredded some bark to make a tinder nest, then took out the almost empty bottle of kerosene from his pack; he’d deliberately left enough in the bottom of it to make absolutely sure he’d be able to create and keep a fire going if he ended up stuck on the bluffs waiting for help.
It wasn’t long before the fire took, so he crawled into his sleeping bag and sat, sheltered by the trees, watching his small kettle of hot water boil. Even with nothing to add to it, drinking something warm was soothing. He wrapped his hands around the mug and, as he waited for his beans and rice to cook, he thought of Thunder Bay.
He’d camped out by the lake like this many times. Just his sleeping bag, a campfire, and Jess for company. It was the reason he’d left home; because he’d wanted a simpler life. A life where he could be alone and where nothing was expected of him except the daily tasks required to survive.
How ironic that now all of those things had been thrust on him, he could think of nothing better than being surrounded by his family again.
As the word family danced through his mind, he saw not only Mae, and Laurel, and Jess, but Trent too. And suddenly, he could picture it; all of them, back in Thunder Bay. Forging a new life together.
Bear wrapped his arms around himself and looked up at the small slice of sky that was visible through the branches. When he told Laurel they’d find Mae, he truly hadn’t expected to live long enough to make that happen. Now, though, a fire was stirring in his belly. A fire he hadn’t felt since he first decided to leave Ontario and find Laurel.
He’d promised her they’d look for Mae, so that was what they were going to do.
After finishing his supper and making sure the fire was stoked, he drifted into a half-sleep. Just under the surface of consciousness, he dreamed he could still hear the crackling of the burning cabin. But by the time he woke the next day, it was nothing but a pile of smoking charcoal. Gone. Taking Britt, Jim, and Arlo with it.
As the sun rose in the sky, Bear packed his things and headed for the lake side of the bluffs. Looking down, he found he was higher up than he’d anticipated. The cabin side must have been lower. From here, the height made him a little dizzy.
Heights had never been his strong suit. The few helicopter jumps he’d done in his time with the Army had been a true test of his mental strength. Now, looking down and trying to plot the best route, nausea gripped his stomach.
He contemplated going back to where he’d climbed up from the cabin, but he didn’t fancy trying to land amid the still smoldering ruins.
Turning to the tree line behind him, he took a deep breath.
“Let’s hope your knot-tying skills are as good as you think they are,” he muttered as he took the rope from his pack. Looking at it, he was pretty sure it wouldn’t reach all the way to the ground. But he’d identified a section of rock that looked easy enough to climb down. All he needed to do was get to it.
Looping the rope around a sturdy medium-sized tree trunk, he tied a bowline knot to secure the rope, then wrapped it around his waist and tied a figure eight knot. Walking backward, pack on his back, he stepped to the edge of the cliff and breathed out. Hard.
Testing the rope, his stomach lurched as it pulled tight. It would hold, but that meant it was time to go over.
Without looking down, concentrating solely on where his feet were going, Bear leaned back and began to walk himself down the bluffs.
He was about halfway when he began to gain some speed. But before he could get much farther, the rope jarred. His foot slipped and he crashed forward, slamming his knee into a protruding piece of limestone.
Cursing at the cliff, he struggled and ended up swaying on the end of the rope, back and forth. He’d reached the end of it. It wouldn’t go any farther.
Hesitantly, a knot of hot nausea lodged in his stomach, he looked down. He was dangling about fifty feet from the ground. If he fell, he’d be toast.
Looking back up, he leaned his weight into the rope and swung close enough to grab the section his knee bashed into. His fingers struggled to grab hold but when they finally did, he stopped moving.
Checking either side of him, then below, it seemed like there was no better or easier place to descend. So, without allowing himself to stop and think about it, like jumping out of a helicopter, he pressed his feet into the limestone, gripped as hard as he could with his left hand and swiftly freed himself from the rope with his right.
