Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
ZACH
My stomach bottoms out, and a chill races over my skin.
“Okay,” I manage, and lower.
“Hands behind your head.”
I do as I’m told. Every second the gun doesn’t fire gives me hope. I cling to it.
The man tears off my pack. I suck in a gasp from the pain.
“You carryin’?” He frisks me, his rough search jostling my rib.
“No.”
The man presses the gun to the back of my head again. “You sure don’t listen too well, do you?”
I don’t think he’s waiting for my answer, so I stay quiet.
“You’re also a persistent little shit. So we’re going to try a different idea. You now work for me.”
I try to turn my head because what the fuck is he talking about, but he presses the gun harder, and I stop. Shit. I don’t want to die out here.
“You’re going to report back to that boss of yours that the people he’s so keen to catch are using the hunting camps.”
“But that’s?—”
Something hard strikes the middle of my back and I lurch forward, barely getting a hand out in time to stop my fall .
Fuck! The pain sends a nauseous tickle up my throat.
“You’re also going to tell him that we use that music place in town.”
Huffing hard, I carefully push myself back. “The Limelight.”
“That’s the one.”
He’s asking me to lie to Stu, which will extend to Sheriff Olson. How in the hell am I going to pull that off?
The man tosses something small and black to the dirt in front of me. It’s a burner phone.
“Little party favor. When I call, you answer.”
I stare at the phone while the man’s you now work for me echoes in my panicked brain. This isn’t a one-time thing. He’s going to ask me to spread more lies.
Indefinitely.
How am I going to keep this a secret?
The solution comes so quickly that a pulse of warmth washes through me.
I can run.
It’s not my first choice. It means no goodbyes, I’m broke, and winter is coming. But maybe I can get south before it gets bad. I can make what little money I have work for me. And when it runs out, there are ways to make more.
“You want to see your little brother again, you’ll do exactly as I say.”
I’m so lost in planning my escape that it takes me a beat to understand what he’s just revealed.
Anger flashes so quick inside me that I can’t get a breath. I try to turn, but he forces me facedown and jumps on top of me. My chin cracks on a rock, and hot pain slices through my side and lungs, making me gasp and wheeze.
The man’s knee presses into my back while the gun barrel is steady against my skull. “Your new daddy and I go way back,” he says, breathing hard. “I know all about you.”
The pain makes it hard just to get enough air into my lungs. My vision tunnels. “He’s. Not. My. Dad.”
The man laughs, but it’s like dry sticks rubbing together. “I know what he likes to do to little boys. You want him to get his hands on William? ”
Hot tears build behind my eyes and stings the bridge of my nose. Rage explodes in the pit of my stomach, bright and hot.
“That’s what I thought,” the man grunts in a harsh tone.
“Kristov’s in custody,” I blurt out—even if this isn’t true, I need to knock this man down a notch.
Another blow to my back, this one harder. I try to suck in air, but it’s like breathing hot embers.
“You don’t know shit.”
He grabs my hair and tugs. I huff against the pain.
“You’re gonna count to a hundred right here with your face in the fucking dirt. Then you’re going to go back down the way you came. And no more field assignments. I’ll tell you everything you need to know.”
I ball my fists and focus on breathing so I don’t explode. The man rocks back, easing the pressure off me with a grunt.
“Kristov’s been looking for you. Lookin’ hard. But your secret’s safe with me.”
He stands there between my sprawled legs for an instant, likely aiming the gun at my head. Probably savoring the power he has over me.
I lay there breathing in shallow gulps, trying not to scream in frustration.
The man takes a step back, then another, no doubt still ready with his gun if I move. His footsteps fade until I no longer hear them over my shaky breaths.
I’m not sure how long I lay there like roadkill, alone with what’s just happened, the cold creeping into my bones.
Now I know who got me outside The Limelight.
That he’s connected to Kristov shouldn’t be a surprise, especially if they go way back . Kristov’s been all over, a detail he liked to rub in my face, as if growing up in Washington State and working the railroad all over the west made him more cultured.
Do Kristov and this guy now work together somehow? Or is it more of a turf thing—two leaders keeping tabs on each other?
However they’re linked, what matters is he knows Kristov’s habits. So he knows exactly why I’ll do anything to keep him from getting custody of my brother .
Anything.
Even lie.
