BooksBarbecue
Back Less than Dead Save as PDF
Chapters (50)
  1. COVER PAGE
  2. TITLE PAGE
  3. COPYRIGHT PAGE
  4. DEDICATION
  5. CONTENTS
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. 38
  44. 39
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. 42
  48. 43
  49. 44
  50. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Nick dropped the tailgate and let Trygg jump out, then turned and ran toward Alena. He reached her just as she was lifting the latch on the first of the kennels; he grabbed her by the wrist and spun her around.

“Leave them! Come on!”

“No! He’ll threaten them just like he did before—he’ll kill them all if we don’t come out of the woods!”

“That’s a chance we have to take!”

“I won’t leave them locked up again! I won’t let them die like this! Let go of me!”

Nick looked back at the road—he could see Riddick’s headlights flickering through the trees and he could already hear the sound of the BMW’s approaching engine. What was he supposed to do now—throw Alena over his shoulder and carry her kicking and screaming into the woods? She was right—Riddick would use the dogs as hostages and he would kill every one of them to try to force Nick and Alena out of hiding. Alena knew it, and Nick did too—the difference between them was that Nick was willing to let it happen. The lives of a few stray mongrels in exchange for the lives of two human beings: That was an acceptable price to him—but not to Alena. These dogs were her life, and there was no sense arguing about it.

He let go of her arm.

Alena turned back to the first kennel and Nick hurried over to the second—but before either of them could lift the latch on the gates, Riddick’s BMW shot out of the woods and skidded to a stop behind them.

Riddick jumped from the car and charged toward them with a gun in his hand. Trygg began to bark viciously, crouching low and preparing to attack.

Riddick aimed the gun at the dog. “Call him off or I’ll kill him—do it now.”

Alena snapped her fingers and commanded the dog to be silent.

Now Riddick pointed the gun at Nick. “I knew you were going to be trouble. How did you find her, anyway?”

Nick didn’t answer.

Riddick glanced down at the dog. “So that’s why you brought the dog along. He’s the one, isn’t he—he’s the cadaver dog.”

“She,” Alena corrected.

Riddick shook his head. “You’d never think a mutt like that could do anything.”

“Appearances can be deceiving,” Nick said. “I thought you would have learned that from the Bradens.”

Riddick shrugged. “I guess good breeding isn’t everything.”

“It isn’t anything,” Alena said. “What matters is what’s inside you.”

“Well, here’s what’s inside me.”

He widened his stance and slowly raised the gun.

42

42

“I wouldn’t do that.”

The voice came from the direction of the trailer. All three of them turned and looked. Nathan Donovan was standing in the doorway with his own gun raised and leveled at Riddick’s head.