Page 3

3

“ W e’re going to be okay,” Jess told Teddy as she pulled the duffel full of dog supplies from the plane and hefted it over her shoulder. “Once we’re safe, we’ll call for help.”

Teddy’s ears were pricked forward, his dark eyes steady on hers. She knew the dog probably didn’t understand what she was saying, but she hoped her soothing tone was reassuring.

She needed that—more so than he did.

“Jess?” Logan’s low voice wafted toward her. “We need to move.”

She hiked up the duffel, realizing it was too big to lug through the woods. She carried it around the nose of the plane to where Logan was rearranging items in the backpack. “Wait. I have supplies for Teddy that we need to take with us.”

He paused, then nodded. “Okay. How much room do you need?”

She dropped the duffel, then knelt beside him. “How long do you think we’ll be gone? I’d like to take at least enough dog food for twenty-four to forty-eight hours.” That was probably overkill, but she would not shortchange her K9.

“Sounds good. Hopefully, we won’t be gone that long.”

She pulled out the gallon-sized plastic bag of dog food and stuffed it into the backpack, then added several water bottles. Lastly, she took the booties from the duffel and placed them over Teddy’s paws. The dog didn’t love wearing them, but he didn’t try to take them off either, the way Chase’s K9 did.

Once they set off through the terrain, Teddy would forget he was wearing them.

“This is going to be heavy for you,” Logan warned as he lifted the backpack. “Mine is bigger, so you’ll need to take this one.”

“I can manage.” She slid one arm through the strap, stifling a groan as she bent forward to get her other arm through. He was right. It was heavy.

“Let’s go.” Logan took a moment to toss the now half-empty duffel back into the plane, along with the section of tail they’d come all this way to retrieve. She hated leaving it behind but understood they couldn’t carry it along with their supplies. They needed to prepare for the likely scenario that they might be out there all night.

She planned to call her family for help, but it would take her siblings time to get there. Especially if they needed to charter a plane from someone other than Logan. And even then, she worried that bringing them to this location would place them in the crosshairs of danger.

It would be better for her and Logan to hike to a new location. Maybe someplace where her family could drive instead of fly?

What was the gunman up to anyway? Why try to take them down?

“Take the lead,” Logan said, keeping his voice low. “I’ll cover your back.”

She swallowed hard. “Okay, but I’m not sure where we’re headed.”

“Just go southwest for now.” He shrugged. “But we’re going to stay in the woods as much as possible.”

“Southwest through the woods. Got it.” She drew in a steadying breath, then gave Teddy the hand signal to come. Thankfully, her K9 was a high-energy dog. He gracefully leaped over some low brush to reach her side.

They didn’t talk as they walked. Logan didn’t tell her to hurry, but she sensed his urgency to put distance between them and the shooter.

She wanted that, too, so she walked as fast as she could while carrying the heavy pack. Every so often, she pulled her cell phone out to check for a signal.

No bars. With a sense of trepidation, she stopped checking. There was no point in asking Logan if he had service. If she didn’t have any, he wouldn’t either. There weren’t cell towers in the mountains.

Was that the reason the shooter had chosen this location for whatever illegal business he was involved in? She had to assume those illegal activities were the reason he’d taken shots at them.

Not just shots , she silently amended. This guy had attempted to kill them by shooting down their plane.

She shivered at their near miss. If not for Logan’s expertise in landing the damaged plane, they’d have died.

Just like her parents had.

She and Logan hiked for thirty minutes straight before she stopped near a thick oak tree. Teddy took advantage of the moment by dropping down beside her. She shrugged out of the overstuffed backpack to give her K9 some water. Logan joined her. “I haven’t heard anyone following so far.”

She nodded. “I guess that’s good. Do you think anyone heard your call for help via the radio? Before we made that crash landing?”

“Doubtful.” He scanned their surroundings. “I brought the radio with me. We’ll try again later. For now, it’s more important to get away from the gunman.”

“True.” She sighed. “I was just hoping . . .”

“I know your family will worry,” he finished for her. “Hopefully, we’ll get through on the radio to reassure them that we’re not hurt.”

“It’s fine.” She forced a smile. “They’ll have faith in God, in our ability to be prepared enough to survive this.”

He nodded. “At some point, we’ll get into cell tower range.”

“That would help.” She stroked a hand over Teddy’s fur, then glanced up at the clouds darkening the sky. Was snow in the forecast? It wouldn’t be the first time it snowed in April. “I hope we’re not stuck out here all night.”

“I have a small tent and camping gear,” Logan said. “We’ll be okay.” But his gaze was full of concern too. “The main thing is to make sure we’re far away from the shooter before we even consider bunking down for the night.”

She tried not to imagine sharing a tent with Logan and Teddy. Being in an enclosed space would be vastly different from simply hiking side by side. But this wasn’t the time to think about that. She glanced at her watch. “It’s going on four o’clock in the afternoon.”

