Eternal Oath

by Jewel Quinlan

  He ground his teeth in frustration. They couldn’t be untied. Only a knife would get them off.

  The truck gave a heave, and the engine roared as it bounced. Falk’s entire body went airborne for a second, and then he landed on the metal truck bed again. He grunted with the impact but continued to think.

  A knife…a knife!

  He and Linda hadn’t had a chance to pocket all their weapons this morning. They’d found some new ones during their raid of the kitchen, but they all remained laid out on the kitchen table. They’d been ambushed before they could load any of them. Falk did a mental scan of his body for anything, anything at all he could use to break free of his restraints. But nothing came to mind.

  Shit.

  No, wait…In the kitchen, there had been a small Swiss Army knife thrown into a drawer. It was maybe two inches long at most. He hadn’t checked to see which utilities it had, but he’d tucked it into his sock as a last thought while he’d been putting on his shoes. He touched his foot to his ankle of his other leg, and the hardness pressed against his skin, confirming it was still there. Yes!

  If he could just reach it, it might have something useful. He arched back and tried to reach his feet with his hands.

  ***

  Linda raced downhill, the trees blurring by her as the brush thinned out. The road. It was her only chance to get help. The red car was long gone, but someone else had to come by at some point. When she burst out of the forest and into the ditch next to the road, she couldn’t believe she’d made it. Her lungs burned, and she felt exposed away from the trees. What if they saw her? She couldn’t sit here and wait. Although she could no longer hear anyone pursuing her, it was just a matter of time before they picked up her trail again.

  Across the road, she glimpsed a dingy brown sign with white lettering—Broken Horn Campground.

  She sprinted across the street, blood roaring in her ears. Her shoulders tingled as if she could feel their gazes on her already. But she tried to calm herself and think what to do next. Feeding the terror in her mind wouldn’t help anything.

  She loped around the empty grounds, searching for a place to hide, and she wanted to kick herself for being so dumb. There was nothing here. The cover of trees was scanty, and the only buildings consisted of two ramshackle outhouses and the structure covering the dumpsters. Even the pier stretching out over the lake from the campsite was bare.

  Oh God. Oh God. What now?

  She glanced around, feeling as though her time was running out, but could see no one. Calm down, Linda. You have to think.

  Then the far-off sound of a car reached her ears. Someone was coming down the road.

  Chapter Sixteen

  After several failed attempts to reach the knife, Falk wanted to curse his lack of flexibility. But then the truck reached level ground. The lurching stopped, and he was able to grab hold of his sock with his fingertips. Once he had hold of it, his fingers clamped down. This was his only chance. With his other hand, he reached into the front part of the sock where the Swiss knife lay and pulled it out.

  Hope laced through his soul. He could do this. If he could get his hands free, he would have a chance. And then he could save Linda.

  The truck turned left, causing Falk to slide across the surface and hit the right side of the bed. His head smacked against it, and another dimming of his consciousness came over him, but he grasped the knife, knowing if he let go he would be fucked.

  The thing was tiny, not more than two inches long. But it was metal and it had to have something stored within it that would help him. He pried at the different levers with his fingernails. The first one he pulled out was a nail file. No good.

  He pried at another one. Can opener. Great.

  The truck slid to a stop, and the sound of the driver door opening reached Falk’s ears. He hastily closed the knife and tucked it into the cuff of the long-sleeve shirt he had on under his sweater.

  His gut twisted. Was he out of time?

  ***

  Linda heard the crunch of gravel when the truck turned into the campground, she dived toward the hiding place closest to her, which turned out to be the dumpsters. She scrambled up the brick enclosure they were corralled in and jumped. Although she’d meant to land inside the one on the left, she miscalculated and somehow slid into the space between them. She landed on the concrete foundation, her descent slowed because she was squeezed between the two large bins. But she held still, did her best to ignore the foul smells, and listened.

