by Hazel Hunter
“How did you know?” Jules asked.
The two of them crouched behind a fallen tree trunk.
“I didn’t,” Logan whispered. “But SAR isn’t going to come by truck. They’d be in a helicopter. There’s really only one reason to have an airstrip in the middle of nowhere. Or a plane that uses it.” He turned to her. “Pot growers.”
Her eyes grew wide and she looked back to the plane. Logan had made a gamble. Being near the plane was the best place to be when it came to rescue. Not only would the Royal Canadian Air Force home in on the ELT, the plane had provided them the necessary emergency supplies they’d needed for the night. The closer you could stay to a crash site, the higher your chances of survival. That had been drilled into him in Iraq.
But an airstrip used by drug dealers would have to be close to their operation. They’d know if someone was using the strip and it’d only be a short drive away. His gamble hadn’t paid off and SAR hadn’t arrived in time. Distance was what they needed now.
“Come on,” he said.
CHAPTER FIVE
Seth tossed the lid of the cooler aside.
“What the hell?”
“What?” rasped Frank.
“Drugs.”
Lots of them.
Along with the plastic box with the white lab coat and medical supplies, this was looking more and more like a doctor was on board. Good. A doctor they could deal with. Even a doctor and a pilot–unless they were one in the same. But, one man or two, it hardly made a difference. The main thing was they weren’t Mounties. They weren’t going to be armed.
“Good drugs?” Frank croaked, looking into the cooler.
“Not like you’re thinking,” Seth said, pushing him away.
As Frank backed out the passenger door, Seth saw blood on the window. Right. That meant it was two men. He backed out of the plane and out from under the wing. Two men, a doctor and a pilot, downed by the storm in the only place they could land. The doctor was injured. He scanned the edge of the clearing in each direction.
Frank was kicking the shredded rubber of the tires, as Seth caught a whiff of something.
Smoke.
Whoever’d been in the plane hadn’t gone far.
He followed his nose, around the truck, and toward the forest.
“Where are you going?” Frank said, starting another coughing fit.
“Shut up and follow,” Seth said over his shoulder. “And make sure that rifle is loaded.”
The idiot couldn’t be trusted for even that much. He heard Frank pull and then push the bolt, chambering a round.
As they headed to the closest trees, the lean-to became obvious.
Seth gripped the pistol extra hard as he came up to the fire pit. He crouched low and scanned around. Could be they were being watched. He touched his fingers to a large chunk of charcoal. Still warm. Frank began to root around in the lean-to.
Seth surveyed the forest again.
“Look,” Frank said.
He was wearing a stethoscope and listening to his own chest. Then he coughed.
“Ow!” he exclaimed and yanked the earpieces out.
“Idiot,” Seth sneered. “Leave it. We’ve got to go.”
Frank tossed them onto the blankets.
“Go where?” he asked, the usual dumb look on his face.
“Hunting,” said Seth.
• • • • •
“I can’t keep up,” Jules gasped.
Logan had been half-carrying her as they ran through the trees and around the thicket. Her sprained ankle screamed with pain every time she put weight on it.
“You can do this,” Logan breathed.
With his arm around her waist and his shoulder under hers, he ran stooped as she tried mostly to hop. She was slowing him down.
“Logan,” she gasped. “Please.”
Though he didn’t stop, he slowed.
“You need,” she said between heaving breaths, “to go on without me.”
“Not going,” he said between breaths, “to happen.”
The trees were thick and the ground was sloping up. As the thickets and bushes grew larger, she and Logan moved as much sideways as forward. Although the sky was clear, the forest was dark. She had no idea how Logan knew which way to go. Everywhere she looked was the same: dense and massive trunks, dark ground cover, thick layers of dead vegetation she couldn’t see through. How he kept his footing, she didn’t know. He crashed forward or sideways, never stopping, always moving.
She clung to his shoulder as he did the heavy lifting, uphill. They were both panting and she was completely out of breath. They’d only been running–if you could call it that–for half-an-hour and already her lungs were burning. This wasn’t going to work.
Suddenly her right foot came down hard on something lumpy and her sprained ankle twisted. She screamed in pain and pitched forward. Only Logan’s iron grip prevented her from colliding with the ground.
“Jules!” he said, swinging her in front of him to catch her with both arms
They came to a sudden stop, facing each other, chests heaving.
“Your ankle?” Logan breathed.
The pain was excruciating and she could only hold her breath and nod, standing on one foot.
“Is there anything we can do for it?” he said.
She lowered her head and shook it. The time for that had been this morning. Or last night. She should have wrapped it right away. Now, they didn’t have any bandages. They didn’t have anything. Although Logan had her around the waist, her fingers dug hard into his upper arms as she fought the pain.
“Jules?” Logan said quietly.
He bent down to look her in the face.
She forced herself to smile though she could imagine what it must look like.
“That’s the spirit,” he said quietly. “Never say die.”
