Peyton quickly dressed and stuffed all of Jake’s clothes, including his shoes, into the backpack while Jake shifted into wolf form again. Minutes later, they headed out. When they reached the top of the hill Jake had mentioned he nosed Peyton’s hand so he could speak without shifting back.
“See the lights? At two o’clock.”
“Yep. Farm?”
“It’s been a while since I came this way. One of my favorite places to forage was a farm a couple of miles to the south of where we crossed. If I remember correctly, that one up there is a family dairy farm. Older couple.”
But as they approached, Peyton didn’t need to be shifted to know this wasn’t where they should stop. “They have at least four dogs,” he whispered to Jake. “No way we can sneak in there.”
“Agreed.”
They kept moving, walking at a fast clip past the dirt track leading into the farm, fortunately attracting no attention from their dogs and not encountering any vehicles on the road.
At least it was civilization. In the far distance, Peyton spotted what looked like lights atop a cell phone or radio transmission tower.
They cut through another section of forest and headed overland, coming upon a fence at the far edge of a crop field that looked like younger plants.
“Barley,” Jake told him, leading Peyton down the fence line. “One year this farm had a good crop of potatoes, and I snagged about twenty pounds in one night. That was a while ago, though. When it was easier to cross. I used to keep a sled I’d scored hidden close to the border, but it was plastic and only lasted about two seasons before the damn thing broke. Never managed to steal another like it. It was convenient because I could make one run that would last me for months.”
A question floated into Peyton’s mind. “You never stole a gun in all your time out here?”
“That’s not as easy to do. Around here, that’s something that would quickly be missed. Draws attention. Losing a knife can happen to anyone—it gets dropped or forgotten somewhere, and you buy a new one. Lose a gun? People start asking questions. I can use one, but I personally never liked them. That’s just me. Shifting and running is safer. Besides, someone sees a big dog with a knife in its mouth, they think oh, he smelled meat on it, or the handle, whatever, how clever and cute he is. They see a dog carrying a gun? That’s noteworthy, and they start chasing the dog to get the gun back.”
“I am impressed, Jake. I don’t know if I would’ve thought it through like that.”
“Well, I would’ve been fucked if I hadn’t spent a few years on farms first. Learned the territory and the weather patterns and the people. Gave me chances to scout around and find that spider hole of mine. Rode to town plenty of times in the back of a truck, so I learned the layout, the stores.
“I didn’t just start living out there right away. I took the better part of a year setting it up. And I never got greedy. I only took what I needed, so I didn’t raise suspicions. Too much goes missing at one time, people think thief or vagrant, and grow vigilant. Besides, finding shelter shifted was easy. Be a funny, friendly dog, and people will feed you if you beg. Give you water if you pant and look thirsty. Limp and whine a little, they feel sorry for you. You can crawl under a parked car or a house, or curl up in a barn or whatever, and people will leave you alone and not run you off.
“But a human hangs around? Forget it. I’d spend a week or so accumulating things and stashing them, then make a trip to the cave to drop them off. Lather, rinse, repeat. If there were things I needed to haul off with two hands, I’d scope it out, figure the best time, usually at night, then snatch them. Kept a stash of clothes close by where I could put them on and do it.”
“You elevated hiding in plain sight to a whole new level.”
Jake softly chuffed. “Yeah, but it also cost me years with my son that I’ll never get back.”
Chapter Forty-Three
Ken
Ken worked at the table in their cabin while trying to wrap his mind around more data he’d received from the Seguras’ computers. That’s when his phone buzzed.
His work phone.
Ken picked it up and stared at it, blinking, doing a literal double-take at the notification on the secure app he and Peyton and Trent used for text and phone communications when security warranted it.
He thumbed it open to find a one-word text from a number that wasn’t coming up in his contacts in the app.
Pelasgus
Reading the word felt like unlocking a door in his mind, and yet another torrent of information that he hadn’t been aware of suddenly flooded his brain. Ken immediately called the number the message was sent from, his pulse racing as he waited for it to connect.
“Don’t say anything unless you’re alone,” Peyton immediately whispered to him upon answering. “Get away from Gillian, Dewi, Badger, Duncan, and the others. Right now. Listen, and follow my directions to the letter.”
Ken felt fortunate he was in their cabin, already alone, but he moved into the bathroom and locked himself in just to be sure. “I’m alone in our cabin.”
“Good. I’m alive and I’m safe, for now. Do not tell anyone you heard from me. When you get off the phone, use this number to immediately text me Trevor Clarke’s phone numbers, address, and email through this app. I don’t have my phone, so that’s why I’m using this one. I’m heading to Trevor’s and need all my stuff from the hotel sent to him—phones, wallet, passport, all of that.”
“It’s already there. He took it with him.”
