Rocky Mountain Showdown

by Victoria Austin

  Seth spoke again, his tone causal. “What did you two do for careers after college?”

  “Josh was an accountant. He worked at a big firm in Denver. I majored in biology. I worked in a lab until I got pregnant with Abby, and then I stayed home.”

  “An accountant? Did he ever talk about his clients?”

  Laura smiled. “He tried a couple of times, but it was honestly the most boring stuff I’d ever heard. And I say that as a woman who spent years studying single-cell organisms. It wasn’t at all exciting or dangerous.”

  They walked in silence a bit more. Then Seth’s voice was hesitant. Timid, almost. “Laura?”

  She already knew she wasn’t going to like this question. Laura felt the pieces of that brick protein bar she had eaten make themselves known in her stomach. “Yeah?”

  “How did Josh die?”

  The brick pieces swirled and then sank. Hard. “He was mugged. From what the police said, someone shot him while he was walking from his office to his car in the parking garage. His watch and wallet were stolen.” She stopped and swallowed, slow and deliberate, trying desperately to calm the storm in her belly. “And his wedding ring. His wedding ring was also stolen.”

  “I’m sorry, Laura. I’m really, really sorry.”

  She had heard that a lot in the days after Josh died. From his coworkers and his friends. From her old coworkers. But from Seth it seemed genuine. And it actually helped a little. “Thank you.”

  “Thanks for telling me.” He sounded sincere. Laura knew he was. It was nice.

  Laura felt ready to leave the past behind and work on the right now. Plus, she needed to focus all her attention on her surroundings. If they were walking into a trap, or a fire, Laura wanted as much notice as possible. Her dad had always stressed the importance of focusing on the task at hand. And she had a major one right now.

  She wasn’t going to let anyone down.

  “I know we’re not close to the top,” Seth said, “but I can definitely tell we’re making progress. The ground is a lot steeper here. I feel like we’re walking up a ramp.”

  Laura appreciated the change of subject. The lifting of mood. She was more than happy to play along with the subject change. Laura smiled at his observation. “Yeah, it’s going to stay this steep until we get to the top.” She had a sudden mental image of what they must look like, the three of them climbing up a mountain. Fleeing the bad guys. She started to giggle as her mind took the picture and added to it.

  “Um, Laura, what’s so funny?” He sounded almost scared, like he was afraid she had crossed that thin line between sane and not so much.

  “Nothing. I just suddenly realized we probably look a lot like the ending of The Sound of Music. You know, fleeing through the mountains?”

  Laura turned to look at Seth and saw that he was also smiling. “Huh. Well, since that movie ended happily, I think I like the comparison. Don’t ask me to sing, though.”

  * * *

  Seth was smiling and playing along in their conversation about musicals and singing. Abby was still sleeping, and his arms were relaxed as they held her.

  Sucking in a deep breath of air, he froze. Smoke. He was definitely smelling smoke stronger than before. He looked up, but could only see blue sky through the tree branches. Laura had done a great job of keeping them in the thicker parts of the mountain, so Seth couldn’t see all around. He couldn’t even tell which direction the smoke was coming from. He bent down and picked up a dry brown leaf. Letting it drop from above his head, he noted the direction it went as it fell to the ground.

  Laura watched him, her expression some kind of grim understanding. It did not do anything to appease the dread building. “You smell it, too, huh?” She sounded like she knew the answer but dreaded hearing it anyway.

  “The smoke? Oh, yeah. How long have you been picking it up?”

  Laura shrugged. “Not long. I would get the occasional whiff here and there, but the strong hit of smoke didn’t start until the last few minutes.”

  She looked at the ground where his leaf had fallen to blend in with all the others. “The wind is blowing the wrong direction.”

  He knew what she meant. If the wind was blowing the scent of smoke in, then it was wafting away from the fire, which should be behind them. Straight behind them as they moved up. But the leaf had blown to the side. From where the wall of rock cliff was. “Yeah. That can mean a couple of things.”

