The Fighter Series (Book 1): Not Alone (The Beginning)

by Kolleen Bookey

Jack picked Lily up and held her. “What are you going to put on the very top Lily Bean?”

  “An angel,” she said. “Like Utah and Megan.” She touched Jack on the cheek with her fingers. “Do you believe in angels Uncle Jack?”

  “Sure I do. I am looking at one right now.” He kissed Lily on the cheek. Jonah stood staring up at him. His eyes were as wide and shining as Shays. Jack patted him on the head and he grinned.

  Scott chuckled. “I got your number.”

  “Thank you, Jack. Hurry home.” Lynn kissed him on the cheek.

  “I have one more stop.” Jack said.

  He tried to make a short escape, but Scott was close on his heels. He followed Jack through the house to Nick’s office and then to the room where Megan was.

  Jack looked down at the sleeping girl. Her eyes lined with long dark eyelashes that were dark against her porcelain skin. An oxygen mask covered her mouth. Jack bent down close enough to say what he needed to say.

  “I’ve saved her once, I’ll save her again. I’ll bring her home.” The word home rolled easily off his tongue.

  Jack patted Megan on the arm. The warmth of her skin sent a jolt through his heart. His hand looked giant compared to hers. He took one last glance at the girl and then slipped into the hallway.

  He and Scott met up with Ryan in the hallway.

  “He’ll come here looking for the boy.” Jack said to his brother. “I’m going to try and prevent that from happening.”

  “We’ll be ready.” Ryan said.

  FIFTY-FIVE

  “Bingo!” Riley said, holding a brown piece of sea glass in her hand. Eric was just ahead of her searching in mounds of pebbles for the next treasure. The ocean was turquoise with an underlining glow of green and sea foam that zigzagged across rolling waves. The blue sky appeared darker closer to the horizon line and void of any clouds. Sea salt tickled her nose and every now and then, a soft spray of sea mist brushed her face. Warm sand squished between her toes shooting warmth throughout her body.

  “Cheater,” Eric yelled. His surfer blonde hair lay against his head as if he’d just came out of the ocean from a swim. His skin was brown kissed by the sun.

  “Now how can I cheat Kid?” Riley yelled back holding up sea glass between fingers. “See.”

  “You have helpers.” Riley felt a hand interlock hers. Megan and Utah were close at her side...

  “I haven’t found any.” Megan giggled, skipping circles around her.

  “You have to look down. See the rock piles. Skip in between and then when you get to the rocks, stop and look.”

  Utah ran to the next shadow of rocks and picked something up. She held it so the sun. “Look.”

  They stepped in closer to look. It wasn’t a piece of sea glass, but rather a white feather. “It’s beautiful.” Riley said.

  “Nice”. Eric said, patting Utah on the shoulder. “That’s a fine treasure.”

  “It’s for Riley.” She handed it to her. “Take it back with you.”

  Riley touched her face with her fingers. Her curly hair moved gently in the breeze.

  “I love you so very much.”

  Megan smiled at her. “We love you Riley.” She wrapped her arms around Riley. She felt Utah wrap her arms around her waist and then there was Eric.

  “Utah” Riley started to say.

  “You have to go back.” She whispered. Her voice began to fade. The darkness of Riley’s enclosed cave became apparent. A foreboding darkness rushed her. She shivered. The movement sent a shot of sharp pain through her rib cage and lungs. She tasted blood and prayed she hadn’t punctured a lung. Her head felt like tiny bolts of lightning were shooting back and forth through her skull. Ringo!

  Only one of her eyes opened. There was a faint sound outside the cabin. How long was I out? She began the tedious and painful chore of checking one limb at a time. This time she knew she was hurt. The pain radiated through her breathing was excruciating. However, she wasn’t in the box. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. The memory of the tiger came back to haunt her. I spit on the devil’s face. He’d made certain she’d go nowhere. “I have to go away for a few days, but you’ll be safe inside the cabin.” Had he left? Was it just another trick? She lay still staring into the blackness, listening. Other than the animals, was she alone?

