Chapter 9 #2
A second shot rang out. His shoulder burned, but he held Hannah tightly as he jumped over the edge of the waterfall, twisting his body to shield her from the protruding points of the rocks as they plummeted to the pool of water at the bottom of the falls.
Pain shot through his hip as it hit an unforgiving, cement-solid, jutting prong.
The impact shifted his body. They were now going to hit the pool on his side rather than feet first. Not good.
Hannah’s hands dug into his sides. Another blow to his side felt like a knife ripping through his ribcage.
A low splashing sound echoed in his ears as his back crushed against the surface of the water, knocking the wind out of him, and his mouth opened.
Pain ripped through his spine. He gulped in water.
His lungs burned. A vision of an angel appeared before him.
His angel. Bright emerald eyes with gold flecks latched onto him and, as if magnetized, pulled him forward.
Suddenly, he felt the firm grip of hands pulling him.
His face broke through the surface of the cool water.
He choked and gasped as she quickly pulled him along the surface of the water.
“Hunter. We have to get out of here. You have to help me.”
He heard Hannah’s nervous pleas among his choking and gasping, but he couldn’t seem to gather his wits mentally or physically. Yet, the pain registered. His entire body throbbed and stung.
“Please, Hunter. You must get up!”
At the water’s edge, he rolled over and tried to use his hands to push himself up.
Agony ripped through his shoulder and back.
Hannah grabbed him at the bicep and pulled him until he stood, but her hands stayed firmly on him.
He wobbled. It was as if his right leg couldn’t support him. Her grip tightened.
“We have to hide. At least get into the woods.”
By memory, he knew the forest was only a few yards away from the water’s edge, yet his blurred vision prevented him from seeing anything other than a mass of green that seemed so far away. Yet, moments earlier, while in the water, Hannah’s angelic face was clear as could be.
His head throbbed.
Hannah lifted his arm and slung it over her shoulder. He leaned into her small frame and did the best he could to follow her lead.
He blinked rapidly to see if that would clear his vision. Not so much.
Between the scent of cedar and the tree roots, his sluggish feet nearly tripped over, he knew they’d reached the cover of the forest.
Hannah lifted his arm from around her shoulder, grabbed his hand, and set it on a branch.
“Hold that.”
Then she placed her hand on his chest and pushed slightly until his back touched the tree trunk.
“Are you going to be okay if I let go of you?”
Would he? Jelly filled his knees. Everything hurt like hell and he could barely see.
“Hunter, can you hear me?”
Hannah’s warm breath washed over his cheeks with her question. His cheeks. That might be the only part of him that didn’t hurt right now.
His angel’s hands gripped him at his sides.
“Can you speak?”
He closed his eyes and his head spun. He leaned it against the tree.
“God, Hunter. We have to get out of here. I don’t know where the shooter is.”
Shooter. Yes. A rush of adrenaline surged through him.
His eyes popped open. He let go of the tree and straightened his spine. Shear pain shot from head to toe.
“Yes. We need to move.”
She released him. “Okay. Which way. I don’t think we can go back the way we came, but I’m worried about Bianca. She’s at the campsite alone.”
Hannah paused and swallowed audibly. She swiped a tear from her cheek. “And, Alyssa...” she choked as she said her friend’s name.
“I know. But I didn’t hear any other shots. So, Bianca’s probably okay for now. Who in the hell would shoot at us?”
Just speaking exhausted him.
“I don’t know,” Hannah replied.
Hunter lifted his arm and placed his fingers to the side of his head. It was moist. Water or blood, he wondered as he moved his hand to the front of his eyes. Blood.
“You’re bleeding pretty badly. There and your shoulder. Your shirt is soaked with blood,” Hannah said.
He felt lightheaded.
“I have some medical supplies in my backpack,” she said as she made a move to pull it off.
“Wait, let’s move farther away from here before we worry about this. It won’t take him long to catch up to us if we stay still.”
“Him?” she questioned.
“I don’t know. Him, her, I don’t want to hang around to find out.”
“Come on,” he said.
He’d only taken a couple of steps before he stumbled again.
Hannah grabbed his upper arm. “Are you alright?”
“No, but we’ve got to move. Problem is, I can’t see very well right now. I know exactly where we are and how to get out of here without going back the way we came, but...”
“But what?” she asked, unable to hide the concern in her tone.
“It’s not a simple walk, especially since we’ll need to go off-trail, which is our fastest way out of here. Plus, I can’t see well right now. God, my head hurts,” he said as he swayed, barely able to catch himself.
She grabbed him by his upper arm.
“You’re going to have to guide my steps, which will slow us down.
Maybe you should just go ahead. Get yourself back to the river and follow it.
Conceal yourself inside the tree line. It won’t bring you back to the main camp that way, but within a mile or so, you’ll come upon a small town called Iron City. You can find help there.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“To stay safe. You have to. It’s okay. I’ll tuck myself in here and wait for you to send help.”