  From the grumble of rubber on gravel, she could tell the truck turned and then stopped, right near where she hid.

  Oh man. If it was them, they would for sure check the stupid garbage containers! Could she have been any dumber? She slithered her way as fast as she could toward the narrow gap behind them, sending a thanks to the heavens for her petite frame. In record time, she’d moved behind them, lying in the dirt and stinky grime coating the concrete there. But she didn’t care. Maybe her accident was good fortune after all. Squeezed between the back side of the containers and the wall they would detect no sign of her.

  The structure housing the Dumpsters consisted of a simple roof to shield them from rain and a cinder block wall surrounding them. On the side was a gate waste management would open to get them out and empty them. The gate had a narrow gap where it attached with hinges onto the structure.

  Linda wriggled closer to it so she could see out through the narrow crevice. A blue pickup with a covered bed had parked in one of the spaces opposite her, and Jensen got out, cell phone to his ear as he talked to someone.

  “Okay. Yeah. I’ll see you when you get here.” He hung up and put it in his pocket then opened the tailgate and yanked someone from the back of the truck. Jensen blocked most of her view, but she could make out the vague shape as the person landed with a thud on the ground and then struggled to their knees. The person seemed to have their hands tied behind their back and a bag over their head.

  Oh no. Was it Falk?

  But she could tell from the shape, it wasn’t. Who then? Jensen stood next to the person and yanked the bag off.

  Linda sucked in her breath. Sarah!

  ***

  Falk felt the truck heave to a stop. The engine shut off, and then he heard footsteps crunching on gravel as someone came around to the back

  “Any sign of her?” It was Andrew.

  “She was headed right in this direction. Her tracks end on the other side of the road,” Jensen replied.

  “Did you check the bathrooms and the Dumpsters?”

  The back of the truck opened, and hands grabbed him by the ankles. He was dragged out of the car and dumped onto the ground. He squinted as someone yanked away the fabric covering his head, and the full force of the sun hit him.

  “No. She could be hiding anywhere,” Jensen said.

  Andrew began to protest, but Jensen cut him off.

  “Relax. We don’t need to search under every rock and bush. I know for sure she’s close by. She’ll hear us. And when she does, she’ll come out.”

  Jensen’s grim tone sent a chill through Falk. He hoped with all his will, no matter what Andrew and Jensen did, Linda would not come.

  Turning his head, he saw Sarah kneeling in the dirt not far from him, and his eyes widened.

  “Sarah! Are you all right?” he called.

  She shook her head. Several strands hung across her weary, lined face. She was much too old to be treated this way.

  “I don’t understand, Falk. What is going on?” Sarah croaked.

  “Shut up!” Jensen yelled.

  He and Sarah exchanged worried glances but fell silent. Falk rolled onto his knees and sat back on his heels and watched as the two men talked. He glanced at the surroundings. His back was to the truck, Sarah was to his left, and the two men were in front of him.

  He pulled the Swiss Army knife from his cuff and went to work once again.

  ***

  Linda
’s pulse quickened as she saw first Sarah and then Falk pulled from the two trucks. The white pickup had come in and parked next to the blue pickup a few minutes after Andrew had hung up his phone. She didn’t recognize either vehicle but figured they must be rented or something so they could avoid detection.

  Andrew walked away for several minutes, and for that time, Linda’s mind raced trying to figure out what to do. But then he came back and said something to Jensen.

  “You’re sure?” he asked Andrew.

  “Positive. No tracks leading out. We would have seen her if she was on the road. She’s got to be here.”

  “Linda!” Jensen roared, stepping forward. “I know you can hear me. We know you’re here. It’s time to come out.”

  There was a pause and the whoosh, whoosh, whoosh of blood in Linda’s ears almost blocked out Jensen’s next words.

  “Falk and Sarah are here, you know. If you don’t come out, it’s going to get ugly for them.” The menace of his threat hung in the air.

