Page 48 of Runner 13

Stella

My brain is screaming. Or am I screaming out loud? I can’t tell any more.

My dad has been shot.

I’m too late – again.

This can’t be happening.

‘We’ve got to get him back to the bivouac,’ says Pete. Always a man of action.

But I need answers. ‘Who did this to you?’

Boones doesn’t reply. He starts shaking, his whole body wracked with convulsions.

Pete places his hand on my shoulder, pushing me back. Then he and Ali take my place, picking Boones up to place him in the back of the Jeep.

While they move him, I rush to the car. ‘Pete, his bag is gone. All his stuff.’ Now I feel panic rising. ‘His laptop’s not here.’

‘Stella, we need to get him to the medics –’

‘Whoever it was took the only way to track the runners. That means Matthew has it. And he has a gun.’

I keep waiting for the sadness to hit me. Fear for my dad’s life. But all I feel is wired.

Matthew needs to be stopped.

He can’t get away with this.

‘Why didn’t he take the car?’ Pete asks. I’ve been wondering the same thing. But the keys are nowhere to be seen. I wonder if Dad tossed them. It was the one thing he might be able to do to give the runners a chance.

But Matthew has the laptop connected to the GPS tracking beacons.

We have nothing but Alex’s map and the enormity of the Sahara Desert to search.

We only have limited amounts of fuel. Our hands are completely tied.

All I can do is hope that Adrienne manages to stay one step ahead of him.

He still only has his feet to get to her.

If anyone can outrun a killer – it’s Adri.

But she doesn’t know there’s a killer to run from.

Pete calls my name and I walk over to the Jeep in a daze. They lie Boones across my lap in the rear seats and give him water. Then Pete gets in the passenger seat and Ali drives.

There is total silence in the vehicle on the return to the bivouac. Pete keeps glancing over his shoulder at me, and I don’t know what to say. There’s too much at stake, and we both feel so helpless.

‘It’s the jebel,’ says Pete, once the bivouac comes into view. He’s been staring at the map. ‘If we have any chance of finding her, we’ve got to get to the base of Jebel Tilelli. We know she’ll be crossing it at some point.’

‘We will refuel, then head out again,’ says Ali.

I glance outside, not daring to take my eyes off Boones for long. I don’t recognize our surroundings. ‘Have they moved the bivouac?’ I ask.

‘Yes, Rachid has sent me the new coordinates. It won’t take long.’ Ali pauses, then catches my eye in the rear-view mirror. ‘I am so very sorry, sister. I hope your father is OK.’

‘He’s still breathing,’ I say. He looks on the brink of death. If we had delayed any longer, or made a different decision about where to go … I feel my throat start to close, the terror of it choking me. I squeeze his hand, leaning down so close that the edge of his moustache tickles my cheek.

‘Is this what you meant by your ultimate race?’ I whisper.

I mull that for a moment. All the surviving players from ‘The Glenn Affair’ have been brought to the desert.

Dad lured me here. Invited Adrienne. Invited Jason.

Who’s to say he didn’t somehow get Matthew here too, not knowing he was inviting his own attacker?

Was he thinking that we would, what, Battle Royale it out in the desert?

I wouldn’t put it past him. It makes me chuckle. Pete looks over at me in alarm, but soon I’m full-on laughing. It’s not an appropriate reaction. But fuck it. I’m beyond appropriate.

Bravo, Dad. You’re certainly making this Ampersand race one to remember.

My laughter dies as Boones groans, his eyes fluttering open. He’s disoriented, scared. I’ve never seen him like this. So vulnerable. It’s shocking to me.

I grab his hand. ‘It’s OK, Dad. We’re almost there.’

He squeezes my fingers back, which I take as a good sign. But then the squeeze turns into a vice grip, and he yanks me close.

‘He’s gone too far,’ he croaks. He licks his lips, his voice as dry as the Sahara. ‘I tried to tell him to stop. But he wouldn’t listen.’

‘Who, Dad? Matthew?’

The car jolts as a wheel crunches against a rock, and I see the pain shoot through my father’s body, enough to make him pass out.

It’s already getting dark again by the time we reach the new bivouac. It’s impossible to believe we’ve spent a full day out in the desert, and I know Boones doesn’t have much time.

In the medical tent Emilio takes over. Boones is taken to the private treatment room to try to keep the news of what has happened to him under wraps.

Henry looks floored. But he doesn’t want to tell the fun runners, who are still out on the course.

‘I don’t want to incite panic,’ he says. ‘What a nightmare.’

‘The police – any update?’

‘I spoke to Camille, the Hot he’s ruined everything.’

I wait for him to realize who he’s talking to. It does take him a moment. Then he slaps his own forehead with the heel of his hand. ‘Oh God, Stella! I am so sorry. I mean, of course I’m praying for his full recovery. If there’s anything I or Blixt can do. Anything at all …’

‘We need the helicopter,’ I say without hesitation.

‘At first light it’s yours. The pilot won’t fly at night – it’s far too dangerous.’

‘You really have no way of tracking where the elite runners are? There’s no backup for Boones’s laptop?’

Henry blanches, shaking his head. ‘We didn’t think. Boones controlled all aspects of the elites’ race. He worked directly with the Berbers.’

‘So they’re the ones who helped him set the route? Maybe one of them knows which way to go?’

‘Trust me, I’ve already asked them. They don’t know anything.’

Pete touches my wrist. ‘Maybe we should get some sleep? It’s been almost two days since either of us rested.’

‘Excuse me, but a few hours ago you were out of your mind with worry! Now you think we should sleep?’ I turn on him. ‘If Adrienne were here instead, I guarantee she wouldn’t rest until you were found. I might hate her but at least I respect her.’

He reels back like I’ve slapped him. ‘You hate her?’

I press my lips together. I’m not ready for this all to come out. Yet it will do if we don’t find Matthew. Damn you, Dad.

It might not be Battle Royale. But if I tell Pete the truth, I can guarantee our relationship will not survive. My chance at happiness, for the family I always wanted, gone. I lightly touch my fingertips to my stomach. Then I look up at him.

‘I hate her for being there when I wasn’t. I hate her for trying to get justice – even if she failed – while I stayed quiet. But, Pete, there’s someone out there with a gun. My dad is almost dead because of him. If we don’t do everything in our power to try and stop him, we’re going to regret it.’

He nods. ‘Stella, you said it. Your father is almost dead. But he’s not yet. He’s in there, recovering. He needs you right now. There’s nothing we can do until morning. Go and be with him. Maybe he will wake up again and give you a clue about where they are.’

I search his face. His eyes. I know it’s breaking his heart to be still, to not be out there searching. But he’s also making sense. We have to wait.

And in the morning the chase will be on.