by H. L. Wegley
****
Lee led as he and Katie stepped into the darkness.
Only when the moon made its brief appearances could he see anything on the ground. He inched his way down the trail, but this was taking far too long.
Katie tapped his shoulder. “My eyes are adjusted. I can see pretty well. Do you want me to lead?”
“Yeah, please. My eyes need a little more time,” Lee whispered. “You lead for a while. Be sure to stay near the right edge of the road. If we see or hear any signs of Trader, step into the bushes.”
“Got it.” She stepped in front of him.
When they passed the loop B road, he could make out the white letters on the sign. In another fifty yards, they reached loop A.
“Katie, I’ll take the lead from here. I think there’s a shortcut ahead that will take us through the trees to the ranger’s house.”
Katie followed down the right edge of the road.
He stopped and scanned the trees on their right.
“What is it?”
“It’s OK, Katie. This is where we cut through the woods.” He stepped into the trees.
Soon a lawn came into view and beyond that, a building.
“Is that the house?” Katie whispered from behind.
“That’s it. Are you ready?”
“Shouldn’t we walk around it first, to make sure no one’s around?”
“Good idea.” He pointed ahead. “We should circle the storage building, too. Let’s stay near the edge of the trees. You watch for Trader or Jacko, and I’ll look for a place to break in.”
Within minutes, they had circled the house and the adjacent building.
“In the back of the house, there’s a window I might be able to force open. Let’s go back to it.”
When they reached the window he turned to Katie. “Here, you take the gun, now. I’m going to pry the window open with my knife. Hope there’s no alarm. It would bring the police eventually, but—”
“But probably Trader first.”
“Yeah. Let’s pray that doesn’t happen.”
Slowly his knife pushed the sliding portion of the window up. He worked his fingers into the small gap he had created. When he stuck the knife into the upper part of the frame and pushed, the window slid open. He waited.
There was only silence.
“Good, no alarm, at least, not on this window. I’m going in now.”
“I’ll knock on the window if I see any signs of Trader out here.”
Lee slid through the window and dropped onto the floor.
An explosion of light blinded him.
“Looking for this, Mr. Tire Slasher? You want the phone?” This must be Jacko. His voice was mocking. “It’s been disabled. You might say slashed.” He held up the sliced cord. “Now, give me your hands and don’t try anything.”
Lee tried to fight off the panic that caused his thoughts to race too fast. Finally, he caught one. He needed to pray. Please, Lord, help Katie.
He slowly extended his hands.
Jacko zip-tied his wrists.
What would Katie do? He recalled her determined voice and her words, “He should take me along to watch for Trader.”
Katie would do what she had to do, try to take out Jacko. Everything he had seen convinced him this courageous girl would fire on Jacko. But, if she tried and missed, Jacko would return her fire.
Help Katie. Keep her safe.
Once his wrists were secure, Jacko stepped back and pointed his weapon at him.
“Move into the living room.” Jacko followed him until Lee stopped in the center of the room.
“Now, Mr. Tire Slasher, tell me what—”
The big window exploded. Shards of glass splattered against the wall and noise filled the night.
Lee jumped backward, creating more clearance from Jacko, giving Katie more shooting room.
It wasn’t necessary.
Jacko hit the floor on his back.
The shooting stopped.
Silence. Except for the whistling of the wind.
Lee ran towards the living room door and leaped feet first into it, legs flexed to kick it open. He flew through the doorway as his feet hit nothing but air. But his back landed hard on concrete. Air exploded out through his mouth. Then came the agonizing attempts to suck the air back in.
Katie stood over him looking confused. Her gaze darted between Jacko’s body inside the door and his on the concrete walkway.
“Knife…in coat pocket,” he croaked like a bullfrog.
Her hands shook as she pulled the knife from his coat. The knife locked with a click.
He held up his hands.
