Page 82 of Cole

His gaze stayed on Cheryl, but he asked Janice, “Is that right?”

“Yes, yes, she did. She got me out of the locked building.”

Cole barely nodded before his radio buzzed from Sadie. “Truck arrived. Three more men with weapons heading into the mining camp.”

He looked down at Cheryl and shook his head. “I still can’t trust you, but I won’t leave you here. I need to get you to safety.”

“He sent more men here, didn’t he?” Cheryl asked. “The miners are armed in case of a wild animal coming too close, but they’re not fighters. But Charles has armed guards. A few here that you may have taken care of. If more came, they came from the other mining site. The official one.”

“Good to know, but you’re still staying in front of us.”

Cheryl got to her feet as she nodded, and began trekking back the way they came. He helped Janice to her feet, keeping one arm around her. "Can you run?"

"Yes." Her voice was stronger now. "I can run."

"Good." He looked at Cheryl. "You too. Stay close and do exactly what I say."

Both women nodded.

Cole switched his phone back to the call with Logan. "I have Janice plus one other woman. Cheryl Whitten. Penson employee who says she’s on our side. Not taking a chance. Moving back toward the vehicles, but we've got company coming."

"Federal agents are almost there," Logan said. "Timothy and Frazier are pulling back from the camp. The miners are scattered, but some are still armed."

Cole could work with that. He just had to keep everyone alive that long.

"This way," he said, starting back through the forest. "We're going to find better cover and wait for the cavalry."

They moved as quickly as the snow allowed, Janice and Cheryl struggling with the deep drifts. Cole stayed between them and the camp, his rifle ready, expecting gunfire at any moment.

His radio crackled again. Sadie called out, “Agent arriving at camp. But a new threat is coming from the northwest. Three more.”

“More are coming, probably tracking us to use us as hostages for the arriving feds,” Cole said aloud. "Need to find defensible ground."

He spotted a rocky outcropping about fifty yards ahead, partially screened by trees. It would give them elevation and cover, forcing anyone attacking to come uphill through difficult terrain.

"There," he pointed. "Move."

They started toward it, but Janice stumbled in the deep snow, nearly going down. Cole caught her, steadying her.

"I'm okay," she said breathlessly. "Just these stupid too-big boots."

"Almost there," he encouraged. "Just a little farther." He watched as Cheryl struggled, lagging to the side instead of staying in front.

"Here!" Cole thrust his Glock into Janice's hands, trusting instinct over logic. “You know what to do with this?”

Janice's fingers closed around the grip with surprising familiarity. Her father had taught her to shoot when she was a teenager. It was a necessary skill for a wildlife vet who sometimes had to put down dangerous or suffering animals in the field. She'd hated it then, but she knew what to do.

She nodded. “Yeah.”

They were thirty yards from the rocks when the first of their pursuers appeared through the trees. Two men, armed, moving with more caution now after seeing their companions shot.

Cole turned, putting himself between them and the women. "Federal agents are on their way. You need to drop your weapons and back off."

One of the men scoffed, bitter and angry. "Penson's paying us too much to walk away now."

"Then you're making a bad choice," Cole said evenly.

The man raised his rifle. Cole had a fraction of a second to react… drop and fire, or try to reach cover. But moving meant exposing Janice and Cheryl.