She stared at him. Is that what we’re facing? Death? She glanced back in the direction they’d just come. Panic started to rise in her throat. Death? In the wilderness? No one to find our bodies. Just another crash in the mountains. She blinked away the tears that had sprung into her eyes.
“Hey,” Logan whispered as he wrapped his arms around her and drew her close.
She clutched him hard and stifled a sob in his chest.
Eventually, their breathing slowed and he rhythmically rubbed her back. She leaned heavily against him and closed her eyes.
“My CC-130 went down in Iraqi territory,” he said quietly. “RPGs. Rocket propelled grenades. Wick died immediately and I took shrapnel in my right leg.”
“What?” she managed to say between sniffs.
“There was no way the plane was going to fly. Starboard engines were gone.” His voice was monotone, his chin resting lightly on her head as he held her tight. “But never say die,” he whispered. “We’re going to make it out of this. I promise.”
As she wiped the tears away, he let her go and she looked up into his face. She’d expected the faraway look but he was right here, looking into her eyes.
“Never say die isn’t about dying,” he said. “It’s about wanting to live. It’s the RCAF motto.” He gripped her by the shoulders. “It’s about never giving up. Keeping the will to survive. It’s about using this,” he said, tapping her temple lightly. “Your best weapon.”
Even though the pain in her ankle was throbbing, she had to smile a little.
“I’m not going to lose you, Jules,” he said lowly.
With his strong arm around her waist, one hand caressed the nape of her neck. Without hesitation, he leaned in and kissed her–a kiss so soft his lips only brushed hers. As he began to draw away, she let go of him and her hands went to the sides of his face. She felt the light cling of his lips as he paused and, for a moment, the surroundings disappeared. But the moment didn’t last and then she was looking up into his eyes.
“Ready?” he said.
She nodded.
“Never say die,” she said.
• • • • �
��
As Frank coughed again, Seth realized they needed to separate. Not just to get away from him, although that would be good. There was no way the people they were hunting wouldn’t hear the infernal hacking. Also, there was too much forest to cover.
Seth stopped. Actually, the hacking might come in useful.
“What?” Frank said behind him.
Seth’s mind started to formulate a plan. He was no tracker. Though they’d taken off in the direction that made the most sense, they hadn’t seen a single footprint or broken plant or whatever the hell you were supposed to see when you tracked someone. He didn’t know anything about tracking but he did know the layout of the area. He’d picked their location just so it couldn’t be easily approached from all sides. On this side of the airstrip, there was a ravine ahead that ran east and west. If the pilot and doctor had run from the lean-to away from the plane, they were headed right for it. When they hit it, they’d have to head east or west but there was no way to know which way they’d go. But, he and Frank could cover both.
“You head northwest,” Seth said, as he came to a stop and turned to Frank. They were both breathing hard from the running. Seth pointed to the left. “All the way to the ravine. When you get there, head back east along it.”
Frank looked in that direction, his mouth hanging open.
“I thought we were following them,” Frank said, which only made him cough.
“Have you seen anything?”
Frank shook his head, as he finished coughing and wiped his mouth on his sleeve.
“I didn’t think so,” Seth said. He jabbed his finger to the right. “I’m gonna head northeast. When I hit the ravine, I’ll head back west along it.”
Frank stared off in that direction for a moment and then back to the northwest.
“Are we going to meet back at the truck?”
Seth sighed.
“No we’re not meeting at the truck. We’re meeting along the ravine. You’ll come from the west. I’ll come from the east.”
A dim light of understanding finally lit Frank’s eyes.
“If you find ‘em, shoot ‘em,” Seth said. “And try not to shoot yourself.”
Frank frowned.
“Now go,” Seth said. “And don’t stop running. We gotta get to the ravine quick. Got it?”
“Got it,” Frank said.
Seth turned to go.
“Hey,” Frank said. “How do I know you won’t shoot me?”
“Because I’ll hear that goddamn hack of yours, that’s how.”
“Oh,” Frank said. “Oh right.”
“Now go!” Seth yelled and pointed northwest.
Frank took off at a trot.
As Seth watched him disappear among the trees, he could hear him start coughing again. With any luck, the pilot and doctor would hear that too.
• • • • •
Every step must be agony. Logan could hear it in Jules’ rasping breaths. But they had no choice. They had to keep moving.
Though the forest was thick with trees, not a single one had provided them with a hiding place. If they could stay free until dark, they’d stand a chance of getting back to the airstrip and maybe SAR. Although the canopy of the trees was thick, he could still make out the sun. They were still heading north. In the night sky, he’d navigate by the stars. Their best bet for rescue was staying near the plane.
They were moving slowly but making progress.
Jules was hardly able to put her right foot down. He kept her pinned to his left hip, almost lifting her completely off the ground to keep her going forward. She had her right arm around his neck but as the last hour had dragged by, she’d been able to hold on less and less.
Suddenly, the ground cover under their feet gave way to loose shale and the trees abruptly thinned. He had to squint in the sudden bright light but, as he did, he saw where they were.
