Every Precious Thing lh-2

by Brett Battles

  Several minutes later they passed a sign indicating the town of Tusayan was only a couple miles ahead, and that the entrance to Grand Canyon National Park was just beyond it. Several ideas had been playing through Logan’s mind, some more far-fetched than others. He finally settled on the one that had the best chance of improving their situation, and punched in Diana’s number on his phone.

  When she answered, she was silent at first, then, “Who is this?”

  “It’s Logan,” he said.

  He could see her twist around and look back at him.

  “Stop in the first gas station in Tusayan,” he told her.

  “You’re not in charge.”

  “You know the area better than I do, but isn’t this the last town before the park? Wouldn’t it be a good idea to top off our tanks so we don’t run out later?”

  He could hear her breathing on the other end, and then the line went dead.

  The town turned out to be basically a half-mile strip of motels, restaurants, touristy stores, and not much else. The Grand Prix sped right past the first place to get gas without even slowing.

  Logan brought up Diana’s number again, ready to hit redial, but then the Grand Prix’s brake lights flashed, and it turned into a station right across the street from the National Geographic Grand Canyon visitor’s center.

  A needless power play, he knew, meant to show him they were the ones in charge. Diana and her friend stopped beside one of the pumps, and Dev pulled the El Camino in behind it.

  Dev started to get out to fill the tank.

  “Wait,” Logan said.

  His friend looked back at him.

  “I’m going to leave this with you.” Logan put the Fitzer on the dash.

  “Where are you going?”

  “With them,” Logan said, nodding at the other vehicle.

  “Are you sure they’re going to like that?”

  “I don’t care. What I want you to do is drive into the park. Our shadow will follow you. Once you’re there, park somewhere there’s a lot of other cars, and keep an eye out for her. I’ll check in with you later to make sure she’s out of our way.”

  “Okay, but one problem,” Dev said. “No phone, remember?”

  “I’m going to take care of that right now. Fill it up. I’ll be right back.”

  Logan got out of the El Camino and walked over to Diana’s car. Her big companion was standing by the pump, filling up their tank. He glared at Logan, making it clear he was not nearly as convinced of Logan’s good intentions as Diana was.

  Being the first time Logan was able to get a good look at the man, he noticed something beyond the glare-the nose, the cheeks, the set of the man’s jaw. They were nearly identical to Diana’s.

  And Sara’s, too.

  Diana lowered the passenger window as Logan walked up.

  “I need your Blackberry,” he said.

  “I don’t think so.”

  He quickly laid out his plan.

  “You didn’t get rid of that thing already?” she asked, shocked.

  “That would have only made her come for us sooner. This way, she won’t think anything’s up.”

  She shot a glance at the street, then back at him. “She could be driving by us right now.”

  “She could be, but she won’t.”

  “How do you know for sure?”

  “I don’t, but it wouldn’t make any sense. She knows where we are. She also knows that Dev and I know what she looks like. She won’t chance that exposure. We can use her trust in her equipment against her.”

  He watched as Diana processed this, the tension in her face easing only slightly once she realized he was right. “Who are you?”

  He smiled. “Can I have your phone now?”

  She handed him her cell.

  Back at the El Camino, he gave it to Dev. “Be careful.”

  “Don’t worry about me,” Dev said, looking at Diana’s friend. “You’re the one who needs to be careful. He might be a problem.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  Logan retrieved the small canvas bag he kept behind the El Camino’s bench seat, and shoved in the pistol he’d obtained the night before. By the time he walked back to the Grand Prix, the big guy was already behind the wheel. He looked back in surprise as Logan opened the rear door and climbed in.

  “What are you doing?” he said.

  “He’s coming with us,” Diana told him.

  “Hell, no, he’s not!” He looked back at Logan. “Get out of the car!”

  “We’re wasting time,” Logan replied, his eyes locked on the man. “Let’s go get your sister.”

  There was a full second’s delay before both Diana and her brother realized what Logan had said.

  The man gaped at him. “How did-”

  “Richard,” Diana said. “Just go.”

  The brother-Richard-continued to stare at Logan. “I told you we couldn’t trust this guy. He already knows too much. It’s just a trick. He’s playing us to get to her!”

  “Think about it,” Diana said. “He knows where Emily is. If he’s with them, he doesn’t need Sara anymore.”

  Richard still seemed less than convinced.

  Diana looked at Logan, and back at her brother. “I trust him.”

  Richard narrowed his eyes and said to Logan, “You make one wrong move, and I will kill you.”

  “You could try,” Logan said, staring back. “Now, are we going to just sit here? Or are we going to go help keep your sister alive?”

  CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

  Something was going to happen soon. It had to. They were running out of road. According to the map, not far ahead was the town of Tusayan, and then the Grand Canyon. There was a road that traveled along the southern rim to the east that eventually ran into another highway, but Erica couldn’t imagine them going that way. South on that highway would take them back to Flagstaff. It would have been considerably easier for them to take that route originally instead of the interstate to Williams then north to the park on the state highway.

