A lone hawk’s cry echoed through the canyon, and August watched it circle overhead before disappearing over the cliff she intended to scale. She squinted up at the cloudless sky. It was only mid-morning, but her skin already felt scorched by the fiery sun glaring down at her. She wanted nothing more than to lie down in the grass and sleep. The hawk circled again, his cry ringing out as he neared the cliff. His message was clear. She needed to get moving.
*
Teal shaded her eyes and scanned the sky for what sounded like a low-flying plane. She was surprised to see the black helicopter approaching at a fast speed, but when it neared, the engine slowed to the distinctive whup-whup sound. The horses, although accustomed to darting, mooing cattle, skittered away from this huge bird when it descended and kicked up a cloud of stinging sand as it settled on the ground. Manny quickly dismounted and held the reins of both his horse and hers to steady them. Rio whined a bit but didn’t stir in her sling. She thought she would weep when the chopper’s blades slowed enough for the sand to settle and reveal the yellow DEA letters painted on its side.
Hawk jumped out, followed by a tall man bent low to avoid the churning blades, and ran toward them. “Teal, Manny, are you okay? Where’s August?”
“The Cobra…he’s still tracking her in the canyons,” Manny said as he reached up to help Teal dismount while burdened with Rio’s extra weight.
“Rio was bitten by a snake,” Teal said. “The man with Cobra was bitten twice. We left him on the main path of the gorge that opens by the pool.” She pointed toward the red cliffs that rose in the distance. “August sent Rio back with me.” Rio was quiet, her body limp against Teal’s. Manny released his belt holding the sling’s straps on her shoulders, and Hawk helped her lower Rio to the ground.
Rio panted, unmindful of her tongue lolling in the sand, and her eyes were barely open. She grunted softly as Hawk felt carefully along her chest and throat.
“She’s swelling all the way into her body. She needs steroids to stop it from getting worse,” Hawk said.
“You were with August?” The tall man had a buzz cut and steely blue eyes that bore into Teal’s when she looked up at him.
“Yes.”
“Then you can come with us.” He gestured to Manny. “He can take the dog and the horses back to the ranch.”
The ranch. The note said they shot BJ, but Pops didn’t say how bad he was wounded.
“Oh my God.” Teal grabbed Hawk’s arm. “BJ. Is he okay?”
He covered her hand with his and met her gaze. “They flew him and Pops to a hospital in Amarillo.”
“They shot Pops?” Instant tears choked her words.
“No.” He started to say more, then shook his head. “It’s a long story, but they’re doing all they can for both of them.”
The tall man glared at them. “You two can talk in the chopper.”
Teal glared back. “Who are you?” She was tired and hungry and worried to her very core.
“Pierce Walker, DEA, and you’ve got thirty seconds to get your butts in that chopper.”
“Hawk, how far is the nearest veterinary clinic?” Teal asked.
He blew out a breath. “As tired as these horses are, it’s another three hours to ride back to the ranch, then about an hour to the vet hospital in Plainview.”
“How long if we flew in a helicopter?”
Hawk eyed the modified Blackhawk. He’d done a tour in Iraq as a national guardsman and ridden in more than a few of the military version. “Fifteen minutes.”
Pierce was shaking his head. “You’re crazy if you think you’re putting that dog in that government helicopter, and even crazier if you think we’re going to make a side trip to the vet right now. Luis Reyes’s hit man isn’t chasing August so he can shake her hand. I’ve spent most of my career pursuing this guy, and she has the evidence I need to finally put him away.”
“Even if this dog is the only one who knows where that evidence is hidden?”
“Lady, I don’t have time for games.”
“August gave the thumb drives to Pops to hide, so she wouldn’t be able to tell Reyes where they were even if he tortured her. Then Pops told Rio to hide them. It’s a game August taught her.” Teal could feel Rio’s shallow breathing and rapid heartbeat against her chest, but she didn’t know if her heart would survive if something happened to August. “We’ll go get August, then fly Rio to a vet.”
