A shotgun? That’d be perfect, Abilene thought. But they sure hadn’t brought one along with them, and she hadn’t seen one in the lodge. Somehow, though, she seemed to remember seeing one recently.
She remembered. She muttered. ‘Oh, Jesus.’
Cora groaned. Apparendy, she now realized where the shotgun was.
Vivian gazed at the others, puzzled.
‘Batty,’ Finley said.
Vivian bared her upper teeth. ‘We don’t want to go back there.’
‘The old buzzard had an ax in the shed, too. And a sickle. All sorts of neat shit. We could come back loaded for bear.’
Cora nodded. ‘If we had that over-and-under, we could blow the asshole’s head off. We wouldn’t even have to get our hands dirty. There’d be no contest. Even if it turns out there’s more than one of ’em, we’d be okay.’
‘Batty isn’t about to give us any of those things,’ Vivian pointed out.
‘We might be able to work a trade,’ Abilene suggested.
‘Not a chance,’ Vivian said. ‘Someone like that doesn’t part with a shotgun.’
‘So… we’re talking about stealing the stuff?’
‘You got it, Hickok.’
‘Oh, man.’
Nose wrinkled, Vivian nodded in agreement ‘That’s getting heavy.’
‘HeavyV Finley blurted. ‘You’ve gotta be kidding me! We’re gonna blow away the fucker who killed Helen and you’re worried about swiping a few things from some crazy old fart of indeterminate gender who may or may not have done it?’ Vivian didn’t seem fazed by the outburst ‘I don’t think it’s a good idea,’ she said, her voice firm. ‘I’m sure Batty didn’t have anything to do with it And we don’t want to turn someone like that against us.’
‘Scared he’ll hex us?’
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Back at the Wagoneer, they ate potato chips along with sandwiches of roast beef and sharp cheddar while they discussed plans for the raid against Batty.
Their first idea was to wait for nightfall, sneak up on the cabin in the dark, and subdue the old lunatic by force.
‘Catch him while he’s sleeping,’ Cora said.
‘But what if he’s not asleep?’ Vivian asked. ‘We’ve gotta take him by surprise or one of us might get shot.’
‘Listen at a window for snoring,’ Finley suggested.
‘We need to use our heads,’ Abilene said. ‘You know? We’re not commandos. Making a night attack on someone who’s armed… It just seems out of our league.’
‘So what’ve you got in mind, Hickok?’
‘I’m not sure. But we’ve never done anything like that. The other times… we were always tricky about it. That was how we managed to succeed against Wildman and the Sigs and even that guy on Halloween. We didn’t just attack. We were clever about it.’
Cora’s eyes narrowed. She nodded slowly as she chewed on a mouthful of sandwich. ‘You’re right,’ she said, her voice coming out muffled. ‘Let’s think up a fake-out.’
. ‘Going back in broad daylight would be a good start,’ Vivian said. ‘Walk right up to the cabin and knock on the door.’
‘Light a bag of shit on fire,’ Finley suggested.
‘Let’s tty to do better than that,’ Abilene said.
They were exhausted by the time they reached the lake.
‘Take five,’ Cora said.
She wandered down to the water as the others sank to the ground. Finley leaned back against Helen’s sleeping bag and folded her hands behind her head. Vivian lay down, gasping. Abilene crossed her legs. She lifted the front of her blouse and wiped her face.
Though gray clouds dimmed the sky, the air felt heavy and moist. Even the breeze blowing in from the lake gave little relief from the humid heat.
Cora dropped the tire iron, pulled off her shoes and socks, and waded into the water. It probably felt wonderful, but Abilene didn’t have the energy to follow her example. The earlier hiking and all the emotional strains of the morning had sapped too much of her strength. Besides, she would get a chance to cool off when they crossed the inlet.
If I can make it that far, she thought Carrying the water bottle, she supposed, didn’t make things any easier. But at least they’d been smart enough not to bring along a full one. Before setting out, they’d merely added some water to the nearly empty bottle that they’d taken along on the first trip to Batty’s.
She twisted off the cap. She drank a bit Lowering the bottle, she watched Cora duck beneath the surface. A few moments later, the girl came up and rolled onto her back and floated motionless beside the ramshackle dock.
Abilene turned her eyes to the beach and stared at the canoe. If we could just take that to Batty’s place, she thought. So much easier than walking. If it had paddles. And if it didn’t have that gaping hole in the bottom.
Oh well.
When Cora came out of the water, Abilene knew that the rest period was about over. She took a few more swigs from the bottle, then struggled to her feet. Vivian and Finley stood up while Cora got into her socks and shoes. Vivian accepted the bottle in silence, gulped some water, and passed it to Finley.
‘Hotter than a huncher out here,’ Finley muttered before tilting the bottle to her mouth.
‘You gals should’ve taken a dip,’ Cora said.
‘It’s gonna rain before long, anyway,’ Vivian said.
‘Think so?’ Abilene asked.
Nodding, Vivian sniffed the breeze. ‘I’d bet on it.’
‘Hope you’re right.’
‘Let it come,’ Finley said. ‘The sooner, the better.’
The rain didn’t come and the air seemed hotter, muggier than ever as they made their way through the forest. Abilene felt as if she were hiking through a sauna. After a while, Cora peeled off her tank top. Finley took off her shirt.
She removed her own blouse and tucked it under the waistband at the back of her skirt.
Seeing that the others had stripped down, Vivian pulled off her polo shirt. She balled it up and mopped her face. After a few strides, she took off her bra. She stuffed it into a pocket of her shorts but kept the shirt in her hand as if ready to put it on quickly at the first sign of intruders. Her head turned constantly from side to side. Obviously, she was worried about being seen.
So was Abilene. Though she told herself that there was probably no one nearby, it made her uneasy to be topless outside in broad daylight. She was uncomfortably aware of her naked breasts, how the air felt against their dripping skin and how they jiggled. She was tempted to put her blouse back on. Better to feel exposed and vulnerable, however, than stifled inside the garment.
As they approached the mouth of the inlet, where they would be in plain sight from the lake’s opposite shore, Vivian pulled the polo shirt down over her head. Abilene slipped into her blouse and immediately regretted the way it clung to her skin and trapped the heat. Neither Cora nor Finley bothered to cover themselves.
‘Somebody might see you,’ Vivian warned.