  No. Wherever they were headed, they were getting close. She was sure of it.

  As she was about to check the monitor again, her phone rang.

  “Yes?” she said.

  It was Clausen.

  By the time the call was done, Erica was smiling more broadly than she had in months.

  CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

  Instead of turning right and continuing in the direction they’d been headed, Richard went left out of the gas station parking lot, up one block, then left again onto a deserted side road. Within a minute, the town was behind them as they headed east.

  Though the road had been paved, it was obvious that maintaining it had not been a huge priority. Mix that with the snow and summer rains and it was almost a wonder there was still any asphalt left at all.

  “Where are we going?” Logan asked.

  Richard glanced at him in the mirror and then refocused on the road.

  As Diana opened her mouth to respond, her brother said, “Don’t.”

  She looked at him, exasperated. “Richard, just drive. Let me do the thinking.”

  It was clear this wasn’t the first time Richard had been similarly rebuked by Diana. He looked annoyed and uncomfortable, but he said nothing.

  Diana turned to Logan. “A cabin. Belongs to a friend I knew when I used to work around here. He moved back east so he doesn’t get this way very much anymore. Impossible to tie it to me, so not a chance anyone would look for Sara there.”

  Logan wasn’t sure it was impossible, but it was better than using a place Diana had lived in before.

  “You still haven’t told me who these people are.”

  “Does it really matter? I’ll let you talk to Sara, see that she’s all right. Then you can tell her husband to forget about her.”

  “Whoa. I thought I was here to help.”

  “And I never said we needed it, did I?”

  He paused, glancing out the window. The day was dimming as a mass
of gray clouds began to cover the sky. “You really think Alan can forget about her?”

  “He has to.”

  “Why? Why does he have to?”

  She shook her head. “It’s better if he doesn’t know that.”

  After a moment, Logan said, “I’ll know where she is.”

  “No, you won’t,” Diana told him. “When we leave today, we’ll all go together. We’ll drop you in Tusayan and your friend can pick you up. Sara’s already been here long enough. Time for her to move on.”

  “To where?”

  She looked at him, snorted a laugh, and turned away.

  Soon the road got really rough and became more dirt than blacktop. After a mile of this, they turned down another road that was no more than two well-worn tire paths.

  Richard dropped their speed to a crawl, carefully navigating the dips and rises so that the bottom of the car didn’t scrape against the mound between the ruts. The road finally ended in a small clearing. It was just big enough so Richard could turn the car around and park it so that it faced the way they’d come.

  Logan scanned their new surroundings. “Where’s the cabin?”

  Diana pointed at the trees behind the car and climbed out. Logan removed his pistol from his bag and joined her. As Richard was coming around the back to where they were standing, he suddenly stopped, raised the gun he was holding, and pointed it at Logan.

  “I told you we couldn’t trust him!”

  His gaze flicked to Logan’s pistol.

  “Are you kidding me?” Logan asked. “These people who are after Sara tried to kill me last night. Until this is over, I’m armed. Got it?”

  Richard didn’t lower his gun. “As soon as you know where the cabin is, you’ll put a bullet in the back of our heads and then go after Sara. Plain as day, Diana. You’ve got to see that now.”

  Logan couldn’t help but feel a bit of sympathy for Richard. The guy might have been lacking a little in the smarts department, but he more than made up for it with his sense of loyalty.

  Logan crouched down, set his gun on the ground, then stood and took three quick steps until the barrel of Richard’s gun was only a foot in front of his chest.

  “Happy?” he asked.

  He concentrated on Richard’s face, seeing the man’s anger and confusion and stubbornness mixing together.

  Richard opened his mouth. “I-”

  In a single, fluid motion, Logan’s hands shot up, twisting the gun free as he pivoted to Richard’s side and dropped him straight to the ground. By the time Richard could have reacted, Logan had a knee on his back, and the man’s own gun pointed at his head.

  In the darkening sky, a thunderclap rolled over them.

  “I could put a bullet in you right now. That would solve a lot of problems. But I am not your enemy. Got it?”

  He stared down at Richard for a moment before tossing the gun several feet away and pushing himself up.

  “Ready?” he asked Diana after he retrieved his own gun.

  She looked as stunned as her brother had been, but she finally nodded. “Yeah.”

  Logan looked back at Richard. “Are you coming?”

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  First the thunder, then the rain.

  Only this time, the storm didn’t take Sara’s mind off her troubles. If anything, it made it worst. It had been a day since she’d last heard from Diana. All she could think about was one of the last things her sister had said to her.

  I screwed up.

  Screwed up what? Was that the reason she hadn’t called back? Had Diana been caught? Worse?

  She had told herself she would give it another three hours and then she’d hike out. There was a backup plan-there was always a backup plan-so she knew what she needed to do, but what if Diana and Richard were in trouble? They had done so much for her. Could she just turn her back on them?

  Emily.

  That’s who this was really about. She had to remember that. No matter what was going on with her brother and sister, she had to stay alive and hidden for her little girl.

