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Matt handed Sady a flashlight, and they started down the dirt road. "Harry gave me the location of the area he wants us to search," he said as they walked. After a short distance they left the road and walked through a field.
"This isn't the skunk field, is it?" Sady asked.
"No, I'm pretty sure he's moved on," he assured her. She stumbled on a root and he took her arm. "You aren't going to sprain your ankle out here, are you?"
"Well, now if I go down, I'll have a softer landing," she teased. "The question you should ask is will you sprain your ankle? Because I don't think I can carry you."
"So you're saying we'd just have to lay there until help arrives?" he asked. "Give me a minute to find something to trip over. That might even be fun."
Sady hugged his arm. "Matt, did you really take your cousin to the prom?"
He sighed. "I knew confessing it was a bad idea. Yes, Sandy-Sue, I did. Not by choice. My mother felt sorry for her because no one else would take her. Come to think of it, my mother is always trying to fix me up with ugly women. I have an envelope full of pictures of ugly women my mother thought I should meet."
"You never talk about your family," Sady said. "Tell me about them."
"I have a mother with nothing better to do than try to fix me up with someone she found at the kennel, and a father who tries to stay out of her way. I guess my mother thinks ugly grandkids are better than none," he told her.
"Shame on you!" Sady scolded. "They can't all be ugly."
"You want to bet? I have picture proof. I think it's my mother's way of trying to balance out the universe," he shuddered.
"What about Emily? She's not ugly."
"Emily told my mother she doesn't have children in her future," Matt laughed. "It's a good thing too. Although at least the kids wouldn't be ugly." Sady punched his arm. "Just teasing, Sassafras. Marrying Emily would be worse than..." Sady's grip on his arm tightened, and he continued, "Dating Amanda?" She pinched it again, and he said, "Marrying Amanda!" Her grip loosened.
"And you missed out on that chance. Go figure! I'm still in shock. I wonder if Amanda really got married?" Sady pondered.
"And I wonder if her husband will ever show up. I hope I'm around if he does," Matt said. He held out his arm and stopped her progress with a "Shh!"
"What is it?" Sady whispered loudly, and he shook his head with a laugh.
"You have chocolate at the corner of your mouth," he said. He looked closer with the flashlight. "And some marshmallow," he teased. "We'd better clean you up." Sady forgot all about chocolate, marshmallows, and Amanda when he feathered his lips across hers. "It definitely needs more work," he told her and proceeded to work on her lips.
A few minutes later he nuzzled her neck. "Just checking for anything I missed."
"You missed one spot," she whispered breathlessly, then let out a squeak of surprise. "I didn't sit on a marshmallow!"
"Oh, sorry. I thought I felt something sticky and should pull it off. Where's that spot I missed?" Sady pointed to her lower lip, and he grinned.
"I thought we covered that, but I won't argue."
"I feel like a kitten that's just been cleaned by her mother," Sady told him a few minutes later.
"You've been running with Amanda too long," he sighed. "You're picking up the mood killer lines faster than I can come up with ways to kiss you."
"Maybe we'd better save some for later," she replied. "Where are we headed?"
"I forgot," he said. "Give me a minute to get my head on straight and we'll get going. I'd hate to tell CJ the only wildlife we encountered was us."
Sady smiled as he took her arm and led the way. "We're not done talking about your family," she warned him.
"Oh, yes we are!" he said firmly. "Now shut up and quit stomping like an elephant through the sticks! If there are any poachers, they'll hear us long before we see them."
"And you said I'm the mood killer?" Sady asked, pulling her arm away from his. "Stomping? Let's see you glide across a high gloss stage in five-inch heels and a bathing suit that's one slip away from indecent."
"I'd like to see that," he said. "After we're finished with this job. Now stow it, or I'll send you back."
"You just spent what I was saving for later," she hissed. She stopped and turned around as Matt was no longer by her side. He waved for her to come back and he pointed at something.
"What is it?" Sady whispered. It looked like a rectangular cage.
"Live trap," he replied, pulling out his camera and taking a picture. He marked the location on his map. "It looks freshly baited," he continued.
"It smells freshly baited," Sady confirmed, wrinkling her nose.
"Sady, this is serious. This is a protected wildlife area and trapping isn't allowed. We may have missed the trapper by a few minutes, and he might be just ahead of us. I'm going to continue, but maybe you should go back to camp... quietly!"
Sady snickered. "Who's gonna look for me when I get lost? Do you really think I can find my way back?" she whispered. "I'll take my chances with you. And I promise to be quiet!"
"Just stay behind me, please?" he asked, and she nodded. "Turn off your flashlight and stay close." He turned his flashlight to low beam and pointed it down and not ahead of him. Sady bit back a laugh when she tripped and nearly knocked him down.
"Sorry," she whispered. He mumbled something under his breath and kept walking. Sady's eyes adjusted to the dark, and she was able to make out her surroundings. When Matt stopped suddenly she was looking to the side and bumped into him. He motioned her to kneel and turned off his flashlight. She heard him rustling in the bag he carried, and he pulled out a night-vision scope.