“I know.” He rose to his feet and grabbed his extra-large backpack. She imagined his was far heavier than hers if there was a tent and other camping gear inside. She forced herself upright too. Logan helped her with the backpack, settling it on her shoulders.

“Thanks.” She did her best not to show her fatigue. She’d been on numerous search and rescue missions that often lasted for days, but she felt oddly exhausted now as they continued on their southwestern path heading away from the wrecked plane.

Maybe because there was no end in sight.

She pushed that thought away, keeping a wary eye on Teddy as they continued foraging through the woods. Not following a path made it harder to make good time. She understood the need to put distance between them and the bad guy, but she wouldn’t risk her K9.

Even if that meant carrying him.

No easy task as Teddy was eighty pounds of solid muscle. She told herself not to worry as they continued cutting a trail through the woods. They could do this.

Failure wasn’t an option.

Another thirty minutes later, Teddy started looking up at her as if silently asking how much longer? She grimaced and glanced back at Logan. His grim expression indicated he didn’t think they’d gone far enough.

“Soon, Teddy,” she promised. Looking ahead, she searched for a logical place to stop for a while. Despite their lunch sandwich, her stomach was growling with hunger, and she’d have to feed Teddy dinner as well.

The sound of trickling water caught her attention. She quickened her pace, hoping there was a stream nearby. Teddy, of course, found it before she did. He rushed ahead, and she heard him slurping water. Knowing the water source was likely snow melting off the mountains, she wasn’t too concerned.

A moment later, she found the stream. Teddy was lying on his stomach near the bank as if he had no intention of moving anytime soon.

“This must be part of Shell Creek,” Logan said as he joined her. “You can see the peak of Snowshoe Mountain.”

One mountain looked much like the other to her, but she trusted Logan’s judgment. “Teddy needs a break.” She sighed and dropped the pack from her aching shoulders. “To be honest, I do too.”

“I hear you.” He shrugged out of his pack as well. “We can stay here for a while. But I don’t think we should set up our camp just yet.”

Her spirits plummeted. “We’ve been hiking for over an hour.”

“I know, but we’ve only covered about two miles, maybe a little more.” He grimaced. “We’ll see. I just don’t want the gunman to show up while we’re asleep.”

The very thought of that made her grimace. “That would not be good. We can keep going if you think that’s best.”

“I do.” He held her gaze. “I’m sorry, Jess. I feel bad I’ve dragged you and Teddy into the middle of this.”

“Not your fault. I wanted to find that piece of plane very badly.” She sighed. “Truthfully, I’m the one who drew you into this. And we don’t even know that the tail fin is related to my parents’ crash.” She tried not to sound as depressed as she felt. “We could be going through all this for nothing.”

“Hey, we’re going to be fine.” He sat beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I’ll protect you and so will Teddy. As far as the plane piece, it’s so rusted I’m sure it’s been out here for years. Once we’re back home, we’ll have it tested. This was something we needed to do, Jess. I’m here for you.”

“You’re sweet, Logan.” She rested her head against his shoulder. “I know we’re going to be fine. At least it’s not January.”

“For sure,” he agreed.

They sat in silence for a long moment. Thanks to the clouds darkening the sky, the temperature was dropping like a rock. She understood they would need to keep moving to take advantage of what was left of the natural light.

Hiking in darkness was a surefire way to get hurt. Not just for her and Logan, but Teddy too.

“Let’s keep pushing forward for another half hour,” she suggested. “We’ll need to stop long enough to feed Teddy.”

“Okay.” He waved a hand toward the stream. “I think we should be okay to follow this down for a while.”

“That would be great.” Walking along the creek bank would be easier than cutting through thick brush. “My main concern is Teddy. He’ll push himself to the brink of exhaustion for me if I let him.”

“We won’t allow that happen.” He glanced up at the sky. “Although we’ll need to pray the snow holds off a bit. At least until we can make camp.”

She shivered, even though she wasn’t cold. Their hike had kept her warm, but that could soon change.

They didn’t need fresh snow on top of being stranded on the side of the mountain. She lifted her eyes to the sky and prayed for God to guide them to safety.

Logan battled guilt as they continued their trek down the mountain. He hoped that following the creek would make things easier. He had noticed Teddy seeming to lag behind a bit and knew they wouldn’t be able to push on for much longer. He wished they could get farther away from the plane, but he took some comfort in the fact that the gunman wouldn’t want to hike through the woods at night any more than they did.

And maybe the gunman didn’t have camping gear either. When he’d dropped Craig Benton, or whatever his name was, off here in the Bighorns, he’d assumed the guy was meeting up with his buddies at a hunting cabin. He hadn’t seen one, but figured there must be one close by. If that was true, the guy wouldn’t want to get too far away from his home base.

