Chapter 8
Dean
I don't know why, but I was hurt by her derogatory comments about me to her ex.
I shouldn't have cared a toss about her opinions of me.
She was only an employee and a damned irritating one at that.
Swallowing my anger, I stepped onto a stool and undid the skylight, which was heavy with snowfall.
Heaving, I pushed it partly open, and I forced my rifle through the gap into the snow.
A few minutes of hard labor, and I'd moved enough snow and ice to open it wide enough for me to crawl through.
Sweating profusely in my heavy clothing, I pulled myself up and scrambled onto the roof.
I crawled over to the edge of the roof and looked down.
A tall, heavily built, tanned-faced guy was standing outside the door, shotgun in his hand.
I needed to disable him and tie him up out of harm's way.
An animated conversation took place between him and Hayley. She was pleading and arguing with him in turn.
'You know I love you and can't live without you, Hayley. If I can't have you, nobody can.'
'We wanted children, but you hurt me. If you promise not to hit me again, I could love you and live with you again.'
'I don't want to share you with kids. I want you for myself. You insisted on working. I earned enough to support you.'
'You didn't want me even to go to the gym.'
'I didn't want men watching you.'
'I would come back with you if you gave me more freedom. I wouldn't want any other man than you. You need to believe me.'
'I can't. I see the way men stare at you and the way you flirt with them.'
'You've misinterpreted my friendship. I never flirted.'
She was acting wonderfully. I could almost believe she would go back with him.
I didn't give Jake a chance. I slid down the back wall.
Grasping the slippery tiles, I slithered down clumsily, knocking a few tiles that clattered down to the edge of the roof.
The wind howled and banged the shutters, covering the noise I made.
I let myself down and scooted around the hut, then ran and hid behind a copse.
I threw a rock to the right of me. He turned around and looked away from me, giving me a chance to run forward and launch myself at him.
He fell to the ground, dropping his gun, and I kicked him where it would hurt most. He fell back, curling up into a ball as I punched him in the throat.
Coughing, he gasped, 'I'll get you, Dean. You'll never have her.
'She doesn't want a nutter like you.' Damn him. If he knew my name, he must have been stalking me as well. He’s more dangerous and devious than I thought.
I whacked him and laid him out stone cold, taking his gun and throwing it away from us. I needed to find something to tie him up with.
He'd tied a plowshare to the handle, blocking the door. We couldn't have opened the door from the inside with it fastened like that. I cut the rope and tugged the plowshare to one side and opened the door easily.
'Oh, thank God,' exclaimed Hayley and ran out. She started when she saw Jake lying on the floor. 'Is he dead?'
'No, merely unconscious, but he'll wish he were dead when I've finished with him. The moron was going to barbecue us. See, he brought gasoline, matches, and rags with him on that sled. Find something to tie him up with. Do you have any shoelaces?'
'Only in my luggage in the car.'
'I'm going to send up some flares. We need the law to prosecute and mentally assess Jake.
' Hayley searched one of the older disused huts for rope while I found the flares and lit two.
They cracked and banged, sending blue and red streams of smoke into the air.
They were so noisy I hardly heard a scuffle behind me.
Turning round, I noted Jake stumbling to some trees.
Hayley yelled out, 'Dean, Jake has escaped.' I rushed to her. 'Where did he go?'
'Down the track.' I grabbed my rifle and pistol and shot after him, but Jake had been raised in the Appalachian Mountains and knew how to hide.
I came back. 'No good.'
'He's an expert, Dean. He takes management teams for wilderness trips. Thank goodness he’s not heading our team this week.'
'There are too many hidey-holes here. He may have hidden his tracks and buried himself under the snow for a while. When we arrive in town, I'll tell the sheriff, and he'll send dogs and trackers after him.
First, I'll send some flares. That will bring rescue parties up here soon.
We need to keep out of the hut. We are sitting ducks there if he wishes to try his dirty tricks again.
' I lit some more flares. 'We must see if we can sit in the car for a few hours until our rescuers reach us. If we have to return tonight, we must bring more of our food, some ammunition, and weapons. If we can move the car, we’ll take off down the mountain, but we may get stuck along the way.
