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The moon hovered near the horizon, its waning light casting long shadows that hid holes, rocks, and broken tree limbs. Jordan tripped, and Brody hauled her up viciously. Pain shot from her wrist through her shoulder, but she bit her lip and continued.
She tried to concentrate on her surroundings, noting snags, rock formations, and the positions of bluffs in the distance. If allowed an opportunity to escape, she’d need all the directional information she could glean and a lot of luck to find her way.
Travis and Coop had to be searching for them. Hope flickered and grew. Travis had come to get her, believing Carmen had been holding Jordan against her will. He’d been wrong about Carmen, but that didn’t detract from Jordan’s gratitude. Surely, he wouldn’t stop now unless he’d been injured. Was it possible one of Brody’s final shots had struck Travis, wounding him? Or worse? She couldn’t—she wouldn’t believe a bullet could stop the former SEAL. He had to be okay. But her hopes diminished as they twined through gullies and ravines, changing directions every few minutes with no sounds of pursuit behind them.
Next to Jordan, Carmen picked her footing carefully, keeping pace without protest. Was she also thinking of escape or just trying to stay alive? A moment later, Jordan glanced sideways as the soft strains of a child’s lullaby floated away on the night breeze. Carmen’s eerie singing sent a chill down Jordan’s spine.
*****
AS THE ECHO OF GUNSHOTSdied and the sounds of bodies crashing through brush faded, silence settled over the darkened kitchen. Travis pushed away from the cabinets, where he’d crouched to wait out the last onslaught of bullets, and hurried toward the open door.
Coop met him at the threshold and flipped on the light switch. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” Teeth clenched, Travis stepped outside. “Come on. I don’t want to lose them.”
“Wait.” Coop put out a hand to stop him. “Out the front. I know where he parked.”
As they hurried through the house, a new round of gunfire from the front slowed them as they dodged for cover. Another moment passed before Travis reached the door and threw it open. The parking area was quiet and empty, except for the Buick sitting on four flat tires.
“My ride is about a hundred yards down.” He shoved his gun in his belt, preparing to sprint. Evidently, Brody had his own transportation, and he'd be long gone with Jordan if he reached his vehicle before they could stop him.
“I came across his Jeep at the end of a forest service road on my way in.” Coop reached inside his pocket and produced a handful of neatly folded, multi-colored wires. “His ride isn’t going anywhere, either.”
Travis grinned as he stopped long enough to study his friend. “Damn, I’m glad to see you. Next job we take in the middle of nowhere, we’re getting satellite phones.”
“Copy that,” Coop said.
“Okay, let’s do this. Which way?”
Coop nodded toward the tree line to their left. “The piece-of-shit vehicle the FBI loaned me is high-centered on a stump about twenty feet into the trees. I’ll grab my pack and rifle before we head out, just in case.”
A whine from the deck dragged Travis’s attention to Jake, limping slowly toward them, his tail still wagging. When he reached them, he laid his head in Travis’s outstretched hand and allowed a quick pat-down. “Damn, he’s bleeding, but it’s too dark to see how bad he’s hit.” His right shoulder was sticky with blood. “Jake, you better sit this one out.”
As though unwilling to be benched, Jake barked and loped into a three-beat gait away from the house. Ten feet away, he stopped and looked back, then trotted off again, no doubt sniffing a trail they couldn’t see.
Travis broke into a jog. “Damn dog. Never does anything he’s told.”
Coop holstered his Sig. “How does everyone know this dog?”
Travis chuckled. He’d been surprised to see Jake here, too. “You’ve seen him before?”
“He attached himself to me after I found him beat up at the church. I left him at Halstead’s ranch, but he must have followed me, and I sent him with Jordan to the safe house.”
“He does get around and seems to have a soft spot for her.”
“He must have her scent. If we’re lucky, he’ll lead us right to her. Brody’s Jeep is about fifty yards west. You can’t miss it.” By unspoken agreement, Coop veered to the right, and Travis glimpsed the outline of his vehicle through the trees.
Coop’s backpack would have provisions and survival gear that they might need, depending on how long it took to get Jordan back. His sniper rifle could make all the difference in the world.
Travis went silent, concentrating on the terrain as he jogged to keep up with the dog. Coop made no sound, yet Travis soon sensed him at his back. They had to find Jordan before she disappeared with Brody. From the beginning, she’d been the bastard’s obsession, and Travis didn’t need to be psychic to know what he’d do to her before he killed her. The asshole had ended Halstead’s dynasty without blinking an eye, and Travis had not seen that coming. Apparently, Brody was crazier than previously thought. Now he had Jordan and wouldn’t hesitate to use her as a shield.
Travis had wanted to take a shot so damned bad, but his bullet could have killed her if she had moved a half-inch either way. He had never doubted his abilities before or frozen in battle, but aiming for Brody’s forehead, less than an inch above Jordan’s head, had made his gun hand tremble and sweat roll into his eyes. He’d let that madman drag her away. How would he live with himself if he didn’t get her back?
When they reached the forest service road and Brody’s dark vehicle, the driver’s door stood open. Jake circled the area and headed south with no hesitation. The clouds had broken up, allowing faint moonlight to shine and making it marginally easier to follow the dog. Brody was on foot, and Travis knew from experience that Jordan wouldn’t make her captor’s life easy. They couldn’t take a chance that Jake would get too far ahead and alert Brody before they were ready. Travis whistled and called the dog. They could all use a couple of minutes' rest.
Jake was clearly not interested in waiting around, tired or not, but returned at Travis’s command, albeit grudgingly. Coop hooked one hand around the dog’s collar and tried to quiet him, but Jake wasn’t having it, and within two minutes, Coop released him. The dog wasted no time finding the trail again.
The pace the animal set for them in the dark, over treacherous ground, risked their safety and their element of surprise. Brody was ahead of them somewhere, and it was hard to tell what he’d do if he caught wind of being followed. Travis didn’t work well blind, but there was no alternative. He would have to trust the dog to warn them if Brody set up an ambush.