  Oh my God. What do I do? How do I save them? Her mind sprinted in a million different directions, but no answer surfaced.

  “Don’t believe me?” He circled around the trucks as he spoke. His gaze scanned the forest and the bushes close to the lake. “All right, then. We’ll give you a taste of the suffering you’re going to cause your two friends here.” He gestured at Andrew with his hand.

  Andrew approached Falk and punched him first in the stomach. Then, as Falk lurched forward with a groan, punched him in the face.

  “Do something else,” Jensen ordered. “He barely made any noise. There’s no way she’ll have heard him.”

  Andrew squared off in front of Falk once again.

  Linda shook with fear. Andrew stood in front of Falk, blocking her view so she couldn’t see what he did. But whatever it was made Falk yell in pain.

  She backed up to get between the two Dumpsters again and come out.

  “No! Don’t come out, Linda!” Falk cried. “I don’t care what they do to me. They’ll kill you if— Oof!”

  From the sound of it, Andrew had punched Falk in the stomach again. Linda froze, uncertain what to do.

  “Don’t listen to him, Linda.” Jensen’s voice picked up a reasonable tone. “That’s not true. We’d rather not hurt anyone, if possible. But we can’t settle things if you don’t come out and agree to our terms.”

  “What? This your way of asking for a raise?” Falk spat out sarcastically.

  But both men looked at each other, and a silent message seemed to transfer between them.

  This time Andrew sighed. “You know, Linda,” he called. “We didn’t want to have to do this. But if you’re going to force it, then I guess we have to. Let’s see how you feel when Sarah is in pain.”

  He turned and walked toward the elderly housekeeper who cringed away from him.

  Right away Linda wriggled her way in earnest toward the opening. But her confines hampered her progress, and she soon became anxious she wouldn’t make it in time to stop him. Although, how she was to stop him she had no idea.

  Her shirt sleeve snagged on something she could not see near the wheel of one of the bins, delaying her. She frantically tugged at it, trying to get loose.

  A slap rang out followed by a short cry from Sarah, and Linda couldn’t take it anymore.

  “Stop!” she called. “I’m here! I’m here.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Desperation filled Falk the second Linda’s voice rang out. The damn tiny Swiss Army knife’s blade was dull. Ever since Andrew had pulled him off the truck, he’d been sawing away at his bindings, but it had barely made a dent. He had yet to cut even one of the ties loose.

  Andrew went to retrieve her immediately, dragging her out as soon as her head appeared above the cinderblock wall.

  Please, God. There has to be something else on this knife I can use.

  With his fingernails, Falk pried open the last of the tools hiding in the casing of the knife and discovered the smallest pair of scissors. It was doubtful they would be any better than the knife, but he hacked at his bindings with them nonetheless.

  Andrew held Linda by the arm, and they stood in front of him a few feet away. The fear on Linda’s face made him even more determined to be free so he could protect her. She was his life, his entire world. If something happened to her, there was no way he could go on.

  “I’ll do anything you want,” Linda said. “But please don’t hurt them. Leave Sarah alone. She’s much too old for this. You might kill her.”

  Jensen replied, his tone colder than Falk had ever heard it before, “You’re right, Linda. We shouldn’t hurt her. In fact, let me sever her bindings right now.”

  She tensed when he pulled a knife from his belt and walked to her. But then, he did in fact lean down to slice her hands free. He even offered to help her up.

  Sarah stood and dusted her knees off then smoothed the ragged ends of hair back from her face, revealing an expression Falk had never seen before.

  Gone was the gentle, motherly look he’d grown used to seeing there. It had been wiped away by something that looked like it had been carved from stone. Her cold eyes surveyed the scene, taking in both men with contempt, Andrew in particular.

  “Some professional you turned out to be,” she said. “I find it hard to believe you are worth the money we paid you. If not for me, you two bungling idiots would have botched the entire job.”

  Falk’s mind reeled at her words. Hired professional?

