I closed my eyes again and focused on shutting off my brain.
Gradually, my thoughts turned into just swirling bits and pieces as my pain ebbed and sleep took hold.
It came as no surprise that my jumbled thoughts turned into dreams. Vivid ones of memories I’d rather forget.
During one particular dream where metal crunched and tires squealed, a new sound intruded. A quiet thump of someone walking on a hard surface.
A frown marred my face as I came slowly awake, confused. Why did the dream that used to plague me every night—the exactsamedream—suddenly change?
Through a couple of slow blinks, the tent interior came into focus.
Several hours had passed since we fell asleep. The light from outside had faded and only a glow from the fire penetrated the dark tent fabric.
I stayed still, listening. Had I heard a sound, and it registered in my dream? Was that why it changed?
I cast a quick look at Lana to see if she was awake. Her prone figure still faced away from me, her sleeping bag rising and falling in an even rhythm. She was still asleep.
A shift in the shadows caught my eye. I turned my attention back to the tent wall. Through the thin fabric, I could see the small flames from our fire dance.
Maybe that’s what woke me up. A log probably popped or something. I should probably go check on it and make sure allwas well. We’d built it a decent distance from the tent, but it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility for the fire to cast out an ember and potentially ignite the tent.
As I shifted, reaching for my sleeping bag zipper, the firelight disappeared.
I froze.
The fire didn’t go out. Something moved in front of it and blocked it from view.
All the breath stilled in my lungs, and my mind went to one thing: a bear.
We had everything it could want here. Shelter, heat, and food.
I pulled on the sleeping bag zipper, my eyes on my rifle just feet away.
The shadows shifted again, giving me vital information.
Our intruder only had two legs.
Yanking on the zipper, I gave up any pretense of stealth. We were in the middle of nowhere with no sound other than the fire and I was in a nylon sleeping bag. Whoever was out there knew I was awake.
As I dove for the rifle, a knife slashed through the tent flap. Hot on its heels was a hand holding a pistol, then a man’s head.
“Don’t move.”
Chapter 15
Lana
The unfamiliar deep voice penetrated my dreams, and I rolled over, coming awake, confused. It took a couple of long blinks to chase away the brain fog, but the moment it clicked that it wasn’t Toren’s voice I heard, I sat up.
A scream lodged in the back of my throat. In the doorway to the tent, a large shadow loomed. Firelight glowed behind him, keeping his face in shadow, but the revolver in his hands glinted in the shifting light.
Beside me, Toren reached out, wrapping a hand around my forearm. He said nothing, just stayed a steady presence at my side.
“Well, well, well. Who do we have here?” The man kept his gun trained on Toren but turned to me.
I raised my other hand to clutch at Toren’s.
“Take whatever you want,” Toren said. “Just leave us alone. We’re no threat to you.”
