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Elle’s eyes were gritty from lack of sleep when she drove through Veil Falls just past midnight. She’d dropped Allen off already at his caretaker’s cottage next to Walden House. He’d mumbled something barely discernible as he reached into his pocket for his keys and got out. Elle waited until his lights came on before turning towards the road and pointing it towards town. She looked down at the gas gauge and groaned, the needle reading an eighth of a tank, barely. She’d be smart to get gas before she went home.
Maybe she’d grab an energy drink to help her navigate the winding roads that led to Dixie Road, and the two-track that was sure to be slick and unplowed, back to camp. The snow had finally stopped, but there had to be at least a good six inches of new white since that morning on the ground. The Outback was reliable. Hopefully, it could double as a plow and make it through. She didn’t fancy walking through the woods at night with a rogue bear on the loose.
She pulled into the station and got out, using her card to pump the gas, waiting in the car while it finished because with the falling snow, the temperatures had dropped, now flirting with the single digits.
The pump shut off, and she capped the gas tank, reaching inside the car for her purse. She gave a shiver inside the small station, grateful for the warm air. She headed for the glass cases in back and grabbed a grape energy drink. She didn’t normally do them, but sometimes desperate measures were required. She figured the unhealthy sugar and caffeine was better than driving off the road and ending up in a ditch until spring.
She gave a wan smile to the girl behind the register, recognizing her from the other day when she and Tessa had gone shopping for the baby. She racked her foggy brain, trying to remember her name. She read her name tag as she approached. Sarah, it said, had no such issue remembering who she was. She brightened immediately, closing the book she’d been reading and setting it aside. “Oh, hey. Elle Adams. Great to see you. Wow, you look beat. Are you sure you’re good to drive?” Elle shrugged and waggled the energy drink, raising a brow. “Yeah, that will help with the last few miles, sure. Did Ms. Tessa like what she got the other day? That changing table was perfect. I can’t wait to see her baby,” she prattled on, ringing up the energy drink and the sugary powdered donuts that Elle added. Elle nodded, tuning her out, her eyelids flirting with the curve of her cheek as she tried to concentrate on what she was saying.
“Oh, and say. That camp of yours is becoming real popular. I had two people ask for directions today. The one guy was nice enough. The other was a real douchebag if you ask me,” she chirped.
The sudden rush of insidious fear woke Elle right up, adrenaline doing what five energy drinks couldn’t.
“Someone was asking how to get there? Can you describe them, please?” she asked briskly. Sarah’s smile faded in alarm, and she gulped. Maybe she was wondering for the first time if she should have hesitated before giving out the information. “Well, sure. The first was a big guy, didn’t smile, and eyes you don’t want to look into very long, if you know what I mean. He had this creepy tattoo he tried to hide with his hat...”
“And the second?” Elle asked grimly, terribly afraid she knew exactly who the first had been.
“Also tall and muscular. Old for me, but my mom would have said he was yummy. He was nicer, had an attractive smile. Both of them came in, Mr. Groucho first, in the early afternoon. The other was just a few hours ago. I’m really sorry if I shouldn’t have said anything. Nobody ever told me the camp was supposed to be a secret.”
Elle grit her teeth, a sense of urgency hitting her. She waited impatiently for Sarah to stop prattling and finish making change from the twenty she’d plopped on the counter.
She grabbed it and was heading out the door before Sarah could say goodbye. In the Outback, she tossed her purchases in the passenger seat and gunned the engine, barely stopping at the drive before pulling out and heading west out of town. By the time she passed the city limits sign, she was doing at least ten over. Any more than that, and she’d have been in a ditch. She glanced at her phone, idling in the cup holder, and decided against calling August or Tessa. Service was really spotty in the preserve.
Instead, she pulled Jacob’s number up, praying he was paying attention and would pick up. Urgency filled her as it rang. With a disgruntled hiss, she tossed the phone back into the cup holder and pursed her lips, returning her attention to the icy road as she turned on Dixie and it became obvious that no snowplow had been that way in a while. No vehicles either, she noted, though that didn’t mean anything since it had only stopped in the last hour. Plenty of time, if Sarah’s timeline were to be believed, to fill in a set of tire tracks.
