Big Sky Showdown

by Sharon Dunn

  “Get to work,” said Willis. He pulled the hammer back on the revolver.

  If this bomb got built, a robbery would happen. Even if no one was hurt or killed in the robbery itself, Willis might end up using the money from the robbery and the pot farm to finance more destruction and even death.

  “What exactly are you planning on doing with this?”

  “Quit stalling.” Willis shifted his weight and jammed the gun barrel against Jordan’s temple.

  Zane glanced at his brother, who looked like he’d completely fallen apart.

  He couldn’t let Jordan die. He’d have to find another way to stop the snowballing of this violence.

  As he picked up the container that held the chemicals to create the bomb, he prayed that Heather had escaped and found a way back into camp. He would do everything he could to get out of here to prevent the disaster Willis had in mind, but he needed her help. The only way out of this was if they worked together. All his hope for a good outcome hung on that.

  * * *

  Heather entered the camp just as sunlight peeked through the trees. This time she had no problem finding the bunker. With all the chaos in chasing her and Zane, the branches to cover the entrance hadn’t been replaced. Even better, a guard had not been put back on the trapdoor. It was not a safe way to enter the bunker though. They’d hear the door opening and have too much time to prepare as she came down the stairs. And there was probably at least one guard inside.

  She remembered the side door where Willis had come from. Maybe there was a separate entrance.

  She had to act fast. Men were still out looking for her. She’d managed to throw them off the trail and double back, but it would be only a matter of time before they tracked her down.

  She scanned the area around the trapdoor and looked up toward where Willis’s cave was. Maybe there was a passageway between the cave and the bunker. That might be why Willis came through the side door.

  After glancing over her shoulder, she hurried up toward the cave. No guard stood outside the entrance. She slipped inside, prepared to fight if she had to. A man slept in the corner with his back to her.

  She tiptoed deeper into the cave. Light shone from one of the openings. Her chest squeezed tight. All of this might be a waste of precious time. The sleeping man started to roll over. She dashed toward the lit tunnel.

  She hurried through the cool dampness of the cave. Battery-operated lights revealed the path she needed to take. As she rounded a corner in the tunnel, voices echoed. Whatever she was stepping into, it would be dangerous. Nathan was the only member of Willis’s army who had not shown blind loyalty to Willis and he was probably gone by now.

  The cold stone of the cave turned into wood. She stepped into an area filled with shelving that contained food, cleaning supplies, blankets, first-aid kits and boxes of bullets. The supplies someone might need to survive long-term.

  The voices grew louder and more distinct as the distortion from the echo in the cave faded. Now she could discern Willis’s voice.

  She had no gun, no weapon at all but her pocketknife. She couldn’t just enter the bunker. She stared at the shelves of food and supplies. She remembered from high school chemistry class that if she put sugar and the potassium nitrate from the cold packs in the first-aid kit together, she could create a smoke bomb. Maybe that would be enough of a distraction for her to get Zane out. She worked to gather the items and a container to hold them. She grabbed a box of matches.

  The voices in the room next to her quieted. She tensed, fearing Willis would come stomping through at any moment. Her heartbeat drummed in her ears as her hands trembled. Once her smoke bomb was assembled, she eased toward the door. Silence seemed to press on her from all sides. What exactly was going on in that bunker?

  She’d have only a moment to take in the scene before smoke from her bomb filled the room. She lit the matches that served as a fuse and held the bomb until it began to smoke.

  Another voice floated into the room. “Please stop doing this to him. Doesn’t his loyalty mean anything to you?” That was Zane’s voice.

  “Get back behind the table.” Willis sounded nervous.

  Zane must be making his move. Now was the moment. She pushed open the door and tossed the smoke bomb as she entered the room. Zane had come out from behind the table where the other bomb was being built.

  She caught a flash of Jordan tied to a chair, his head hanging, hair covering his face. Was he dead? Willis turned to see her, a gun in his hand, just as the room filled with smoke. A gunshot reverberated through the concrete room. Zane found her hand in the smoke. She pulled him toward where she thought the door was.

  Her hand touched solid wall. She reached for the door. Her fingers scraped over what felt like metal hinges. She lunged toward a break in the concrete. The smoke followed them into the supply room but dissipated enough that she could see where they were.

  She pulled him through the room.

  He stopped. “We have to get Jordan.”

  Willis kicked open the door and aimed the gun at Heather as the smoke cleared.

  There was no time to go back now. She took off running, knowing that Zane would be right behind her. In the narrow enclosed storage room, the noise of the gunshot made her ears ring. The bullet must have pierced the food supplies because flour poured out of a bag above her and spilled onto the floor.

  She hurried up to the cave, where the guard was now wide awake. Though he appeared surprised to see Heather, he lunged at her, reaching for her neck. Zane came up from behind and landed a blow to the guard’s jaw just as he grabbed Heather.

