The Target

by Gerri Hill

  “Stop,” Jaime said when they’d all made it across the stream. She looked again at the map, studying the slopes. She wanted him to think they were going right down the mountain. “This way. We go straight down until we hit the river.” As Sara passed her, Jaime grabbed her arm and spun her around. “How are you holding up?” she asked quietly.

  “I’m afraid I’m not.” Tears immediately formed. “It’s my fault, Jaime. My fault.”

  “Stop it. It’s not your fault. If anything, it’s goddamn my fault. Now come on.” Jaime pulled her along, trying not to think about the woman they’d left up on the trail.

  Only ten minutes later, they heard the water as it crashed down the mountain. For one moment, Jaime panicked. What if it was too big, too fierce? How were they going to manage the water? She hurried ahead of the others, shoving them out of the way, scanning the banks of the river and hoping her plan would work.

  “Now what?”

  Jaime turned and faced them. “Listen to me. We’re out of sight, so he’s going to be tracking us. But he can’t track us in the water.”

  “You want us to walk down the mountain in the water?”

  “No. Upstream.”

  “Upstream?” All heads turned and looked at the water that flowed and crashed along the boulders that littered the river.

  “He’ll assume we went down. So we go up.”

  Sara stepped forward, her eyes still on the water. “Jaime, I don’t know . . .”

  “It’s the only way. Trust me.”

  “I want to know what the hell is going on,” Abby demanded. “Someone shot at us! Sandra . . . Sandra is up there,” she pointed. “What the hell is going on?”

  Jaime grabbed her shoulders and squeezed. “We don’t have time for this now, Abby. Someone’s after us and we’ve got to move. Do you understand?”

  Abby nodded. “Okay. Okay. Let’s go.”

  “Good. Now, take your time, make sure of your footing. We only have to make it to the top of the ridge up there. We’ll be out of sight that way.”

  “And what if he comes upstream instead of going down?” Lou Ann asked.

  Jaime looked at Sara. “Then I’ll kill him.” She walked into the water and grimaced. It was like ice. “Come on. I know it’s cold.”

  “Jesus Christ,” Abby hissed when the cold water soaked her jeans.

  Jaime ignored them, moving downstream several feet to where a tree grew close to the water. She grabbed a low limb, twisting the end until it broke, leaving it hanging. Hopefully, it would be enough to convince him they’d gone downstream. She looked at all the terrified faces watching her and raised her eyebrows. “Ready?” At their nods, she walked against the current, knees bent, concentrating on each step. The water was strong flowing down the mountain but at least the river wasn’t deep. Like most high mountain streams, so many boulders littered the river that is was only a few feet deep in places. If you avoided the deeper pools, you could walk across most streams. She bent over once as she lost her footing and she looked behind her. The others were all using their hands to guide them. But they were going slow. Too slow. Looking at her watch, she wondered how much time had passed since they’d left the trail. Since they’d left Sandra.

  “There’s a deep pool right there,” she pointed. “Stay to the left. Just follow me.”

  Sara found herself in the middle of the group, between Megan and Ashley. She was soaked nearly to the waist, as were the others. It felt like they were crawling at a snail’s pace and she found herself looking over her shoulder constantly, wondering when the next shot would ring out. She followed the others around the pool, feeling the water swirling against her legs, pulling her downward. Her feet were so cold, she could hardly feel them but she pushed on, stepping on the rock that Megan had just vacated.

  “Just a little farther,” Jaime called. She noticed that Celia was lagging behind and shook her head. “Celia, come on, pick it up.”

  “I’m trying.”

  Jaime stood where she was, holding onto the branch of a spruce tree that was hanging over the river. The water was splashing over her thighs and she realized how cold she was, how cold they all must be. “Abby? Can you make it on your own?” Jaime pointed. “Get out right behind the two boulders there. Get low on the ground. I’m going to help Celia.”

  “Got it, Chief.”

  Jaime managed a smile at Abby as she left her, pausing to help Lou Ann before moving downstream.