  Seth might not know this mountain like Laura did, but he knew about fires and how they spread. Traveled. Changed and charged and consumed. Destroyed. Killed. “One. Instead of moving up the mountain evenly, the fire has moved up a lot faster on the side bordered by the rock wall.”

  “And so it is almost racing us up the mountain. And winning.”

  Yeah, she got it, all right. “Two. There’s more than one fire.”

  Laura’s brown eyes darkened, and Seth knew that she understood him. Her voice was almost toneless when she spoke. “You think those psychos set a fire to try to smoke us out. Or burn us up.”

  “I know it sounds crazy, but it’s actually pretty smart. With the big blaze going, their fire would not be noticeable. People will just think it’s part of the original blaze. Plus, it’s an efficient way to cover a large search area.”

  “And by cover, you mean it’s a good way to force us out of hiding so they can kill us.” Her voice wasn’t toneless now.

  “Hey, Laura, it’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” Abby stirred as Seth moved closer to her mother, but he didn’t stop. Holding the child with one arm, he used the other to reach out and pull Laura into a hug. She came easily, putting her arms around him, sandwiching Abby in the middle. Laura buried her face in Abby’s hair, and Seth heard her breathe in deeply. Shakily. Abby’s eyes opened. She moved her arms from around Seth’s neck and turned to wrap them around her mom.

  Laura turned the group hug into her holding Abby. Once she had her daughter, Laura stepped away. Not far, but Seth could no longer feel her body heat. And he no longer had that sweet child against his chest. He found he missed both very much.

  Abby was looking at Laura and Laura was murmuring something into Abby’s ear. It sounded motherly and warm. Reassuring. Whatever fears Laura had, she set them aside for her daughter. She calmed her child and made her feel safe. Seth wished he had the ability to do that for Laura.

  Abby kissed Laura’s cheek and said something to her mom. Smiling, Laura kissed the girl back and then set her down on her feet, keeping hold of her hand. “Abby says she wants to walk for a while.”

  Seth looked at the ground, concerned. Laura smiled, seeming to read his mind. “She’ll be fine. She’s more than used to exploring the mountain with me.”

  Seth couldn’t stop his smile. “Are you going to lead the way, Miss Abigail?” Seth kept his voice light and teasing, not wanting to undo any of the work that Laura had just done.

  “Shhhh. Quiet game.” She tried to whisper. Tried, because it was the loudest whisper Seth had ever heard. It made him smile, for real.

  Laura’s smile looked less real and more worried. The fire. “What should we do, Seth?”

  “We know for sure the fire is behind us. It’s also coming from the direction of the rock wall. That means the river is still our best Plan B. I say we keep going up the mountain, but maybe stay just a little closer to the river. Just in case.”

  Laura nodded and started walking. Seth noted that she headed more in the direction of the edge of the trees than she had been before. She was slowly angling them closer to the river. That thing was a beast the last time Seth had seen it. Just a couple of weeks ago. But if it came down to men with guns, a blazing inferno or that river, well, he picked the river.

  He really hoped it did not come down to those choices.

  Abby was keeping pace with her mom really well. And she wasn’t making much noise at all. It seeme
d all the women in Malcolm Grant’s family knew how to handle themselves out in nature. That made sense. For all she might have disliked her dad’s hermit ways, Laura had proven to be very much his daughter. She was surely teaching her own daughter the same.

  And Seth was beginning to understand the quiet dignity they all had as a result of this way of life.

  They were at the edge of the tree line now. Still under cover, but Seth could see the open meadow Laura had talked about. It was beautiful. He couldn’t see the river, or hear it, but he felt reassured knowing that it was there. Just across the open ground.

  Just like God is. His heart was hit with the conviction and he missed a step. Laura turned to look at him, and he waved her on. Just as he had God. How many times had Seth assumed that God was not here simply because he could not see Him? Or hear Him.

  Seth had been raised in the church. His parents had taught him better. Had shown him better. And still, he had forgotten too many times to count.

