“Get some rest, Zee,” he whispered.
She didn’t have the strength to resist anymore. Like a child, she allowed herself to be tucked onto the cot, the blanket settled over her. He stayed there for a while, praying, she suspected.
She should pray too, for the agony to diminish, for peace in her soul. For something to make sense to her shredded heart.
But she prayed something else instead.
God, help me find Bullseye and destroy him.
Because the only thing she could feel under the grief was her soul burning for revenge.
It was all she had left.
The only thing that made sense.
****
Gideon slept some, maintained a recon schedule every few hours, and fretted in between. Why had he allowed himself to get into the weeds about Aaron? And while they were in such a precarious position. Mackenzie thought she wanted the information, but how had that helped in the slightest? Now her image of her brother was tarnished, and bringing up the whole drug-dealing thing? Was it really important for her to know that, even if it was the truth? Aaron was dead. Nothing could alter that awful fact.
Restless, he walked around the tower again, avoiding the squeakiest boards he’d identified during previous rounds, his portable radio pressed to his ear as he listened to reports. There were no encouraging factoids at the lonely hour of four thirty in the morning. The storm hadn’t let up and the weather reports called for four inches of rain in the next eight hours. He spent the following hours planning, trying to decide if it was better to depart at dawn or hold out and give themselves another few hours to rest when a new alert came over the radio. He listened, standing at the window, looking down on the valley, his heart sinking with every word.
“In an effort to avert catastrophe ...”He was running for his boots before the report was finished. His pack was already full, organized and filled with his still-dampclothes and the meager items he’d acquired from their hiding spot.
Mackenzie raised her head from the cot, her hair a wild tangle. “What?”
“We gotta go.”
She sat up. “Why?”
“Emergency alert. They’re going to release water at ten this morning to try to save the dam from crumbling. We’ve got a few hours to get out of this valley or we’ll be swimming.”
She hopped out of bed and scurried to pack her supplies.
He tossed her a bundle. “Here. Another fire tower goody.”
She hefted the clear rain poncho. “Did you find one for yourself too?”
“No, just the one. My pants are water resistant, but those sweats are going to soak up the rain as soon as we step outside. The poncho will cover down to your knees.”
“It’s okay, you wear it.”
Rejecting it, rejecting him. “Just put it on, Mackenzie.” His clipped tone produced the desired result, though she gave him a sour look.
It would be unwise to delay for breakfast or anything else. It would take hours for them to climb down and trek their way out of the lowlands. The whole expedition would be perilous from the get-go, hiking the wilderness in the dark. But if they didn’t beat the water, it was lights out anyway. He was sore and tired, but at least Mackenzie had gotten some sleep.
After they each used the waste bucket again, she yankedher hair back into an elastic, jammed on a baseball cap she’d found under the bunk, and donned the plastic rain gear. The poncho sleeves could be rolled up, which helped, and her borrowed boots would be better than Kevin’s wife’s sneakers. It would have to be enough.
They didn’t need to discuss their goals.
For him, the Jeep. For her, the airstrip.
And he would get her there if she’d allow it. He was no longer sure since their frank conversation. He wouldn’t be surprised if she took off on her own at the first opportunity, because in presenting her with the truth about Aaron, he’d broken something inside her.
Lord, I’m sorry.He’d thought the truth would set her free from her deadly pursuit.
Instead, it seemed it had only sped her on her way.
Focus, Gid.For now, they were together and moving in unison. It remained to be seen how long their synchronicity would last.