Unless he was that determined to kill them.

Logan knew better than to dwell on what-if scenarios. As a pilot, he knew how to create an alternate plan—one made by facing the facts as they were presented.

The good news was that he hadn’t heard anyone moving through the woods as if following them. Either the gunman had given up the chase or he was far enough back that he couldn’t be heard.

He was hoping for the former.

“Logan, is that a cabin up ahead?” Jess gestured toward the east. “Maybe there’s a fireplace or wood-burning stove.”

He quickly identified the structure she was talking about. “Yeah, I think that’s an old hunting shanty. The DNR put several of them up decades ago. None had woodstoves as far as I know. The few I’ve seen up close were falling apart.”

“Oh, okay.” She looked depressed. “I was hoping we could use it.”

He hated disappointing her. As they continued to walk, he considered their options. If the gunman was on their trail, the shanty would be an obvious spot to search for them. Then again, if the gunman had given up trying to track them down, the shanty would offer some shelter from the snow he felt certain loomed on the horizon.

Finally, he relented. “Okay, let’s head over to check it out. If the roof isn’t collapsing in on itself, we can consider staying inside. Or we can set up the tent nearby using the structure to block the wind.”

“That would be great.” She gestured toward Teddy. “I can tell he’s getting tired.”

“We all are,” he agreed. “We’ll need to find a place to cross the stream.”

After another seventy yards, Jess stopped. “This should work. See that flat rock? We can use it as a steppingstone.”

“Okay, but it’s going to be slippery. We need to find a stick too.” He turned to scan their surroundings.

Jess picked up one stick, then another. “They’re too short,” she said with a frown.

He walked a little farther and found a stick that was almost five feet long. He quickly carried it back to her. “Here, use this. You go first.” He glanced at the dog. “Teddy might have to get wet.”

“He should be okay, if we can start a fire so he can dry off.” She took the stick from his grasp. “I’ll cross first with Teddy. Then I’ll toss the stick back over to you.”

“Sounds good.” He would have offered to carry the dog, but with his pack and the slick rock, he didn’t think that would work. “We’ll definitely start a fire.”

“Okay, let’s do this.” She turned toward the narrow spot of the creek. “Come, Teddy.”

Logan found himself holding his breath as she extended her leg to reach the slick rock. Using the stick as a lever, she managed to shift her weight from the foot on the bank to the one on the rock. With the grace of a dancer, she then pivoted to reach the other side. Teddy splashed through the creek without concern. Then he quickly shook himself off.

“Stand back. Stick is coming your way.” Jess threw it like a javelin. He let it hit the ground, then reached for it.

He quickly joined her on the other side. He kept the stick, knowing it would be helpful in building the fire.

Twenty minutes later, they reached the shanty. He followed Jessica inside, only to hear her groan.

“Half the roof is gone!” She gestured up at the gaping hole over their heads.

“I told you it would be in rough shape.” He glanced around the interior where many forest animals had clearly made themselves at home. “The wind is coming in from the west. We’ll set up the tent on the east side of the building. That, along with the fire, should help keep us warm.”

“Okay.” She managed a smile. “I’m sure we’ll be fine. Especially now that we can rest for a while.”

He nodded, knowing he wouldn’t be able to rest until he’d set up their camp and had a fire going. Turning, he went outside to the east side of the shanty. There was an open area that appeared relatively flat. He shrugged off his backpack and went to work setting up the small pup tent. He had a small thermal pad to line the bottom, which would help keep them insulated.

To his surprise, Jess didn’t sit down to rest. She dropped her backpack, rolled her shoulders to work the kinks out, then began gathering wood for their fire. He couldn’t help but smile as he put the tent up. Being stuck on the mountain with Jessica was no hardship. In other circumstances, this could be a date.

But not when they were only there because a gunman had attempted to shoot down his plane.

“I don’t suppose you have a lighter,” she asked.

“I do.” He rummaged in the pack that was half empty now that he had the tent up and the sleeping bag unzipped and spread out inside. He tossed the lighter to her, and she lit the small branches she’d gathered, blowing gently to get the flames to catch.

“Who taught you to camp?” he asked, once she had the fire going well enough to add larger branches. “Chase?”

“Yep.” She drew Teddy closer to the fire. The dog stretched out beside her, resting his head on her knee. Then the K9 let out a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. She stroked his fur. “He made sure we all know how to set up a makeshift camp in the woods. I was probably sixteen back then, and he’d just opened his hunting and fishing guide business.” She nodded toward the fire. “He insisted we learn how to start a blaze without a lighter, using flint stone, but it’s much easier this way.”

He chuckled. “That’s true. We can eat our protein bars and some of the dried fruit and nut snacks for dinner. We may want to save the rest for morning.”