  But Seth could feel Him now. Seth had come up this mountain, been shot at and was currently trapped by man and nature. If there was ever a time that Seth should have felt completely alone, it was now. But he didn’t. He could feel the Lord walking with him. He just knew he, Laura and Abby were not alone in this thing. They just weren’t.

  The sun was out and shining, and Seth had to squint his eyes. The inner forest had been dark, even though it was the middle of the day. Coming to open ground was shocking in its brightness. His eyes adjusted, and Seth was able to pick up some of the finer details. The small plants growing in the open clearing were blowing slightly in the breeze. The same breeze that was sending one or more fires right at them. There was a sprinkling of color from the scattered flowers that were starting to bloom. The sun was reflecting off—

  Seth didn’t think, he just reached out and grabbed Laura’s arm, the one that was holding Abby’s hand. “We have to hide. Now. Quietly.”

  Laura did not waste time looking around, though Seth knew she must have wanted to see what was making him act like this. Instead, she picked up Abby and put a finger over Abby’s lips. Her face was so stern that even Seth felt the urge to shush and stay shushed.

  Laura began to walk deeper into the forest, quickly but quietly. Seth followed, turning frequently to look behind him. The trees were enveloping them and any view of that open area and light was gone. But Seth wasn’t hiding from grass and light.

  Laura stopped and looked at the trees, and Seth wondered yet again how she was able to know where she was based simply off of a bunch of trees. He was a skilled forester and they all looked the same to him. He could navigate using a compass. Rivers. The stars. But he did not see how one could navigate in a forest full of identical trees.

  She turned sharply and it felt like she was backtracking a bit. Seth didn’t care, so long as she was taking them somewhere safe. Somewhere hidden. Or at least somewhere that was not here. Seth turned and saw the shine. Again. Except it wasn’t a shine. It was a reflection. Sun on something metal. Something that didn’t grow on this mountain. And it was heading into the forest. With them.

  Someone with a gun was coming their way.

  EIGHT

  Hide first, figure out what’s going on second. Shelter. Then questions. Shelter. Shelter. Laura kept repeating the words in her head, because she really wanted to stop and figure out what they were running from. And how far behind them it was. And if it was going to catch them.

  Seth had said hide and they had taken off. But she didn’t know what they were hiding from. Probably not the fire since you didn’t normally hide from fires. That meant men with guns.

  Laura had Abby clutched to her chest and was moving as fast as possible without sounding like a woman running through the forest. Thankfully, Abby had picked up on the serious change in mood and was being quiet. When this was over, she was going to let Abby scream and play and giggle for a month solid. While on a sugar high. She certainly deserved it after being so good the last couple of days.

  Laura’s legs moved from memory, heading to a place she hadn’t seen in years. Please let it still be there. Please. It should still be there. Her dad wouldn’t have destroyed it, but nature itself certainly could have.

  Laura turned to make sure Seth was still with her. He was. Of course he was. His presence was reassuring. The look of his face, however, was not. He still seemed worried. Almost afraid. And his gun was in hand, ready to fire. Laura moved a little faster, deciding that making some extra sound would be worth it if she could take that expression off Seth’s face. Or at least figure out what it meant.

  Laura looked up ahead and almost sobbed out her relief. It was still there. She turned to Seth, only to find he was closer than ever. She naturally slowed as she turned and he stepped up and held her arm. He was urging her forward. Taking the hint without any trouble at all, Laura decided to just get into the cave and explain it to him later.

  She went toward the grouping of large rocks covered in moss and vines. The foliage looked tight, grown thick. Laura couldn’t see the entrance but it had to be there.

  Laura put Abby in Seth’s arms, barely slowing down at all. He took her immediately, wrapping both arms around her. He also did not break stride.

  Laura thrust her hands right into the overgrowth, pushing in up to her elbows until she felt smooth rocks underneath. She probed in the area where the cave should be. And found it. Bending down, she quickly ripped a seam at the bottom and along one side, creating a kind of flap door. Thankfully, the plant life was not thick enough that she needed to take precious time cutting it with her knife.

