three hours ago.”
Ted’s right eyebrow rose. “You can’t just ‘ buy ’ national forest land ! I t takes an…”
“Act of Congress, I know. I have one.” Kline snapped his fingers and a large bald man , wearing a leather jacket that didn’t quite hide the pistol he was packing, handed Kline a thick folder of papers. Kline waved them in front of Ted’s face. “Satisfied? Get off my property , or I will have my associate remove you.”
Unimpressed Ted cocked his head, “You should know I’m not someone that’s easily impressed or intimidated by a man who obviously goes through life blustering his way through other people, like you’re doing. If you like, we can always call the sheriff and let him settle...”
Bored with Ted’s speech, Kline didn’t wait for another word. Instead, he grabbed the sizable pistol out of his large assistant’s holster and shot Ted point blank in the chest.
Ted looked down at the expanding pool of blood on his chest. He stumbled backwards only to find air behind him. Horrified, Alex watched as his father’s body slowly tumbled over the side of the cliff and down two hundred feet to the ground below.
Alex felt his body go completely numb. All the years of training, all the discipline the Army had taught him went straight out the window. He turned, screaming at Kline , “You son of a bitch!!” as he rushed him attempting, something, anything to strike back at the man who had just so casually killed his father like he would a fly who had offended him by landing on his soup.
Kline didn’t even blink as the former football star charged him. As Alex approached, Kline calmly swatted Alex away with his forearm. Alex felt as if he were hit by a tree trunk. His body flew off towards the edge of the m esa, as if slammed out of the park by the great Bambino himself.
Landing a few feet from the edge of the cliff, his body skidded on the ground . Alex desperately tried to grab hold of any rock, any root, anything that would stop his trajectory towards the edge and beyond that a quick route to the ground five hundred feet below. A t the last moment, Alex saw a shrub growing out of the side of the mountain. He grabbed onto the leaves and co a rse bark in a last - ditch effort to stay alive. His body swung precariously from the edge of the cliff, and Kline approached with his bodyguard.
Alex struggled to hang on . H is toes searched the granite wall , like his father had taught him , for any sort of hold that might relieve the pressure building up on his fingertips. But it was unfamiliar territory, and he couldn’t find any place to support his body with. Kline looked down in contempt at the dangling young man.
“Get off my property.” Kline calmly said as he smashed his heels into Alex’s fingertips. Howling in pain, Alex let go of the edge of the cliff and began to fall to the ground below. Satisfied, Kline turned back to his bodyguard , who was just catching up to him.
“ I was under the impression that we had this area watched.”
Ice filled Geoffrey’ veins. The sentries on duty that Geoffrey had assigned had obviously missed these two tourists, and his employer was looking for someone to blame. Better a sacrificial lamb than his own neck.
Geoffrey checked the PDA in his hand.
“ The men we had posted here yesterday failed to appear today.”
Kline sniffed the air, not looking at his assistant, surveying the desert floor below him. “They took their seed money and ran?”
Geoffrey shifted his weight. The question was a double - edged sword , and Kline could react one of two ways. Either it would be Geoffrey’ fault for recruiting two unreliable men, or Kline would rain down hellfire on the people who were supposed to have been watching the Mesa. Hesitating, Geoffrey decided the truth was probably most appropriate. “It would appear so , sir.”
Smirking, Kline turned towards Geoffrey. “My guess , Mr. Tate, is that they have not gotten farther than Mexico. We
Ted’s right eyebrow rose. “You can’t just ‘ buy ’ national forest land ! I t takes an…”
“Act of Congress, I know. I have one.” Kline snapped his fingers and a large bald man , wearing a leather jacket that didn’t quite hide the pistol he was packing, handed Kline a thick folder of papers. Kline waved them in front of Ted’s face. “Satisfied? Get off my property , or I will have my associate remove you.”
Unimpressed Ted cocked his head, “You should know I’m not someone that’s easily impressed or intimidated by a man who obviously goes through life blustering his way through other people, like you’re doing. If you like, we can always call the sheriff and let him settle...”
Bored with Ted’s speech, Kline didn’t wait for another word. Instead, he grabbed the sizable pistol out of his large assistant’s holster and shot Ted point blank in the chest.
Ted looked down at the expanding pool of blood on his chest. He stumbled backwards only to find air behind him. Horrified, Alex watched as his father’s body slowly tumbled over the side of the cliff and down two hundred feet to the ground below.
Alex felt his body go completely numb. All the years of training, all the discipline the Army had taught him went straight out the window. He turned, screaming at Kline , “You son of a bitch!!” as he rushed him attempting, something, anything to strike back at the man who had just so casually killed his father like he would a fly who had offended him by landing on his soup.
Kline didn’t even blink as the former football star charged him. As Alex approached, Kline calmly swatted Alex away with his forearm. Alex felt as if he were hit by a tree trunk. His body flew off towards the edge of the m esa, as if slammed out of the park by the great Bambino himself.
Landing a few feet from the edge of the cliff, his body skidded on the ground . Alex desperately tried to grab hold of any rock, any root, anything that would stop his trajectory towards the edge and beyond that a quick route to the ground five hundred feet below. A t the last moment, Alex saw a shrub growing out of the side of the mountain. He grabbed onto the leaves and co a rse bark in a last - ditch effort to stay alive. His body swung precariously from the edge of the cliff, and Kline approached with his bodyguard.
Alex struggled to hang on . H is toes searched the granite wall , like his father had taught him , for any sort of hold that might relieve the pressure building up on his fingertips. But it was unfamiliar territory, and he couldn’t find any place to support his body with. Kline looked down in contempt at the dangling young man.
“Get off my property.” Kline calmly said as he smashed his heels into Alex’s fingertips. Howling in pain, Alex let go of the edge of the cliff and began to fall to the ground below. Satisfied, Kline turned back to his bodyguard , who was just catching up to him.
“ I was under the impression that we had this area watched.”
Ice filled Geoffrey’ veins. The sentries on duty that Geoffrey had assigned had obviously missed these two tourists, and his employer was looking for someone to blame. Better a sacrificial lamb than his own neck.
Geoffrey checked the PDA in his hand.
“ The men we had posted here yesterday failed to appear today.”
Kline sniffed the air, not looking at his assistant, surveying the desert floor below him. “They took their seed money and ran?”
Geoffrey shifted his weight. The question was a double - edged sword , and Kline could react one of two ways. Either it would be Geoffrey’ fault for recruiting two unreliable men, or Kline would rain down hellfire on the people who were supposed to have been watching the Mesa. Hesitating, Geoffrey decided the truth was probably most appropriate. “It would appear so , sir.”
Smirking, Kline turned towards Geoffrey. “My guess , Mr. Tate, is that they have not gotten farther than Mexico. We
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