She sliced through the tie. “Are you OK? I didn’t hit—”
He managed his first full breath. “No, you didn’t…breath…knocked out of me.”
“I’m sorry, Lee. I didn’t know the door would open, and I didn’t—”
“I’m sorry too, because I was going to kick that door to kingdom come about the time you opened it.” He chuckled.
Katie didn’t.
“Give me the knife, Katie. I need to check on Jacko.”
Lee bent over the motionless body. It was the second warm neck his fingers had touched, the second one without a pulse.
He picked up the gun and flashlight. “Jacko won’t be chasing us anymore.” He stepped close to her. “Katie, I know shooting him was hard to do. You might even have some bad feelings about it. But remember this, you did the right thing in that situation, and you did it perfectly. Don’t let anybody, even yourself, tell you differently. Now push the safety lever all the way up.”
“I already did.”
“Good.” Lee wrapped his arms around her. “I’m so proud of you, young lady.”
Katie held her head high, but she was shaking. Then tears streamed down her face.
He held her, and her tears turned to sobs.
“How did you ever manage—”
“Jennifer said He was there for us if we trust Him.” She managed between sobs. “He was all I had to trust.”
“And you put it in the right place, Katie…in the right Person.”
Katie stepped back, swiping her face on her sleeve. Lit by the living room light, her brilliant blue eyes met his, and her chin rose. “I’m ready, now.”
He reached inside and turned off the lights, and then returned to Katie’s side. “We’ve probably attracted Trader. You’ve got your gun, and now I’ve got mine. A light, too.” He popped out the clip from Jacko’s gun, examined it with the flashlight, and popped it back in. “Come on, soldier. Let’s get back to Fort John.”
24
3:30 AM. Monday, November 4
Though Lee didn’t want to overload her with responsibilities, he trusted this girl. In the few hours he had known her, Katie’s clever and courageous acts had twice saved his life.
“Katie, will you lead us through the trees. After the lights back there, I can’t see anything.” He caught her arm. “When you reach the edge of the road, stop before anyone out there might see us…anyone like Trader with his flashlight.”
“I will. After what we’ve escaped from, we can’t let Trader catch us again.”
“I’m not big on irony. But with three of his men dead, I don’t think Trader has catch on his mind. It’s more like kill.”
“I’ll be careful, Lee.” Katie led him through the darkness of the trees for three or four minutes before stopping. “The road is about ten feet straight ahead.”
“Thanks. I’ll take the lead now.”
“Why are you always taking the dangerous part? We’re in this together.”
“I do it because I’m the adult, and I have the responsibility for your safety.”
“Then tell me, what was I when I held the gun while you went into the house? What was I responsible for when I shot Jacko?”
“You were fulfilling the role of an adult, and you did it perfectly. I know this may not sound fair, but I have to get you back to Jenn in one piece. If I don’
t, she’ll shoot me. So, Katie, I need to lead now that we’re going to be exposed on an open roadway.”
“Go ahead.” Katie sighed. “I wouldn’t want to make Jennifer mad at you.”
“Thanks for understanding.” He looked both directions along the main road and stepped out.
Katie’s arm yanked him back with a force that nearly slung him to the ground.
“What is it?”
“There’s a car coming down the road. It’s coming from the same direction as Trader’s van.”
“You’re right. But Trader couldn’t have—it’s slowing to turn in.”
He pushed her back into the shelter of the trees. When the car turned into the campground, two bright headlights swung in an arc, flashing across their hiding place. The vehicle stopped, illuminating the entire campground road in front of them.
“Katie,” Lee whispered. “Something looks familiar about—”
“It’s a van, Lee. A really big one.”
“Yeah. Big enough for a whole SWAT team.” He stepped from the trees into the lights of the vehicle.
“No, Lee! Don’t do it!”
“It’s OK. It’s the FBI.”
“You mean our rescuers finally got here?” Sarcasm had quickly replaced panic in Katie’s voice. This girl had a lot in common with Jennifer.