"Here," he whispered, handing it to her. She watched two men ahead of them setting a trap while Matt pulled out a night vision camera and started filming. "Stay here," he whispered. "I'm going to move in closer."
Sady was tempted to follow, but she knew Matt, like the Knights, had specialized training in security and surveillance. She didn't want to blow the job because she stepped on a stick, so she stayed put and watched from her spot. About ten minutes later she saw Matt waving after the men moved on.
They were almost to the spot where the men set up their trap when Sady heard Matt swear and he pulled her to the ground. He turned off his flashlight, set it down, then grabbed her scope and shoved it into his bag along with the camera he used. "Give me your sweatshirt and fast!" He sounded urgent, so she did it without question. After he wrapped Sady's sweatshirt around the bag, he gave it a toss, muttering curses until Sady poked him on the shoulder.
"What's wrong?"
"They set a remote tripwire alarm system. I just felt the wire. Expect them to be back any minute," he warned.
"Can't we just run?"
"They have the same equipment we have. If we run, they'll know we've been watching them. Don't kill me, Sady, just take off your shirt." She opened her mouth to protest, and he said, "They have to believe we have some reason for being out here in the dark. There's not a lot of options and it's going to be hard to even sell this."
"You could have picked a warmer night," she complained as she yanked off her T-shirt. She poked him again. "Start peeling, buster, because I'm not going solo on this." Matt grinned and pulled off his long sleeve shirt.
"Is that better?" he asked. Sady nodded, thinking the temperature sure went up in a hurry. "It's a good thing you're better looking than my ugly cousin," he whispered as he rolled on top of her.
By the time the flashlights lit them up she didn't care what the poachers believed. Neither of them had to work at selling the action. She ignored the questions and enjoyed running her hands over the muscles of Matt's bare back. The men grew insistent and Matt reluctantly pulled away from Sady. They were both out of breath. "What are you doing out here?" one of them barked.
"Geez, Louise, fella! What's it look like? We came out here for a little privacy if you don't mind. If I wanted an audience, I'd just ask my tent-mate to watch," Sady snapped. "Get going, before you kill the mood," she hollered. She could feel Matt trying not to laugh.
"Oh, so you think it's funny?" she asked him in a scalding tone. She could hear the murmur of the poachers. It was the same sound all men made when one of their brothers was about to go down. She gave Matt a shove that sent him rolling off to the side.
"Where's my shirt?" she yelled. One of the poachers pointed, and she gave them both a dirty look as she retrieved it. "You've never seen a woman in a bra before?" She turned to Matt. "It's gonna be a long time before you see it again!" She began sniffling and all the men grew nervous.
"This was supposed to be my honeymoon," she wailed pathetically. "And I'm out here in the dark in the middle of this God-forsaken wilderness because he invited his whole family... on our camping honeymoon! I'm sharing a tent with his sister, so we have to sneak away and risk getting poison ivy!" Sady sounded hysterical, and the men looked at Matt like he was crazy.
"He took his cousin to our high school prom," she told them. The howled and made rude remarks.
"Honey, you might want to keep looking," one of the men said. "Any guy who takes his cousin to the senior prom has a family gene pool that's been drained."
Sady turned to the men, still sniffling. "Do you have a flashlight I can use? Or can you walk me back to the campground?" Matt protested from the ground and she kicked him. Another murmur from the poachers and a yell from Matt. Sady turned back to the poachers. "Can you just point me in the right direction?" She bit her lip and put on her doe eyes.
"You want us to take care of him for you?" they asked.
She started to cry loudly. "Will you take care of his whole family? His mother likes to watch when we... well, you know," she sobbed, using the sleeve of her shirt to wipe her nose. She kicked Matt again. "It's not funny, you perv!" Then she paced, wailed, and threw her arms about.
She grabbed one of the poachers by the front of his shirt. "What should I do? Do I call my Daddy to come pick me up? Do you know where I can get therapy? Should we try couples therapy, or should I go straight for the divorce? I don't know what to do!" With each question she gave his shirt another twist.
He reached down and pulled her hand off his shirt. "Lady, you're choking me. Why don't you just take this flashlight? The campground's that way." He pointed and Sady nodded. "Dump the loser," he suggested.
"Thank you," Sady said, taking the flashlight by the end. "I'll walk straight in that direction," she added, pointing the wrong way. She heard the other mumble something about inbreeding and she hid her smile.
"No, that way," the direction giver said slowly, starting to think his partner was right.
"Can you draw me a map?" Sady asked. "I'm afraid I'll get lost and then someone will call the police and they'll have to send in a whole bunch of state troopers to search the park and..."
"I'll draw you a map!" he yelled. He dug through his wallet for a scrap of paper and pulled a pen from his shirt pocket. "Do you think you can follow those directions?" Sady nodded and smiled. She carefully took the paper from him.