As bad as Dixie was, the long two-track leading into camp was even worse. Gritting her teeth, Elle hit the gas and plowed dead ahead, sending great plumes of snow sideways as the front grill of the heavy vehicle smashed through the drifts that had accumulated in spots. She gave a sigh of relief when she made it into the main yard and drive and realized Miles must have been through earlier in the day and gotten most of it plowed out. A couple of inches had fallen since then, but it wasn’t up to her knees at least. She shut the engine off, the rattle of the pistons disconcerting in the sudden quiet. As a precaution, she looked around, and then opened her glovebox and took her revolver out, pulling the slide and making sure a slug was seated in the chamber. She slung her purse over her arm and got out, eying the landscape for any movement that didn’t belong. At fifteen past one o’clock in the morning in the Upper Peninsula, that was pretty much everything.
Seeing nothing, she bypassed her own cabin and headed for Tessa’s. She’d planned on picking Mia up in the morning. But that was before Sarah had mentioned visitors. Mia would let Tessa know if a stranger came knocking. And she was sure Tessa wasn’t going to open the door unless she was positive about who it was. Still, Cady Burrows had proved resourceful. Her gun at her side, she stepped up onto the porch, eying the shadows mistrustfully. She raised her hand and knocked. Almost immediately, she could hear Mia barking from the other side. A few minutes after that, she heard the padding of soft feet. “Who is it?” came a suspicious, sleepy voice.
“Me. Elle.”
Tessa fumbled with the deadbolt and opened the door, peering out at her in confusion, Mia’s nose threading through the opening. “I thought you were getting her in the morning. She was keeping my feet nice and warm.”
Elle wondered if that was Tessa’s way of saying she didn’t plan to give her back. “I was. Hey, can I come in for a minute?”
She shrugged and backed away from the door. Elle entered, closing it behind her and throwing the deadbolt as a precaution.
Picking up on Elle’s nervousness, Tessa glanced at the door and towards the windows. “Is something wrong? Did you see Cady in town?” Her voice rose at the thought, and Elle held up her hands.
“No, I didn’t. But he may know where we are.”
Tessa gasped, her hand flying to her chest. She looked as if she was going to be ill.
Elle reached out, grasping her stiff fingers. “We don’t know for sure, okay? But someone was by earlier asking for directions to the camp. I don’t know who else that would be. The description was of someone tall, built, and brusque, with cold eyes. You have seen nothing suspicious today, right? Or had any visitors?”
She shook her head, her eyes darting about the room in panic now, as if she expected him to leap at her from the closest corner. “Sounds about right for a description of the creep, and no, I haven’t.”
“There’s more. A second man came by asking the same questions a couple of hours later.”
Tessa reared back, her mouth agape. “That’s crazy, unless...” And she gave a tentative smile. “Could they have escaped, followed me here somehow? But no, that makes little sense at all. I was careful, covered my tracks. Nobody knows where I am. I’m sure of it.”
“Are you thinking it might have been Danny and CeCe? This was just a single man, and he looked a lot like the first in size and build.”
Her smile slipped sideways, becoming confused. “Not them, then. CeCe is just an inch or two taller than me, and Danny is tall, but noticeably thinner.”
“I don’t know what’s happening, then, but to be on the safe side, I think I should hang out here for the rest of the night, if you’re okay with it.”
She looked notably relieved, and then looked towards the bedroom. “I only have the single bed...”
“The recliner will do fine. I’m so tired I could sleep on the floor with no problem. A blanket and a pillow would be welcome, though, if you have it.”
“Sure, just give me a second.” She turned to waddle away when another knock sounded at the door. Both whirled with a gasp, startled. They shared a nervous look.
Elle brought her gun up, motioning for Tessa to move farther into the living room and away from the door. “Who is it?” she asked brusquely.
“Just me. August.”
With a sigh of disgust, not waiting for permission, Tessa strode forward and yanked the door open. August’s hand was raised, preparing to knock again. His mouth formed a perfect O of surprise.
She snapped. “What are you doing here? Do you know what time of the night it is? Well, stop standing there like a ninny and get in here. Someone’s going to shoot you right in the middle of that broad hairy back of yours.” To back up her words, she reached out and grabbed his arm and tugged.