  “Where are you going?” Sara asked loudly to be heard over the rushing water.

  “To help Celia. We’ve got to hurry. I feel like we’ve been out here for hours,” Jaime said.

  “I know. I keep expecting—”

  “No.” Jaime gripped Sara’s arm and squeezed. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. Now go.”

  Jaime passed the others, offering encouragement, urging them to hurry. Celia was several yards back, struggling over the rocks. She was drenched and Jaime knew she must be freezing. She reached out and grabbed Celia under her elbow.

  “Let me help,” she yelled.

  “Not going to make it, can’t,” Celia gasped.

  “The hell you’re not!” Jaime pulled her forward. “I’m not letting you go.”

  “I can’t feel my feet.”

  “That makes two of us. Just a little farther.”

  Celia slipped and Jaime pulled her up, holding her close. Celia looked into her eyes, her face frantic.

  “I’m scared, Jaime.”

  Jaime leaned close to her ear. “Don’t you be scared. He took Sandra. He’s not taking anybody else.”

  “Promise?”

  “I promise. Now come on. We don’t have much time.”

  With Jaime pulling Celia, they finally made it to the boulders. The others were all on the ground, as she’d instructed. Sara got up and helped Celia out of the river, pulling her down beside her.

  Once out of the water, the cold penetrated. They were completely shaded by the mountain and Jaime guessed the temperature was barely fifty up here. They would be chancing hypothermia if they didn’t get out of the wet clothes soon. She knelt down close to Sara, touching her face, her cheeks.

  “What is it?” Sara whispered.

  “You’re cold.”

  “No shit.”

  Jaime flashed a smile, then squirmed out of her pack. “Lay back down. Everyone. I’m going into the forest. I’ve got to find a spot where I can watch him. You’ve got to stay out of sight. No matter what.”

  “Out of sight. Yeah,” Abby said. “I’m fucking cold. I don’t think I could stand up if you begged.”

  “Good. I’ll be back as soon as it’s safe.” She unzipped the side pocket on her pack and pulled out her binoculars. “Don’t move,” she said again.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Goddamn, goddamn, goddamn,” he muttered as he hurried down the mountain. His rifle was slung over his shoulder but his pack . . . his goddamn backpack was still up on the trail, laying next to the old woman he’d popped.

  He paused to catch his breath, studying the ground, seeing overturned rocks and dislodged dirt. He had their trail but they were ahead of him, running. His eyes narrowed. Oh, he had no doubt he’d catch them eventually. He just never thought they’d run like this, down the mountain. He assumed they’d stick to the trail, running for their lives like scared rabbits. Didn’t matter. If he couldn’t track a bunch of women, he was in the wrong line of work. And that, he was not. He’d catch up with them tonight as they huddled around their campfire, scared out of their wits.

  He looked back, judging how far the trail was. His coat was with his backpack. He’d have to go back for it.

  He studied the ground, seeing that they’d run straight down the mountain. Nowhere to go but down. Yeah. But he was thorough. No sense taking chances.

  He pulled out the small, electronic transponder and adjusted the frequency. Staring, he frowned, then lifted his eyes upstream from where the signal was transmitting.

  “Wha
t the hell?”

  Chapter Twenty

  Jaime moved silently through the forest, hiding behind trees and rocks, trying to find a hidden spot where she could observe the river down below. He should have been there by now. Surely, it wouldn’t have taken him that long to get down the mountain to the trail. The trail had been relatively level, he could have jogged it in no time.

  “He smokes,” she whispered. So, he’s not in the best of shape and the altitude is probably not helping. Well, that was one thing in their favor. Another thing in their favor was he had no idea one of them was a cop, much less that one of them had a gun. And she knew without a doubt that she’d shoot first before trying to arrest the goddamn son of a bitch.

  Jaime squeezed her eyes shut as she thought of the older woman. Sandra had enough pain to last a lifetime. Why her? Sandra, who was so looking forward to the rest of her life, taken down like an animal. It made no sense. If he was after Sara, why take a shot at someone else?