“Something like that.” He kept his gun in his left hand, holding it palm outward, pointing the business end towards the ground.
Katie stood feet spread, with both hands on her AK-47.
He hadn’t anticipated this. Things could go dreadfully wrong. “Katie, don’t raise your gun! Keep it down!”
A deep voice boomed from the van, clearly audible above the wind whistling through the treetops. “Is that you, Brandt? Who else would be fool enough to—”
“It’s me, Lee Brandt. That is you, Peterson, isn’t it? I really would like to put this gun down.”
“This is Peterson. Put it down, Lee. And please tell me that isn’t a teenage girl behind you holding an assault rifle.”
“Can’t do that, Peterson. Wouldn’t want to lie to the FBI. She killed one of the traffickers with it.”
Peterson was silent, probably digesting Lee’s last bit of information. “Brandt, what in blue blazes did you and Jennifer stir up out here? By the way, where is Jennifer? Is she all right?”
“Jenn and I have the three girls. She’s with the other two and the third is standing behind me, ready to take you on. Agent Peterson, meet Katie. Katie, you can put your gun down, or at least hold it like you’re not about to shoot somebody.”
Katie held her gun with both hands and remained in a firing posture. “Are you absolutely sure, Lee? No one is spoofing us or anything, are they?”
“No tricks, Katie. The nightmare’s over.”
Katie stepped forward, holding her AK-47 in her left hand as he had done.
“Secure the area, men.” Peterson stepped out of the van and gestured in a circular motion.
Several men slipped out the van’s door and quickly disappeared into the surrounding darkness.
“OK, let’s try this again. Katie, this is Agent Peterson, FBI.”
No greeting from Katie. That worried him.
When she opened her mouth to speak, her deep frown and glaring eyes gave him more reason for concern.
“Aren’t you a little bit late?” Katie threw the words at Peterson like the fastball rock she put through Trader’s van window, but this pitch was high and inside. “We had to do three-fourths of your work.”
Lee stared at Katie, wondering if he now had a fifteen-year-old Jennifer on his hands, and, if so, what he could do about it.
Peterson pulled his head back at Katie’s redress. “What are you talking about, young lady?”
“If you had gotten here when you were supposed to, we wouldn’t have had to—I wouldn’t have had to—I just killed a man.” Katie put her gun down beside Lee and reached for him.
A voice came from inside the van. “The area is secure, Pete.”
Lee held Katie while she cried.
Peterson was silent.
So was Lee, but praying that all of the remaining fear, anger, and guilt would flow away with Katie’s tears.
Please, Lord, don’t let her carry it any further than this moment.
Peterson didn’t speak until Katie released her hold on Lee and wiped her cheeks. “I’m sorry, Katie. But we couldn’t get here any sooner. We had to cut through a lot of downed trees. We wore out two chains on our saw. You did a brave thing. I wish we could’ve gotten here earlier so you wouldn’t have had to…” His voice trailed off.
Katie stood erect and faced Peterson. “And I’m sorry for dissing the FBI. But I wish you’d gotten here to kill those three guys, so we didn’t have to.”
“What do you mean killing three men?” He reverted to his booming voice. “Lee, just tell it to me plain. How many perpetrators are out here and what’s their status?”
Lee kept his summary as concise as possible. “Things got pretty wild during the storm. We can tell you the long version later. But right now, we know of only four perpetrators here on land. Three of them are dead, the fourth—well when you turned in to the campground, Katie and I thought the fourth one had found us and we were going to kill you, until I recognized the van.”
“Let me see if I’ve gotten this straight. You and Jennifer came out here looking for the traffickers’ holding location and, against superior fire power, while outnumbered, you managed to kill three of the four perpetrators, taking their weapons and their captives. You were looking for the last man, to kill him, when we arrived.”