  Though the storm looked like it might become one of the most intense yet, it was surprisingly easy for her to ignore it as she rechecked the pack with her emergency supplies, and made herself eat something to help her stamina on the potential journey ahead.

  As she took a bite of the peanut butter sandwich, she looked at the map again. Diana had marked the best route for her to hike into the park, where she could mingle with the tourists and catch a ride on one of the dozens of buses that visited the canyon every day. They had even walked the trail partway together the day Diana brought her out here.

  She didn’t know where she’d be without her sister and brother. Actually, she did know. Dead, and no longer able to protect her daughter.

  She knew Diana felt a tremendous guilt, blaming herself for Sara’s problems, but Sara never held her at fault.

  After she finished the sandwich, she poured herself a glass of water, took a few sips, then folded the map and carried it back over to the pack. Just as she was sticking it back in the pocket, lightning struck. She glanced out the window as the bolt lit up a portion of the trail she and Diana had walked. It ran along a ridge about a quarter mile away.

  Sara froze.

  There were three figures on the path. She rushed over to her pack, retrieved the binoculars, and focused them on the ridge.

  Too late. Whoever had been there was gone.

  Two things she knew for sure: they were coming this way, and since there were three people, they couldn’t be just her sister and brother.

  Storm or no storm, she had to leave now.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  The rain soaked Logan, Diana, and Richard to the skin, and turned the dirt trail into a slick slurry of mud and pine needles. More than once, Logan found himself skidding across the surface, fighting to keep his balance.

  They had been walking for five minutes when the storm struck, and had traveled for another ten so far in the downpour.

  “How much farther?” Logan asked.

  “There’s a ridge right up there,” Diana said, pointing ahead. “We go along that, then down the other side. Less than ten minutes.”

  He nodded and fell back behind her.

  As they crossed the treeless ridge, a bolt of lightning hit the ground about three hundred yards away. For a second it was brighter than day. Though Logan had been in a lot of storms, that was the closest he remembered ever being to a lightning strike, and he hoped it stayed that way.

  “Come on!” Diana urged. “We need to get back under cover.”

  They jogged along the path and down into a flatter area where they were back amongst the trees. The ground was a bit firmer here so they picked up their pace, and soon reached the edge of a small field. In the center was a solidly built wood cabin. Together, they ran across the open space to the shelter of the covered entrance.

  Diana pounded on the door. “Sara! It’s me! Open up!”

  Nothing happened.

  She knocked again. “Sara? Open the door! We’re getting soaked!”

  Still no response.

  Moving over to the window, she looked in. “Sara?”

  She leaned back, confused, then ran to the corner of the cabin and disappeared around it. Logan and Richard quickly followed. When they reached the back, they found the door open and Diana inside, yelling Sara’s name. Logan rushed in just as Diana went through a doorway on the far wall. She reappeared a few seconds later.

  “She’s not here.”

  “Where else would she be?” Richard asked, his panic even greater than hers.

  “I don’t know! I just know she’s not here.”

  A book on the kitchen counter caught Logan’s attention. It was lying flat, its black cover open. A sketchbook. There was a pencil stuck between two pages about three quarters of the way through. Drawn there were the beginnings of a face. He flipped back through and saw page after page of more faces. Rather, page after page of only two faces-Em
ily’s and Alan’s.

  Sara couldn’t get her family out of her mind.

  As he looked up from the book, he noticed some food pushed to the back by the sink. A loaf of bread and an open jar of peanut butter.

  “She hasn’t been gone long,” he said.

  “How do you know that?” Richard asked.

  Logan lifted the bag containing the bread. “It’s open, but the bread’s still fresh, not dried out.”

  Richard sneered. “Still could have been hours.”

  Logan pointed at the nearly full glass of water.

  “That could have been there even longer.”

  Shaking his head, Logan ran his finger along the top of the glass. “Rim’s still wet.”

  Diana’s eyes grew wide. She darted to a closet at the end of the kitchen and pulled the door open. “Her pack’s gone.” She looked back at the two men. “She must be heading for the canyon.”

  “Why would she leave?” Richard asked.

  “I don’t know. I told her to hold tight.”

  “Doesn’t matter why,” Logan said, heading for the door. “Which way did she go?”

  A second later, they were back in the rain, running into the woods north of the cabin.

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  Sara knew the others had to have reached the cabin by now, which meant they knew she was gone. The question was, would they guess where she was headed?

  Don’t worry about that. Just keep going!

  But that was becoming a problem. When Diana had shown her the path, it was almost noon on a bright sunny day. Now, with the low gray clouds and relentless rain, she just couldn’t be sure she was going the right way. For the first five minutes, it had all been recognizable, but after that she was having a hard time spotting the landmarks she’d been told to look for.

  Wiping the water from her face, she paused and turned in a circle, scanning her surroundings.

  There. That rock. Isn’t it the one Diana had called “bear rock”?

  The angle was wrong, but the basic bear-like shape was there. Seeing no other options, she headed toward it.