  Outside sounds broke the fogginess in her head. You’ll be safe inside the cabin. He’d let the cats out, or he’d let all of them out. From the sounds outside the animals were irritated. Ringo was counting on her trying an escape. It was exactly what he wanted, because he hadn’t touched her legs. He’d made sure not to incapacitate her too much. Brutality was an insurance policy. If she attempted to leave, she’d probably die. Riley was going nowhere.

  Outside two cats began to squabble expelling explosive and chilling cries that filtered through the walls of the cabin. While the growling and hissing increased so did her concern over the stability of the walls separating them.

  Every time her rib cage expanded a burning sensation shot throughout her chest. She needed to bind her ribcage for support but the only thing she had was a decrepit pillow and holey blanket she used for warmth. Then there was her wrist. Her shirt was her next thought. Riley fingered the thin tank top underneath the t-shirt. One or the other might work. Her wool sweater was only for warmth. It was the last thing she wanted to take off. Before anything, she’d have to stand up.

  In an unbearable amount of pain, Riley stood. Desperate, she began to search the room. All light was dissolving and the temperature was dropping again, but she wasn’t planning on staying another night.

  She slid her fingers over the walls, indents and nails searching for anything to use. Taking shallow breaths, Riley struggled to control both the pain and the panic. Closet. Where is the closet? She searched for it and found it.

  A dull ache in her head clouded her thoughts. The doors were gone. She reached up through the darkness toward the top shelf. The dust thick under her fingers, but something metal caused her to get excited. Ignoring agony, she went to her tippy toes reaching out with her fingers as far as she could. Please. Then it moved.

  Tears rolled down her cheeks stinging open cuts. Riley attempted to grab the metal again, but failed. Sucking up the pain, she pressed into the closet with every inch she could give. Her ribs were on fire. Under her finger, she caught the tip and pulled it towards her. There was a soft scraping sound and then it hit the floor.

  It was an old metal hanger and it gave her a shadow of hope. Awkward and one handed, Riley began to untwist it, breaking off a section at a time. Nausea overtook her. She doubled over losing the contents in her stomach onto the floor.

  As she worked on the wire, the cats fought outside. Occasionally they’d hit the side of the cabin, knocking things over outside and making the sidewalls clatter. The thought of freedom helped her to focus. Like the cats, the will to survive came natural.

  The pillow was next. The old material tore easily. She made a handful of strips. In one horrific cry, she placed the wire under her wrist and wound the strips around both the wire and bone. When she was done, she was drenched in sweat. She’d gotten dizzy from holding her breath. Going to her knees, she sobbed, but that hurt too much. The smaller wire in her hand reminded her of what the Shift had taught her. She wasn’t ready to cave. Riley moved to the bedroom door and felt for the lock. This is what it feels like to be blind. Minutes felt like hours as her fingers worked the lock. With every failed attempt, Riley tried again. Then she felt it. The lock turned. The door opened.

  A dim light glowed from the fire. There was no Devil. Ringo had left the cabin. Before she could leave, she needed a weapon, shoes, clothes and water. The idea was to search every cabinet and drawer and be careful to shut them just in case Ringo came back. The door. The lock. Make things appear as though she were still there if he returned. Buy some time. Fix your wounds. Riley felt a surge of excitement. She found an old can of RAID, a lighter, and several knives. Things were beginning to look up. Riley to
ok a long slug off the whiskey bottle Ringo had left on the counter.

  FIFTY-SIX

  Jack, Kid, and Scott crouched behind a barrier close to the main entrance gate of Pam’s place in red Rock. Faded signs that read “Danger” and “Keep out” hung every forty feet warning trespassers to stay away. If that wasn’t enough security cameras, working or not, faced the main entrance. It had been over forty-eight hours since Ringo had disappeared with Riley.

  They’d been positioned on the slope where the entrance was for well over four hours waiting for some kind of movement, but they’d seen nothing. With a bird’s eye view of all the enclosures as well as the buildings they couldn’t be sure that Ringo wasn’t there. He could have easily taken out the caretaker and hid his vehicle. What little they knew of Ringo was enough to take extreme precaution before charging down there.