“Those are the facts, but you make it sound—”
“I make it sound far-fetched and crazy, because it is! You two came out here against my direct orders—”
“Peterson, we don’t work for you. You work for us, the taxpayers.”
“Blast it, Lee! You know what I mean. You two came out here against my better judgment and—”
“And rescued all three girls!” Katie’s strong alto drowned out Peterson’s bass. “Killed three of the four perpetrators and, if you were the fourth man, the one called Trader, we would’ve killed you, too!” In the high-intensity lights of the van Katie’s blue eyes glared like cold steel, while her tone burned like the molten form of that metal. “When you turned in, you drove right into a trap. Maybe Lee and I are the ones who should be in that van trying to rescue you.”
“Brother.” Peterson shook his head. “I believe you’ve made your point, young lady. See me when you graduate from college. I may have a job for you. Now, where did you say Jennifer and the other two girls are?”
“Uh…they’re holding down the fort.”
“What fort?”
“Fort John,” Lee replied.
Katie laughed. That was a good sign.
But Peterson’s blank stare contained no humor.
“Come on, Peterson. I’ll show you. But you’d better let me go in first or Jennifer might shoot someone. She already killed the guy from the boat.”
Peterson tossed his hands in the air. “Is this another perpetrator—a guy on a boat? So you killed four men?”
“No. This guy, alias Boatman, came to check on his buddies. He caught us escaping with the three girls, after I killed their guard.”
“Kill, kill, kill. If this was a movie it would be X-rated for violence. Do you see why I didn’t want you and Jennifer to—”
“Peterson,” Lee interrupted, “It’s the business these guys are in that’s X-rated. Now, do you want me to continue, or not?”
“I’m not sure I do, but we might as well get it over with.”
“Boatman got the drop on us in the parking area. But Katie chucked a rock so hard it went clear through his car window. That set off the security alarm and gave Jennifer an opportunity to pull out her .38. She put him out of business…permanently. We only killed three men, Petersen.”
“I’ll remember that when I fill out my reports.” P
eterson shook his head. “You only killed three men, three measly little men, only three—creating mountains of paperwork for me and—”
Katie stepped toe-to-toe with the tall FBI agent. “I can give you some better things to call them than measly.”
“I think what you’d better give me, young lady, is a description of the one who’s still at large.”
Katie gave him a description of Trader that an artist could have sketched. Was this what Jennifer’s teenage sisters were like?
Peterson called the information in to the Forks police, and then closed his cell phone.
“Peterson,” Lee cleared his throat, “There’s something I should’ve asked you.”
“What’s that?”
“How many vehicles did you see in the parking area by the river?”
“Three. All with flat tires—flat, slashed tires.”
“Good. Then Trader’s on foot. Soon he’ll need a vehicle.”
“I’ll pass that along.”
“Also, Katie and I are at least a half hour overdue. Jennifer is going to be worried. You know how she can get. I need to let her know that you’re here and we’re all right.”
“How can you be sure that Trader hasn’t gotten to them?” Peterson frowned. “You can’t go barging in on…Fort John, is it?”
“Jennifer is pretty well fortified and she’s armed. We would have heard gunfire if Trader tried anything. Let me go in and make contact with her.”
Peterson opened his mouth to speak.
“Look.” Lee let out a sharp blast of air. “You know both of us, so you know this is the safest way to get her to stand down.”
In the blue light of the headlamps, Peterson’s face grew a reddish shade of purple. “Blast it all to blazes, Lee! I have to give an account, from this moment forward, for everything that happens out here. I’m the one who’s responsible for everybody’s safety.”
“Then you’ll let me go to the fort so everyone can actually be safe. She’ll shoot you, Peterson.”
“Yeah, and she always hits what she shoots at,” Katie added.
Peterson took a breath and exhaled loudly. His voice softened. “This will not appear in the official report. But we will back you, hidden and out of sight, while you contact Jennifer. But you will stay well back while you communicate with her. Is that understood?”