“Oh, for God’s sake. Put the dog in the chopper. We’re wasting time.”
She looked to Hawk for confirmation that Rio would be okay for a while longer. He shrugged, his eyes apologetic, but nodded his agreement.
Teal was so tired that she allowed Hawk to buckle her into the safety harness and fit the headphones over her ears before settling in his own seat and taking Rio carefully into his lap. Pierce strapped into a seat adjacent to hers and stared at Rio.
The helicopter was roomy enough to carry eleven, so there was plenty of room for them as well as the two pilots and a second DEA agent, a woman whose gaze ran briefly over Teal and Hawk to settle on Rio. Teal wished she could stretch out across several seats and give in to her fatigue. She fought sleep as the Blackhawk lifted off, but her eyes flew open when Pierce’s instructions to the pilot sounded in her headphones.
“Set course to Plainview and radio local emergency services for a landing area as close as possible to their best veterinary hospital.”
Teal sat up. “No. We have to go get August first.” She struggled to free herself from the harness that held her in the seat.
Pierce tapped commands into the digital tablet he was using to bring up a map of Plainview. “Her testimony isn’t worth a damn without the information on those thumb drives to back it up. We’ll take care of the dog first.”
The last buckle released, and Teal flew across the small space to grab Pierce’s collar in both her hands and shake him. “We’re talking about a human life. We’re talking about August, who has put her life on the line to catch your drug dealer for you.”
He stared at her, his eyes lighting with realization, and his mouth drew into a tight, smug smile. “That evidence will put her ex-lover behind bars for a long time. I’m sure you wouldn’t mind having her out of the way, would you?”
Teal’s hand stung from the slap that connected with Pierce’s hard jaw. The fact that she’d finally snapped didn’t register in her brain until she was pinned on the floor of the Blackhawk by the other DEA agent, and Pierce’s gun was pointed at Hawk, who was halfway out of his seat.
“We’ve got a landing site and will be on the ground in six minutes,” the co-pilot said, turning in his seat at the commotion in the back.
Pierce holstered his gun. “Let’s all calm down.” He rubbed his cheek. “I guess I deserved that. I was out of line.” He signaled the agent to release Teal. “But I’ll have Agent McNamara handcuff you to your seat if necessary.”
The female agent instantly released Teal and helped her up from the hard floor. She returned to her seat, and Hawk leaned to put his mouth close to her ear.
“The Cobra still pursues. He has not caught up to her yet. We have time.”
She frowned at him, but he nodded to reassure her.
“You must trust that I know this.”
Teal reluctantly buckled back into her safety harness and accepted the headset Pierce held out to her. It’d been knocked off her head when she was wrestled to the floor, and he waited until she had settled it over her ears before speaking into his. “Captain, how’s our fuel?”
“We’re still good. When they modified this one, they left the extra fuel tanks.”
“Good. We’ll drop off the dog and Agent McNamara, then head back for the Caprock coordinates I gave you before we picked up our new passengers.”
“Ten-four.” The big bird dropped down toward the town that had come into view below. “We’ll be on the ground in two minutes. The clinic has been notified to expect you.”
Teal opened her mouth to protest but was
n’t sure what to say. She wanted to be sure Rio got the best care, but every minute they delayed gave Cobra more time to catch up to August. She looked to Hawk for an answer, but the hand on her knee drew her attention to Agent McNamara. Teal’s cheek ached from hitting the metal floor when the agent had efficiently taken her down in the blink of an eye, but McNamara had been gentle when she helped Teal back into her seat.
McNamara’s brown eyes held Teal’s for a few seconds, then softened as her gaze returned to Rio. “I’ll make sure they take good care of her. My wife runs a rescue nonprofit, so we usually have a houseful.” She brushed her hand across her pants leg. “I’m surprised you haven’t noticed the dog hair on my clothes already.”
