EMP Lodge Series (Book 1): Dark Retreat

by Grace Hamilton

  When he walked through the door, Ryland was still on the floor with Duke. Willow was just removing a pot of water from the woodstove and adding a fresh one.

  Rosie grabbed his arm, “In here.”

  Wyatt followed her into the bedroom where Caitlin had been for days.

  “She’s starting to wake up,” Megan said in an excited voice.

  It had been several hours since they had first given her the milk thistle. Rosie had given Caitlin more tea about an hour ago adding in nettle and dandelion to the thistle telling Megan between the three plants, the poison didn’t have a chance.

  Wyatt turned to his mom who looked like she was going to start crying. The scene was in stark contrast to what was happening beyond the doors of the bedroom.

  Albert stomped into the bedroom, “She up yet?”

  Rosie scowled at him. Wyatt knew the guy was acting tough, but they had all grown fond of the little girl. Within minutes, the room filled up. Everyone stared at the little girl on the bed who started to moan.

  The moment Caitlin opened her eyes, there was a collective gasp. They all held their breath as they watched Caitlin blink several times before focusing on her mother.

  “Caitlin? Caitlin, baby?” Megan asked in a strained voice.

  The little girl started to cry, “Mommy, my throat hurts.”

  Every person in the room had tears of joy in their eyes. They had never seen the little girl’s beautiful blue eyes or heard her melodic voice.

  Megan was openly crying and laughing at the same time. Rosie wiped her eyes and quickly rushed to get the little girl some water.

  Even Albert had tears in his eyes. They had all grown so attached to this little girl and none of them had actually met her. Ryland had left Duke’s side to come see the little girl he had been dying to meet, shyly introducing himself.

  24

  Megan looked up and was surprised to see all the teary faces. Albert was rapidly blinking, clearly trying to get rid of the tears welling. When he caught her looking at him, he scowled. She smiled. Even the toughest men have a softer side

  It was amazing. Caitlin was awake and Megan owed it to these wonderful people who had taken her in. Without their support and Rosie’s wisdom, Caitlin probably would have died. The thought alone made Megan shudder in terror. She’d put her daughter’s life in their hands, depending on them and they had come through for her. For them.

  “Thank you,” she said to the room as a whole. “Thank you so much for all your help.”

  Wyatt beamed. “How about we give Caitlin some time to talk with her mom in private,” he said ushering everyone out the door.

  Ryland went back to Duke. “Mom, he puked again,” he cried.

  “Oh, my. Okay, hold on, I’m coming,” Willow said stopping by the basket where they kept their rags. Paper towels were an expensive commodity that couldn’t be wasted. The rags were cut up shirts that were beyond stained or torn. Nothing was ever thrown out.

  Wyatt walked over and looked at the latest pile on the floor. He bent closer and saw chunks of green in the vomit. In an instant, he knew exactly what it was! Duke had somehow eaten the rat poison that his dad had used in the past. The green cubes were placed in the root cellar and the area where the water barrels were stored. There was no possible way Duke could have gotten into the poison by himself.

  “Mom, you are going to need charcoal. He’s been fed rat poison.” Wyatt remembered what she had said earlier about Caitlin and knew right away charcoal was on the menu for the poisoned dog.

  “What? Are you sure?” she asked.

  The rest of the group looked horrified sharing anxious looks.

  “How did he get into the rat poison?” Jack asked.

  Wyatt shook his head. “I don’t know, but I can see chunks of it. It’s like the chunks were cut off one of those blocks.”

  Chase ran out the back door to grab the bucket they put the charcoal from the stove into. Since it was an excellent additive to soil and helped add organic matter, they were planning to use it in their future garden. He reached in with his bare hands and pulled a chunk of coal out, handing it to Rosie. She quickly smashed it up into a fine powder, added some water and made a thick slurry.

  She yanked open a drawer and pulled out an empty syringe. Duke was just wobbling back in the door, headed for his bed in front of the fire.

  “Jack, you’ll need to hold him, while I squirt this in his mouth. I doubt he will drink it willingly,” Rosie said sitting down next to the dog.

