Blind Run by Patricia Lewin Page B

dead.”
    “Did you—”
    “No.” Ethan shook his head. “Not me. But whoever did may come here next. So we need to get going.”
    The boy hesitated.
    “I’m all you got, kid.” Ethan steeled himself against the uncertainty in the boy’s eyes and the long-buried instincts it awoke. “You come with me or . . .” He made a sweeping gesture at the dreary landscape. “Or you stay here.”
    “Danny.” Callie tugged on her brother’s sleeve. “It’s okay. He’ll help us.”
    Danny’s expression softened. “But, Callie, he’s—”
    “It’s okay,” she said. “We have to go with him.”
    Ethan suspected the boy knew that as well, so he gave the kid a break and didn’t force him to admit it. “I have something to take care of,” he said. “Meanwhile, take your sister and gather stuff from the trailer. There’s some bottled water, and get whatever nonperishable food you can find.”
    “Where are you going?” Danny challenged.
    Ethan suppressed the urge to snap at the boy, reminding himself that despite his show of bravado, the kid was scared. “I’ll be back in a couple of minutes. Just do as I told you.”
    Without looking back, Ethan headed out across the sand for the rock face behind the trailer. When he reached it, he stepped through a small hidden opening into the cool darkness of a cave.
    Years ago, while still under the Agency’s yoke, he’d recognized the need for a refuge, a place only his team would know about, a sanctuary and rendezvous point where they could meet in case things fell apart. He and the five people he’d led had pledged their lives to their country, but none of them totally trusted the men who gave the orders.
    Together, they’d chosen this desert valley for its seclusion and the ridge behind the trailer. It provided both privacy and a wall at their backs. Plus, limited access. There was only one way in and one way out of the canyon, unless you were partial to a two-day hike across hot sand.
    It was a good choice, but they’d never come back after selecting the site. They’d never needed to—until the end. Then none of them had made it. Except Ethan.
    The memory of those first months when he’d waited, hoping against all odds that one of his team would escape the Spaniard’s wrath, was bitter still. Eventually he’d resigned himself to being the only one left alive. But Anna had lived, and it gnawed at him, raising questions he couldn’t ignore. Including why she’d waited all this time to seek him out.
    Later, he promised himself, after he got those two kids to safety. Then he’d find out about Anna and how she’d managed to escape Ramirez. For now he used a flashlight he’d stored near the mouth of the cave and made his way deeper into the darkness.
    The final advantage of this location was the warren of tunnels beneath the ragged bluff, tunnels where a desperate man could evade capture or hide whatever he didn’t want found. When he’d first retreated here, Ethan had buried a duffel bag—an insurance policy against some future need. That had been before the nights had become his enemy and the desert isolation his only friend. He’d never touched the bag. Hell, most of the time he’d forgotten it was there, which was probably a good thing. He might have wasted the contents, and now he desperately needed the cash, identification, and weapons it contained.
    Fifteen minutes later he returned to find Danny and Callie loading supplies into the truck. Besides his stash of bottled water, they’d found what passed for food on his nearly bare shelves. There was also an old first-aid kit Ethan had forgotten about, a flashlight, rope, and several blankets.
    Ethan had to admit they were a couple of smart kids. Now, if only the boy could do something about his attitude. Tossing the duffel into the truck, he said, “Get in.”
    “Where are we going?” Danny asked.
    “Away from here.” Ethan started to climb behind the wheel but stopped, the sight of Anna’s