Chapter 34 - Up the River

Finne peered through the nearly closed garage doors hoping not to see anyone following their sprinted steps from the boathouse.


"Get in the truck. Look for the keys." he instructed Sarah without turning to see whether she obeyed. "I only saw the one boat approach. It looked like a local. I dont think he was coming for us." Finne relayed lacking confidence in his statements.

"S#!t !! He's headed up the yard right this way." he corrected himself anxiously. Finne pulled his sidearm from his hip holster and cocked it quickly, loading its chamber with a live round. He realized their ability to escape without notice was compromised and feared that their lives were gravely threatened. If there was truely only one man on their tracks, he was confident that he could neutralize him. A gunshot, though, would only bring more attention, especially if the eyes and ears of the military were focused in this direction from above. A single shot might escape being tracked, but a gunfight would not. Finne dropped to one knee and aimed his weapon out the doors steadily targeting the figure that continued toward their location. Wait for it, he thought. Wait to get a clear kill shot.

The man sprinting up the yard from the dock below was tall and stocky, but obviously in strong physical shape given his sprint-like pace up the hill. Upon reaching the clamshell drive extending from the garage at the top of the hill, he extended his right hand outward towards the garage as if he was ready to fire his own weapon at Finne and Sarah.

"Get down, he's got a gun!" Finne shouted at Sarah, no longer worried that he would give up their location with his loud voice.

The man continued forward without breaking pace.

Finne readied himself to shoot. Gently he squeezed the trigger with intent to get the first shot off. Then he quckly relaxed his grip and lowered his gun to the ground. The approaching man did not have a weapon extended, only his hand which was waving furiously to get Finne and Sarah's attention.

"Don't shoot!" the man begged while continuing his sprint. "Jack sent me."

Jack?, Finne questioned himself. How did Jack find them here?

Finne stood keeping his gun extended outward but pointed towards the ground, ready to be raised and fired if needed. He allowed the man to approach the garage, though he was visually scrutinizing everything about him to verify that he was not a threat. No weapons he confirmed. And no fear either, he determined by the fact that the man never slowed his approach, even though he knew shots were about to be fired at him.

"You two get in the back of the truck and cover up." the man insisted. "I'm driving. Its much safer this way. It'll get us out of here without drawing their attention." he finished pointing his finger upwards as if he knew what was likely overhead.

"Drive where?" Finne asked insecurely.

"Back to DC. If they really do know you are in this area, they'll be looking at all vehicles leaving in all directions, except back west. That's why you need to cover up. If we can get clear from this grid being searched, they are likely to continue their hunt eastward. They won't look for you to head back into the lion's den."

True, Finne hoped.