  The guard pounced on Zane and tackled him to the ground. Zane rolled across the cave floor, coming dangerously close to the fire. He managed to get on top of the guard and land several debilitating blows to the man’s face and chest. Eventually the guard seemed to lose his will to fight. Zane got off him, breathing heavy and ready to jump into the battle again.

  Flames shot up around the hem of Zane’s coat.

  Heather pointed. “Fire!”

  Zane glanced down.

  Though he still looked disoriented, the guard picked up a stick by the fire and raised it to whack Zane on the head. Heather charged toward the man from the side.

  The move caught the man off guard. He stumbled sideways.

  Zane ripped his coat off and stomped on the flames. The man recovered enough to lunge toward Zane with the stick still in his hand.

  Heather jumped on his back and bit into his shoulder. The man yowled and tried to shake her off. Zane landed a blow to the man’s stomach that doubled him over. Heather slipped off the guard’s back.

  “Come on, we don’t have much time.” Zane hurried toward the cave entrance.

  Willis appeared at the other entrance.

  They dashed out of the cave. Men rushed toward them from down below. Willis must have radioed ahead.

  Panic flooded through Heather’s awareness. “We can’t go down there.”

  Zane headed up the mountain. A rifle shot bounced off a nearby rock. Heather froze. She could feel herself shutting down as her vision blurred. This was all too much. Zane turned and grabbed her hand.

  “We’ve made it this far. Don’t give up.”

  His voice was enough for her to shake the paralysis. They pushed up the mountain and over the other side. Wind rushed around her as they stood on the summit. Down below, several men were still snaking up the path toward them.

  Zane rested his hand on her shoulder. “It looks like they’re giving up.”

  She glanced down. The men had slowed their pace.

  “The real danger will be at the bottom of the mountain on the other side. They can get around to there with their ATVs faster than we can get down. They’ll be waiting to ambush us.”

  She tensed. “When will this
stop?”

  “We are witnesses, Heather. Willis is not going to let us out of the high country alive.”

  Her stomach tightened into a knot.

  He grabbed her at the elbows and pulled her toward him. The look in his eyes intensified. “I know you want to give up. But hold on. Can you do that for me?”

  She nodded, but felt as though her knees would buckle.

  He drew her into his arms. “You’re smart and strong. You got me out of that bunker. We can do this.”

  His arms enveloped her. She melted into the warmth of his embrace breathing in the scent of his skin. “I just don’t see how.”

  He held her close. “There is more at stake than just you and me. A bank robbery is going to happen—they have the explosives to make it happen. I couldn’t let Jordan die. I had to assemble the bomb.”

  She relished the strength she got from being held by him. “I know you did everything to prevent it, but I wish the bomb wasn’t finished.”

  “It may be finished, but it won’t work without this magnesium ribbon.” Zane pulled what looked like a piece of metal out of his pocket.

  “That will make him hunt us all the harder.” Her voice faltered.

  “This isn’t just about us. I don’t know what exactly Willis has planned, but we have to stop him,” Zane said.

  He was right. She’d seen firsthand that Willis was evil. “I have it on good authority that Willis is going to rob the safety deposit boxes in Fort Madison. Apparently, a rich man around here has recently put items of value in there.”

  Zane smoothed over his beard. “Makes sense. He likes to target low-security, rural banks like Fort Madison.” He touched her elbow. “Let’s keep moving.”

  Fear permeated every cell of Heather’s body as she stared down the steep incline knowing that they were probably walking into an ambush and that they had no choice.

  FOURTEEN

  Zane worked his way down the steep mountainside with a heavy heart. He’d left his brother behind, even though Jordan might be in a different place now that Willis had betrayed him so horribly. Maybe now he’d be ready to leave Willis.

  Heather stumbled on a rock as she ran beside him. He grabbed her arm at the elbow. He had to think of Heather. She’d risked her own life to save his. He wiped his mind clean of the pain thinking about his brother brought up. “You all right?”

  She gave him a raised eyebrow look. “Just peachy.”

  He smiled despite their dire situation. “I appreciate the positive outlook.”

  He stared down the mountain. They could see most of the valley from this vantage point. Though he didn’t see any men or ATVs yet, he knew it was just a matter of time.

  “Is there some way we can avoid them?”

  He picked up on the fear in her voice and wanted to say something comforting, but he couldn’t lie to her. “The descent is treacherous, and there are only a few places where we would come out into the valley. I’m sure they will post guards at each of them.”

  She let out a breath and shook her head. “Are we anywhere close to getting out the way we had planned?”

  He shook his head. “At this point, it would be faster to try to get out by the river.”

  He watched as she climbed. Her focus was on the rough terrain as she slanted her feet sideways to keep from slipping. Her long dark hair was still pulled back in a single braid. She’d been so brave and strong thus far. And this wasn’t even her fight.

  He gripped a rock and worked his way down, as well. What could he say to her that he hadn’t already said? Holding her close had renewed his own strength and resolve. He wondered if she had felt the same way.

  As they made their descent, he kept watch for signs that Willis was assembling forces below. He caught a glimpse of ATVs moving through the trees. He had to assume they were walking into a firefight.

