Dead Aim Read Free

couldn't believe that they'd just abandoned the hunt and gone back up the slope. She had to get to the bottom of the hill and try to get across the flooded valley.
    But why had they left? Why had they run out of time?
    Let it bury the bitch .
    Bury.
    Let it bury -- Jesus.
    The ground rumbled and then moved beneath her feet. She glanced up at the top of the hill. Huge rocks were tumbling toward her down the hill.
    Landslide.
    It would be on her in seconds. No time to get out of the way.
    Bury the bitch.
    Bury the bitch.
    She'd be damned if she'd let those bastards bury her. Screw them.
    She tore off her backpack and dropped it to the ground. She ran to the edge of the slope and jumped the thirty feet into the floodwaters below.
    .
    St. Joseph's Hospital
    Denver, Colorado
    She knew where she was the moment she opened her eyes.
    Lord, she hated hospitals. They reminded her of that night when her father--
    "Hey, it's about time you woke up." Sarah Logan smiled down at her. "How do you feel?"
    How did she feel? She hurt all over and she was seeing Sarah through a haze. "Dizzy."
    "You should be. You got clunked by some debris that washed up on that roof you were clinging to and got a dandy concussion. You've been unconscious for almost twenty-four hours."
    "Water?"
    "You don't remember?"
    She tried to concentrate through the pain. Swimming. She had been swimming. Dirty water. She had tried to climb to the top branches of a tree jutting out of the flood, but the branch had broken. She vaguely remembered managing to clamber to the roof of one of the housetops. "Some of it. I don't remember being hit on the head. Is that all that's wrong with me?"
    "Bruises everywhere. Exposure. You must have been in that water for hours before they spotted you on the roof. You're a mess." She took Alex's hand. "And you're going to have to explain to the authorities how you got that way. Ken Nader's helicopter blew up and crashed in a glade across the dam. Do you know anything about it?"
    A rifle lifting, aiming at Ken's helicopter. A fiery explosion that lit the sky.
    "They shot him."
    Sarah stiffened. "What? Who shot him?"
    "There were three men. I think . . . it was the pilot who shot him. They did it. . . . I couldn't believe it." She closed her eyes.
    Running. Slipping and sliding down the slope.
    Bury the bitch .
    Her lids flew open. "Landslide. There was a landslide, wasn't there? Was anyone else hurt?"
    Sarah shook her head. "But the entire area is buried under a mountain of rock."
    "They wanted it buried. They did something. . . ."
    "What?"
    "I don't know. Dynamite? No, it wasn't an explosion. I heard a low rumble and then the rocks-- I don't know what they did."
    "No one heard an explosion. Not after the helicopter crashed."
    "They did it. I know they did it."
    "I'm not saying they didn't. I'm saying no one heard it."
    "You believe me?"
    "I'm scared to believe you. I hope you'll go back to sleep and when you wake up you'll tell me this was a bad dream. If you don't, then, yes, I'll believe you." She patted Alex's hand. "I've got to go back to the site. It's time for my shift. You get some rest. After this is over, I want you to come home with me and recuperate. You'll like our place. It's on the ocean and it's very peaceful."
    "How's the rescue operation going?"
    "Okay. Three more canine rescue teams arrived yesterday, and they're a big help." She paused. "We found Janet Delsey's parents. They're both dead."
    "Damn." She felt the tears sting her eyes. "God, I'm sorry."
    "We all are."
    She swallowed hard to ease the tightness of her throat. "I need to get back. When can I get out of here?"
    "A day or two. You'll have to talk to the police first. They want to make out a report on the helicopter crash."
    "Murder. It was murder."
    "Then tell them that." She leaned forward and brushed a kiss on Alex's forehead. "I'm glad you're still in one piece. You scared me."
    "I want to see the police now."
    "I'll call them when I leave. Though I think you