‘Do you want this back now?’ Jay held out my knife.
Call me a pessimist, but I wasn’t ready to let her go unarmed. ‘No, keep hold of it. Think of it as a lucky charm.’
Tears were in her eyes as she tilted her head up to me. ‘I think I already found one of those. Thanks for everything, Joe.’
Before I could stop her she threw her arms round my waist and hugged me tight. I gave her a brief hug back, but it was a little too early for her thanks. She could give me a proper cuddle when I got back with both the other girls in tow.
Extricating myself from her arms, I took the container of water and splashed some of it in my mouth. It went as far as swilling down the grit that had embedded itself round my gums, but that was all. The rest I handed back to Jay. ‘You know your way out of here? Just keep the sun over your right shoulder and it’ll take you back to State Highway seventy-seven. When you hit it, try the phone, you should get a signal there. Don’t go north to Indian Wells, head south for Holbrook because that’s the direction the cops will likely come from. When you find the first truck stop, pull in and wait for them. You’ll be safe there, OK?’
‘Yes, I remember that place. We passed it on the way towards the Painted Desert on Tuesday. God, what day is today? I’ve no idea how long those animals have been holding us.’
‘It’s Friday,’ I said.
‘Four days? It felt like for ever…’
I touched the side of her cheek, my palm cupping her jaw. ‘It’s over with now. You don’t have to be frightened any more.’
She blinked tears from her lashes, and her gaze was forthright. ‘Not for myself, I don’t.’
‘I’ll get them out. Trust me.’
‘I do. I really do.’
‘OK, get going then.’ I turned her towards the Yukon, and gently pressed her inside. She slung the water container on the passenger seat, then looked back at me. Her mouth opened to say something, but I anticipated her. ‘Don’t come back here with the cops. Just tell them where the girls are being held and who’s responsible. Tell them that I’ve gone to get them free. I don’t want to be confused with those arseholes and have a well-meaning cop put a bullet in my brain. And remember, as soon as you’ve spoken to the cops, ring my friend and tell him where I’m at.’
Jay shifted into drive as I closed her door. I scanned the desert for movement but could neither hear nor see any sign of the Logan pick-up. Flat-handed, I banged the door. ‘Go, and don’t stop for anything.’
The Yukon spat gravel at me as Jay gave it a tad too much throttle. The thick tyres chewed at the desert, found traction and then surged forward. I watched it go until it was enveloped by the sifting dust clouds. Finally, I thought, as I allowed my body to fold slightly. I massaged my ribs, but it did little to alleviate the pain I’d suffered since Samuel hammered me. At least one of my ribs felt like it had cracked, and the flesh around it was puffy with bruising. If only Jay had suspected how much pain I was in, then maybe she wouldn’t have trusted me to get her friends out alive. She would have quite rightly argued that we should both leave and allow the police to handle the rescue. Ordinarily I might have gone along with her, but I wanted my time with the Logans before the police could arrive. Jail wasn’t good enough for those sick bastards.
‘OK, suck it up, Joe,’ I commanded.
I straightened, feeling the pull of tissue in my side, but ignored it. I’d had worse injuries before, some of them life-threatening. Then I began to jog. By the time the mushroom mountain came into view I was up to full pace and the agony in my body had been pushed to the dim recess where all my other troubles were shelved.
I felt fine, and ready for the Logans.
I’d have felt better if Samuel had appeared out of the dust before me, but he didn’t. That was OK, I was happy to leave him to last. Carson and Brent weren’t going to be personal kills, but Samuel was a different matter. The father and son were just for starters. Samuel Logan: he would provide the icing on the cake.
19
‘You’d better not be dead, goddamnit! Now answer me, Sammy.’
I had made it back to the junk pile unhindered. Now, peering across at the ranch, I was tempted to take out the radio and reply to Carson Logan as he grew more frantic by the second. For the last few minutes he’d been calling out regularly, and his tone had gone from one of slight concern to one of anger. That was good, because he wouldn’t be thinking straight. His cousin’s silence was helping to both demoralise and confuse his own search.
I could hear the pick-up truck out there in the desert but couldn’t see it. There was too much dust in the air as the afternoon began to slip towards evening and the wind started to kick up again. The acoustics were still hit and miss and occasionally I couldn’t pinpoint the direction of the truck, but it was still behind me. Since he’d disappeared among the ravines I’d had no sign of Samuel. Part of me hoped a rattler had bitten him, or he’d fallen and smashed his skull on a rock, while another part looked forward to a rematch. My only worry was that he’d actually returned to the house and was now inside, preparing to move the girls as soon as the older cousin returned. I had to plan for two men at the house, which could cause me major problems if they each held one of the girls when I entered. Not to mention that both Samuel and Brent had assuredly armed themselves by now. Best-case scenario would be if Samuel was still out there trying to pick up my and Jay’s trail and Brent was still oblivious to the danger. I wouldn’t know how things would play out while crouching there listening to Carson’s rant over the radio, and the longer I waited, the greater their chances of returning before I got moving. I resisted the amateurish temptation to taunt him, knowing that would only bring him back here at speed.
Before moving on the ranch, I gave the gun a cursory inspection and found everything in order. Jay had test-fired it for me, so I knew that it was a reliable piece. I positioned fresh shells in my pockets for easy access. Then I advanced, moving in a crouch for the outbuildings. Even if Samuel had made it back, there was nothing like the present for a rapid assault on the ranch while even he would think that Jay and I were still running in the opposite direction.
Earlier, Carson had commanded his son to guard the others, waving him back inside off the porch, so it was a good bet that both girls were inside the house. The outbuildings didn’t require checking for hostages, but I still wanted to scope them out. The first was a barn that hadn’t seen livestock in a generation, but what I found was very troubling. A huge table that weighed more than I did — perhaps more than I would with my big friend Rink on my shoulders — dominated the centre of the space. Trailing from one leg was a length of rusty chain with a robust dog collar on the end. The food bowl, spoon and bucket left untouched beside it told me that the chain hadn’t held a mutt.
Moving on I checked out another shed, this one a three-sided structure, with a tin roof and a large board jammed at the front to act as a door. Through a gap between the planks I found what I was expecting, and that was even more troubling than the barn where women had been leashed. Frowning, I headed for the house, thinking now that just maybe there was more to this than I’d originally suspected. I hoped I was wrong, but it was imperative that I act and get Nicole and Ellie the hell away.
From across the wide basin I heard the pick-up return through the pass. At this distance I couldn’t see it, but Carson was talking on the radio again. ‘I’m going back to where I dropped you off, Sammy. If you can hear me, git your ass back there and I’ll pick you up. I think we’d better git a move on and prepare for some unwelcome company.’