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Back Deception Cove Save as PDF
Chapters (78)
  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Epigraph
  6. Prologue
  7. One
  8. Two
  9. Three
  10. Four
  11. Five
  12. Six
  13. Seven
  14. Eight
  15. Nine
  16. Ten
  17. Eleven
  18. Twelve
  19. Thirteen
  20. Fourteen
  21. Fifteen
  22. Sixteen
  23. Seventeen
  24. Eighteen
  25. Nineteen
  26. Twenty
  27. Twenty-One
  28. Twenty-Two
  29. Twenty-Three
  30. Twenty-Four
  31. Twenty-Five
  32. Twenty-Six
  33. Twenty-Seven
  34. Twenty-Eight
  35. Twenty-Nine
  36. Thirty
  37. Thirty-One
  38. Thirty-Two
  39. Thirty-Three
  40. Thirty-Four
  41. Thirty-Five
  42. Thirty-Six
  43. Thirty-Seven
  44. Thirty-Eight
  45. Thirty-Nine
  46. Forty
  47. Forty-One
  48. Forty-Two
  49. Forty-Three
  50. Forty-Four
  51. Forty-Five
  52. Forty-Six
  53. Forty-Seven
  54. Forty-Eight
  55. Forty-Nine
  56. Fifty
  57. Fifty-One
  58. Fifty-Two
  59. Fifty-Three
  60. Fifty-Four
  61. Fifty-Five
  62. Fifty-Six
  63. Fifty-Seven
  64. Fifty-Eight
  65. Fifty-Nine
  66. Sixty
  67. Sixty-One
  68. Sixty-Two
  69. Sixty-Three
  70. Sixty-Four
  71. Sixty-Five
  72. Sixty-Six
  73. Sixty-Seven
  74. Sixty-Eight
  75. Acknowledgments
  76. Discover More
  77. About the Author
  78. Also by Owen Laukkanen

He checked the time on his watch and saw that twenty minutes had passed, and he knew it was about time he found his way to the harbor. Knew Jess would leave without him if he didn’t show in time.

Lord, lead me in your righteousness because of my foes, he thought. Make your way straight before me.

But Lucy still wasn’t there when he looked up from his watch, and nothing on the street had moved or changed. And he didn’t see any sign anywhere from any higher power that he ought to stay here or go to Jess, and he knew the decision was his to make, and his alone.

And he hoped he was making the right decision, if there was such a thing. He supposed he would find out soon enough.

Find a deep hole, girl, he thought. Find a deep hole, and stay there until we come back for you.

He squared his shoulders and turned to walk down to the harbor. And then he saw her.

Forty

Forty

Lucy was a block away from Mason, moving east. South of where he stood, toward the hill and the highway, not the water. He watched her trot into the intersection and pause and sniff the ground, and he knew it was her, recognized the way she was running with her back in a hunch like she was scared, her nose low to the pavement and her tail tucked. Saw the leash dragging behind her and knew she was his dog, all right.

He started after Lucy, but she was already moving again. Continuing east toward Main Street, on a side road parallel to Mason’s own, and before Mason could run to her or call out, she’d crossed the intersection and disappeared from view behind somebody’s house.

Mason figured to cut her off. He cradled the shotgun and jogged east, past more quiet houses and trailers in various states of abandonment. He knew he should stay careful, stealthy, keep aware of his surroundings, but he didn’t want to lose the dog again. There was a vacant lot at the end of the next block, and he imagined he could angle across it and get in front of Lucy.

He ran, the shotgun heavy in his arms and his heart pounding in his ears. Made the empty lot and ran through tall weeds and bare dirt, dodging refuse and varmint holes. Slipped in the mud and almost ate shit, but he managed to stay upright and didn’t hardly lose speed. He cleared the lot and came out on the street where Lucy should have been, and she was right there where he expected, still trotting along on the other side of the street, heading for a destination Mason couldn’t conceive of.