'No. It would take too long trying to find a place to cross over the water.'
'We need to get to a phone.' And a hot shower and dry clothes, she silently added.
He finished covering their footprints, stepped back to survey his handiwork, and nodded with satisfaction.
'A phone's a given,' he said as he walked closer to her. 'Damn, babe, you're freezing, aren't you?'
'You're not?' she asked as he took her into his embrace and began to vigorously rub her arms.
'I'm okay,' he answered. 'I've got ice water in my veins, or so I've been told.'
'Who would say such a thing?' she asked.
'My sister.'
'Oh.'. Then, 'She ought to know.'
'Do you have any strength left?' He was unzipping her windbreaker so he could get to his gun. His weapon was just a little
damp. He shoved it into the back of his jeans and zipped her pocket closed again.
'I have as much strength as you do.'
'Then start jogging. You'll get warm in no time.'
'Which way?'
'We have to go up before we can go down.'
She looked at the mountains surrounding them. 'It would be easier to follow the river, but Monk would anticipate that.'
She turned around and started jogging at a fast clip through the woods. Water sloshed between her toes as she ran. The
sensation of ice cubes melting around her feet wasn't pleasant.
John Paul kept pace with her for over an hour. They neither stopped nor spoke to each other.
He was impressed with her stamina. Once she had established the rhythm, she didn't slow down. She didn't complain either,
and she wasn't clutching her side. He already knew she was in shape. One look at her body and he could tell she worked out.
Still, the way she kept moving, so steady and sure, was proof that she did more than take a one-hour aerobics class once a week at some little spa back home.
He spotted the clear-water creek ahead and thought they should stop to catch their breath.
'Let's stop for a minute.'
Thank God, thank God. 'Are you sure you don't want to keep going?'
If he had said yes, she thought she would either burst into tears or keel over from exhaustion. The stitch in her side felt like someone was holding a hot coal against her ribs, and it had taken all she had not to grab hold and double over.
She noticed he didn't appear to be the least winded. Avery stretched her legs so they wouldn't cramp on her before she collapsed to the ground. Scooping up water with cupped hands, she greedily drank.
'Do you think he's tracking us?' she asked a minute later.
'Probably,' he answered. 'But he'll have to find a place to cross over those rapids, so we have some time. Tell me what happened at the car.' He had been silently cursing himself for leaving her.
She sat down in the grass and leaned back against the tree. 'I woke up and you were gone,' she said. 'So I decided to follow you.'
His shoulder rubbed against hers as he sat beside her.
'I didn't get far,' she admitted. 'I had just started up the hill when I saw the headlights through the mist. Honest to Pete, I almost ran out to flag it down, but thankfully, I came to my senses and decided to wait until the car came closer.'
'Ah, man,' he whispered. 'You could have walked right up to him before you…' He couldn't go on. The thought of what could have happened to her made him sick.
'He parked his car down below, then got out. He had a flashlight and a rifle tucked under his arm as he climbed the hill to where your car was hidden. He must have pinpointed the location before you moved the watch. I knew it was Monk, of course, so I stayed hidden.'
'Then what happened?'
'He checked out the car.'
'Did you see his face?'
'No. I could have if I'd moved, but I was afraid I'd make a noise, and he'd know I was there, watching. He opened the hood
of your car, pulled something out, and threw it into that gully on the side of the hill. I could find it if we go back. He had the hood of his windbreaker up, so I couldn't see his face or the color of his hair, but he was at least six feet. He wasn't thin, though. He was quite muscular, not heavyset. He reminded me of a bodybuilder.'
'He's good with disguises,' he said. 'Noah's description is what the FBI is using, but he didn't get a clear look at him either.
From what I've heard about Monk, he could be in the same room with Noah today, and I doubt he would be recognized.'
'I don't know if he was alone or not. He was driving a Land Rover, but when he opened the door and got out, the light didn't go
on, and he parked it a good distance away. I couldn't see inside. Do you think the woman was with him?'
'I don't know.'
'He's very good at what he does, isn't he?' She sounded disheartened.
'Yes, he is,' he said.
'He stood there a long time, maybe five minutes,' she said. 'He didn't move a muscle. It was creepy.'
'He was probably listening to the sound of the forest, hoping to hear something.'
'Like me.'
'Yes.' He put his arm around her and pulled her close. 'Thank God you didn't try to run.'
'I thought about trying to get my gun out of my pocket, but I was so close to him I worried he'd hear the sound of the zipper.'
'If you had been asleep, Monk…'
Before he could finish his bleak thought, she interrupted. 'He'd shoot me? I'll tell you what, John Paul. If you ever leave me
behind again, that's exactly what I'm going to do to you.'
Since she was all but clinging to him so that she could borrow some of his warmth, the threat didn't carry much weight.
'I won't leave you again,' he promised in a gruff whisper. 'I never should have left you. Hell, I guess I've been away from it too long. My instincts are all screwed up.'
She homed in on what he'd just said. 'You've been away from it too long? What exactly is
'Come on, sugar. We should get moving. Time's awasting.'
In other words, leave it alone. She decided to accommodate him now and try again later. She was stiff and sore when she stood. Groaning, she rubbed her backside, not caring that she appeared less than ladylike.
'You know what I need?'
'Food, dry clothes…'
'Yes, that too,' she said. 'But what I also need is to get into my yoga position, relax, and do my free- association exercises.'
'Your what?' He was sure he hadn't heard correctly.
She repeated. 'You let the fragments drift in your mind; then when you're completely relaxed, you take hold of one at a time and you analyze it. You can't do it, though, until you reach total relaxation.'
John Paul watched her stretch her long legs. 'So how do you reach total relaxation?' he asked.
'Visualization,' she said. 'I go to a place where I feel completely safe and free, like a real home. You know, I go to my… happy place.'