This would be for the best. Sure, he told her he couldn’t see, but what she didn’t know was that it took everything he had to hold himself together right now and stand before her.
The pain he endured had him on the verge of passing out, and he didn’t want her to know that.
He needed her to run to safety and not worry about him or have him slow her down. It was best for her if she’d just go.
“No. I’m not going without you,” her conviction let him know she wouldn’t.
He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The pain in his torso nearly sent him into shock, not to mention the bullet wound to his shoulder.
She placed her warm hand on his cheek. “I can’t do this without you. I’m scared. I just can’t,” her voice shook.
He opened his eyes and tilted his head forward. The throbbing in his temples was unbearable. Lightly, he touched his lips to her forehead. “Okay, we got this. Let’s move.”
After drawing in a shallow breath, he snatched up her hand and headed south. He’d snake them back to the river and then to Iron City. The nearest city to his uncle’s business with a police force.
Hunter willed his feet to move quicker, but he still feared he moved too slowly.
His heart raced and his pulse pounded, but he thanked God that adrenaline took over the pain.
Still though, he was cautious to make sure he picked up his heavy legs so as not to trip on the uneven earth below his feet.
Hannah was a tremendous help, letting him know about exposed tree roots and rocky areas.
He could see the trees and foliage, but it blurred together and the quicker he moved, the faster his pulse pounded, making his vision blur even more.
Heat scorched his skin. The increased pain and stinging throughout his body further distracted him from being able to pay attention to his footing.
He fell, landing hard on his hands and knees.
His right arm gave out, and he rocked back on his heels and cradled his right arm with his left.
It felt like a knife stabbed him in the hip where he’d hit the protruding rocks as they tumbled over the edge of the waterfall.
He pulled in a breath, hoping to soothe the pain, but all that did was sting his lungs and make his torso burn.
He was a freaking mess. The right side of his body was useless.
“Are you okay? Can you get up?”
“You need to describe to me where we are.”
“What?”
A shot rang out. His body tensed.
“Oh, God,” Hannah exclaimed.
“Hannah, that’s close, but not too close.”
“How do you know?”
“I hunt and target shoot. I know. But if he heads this direction, it won’t take long for him to catch up. You need to tell me right now what you see. For the most part, I know where we are, but I need our exact location. Describe it in detail.”
He needed this detail from her because he was certain he would pass out any minute now and needed to give her good directions to save herself.
Hannah’s breaths came quicker.
“Hannah, just take a second. Calm down. Everything will be okay. Just tell me what you see.”
She drew in a long breath and squatted next to him. “There are fewer cedar trees now and more mixed hardwood, white pines, and hemlock.”
“That’s good. Any other distinct features?”
“To your right, ten yards away is a huge white pine stump full of woodpecker holes. Just beyond that is a hill with a drastic slope, and to the left of that is a low rock ledge that Ts into the hill. If we keep moving in the direction we’re going, we’d hit the end of the ledge where it slopes down to the height of the ground level we’re on.
It’s fairly level to our left. Right next to us is a large downed clump of trees with a huge exposed root ball and a large hole in the ground. ”
“Perfect. We aren’t that far from the river, which is pretty narrow at this section.
It may look as if the woods don’t end, because you’ll see the woods on the other side of the river from this vantage point, but know the river is there.
It cuts between two rocky ledges standing about five feet or so above the surface of the water.
We would have canoed that way tomorrow to get to the branch of the river we’d use to return to base camp.
Still, I don’t want you to go that way. Keep going south along the river to get to Iron City. ”
“What? By myself?”
“The best thing for you is to keep moving. My job is to keep you safe, and to do that, you need to go.”
Hunter fell to his side.
“No, no, no. You have to open your eyes. Wake up. Please,” Hannah pleaded.
He wanted to open his eyes, but he couldn’t.
He wanted to spring up and lead her out of the woods, but he couldn’t move.
Something tightened around his shoulder.
Whatever it was suppressed the throbbing there.
Then his temples pounded less. Was he dying?
Nope, his lungs still burned, and his torso ached with every breath he took.
Suddenly, he felt as if he was moving, but he knew it wasn’t under his own power.
“Sorry, this might hurt,” Hannah whispered.
She pushed him, rolling him to his stomach, then she pushed him again, and he fell, hitting the ground with a thud, landing on his back. Fell? What? Hadn’t he already been sprawled out on the ground? A knife stabbed at his spine and hip. Something made a crinkling noise. Warmth washed over him.
He willed his eyes open to find Hannah’s face only inches from his. He wished he could see her clearly. He wished he could save her.
“Stay quiet. You need to be silent. I’ll send help.”
Then, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his, lingering only for a moment before his eyes fell shut.