* * *
“Is everything okay?” Diane asked as John, Hector, and Charlie all got seated.
“Yeah, we’re fine,” Hector replied.
“We’re turning,” Betty said. “Now where are we going?”
“Back to California,”
“Back? Where are we?”
“Over New Mexico.”
“We are?” Betty peered out at the darkened landscape below. “I can’t see anything.” Moments later, however, the jet banked back to starboard.
John got up and hurried to the cockpit. “What’s up?”
“We were just ordered to stay away from McCall,” Jim said.
“Ordered. Who ordered that?”
“Drew,” Hunter said. He let out a sigh. “I need to land this thing. I’m tired and frustrated.”
“Pick a place,” John said. “I’ll fly her if you need a break.”
“That’s a tempting offer,” Hunter said.
“I mean it. Hector or Charlie can come up here too and you both can sit in back for a while.”
Hunter nodded. “Okay, but let me find us a place to land first.” He checked the display and let out a laugh. “Ever been to Henrico Carlos Community Airport?”
“What?”
“That’s where Janet and I encountered that black helicopter and picked up your pal Brian.”
“Works for me,” John said. “Let me get one of the guys and we’ll trade places for a while.”
John and Hector were at the controls while Hunter and Jim joined Charlie and the women.
“Are you okay?” Samantha asked as Hunter sat down.
“I will be. Just tired, frustrated... and grumpy.” He smiled. “How about you?”
She shrugged. “I’m okay. So where are we going?
“Arizona. To an airstrip I know about. We’ll wait there until we hear from someone.”
Samantha nodded. “Okay. Thanks.” She leaned back and gazed out her window watching the sky. She could see stars begin to litter the sky above and occasional lights dotting the dark landscape below.
Turning on a video screen next to her seat, she checked the time. It was just after eight o’clock, whatever time zone they were in. She glanced at Hunter. His head rested against the back of his seat slightly tilted to one side.
She tapped Charlie on the shoulder sitting directly in front of her. “Charlie?” she said. “What time zone are we in?”
“Mountain, I think. Why?”
“Just wondered.” She paused. “Can I ask you another question?”
“Sure.”
“How did you manage to end up back there in the forest ready and waiting to help us?”
“Just lucky, I guess,” he said turning around to smile at her. There was a glint in his eye. “Actually, we arrived two days before all of you did and had been camping out about a quarter mile from the cabin in a tiny hunting shack. The roof of that thing leaks, by the way.” He chuckled.
“Anyway, in order to draw some of these not-so-nice folks out, we came up with a plan to meet at the cabin. Then we carefully dropped a few hints that you’d all be heading that way too... to hide out. It was a longshot, but it worked. They took the bait. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out quite like we hoped so we had to shift to Plan B.”
“So who’s we?” she asked.
“Ah, well... Drew, I call him Drew.” He grinned. “Me, Brian... John and Hector.”
“So everyone knew about the plan to go to the cabin.” Samantha said. “Everyone was aware that our lives would be in danger and that someone could end up dead.”
“I know you think we were being a little reckless, but believe me, we took all of that into consideration. Look. We need to shut these guys down. Without offering some serious incentive to get them all there in one place at the same time, especially Davenport, it would have been a pointless effort. Besides, do you want to keep running the rest of your life, always looking over your shoulder, hoping to stay one step ahead of these guys? They were on the hunt. They meant business. They weren’t about to stop looking for all of you, that I can assure you. It was an all or nothing plan.”
“But... wouldn’t they have wanted to be absolutely sure we’d all be there before showing up? And I still don’t understand why they wanted me.”
“They were absolutely sure. Our mole let them know. As for you... someone got the idea that you and Hunter were an item and they’d been trying to use him to draw out Drew. Drew’s who they’ve wanted all along.”
Samantha frowned. “That’s crazy. I mean, I’ve spent more time with Hunter just today alone, than I did before all of this happened.”
“I know, but with your house and everything... well...”
Hunter sudden sat up straight and looked at Charlie shaking his head slightly.
“My house?” Samantha asked.
Charlie clammed up and turned around.
“What about my house?” she asked and looked at Hunter.
“Uh... well...” He scratched his head. “I guess... since we were seen at the Home Center together that... someone might have thought I... was helping you or something.”
Samantha furrowed her brown. “Are you helping me? Are you paying for any of it?”
“Hey, these goofballs... these idiots are so desperate, I guess they were grasping at straws, you know?”
“I guess.” Samantha eyed him suspiciously but resumed gazing out her window. Suddenly she leaned forward and tapped Charlie on the shoulder again. “I still have another question.”
Hunter let out a laugh.
Samantha looked at him. “What’s so funny?”
“Drew said you liked to ask a lot of questions, that’s all.”
