Rough Terrain, page 17
Cole stifled a yawn. Turning over, he decided that he needed some more sleep before he tackled another demolition job. Closing his eyes, he smiled. Yes, Peter Whittier’s house wasn’t going anywhere; it could wait a few more hours. He was soon sound asleep and never heard his cell phone ringing in the other room.
• • •
Leigh jabbed at the End Call button on her cell phone. She had tried every number she knew, yet she couldn’t reach anyone. Even the State Police line wasn’t working.
Frustration coursed through Leigh’s body. Poor little Sam was being held by a psycho murderer. How could Leigh get help to her? She could only imagine how scared the little girl must feel right now.
Closing her eyes, Leigh tamped down the urge to run back to the cabin, grab an ATV then head straight down the mountain. Jared and Billy would certainly want to know what she was doing and there was no way they would let her go alone. She had already inadvertently put Sam in jeopardy. She wasn’t going to put anyone else in harm’s way. If she didn’t come up with a plan soon then Sam was as good as dead.
There was no doubt that she needed to take advantage of the element of surprise that she had been given. This bastard was keeping Sam alive to use her as bait. For now, as much as this terrified Leigh, Sam was relatively safe.
Think, she coached herself. How are you going to save Sam and nail that son of a bitch?
Running her fingers through her hair, Leigh’s mind started to clear. Another deep breath brought focus. First thing she’d need is one of Billy’s guns. That was going to be tricky since Billy was very observant and not easily fooled. Getting to the ammunition was also going to be tough. Second, she must borrow one of the four-wheelers. Billy always kept the gas tanks full so that they were ready to go at a moment’s notice. Lastly, she would have to gather up some odds and ends.
God, she hoped that Billy hadn’t changed up where he usually stored things.
Looking at the sun, Leigh knew that time was running out. A glance at her phone told her that she only had several hours before dark. Depending on how much time it would take her to gather everything together and then sneak out, she planned to get to her uncle’s house before dawn.
Taking a slow, deep breath, she headed back to the cabin.
Chapter Fifteen
Cobwebs hung from the ceiling and brushed against Samantha’s face whenever she moved. Her breathing came in fast, shallow bursts. Sniffling, she wiped away tears, smudging the dirt on her face. She could hear rustling sounds moving across the expanse of cellar so she sat very quietly in the corner, as far away from the noises as possible. Dirty windows barely let in any light. Aiming the cell phone flashlight toward the main part of the cellar didn’t help because the light wasn’t as bright as it had been earlier. Samantha peered into the darkness and saw a chair was lying on its side. It started to look like a goblin in the gloom. Samantha gasped, then shut her eyes. She had felt better while talking to Leigh. She wanted the lights on. Now!
Samantha groped her way to the bottom of the basement stairs, to her left, and then she carefully climbed to the top step. She flipped on the light switch but it didn’t work. The door she had been carried through earlier, which led from the kitchen, was now bolted shut. Turning, she kept her back against the cold concrete of the foundation wall as she slowly descended the swaying wooden structure then ran back to the relative safety of the far corner.
Wrapping her arms around her bent legs and hugging them to herself, Sam put her head down on her knees. In the distance, she heard the faint sound of a car engine. She had heard the sound earlier, but no one had come into the house.
A few seconds later, she heard footsteps approaching the house. Raising her head, Samantha turned on the phone’s light and peered into the shadows for a place to hide. Her eyes landed on the old trunk a few feet away. Lifting the lid, she recoiled as the smell of mothballs assailed her nose. Samantha paused. This was too obvious a place to hide. Olivia was always hiding in the trunk at home, whenever they played hide and seek, so Samantha always found her. Spinning around, her heart began to race.
A door slammed.
Samantha noticed some boards had been nailed up against the lowest steps, creating a space below the stairs that she could hide behind.
She dashed over to the small space and squeezed into it without disturbing the boards. She silently turned off the light on the phone.
Someone was walking across the floorboards overhead and then she heard the bolt on the basement door slide open. Samantha stared upward as the cellar door creaked and a shaft of sunlight poured through it, creating a shadow of a man on the far wall as he slowly descended the stairs. His boots made a thudding noise, causing the stairs to shake directly above Samantha’s head. She pressed her body tight against the wall as the man reached the bottom step.
“Okay kid, where are you?” he asked softly. “I know you’re down here ‘cause there’s no way out.”
Samantha closed her eyes as she listened to him walk around the basement. He stopped to lift up the lid of the trunk. Samantha jumped when he let it slam shut.
“Come out now, if you don’t want to make me mad.”
His footsteps were heading toward her. Samantha slid deeper under the stairs, as close to the boards as she could get. She winced when he ripped away some of the panels and flung them behind him. Curling up to make herself as small as she possibly could, she covered her head with her arms and squeezed her eyes tight. She waited for him to grab her and pull her out.
Silence.
Opening one eye, Samantha slightly raised her head. The two boards she was leaning against were still nailed to the stairs. She saw the man peering into the hole but he didn’t turn his head in her direction. Catching her breath, she tried to stay as still as she could.