Scowling furiously at her, he came in and closed the door. “My back isn’t hairy!” he shot back.
“Harrumph. Well, I’m never going to find that out, am I?”
His already dark face grew darker as he glared down at her, folding his arms over his chest, his mouth tightening. “Who says I want you to?” he added mulishly.
Tessa didn’t budge, her hands on her hips, her rounded belly thrusting out in front of her.
“Enough you two, we can’t all stay in this little cabin. What are you doing here, August?”
He cleared his throat. “Do you know what time it is? I was worried sick, you know.”
Elle blinked in surprise. “What are you, my mother? Allen and I took a trip to Glad Corners.” The moment the words left her mouth her eyes jerked to Tessa’s.
“What are you saying? Why would you go there? You could have been hurt. Someone could have followed you. Did they?” Her voice rose.
Elle spoke wryly, eying August. “I’m not sure they didn’t beat me here, that’s the problem. Have you seen anything out of place here this afternoon? Anything odd?”
August shook his head, melted drops of snow flying off his shaggy head. “Been real quiet with you gone, actually.”
She shared what had happened in town, and the men asking for directions to the camp. August’s eyes narrowed. “Then I’m definitely not going anywhere.”
Tessa threw up her hands. “And just exactly where are you going to sleep?”
“I don’t plan to, so nowhere. But you should go back to bed and let us worry about who comes knocking.”
Almost as if his words had conjured it, another knock came at the door.
All three whirled, and this time Mia began to bark, dancing in front of the door. Elle gave her a sharp command and reluctantly she came and sat by her side. When August pulled a wicked looking 9mm from his own back pocket, Elle’s brows rose. Together, they both motioned Tessa back again and took up a vigil on either side. “Who is it?” they asked together.
There was a brief pause, and a gruff voice came through. “Dylan Potter, Danny Potter’s brother.”
With a gasp of startled recognition, Tessa moved toward the door.
#
“YOU LOOK LIKE HIM,” Tessa whispered. They sat clustered around the fire in the living room. Dylan perched atop a stool, a very welcome cup of coffee clutched in his hand.
Dylan looked down, hiding his expression. He couldn’t conceal the worry as easily. “Do I? Mom always said we did.”
“You look as if you’ve been through hell.” August regarded him carefully.
He nodded. “Seems that way. The last couple of days have been pretty rough. Running for your life and avoiding Cady Burrows and his goons will do that to you.”
Tessa gasped at the mention of the name, looking away.
Elle took in the broad shoulders, long legs, and filthy clothes. A three-day beard dusted his stubborn jaw, and his jeans sported a tear in the knee where the denim had caught on something. Only, the eyes appeared tired and alert all at the same time. This was a powerful man, but he’d been pushed to the limit.
“Maybe you’d better start at the beginning—explain how you ended up here.”
He nodded. “Danny is my younger brother by several years. I grew up and took the easy way out, joining the Marines. Danny was always the intellectual and pursued a degree in journalism. I think he saw himself on the other end of some Pulitzer or something. But while I was away dodging bullets and avoiding landmines, he was the one getting into and finding trouble. I did two tours, and then suffered an injury that basically took me out of active duty. Got a bum knee and right now it’s on fire. Don’t suppose you have, like, a half a dozen aspirin?”
Tessa nodded. “In a minute.”
“When I came home to see Mom and Danny after, it was to find her beside herself with worry, and my brother missing. We were always as different as night and day. But we’re close. I’m not stopping until I find him.”
“When was the last time you heard from him?” Elle asked.
“Danny isn’t much for calling, but he texts us both frequently. The last one was from Glad Corners about three weeks ago. Mom’s heard nothing since, so I went looking and landed in the last place he’d been staying. Seen nothing like it—a bunch of terrified people living in a little town filled with secrets. And hard men that remind me of what I was, before the Marines got done knocking the cockiness out of me in Iraq.
“Glad Corners has a real issue with outsiders, let me tell you. I wasn’t welcome there, and neither were my suspicions or the questions I was raising. Those that were willing to get involved? They didn’t fare so well,” he snapped.