  Heather’s feet slipped, and when she fell, she remained seated. He came up beside her and cupped his hand on her shoulder. The look on her face was of complete exhaustion.

  “Rest a moment,” he said.

  She pulled her glove off and patted his hand. The warmth of her touch seeped through his skin.

  She stared at the sky. “I know these men are dangerous. I know they need to be stopped.”

  She must be trying to find some inner resolve to keep going. He sat beside her, resting his elbows on his thighs.

  She leaned against his shoulder.

  “I wish there was an easy way out of this,” he said.

  He studied the valley below and the possible trails to get to the base of the mountain.

  She covered his knee with her hand. “Me too.”

  “Your father used to tell me that the harder something was, the more worthwhile it would be in the end. That there was value in the struggle.”

  She caught him in her dark eyed gaze. “Sometimes I feel like when I look at you, I get a glimpse of my father. If he hadn’t come into your life, you would have been like Jordan...so lost.”

  Sadness washed through Zane all over again and he hung his head. “I tried to get him out when I left. I really did.” Maybe since Willis had used Jordan in such a horrible way, his brother might still be reached. He had to hold on to that hope.

  She leaned closer and touched his back. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I only meant to say you’re such a good man, it must mean my father was, too, at the end of his life.”

  He turned to face her. Her brown eyes held a spark in the early-morning light. He felt drawn to her.

  He rested his hand on her cheek, leaned in and kissed her. She responded. Her lips were like silk as he deepened the kiss.

  He pulled back first, tracing the edges of her face with his fingers. Her expression brightened beneath his touch.

  He wanted to stay in that moment forever, but down below, he heard the sounds of ATVs and caught a flash of color and movement.

  “They’re already getting into place,” she said. Dread tainted her words as the special moment between them gave way to reality.

  They might not be able to avoid Willis’s men altogether, but he could increase the odds that they would be able to escape. “We can come out where the ATVs can’t go. Then we’re just dealing with men on foot.” He stood up and mentally scoped out the path they would take.

  He hurried down the steep hillside, slipping a little. Heather was right behind him. She crashed against his back several times until they were in thick brush and could hold on to the trees for balance.

  A rifle shot zinged over their head. Both of them ducked.

  Zane studied the surrounding hills until he saw the glint of glass reflecting the sun. Willis had put a sniper in place. Anytime they were in the open, they’d be easy to pick off. Both he and Heather were targets now. Willis didn’t need Zane alive anymore. He just needed the magnesium strip, and the men could take that off Zane’s dead body. He thought to simply toss it away, but decided it might buy them leverage if they were caught.

  “Every time the terrain opens up, stay low and move slow.” The camo they both wore would give them a degree of cover, but a really good sniper knew what to look for. “Put your gloves in your pockets. They make you too easy to see.”

  They worked their way down the steep mountainside until they came to an open area covered with rocks. The camo wouldn’t do them any good here.

  “Move as fast as you can and stay as close to the brush as you can get,” he said.

  “Why not just go into the brush?”

  “Too thick. Too treacherous.” The tangled junipers and other brush would be impossible to navigate through.

  Heather took the lead, dashing across the rocks, choosing the larger ones for cover. The first shot hit a stone right in front of Zane. His heart skipped a beat but he kept running.

 
Heather was within ten yards of cover when another rifle shot sliced through the air. She went down.

  His heart seized up as he hurried toward her, expecting to see a pool of blood seeping out from beneath her. Another shot came close to his head. He couldn’t get to her without being a target himself. He dived behind a large rock and poked his head around it. She still wasn’t moving.

  “Heather.” His voice cracked.

  She turned her head to face him. “I’m all right. Just lost my courage.”

  Relief spread through him. For a moment, he’d seen his life without her, how empty it would be.

  She offered him a faint smile before rising and bolting for the cover of the trees. He looked across the landscape to where the sniper was positioned. Then Zane jumped to his feet and made a mad dash for the cover of the trees.

  The sniper probably had the best spotting equipment money could buy. He might even have a spotter helping him. Even if he couldn’t get a clean shot off, he would be able to track them down the mountain.

  Though he kept his pessimism to himself, he wasn’t real hopeful about their chances of making it to the bottom alive.

  * * *

  Heather was out of breath as she pushed her way through the thick brush.

  Zane came up behind her, placing his palm on her back. “Wait.” He studied the area in front of him. “We’re almost to the base of the mountain. Let’s go horizontal until we can find a good place to exit.”

  She knew he was looking for potential ambushes. The more treacherous the path they came out on, the less likely it was that they would be caught.

  Zane stopped and crouched low, peering through the trees. The brush was so thick she could only see a few feet in front of her. She pressed close to him and listened. Branches creaked in the wind. A crow cawed from a distant tree.

  She didn’t hear or see anything that suggested Willis’s men were lying in wait. If they were there, would they eventually grow nervous and impatient and start to talk? Or would they remain hidden and silent, weapons drawn, watching for any movement?