too.
Walter…
“He’s safe for now,” Allie said. “It’s us I’m worried about.”
“How do you know he’s safe?” Lucy asked.
“They want your dad for something; something important enough to go through all this trouble. They were going to use us as leverage against him because they couldn’t afford to hurt him. So believe me, Walter’s fine back at the house. But he might not be forever, so what we need to do is go find help. Call the police, if they aren’t already on their way. That’s what Walter would want us to do. Most of all, he’d want you to be safe, and that means not running back to the house.”
She couldn’t tell if Lucy believed her, but the girl nodded after a few seconds. “You’re right. We should go call the police. That’s what Dad would do.”
Allie nodded, then glanced over at Apollo. “Anything?”
Apollo was turned back toward the house, and if he’d heard her, he didn’t show it.
“I guess not,” she said.
“Does he ever answer you?” Lucy asked.
“Not really, no.”
Without a word, Apollo turned around and walked over to them, then on ahead as if he already knew where they needed to go.
And maybe he did, she thought. Apollo, more than her and definitely more than Lucy, had spent a lot of time in woods like this one. It helped that his former owner had been a devoted hunter.
“Come on,” Allie said. “Follow the dog.”
She took the Glock out from her waistband and let it hang at her side (just in case), then threw a quick look over her shoulder. There was no one behind them, definitely no Jerry with a reloaded MP5SD or Jack with his assault rifle. But that didn’t mean they weren’t back there, somewhere, tracking them.
And further back, between her and her pursuers, was Walter.
What did you do, Walter? What did you do to put us in this mess?
But there were no answers to be found behind them, so she turned back around.
Ahead of them, Apollo was slipping into a dark patch of shadows, and she and Lucy followed wordlessly.
Chapter 8
Jack left the door open so he could hear the tap-tap-tap coming from inside all the way from the living room. He didn’t worry about Walter getting brave all of a sudden and making a run for it. If Walter hadn’t been the action-first gung-ho type before, he wasn’t in any position to morph into that now, not after what Jack had done to him. So the tap-tap-tap was like music to his ears, every tap representing another step closer to the kind of life he’d always wanted but always seemed out of reach, until now.
He cleaned the blood off the Ka-Bar using one of his pant legs, then put it away. He had gotten specks of red on his fingers without realizing it. It was probably when Walter began struggling, once he realized what Jack was going to do. That was okay, because Jack was used to blood, and he swiped his hand on the same pant leg.
He stopped in the living room and looked around, when his right ear clicked.
“It was a dark and stormy night, and I’m stuck tracking down two chicks and a dog,” Jerry said through the earbud. “Minus the stormy part, anyway.”
“What’s your situation?” Jack asked.
“Wishing I was somewhere else.”
“Besides that.”
“I’m still tracking them. The dog’s like a ghost, but the two humans are leaving plenty of clues. Don’t quote me on it, but I think I’m somewhere between the house and one of the neighbors. Close enough I can see lights in the distance; looks like LED lamps with auto sensors. Good news? I don’t see any cops.”
“Can you hear sirens out there?”
“Negative. Of course, they might be waiting until morning to show up. We’re not exactly in the city, are we? Shit tends to run slower out here, or so I’ve heard.”
Hope springs eternal, Jack thought.
The lack of police sirens or any law-enforcement presence at all was more than he could have hoped for. It was a good sign Walter’s neighbors were MIA, and like Walter, were using their
Walter…
“He’s safe for now,” Allie said. “It’s us I’m worried about.”
“How do you know he’s safe?” Lucy asked.
“They want your dad for something; something important enough to go through all this trouble. They were going to use us as leverage against him because they couldn’t afford to hurt him. So believe me, Walter’s fine back at the house. But he might not be forever, so what we need to do is go find help. Call the police, if they aren’t already on their way. That’s what Walter would want us to do. Most of all, he’d want you to be safe, and that means not running back to the house.”
She couldn’t tell if Lucy believed her, but the girl nodded after a few seconds. “You’re right. We should go call the police. That’s what Dad would do.”
Allie nodded, then glanced over at Apollo. “Anything?”
Apollo was turned back toward the house, and if he’d heard her, he didn’t show it.
“I guess not,” she said.
“Does he ever answer you?” Lucy asked.
“Not really, no.”
Without a word, Apollo turned around and walked over to them, then on ahead as if he already knew where they needed to go.
And maybe he did, she thought. Apollo, more than her and definitely more than Lucy, had spent a lot of time in woods like this one. It helped that his former owner had been a devoted hunter.
“Come on,” Allie said. “Follow the dog.”
She took the Glock out from her waistband and let it hang at her side (just in case), then threw a quick look over her shoulder. There was no one behind them, definitely no Jerry with a reloaded MP5SD or Jack with his assault rifle. But that didn’t mean they weren’t back there, somewhere, tracking them.
And further back, between her and her pursuers, was Walter.
What did you do, Walter? What did you do to put us in this mess?
But there were no answers to be found behind them, so she turned back around.
Ahead of them, Apollo was slipping into a dark patch of shadows, and she and Lucy followed wordlessly.
Chapter 8
Jack left the door open so he could hear the tap-tap-tap coming from inside all the way from the living room. He didn’t worry about Walter getting brave all of a sudden and making a run for it. If Walter hadn’t been the action-first gung-ho type before, he wasn’t in any position to morph into that now, not after what Jack had done to him. So the tap-tap-tap was like music to his ears, every tap representing another step closer to the kind of life he’d always wanted but always seemed out of reach, until now.
He cleaned the blood off the Ka-Bar using one of his pant legs, then put it away. He had gotten specks of red on his fingers without realizing it. It was probably when Walter began struggling, once he realized what Jack was going to do. That was okay, because Jack was used to blood, and he swiped his hand on the same pant leg.
He stopped in the living room and looked around, when his right ear clicked.
“It was a dark and stormy night, and I’m stuck tracking down two chicks and a dog,” Jerry said through the earbud. “Minus the stormy part, anyway.”
“What’s your situation?” Jack asked.
“Wishing I was somewhere else.”
“Besides that.”
“I’m still tracking them. The dog’s like a ghost, but the two humans are leaving plenty of clues. Don’t quote me on it, but I think I’m somewhere between the house and one of the neighbors. Close enough I can see lights in the distance; looks like LED lamps with auto sensors. Good news? I don’t see any cops.”
“Can you hear sirens out there?”
“Negative. Of course, they might be waiting until morning to show up. We’re not exactly in the city, are we? Shit tends to run slower out here, or so I’ve heard.”
Hope springs eternal, Jack thought.
The lack of police sirens or any law-enforcement presence at all was more than he could have hoped for. It was a good sign Walter’s neighbors were MIA, and like Walter, were using their
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