Page 111 of Canyon of Deceit

Alina and I huddled together, her body quivering. We were not strangers to danger, and the ordeal in Dog Canyon had cemented us.

“Are you okay?” I whispered. “We must continue whispering in case someone with your uncle finds out about us.”

“What if he’s the one who’s hurt? The door’s locked.”

“We’ll wait a few minutes. I’m sure he’s fine.” But I had no guarantee, and if Jurg had been wounded or killed, the person responsible would waste no time coming back to eliminate us—if he knew where we hid. “Who was with your uncle?”

“I don’t know. They said bad things to each other.”

“I’m sorry. No one should ever experience the tragedies you’ve seen.”

“My uncle—”

A knock at the inner door seized my attention.

“Alina, Therese. I must talk to you.” Jurg’s labored breathing alarmed me.

I rushed to unlock the door, and he pushed it open, falling into my arms. His weight knocked me onto my back with his body atop me.

“I’m shot,” he said in a raspy voice. “My side.”

“Alina, I need light,” I said.

She scrambled to flip on the overhead switch. How could I move him off me without hurting him? But I must.

“Jurg, I’m going to roll you off me, but I need your help. Where are you shot?”

“Right... side.”

“Then we’ll move left.”

He attempted to lift himself, and I hid the shock of his massive blood loss.Don’t panic.

Alina knelt next to him, and her frightened gaze showed the seriousness of his injuries. She caressed his cheek, and his eyes met hers. For one this young, her courage during crisis spoke fathoms of the strong woman she’d one day become. Some might say Jurg didn’tdeserve a child’s devotion, but Alina witnessed the evil behind his pain-filled eyes and demonstrated caring. I should too. Within the soul’s portal of Jurg’s eyes, love lingered for the little girl.

Wordlessly, Alina and I managed to roll him onto the carpet, while he endured the excruciating pain. When he lay on his back, Alina lifted his hand into hers.

Blood pooled around an open gap on his right side.

I hurried into the bathroom for a towel, then I applied pressure on the open wound. “See if you can find his phone,” I said to Alina. “He needs an ambulance.”

“No.” Jurg moaned. “No hospitals.”

“You will bleed out without emergency attention.”

“I’m a dead man at the hospital.”

No one should die like this. No matter what he’d done. “I’m not trained to remove a bullet. Is there someone you trust who would come here?”

“Yes.” He closed his eyes. “In the nightstand nearest my window are three cell phones. Bring me the one in the middle.”

Alina rushed into his room to retrieve the phone.

I stared into Jurg’s face, holding the blood-soaked towel firmly. He drifted near unconsciousness, and I feared he’d lost too much blood to survive. “Stay with me, please.”

He pressed his lips together while his eyes sealed shut. “I’m trying.”

Alina handed me the phone. “What is the person’s number?”