"Can I get your phone number for after my divorce?" she asked. Then she turned to Matt and gave him a dirty look. "You can find your own way home in the dark. Although I bet your family's pheromones are like a cloud drifting in the air, calling you home, you sick bastard!" She heard the men laughing as they left.
"Better luck next time, honey," was the last she heard from them. She stayed and gave Matt a tongue lashing until she was sure they were out of range.
When Matt didn't get up, she looked down. "What?" she snapped.
"You probably broke my leg with those evil kicks," he complained.
"No, I saved your butt from getting busted. Plus, I have fingerprints," she said in a taunting voice. "What did you get out of this?"
"A good time?" he offered with a smile. Sady laughed and threw his shirt at him.
"I'm going to throw a fit and walk around, in case they're watching," she said. "Just duck when anything comes your way." She picked up a stick and threw it at him.
"Ouch!"
"I told you to duck! Now get ready, because the next one is a rock," she warned.
"What's wrong with you?" he yelled as he picked up his flashlight and ran toward the camp. The rock missed him by a good two inches. Sady grinned and picked up the bag rolled in her sweatshirt and chased him. She didn't throw the bag, but held it until they were over a ridge.
"Can we slow down now?" she asked.
"You know how to show a guy a good time, don't you?" he asked sarcastically. "Between the kicks, the curses, the insults, the sticks, and the rocks I think you've guaranteed your future as a spinster. Why don't you go back to the library?"
"This is way more exciting," she said, ignoring his remarks. "And fun. Guess who gets to wake up Harry and CJ? It's the one who didn't get the evidence."
"It just gets better all the time," he griped.
"Doesn't it?" she asked in excitement, hugging his arm again. "Now, back to your family..." She pestered him with questions until they were at the Knight's campsite. "Go ahead, wake them up," she said in a loud voice.
"Whoever it is, this had better be good," CJ yelled through the tent.
"It's good," Sady called back. "At least my end of it."
"Harry, you go," they heard her say. "It's the middle of the night and I haven't had my coffee." Harry poked his head out of the tent with a grin.
When he came out with his flashlight he glanced at Matt. "Why is your shirt on backward?" he asked. "And where's your sweatshirt?" he asked Sady. Sady handed him the balled up sweatshirt.
"This had better be good, Meadows, or you're going to pay," CJ said from behind Harry.
Matt hid behind Sady. "She already made me pay and I've got the bruises to prove it."
"Why is your shirt on the wrong way?" CJ scowled. "Do I need to drag him to the lake and dunk him a few times?" she asked Sady.
"You might need to clean my back," Sady teased. "He threw me down and made me take off my shirt just before he pounced on me."
Harry and CJ both growled and Matt said, "Aw, come on, Sady! Tell them what really happened."
"That is what really happened," Sady said.
Behind her Matt gave a nervous chuckle and hissed, "It's not funny anymore."
"I already told you that." Turning to the Knights she explained, "That's why I had to kick him."
"Good for you," CJ replied. "Harry, do you want to take him to the lake or should I?"
"Don't forget to call Uncle John," Sady reminded them.
"God, you should have just left me to the poachers," Matt grumbled.
CJ and Harry perked up. "Did you say poachers?"
Sady waved the flashlight she tucked into her sweatshirt along with the paper containing directions. "Evidence," she said gleefully. "He helped, I guess," she continued when Matt cleared his throat.
"Yeah, the whole video thing might be a little help," Matt said.
"And my acting skills," Sady said, taking a bow.
"Were you acting?" Matt asked. "Because I thought... Will you please quit kicking me?"
"Do I need to call Morrow?" CJ asked Sady.
"No, I was just kidding," Sady replied. "Mostly."
"Sady, just shut up or Morrow's going to put out a hit on me! I'll explain," Matt said, grabbing his bag from the sweatshirt. He gave the Knights a slightly edited version of their encounter with the poachers.
"He used an ATM slip for the directions," Sady laughed when she looked closer. "Complete with the name of the bank and time stamp. I hope he smiled for the camera."
Harry bagged the flashlight and ATM slip. "Good work, Sady," he told her with a smile. He narrowed his eyes at Matt, then relented with another smile. "You too."
"Gee, thanks," Matt said. "Make sure she tells you about the log and the boulder she threw at me."
"What did you do to make her defend herself like that?" CJ asked and Sady snickered.
"I give up," Matt sighed in defeat. "I'm going to my tent... alone!" he added with a grumpy look at the Knights.
"Make sure your mother's not looking through the cracks," Sady called after him. He flipped his finger and said something under his breath.
"You've got his feathers ruffled," CJ grinned. "Now explain that last remark." When Sady finished CJ said, "Let this be a lesson on what kind of things it's okay to confess. He's never going to hear the end of that one!" Sady yawned and CJ pushed her toward the tent where Amanda still slept. "Sleep in," she advised Sady.
"Yeah, I wish," Sady replied as she headed to her tent and crawled in.