Not. Gonna. Happen.
Levi shielded his eyes and examined our surroundings. Golden hills covered with brittle scrub grass rose and fell as far as the eye could see. Ragged bittersweet bushes dotted the hills, along with the occasional juniper tree. The blistering July sun had baked the soil, leaving it hard packed and resistant to footprints.
I pointed. “The grass looks trampled over there.”
We crouched down over the short, dry grass. It was impossible to see individual footprints, but the crushed grass indicated the direction Mac and Hannah had run.
We followed their trail for about two miles before it veered toward a cluster of juniper trees.
“Looks like they spent the night here,” I said, pointing to the flattened grass where somebody had spread a blanket. A strand of Mac’s light brown hair was caught in the bark of the closest juniper. She must have been sitting up, standing watch while Hannah slept.
“They didn’t light a fire,” Levi observed.
“Probably didn’t want to risk giving away their position, in case the Wilcox Brigade was searching for them.”
“Smart,” Levi said. He bent over, squinting, then plucked something from the ground. “They found Hector, or he found them. This is his fur, right?”
I examined the brown strands. “Looks like it. Imagine they petted him and some fur went flying.”
We ate some peanut butter crackers and drank water before continuing our search.
We lost track of their footprints on a rocky slope and spent the rest of the day trying in vain to pick up their trail. Rolling hills stretched to the horizon in every direction. No sign of roads or any houses. Easy to get turned around and lost wandering through the middle of nowhere. I’d hoped that Mac and Hannah would hunker down and wait to be found, but apparently they had tried to make their own way out.
I had a compass. Levi and I could retrace our route back to the jeep.
About an hour before sunset, I caught movement in the corner of my eye. Next to a bittersweet bush, around fifty feet away, an animal lifted its head. I stopped, stared, then took a step toward the animal.
“Hector?”
He barked weakly and struggled to his feet, wobbling on unsteady legs.
Levi and I sprinted toward my dog, who collapsed back onto the ground. Hector lifted his head when I dropped to my knees beside him, his eyes fevered and pained. Blood soaked his left thigh, and he whimpered when I gently parted his fur to examine the shallow trench carved into his flesh.
“What the fuck?” I whispered.
“What happened to him?” Levi asked.
“Grazed by a bullet.”
“Somebody was shooting at them?”
“Yeah,” I said, pulling a bottle of water and a collapsible bowl from my pack. “Let’s give you some water, boy.” While Hector lapped at the water, I fixed my eyes on Levi, whose face registered both shock and fear.
“What do we do now?”
“Hector’s wound might be infected. It needs to be cleaned and dressed. We got bandages, antiseptic ointment, and antibiotics at the house. If we hurry, we can carry him back to the road in less than an hour. I want you to take the jeep and drive Hector to the house. You and Kyle can tend his wound.”
“Okay,” Levi nodded. “I can do that. Then I’ll come back and help you look for Hannah and Kenzie.”
“No.” I fixed him with an I-mean-business look. “We wouldn’t want to separate in the dark, and there’s no point in both of us traipsing over the countryside all night. You catch up on your sleep, but keep the radio next to you.”
“No way I’m staying at the house while you hunt for Hannah and Kenzie,” Levi sputtered.
“We’re burning light,” I said. “Not gonna change my mind, so don’t argue with me.”
Without waiting for an answer, I hoisted Hector into my arms. He whined and shifted in my grip. “Sorry, boy.” I jogged back toward the jeep, trying my best not to jostle my injured dog. Hector’s eighty pounds slowed me down, but I kept a steady pace until the jeep came into view.
Soon as Levi took off with Hector, I radioed Kyle to tell him what was up. “You didn’t see any sign of Kenzie or Hannah?” he asked.
“We found the spot where they slept last night—and where they met up with Hector—but lost their trail later in the day,” I said.
“Hector was with Kenzie and Hannah when he was shot?”
“Dunno,” I said. Kyle clearly wanted to talk, but the need to get back to the hunt rode me hard. “Listen, I’ll call you as soon as I know anything.”
With the night vision goggles, I was able to cover ground at a brisk clip, scanning for any sign of Mac and Hannah. Every now and again I paused, ears cocked for the sound of feet scuffing over the grass or voices. Nothing. Hoped like hell the women had tucked themselves into a safe spot for the night, that they’d stay put and let me find them. Frustration ate holes in my customary cool composure.
Where are you, Mac?
Close to dawn I retraced my steps back to the bike. Decided not to worry about alerting the Wilcox Brigade. If they approached me, I’d put them down as soon as they stepped out of their vehicles. Instead of heading back toward the house, I rode the opposite direction, my eyes moving back and forth over the countryside.
Dawn was breaking when something flickered in my peripheral vision. I turned my head. In the distance, two beams of light waved back and forth through the air, sketching figure eights in the brightening sky. I braked and cut the engine, then pushed the Road King behind a tall boulder.
I ran toward the lights, kicking aside rocks and tumbleweed in my haste.
“Ripper? Is that you?” Mac called, her voice tentative, uncertain.
“Yeah, it’s me.” I choked out the words.
Lit up like beacons in the dawn light, two white-clad figures waved at me. Mac ran downhill and hurled herself into my arms. My throat ached and I swallowed hard, clutching her to my chest. I touched her hair, her cheeks, her shoulders and arms. My fingers ran over her body, like my hands couldn’t trust my eyes and had to independently confirm that she was really here.
Hannah followed a few paces behind and threw herself against me, wrapping one arm around Mac and one around me in a three-way hug.
Mac drew back. “We have to get out of here before crazy Mimi finds us.” I looked over Mac’s shoulder. Far away, a pair of headlights glowed in the faint, early morning light.
THIRTY-ONE
Kenzie
“Is that Mimi?” Ripper pointed over my shoulder. I swiveled and looked behind me. A pair of headlights bobbed up and down as a car bounced over the uneven lane that Hannah and I had followed toward the main road.
“It’s got to be.” I turned back to Ripper and clutched at his shirt. “Listen. The woman is unhinged, and she has a gun.”
Ripper pulled a face, his expression telling me that I had absolutely nothing to worry about. “Darlin', I got a gun.”
“Mimi drugged us and took us prisoner,” Hannah broke in. “She shot Hector, and we don’t know if he’s alive or dead.”
“Levi and I found Hector yesterday evening. Bullet grazed him, but he’s gonna be fine.”
A weight lifted off my chest. “Thank God.”