Find some biscuits and make a hot flask of chocolate. '
I’m always prepared if I go into the wilderness. I've met disreputable men who prey on vulnerable strangers and steal their provisions, clothes, and cars. I was worried; the weather had deteriorated. I wasn't sure if we would have to turn back.
We set off stumbling and slipping. Sheet snow reduced our visibility, and I had to pull Hayley back when she nearly slipped over the edge of a gully.
When we reached the car, it was covered in snow. I cursed a blue streak.
'Even if I uncover the car, I can't open the doors. It will take a snowplow to pull this vehicle out. We will have to wait in the hut for help.' I smashed a hole in a window and pulled provisions from the back of the jeep.
'Let's go back.'
It was harder going back, and I slung my hand around her back, helping to push her up over the snowy mounds.
We returned to the hut exhausted and found it was now an inferno.
'That bastard has set fire to the hut.' The flames had reached the top of the hut.
Screaming winds blew them toward us, and we fell back.
I shoveled spades of snow into the flames.
As it melted, the flames turned to embers and black dust. There was little left, just a few cans, and we now lacked shelter and bottled water.
We would have to melt snow for water to drink.
I often go on wilderness weekends in the winter to retain my skills, but I was worried. How would Hayley survive a long trek down to the village. I still had my cell, but it could take hours before we gained reception and call for help.
Hayley added another fear. 'And Jake will still be out there waiting to hunt us.'
'Don't worry. I’m prepared for him; I spent years in Special Forces in the mountains of Afghanistan. I know what to look out for.'
I decided. 'Pick up the cans, and we will head for the jeep again. We can follow the road.'
Fortunately, the flares were outside. 'I'll send more up when we are closer.'
Hayley helped me collect our gear, and holding her arm, we tramped down the mountain.
We managed two miles and stopped. I felt uncomfortable, but she needed to rest. We sat hidden under trees and ate chocolate biscuits I'd kept in my jacket, a meagre ration, but they tasted wonderful to two weary walkers.
I checked behind me, but there was no sign of Jake, and we started again. We walked another two hours. At this level, the wind had lessened and visibility had improved, but we were easy targets stumbling along the track.
We couldn't see any footprints, but with his wilderness experience, Jake would cover his tracks.
'Only five miles to go before we're at the bottom,' I said, trying to encourage Hayley.
She smiled, 'Thank God. My legs feel like wood. When we get back, I'm going to double my efforts at the gym.'
'That's my girl. Be positive and we'll make it.' She gave me a queer look, but I'd grown to appreciate this plucky girl and wanted to keep her safe. She was growing on me.
She started. 'Look at that copse. Snow is falling, but there is little wind. I heard a scuffle as if someone were there.
'You're right. Jake may be here.' Before we could hide, a bullet whizzed past my ear, holing my hood, and I pulled Hayley behind a mound of snow.
'Follow me.' I crawled towards some trees, the silence punctuated by gentle thuds, the bullets hitting the snow around us. Thank God, the visibility was so bad up the mountain, Jake wouldn’t have been able to make a good shot.
'Where the heck did he get that gun?’
'He must have hidden it in a bag in the snow,' said Hayley.
He wasn't a brilliant shot, but good enough. I pulled out my rifle and gave Hayley a handgun. 'If you see him shoot. Don't hesitate. He’ll kill us both given half a chance.'
She grabbed it, a determination stamped on her face. 'I’ll enjoy taking him out after he tried to barbecue us. My dad was a Green Beret.'
Same steel, I thought. She's strong to have survived and done well after being abused. I was beginning to understand this complex woman and her reticence with men. She wore her surliness like a suit of armor, but I was gradually eroding it as she began to trust me.
'I will distract him,' she said, and before I could argue, she called out, 'Jake, I want to go with you.
Brant is too formal and proper for me. I miss the walks I took with you.
' She came from out of the trees. I covered her as Jake walked out from his hiding place.
I guessed she was his weakness, a drug; he still loved her in his own way, but his jealousy and need to control would never let her love him again. He was a fool.
'How do I know I can trust you?' he whined. I lay down and took aim. I didn't trust him an inch. He was far too volatile and could turn into a killer at a moment's notice.
'I only left you when you hit me.'
'I've had treatment and am a different man.'
