SHARA WAS RELIEVED to find Jess already hanging off the side of the semitrailer when they got to it. Jess looked taken aback when Corey appeared, but Shara put her finger to her lips and mimed It’s okay.
Jess pointed into the back of the crate. ‘I think we found her!’
Shara raised a foot onto the bar and hoisted herself up against the side of the truck. She peered in through a barred window. Two red eyes glowed back.
Corey hopped up beside her. ‘Is it the mare?’
‘I don’t know. I can’t see.’ She squinted into the black void. Corey pulled out his phone and woke up the screen, then held it up to face the window. In the faint light it shed, Shara could just make out the mare’s pale mane. ‘That’s her!’
‘We’ll have to get her to come closer so we can grab a piece of hair,’ whispered Jess.
But the mare was cross-tied, a rope from either side of the truck holding her in the centre of the vehicle. ‘See if you can reach her tail,’ Shara whispered back.
‘Move over.’ Corey pulled out a pocket knife and reached in through the small window. He hacked at the lead rope until it gave way, falling below the mare’s chin.
Shara let herself down and went around to the other side of the truck. Jess followed. ‘What’s he doing here?’ she hissed when they were out of earshot.
‘He’s stalking me. Let’s just get the hair and get out! Luke will be waiting for us!’
‘I sent him a message telling him how to get in,’ whispered Jess.
They climbed up and peered in. Jess pulled gently at the rope, bringing the mare’s head towards the window. The horse snorted in fear. Shara reached through the bars and, with a quick tug, plucked a strand of the mare’s forelock. ‘Got it!’
The mare threw her head in the air and jumped backwards. Shara lost her footing and fell, banging her elbow on the way down and landing awkwardly on one knee. She writhed on the ground and silently cursed.
‘You okay?’ Corey appeared beside her and crouched down on one heel, snickering.
‘It’s not funny,’ she hissed.
He chuckled and held out a hand to help her up.
Shara slapped it away and pulled herself upright. ‘Sadist.’
‘We need a photo,’ whispered Jess, who still hung from the side of the truck.
‘Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine,’ grumbled Shara sarcastically.
‘Where’s your camera?’ asked Corey. ‘I’ll get the photo.’ He took the camera from her and hopped up onto the truck again.
A light came on in a caravan nearby, and Shara could hear a person moving about inside. A door swung open and she watched in horror as a wiry figure stood silhouetted against the yellow light. ‘Guys!’ she hissed.
The camera flashed and there was an explosion of drumming hooves inside the truck. Shara heard the mare’s head smash against the roof. Corey leapt down from the window and promptly tripped over Shara, landing heavily beside her. She heard him stifle a laugh.
‘HEY!’ a voice shouted. ‘Someone’s stealing my horse!’
There was a screaming whinny, then shouting, lights snapping on, more lights, voices everywhere.
‘Oh, crap,’ said Corey, his tone instantly changing. ‘It’s Mark Conneman. Shara, get up and let’s get out of here.’ He put both hands under her arms and helped her scramble to her feet.
‘Quick, Sharsy!’ said Jess, as she sprinted past.
‘Call security,’ a voice yelled.
‘Stop them!’ shouted another.
Blind panic overrode the burning pain that shot through Shara’s knee at every step as she was dragged along behind Corey. People appeared from everywhere, dim silhouettes in the dark, until suddenly they were blocking the path. Corey stopped. He dropped her hand. They both stepped slowly backwards as they became encircled.
A hand grabbed the back of Shara’s neck and she pulled her head into her shoulders, gasping. The stench of stale cigarette smoke hung all around her.
‘Let her go,’ said Corey, spinning around. He looked at the person who gripped her by the neck, and held both hands up. ‘We were just mucking about, Graham – we didn’t mean anything, just let her go.’
‘What do you want with my horse?’
‘Nothing, Graham, honestly.’
Shara clawed at the fingers gripping her neck. They were getting tighter. She could feel the blood pumping in her ears.
‘They’ve cut its lead rope.’ Mark Conneman appeared from nowhere. He ran his eyes over Shara. ‘Who’s she?’
‘Just a friend.’ Corey kept stepping towards her, his eyes flashing from one brother to the other. Something about his face filled Shara with dread. She squeezed her eyes closed and tried to breathe.
‘She’s trouble,’ said the voice behind the steely fingers.
People who had come out to look began backing away and disappearing, as though something was going to happen that they didn’t want to witness.
‘She’s with me, Graham.’ Corey kept moving closer. ‘Don’t hurt her.’
The grip on Shara’s neck loosened ever so slightly and she took her chance. She struggled violently and made a dash for freedom, but felt her arm nearly pull out of its socket as she was grabbed again. ‘Where are you going, you little tart?’
Corey burst forward with a flying fist. It was so fast she didn’t see it connect, but she heard a sickening crunch and the grip on her arm released.
Shara pitched backwards, arms flailing. ‘Corey,’ she screamed. ‘Behind you!’
As if in slow motion, Corey turned to face the other Conneman, who swung his fist across Corey’s jaw like a wrecking ball. Corey’s head jerked backwards. He twisted and lurched, landing facedown on the ground with a thud.
Shara’s scream was beyond her control. It tore through the darkness. Then the world went crazy around her.
‘Cops!’ someone yelled, and the word seemed to make people scatter. The crowd changed. Some faces dissolved, and new ones appeared: good faces, concerned faces. They ran to Corey, who lay motionless on the ground. Shara followed them and knelt beside him. ‘Corey?’
Nothing.
‘What happened?’ Luke panted.
‘We got busted.’
Luke rolled him over. ‘Corey, can you hear me?’
A groan gurgled from Corey’s throat.
‘He needs an ambulance.’
‘Someone get St John’s out here,’ said a stranger.
Shara brushed the thick dark hair back from Corey’s forehead. He groaned again. ‘Corey?’
Luke illuminated his phone screen and held it to Corey’s face. Corey’s eyes were closed and he drew short raspy breaths. ‘It’s okay, mate,’ said Luke. ‘Hang in there.’
Tears streamed down Shara’s face. This wasn’t meant to happen. Everything was going wrong. She bent forward. ‘Please be okay, Corey,’ she whispered.
The next two hours were a blur. There were flashing lights and people in uniforms with a stretcher. There was the inside of the ambulance and two people leaning over Corey and speaking calmly to him. Then there were police. Jess and Luke were in the back of one of their cars.
Shara couldn’t remember how she came to sit alone in a dingy, fluorescent-lit waiting room at a police station for hours. Someone passed her a phone, and she could hear her father’s voice at the other end, but all she could do was cry. No one would tell her what was going on. More police were hovering around and Shara could have sworn she saw someone she vaguely recognised talking to them. Eventually her mother and father arrived and shot anxious questions at her faster than she could answer. Later, she fell asleep against her father’s shoulder. When she woke, he was standing at a counter filling out forms. The next thing she knew, she was being tucked into bed.
‘Is Corey going to be okay?’
‘Sshh, just go to sleep now, honey. We’ll talk in the morning.’