Grief flashed briefly in his eyes, quickly concealed. The tic working in his lean jaw gave him away.
“The American Freedom Fighters they call themselves— some militia group—has moved in and taken over the town. They have everyone cowed, and maybe for good reason.” He looked at Tessa, wringing her fingers restlessly in her lap.
“That guy of yours, Cady Burrows—”
“He’s not mine!” Tessa hissed, her eyes flashing with sudden hatred.
Dylan nodded. “Apologies. Poor choice of words. He is up to something, and I don’t think it has anything to do with living large and free off the grid in the wilds of Michigan.”
Elle’s lips twitched. “Tessa mentioned she thought it might have something to do with clean energy. The solar fields?”
“I know that all the clues to my brother seem to lead back to you, Tessa. Why is that?”
She glared at him. “Well, not because I know where he is, or...your brother should have listened to me when I told him to get out. Danny asked too many questions of the wrong people.”
“Sounds like him. He was always nosy, searching for the truth. What does that have to do with you, and your sister CeCe, right?”
“As you’ve probably figured, Danny was sweet on her. And she was crazy about him. That part’s true. But Cady Burrows...I guess I wasn’t enough for him. He decided he wanted her for himself, too.”
“She had no interest in him?” Dylan asked.
Tessa’s eyes narrowed. “She was nineteen years old. Cady is in his thirties and mean as a snake when he doesn’t get his way. She hated him from the day she met him and let him know it, too. He didn’t care. Fact is, I think he fed on that hatred. And he wasn’t one to share. When Danny started nosing about and took an interest, Cady was all over it. To him we were both his property, and he didn’t like the competition,” she finished bitterly.
Dylan nodded. “Those boys spent a bit of time trying to convince me of the error of my ways. I wasn’t welcome there, and I’m betting Danny got the same treatment, too.”
She shook her head and snorted. “Well, they tried. But I don’t think your brother had your sense of self-preservation. I know I tried to run once and failed miserably. The second time, I knew that if he caught me, I was dead. I was trying to take my sister and Danny with me. But they never showed at our meeting spot. I don’t know what happened to them.” Her voice broke over the last words.
“What do you know about their involvement in the solar fields?” Elle asked Dylan. Maybe they were looking at the wrong problem if they wanted to bring Cady and his rats down.
“Not much, just what I was told. I know it has gained the attention of guys way above my pay grade.”
Elle straightened, putting the pieces together in her mind. “Just how did you find us anyhow?”
“From an old guy named Penny Myers. He told me about your having an uncle in Wilder Pines? After...I left, I headed there. Ran is more the truth since they were gunning for me at that point.” He smiled ruefully. “After nobody was willing to talk, I went hunting for the answers instead. I don’t think they cared too much for my methods. They have a compound, huge thing, in the foothills of the Porcupine on some isolated, and heavily guarded property. I was curious about what they were hiding inside it.”
Elle’s brows shot north, and she leaned forward. “And what did you find?”
Dylan snorted in disgust. “Not a damned thing. They were onto me almost from the start. I was lucky to make it out in one piece. At that point, buried in the backwoods was as good as gone to them. Like a fool, I led them right to the door of the one person in Glad Corners brave enough to do something about what was going on. I made it out. He didn’t.” His voice vibrated thinly with anger.
“You went to see Merv, Tessa’s uncle, afterwards, didn’t you?” Elle guessed.
He looked surprised. “That’s right. Good man, but he wasn’t much help. Pretty close-mouthed, he was, about some of it. He let me in on the FBI involvement. They’re getting ready to move on Cady and his men. But they aren’t too concerned about some civilian going missing. That’s small potatoes to them. Merv seemed to think that what they were involved in had to do with national security.”
Elle nodded. “That matches up with what he told us.”
“He wouldn’t tell me where you were, but he gave me Mel’s number. Let’s just say I convinced him of the wisdom of telling me where you were.”
Her eyes never wavered from his hard expression. “And why do you think that is, Mr. Potter?”
“Because we both believe Cady’s headed here to take back what’s his.” He turned to Tessa. “That’s you and that baby you’re carrying. His, right?”