  Between Jack, Ryland and Rosie, they got the cup of charcoal slurry into the dog’s mouth.

  Wyatt had a sneaky suspicion that their recent visitor may have been responsible for the sudden rash of poisoning. He couldn’t prove it, but something was happening. There were too many coincidences. Kyle had been feeding Duke, but that didn’t explain Caitlin.

  Caitlin’s poisoning was likely an accident, but something felt off. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he trusted his instincts and they were demanding to know where Kyle was because he seemed to be at the center of it all.

  Wyatt went back to the room to check on Megan and Caitlin. The little girl was sitting on the edge of the bed leaning against her mother. She looked incredibly tiny.

  “Hi,” Megan said. “Caitlin, this is Wyatt. He helped me find the medicine that made you better.”

  Caitlin grinned, revealing what had to be two new front teeth that were too big for her tiny mouth. The look was so common among kids her age. It was like a rite of passage.

  “Hi,” Caitlin squeaked out. Mom says I can try to walk, but I have to sit first,” she explained.

  “That’s a good idea.” He looked at Megan, “Want me to help?”

  She shook her head, “I got it. She’s a little shaky, but she wants to walk on her own and I figured I could take her out to the outhouse to see if she’ll go.”

  He looked at the little girl who was now standing next to the bed. “Okay, mom, I’m ready.”

  The little girl was very unsteady. Her determination to make it on her own was so much like her mother, Wyatt had to smile. So independent.

  “We’ll be right beside you if you think you may fall down. Okay?”

  Wyatt took that to mean he was invited on the trip to the outhouse. He was thrilled. This was Caitlin’s first time seeing the place and he couldn’t wait to experience it with her.

  The three of them walked very slowly. Wyatt was afraid he would break her tiny little arm if he had to grab her if she did trip. He looked at Megan who looked only a little concerned. Maybe this was normal?

  Wyatt hadn’t spent much time around kids. It was only the last year that he got to know Ryland. His mind drifted to having his own kids who happened to look very much like Megan and Caitlin.

  He didn’t know if he would ever make his dream of having his own family come true. He didn’t think there would be many women willing to have a baby with the way things were now. Without medicine and an experienced doctor there to make sure everything went okay, women would be risking their lives. Obviously, without the benefit of condoms or birth control, it was going to happen, but it was scary to contemplate.

  Wyatt decided there was no point in worrying about any of that right now. He needed to focus on what was happening to the family he did have. He would worry about babies and all of that when it was actually a possibility.

  Megan went into the tiny outhouse with her daughter while Wyatt stood outside. Everyone was already getting back to work. He knew his mom would be in the kitchen whipping up some fantastic feast that would help put some weight back on Caitlin. Jack had asked Ryland to help him take care of the fish in an effort to get his mind off his sick dog.

  Duke had been left to rest by the fire so Rosie could keep an eye on him but she was confident he would be fine. She explained to Ryland that all the vomiting was actually a good thing. The charcoal would get the rest of the poison and within a couple of days; Duke would be back to his usual, goofy self. In an inst
ant, their quiet, serene little home burst into a flurry of noise and shouting. Albert’s voice in the distance could be heard just barely over the alarm system they had rigged up a couple of weeks ago. Someone was coming.

  Megan opened the outhouse door, “What’s happening?”

  “I don’t know. Can you get her back to the house on your own?”

  She nodded hugging Caitlin to her side.

  “Go inside. Lock the doors. Go into my room. The closet has a false wall in the back. There’s a small hole along the right edge. Stick your finger in there and pull open the door. It’s a small space, but you two will fit fine,” he told her.

  “Got it. Be safe, Wyatt,” she called out as she scooped up her daughter and carried her precious cargo back to the house.

  Wyatt ran towards the area where Albert was yelling. It sounded like he was in his favorite perch up high in the tree. When Wyatt arrived at the scene, Jack, Ryland and Willow were already there. Chase and his mom ran up behind him. They all stared down at the owl tangled in fishing line. It had been trying to feast on the fish guts under the line. The owl was flapping wildly, trying to free itself.