  When a red truck appeared, Jack had instructed his team to stand down. Watching with high-powered night vision Jack watched a large man get out, unlock the gate with a key, and then drove through. The man was bundled in a dark jacket and a hood but Jack knew immediately know that he wasn’t Pam’s groundskeeper. Through the window and in the passenger seat, he could see a second silhouette. Suddenly the passenger flew from the truck leaving the door open. Seeing only thermal colors, he watched as the person stumbled and then jumped back up only to run onward. Jack dropped his glasses and in the bright light of the moon’s glow, he picked up his binoculars and recognized Shay. With her hands bound behind her back, she leaping across the desert floor.

  “What the h…? Jack whispered watching.

  The man got out of the driver’s side and strolled in her direction. When she fell and didn’t get back up he went to her. There, he dropped to his knees and grabbed a hold of her. The man shouted pulling her head backward by her hair. Shay was fighting, but she was no match. He let go only to unbutton his pants pinning her down with his legs. She rolled onto her back and started to fight.

  “Shit!” Jack cursed.

  The next time Jack looked through the binoculars Shay was half crawling and was about to leap to her feet when the man grabbed a hold of her and shoved her forward. He lifted her up and shoved her into the truck.

  Jack was on his feet watching the taillights of the vehicle head toward the conservatory.

  “Let’s roll.” Jack said into his mike.

  “They just parked.” John said. “Copy.”

  Kid broke the locks and they slipped through the gates and headed towards the main buildings. Lowered night temperatures had frozen the ground into ice making it more than slippery. The moon was glowing high in the sky bouncing an eerie blue light off the blanket of white that created shadows. They moved together keeping to the buildings. Just ahead of them, the cab of the truck glowed and with Shay’s silhouette on the passenger side. The driver was nowhere in sight.

  “Want me to go after her?” Kid asked almost too quietly. Jack thought for a second and then nodded.

  “Watch your back.” Jack said.

  “It’s your turn.” Kid said looking down at the dog and then they were gone.

  FIFTY-SEVEN

  Kid tugged at the full-face mask as he watched Shay struggle inside the cab. The closer he go he could see that her hands were tied behind her. At that moment, Shift growled seeing the cat from the corner of his eye. Chocolate stripes pronounced against the white fur of a tiger. Other than his stripes, the giant cat would’ve been a chameleon in the snow. He moved to the front of the truck, his tail swishing from side to side. Time stood still as the cat lifted his head and smelled the air. With the driver’s door open, the cat was looking at the open invitation as a possible meal.

  “Good kitty.” Kid heard Shay whisper.

  Already in position, Kid pulled the trigger on the tranquilizer gun just as the tiger bolted toward Shay. The dart stuck penetrating deep into the cat’s neck throwing him off balance. Lips curled as the cat snapped his head back and took a bite at the dart attached to his flesh. The cat, only inches away from tearing into Shay, was suddenly distracted. His back paws slipped off the floorboard forcing him to regain his balance on the ground. Then with a change of mind, the tiger bolted away from the truck. The florescent orange tip of the dart bounced as he trotted back into an enclosure. The tiger staggered and then dropped to his belly. Kid waited until the tiger laid his head to the ground. The slight rise of the giant’s chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Kid worked fast not knowing how much time he had before the cat woke after being given the antidote, but not wanting to take any chances he hurried.

  Shay pressed hard onto the driver’s side of the truck. When he opened the door, she started to scream, but Kid clamped his hand down around her mouth just in time. He twisted her around cutting away the ropes. Shift jumped up into the truck and took the middle seat. Before she could say a word, Kid was in the driver’s seat putting the truck into drive.

  “She’s here.” She said.

  He didn’t say anything instead he drove and then parked the truck inside one of the buildings. When she climbed out, she stood to the side and watched as he pulled and cut random wires inside the engine compartment. Silently, he let the hood drop and then tossed Shay a headset. He pulled her through the darkness back out into the snow-covered conservatory.

  Between the moonlight and the slight breeze shadows danced around them. Shift let out a low whine and then went to her belly. Kid assumed Ringo had turned more than one animal loose and that thought was bone chilling. When Shift growled rising to her feet, Kid paid attention. The dog was facing the building not far from where they stood. The ridge on her back lifted as she keyed in on a scent. Another tiger passed in front of them and then disappeared behind one of the shelters. The tiger moved with a calm confidence no man would ever come close to mastering. It was all instinct, wild and raw. Kid pulled the rifle to his face and held steady waiting for a solid shot. Holding the cross hairs of the tranquilizer gun on the hip of the tiger, he pressed the trigger. When the dart hit, the cat leapt forward and then it spun around ready to fight.