Her hands clutched her belly protectively. “She belongs with me. She’ll never know the monster that made her.”
He gave her a hard stare. “I believe you. But I don’t think he got that memo. He’s left his brother to tend to things in Glad Corners and come looking. Frankly, I was surprised he didn’t beat me here.”
“How’s that?” August growled ominously.
“Because I think he tried to run me off the road on the way here.”
Tessa gasped and sprang to her feet, looking around wildly. “And you’re just now getting to that part? Couldn’t you have led with the part where he’s possibly out there, maybe in those woods, looking at us right now?”
“I wonder what he’s waiting for, then.”
August nodded gravely. “For reinforcements, maybe?”
“Men like Cady Burrows are cowards at heart, and like all bullies, they like to wait for their buddies to show up for the dirty work,” Elle agreed.
#
ELLE STARED PAST THE porch at the dark woods, watching for movement, keeping to the shadows that concealed her in the midday light. Like before, a lap blanket covered her knees, and a cup of still steaming coffee rested on the arm of her chair, held lightly. In the other hand, the one beneath the blanket, was her Glock. A second magazine was tucked in the pocket of her jacket, just in case. Beside her chair, Mia whined, unused to being forced to stay out of the yard, away from the delights she could explore along the edge of the lake. Elle was taking no chances.
She watched August approach from his cabin, his grizzly head turned towards the woods, too, the same as hers. He came up the steps, but he didn’t sit down.
“Where is Dylan?”
August snorted. “Still catching up on his sleep. This couldn’t wait.”
Elle took in his white winter camo pants and coat, the matching hat pulled down snug past his big ears. “Going somewhere?”
“To warn Eli Parse. He’s all alone out there.”
Elle’s mouth tightened. She hadn’t seen the old recluse in better than a week. He lived as deep as it was possible to in the middle of the preserve.
“You know that’s not safe.”
His brows rose in dark amusement. “Did you let Jerry and Allen know?”
“Allen is packing up and heading this way with plans for an extended camping trip. He’s staying with you, by the way. I don’t want him cluttering up my cabin.” August gave a grunt of disgust, his lip curling. Elle held back a smile. “Jerry doesn’t have the manpower or funding to mount a stake out with his limited police force. We don’t have any idea how long before Cady makes a move, or even if he will. I have him on speed dial the moment things go down and he’ll head this way.”
Mia’s ears pricked forward, and she stared towards the woods, giving a pitiable whine. August watched her. “He’s coming. Guys like that don’t lose well.”
Elle’s mouth tightened. She knew that better than most. “You’ll be careful. And you have your phone for what good it will do. You can ask Eli if he wants to bunk in with us for a while.”
August snorted. “You know that’s not happening.”
“Doesn’t hurt to ask. And you’d better be back before dark. Don’t get lost out there. It’s supposed to start snowing again around five o’clock. Weatherman is calling for another six inches by morning.”
“It is Michigan. The only thing predictable about the weather is its unpredictability.” He hesitated, frowning. “One more thing. I’d like to take Mia with me.”
Elle’s eyes shot wide. “No way is that going to happen. She’s staying here, where it’s safe.”
August sighed. “It was worth a try. Her eyes and ears, not to mention her sense of smell, would be helpful.”
Elle shook her head. “There’s a reason she limps, August. I’m not going to risk her like that again. But that’s not the only reason. Mia doesn’t always listen, and when she does, it’s to me. The training she’s had requires a handler who knows the right commands. With you, she’d see a rabbit and be gone.”
He nodded. “Stay safe, then, and keep your gun close. Call me the minute things get hairy. Have you called Jacob?”
Elle looked away and gulped. “No, I...”
August gave a sigh of disgust. “That’s what I thought. You’re a better soldier than that, Elle. That’s not your head talking, making foolish decisions that won’t keep you safe.”
Elle’s eyes narrowed, and she whipped her head up. “I’m doing no such thing! He’d just get in the way. And he’s busy at the restaurant,” she finished lamely. She was lying through her teeth and they both knew it.
August shook his head with dark amusement. “That’s all right. I just got off the phone with him. He seemed a mite perturbed. If I were you, I’d be making another cot up in your cabin. I’m fresh out of room.”