  The security system used a combination of fishing wire and battery-powered window alarms. Chase had secured one contact on the pole and another was carefully placed on a stick with the fishing line tied around it. If someone crossed the almost invisible fence, the fishing line would pull the stick, separating the contacts and triggering the alarm.

  The elaborate system was set in this particular corner because it was closest to the house. Wyatt and Chase had plans to add more of the alarms around the perimeter, but because of the proximity to the house and their storage area, this point of entry was of most concern.

  The fish guts were clearly put here on purpose. Chase quieted the alarm. Between the three men, they managed to free the owl, suffering some minor wounds from a very angry animal who didn’t appreciate the trickery.

  The group didn’t have time to wonder who would do such a thing. A faint scream could be heard tearing through the air. Wyatt’s heart nearly exploded in his chest at the sound of Megan screaming in what could only be described as excruciating pain.

  His time in the field on the ground in Afghanistan had given him a harsh lesson in what screams of pain sounded like. He never expected to hear it here, on his own land, coming from a woman who had stolen his heart. It paralyzed him with fear and agony for a split second before instinct kicked in and he tore through the trees that surrounded the cabin.

  25

  Megan burst through the back door, using her foot to kick the door shut behind her. Her heart raced at the thought that her daughter might be in danger. She had just gotten her back! No way was she going to let anyone or anything put her daughter’s life in jeopardy again. She called upstairs, hoping Rosie or Willow was around. No one answered her.

  She pushed the door open to Wyatt’s room, once again using her foot to kick it shut. Her eyes focused on the closet that was positioned on the outside wall across the room. A stinging pain cut across her left forearm, causing her to shout in pain. She spun around to see Kyle lunging at her with a knife in his hand.

  Megan turned around, putting her back to the charging man in an effort to shield her daughter. He stabbed her again. This time cutting into the flesh at the back of her left arm. The pain was too much and she unceremoniously dropped Caitlin to the ground.

  “Mommy!”

  Caitlin’s scream triggered an emotional and physical response in Megan that she didn’t know was possible. Spinning again, she balled her right hand into a tight fist and punched with every ounce of strength she had.

  While her punch landed on his chest, it was enough to stop the next jab of the knife, but it didn’t disable him. She kicked out with her right foot and hit him square between the legs. She thought back to what Wyatt had shown her in the woods that day.

  She reached out and grabbed a handful of his hair with one hand, twisting his hair in her fingers as she pulled his head down. Bringing her knee up to smash it into his nose, Kyle swung his knife in an arc forcing Megan to twist to avoid the blade, which weakened her knee raise. His knife missed, but she lost her chance to use her knee to break his nose and she knew she wouldn’t have another.

  “Run, Caitlin, run!” Megan shouted at her daughter when she realized Kyle was intent on killing her. The last thing she wanted her daughter to see was her own mother being stabbed to death.

  Caitlin staggered to her feet and tried to get around Kyle but he grabbed her with his free hand. Megan saw red and quite literally lost her mind. She felt like a wildcat in every sense of the word. She started scratching, kicking and screaming at the man to let her daughter go. Her attack had surprised him and she landed some pretty good kicks to his shins and stomped down on the tops of his feet with her boots. She managed to scratch his arms and one side of his face deep enough to draw blood.

  He pushed her back with such force she landed on her butt so hard she felt like her tailbone had splintered. The blow stunned her, knocking the air out of her lungs. She could only stare in horror as he looked out the door where Caitlin had run. He was deciding whether to go after her daughter or come after her. Megan had to make him come after her.

  She quickly jumped to her feet and prepared to attack him again. This time, he was ready. He crouched with the knife in his hand and jumped at her. Megan assumed she would probably end up with a knife to the gut or chest. It was inevitable. She only hoped it wouldn’t kill her or disable her before she could take him down. She had to give Caitlin time to get away.

  She thought her life flashed before her eyes in a blur, but realized it wasn’t her life at all. It was Duke. The dog flew through the air and latched onto Kyle’s arm. The man screamed as Duke bit down. The bite caused him to release the knife as Megan quickly scrambled for it while Kyle started to beat on the dog in an attempt to get him to release his arm.