“Stop!” he gasped, as he yanked Jules off her feet and backwards.
His boots slid over the scrabble rock, skidding to a stop just in time. As Jules thudded into his chest, the two of them fell backward–which was good.
He hugged her tight as she landed on top of him and his back hit the ground. They both grunted with the impact, but he didn’t let go. For a few minutes, there was only the sound of their heavy breathing. Finally, he rolled her off his chest and onto the ground beside him. On her back, she just lay there, eyes closed, chest heaving, trying to get enough air.
He sat up and looked down–way down. A narrow but deep gorge spread below. They’d nearly fallen into it. His mind immediately flashed on his views from the air. He’d never seen this because it was too small. The gap in the trees created by the canyon would hardly look like anything from a plane. From the sound of it, the water that ran through it was far below them–too steep to cross. Especially for Jules.
Suddenly, Logan heard someone cough to his left. He leapt to his feet. Jules’ eyes were still closed and she hadn’t moved, her chest still laboring for each breath.
“Let’s go,” he whispered, as he lifted under her arms. “Someone’s close.”
“Run,” she gasped, as she got to her feet. “Leave me.”
Logan ignored her. With his left arm around her waist, he swung her right arm around his neck and headed back into the trees and away from the cough.
• • • • •
Seth checked his revolver again, spinning the cylinder. He sat on the rock outcropping and watched the approach from the west. Let Frank do the running. That’s all he was good for. The damned hacking would drive the prey right to Seth.
Off to his right, the ravine dropped away like a cliff. To his left lay the downward sloping forest that led back to the airstrip. From his vantage point, he could almost see over the tops of the trees. There was also a view of the thin course of water far below.
As he flipped the cylinder shut with a metal clack, he checked the west again. He’d been about to look away when he caught movement–a flash of red. Then he heard the coughing.
He grinned and started the climb down from his perch.
• • • • •
Jules could hear it now too–the coughing. The man with the rifle–he was getting closer.
She tried to go faster but she was running on empty. Logan could barely catch his breath, trying to run for them both. Her right foot was almost useless now. She’d been about to beg Logan to just leave her, when she tripped. Without the energy to catch herself or the ability to stumble, she wrenched free from Logan’s grasp, fell to her knees, and smashed into the ground. Logan was immediately at her side just as a shot rang out.
“Stay down!” he said.
Still trying to get her breath, she cautiously raised her head.
“I think the shot came from up ahead,” Logan whispered.
His back was against a tree trunk to her right. She’d landed on the ground behind some sort of thicket.
“Don’t move,” Logan said.
She probably couldn’t move if she tried. She lay on her stomach, still trying to get her breath, sprawled on the ground where she’d landed.
“They split up,” Logan hissed. “This is a bad spot. We need to move.”
Jules looked up at him and pushed onto her hands and knees. As he moved from behind the tree and reached out to her, another shot rang out. The dirt between them exploded, spraying up dust and debris and pelting her face.
“Logan!” she screamed, as she recoiled.
“Stay down!” he yelled.
When she opened her eyes, she couldn’t see him.
“Logan! Are you–”
“I’m okay!” he said. “That shot came from behind.”
His voice had come from behind the tree. Or had it?
“I can’t get to you, Jules,” he said. “They’ve got us pinned down.”
“Then leave me, Logan,” she begged. “For god’s sake, run!”
He stepped away from the tree and she could finally see him. His face was grim but his eyes
bored into hers.
“I’ll be back,” he said. “No matter what happens. Do you understand?”
She nodded, not trusting her voice, as tears threatened to well in her eyes.
“I’m not going to lose you,” he said through clenched teeth. “Never say die.”
Just then the bark of the tree between them exploded. She flinched and cowered away and, by the time she looked back, Logan was gone.
CHAPTER SIX
Seth held his fire. The man in the leather jacket was moving too fast, dodging trees and jumping logs. There was no way Seth would hit him–but at least he could see him. Seth immediately took off at a run.
“Seth!” Frank called.
Seth came to a stop. He looked in Frank’s direction but couldn’t see him and then he turned back to see the man in the leather jacket disappearing among the trees.
Damn!
His plan had worked but now that guy was getting away. There had been a few gun shots but it’d only been him and Frank shooting.
Hadn’t it?
“Seth!” Frank called again from off to his right.
Dammit.
Seth changed direction and ran.
“Where are you?” Seth yelled.
You better be shot.
“Here!” came Frank’s voice and then some hacking.
Although Frank had his back to him, he was standing and pointing the rifle down at someone on the ground. He wasn’t shot.
“The other guy is getting away and–” Seth started.
As he came up to Frank’s side, he saw what Frank was looking at–a woman.
“Look what I found,” Frank said, staring at her.
Seth couldn’t help but stare as well. Sitting with her back against a tree, she held her hands up in front of her. Clearly she was terrified. A bloody piece of gauze was taped over her right eyebrow. She was also pretty–very pretty. No doubt he and Frank were thinking the same thing.