“Sounds good to me.” She frowned and rummaged in her backpack for Teddy’s food. “Actually, I have four granola bars too.” She grinned. “If I had remembered having them, I probably would have eaten them by now. But this way we have breakfast and lunch. Not too shabby.”

“We won’t starve.” He hoped they’d be able to head out at first light. He pulled the radio out of his pack and tried to get a signal. There was nothing but static. He shoved the radio aside and checked his cell phone. No service there either. With a sigh, he gave up. If they ended up staying a second night, he’d have to hunt for small game or maybe try catching some fish. He wasn’t the expert Chase was, but he’d done his fair share of hunting and fishing.

He watched as Jess filled a collapsible bowl with food for Teddy. Despite his obvious fatigue, the K9 eagerly jumped up to eat. Logan dropped down beside Jess with the rations of food. They ate in silence, watching the crackling fire and basking in the warmth from the flames. Using what was left of the hunting shanty as a wind block helped keep the temperature up.

But the clouds overhead had grown dark and thick with moisture. Once it started snowing, they’d lose the fire and would be forced to rely on body heat to stay warm inside the tent.

When they finished eating, he reached for his backpack. “We need to store our stuff inside the tent to keep the animals away. And we’ll use our outer coats as an extra layer of insulation. Between the thermal pad on the bottom of the tent and the sleeping bag that I’ve opened to use as a blanket, we should be okay.”

“I’m sure we will.” She managed to sound confident.

He shoved his pack through the opening, then turned to face her. “I need to check the perimeter. Ah, you may need to find some privacy among the bushes too.” He hoped she couldn’t see his face turning red with embarrassment. “I’ll stay away long enough for you to finish up.” He cleared his throat, feeling awkward. “Once you and Teddy crawl into the tent, I’ll know the coast is clear.”

“That works. Teddy will need to relieve himself too.” She leaned forward to run her bare fingers over his lower legs. “Wow, I’m impressed. His fur is already dry.”

“Good.” He knew her first concern would always be her dog. He quickly rose to his feet and headed away from their camp. When he rounded the corner of the shanty, the wind hit him full in the face.

It was going to be a cold night. Hopefully cold enough to keep the gunman back in his warm hunting cabin.

After taking care of his needs, Logan walked the perimeter, scanning the area for signs of an intruder. He also wanted to make sure Jess had more than enough time to get settled in. Thankfully, he didn’t see anything suspicious. He completed his loop around the shanty, nodding with satisfaction when he returned to the camp to see a faint glow coming from inside the tent. He could see the shadows of Jessica and Teddy as she moved what must have been a flashlight from side to side.

The fire was slowly burning out, so he waited a few minutes, then kicked the glowing coals apart to hasten the process. Just as the fire was out and no longer a threat, the snow began to fall, fat snowflakes hitting his face and melting instantly against his skin.

Just in time , he thought, as he dropped to his knees beside the tent opening. “Coming in,” he announced as he unzipped the flap.

“It’s going to be a tight fit,” Jess said as he crawled in. She was using her backpack as a pillow. “I don’t think this tent was made for two people and a large dog.”

She was right about that. He wiggled out of his winter coat, setting it around his side of the tent. “Better than sleeping outside in the snow.”

“Snow? Really?” Her eyes widened in surprise. “I had hoped it would hold off.”

“Unfortunately, it’s coming down.” He wiggled around so he could close the zipper. He made sure the two window flaps were open just enough to provide some ventilation, then he lifted one edge of the sleeping bag to slide beneath. “Do you want Teddy between us?”

“Ah, he’s probably better at my side.” She sounded slightly nervous. “He moves around a lot at night.”

“You’re safe with me, Jess.” He stretched out beneath the sleeping bag and adjusted his pack as a pillow as well.

“I know that.” She wiggled closer, rearranged the blanket to help cover Teddy too. Then doused the flashlight. “I trust you, Logan.”

“Thanks.” He should have been exhausted after their long day, but the enticing scent of her hair teased his senses. He did his best to ignore the sweetness. It wasn’t just that Jess trusted him. He knew the entire Sullivan family expected him to treat Jessica with respect and to do everything possible to keep her safe.

And he would. No matter what.

When Teddy began to snore, he couldn’t help but laugh. Jess did too. “He’s funny, isn’t he?” she whispered.

“Yep.” She turned on her side so that she was facing him. Then she yawned. “G’night, Logan.”

“Good night.” He closed his eyes and told himself to go to sleep.

Of course, that didn’t work. He listened to the sounds of the night outside their tent, and to Jess’s soft breathing and Teddy’s snores. He thought about how much damage his plane had sustained and hoped it wouldn’t take them too long to get to a location with radio or cell service.

He must have dozed at some point because he awoke when Teddy began to bark. Not just once, but repeated sharp barks that were clearly a response to a perceived threat.

Logan jackknifed upright and grabbed his .38 from the backpack, his heart pounding in his chest.

Someone was out there!