The little girl almost screamed when a cell phone rang out, startling them both. The man jerked backwards and hit his head on the bottom of the stairs. Cursing loudly, he stepped back and straightened up.
“What?” he snapped into the phone.
Samantha couldn’t see him as he walked away but she could hear the irritation in his voice.
“I told you I had some loose ends to tie up. I’ll be ready when the client gets here.” There was a pause.
“Don’t threaten me. You work for me, remember? I said I’d be ready.” His words were clipped, his voice rising. “You make sure that animal is there on time. I got over half a million dollars tied up in this deal. I don’t intend to lose it.” Another pause. “Fine, I’ll be at the drop site in time.”
He listened for a moment.
“I said I’ll be there.” He ended the call.
With another glance around the cellar, the man swore, then thudded back up the stairs.
Samantha could hear him going from room to room, slamming doors. After a few minutes, the searching sounds stopped. She didn’t hear the car start up. Quietly readjusting her position, to make herself more comfortable on the cold concrete, she decided to remain hidden beneath the stairs.
• • •
Samantha had no idea how long she had been hiding, but it looked like it was nighttime outside because there was no light showing through the dirty windows. Taking out her phone, she pushed the on button but the phone remained dark. She tried the button again. Nothing. Straining her ears, she listened for any noise coming from upstairs. It was getting hard for her to keep her eyes open. A long yawn escaped her. Pressing deeper into her hiding space, Samantha rested her head on her outstretched arm. The cell phone remained clutched in her hand.
Less than five minutes later, she was asleep.
Chapter Sixteen
Leigh eased the cabin door shut behind her, and then listened for any unusual sounds. It was pitch dark as she quickly crossed the yard. The moon, which wasn’t due to rise until just before dawn, wouldn’t be any help tonight.
Reaching the side of the barn, she grabbed the backpack that she had hidden there several hours before. A flashlight stuck out from one of the side pockets. Shifting the pack to a comfortable position on her back, Leigh headed down the path. She waited until she reached a bend, putting the cabin out of sight, before turning the flashlight on.
Leigh had returned to the cabin to eat the dinner she had so abruptly left on the table. Billy, or so she assumed, had covered her plate and set it aside. It wasn’t as if she was hungry, but it would take all the strength she had to carry out her plan. She had no idea when she would have time to eat again.
Thankfully, Billy had been occupied with weeding and watering his garden and didn’t notice her gathering the items on her mental list. She was relieved that Jared had left the cabin and she hoped that he wouldn’t return before she could leave. Billy still stored his guns and ammo in the same place so grabbing a handgun was relatively easier than Leigh had expected. Working as fast as she could, she had found all the supplies, then carried them out behind the barn, where she’d loaded them onto the back of a four-wheeler. The hardest part of this phase of her plan had been to hide the vehicle on the trail, far enough away from the cabin, so that it wouldn’t be accidentally discovered.
Now, guided by the small beam of the flashlight, Leigh picked her way carefully down the old path. Billy had set up devices that warned him when someone was coming. She smiled as she located and avoided each one. It brought back some happy childhood memories of her trying to sneak up to the cabin without setting an alarm off. Billy had always known that she was coming, however, no matter how hard she had tried to surprise him. Her smile faded as she thought of all the things that had passed since those carefree days.
The path got steeper, so Leigh had to slow her pace. The irony that she was trying to sneak away from a place that had always been a safe haven was not lost on her. She hadn’t meant to put anyone else in harm’s way, especially Samantha.
The ATV was where Leigh had left it. Sighing with relief, she pushed it further down the path until she felt that she was a safe distance from the cabin. Confident that she had found all of Billy’s devices, Leigh started the engine and cut across a small stream, heading for an old logging road.
The wheels of the ATV snagged a string that had recently been placed along the side of the stream, sending a signal back to the cabin, betraying Leigh’s passing.
• • •
Jared had decided to sleep in the cabin, figuring he could keep a better track of Billy’s coming and goings. A makeshift bed, next to the stove, had been made out of an old sleeping bag and some blankets. He had intended to stay awake but had fallen into a restless sleep. Jared was soon lost in a dream where Leigh was pointing a gun at him and telling him that she knew who he was. Blaming him for the loss of her family. He tried to explain but she wouldn’t listen. Tears coursed down her face and she sobbed as she listed his supposed crimes.
Out of nowhere, black helicopters appeared, swirling around them and making a loud beeping noise that wouldn’t stop. The beeping continued to get louder until Jared couldn’t hear her anymore. All he could do was watch her eyes, like an old gunslinger, waiting to see what she was going to do. Then he saw her gaze waver for a fraction of a second and he knew that she had made her decision, he had been found guilty. He jerked awake as she pulled the trigger.
Sitting up, Jared ran a hand through his hair and let out a shaky breath. Even though he knew that it had been just a dream, he was tempted to run his hands over his chest and check for the bullet that had been heading for his heart. Adrenaline was still pounding through his veins so it took him a few minutes to realize that he could still hear the beeping.