For the first time in days, Teal felt a little of the weight lift from her shoulders. “Thank you. I really—” Her throat tightened around the next words, and she took a few seconds to swallow her fears. “I really need to find August and see that she’s okay.”
McNamara nodded, then began releasing the buckles on her harness as the Blackhawk touched down and stood to take Rio from Hawk. “Go get Ms. Reese. I’m sure she’ll want to know Rio’s getting the best care possible.”
Chapter Nineteen
August felt for a handhold to her right, the rough rock biting into her raw fingertips. She’d once been an avid climber and cursed the Saturdays that she’d declined invitations from friends to instead spend her weekends digging out from under the ever increasing caseload at the office. She found the small indention and curled her fingers into it. She sucked in a breath and hauled herself upward, searching blindly with the toes of her right foot for the place she’d chipped into the rock with her handpick.
Her hiking boots, too thick for climbing, bumped against her legs as they dangled from her belt, and her left foot slipped. She hung from her handholds for a few seconds, her heart beating wildly, then carefully slid her feet along the wall until she found support for both.
August clenched her teeth and waited for the wave of dizziness to pass. If she could reach the crevice thirty feet above her, she could crawl into it and hide for a while. Even if her pursuer tracked her to the cliff, she doubted he had climbing gear with him. He’d have to backtrack and take a different route into the park. By that time, she’d be among people and could summon Pierce Walker. She rested her forehead against the cliff and silently asked the mountain to forgive her desecration of its face and allow her safe passage.
The hawk’s cry startled her, and she realized she’d nearly fallen asleep while still clinging to the mountain. Exhaustion and dehydration were as much her enemy now as the evil pursuing her. She looked over her shoulder as the bird circled again. “Hawk, if that’s you looking out for me, then I owe you.” Reyes’s hit man wouldn’t have to bother with her if she blundered like that again and fell to her death.
The cliff face to her left was smooth, without a bump or crevice. She unhooked the small pick from her belt, stretched as high as she could, and carefully began to chip away at the rock. Normally she would take time to drive an anchor and hook her climbing harness to it for safety, but a sense of urgency was growing in her gut.
*
Cobra paused at the mouth of the wide canyon and scanned the landscape before him. A hot breeze ruffled the tufts of wiry grass that covered the prairie, though it provided no respite from the unrelenting heat. Sweat soaked his undershirt so that it clung to him like a second skin, but he didn’t mind. He sucked in the smell of sun-baked earth and his own man scent. Oh, how he relished the hunt.
He studied the ground. She’d long ago stopped leaving obvious hints but wasn’t taking time to throw him off her trail either. He squatted to examine the imprints in the dirt. He touched the faint spots that dotted the sand. Sweat, spit, water droplets from her canteen? Whatever the moisture, the sun hadn’t completely dried it yet. He was close. She’d paused here to rest—something he didn’t have to do. He took the case from his pocket again and started to open it when his eye was drawn to movement to his right. He slid the case back into his pocket and smiled at the figure climbing along the sheer rock wall to his right.
This was turning out to be so much fun that he should cut his fee in half. He laughed. But he wouldn’t. He might even charge double for the loss of Tito, considering the time it would take for him to break in a new wingman.
*
Hawk opened his eyes. He was the most Zen person Teal had ever met. She was exhausted, too, but couldn’t imagine sleeping when God knew what was happening to August.
He released his safety harness and put his hand on Pierce’s shoulder. “Can this thing go any faster?”
Teal had forgotten about the headset and jumped at the sound of his voice in her ear. “What’s wrong?”
We need to hurry,” Hawk said. “I can’t explain now, but he’s found her.”
Pierce stared at him for a long moment, then spoke into his headset. “Captain, what’s our ETA?”
“Their estimated entry point into the canyons is just ahead.”
