Page 71 of Mountain Struggle

“Kick it in my direction. Away from her,” Dubois ordered.

Damien quickly did as he asked. For a moment, the only sound was that of the gun sliding across the metal grating covering the terrace cement floor.

Damien licked his lips. “I know you don’t want to hurt innocent people, Dubois. Let them go and you and I can stay here and talk.”

No!

Nobody was paying attention to her, so Tess adjusted her legs to get her foot underneath her.

If I could just reach Jamie, then—

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Dubois snarled, shifting his weapon towards her. “Stay still or I’ll shoot you in the head. I’m an excellent shot—I’ve shot plenty of calves.”

“Why are we here, Dubois? What do you want?” Damien asked, his deep voice successfully pulling the madman’s attention back onto himself.

He wasn’t looking at Tess or Jamie anymore. She knew he must be in deep turmoil inside, but on the outside, he just looked focused.

Dubois stroked his unkept gray beard for a second. “Thanks to you I lost the two people I loved most in the world: my son and my wife.”

“I’m sorry about your wife,” Damien said. “I know she had cancer.”

“Brought on by the sorrow of losing her son, you bastard,” Dubois spat out. “I’m going to give you the choice I never had—I’m going to let you decide which one of the two you think should live.”

Damien’s entire body was taut with tension. Tess could see in the lines of his body that he was getting ready to spring for the man.

Clearly, Dubois saw it as well.

“Move a muscle and I’ll let go of this rope. That will be your decision made for you,” he snarled. “You have five seconds to choose—before my hand gets tired. If you choose her, I’ll let go of the rope. If you choose him, I’ll shoot her where she kneels.”

“Daddy!” Jamie cried out. Tess could see how hard the little boy was trying to be brave.

“It’s going to be okay, son,” Damien said to his son in a calm voice. “Let them go, Dubois. This is between us. It’s me you’re angry at.”

From the floor, Tess shook. She could see what Damien was trying to do—he was trying to make himself the target. Dubois was having none of it.

“Three seconds left. You’re wasting time.”

Damien looked at him, his blue eyes tortured. If she lived to be a hundred—which was looking particularly unlikely at the moment—she didn’t think she’d ever see this much pain in someone’s gaze again.

The words were out of her mouth before she could second-guess herself.

“His son! He chooses his son! Please!”

Dubois laughed then, a loud, broken sound. “Should I listen to her, Gray? Is that what you want?” The gun moved towards her.

Tess kept her eyes on Dubois, ignoring the strangled sound coming from Damien. She felt strangely calm now. If she could save Jamie’s life, then this—everything—would be worth it. “It’s what he wants. Tell him, Damien—tell him now. Please.”

#

Damien

The words coming out of Tess’s mouth were like a dagger to his heart.

His entire life, everything he’d ever trained for, and now he couldn’t help the two people he cared about most in the world.

There must be something you can do.

Damien focused on the gun in the madman’s hand. It was an old gun, the kind farmers keep around for when they have to put down an injured farm animal—probably not the most trustworthy weapon, but Dubois’ grip was true. This wasn’t the first time he was holding it.