  But she knew the answer. It was just the thrill of it. She’d been on the force long enough to hear that answer over and over again. He was a hit man for sure but obviously not a very disciplined one. No doubt he was just a thug hired to do a job. And she should have suspected that earlier. Any professional who’d been trailing them for eight or nine days would have had plenty of opportunities to do the job and get out. Even Sara had said the same.

  She moved a little farther down, stopping where a tree grew up from next to a boulder. It provided good cover and gave her a clear view of the canyon. They were totally in the shadows this time of day and while that was welcome when trying to stay out of sight, it also dropped the temperatures to a very uncomfortable level. She lay on her stomach and elbows, holding the binoculars to her chest as she scanned the area. Still no movement. She pulled the binoculars to her eyes and slowly moved them down the mountain. She nearly jumped when she saw him. He was just crossing the first stream, rifle slung on one shoulder. She held her breath as he studied the trail then walked on, following their earlier route.

  Her hands had a tight grip on the binoculars as he paused at the river, looking first downstream, then up. The ravine was steep and there was no way they could have crossed over to the other side. It was straight up a sheer cliff. No. He had to choose. Upstream or down? She moved closer against the rock, fearing he could see her, but his eyes were on the river. Finally, he walked downstream, staring at the limb she had broken earlier. She nodded as he hurried, almost running along the river as it wound its way down the canyon.

  But then he stopped.

  What the hell?

  He pulled something from his pocket, holding it at arm’s length. Then his eyes lifted toward her, nodding.

  “What the fuck?” She lowered her head. Oh God no.

  She ran, ran fast, stumbling through the trees, ducking under branches. There was no time to waste. She was panting when she found them and she bent over, trying to catch her breath.

  “What is it?” Sara asked urgently. “What did you find?”

  Jaime looked up, locking glances with Sara. “There’s a transmitter,” she gasped between breaths.

  “What?”

  “Somebody’s got a fucking transmitter,” she said loudly. She looked at the group. “Drop your packs. We’re bugged.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  Jaime looked at Sara. “He has a receiver of some sort. He knows we went upstream.”

  “Oh shit,” Sara murmured.

  “Search your bags. See if anything looks out of the ordinary.”

  “It can’t be us. We bought all of this new. It was housed at the clinic.” Their eyes met. “Search your stuff,” Sara said quietly.

  “I swear, if the bastard . . .” Jaime stared at the small thermometer attached to the top of her backpack. “Fuck,” she whispered. She’d had the thermometer for years. And the tiny, circular compass at the bottom was more for looks than anything. Everyone knew that. If you were going to use a compass, you used the real thing. So where better to plant a transmitter?

  “What?”

  Their eyes met again. “It’s me. It’s goddamn me.” Jaime ripped the thermometer from her pack, then felt Sara’s hands close around hers.

  “He doesn’t know we’ve found it.”

  Jaime paused, clutching the thermometer in her fist. She nodded. “I’ve got an idea.”

  She unzipped a side pocket on her pack, pulling out a packet of waterproof matches. She dumped the matches in her pack, then slipped the thermometer inside the pouch and sealed it. She looked at Sara. “First aid kit?”

  Sara dove into her pack. “What do you need?”

  “Tape.”

  Jaime found a downed limb and broke it in half. She then took the tape from Sara, wrapping it around the limb, securing the thermometer—and the transmitter—inside the waterproof pouch.

  “Now what?”

  “Now we send it downstream,” Jaime said. She walked to the water’s edge, gently tossing the limb into the stream. They all watched as it floated downstream, away from them.

  “Will it work?”

  Jaime shook her head. “I don’t know.” She looked at them, all wet and cold, the shadows lengthening in the canyon, hinting at dusk. They didn’t have much time. She looked at Sara. “You take them on ahead. Follow the stream. I’m going to go back down, see what he’s doing.”