With a jerk of his head, Pierce directed Teal toward the front of the Blackhawk. “When we get close enough, point out the gorge you took. And, Captain, I want you to fly low and as fast as this bird can go.”
The pilot grinned at his co-pilot. “This is going to be fun, but you’ve got to keep an eye on how narrow this gorge gets. I don’t want to stick a rotor blade in one of these cliffs.”
*
August thought she’d imagined the ping and explosion of rock near her hand. Then the crack of the high-powered rifle registered in her tired brain. She closed her eyes. Shit. He’d caught up with her, and she was a sitting duck in a shooting gallery. She looked up. The crevice was still ten feet above her.
She searched the rock face for a new handhold. Where was it, damn it. There. An old one probably chiseled by her or one of her friends. She reached for it, only to have the rock just above her hand explode. She jerked her hand away and closed her eyes against the flying shards of rock so quickly, she nearly fell. Laughter followed the crack of the rifle this time.
“Going somewhere, Ms. Reese?”
August ignored the shouted words and curled her fingers into the small hole, found a new foothold, and propelled her weary body another few feet higher. Rock exploded by her head, sharp slivers slicing into the right side of her face. Blood trickled down her brow to mingle with sweat and dirt. It dripped into her eye, and she blinked rapidly to try to clear it.
“I like you right where you are, Ms. Reese. So, next time you reach up, I’m going to shoot your hand. Then I will shoot a foot. Then I think I will let you hang there until the sun begins to set, and I’ll shoot your other foot and make a bet with myself as to how long you can hang by one hand.” He laughed again. “Sounds like fun, no?”
So, this was it. She hoped Gus would forgive her for being a coward, but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of watching her suffer. Should she just let go and fall? That sounded too painful. Tito’s Glock was still tucked in the waist of her jeans. She hoped there was a bullet in the chamber because it would take two hands to cock it if there wasn’t. One shot to her head would be less painful than banging against the rocks all the way to the bottom.
August closed her eyes. Could she do it? Would she be brave to steal this dirtbag’s moment of sick glory? Or a simple coward?
The cry of the hawk sounded close, just above her, and she opened her eyes. The crevice was only about six feet away. A huge black wolf stood there, looking over the edge at her. She blinked. Black, except for one white paw.
She was probably hallucinating. But as she stared into those golden eyes, she knew she wouldn’t give up. She reached for the handhold on her right and suddenly spotted one on her left. Bullets pinged around her, and shards of rock knifed into her skin from both sides. She gasped when pain cut through her right thigh, but she kept going. The crevice was only a few feet away now. The wolf was gone, but howls echoed through the canyon. Almost there.
; She snugged her left foot into a hole chiseled deep by a previous climber and pushed until her upper body cleared the edge of the crevice. A roll of low thunder started as she flopped onto the ledge, and a bullet whizzed just past her shoulder. If she’d been a second slower, it would have nailed her in the back. She realized the crevice was actually an opening to the park trail that led to the top of the mountain. The thunder grew louder—so loud she could no longer hear the crack of the rifle, but the rocks around her were still exploding as bullets hit them. Another red-hot stab of pain, this time in her right calf. She reached deep for her last small remnant of strength and crawled forward on her forearms to haul her lower body to safety.
Damn it. Pain burned all the way down her right leg, and that pissed her off. God, she hated Reyes. He’d stolen so much from her and had nearly taken her life. A handgun couldn’t possibly be accurate at that distance, but the anger that boiled up fueled one last spurt of adrenaline. She grabbed the Glock and crawled to the edge of the crevice. Maybe she’d get off a lucky shot and nail that son of a bitch. She peered cautiously over the edge, down into the canyon, and gasped. A massive herd of bison was flowing into the canyon, a dark mass against the dry prairie grass. Cobra looked over his shoulder, dropped his rifle, and ran. But the bulky physique of buffalo is deceptive. They can gallop up to forty miles an hour, far faster than a man can run. August watched dispassionately as the herd overtook him.
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