He turned toward what appeared to be a black SUV with tinted windows.
“Nice rig,” he murmured.
Did Scott Terentson just use the word rig? “Are you sure you’re not from the country?” She wanted to take his hand again.
“I’m sure, but I spent a lot of time with my uncle while growing up. He came from the hills of Kentucky.”
She noted that he talked about his uncle in the past tense, and she opened her mouth to ask more when one of the SUV windows rolled down.
“Gun!” Scott yelled, tackling her to the ground.
Pain flashed up her hip to her shoulder before the chill frrom the scrub grass followed.
The sound of gunfire erupted through the misty morning, with bullets pinging off the metal fishing boat.
Chapter Ten
Scott instinctively tumbled Millie beneath the boat trailer, shoving her to the other side across the rough gravel. He could see beyond the firewood pile as three men jumped out of the dark SUV. The one firing abruptly stopped, and the silence clamored through his head.
“Damn it.” He rolled to the other side as Millie began to stand. He barely peeked over into the boat and scrambled for the tackle boxes, grabbing two and yanking them down to dump their contents onto the ground.
“What are you doing?” Millie whispered, blood on her chin.
“Looking for anything I can use for a weapon.” He grabbed a fishing knife off the ground.
Millie scrambled through the items and wrapped her small hand around the handle of a fillet knife.
“Don’t suppose you have a gun nearby?” he asked, listening for advancing steps.
“No.”
Going stone cold, he grasped the knife handle in his hand. The stainless steel weapon contained a six-inch blade, and while he would much prefer a gun, he’d make do. “Are there guns in the house?”
“Yes,” she said, looking across the wide distance. “As well as some makeshift weapons I’ve created for fun.” She gestured. “Come on. I have structured booby traps behind the bunkhouse and natural ones already set in the trees on the other side.” Ducking, she scurried around the rear of the building near the river.
He didn’t have his phone or a weapon other than the fishing knife. His mind quickly calculated the best way to get Millie to safety. He navigated around the building, pausing to look back. The shadows obscured the men’s faces, but each one held a weapon, clad in all black. They sported no masks, which hinted at danger. They had killing as their aim.
He kept his back to the rough wooden siding and edged around toward the forest. No doubt the men would flank the building, approaching from both sides. Forcing emotion away, he gingerly lifted a dirty window and peered inside the small building. The main room held two sets of overlarge bunk beds, one strewn with clothing and a couple of books. JT’s belongings. “Are there weapons inside?”
Millie peeked inside. “It’s doubtful. I’m sure JT has weapons, but he’d keep them with him or hidden from the guests we let stay here overnight.” She scrambled to open a utility chest set against the side of the building and pulled out several remote controls.
Scott craned his neck as the clock counted down. He could feel the men getting closer. “What do we have?”
She handed him a remote and leaned in to pull out what looked like three life-size squirrels to place on the ground. “Press the power button,” she whispered.
He pressed the top button and the animals came to life.
“Good.” She recaptured the remote and pressed a bunch of buttons. The squirrels turned around the corner. “I have them rigged to explode because I planned to play a joke on JT.”
Fucking brilliant. He brushed his knuckles across her delicate jawline. “Stay down and out of sight.”
She looked between the bunkhouse and the trees. “I’ve planted booby traps in the trees to protect the property.”
He measured the distance. “What kind?”
“Poisonous herbs. If we can get those guys into the right patch, they’ll be sorry.”
Excellent. “I’ll go around the other side. When I yell, you blow up a squirrel.” He couldn’t believe he’d just said that. “When I say run, you dart into the trees and lead the next guy to the poison.” Which meant he had to take out two of them first.