  She lifted it as little as possible and crawled in. Oh, God, I’m just not sure I can deal with snakes right now. Or bears. Or spiders. Or anything breathing and moving, really. If You could just make this cave empty of the creepy-crawlies or things that want to eat us, I would really, really appreciate it.

  Laura didn’t get her flashlight on before Seth crawled in after her. He still held Abby tight, but he smoothed down the flap she had ripped as much as possible. If the person on the outside wasn’t looking, he wouldn’t even realize there was a cavern. Hopefully.

  Laura turned on the light and slowly scanned the area. It was exactly as she remembered. The rocks were clustered together, almost in a U shape. There was a larger slab of rock on top. She’d always called it a cave, but it wasn’t technically. That was just the closest description that fit the enclosure. The vines helped to seal it up and cement the effect of being in a cave.

  It was tight for three people, especially since two were adults. But they fit. It was dry. And Laura did not see any animals or creepy-crawlies. Or slitheries. Thank You, God.

  Seth held out Abby and Laura took her. She curved herself against the back wall of the space, sitting with her legs crossed and cradling Abby on her lap. She leaned down and pressed a kiss in the curve of Abby’s neck while holding a finger to her lips. Abby hadn’t made a sound, but Laura wanted to remind her to be quiet.

  Laura moved her finger and Abby squeezed Duckie in her little arms. Her thumb was in her mouth. Laura had been working on breaking that habit, but she wasn’t about to deny her girl any measure of comfort right now.

  Seth was crouched down, balanced on the balls of his feet. He had his gun out again. Laura had not seen him draw it—it certainly wasn’t in his hand when he passed Abby back to her. He had to have put it away to take Abby and then immediately pulled it out again. Because the danger was still real and right on top of them.

  His hands went over the seams of the flap Laura had made, securing it again. To Laura’s eyes, it looked as good as possible. They were very well hidden. If she could just quiet down her breathing a bit, they should not be findable.

  Seth reached for the flashlight, turning it off. There was enough light to see, but barely. Hopefully, the vines were thick enough to conceal them. Please, let them be thick enough.

 
Laura swallowed hard and tried to even the rise and fall of her chest. It felt tight, like she needed to gasp for air. She fought the urge. She was fine. Her daughter was fine. Slowly the thundering in her ears quieted down and she didn’t feel like she was huffing and puffing anymore.

  Seth was still positioned in front of the flap with his back to Laura and Abby. His body was big and broad, completely filling the entryway. If someone did open that flap, they would only see Seth. And his gun.

  Laura still had no clue what they had run from. What they were hiding from. But it had to be one of the armed men. The ones who were hunting them down. Why else would he have acted like that? If it had been the fire or an animal or pretty much anything besides a person, Seth would have talked to her while they fled. No, fleeing in silence had to mean fleeing from a man who wanted to kill them. Or men.

  Seth was just staring at the wall of plants. Laura wanted to ask him if he saw anything. Or heard anything. Had they been quick enough? Was the man just coincidentally coming this way or was he actively pursuing them? Was it a man or men? And how many?

  The questions flew through Laura’s mind faster than she could process them. She had the overwhelming urge to run. To pick up Abby and just run and run and run.

  They were going to die. Laura’s fight-or-flight response was fully engaged, and the flight response was definitely winning out. Laura did not want to be here anymore.

  They were going to die.

  No. This was not truth. This was panic and despair. Laura closed her eyes and buried her nose back in Abby’s hair, smelling her sweetness. Abby was warm in her lap. Soft. Warm. Alive. Her greatest gift from God. Laura started counting her blessings. Going through all the ways God had been with her. Reminding herself that He was faithful and steadfast. He did not give her a spirit of fear.

  This was okay. This was going to be okay. She was a capable woman. She was Malcolm Grant’s daughter. She could and would survive what this world threw at her. This was her mountain, her home. She would be safe here.