38

Underestimating the foe—talk about a rookie move! Cooper sprang up, rifle ready and alternately checked the living room windows and the kitchen. No human movement, but the intensity of the smoke increased. He coughed and covered his mouth and nose with his jacket. The smoke emanated from a wad of dirty rags, wrapped around a large object. As he approached the device, a shot through the kitchen window whizzed over his head. He ducked and backed toward the sofa.

“Come on, KC, we need to get out of here. The smoke may be toxic. We’ll have to take our chances outside.” What about Irene? No way would he release her, but he also didn’t want her to suffocate.

KC stood behind him, gun drawn. “Assuming Travis is on his own, we can exit through the bathroom window. He’ll be expecting us to leave via the front door.” Such articulate and sensible sentences from someone, who seconds ago, had been on the brink of despair.

“Yeah, I thought the same. Once we’re outside, we’ll tell Travis about his aunt, so he can extinguish the fire and rescue her. As much as I don’t want her to be free…” Upon entering the bedroom, he stopped and indicated KC do the same. Although he heard nothing out of the ordinary, his caution meter ran high.

Yes. A shadow flitted crossed the bathroom window, followed by another crash of glass as a second incendiary device hit the floor.

KC retreated, coughing.

“Cover your nose and mouth.” Cooper held his jacket in place and headed to the front door.

Meanwhile KC shoved the pistol in her waistband and yanked on the long tail of her sweater to act as a mask. “I can’t hold this in place and use the gun.”

He opened the door. “Don’t worry, I’ll cover you. Travis might still be on the west side of the cabin, so let’s head into the brush on the east side. It’s thicker there too. Keep alert and wait for me while I drag Irene’s chair out.”

She patted his shoulder and stepped aside.

Ignoring the nagging pain that pierced his knee, he scooted Irene’s chair onto the porch. He and KC clambered down the steps and ran into the shrubbery where they sank to the ground.

“I can’t see him, can you?” she asked.

Smoke drifted out the front door, swirling to mix with remnants of the fog. “No. We need to distance ourselves from the smoke. Are you feeling well enough to head north?”

KC nodded and crouch-walked ten feet or so.

Before Cooper could follow, another shot zinged overhead and splintered a branch on a tree she’d been hiding behind. Either Travis wasn’t intent on wounding them, or he was a lousy shot. But pinned down, neither of them could advance at any speed. Where’s a blanket of fog when you need it?

Obviously, Travis knew where they were.

Cooper hollered, “Your aunt is on the porch. Be careful where you aim.”

“I don’t care what happens to her. I could have rescued her when I attacked your partner, but I didn’t.” A high-pitched voice floated across the driveway. The kid whooped and showed himself around the corner of the cabin. He waved then disappeared.

Cooper inched forward on his stomach and when he reached KC, he settled against a large rock. The meds he took earlier had either worn off or he’d aggravated his knee to such an extent that nothing short of an ER visit would alleviate his pain. But he wasn’t alone. KC’s skin had taken on a grayish tinge and the bandages he applied were stained with blood. At this rate, she might lose consciousness any minute.

Her eyelids flickered.

“Don’t fall asleep, KC,” he whispered, giving her uninjured shoulder a nudge.

“I’m trying not to, but I really don’t feel good.” She rubbed her abdomen. “This hurts worse than my arm. Where’re the cops?”

Good question. “They should be here any minute.” Cooper’s attempt to sound assuring fell flat. Why the delay? Surely, Sadie had contacted the authorities by now.

However, if she hadn’t, what were their options? If they neutralized Travis, they could try to make it to the highway. Ha. Who was he kidding? He’d never be able to walk, uh, hobble the three miles, and KC might keel over any second. Stopping Travis might keep them alive at best.

“If he shows himself again, we need to…incapacitate him somehow.”

“Give me the rifle.” KC was wide awake now. “I’m sure you don’t want his death on your hands, so I’ll hit him in a non-life-threatening spot.”

“No. Let’s see if we can talk him down first. If he’s high on drugs as you suspect, he might crash any minute. And while we wait, we can try to play on his sympathies. His callousness toward Irene might be a big act.”

She scooted close and shared his rock. “You know what we haven’t done for a long time? We haven’t tried our phones.” She extracted hers from her back pocket and set it on her knee while she operated it with one hand.

Cooper kept the rifle aimed at the cabin. “Any luck?”

“Nope. It was worth a try.” She sighed and seemed to wither. Whatever sparked her energy a second ago had dissipated. “I’m not sleeping, just resting my eyes.”

Sure, rookie. Cooper would have to check his phone later. He forced his gaze from KC’s face to the cabin. Where was Travis? A thud from inside answered his question. The kid must have climbed in through the bathroom window. Sure enough, he appeared in the doorway and ducked behind Irene while he dragged her chair to the opening. Cooper had no time to get off a shot as Travis used Irene’s body as a shield.

“KC, open your eyes. Travis is in the cabin.”

She squinted across the driveway. “Smart kid. We—”

In rapid succession, the fizzling smoke bombs flew out of the door and landed fifteen yards from their sheltered spot. A soft breeze curled the smoke away from them.

“It’s time to have a serious chat with that kid.” He elbowed KC. “Keep watch on the bombs. We don’t want to start a forest fire.”

“OK.”

“Hey, Travis.” Cooper noted the boy by the doorjamb hovering behind Irene. “The cops will be here soon. Throw out the rifle and then exit with your hands up. We’ll tell the authorities how you cooperated.”

“Not gonna happen, old man.”

KC sniggered beside him.

“You should hear sirens any minute.” Cooper paused. Where were they? “Come on, kid. Your aunts have been tied up long enough.”

“You don’t know nothing. Who says Vicky is still tied up?”

A gentle pat on the shoulder. KC leaned forward. “Why not ask a question he can answer about the rope you used? Or something else that will confirm his claim.”

He nodded. “So, Travis. You mean you like Vicky more than Irene? How’d you get the handcuffs off her?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know.”

Under his breath he said, “Whew. She’s still incapacitated.” A twinge radiated through Cooper’s knee. He rubbed it and rested against the rock. What was Travis’s goal? He obviously wasn’t interested in surrendering, at least not yet. They’d have to offer more incentives.

“Travis, if you give up before the cops arrive, we’ll make sure your aunts aren’t charged with kidnapping. I have contacts—”

“Don’t you get it. I’m not going back to that place they call a school. And I sure don’t want to live with Vicky or Irene.” He grabbed a handful of his aunt’s hair and pulled her head back.

“OK. Let her go. Please.” Cooper almost made it upright before the kid released her.

“Travis, hey, I know what it’s like to be an orphan. It’s kinda unsettling, isn’t it?” KC’s words stopped the boy’s pacing. He neared the doorway and stared out over Irene’s bowed head.

“Don’t try to sweet-talk me. You have no idea what it was like after my dad was killed, and my aunts were in jail. My mom was so drugged up she forgot to take care of me. It’s all Sadie’s fault I ended up in that place.”

“But Sadie has called the cops by now.” Tilting her head, KC glanced at Cooper and frowned. She mouthed, “He’s really angry at her.”

“I miscalculated his involvement.”

A diabolical laugh ended their exchange. “Sadie didn’t make it to a phone. In fact, she didn’t get very far. I siphoned the gas out of Irene’s car.”