A muzzle flash pulsed from a spot down the drive. I came to my knees and returned fire, emptying the pistol as I did. Then I changed magazines and leaped once again to my feet. I ran as hard as I could, firing at the last place I had seen the muzzle flashes.

Pop-pop, pop-pop, pop-pop, pop-pop!

As I raced in beneath the canopy of the trees I heard a car engine crank up. I jumped to the side of the trail in anticipation of being charged by the car. Halfway down the drive, a vehicle slashed out from the bushes and, slewing wildly, turned instead toward the gate.

Silhouetted by the glare of the headlights, I saw the figure of a man behind the wheel. His foot was too heavy on the accelerator, the wheels spinning and slinging sand rather than gaining full traction. It gave me a chance at him. I lifted the pistol to just above the level of the taillights and charged after the car, firing rapidly as I went.

Pop-pop, pop-pop, pop-pop, pop—

The pistol went empty. At my final shot the car made it to the pavement and, tires squalling, bounded out of sight. Within seconds, he was out of hearing.

I slipped the last magazine into the pistol and, standing alone in the drive, wondered what to do next.

It came to me at last. Parker and Danny Ray—had they made it out of the cabin and safely to the boat? With apprehension and a sense of dread beginning to fill my chest, I turned back down the drive to see about my friends.

The leaping, howling flames of the burning cabin filled the clearing with a vicious—a satanic—luminosity. Slowly, I walked to where the man I had shot lay sprawled in the weeds. He was prone, face turned away, with his hands and arms drawn beneath his body and his legs pulled up to his side.

I stepped closer to see his face. I know this man, I thought. But from where? My mind was foggy, and I had difficulty remembering. Come on, Tanner, who is this? What was his name?

And then, realization struck me. Yes, that’s it—Travis. Deputy Sheriff Travis. Damn, that’s who it is, all right! Zimmer’s man, Travis.

I turned and stumbled toward the cabin. My feet were heavy and it was a great effort to walk. The pistol was too much to carry any longer, and I let it fall from my hand.

There’s no one else left here anyway. I can’t use it anymore.

I continued on and saw that my car was part of the burning cabin.

How about that. I had parked too close to the cabin, and now look what’s happened. Ha-ha!—Owww! It hurts to laugh. I must have pulled a rib when I fell back there. Damn, that really hurts!

I put my hand to the side of my chest.