Looking around the dark cabin, he could tell that it was coming from a cabinet in the corner of the kitchen area. Flipping back the covers, he made his way toward the noise. Opening the door carefully, so as not to awake Billy and Leigh, he found a large electronic box with rows of red bulbs inside. It looked like an old circuit breaker box or something out of a sci-fi movie. One of the bulbs was blinking in time to the beeping. Looking closely, Jared read the label underneath: South Path, half mile.
“It’s the motion detector at the stream,” Billy’s voice came from the darkness behind him. “Someone tripped the wire.”
Billy lit a kerosene lamp and set it in the middle of the kitchen table. Jared turned and wasn’t surprised to see that the older man was fully dressed.
Didn’t the man ever sleep? What was Billy so paranoid about that he had motion sensors set up all over the place? Just who was this guy?
“How do you know it isn’t an animal? Seems to me that those things would be going off all the time.”
Billy moved past him and switched off the alarm. The older man then headed over to grab a couple of glasses out of another cabinet before crossing to the well pump to fill them with cold water. Making his way over to the table, Billy sat down and indicated the chair across from him. Jared glanced over to Leigh’s pallet but she didn’t stir. He figured that she must be exhausted, to sleep through all the noise they were making.
Joining Billy at the table, Jared pulled out a chair and sat down.
“I’ve lived on this mountain for over twenty-five years, but I lived another lifetime before that,” Billy said as he shook his head. “Yet it still amazes me how stupid people think I am. All they see is an old man. They assume I must be senile to want to be up here alone. They think I have no eyes to see, or ears to hear, or a brain to think with.”
Taking a sip of his water, he stared directly at Jared and waited.
Jared met his gaze. He wasn’t sure what Billy had on his mind but he needed to tread lightly, so as to not give himself away. Maybe the older man was talking about the morning he’d followed him. He knew that Billy had known he was there, but Billy could have put that down to Jared’s being an investigative reporter. The thought made him relax a little.
“I don’t think you’re stupid Billy, maybe a bit paranoid.” Billy leaned back in his chair. “I just wondered how you were sure that it wasn’t an animal that set off your alarm.”
“Animals don’t drag their feet. Only humans do that. Animals are used to picking their way through underbrush. The sensors are set up to be dragged a certain way by humans, or by vehicles.”
Leaning in toward Jared, Billy pinned him with his eyes. The lantern flickered and created shadows across the older man’s face, making it hard for Jared to read.
“I’ve been watching you. I’d wager that you aren’t what you say you are.” A small smile played around Billy’s mouth.
Damn it, Jared thought, but he showed no emotion. How had Billy suspected him? He had spent years perfecting his acting abilities. Even those who were closest to him had no idea about his real activities. Feigning surprise, Jared asked, “And what part don’t you believe?” He leaned his seat back on two legs as nonchalantly as possible but his nerves were on edge.
Billy’s smile widened. “Your name’s real enough, and I bet you started out as a photo-journalist, but you’re too good to be an amateur. There are parts missing in your story and they tell me a hell of a lot about you.”
“And what am I not telling?”
Billy took another sip, then crossed his arms over his stomach. He leaned back in his chair and studied the younger man, taking his time in answering.
“My guess is Fed, most likely undercover, looking for the men who murdered Peter and Mark Whittier ten years ago? Handpicked, since you grew up in the area.”
It was the first time Jared’s cover had ever been challenged. He was at a loss for words. Grabbing his glass, to give himself some extra time to think, he tipped it back to take a sip and noticed something move in the bottom of it. It was his bugging device. He set the glass down, carefully avoiding Billy’s gaze. While he silently debated what he should say, Billy slammed his hand down on the table. Once again, Jared looked behind him and wondered how Leigh could possibly sleep through all of this.
“She’s gone,” Billy told him. “That’s who set off the alarm. She’s halfway down the mountain by now. I don’t have a lot of time to play games with you. I need to know if you’re who I think you are, and what the Feds know about this poaching operation.”
Jared stared at the older man for a moment letting the words sink in. “What the hell do you mean, she’s gone?”
Crossing the room, he grabbed the blankets off Leigh’s pallet and stared at the empty space.
“Why would she sneak off in the middle of the night? We need to bring her back before they find her.” Jared started for the door but Billy stepped in front of him. “Look, I know she’s Amanda. Something must have happened if she took off. We’re wasting time.”
“Again, I need to know what the Feds know about the poaching operation.”
Jared wanted to fling Billy across the room and go after Leigh but he restrained himself, just barely. Taking a step back, he ran his hand through his hair and started to pace. What the hell was she thinking? Someone had tried to kill them not more than forty-eight hours before and now she pulls a stupid stunt like going back there on her own?
Billy silently watched Jared pace back and forth.
“Fine,” Jared finally said, “I’ll tell you who I am but only if you tell me who you are. Deal?’
Billy just shrugged and gestured for Jared to sit down again. Once they were both seated, they stared at each other in silence. Billy was the first to speak.
“I served my time in Special OPS. That’s all you need to know. You’re turn. Why did the Feds send you in now, after all these years? Is there something new?”
Jared shook his head. “That’s not telling me anything. You obviously have more information than we do, if you know what time their helicopters are passing by, or was that just luck?”
Billy leaned forward, his eyes narrowed to slits.