Slowly, I push off my hands, gasping at the tight ache in my chest, and sit back on my heels. The bright yellow larch trees seem to swim in the blue sky. I breathe in shallow gulps, waiting for my stomach to settle. But the scent in the air is different. It smells like winter, like decay.
Unable to hold it in, I lurch forward and hurl into the dirt. The splattering on the ground causes another spasm in my chest, and I heave again. I close my eyes and breathe through my mouth, but I’m shaking, my throat raw.
Finally, I wipe my mouth and use the rock to help me stand. The pain is like a hot knife when I move, so I rest between shifting positions, huffing the cold air. Finally, I’m upright. I rest my back against the boulder. Dead larch needles cling to my shirt and knees, and I’m sure there’s puke splattered on my pants. Prickly dirt trickles down my back. It makes me want to rip my shirt off. I could walk back up to that lake and dive in, never come up for air again.
If it wasn’t for William, I would be tempted.
I heave a slow breath and close my eyes. In my mind’s eye, I see Sofie, gazing at me with that wicked grin, the one that turns my crank.
I’m going to have to lie to her, too.
The weight of my situation sinks through me, making every breath feel thick and prickly. I ball my fists. Fuck!
This is why I should have stayed away. Resisted my stupid, stupid cravings. Because I’m going to hurt her, and she deserves so much better.
The loss rises up inside me, big and dark and so fucking painful. My chest hurts like my heart is in a vice. I rub the place with the heel of my hand but it doesn’t help. A sob rips through me and I shut my eyes tight.
I’m going to lose her.
But if I’m not careful, I’m going to lose everything.
With the new burner phone tucked into my pack, I limp back to the trail.
The hike down passes in a blur of dusky color, the muted trill of songbirds in the trees, and pain. The renewed ache in my side radiates through my collarbones and lower back. My churning, empty stomach feels like a pincushion. Raw. I look over my shoulder, wondering if I’m being watched, but the darkness is falling fast and thick. By the time I get to the trailhead, it’s completely dark except for the pale glow from a gibbous moon.
The crunch of my boots on the gravel thunders in my ears as I cross to the truck. Once inside the cab, I gently rest the back of my head on the seat and close my eyes. Going back to town and the ranch means I’m going to have to start lying and pretending.
I have to become someone I’m not—someone I hate.
A thought niggles to the surface like a worm popping out of the dirt.
Is Kristov in custody back in McKenzie Valley or not? My attacker answered my question with violence. You don’t know shit.
During my drive, I try to come up with how I’m supposed to share the fake intel about the traffickers using hunting camps and The Limelight with Stu. If I say I overheard it, it sounds fishy as hell. He won’t believe me. And even if he did, he’d want to know why I didn’t call Sheriff Olson the minute I had cell service.
As I pull up to the ranch garage, an idea begins to form. I’ll need to spend some time in town and work on my story so it’s memorized and ready for the sheriff’s scrutiny.
Henry said to call for a ride, but I can’t face him right now. I feel exposed and angry. Like the shell of myself that I left behind in Alaska is on my back, weighing me down, digging into my skin.
But I’m not about to shirk my responsibilities or make the Huttons worry, so I slip into the childcare and recreation building, hoping the rental place is still open. A light is on in the back, so I knock on the window. A dark figure pops up. It’s one of the shop guys. Kai, I think, based on his lanky silhouette. He weaves through the bikes and uses a key fixed to his belt loop by one of those heavy chains to unlock the door., then quickly stuffs the keys away.
“Need something?” Kai asks. Even though his voice is calm, his dark eyes are tense with suspicion. Or maybe he’s reading the dread pooling in my gut like poison.
“Stu said it’d be okay to borrow a bike some time,” I say .
His eyebrows knit together. “Now?”
I shrug, hoping it doesn’t look as stiff as it feels. “I thought I’d go ride early tomorrow.”
“Um, sure.” He opens the door wider.
I follow him into the shop, past the rows of bikes hanging from the ceiling hooks. “Where do these go during ski season?” I ask to break the tension.
“Storage,” he replies.
Okay, so he’s not talkative. He’s probably eager to get going.
In the work area, both stands used for repairs are empty. There’s a row of bikes in the back, facing us. Kai rolls one of them toward me.
He gives me a quick up-down scan. “This should fit you.”
“Thanks.” I nod at the back door, which is ajar, like he was just about to exit that way. “Okay if I go through there?”
“Yeah. I can lock up behind you.”
