jaws open. Then she heard the key in the lock and saw the door open. Teddy came in the room grinning and looked up at her in the rafters, knowing he was too late to stop Luke. She could be mistaken, but if two cars were gone, he had to be here by himself. She didn’t know what was going on, what they were doing.
Teddy aimed the big chrome-plate automatic at her and said, “Move another inch, it’ll be your last.”
She was thinking the same thing about him, hoping he’d take another couple of steps.
“Get that kid back in here and come down.”
She said, “You dumbass hick-why don’t you come up here and get me?”
He grinned at her and said, “If that’s the way you want it, puss.”
She climbed out the window and was standing on the sill when she heard the trap spring closed, the loud metallic snap of the metal jaws hitting with force. She reached up and felt the steep pitch of the roof and swung her body up and turned on her back, the heels of her hiking boots digging into the shingles, trying to hold her position. She heard a car and looked over the roofline and saw the Z28 drive in and then disappear as it pulled up in front.
Luke was on the ground running for the treeline. He turned and looked back at her. She heard gunshots and two bullets ripped through the roof next to her and then two more. She lifted her heels and slid down to the flat roof over the porch, landing on her feet. There was wood stacked five feet high in a metal rack that was built into the side of the lodge. She’d lower herself onto it and climb down. That’s what she was trying to do when DeJuan appeared, aiming the shotgun at her.
DeJuan was preoccupied on the ride back from taking the deputy, fiending on Celeste, staring at her driving the Camaro. Picturing her naked body with the tats. He’d had white trim, black trim, Asian trim, French Canadian trim, but this Celeste, man, she got to him. Why she turn him on so?
At one point, she glanced over, caught him with his eyeballs popping out. Said, “Take a picture, it lasts longer.”
Busted him like she could read his mind.
He heard gunshots when they drove in-four of them-wondered what was going on. He and Celeste looking at each other-going for their own guns now. They got out. He went right around one side of the lodge and she went the other way, no discussion, knew what to do and did it.
DeJuan moved slow, coming along the east wall of the cabin, looked in the window, saw the kitchen. Looked toward the water, saw the kid standing at the edge of the woods, then disappear. He couldn’t believe it-leave for ten minutes, come back, somebody shooting, kid escape again. Little motherfucker like Houdini. Where the fuck Theo at?
DeJuan was going after him but stopped when he saw Kate on the roof. Had a better idea. He yelled in the woods. “Yo, little man, better not leave your moms. Something happen to her, you be all alone in the world.”
Bitch on the roof said, “Luke, don’t listen to him. Run.”
DeJuan racked the twelve-gauge. “Better listen to this-not say another word, Mr. Remington going to talk at you. Don’t want to hear what he got to say. Now come on down here.”
He watched her get on her stomach and lower herself, feet finding the wood pile, putting her weight on it, standing and balancing, climbing down the rails of the metal rack that held the wood in place.
DeJuan had seen a lot of movies, seen people react in a lot of real-life situations. Was convinced he knew something about human nature and he’d bet his share of the money-look like seven hundred large-rich kid wasn’t going nowhere, still in the trees, watching him. Afraid for his moms-and DeJuan was going to play on that fear.
“You leave her,” DeJuan said, “you going to blame yourself. Like when you shot your pops. Don’t be doing it again.” Laying it on the little guy, fucking with his head.
DeJuan’s new three-step plan: get the kid back, take ’em in the lodge, pop his little Houdini ass, then do his moms. That was step one. Step two, repeat the process with Teddy and Celeste. Step three, get the fuck out of there-retire.
Luke watched Teddy come out of the lodge and he was mad-that was pretty obvious, running to his mom, hitting her and going crazy. Punched her in the face and knocked her down.
Luke wanted to run out there and hit Camo and keep hitting him.
DeJuan said, “Yo, Ted, what you doing?”
Teddy said, “Paying her back.”
DeJuan said, “Be cool on the violence.”
Teddy grabbed a fistful of her hair and put the barrel of his gun up to her face. “Think I ain’t gonna see a three-foot-long bear trap on the floor? How dumb you think I am?”
His mom didn’t say anything, although Luke bet she wanted to.
Teddy pulled her across the yard by her hair-closer to the tree line.
He said, “You see her, boy? You see your mother standing here quivering like a scared animal? You gonna let her die?”
Teddy pressed the barrel of his pistol against the side of her face. He was grinning, enjoying himself and now Luke was mad.
DeJuan scanning the tree line, said, “It all in your hands now, little man. Come on, show your moms some love.”
He held the back of her hair in his fist, pulling on it and pressing the barrel end of his automatic against her cheekbone. He was trying to hurt her and he did. Kate could feel his body pressing against her from behind. She didn’t know if Luke was still there or not and said, “Luke, don’t listen to him, run.”
Teddy let go of her hair and swung her around so she was facing him and said, “Better shut the fuck up.”
He hit her in the face with his fist and she went down, dazed from the blow, her vision hazy, trying to focus on DeJuan. He was moving to the tree line, holding the shotgun level across his body, finger on the trigger, aiming at the trees. Teddy bent down and picked her up by the hair.
“Luke, you see him,” Kate said. “He’s coming after you.”
Teddy hit her again and she stumbled but didn’t go down.
He said, “You don’t learn, do you?”
Luke saw the black guy heading toward him with the shotgun, just inside the trees. He moved straight back, out of his path and hid behind a giant maple.
“I’m gonna count to ten,” Teddy said. “You’re not back here, I’ll shoot her dead, so help me God. You hear me, boy?”
Luke put the bow case on the ground and opened it and lifted out his dad’s Browning Mirage. Slid an arrow out of the quiver and nocked it. He wasn’t going to let Camo hit his mother again.
Camo said, “One…”
He was standing behind his mom-to her left.
“Two…”
They were twenty yards away. Luke had a clear shot. He was at the edge of the tree line. He looked right, saw the black guy through the trees, coming back toward him.
“Three…”
Luke’s chest tightened as he tried to raise the bow. He couldn’t breathe. Didn’t have the strength to draw the string. He could feel it happening again.
“Four…”
Teddy pulled the hammer back on the chrome-plate automatic and pressed the barrel against his mom’s cheek, pushing it into her face.
“Five…”
Luke could feel his hands shake and could feel sweat drip down his face.
“Six…”
DeJuan was thirty feet away now, leveling the shotgun.
