Mac didn’t argue. He hit the latrine, and was asleep in his sleeping bag before Angie even got into the tent.
Chapter 23
Mac wasn’t sure what woke him up. He lay very still and listened. He could hear the soft sounds of Angie sleeping. That was it. He frowned. He got up, pulled on clothes, and grabbed his pistol before easing out of the tent. It wasn’t sun up yet, but it was close because he could see. And it was cold. That’s what they needed — a snow storm to blow in, he thought glumly. He stood by the tent and listened. He didn’t hear anything.
And he should, he thought suddenly. He should hear whoever was on guard. Maybe even Rand starting breakfast. More sounds from the tents. There was nothing. He looked over at the vehicles. The one he’d drove into camp last night was gone.
“Son of a bitch,” he said softly. That was probably what had awoken him, the vehicle leaving. Angie came out of the tent and stood beside him.
“What?” she said.
“They left us,” he said grimly. He stood still, surveying the camp. There was a sound behind him and he turned, his pistol pointed and ready.
“Easy,” Rand said. “I argued. And I’ve got a knot on my head to show for it.”
“What happened?” Mac asked. He dropped the pistol down; it wouldn’t take but a moment for him to bring it back up, and Rand knew it.
“That handheld? Norton started talking until Ken finally answered. Norton promised him safe passage out with all the clients and the wounded if he’d leave you behind. Both of you. To be honest, I didn’t have much of a problem leaving you behind for the sake of the clients, but leaving Angie behind? That bothered me, and Ken too. But Ken can make hard choices, and he has two dead, five wounded, and a bunch of worthless clients. Craig was grim. But he could do the math too. Norton promised a second rig down at the fork in the road — so, they hot-wired the vehicle — and moved out. About 30 minutes ago. I turned away from Ken and Craig to go wake you up, and Craig gave me a nice love-tap. And so, I’m still here.”
“Key was in my pack,” Mac said slowly. Fuck. They’d taken his gun that was stashed inside and left the rest of the pack sitting outside the tent next to his boots. He glanced over. They were still there. Be a bitch of a walk if they weren’t.
“Yup,” Rand said. “My argument was that given the offer, you’d probably volunteer to stay behind if they took Angie to safety. But Craig didn’t want to risk it. I can understand. He’s got a business to run, and he’s got these crazy clients. And a dead client still out there to explain at some point. Ken? He’ll get them out and come back. I’d bet my life on it.”
“You probably have,” Mac said. He sighed. “They’ll come for us. And we should be elsewhere when they do. But damn, man, is there any chance of some food?”
Rand snorted. “They didn’t take anything but people and weapons, so one thing we’ve got is food.”
“They take the C-4?” Mac said as he followed Rand toward the kitchen area. He glanced at Angie. She looked pale. Tired, dark circles under eyes. But she was composed. No hysterics.
“Yeah.”
“Must be a full vehicle,” Mac observed and took the sandwich Rand handed him. He handed another to Angie. She started to refuse it, but Mac said quietly, “Eat. You’ll need the energy.”
“And I’m making coffee,” Rand said. “I need coffee.”
Angie took a deep breath, then let it out. “I could use a cup,” she admitted.
“The wounded are in the vehicle,” Rand said as he set about making the coffee. “Mark was driving. Ken and Craig were scouting, and the rest were told to walk and stay with the vehicle.”
“Do you trust Norton’s word?” Mac asked.
“That’s another question,” Rand agreed. “I don’t see what benefit there is for Norton to let them go. Dead men tell no tales. So, conquer and divide? Ken didn’t disagree, but at least one of those men won’t make it if they don’t get him to a hospital.”
“It really depends on what Sensei is telling them,” Mac said. “He’s got some way to communicate with Norton. I wonder if Norton is still taking his orders?”
“No clue,” Rand said. He handed Angie her coffee, and leaned against the table to drink his. Mac rummaged in the ice chest for his Mountain Dew. The three of them considered the situation while they silently drank their morning jolt of caffeine.
“Options,” Mac said at last. “One, we start hiking out. Probably could even catch up with the car, and to be honest? I think they’re going to need us. Two, we say screw them, they’re on their own, and figure a different route out of here where Norton’s not likely to find us. Three? We take the fight to Norton. Much as I like that one, the odds aren’t in our favor. Four? We wait, hope that Ken sends help before Norton gets us. We could actually set up a pretty defendable camp here, or not far from here.”
“Can I vote for sit somewhere and cry?” Angie said with a laugh. She shook her head.
Rand pointed his finger at her, and nodded.
“Label that option 4b,” Mac said smiling. “Because I’m pretty sure staying here makes us sitting ducks, and we’ll be in tears.”
“Why is Norton doing this?” Angie asked. “Can we think about motivation for a minute? And is there any reasoning with him?”
Mac looked at Rand, raised an eyebrow. “What do you think? You know the man better than we do.”
Rand poured himself another cup of coffee and took a big gulp of it. “How much do you know about Norton?” he said at last.
“Former Skinhead, washed out of the Marines because he was terrorizing