Oh yeah, I thought. Many abusers say that. My dad said the same to my mom, and then he beat her silly. Some abusers change, but it is rare in my experience.
'Come over to me.'
'Will you let Dean go free?'
'Why do you care about him?'
'He's an innocent party in all this.'
'I can't let him go. He wants you for himself.
' With that, he turned and shot a hail of bullets in my direction.
None hit me, but I wasn't taking any chances.
I shot him in both legs, disabling him. He dropped his rifle and fell to the ground, gripping his bleeding limbs.
Like the cowardly swine he was, he sniveled, 'Don't shoot me again. Please! I want to live.'
'Roll over and put your hands behind your head,' I yelled.
I threw some twine to Hayley. 'Hayley, tie his hands tight. I kept the rifle aimed at him. Even an injured snake could turn on her and hurt her. She tied his hands tight, uncaring when he grimaced and complained she hurt him.
'Good, she said. 'It's payback time.'
Now what to do with him?
I set up a flare, and this time I saw an answering light and smoke.
I'd hardly any left, but help will soon arrive.
‘The rescue team will send a helicopter for us if they can't reach us by car.’ I pulled him under the trees and covered him with our spare clothes and blankets, and we started down the trail again.
Another two miles, and my cell gained reception.
'We've been searching for you,' said a rescue officer.
'I've got a criminal two miles up the mountain who tried to barbecue us. An ex of the associate whom I was taking to the bonding session.'
'We saw the fire and smoke and guessed something was wrong. Can you make it down?'
'The girl is exhausted, but yes. You'll need a stretcher or a helicopter for the guy.'
'I'll send a copter up, but you try to make it down. The last mile is passable by car, and I'll meet you there if you can make it, or my team will come up for you. Call me when you are near or need help.
'Thanks. Wilco.'
'Come on, Hayley. We'll be there soon,' I said, grabbing her arm and leading her down.
Now that the danger had gone, I was furious with her. 'That was a stupid thing to do. You could have gotten yourself killed.'
'What else would have worked?
I didn't know, but she'd frightened the life out of me. 'In the future, listen to me and don't do any hairbrained things again.'
'I won't need to.' She pulled her arm away, but staggered, and I curled my arm tightly around her again. She couldn't release herself and glared at me. Foolish, stubborn, but plucky girl.
We made slow progress until the rescue party reached us. Hayley sat on a snowmobile that easily navigated the more compacted snow near the bottom of the mountain. I snatched a ride with another rescuer, and the officer insisted we be taken to the hospital for checkups.
Later, Jake arrived on a stretcher. He passed me in the corridor and snarled, 'Swear I'll get you for this. You'll never have her. You're a dead man.'
'You'll be an old man by the time they let you out,' I replied. 'Attempted murder, harassment, abuse. Need I go on? You're cooked, mate.'
I harassed the nurse in charge to let me see Hayley. She gave in at last, and I found Hayley exhausted, dehydrated, but still her feisty self.
'They are keeping me in tonight, but I'm leaving tomorrow.'
'Well, you can go home knowing Jake can no longer hurt you. He’s going away for a long time. He threatened me in the corridor in front of the nursing staff.' Changing the subject, I said, 'The bonding event is postponed to next month. We’re expected to return to work after the weekend.'
She sighed, her relief evident. 'Great, without the shadow of Jake hovering over me, I can concentrate fully on my job and start new hobbies outside of the house.'
'Good, you've got your appraisal coming up soon.'
'I expect you'll be pleased to finish mentoring me.'
'Yes, I think I will,' I said. She looked hurt. What did I say to achieve that reaction?
'I'd better go. Try to relax now you're safe.
I'll see you at the office.' I left and went home to my condo and slept thirty hours flat, still in my clothes.
I wasn't looking forward to work after the weekend.
My life seemed flat after the excitement of these last few days.
Work and sport with three friends from the army dominated my spare time.
Since Cynthia, my adulterous wife, left me for a loaded monied investor, I'd isolated myself and licked my wounds. I realize now I’m a self-pitying fool.
I'd allowed a devious, manipulating, social-climbing bitch to ruin my life.
I needed more in my life and decided to make new friends and learn to trust people again.