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“You swear or is it a trick?”
“Do I look like the kind of man to joke?”
She shook her head in a placating motion so he didn’t see the glint of rage she was sure was radiating from her eyes. “Thank you for the extra time. Is there any area off-limits?”
“What do you think?”
She didn’t answer and set off at a run into the deepest part of the woods. Her strategy was forming as she ran. First, find Sarah. Then circle back and enter the building with them out hunting for them. They surely had a working phone in there somewhere.
Thirty-Two
Sarah had a head start of an hour, but that time was long past. The men could be sneaking up on her even now. She was hopelessly lost in the thick trees that blocked out the sun and left her clueless on which way was north, east, south, or west.
Branches swatted at her face and tripped her up as she tried to move quickly but quietly through the forest. Birds took flight overhead, a telltale sign to her pursuers of her location. How was she supposed to evade capture out here? There was no good place to hide, just trees and more trees. She’d give anything for a safe cave right now.
Though was anywhere safe?
She paused and bent over to catch her breath. The dog licked her chin, and she let him. Her chest heaved with the effort to draw in enough oxygen. If she could keep up a fast pace, maybe she’d find her way out of here. Her gasps slowed, and she stood to examine the area around her. Was there anything that might help her figure out how to get out of these woods?
She’d tried climbing a tree early on, but the immensity of the north woods appeared to go on and on. Each way she turned was a vast wilderness of trees on three sides with the lake on thefourth side. She’d thought of heading for Superior, but if she followed the shore, they’d almost certainly find her, and she’d have no place to run. The lake would hem her in. Trying to swim out wasn’t an option when there was no sight of land out there. The cold would soon take her down.
Her best chance was to beat this wilderness.
A twig snapped, and she froze to listen. It came from her left, near a big pine tree. Sarah whirled to run, but the dog whined and ran toward the sound. “Come back, boy,” she whispered.
She should run, but she didn’t want to leave him. His tail swished, but the silly dog liked everyone. Though he hadn’t liked the men who’d grabbed her off the island, so maybe that was a good sign.
“Good boy,” said a familiar voice softly. “Where’s Sarah?”
Annie?
Tears filled Sarah’s eyes, and she ran toward the voice. “Annie, oh Annie! Is it really you?”
At the sight of her sister’s face, Sarah flung herself into Annie’s arms. The solid feel of her, and the warmth of her arms made the fear fade for a few minutes at least. Sarah clung to her as her sister held her tight and patted her back. She had to choke back the sobs. The men might hear.
Sarah lifted her head and took a calming breath. “Do you know how to get out of here? How did you find me?”
“You and the dog left tracks anyone could follow.” Annie wiped the tears from her cheeks and shook her head. “The men took me, too, Sarah. I haven’t figured out where we are yet, but I hoped I’d stumble across you. The man who sent me out told me I might find you. I’m so glad you’re still alive. And now there’s two of us. We have to outsmart them.”
“Wait, what? They’re chasing you too?” Her sister was in this pickle with her. That wasn’t good. In fact, it was terrible. Sarah would rather lose her life than know Annie might be killed too. Her death would leave Kylie alone.
They couldn’t let that happen. “I hope you have a plan.”
Annie rubbed the dog’s head. “The first thing on my list was to try to find you.” She put her hands on her hips and glanced around. “I’m going to climb that tree and see where we are. Maybe I’ll recognize something.”
Sarah didn’t tell her she’d already tried that. Annie was well versed in these woods. She’d surely recognize something and know how to get them out of here. Annie knew everything about survival, and she was in law enforcement. Handling criminals was what she did.
Resting her hand on Scout’s head to keep him quiet, she watched Annie climb the big oak tree until her figure disappeared into the leafy curtain of leaves. Sarah wanted to call out questions, but she didn’t dare raise her voice. She didn’t know how many people were after them or where they were.
The seconds stretched into minutes, then Annie’s boots appeared followed by the rest of her as she emerged from the overstory of leaves. Once her sister was on the ground, Sarah leaned in close. “Any houses or civilization?”
Annie shook her head. “Nothing but trees.” She rooted in the pocket of her jeans and pulled out a pen. “I’m going to make a compass.”
Reaching into the backpack she wore, she extracted a small first-aid kit and broke off a piece of thread, then pulled out a small needle. She knelt by the dog. “I won’t hurt you, boy.”
Holding the sharp point of the needle toward her, sherubbed the eye of the needle against the dog’s fur.Rub, rub, rub.Sarah lost track of how many strokes Annie made with the needle along the dog’s fur.
When her sister was satisfied, she put a strand of thread through the eye of the needle and doubled it. Then she fished out an almost-empty plastic water bottle and poked the needle through the cap by pressing it hard against the tree trunk. When she was able to draw it through to the bottom, she tied a knot in the top and let the needle dangle into the bottle.