  Megan watched as poor Duke went limp and fell to the ground. She held the knife up, ready to use it on the man who was intent on killing her.

  Kyle stared at her, clearly calculating how he would get the knife back. She was trying to look brave and unafraid, but she was shaken to her very core. She didn’t know if she could kill him, but she would not let him kill her. Megan thought about Caitlin and hoped she had found Wyatt or one of the others. They would protect her daughter should this man kill her.

  Voices in the distance brought her back to the reality in front of her. Kyle plainly didn’t want to stick around. He ran out of the room so fast she didn’t have time to blink. He was gone. Just like that, he was gone.

  Megan stood there with the knife in her hand. She could not believe what had just happened. A noise at the door got her attention. Wyatt and Jack were rushing towards her. She raised the knife and they both stopped.

  “Megan, it’s us. Megan, we aren’t going to hurt you. You can put the knife down, you’re okay.” Wyatt spoke softly as he slowly walked towards her.

  “Caitlin?” she whispered.

  “Mom has her. She was just outside. She’s scared, but she’s fine.” He reached out and touched the hand that held the knife. She felt him gently unwrap her fingers from the handle and heard it fall to the floor. “She’s okay, Megan. You did great.”

  Megan looked at him and collapsed against him. Her legs felt like jelly. Her butt was killing her and she realized her arm felt like it was on fire. It was over, though. Kyle had run. Right now, she needed a minute she told herself. A minute to pull herself together.

  WYATT HELD MEGAN CLOSE. He didn’t know if it was her shaking or his own that was reverberating through them. Rosie carried Caitlin into the room. The little girl was far too frail to walk on her own.

  When Wyatt first saw the little girl stumbling through the trees, he was initially thrilled to see her moving on her own, but it only took a split second to realize that was a very bad thing. Megan would never let her out of her sight if she were able. He had yelled for his mo
m to grab the girl and sprinted towards the back door.

  Seeing Megan standing in his room, blood dripping down her arm, he didn’t know whether to give chase to her assailant or hug her. He chose the latter, hollering at Jack to go out the front.

  “It was Kyle,” Megan muttered. “Kyle tried to kill us. He stabbed me.” Her voice was leveling out. He had a feeling she was probably going into shock.

  “Jack went after him. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

  “Caitlin, baby, are you okay?” she wailed when she saw Rosie holding her daughter.

  Tears were streaming down the little girl’s face, but she nodded her head. “I’m okay. Mom, you’re bleeding.” Her voice was hoarse from days of no use.

  Rosie rubbed Caitlin’s back, “Hey sweetie, let’s go find Willow. She will get you something to eat and drink while I take a look at mommy’s arm, okay?”

  They disappeared out the door, leaving Wyatt and Megan alone again.

  “Here, sit down,” he told her moving her to the bed.

  She held out her arm, “I don’t want to get blood on your blanket.”

  It was then she spotted Duke, “Duke!” she cried dropping to her knees next to the dog. “Duke. Oh sweetie, are you okay?” She rubbed his head and bent low to whisper in his ear.

  Duke groaned and shifted just enough to expose his belly. Wyatt sighed in relief. That was a good sign. The dog wanted a belly rub.

  “He saved me,” Megan said looking up at him with tears in her eyes. “Kyle was coming after me with the knife. Duke came out of nowhere and bit him. He bit him good. I wish he would have torn his arm off,” she said angrily. “Poor Duke got knocked to the ground. What kind of a vet punches a dog?” she asked in bewilderment.

  Wyatt bent down and gently rubbed Duke’s belly, “I don’t think he was a vet at all. He was a bad guy that wanted what we had. Sadly, I don’t think it is going to be the last time we deal with someone who tries to steal from us, but I can guarantee I won’t ever let it get this far again.”

  Rosie came back into the room, looked at the dog and then at Megan. “We’ll take care of him in a minute. Let’s check you out first,” she said carrying a small kit into the room.