I spin the bike around.
“Here.” He hands me a helmet. “You have gloves?”
“Yeah,” I say, even though I don’t. I’ve bugged him enough.
He gives me a quick nod. “Enjoy.”
I try to smile.
Outside, the cool night air sends a shiver down my arms. I wheel the bike past the building and cross the lit path to the grass and down to the road. The lodge patio is lit by the fire pits and the soft lighting filtering through the giant windows. I catch a glimpse of the interior, with staff buzzing around, tending to the needs of the guests. I’ve never been inside the main lodge. Employees aren’t allowed unless we have a reason, and Stu made it clear I don’t.
Though I know just because the patrons are wealthy doesn’t mean they’re immune to problems, it’s hard not to want to trade places with one of them right now.
The ride through town under the glowing moon would be a hoot if it didn’t hurt to pedal. Being back on a bike reminds me of those days on Evan and Jared’s property, either riding alone or with one of them. I wonder if William’s taken up riding yet. We could do it together.
Though the cold air makes my eyes sting, the tears that blur my vision have a different source. How can I protect my brother without destroying the life I’m building for myself? I almost laugh at my foolishness—just hours ago, I was marveling at how Finn River had started to feel like home.
Thanks to the mess I’m now in, that dream died up there in the larch grove.
My quivery stomach twists violently. I gulp cold air in short bursts even though it hurts my rib. Finally, the nausea subsides. I focus instead on the pain, and the certainty that, for now, my only option is to do as the man says.
There has to be a way out of this. A solution.
When I get to the main street, I scan both directions, looking for a utility pole with flyers posted on it. I spot one a block away.
I squeeze my handlebars, the cushy grip flexing beneath my fingers.
At the pole, I make sure no one is watching, then rip The Limelight’s most faded playbill from the staples. The ink has faded thanks to the harsh elements. It’s two weeks old, too. Another plus.
I arrive at the Huttons exhausted, but I head into the barn to finish my chores before I climb upstairs. The space is lit only by the night light plugged into the tack room wall. Leo snorts from his stall and steps over, his footfalls slow and heavy. Bracing for the pain, I grab the wheelbarrow and shovel, but when I enter Leo’s stall, it’s been cleaned, and his hopper is full, which means someone’s done this work for me.
This makes me feel worse. Leo huffs softly, his serious eyes on me. I move closer and gently stroke his neck, inhaling his comforting musk mixed with sweet hay.
“What am I going to do, boy?” I ask him.
He huffs another sigh.
I stroke him once more, then step from the stall and return the wheelbarrow to its place next to the tack room. I check on Bea, who is busy munching her dinner, and then Galaxy, who perks his ears but doesn’t approach.
When I turn away from his stall, a figure is in the doorway, blocking the moonlight.
Henry.
“Long day, huh?” he says when I approach.
Fuck. The longest. “Yeah. ”
“Hungry? Barb saved you?—”
“Thanks, but I think I’ll just go to bed.” The thought of looking into Barb’s eyes right now, knowing how hurtful this is all going to be when it falls apart, is too much.
“Understood,” Henry says in a kind voice. He nods at the mountain bike leaning up against the side of the barn. “Nice bike.”
“It’s a loaner.”
“That rib must be feeling better,” he says with a smile.
“Yeah,” I reply, trying to smile back. At least the darkness is good cover, or he’d likely know it was fake.
This makes me think of Sofie and my invitation.
Shit.
She’s no doubt thinking we can pick up where we left off. My longing for that burns so hot my skin prickles, but there’s no way I can be with her right now.
I’ll have to send her a message. Cancel the night we were going to spend together.
I’ll have to cancel everything.
“I gotta help move some horses tomorrow early,” Henry says. “I could use your help, if you’re up for it. I can drop you at the ranch in time for work.”
“Of course,” I reply with a nod.
“All right,” Henry says, tilting his head like he’s trying to read more from me. “All right.”
We part ways, and I watch him saunter back toward the house, his head lowered as if he’s deep in thought. I just hope it’s not about me.
Whatever happens, however I decide to fix this—I can’t let it put him or Barb in danger. They’ve been so good to me. Better than I deserve.
The longing to go back in time to those moments earlier today when I imagined William here with me pulls so tightly that I have to pause on the stairs. Pain and loss flood into me. I grip the railing and shut my eyes. Fuck it hurts.
And it’s only the beginning.