of us at the same time.” He wasn’t certain it would stay together long enough for him to get down, but if it didn’t, they’d go back to plan A and the tied-together sheets. “There are two broken rungs. One is halfway down, the other is three below it. Put your feet on the outside of the rungs, not in the middle.”
Lolly nodded, and began pulling on the poncho over her layers of clothing. Gabriel carefully backeddown the ladder, not taking a deep breath until his boots were safely on the icy ground again. He turned up the collar of his jacket to protect his neck from the wind, and positioned himself so he could brace the ladder. She stuck her head out to make certain he was on the ground, then quickly drew it back in and stuck one leg out the window, feeling with her foot for the top rung. She couldn’t reach it, of course, because the ladder wasn’t tall enough. Finally she sat on the windowsill, put both legs out, and turned until she was on her stomach. She found the ladder, set both feet on it, and cautiously moved down the creaking wood. She was favoring her right side, he noticed, and wondered how she’d hold up for the long hike off the mountain.
The walk, which would be treacherous because of the ice, would take hours. In normal circumstances he wouldn’t even attempt it, but the circumstances weren’t normal and the only other choice they had was to simply hide and wait … but wait for what? The meth addicts in the living room were stuck, too; they weren’t going anywhere, and at least they were in a warm house. He and Lolly couldn’t wait for the ice to melt, because that could take a week or more. Their best bet, and it wasn’t a good one, but it was better than their other options, was to get off the mountain as fast as they could, before the weight of the ice started snapping tree limbs like toothpicks. They’d be warmer if they were moving, too.
“Watch for that missing rung,” he warned in an urgentwhisper just before she reached it, and her step faltered. She hesitated, then changed her rhythm and instead used her right foot to step past the missing rung, so she could bear most of her weight with her left shoulder instead of the bruised right one.
A splintering sound was the only warning he had, before the next rung gave way, too, and she came tumbling down.
It wasn’t a long drop, but in these conditions and with the hike they had ahead of them, a sprained ankle was as good as a broken leg. Instinctively Gabriel let go of the ladder and grabbed Lolly in a bear hug before she could hit the ground. The ladder clattered and banged against the side of the house.
“Shit!” he said, setting Lolly on her feet and grabbing her wrist. There was almost no chance the two inside hadn’t heard the ladder slamming against the house. They needed to move—
now
.
“Let’s go,” he said, and started across the icy yard at a fast clip, towing her behind him. She didn’t make a sound of protest, just put her head down and did her best to keep up. They slipped and slid, but he kept his feet; once Lolly started sliding, but she regained her balance, aided by his grip on her wrist. If they could just make the tree line …
There was a shout behind them, and a shot rang out.
Double shit.
Chapter Six
Lolly went down with a cry of pain, and for one stark split-second time froze as Gabriel thought she’d been shot. Then she was scrambling to her feet, muttering “Damn it!” with muffled fury before grabbing his hand and taking off again. She fell again, almost immediately; the thick treads on his boots didn’t afford him a lot of traction, but her sneakers had almost none.
Gabriel hauled her to her feet once more; she stifled another cry of pain, and too late he realized he’d pulled on her right arm, and her injured right shoulder. To keep her upright, he wrapped his arm around her and held her, his grip so hard he expected her to protest, but she didn’t make a peep. Running in that
Lolly nodded, and began pulling on the poncho over her layers of clothing. Gabriel carefully backeddown the ladder, not taking a deep breath until his boots were safely on the icy ground again. He turned up the collar of his jacket to protect his neck from the wind, and positioned himself so he could brace the ladder. She stuck her head out to make certain he was on the ground, then quickly drew it back in and stuck one leg out the window, feeling with her foot for the top rung. She couldn’t reach it, of course, because the ladder wasn’t tall enough. Finally she sat on the windowsill, put both legs out, and turned until she was on her stomach. She found the ladder, set both feet on it, and cautiously moved down the creaking wood. She was favoring her right side, he noticed, and wondered how she’d hold up for the long hike off the mountain.
The walk, which would be treacherous because of the ice, would take hours. In normal circumstances he wouldn’t even attempt it, but the circumstances weren’t normal and the only other choice they had was to simply hide and wait … but wait for what? The meth addicts in the living room were stuck, too; they weren’t going anywhere, and at least they were in a warm house. He and Lolly couldn’t wait for the ice to melt, because that could take a week or more. Their best bet, and it wasn’t a good one, but it was better than their other options, was to get off the mountain as fast as they could, before the weight of the ice started snapping tree limbs like toothpicks. They’d be warmer if they were moving, too.
“Watch for that missing rung,” he warned in an urgentwhisper just before she reached it, and her step faltered. She hesitated, then changed her rhythm and instead used her right foot to step past the missing rung, so she could bear most of her weight with her left shoulder instead of the bruised right one.
A splintering sound was the only warning he had, before the next rung gave way, too, and she came tumbling down.
It wasn’t a long drop, but in these conditions and with the hike they had ahead of them, a sprained ankle was as good as a broken leg. Instinctively Gabriel let go of the ladder and grabbed Lolly in a bear hug before she could hit the ground. The ladder clattered and banged against the side of the house.
“Shit!” he said, setting Lolly on her feet and grabbing her wrist. There was almost no chance the two inside hadn’t heard the ladder slamming against the house. They needed to move—
now
.
“Let’s go,” he said, and started across the icy yard at a fast clip, towing her behind him. She didn’t make a sound of protest, just put her head down and did her best to keep up. They slipped and slid, but he kept his feet; once Lolly started sliding, but she regained her balance, aided by his grip on her wrist. If they could just make the tree line …
There was a shout behind them, and a shot rang out.
Double shit.
Chapter Six
Lolly went down with a cry of pain, and for one stark split-second time froze as Gabriel thought she’d been shot. Then she was scrambling to her feet, muttering “Damn it!” with muffled fury before grabbing his hand and taking off again. She fell again, almost immediately; the thick treads on his boots didn’t afford him a lot of traction, but her sneakers had almost none.
Gabriel hauled her to her feet once more; she stifled another cry of pain, and too late he realized he’d pulled on her right arm, and her injured right shoulder. To keep her upright, he wrapped his arm around her and held her, his grip so hard he expected her to protest, but she didn’t make a peep. Running in that
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