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Jed ran through the front door, down the steps and onto the path, figuring if Elena had escaped, she’d go in that direction, hoping to find a way out. Stones marked a path for about fifty feet, then it was sand and a worn pathway leading through the jungle.
He lifted his rifle, slowing his pace as the jungle thickened around him. He lifted his arm and swiped the sweat from his eyes.
The crack of a twig to his left made him crouch down and focus in that direction. He dropped and rolled when a shot fired at him but missed.
Another shot. He flattened himself on his belly and took aim, looking for the shooter. He followed him with his sight, tracking his movements as he inched through the jungle.
This guy wasn’t very good. Jed’s finger poised on the trigger, he drew the guy in his sights, about to pull the trigger when a shot rang out and he dropped, his left arm burning. A warm trickle of blood slid down his arm. He grabbed a handkerchief out of his pocket and tied it around his arm to stop the flow of blood, ignoring the pounding pain.
Motherfucker, they had him pinned on both sides.
He went running deeper into the woods, taking fire from his left and right. But he got ahead of them, then found a thick tree to hide behind and waited for them to come get him.
He heard the one on the left first.
Silence wasn’t their forte, so he heard the shooter on the run. Jed aimed and fired, and the first one went down with a thundering crash.
He changed position right away so the second shooter wouldn’t be able to get a point on his position.
Catching his breath, he found a spot, belly crawled a few feet, trying not to make any noise while listening for sounds of others. He didn’t hear anything, so he found a large rock and tossed it.
That’s when he heard the other one coming up on the position where he’d tossed the rock.
He rose, moved in behind him, spotted the target creeping through the foliage. He got him in his sights and took the shot, dropping him.
He dove back into the jungle, keeping watch for other shooters.
Time was wasting and he had to find Elena.
* * *
Elena was lost. Hopelessly lost. She’d started out on the path, then was afraid that made them an easy target and they’d run into Pete or one of his guards, so she dove into the jungle, figuring they could hide out if they needed to until Jed and Grange found them.
And they would find them. She’d heard the jet overhead. It had to be them.
Her mother’s progress was slow. She was tired and weak and mostly blind, so she couldn’t run. Elena had to tell her mother where to step so she wouldn’t trip over the gnarled roots sticking up out of the ground.
After they’d walked for a while, she finally settled them against a hollowed-out tree trunk to take a rest. She didn’t know how long they’d survive out here without food and water, but she’d figure out a way.
And she hoped they were far enough away from the house. She had no idea how much time had elapsed, but it was getting close.
She wanted to get farther, like out to the beach, but she didn’t want to get into a clearing. Maybe they’d be safe here.
She heard the crackle of leaves, the snap of wood.
And maybe they wer
en’t safe here after all.
Then again, it might be Jed and Grange, and if she stayed silent, she might miss them.
Tension knotted in her stomach. She didn’t know what to do.
“Elena.”
She silenced her mother with her hand, and took a peek around the edge of the tree.
The gun pressed against her cheek.