  Shock reverberated through Linda’s body at Sarah’s words. Had she heard correctly? If she had, then it meant one thing—Sarah was in league with the men.

  Grace’s words came back to her. “Someone else leads them. Someone you know well and trust. A woman.”

  But never in a million years would Linda have thought it would be Sarah. Not the mother figure who’d loved her and taken care of her for most of her life. Her friend and confidant. She almost felt sick as the knowledge impacted her, but she could make no sense of it.

  “Sarah!” she gasped. “You? But, why?”

  Linda stared at her in disbelief. Sarah’s eyes were almost black with the rage simmering within. Had she been younger, Linda believed the woman would have slapped her for her comment. She couldn’t reconcile the person before her with the one she’d grown up with. It was as if she’d never seen her before. She’d transformed into some soulless entity Linda couldn’t read at all.

  “Well,” Sarah sniffed, “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised at your ignorance. With the way you’ve been coddled all these years, there is no way anyone should suspect you’ve made use of your brain.”

  Linda jerked her head back. “Sarah! But…my father and I have always loved you. You are a part of the family. How can you be doing this? Why?”

  “Part of the family,” Sara scoffed. “I’m family now, am I? Don’t try to feed me bullshit, Linda. You know I’ve never been treated any better than a servant. And all this….” She paced to where Falk kneeled, her steps measured. She patted him on his head in a condescending way. “Why, it’s because of him, of course.” She glanced down at Falk.

  Confusion rose within Linda. “But what’s Falk done? All he’s ever wanted is to contribute to the family. That’s what he’s worked toward his whole life.”

  Her gaze met Falk’s across the space; she could see she was right. He’d always had their best interests at heart.

  Andrew stayed guarding her, and Jensen went to stand near Falk.

  “Contribute to the family is it?” Sarah sneered. “Well, he’s more than outdone himself, and you well know it.”

  Linda jerked as the words ran through her. “I have no idea what you mean.” A blush rose to her cheeks. Did Sarah know she and Falk had slept together? Was that what she referred to? No, couldn’t be it. It’d just happened a few hours ago. There was no way Sarah could know. “His performance at school and with the company has been exceptional. Sur
e. What’s wrong with that?”

  Sarah chuckled and ran her fingers down the side of Falk’s face, almost in a motherly fashion. It sickened Linda to see her trace the same features she herself had earlier.

  “Nothing,” Sarah crooned, “aside from the fact he is a scheming gold digger!” She turned from Falk back to Linda, her expression murderous. “How do you think he came to be found on our land? He planned it from the beginning. He wanted a piece of the richest family in town. And you helped him! You supported his every ingratiating, obsequious move!”

  Linda stared at her with incomprehension. “Sarah…. What the hell are you talking about? Falk has done nothing but try to improve himself and fit in. To be a good son. Everything he’s done has been for the good of himself and us—”

  “But that’s not all!” Sarah yelled, her fury rising. “He’s made himself the heir to everything! He’s been after money all this time!” She turned in Falk’s direction, unleashing the full extent of her wrath on him. “He weaseled his way into your father’s heart and made sure he familiarized himself with the company’s inner workings so he would be ready to take over when the time came!”

  Linda couldn’t help glancing at Falk. The surprise she saw there mirrored what she felt in her heart. Falk appeared as shocked to hear what Sarah said as she was. He wasn’t the villain Sarah tried to make him out to be. The old woman had gone crazy.

  Linda took a breath. How did one confront a crazy lady? “Sarah, think about what you are saying,” she reasoned in a gentle voice. “It doesn’t make sense.”

  The older woman straightened with a jerky movement, her cold eyes staring down at Linda. “Oh, so I don’t know what I’m talking about? Is that what you think?” She came and towered over Linda once again. Her tone sank to an acid hiss. “I’ve been watching him for years. And you. I’d hoped to spare your life, so we could continue on together. We are family after all. But now I see that’s not an option.”