Deliver Us From Evil (A. Shaw 2)

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ALAN RICE sprinted past them but quickly fell back, tugging at a painful stitch in his side. He was obviously not in good physical shape. He would be a drag on the rest of them, making it easier for Kuchin to catch them. Because of that Shaw’s first inclination was to leave him, but then another thought occurred to him. He fell back and put his hand under Rice’s arm, helping him along.

“Just pace yourself. Not too fast or slow.”

“Okay, okay,” gasped Rice, and his stride became more measured.

Reggie, seeming to sense what Shaw was doing, dropped back to join them. Whit ran on ahead, his head bowed, his focus no doubt still on Dominic.

“What can you tell us about this place?” asked Reggie. “Anything that’ll give us an edge.”

“Like what?” said Rice.

Shaw said, “I figure we’re in Newfoundland or Labrador.”

“It’s Labrador, right on the edge of the coast.”

“How did you know that?” Reggie asked Shaw.

“I had a lot of time to count seconds,” he answered.

Rice snapped, “There’s nothing out here. We’re screwed. We’re dead.”

They passed a small pond of scummy water. Before Shaw could react, Reggie had grabbed Rice, hauled him over to the pond, and pushed him in. He went under and then came up sputtering. She pushed him under again and held him there for several seconds.

When he came up again he screamed, “What the hell are you doing?”

“Just in case you have an electronic tracker on you,” she said. “Water and electronics don’t play well with each other.”

Shaw glanced over at her. “Nice catch. I should’ve thought of it.”

“Figured it wouldn’t be past Kuchin to plant a spy with us under the pretense of punishing his guy.”

“Let’s keep moving,” said Shaw.

As they jogged along Shaw said, “What else can you tell us?”

“He has hunting dogs too, follow any scent.”

“That’s another reason they took our clothes,” Shaw said. “For the dogs.”

“Has he done this before? Hunted people?”

“Well, I know he doesn’t hunt animals. He told me once he hated it.”

Reggie grimaced. “Well, there’s your answer. He has hunting dogs but doesn’t hunt animals.”

“At least not animals on four legs,” said Shaw.

“He’s cruel and unpredictable,” added Rice.

“The cruel part I get. It’s the unpredictable part I’m worried about.” Shaw looked around. “Are we heading towards the way someone would drive in here?”

“It’s hard to tell in the dark, but I think so.”

“What’s close?”

“Nothing. Well, there’s an airstrip about forty kilometers in the direction we’re heading, but the last time I looked we don’t have a plane. Goose Bay is maybe the closest town, but it’s a long way. Hours by car, days on foot.”