  Kid reached inside his vest and withdrew a pistol. He slipped it to Shay, who took it willingly. The cat was now on its haunches ready to make her intended kill. Every movement silent and every step well balanced. By the time Kid had reloaded the tranquilizer gun and raised it to his face, the cat was already in line to attack. Squaring the crosshairs in his scope, Kid fired one more dart, but missed as the cat dove forward.

  “Any second.” Kid thought to himself.

  The tiger’s will to survive was overriding the drug. Kid fired again and this time the dart hit the cat in the chest. Shift was ready. The cat bolted forward, but Kid raised his hand and pointed at the cat. Shift, who’d been bred to hunt lions, leapt forward and her feet never touched the snow.

  The tiger stopped and went to a sitting position. It swayed ever so slightly while swatting her paw into the air. The ends of her razor sharp claws glistened under the moon light. Shift moved swiftly from side to side making the tiger hiss and growl angrily. The drug was in her bloodstream now and she began to sway. Shift stayed on her never touching her, but working her attention away from the two of them. When the cat attempted to stand, it staggered sideways in the snow. Smelling risk, the tiger moved toward her enclosure toward safety.

  When the cat was all the way down, Kid slipped in and gave the antidote. After securing the gate, he grabbed Shay by the arm and pulled her forward.

  “I saw that.” Dan said over the radio. “Coming up on you.”

  Kid looked behind him as Dan slipped through the darkness and stopped beside them.

  “I’ll take her.” Dan said.

  Kid nodded turning his radio to PI.

  “Both cats are sleeping. I am on the south wall of the cabin. They’re on the backside corner. Mission accomplished.”

  “Copy.” Jack said.

  FIFTY-EIGHT

  Riley waited in the dark folds of the cabin neither comforted by its silence nor afraid by th
e sounds. However, when she heard the truck, a sort of excitement rose in her. Before he came through the door, Riley was back in her room behind closed doors.

  He made a sloppy entrance into the cabin. The entire ruckus gave her a second wind and a chance to move without him hearing her. The sound of cupboards opening and closing continued. Then he started on the drawers cursing the entire time. He was looking for the keys. It wasn't Ringo. When Riley heard the lock jiggle and the door open, she felt both fear and courage. The darkness had just become her new best friend. She wanted his weapon and his vehicle.

  “Kitten.” He called out. Riley flipped him off in the dark.

  Then she stepped in front of him surprising him with a spray of RAID. Holding her deep breath, she pressed hard on the nozzle, releasing a thick stream of toxic insect killer towards his face. The pattern of spray covered wide making contact with his eyes. Above his head a small cloud of foggy spray rose. Holding her breath, Riley backed away just far enough to get out of the fumes. The screams coming out of his mouth sounded inhuman echoing inside the close quarters of the cabin. Running the can dry, Riley tossed it across the room all the while keeping her eyes on Dave. His violent display of pain gave her great joy.

  “I’m not your kitten asshole.” Riley said.

  With his eyes squeezed shut, he frantically rubbed his knuckles in big circles across face. All the while coughing and choking on the chemical fumes. Then Riley flicked the lighter.

  “It says it’s flammable, but is that true?” She asked him. Riley smiled.

  “You bitch,” he screamed.

  He staggered forward slamming his shoulder into the doorjamb and then in his clumsy stagger, he swatted the lighter out of her hand. Riley swooped down and grabbed it. Dave bolted out of the bedroom knocking into the kitchen table knocking it over. His eyes were open now, but they were beat red. Blinded, Dave lunged at her blinded by the insecticide, yet driven by insanity. Heading for Riley, she pocketed the lighter and lunged for the knife she’d hid. Then she braced herself for impact. If he was having trouble finding her, it wasn’t showing. Riley plunged the knife deep into his side hard. Before she could make another game changing moment, he had her by the hair. They struggled, knocking over chairs. Needing her knife back, Riley grabbed the handle and pulled, but the blade had sunk deep into his flesh, bone included. Distracted by the pain, he release her hair.