Tanner didn’t look at her as he stuffed them back in the pack. “If they grabbed Josh, that makes him the fifth person who’s been abducted in the past few weeks. That’s not counting the people missing from the homeless camps located in other parts of the forest. I’d assumed it was the locals trying to chase them off, but now I’m not so sure. My gut tells me there’s something else going on, though I don’t have a clue what it might be.”
“What are the police saying about the abductions?” she asked as Tanner finished with her pack. “Do they have any leads?”
“I doubt the police even realize anything is going on,” he said, walking over to his tent.
Zarina watched as Tanner leaned in and pulled out the sleeping bag, then rolled it up. If he was packing up, that must mean they’d be staying at the prepper camp. She wasn’t surprised. The moment Burt had suggested she might be in danger, she’d known Tanner would agree to move to their camp. That also meant he was smart enough to know he wasn’t getting rid of her.
He quickly finished shoving his stuff in his pack before starting in on the tent. Zarina would have volunteered to help, but he was moving so fast, she’d only get in the way.
“Like I said, preppers don’t trust outsiders, especially the police. I’m pretty sure they didn’t even report it,” Tanner told her.
She blinked. “So the preppers are going to try to find their friends on their own?”
Tanner shrugged. “Probably.”
She didn’t see them having much success. “Okay, so they don’t like the police, but what’s the deal with doctors and hospitals? They’re willing to let Lorraine lose the ability to walk simply because they have trust issues?”
Tanner was silent as he finished strapping the tent on top of his pack. “Hospitals mean paperwork, lots of questions, and ultimately, cops. None of them want that.”
Zarina shook her head. Picking up her backpack, she dragged it on over her shoulders. “How long will it take to get to this prepper camp?”
It could already be too late for Lorraine. A person could go into life-threatening shock within an hour of a major injury. Burt didn’t say whether the woman had been hurt sometime last night or early this morning, but either way, that was a long time to go without proper medical attention.
As Tanner shrugged his pack on his broad shoulders, Zarina looked around and realized he’d been right. There was nothing left to show anyone had made camp except for the cold fire pit. Tanner really did carry everything he owned on his back.
“The trip would take me a solid hour at a steady walk.” Reaching out, he snagged her pack off her back and hung it casually off one of his shoulders. “It would take you a lot longer, especially weighed down with all this stuff. I’ll carry your pack so we can get there faster.”
In any other situation, Zarina would have complained, but Tanner was right. This wasn’t about her or her pride. There were people hurt who needed her help.
“Okay,” she said. “But don’t think this means I’m going to let you carry my pack all the time.”
Tanner snorted and turned in the same direction the prepper had gone a few minutes ago. “I wouldn’t dream of it.” He glanced over his shoulder. “You coming or what?”
Zarina started after him, jogging to catch up. Five minutes later, they were heading up a steep slope, and she was already gasping for breath. Maybe if she asked nicely, Tanner would carry her and her pack?
* * *
Zarina stepped onto the front porch of the small cabin, closing the door quietly behind her. She’d expected to find the camp’s residents waiting expectantly for her, but no one was around. That wasn’t surprising. Lorraine’s surgery had taken a long time. Reaching around, she pressed the heels of her hands to the small of her back and stretched, letting out a groan. From the position of the sun, it must be midday, which meant she’d been working for at least three hours straight. The backache was worth it, though. Lorraine wasn’t going to lose her life—or her leg—even though it felt like Zarina had just performed surgery in the middle of the Stone Age.
She and Tanner had practically run all the way to the prepper camp. Okay, maybe she was exaggerating. Tanner had walked at a brisk pace. She’d mostly stumbled over rocks and tree roots every five feet, trying to keep up.
She looked around at the collection of cabins and tents, searching for Tanner. She and Tanner had been moving too fast when they’d first gotten here to give the place more than a quick glance, but now that she had a minute to take it in, she had to admit it reminded her of something you’d see on The Walking Dead—without the zombies.
Zarina found Tanner standing off to one side of the porch, his back against the cabin wall, his face heavy with exhaustion. He’d been at her side while she’d treated Lorraine for almost the entire morning, helping out any way he could. Even though he didn’t say as much, it was obvious it hurt him to see the old woman in so much pain. But there was nothing Zarina could do to relieve the woman’s agony. The camp’s supply of heavy-duty drugs had been used up in the previous attack or given to the other prepper camps that had also been hit.
“Is she okay?” he asked softly.
He’d left a few minutes earlier, after one of Lorraine’s more vocal moments. It had been difficult for Zarina to take, but she knew it’d been worse for him. His
