“Not really, but if I remember correctly, there’s a rock overhang we can take shelter under coming up. It’s hard to get my bearings in the dark,” Mandy shouted over the howl of the wind.

“Let’s move, then,” Danny yelled back. Solid rock would be preferable to the flimsy emergency tent they’d packed. He glanced down at the river to his right. They were high enough above the water that he doubted flash flooding would be an issue.

Mandy slipped. Danny caught her by the bicep until she righted herself. “Let me take your pack.”

The last three times he’d suggested it, she’d waved him off, but urgency supplanted pride as the rain turned the incline from unstable to treacherous. She let him pull the straps from her shoulders. Lightened from her load, her pace recovered. She pushed onward. Danny followed her lead. She was better at finding decent footing.

The rain turned into a downpour, slashing into Danny’s face. Lightning lit the woods in a few quick, strobe-like flashes. Thunder crashed. A few feet ahead, Mandy jumped. Her foot slipped on the muddy incline. She fell to her butt and slid toward the drop-off.

Danny lunged forward. “Mandy!” His hand swiped air, and Mandy’s orange jacket disappeared over the edge.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

A clap of thunder woke Kevin. A breath hitched in the dark. He looked down at his son, cradled in his arms. Hunter’s eyes were closed, his breathing even in deep sleep. Someone else was in the barn with them.

Was that sobbing?

Kevin sat up slowly, carefully sliding away from his son so he didn’t wake the sleeping boy. He surveyed the interior of the barn. Rain pounded on the roof. Water dripped through the holes and puddled on the dirt floor. Lightning flashed. His ears strained for noise not related to the storm.

Hiccup.

Kevin looked up at the solid wood ceiling of his cage. There was someone above them. Except for the crying person, the barn seemed empty. Thunder boomed. Hunter jolted. Another soft cry sounded above them.

Hunter pressed his lips to Kevin’s ear. “Dad?”

His son’s weak voice chiseled another crack into Kevin’s heart, threatening to splinter it into pieces. Their captor had been supplying them daily with water and food. Yesterday there’d been some sort of charred meat and a pile of weeds. Not enough to give them real strength, but sufficient to keep them alive. The fact that they both tended to sleep heavily after drinking confirmed the presence of drugs in their rations. But they had little choice. Several days had passed. At this point, dehydration and starvation were as threating as their captor.

Kevin whispered back, “I think there’s someone else here.”

Her cries echoed in the lofty space.

Hunter trembled. “It sounds like a girl.” His breath passed over the side of Kevin’s face.

“It does.”