  “It’ll be dark soon.”

  “Yeah. Still a couple of hours once we get out of this canyon. Go as long as you can. I’ll find you.”

  Their eyes held. “Are you sure?”

  “I’ll be back before you know it. Remember, he can’t track us in the dark.”

  Jaime left without waiting for a reply. She stumbled back down the path she’d come up, her boots slipping on rocks in her haste. She paused against a boulder, sinking low to the ground, scanning the mountainside with her binoculars. She saw him, some three hundred yards downstream. And he was walking toward her.

  She shook her head. Check your transponder.

  “Check your goddamn transponder,” she murmured.

  Finally he did, pulling it out of a pocket. He held it high, away from his body. Then he turned, pointing downstream.

  “Oh, yeah. Downstream, you bastard,” she whispered.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  He turned in a circle, watching the signal bounce around the canyon.

  “What the fuck?”

  He looked upstream, where his gut told him they’d gone, then downstream where the signal now pointed. He shook his head. Something wasn’t right.

  “It’s moving too fast.”

  It didn’t matter. It would be dark soon. No sense traveling in the darkness. He would catch up to them tomorrow. And they would pay.

  He let his backpack slip from his shoulders. Yeah. Tomorrow.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  It would be dark in a couple of hours. All they had to do was keep moving, putting distance between them and him. He was stopping for the night. They could push on. But they were all exhausted and cold. They needed a place where they could get a fire going and warm up. But it would be hours before they could do that.

  After Jaime was certain he was stopping, she scampered back up the hill, hoping to catch the others before they got too far ahead of her. She caught up with them only thirty minutes later.

  “Well?” Sara asked immediately.

  “You’re moving too slow.”

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s stopped. He’s setting up camp along the stream.”

  “Good. So we have time?”

  “No. We’ve got to move.” She looked at the others. “We’ve got to keep going. For a while, at least.”

  Abby stood. “Okay, Chief. Where to?”

  Jaime pointed. “See the ridge?”

  “Holy shit,” Lou Ann murmured.

  “Over the top and down the other side. Two more hours. Then we stop.”

  “Two?” Sara shook her head. “Jai
me, we’re wet, we’re cold . . . we’re tired. Two more hours?”

  “We stop at full dark,” Jaime insisted. “We can’t take a chance.”

  Sara looked at the group of women, now short one. They were all soaking wet. “Ladies? Are we up for it?”

  “Let’s go,” Judith said. “The farther away from him the better.”

  “I can make it,” Beth said with a nod.

  One by one, they all nodded, agreeing to the two-hour hike up the mountain.

  “Okay, walk carefully. Try to disturb the rocks, the ground, as little as possible. Eventually, he’s going to find our trail. We don’t want to give him tracks to follow. Okay?”

  They nodded again.

  “And no talking. Quiet. We move up to the ridge and down the other side. Hopefully, we can find a west facing ridge where we’ll be shielded and we can get a fire going.”

  “Fire? Oh God, that sounds good.”

  Jaime started out, walking lightly, stepping on rocks instead of the ground when she could. Hopefully, they would follow suit. But even as careful as they could be, twelve women hiking . . . no, eleven now . . . would leave some sort of mark. She shook her head, trying not to think of Sandra. Not now. Now she needed to focus. She had to get them out of here. Later, when things were quiet, she would allow the guilt she felt about Sandra’s death to come. Later.

  Twenty minutes into their hike, Jaime paused, letting everyone catch their breath. She looked up, noticing that it had suddenly gotten extremely steep. There had to be an easier route over the ridge.

  “Jaime?”

  Jaime turned to find Sara staring at her. “Yeah?”

  “That’s practically straight up.”

  “Yeah, I was just thinking that.” The shadows were getting longer and Jaime was afraid they would not make it over the ridge by dark. And they had to. No way they could stay on this side of the mountain, not knowing for sure where he was. They had to cross over. “You guys stay here. I’m going to hike down a little ways and see if it levels out.”