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The crack of Lewin’s gun startled Jay, but also set her in motion. She screeched out a cry as blood spattered next to her feet, and turned her jump of fright into a run for the Yukon.

‘Stop!’ Lewin’s shout was almost as loud as the gunshot of a second before. ‘I’ve just killed my fucking sergeant: don’t think I’ll go any easier on you!’

Jay didn’t stop.

Earlier she’d thought that death would be preferable to being taken again by the Logans, but thinking it was one thing, quite another when a bullet could take out your heart in the next instant. She didn’t want to die, and her body reacted without guidance, making her run faster than she’d ever done in her life. Behind her came the slap of Lewin’s boots on the road.

She made it to the Yukon, and having left the door open when first seeing the police cruiser she was inside it within seconds. The engine was still purring. She pushed it into drive and put her foot on the gas. But it wasn’t enough. Lewin was already there, reaching inside and grappling her. The car shot forwards, knocking Lewin aside, but she had no control of the wheel and the Yukon went down off the road and into a dry ditch. The collision with the opposite bank threw her foot off the pedal and the Yukon’s engine cut out at the same time. Frantic, Jay looked around. Lewin was at the side of the road, stunned, but already clambering back to his feet. She twisted the keys in the ignition and relief flooded her as the engine kicked to life with a low grumble. She gave it throttle, but even such a large vehicle couldn’t push its way perpendicular. She threw it into reverse and tried again.

Lewin reached in and turned off the engine.

‘I told you to stop, goddamnit.’

Jay didn’t fight him this time; she lifted her arms to show surrender. It was all she could do with the muzzle of his pistol against her temple.

23

Once upon a time the Navajo must have lived all over this territory. I recalled passing the commercialised trading post the evening before while travelling over from New Mexico, and noting the ancient caves in the rock face beyond the stores. They had been decorated with vibrant turquoise pictograms, depicting hunting scenes. The cave that I found where Nicole and Ellie could shelter was nowhere near as dramatic, but even there I found signs of ancient occupation. The cave art here was merely scratches on the walls, and I couldn’t really tell what the hands of men had formed and what were the results of weather or geological activity. Some of the pictures were easily identifiable: a spotted horse, a man, the sun, but the rest were nigh-on indecipherable. If I’d discovered the cave on another occasion I’d have been enthralled, but not while more pressing matters held my attention.

Natural steps allowed easy access to the cave, approximately fifty feet up the side of a rock face. It wasn’t a single cave I’d found; that would have been too obvious a hiding place for the girls, but one of many in the pock-marked mountain. I wasn’t sure about the indigenous life forms, or if the cave could be home to something dangerous. As far as I knew there were no mountain lions here and bears were confined to the northern states — I hoped. I checked it out first, just in case, before waving at the girls to join me inside.

‘There could be snakes or scorpions, so be very careful where you sit,’ I cautioned then.

They were too exhausted to care. I’d pushed them solidly for the last half-hour, setting a pace that had robbed them of their breath and slicked their bodies with sweat. They both sat down immediately, and Nicole’s hands went to her feet to massage the chafed flesh under the tatters of blanket. While they groaned and busied themselves with their water bottles, I made my way to the mouth of the cave. From my high vantage I could see all the way back to the ranch. It looked like a cluster of bleached shoeboxes, the watering hole a shimmering ribbon alongside it. I didn’t pay the ranch much heed but looked for the mushroom mountain at the head of the trail. At first I couldn’t distinguish it from the rest of the hills because at this distance and elevation it had lost its distinctive shape. I traced a route from the ranch, to the huddled boulders, to the broken ridgeline and then, at the far end, found what I was looking for. Something glinted in the sunlight. It could only be the pick-up truck, I realised, because nothing else was moving out there. I couldn’t make out the truck, but saw the plume of dust as it raced back towards where I’d fought with Samuel among the ravines.

It was only a matter of time.

I went back inside the cave and saw that Nicole had helped herself to the clothing I’d stuffed into my rucksack. She’d shrugged out of the denim jacket, and I caught her in a state of undress. Her face went beetroot as she covered herself with her arms.

‘Sorry,’ I said, showing her my back.

Her self-consciousness was a good sign. Earlier she had been so down-beaten that her nakedness hadn’t been a consideration. She must have been operating on autopilot, the shock of what she’d been through dulling her senses. From behind me I heard her feet shuffle on the floor, followed by the rustle of clothing being hurriedly pulled on.

‘It’s OK, I’m decent now.’

Taking things easy, I approached the girls. Nicole was still standing, albeit on one leg while trying to pull a shoe on to her opposite foot. Ellie hadn’t moved from where she’d collapsed in exhaustion, and she was now sitting cradling the bottle of water to her chest, her dark hair hanging in bangs over her features. My shirt had rucked up on her tiny frame and looked like a tent with her head poking out of the top.

‘Is there something that Ellie can put on?’ I asked.

Nicole delved in my rucksack and brought out a shirt and thick tights.

As Nicole reached for her, I held out my hand. ‘Just give her a few minutes to get her breath back.’ I nodded towards the entrance of the cave. ‘Could I have a word, Nicole?’

The young woman must have understood what was troubling me. She placed the clothes down next to Ellie, then gently ran her fingers over the girl’s hair while whispering soothingly. Ellie nodded in reply but didn’t as much as look my way. Nicole followed me to the exit where I indicated she should sit down out of view of the outside world. I sat next to her so that we could converse in whispers.

I didn’t know where to start. Not that I was a stranger to victims of violence, inhumanity, rape, but this was somehow different. I felt a personal attachment to these girls I’d pledged to save, and broaching the subject felt like I was reinflicting the horror of their situation on them. Nicole must have sensed my reticence, so she said, ‘They both raped me. Carson and Brent. More than once.’

‘Oh God…’

‘I’m all right. I’ve survived.’ The way she said it, it was like she was repeating a mantra she’d clung to for the last few days. But I could tell it was not something she believed. I wanted to give her comfort, but physical contact might have been misconstrued. Instead I just sat there, offering a presence she could rely on. Though it wasn’t enough, it was all I could think to do.

‘What about Ellie?’ My voice broke at the end. Jesus, it wasn’t something I wanted to contemplate.

‘They hit her, forced her to watch, but no, they didn’t touch her like that.’

‘Thank God.’ I could have kicked myself for the insensitivity of my statement, but Nicole didn’t appear to pick up on it. In fact, quite the opposite, judging by the way she looked at me. Never throughout her ordeal, I believed, had Nicole wished it was someone else that the Logans assaulted. I could tell by the way she had comforted the girl that she felt protective.

‘I wouldn’t have let them.’

Her words were loaded, and I understood. She’d offered herself to the brutes to keep them away from Ellie. Allowing them to abuse her was a fair trade to ensure the girl was spared. Earlier I thought that, of the two of them, Jay Walker was the stronger, but now I suspected otherwise. There was more to strength than the obvious. I admired Nicole, but I also pitied her. A good person like her shouldn’t have to suffer what she’d endured.