Samantha made a face then tapped Charlie again.
“Yeah?”
“All I wanted to know was how did you get to the cabin?” Obviously you didn’t fly in. So, did you drive? Walk? Hitchhike? What?”
“We drove. In a jeep.”
“And the jeep is still back there.”
“Yeah.” He shook his head. “Like I said, Plan A had to be scraped. So as a backup... Plan B involved driving out in the van and the jeep. It beats walking through the forest, don’t you think?”
“I guess.”
“Even though we did everything possible to convince Davenport everyone would be at the cabin, there was always the outside chance he wouldn’t actually show up. So depending on how he would get there, you know... by plane or helicopter, would determine how the rest of us would leave. As you can see, he came in a plane. The problem was he never intended to fly this thing out of there. But we didn’t count on that.”
“They weren’t going to use it?” Samantha asked then her eyes narrowed. “They were going to set it on fire, weren’t they?”
Charlie stared at her and finally nodded. “Yeah, okay... yes. It looks like that was their plan. Well, actually blow it up, would be closer to the truth.”
“What?” Betty asked. “But John said...”
John looked at Charlie. “Nice.”
“What!” Charlie said. “They didn’t, did they? We messed up their Plan A.” He sat back. “I’m gonna miss that jeep.”
“So... taking this plane was actually Plan C,” Samantha said and smiled.
John laughed.
Charlie broke into a grin. “I guess you could say that, yes.”
Betty’s eye’s widened. “What will they do when they find out we stole their plane?”
John and Charlie laughed.
“She has a point, you know,” Samantha said, suppressing a grin.
“I guess we’ll worry about that... later,” John said.
Everyone sat quietly watching out their windows until Samantha had to ask another question. “How was Brian going to get to the rendezvous place?”
Charlie sat still.
John chuckled. “You gonna answer her?”
“I?
??d rather not.”
“Why? It’s a legitimate question.”
Charlie turned around. “If you must know, he was going to use the jeep.”
Samantha smiled, but didn’t say anything.
“Yeah, I know what you’re thinking... Plan D.”
Everyone laughed.
Hector called back to them from the cockpit. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” Charlie said. “Just fly the plane.”
“Okay, but come up here for a minute.”
Charlie got up and turned to Samantha. “You can think of a few more questions for me, if you like, and I’ll have some answers for you when I get back.”
Samantha smirked. “I’ll do that.”
Charlie joined John and Hector. “What’s up?”
“We’ve been hearing some chatter,” John said.
“From who and what are they saying?” Charlie asked.
“Between Frank and Hamilton. Sounds like they’re planning to meet up in McCall, Idaho,” Hector said. “We just sent a message that we’d meet them all there but Ham said to stay away.”
“Why?” Charlie asked.
Hector looked at him. “My guess is he has some concerns about it being a trap and doesn’t want to put the rest of us jeopardy.”
“So what’s the plan?” he asked.
“We’re headed for a small airport in southern Arizona. It’s the same one Hunter and Janet encountered their black chopper. The one Brian was on. We’re about fifteen minutes out. I guess we’ll just have to sit and wait until we hear from someone.”
“Okay,” Charlie said. “I’ll go belt up.”
John landed the jet easily then parked it on the empty apron of the small airport. He shut down the system and everyone began to stand up and stretch. Soon they were all outside looking up at the incredible sight of stars overhead.
Hunter walked to the airstrip and stood watching until the runway lights shut off. John joined him.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah.” Hunter said and nodded. “I guess so. It seems different at night... this place. A lot cooler.” He stared out at the dark landscape. “The last time I was here the sun was beating down, the airstrip was hot as hell, and we were accosted by that black helicopter.” He chuckled. “I’ll bet there’s even some of that money still blowing around out here somewhere.” He gestured to the desert area all around them.
“We heard about that. Hector and I were working a lead in San Diego that day. By the time we were pulled in to help, you had been all over the place before ending up at the Resort.”
“About that,” Hunter said. “So Janet... she’s been working with you guys?”
“Yeah.”
“For how long?”
“Oh... it’s been a couple of years, I guess. Frank recruited her. She’s done a good job for us. Keeps a level head. Has a knack for getting people to open up, talk, gossip, tattle-tail... whatever you want to call it.”
“Yeah, she likes to collect juicy stuff.” Hunter laughed aloud. “That girl. I wonder...” He stopped then asked. “So... you think she’s...”
“Dead?”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know. Maybe. Or maybe she survived... got away. I don’t know. We may never know.”
“I hope she’s okay, somehow,” Hunter said.
“Me too.”
They started to walk back to the plane.
“Hey,” Hunter said. “You don’t think anyone would come here looking for us, do you?”
“I doubt it. After that encounter you had, I’m sure they figure it spooked you for good.”