Natural Selection Read online

  “Wade,” Martin called. Wade dried his face on a paper towel and went back to the front room.

  “Seems we have another issue.”

  “What?” Wade asked.

  “That call was from an associate on the Portland Police Force. Seems Paige Blackwell’s boss has been asking about her. Wants to know where she is.”

  “Parker?” Wade asked. “She could be trouble.”

  “Why?” Nathan asked. “Just because she wants to know where her employee has gone? She can’t find her here.”

  “Parker is ex-FSA,” Wade explained. “She still has connections. Probably can get information that no one else could.”

  “Like what?” Dennis asked.

  “Like information from the airlines about what flight she took. Parker could trace her to Florida, then find the flight plan the pilot filed. It might take some time and work, but she could conceivably track Paige here.” Wade paced across the room, then turned to Martin. “What are you going to do about it?”

  “I’ll call someone. Arrange for an accident for Ms. Parker.” Martin grinned. “That should get her out of our hair.”

  “This is all falling apart,” Nathan moaned.

  “Well, it isn’t as bad as all that.” Martin held a match to his pipe and sucked on the stem several times. “All this means is that we get serious about the hunt right now. We just don’t have as much time to play with them as we’d thought.”

  “And we have to kill the pilot, too, now,” Nathan said.

  “You got a problem with that?” Wade shot Nathan a contemptuous look. If he had to listen to Nathan’s whining and bitching much longer, he’d be tempted to shut him up permanently. Not that he would. Martin and Dennis didn’t seem to care much for Nathan either, but the three of them comprised the Board of Directors of Eastland Industries. They were also the only members of the Northwest Hunt Club. They might not appreciate one of their own getting killed.

  If they hadn’t been in the room, Wade would have laughed. Northwest Hunt Club, his ass. Before they had met him, they’d gone to their fancy hunting lodge in eastern Oregon several times a year to hunt deer. Wade had met Martin Scoresby on an African safari he’d organized. A photo safari, since killing the animals wasn’t allowed any longer. A few discrete conversations had let Martin know that if he wanted to really hunt some big game, Wade could arrange it. And it didn’t matter if the animals were endangered or not.

  Over the past ten years, Wade had made a nice income from the arrangement.

  Nathan was whining again. “I never had a problem with getting rid of all of them. But I still think it would have been easier to hire someone to do it for us.”

  “Then we’d miss all this fun, Nate.” Dennis stood and stretched. “Besides, there’d be someone who knew. This way, it’s just the four of us. No one can rat on the others without implicating himself.”

  “Get some rest tonight, gentlemen,” Wade said. “If we leave at first light tomorrow, we’ll have them in our sights before noon. Guaran-damn-tee.”

  Paige got up a good hour before anyone else, made a pot of coffee, and started untangling her braid. She couldn’t take the time to shampoo in the river, but at least she could get the twigs and leaves out of it. By the time she had re-braided her hair everyone else was stumbling out of their tents.

  “Coffee makes everything seem a little less awful.” Ty grinned and sipped from his metal cup. “Ouch!”

  “Heat transfer.” Paige grinned at him as he licked his burned lip. At least they weren’t at odds any more. The others straggled over to have coffee.

  “The only plan I can come up with for now is to keep moving.” Paige looked at the others, hoping someone would have a brilliant idea. Mostly blank faces stared back at her.

  “We need to stay as far away from these men as we can. The best scenario at the moment is to find a place where we can camp while Connor and I go back to the house to check on the condition of his plane.”

  “So, we pack up and take off again?” Ty asked.

  “No. That will be too slow. Any of you done any rock climbing?” she asked.

  “Some,” Connor said while Aleisha nodded hesitantly.

  “You two are with me. Ty and Nick will stand watch here.” Paige smiled at Alex. “I’m afraid all you can do is sit here with your foot elevated.”

  “No. It’s a lot better today. I can stand watch with Ty and Nick.” To prove how much better his foot was, Alex hobbled across the clearing. He was obviously in pain, and Paige worried about infection.

  “Fine, but take a position fairly close to camp. If any of you see anyone, leave. We’ll pack up, and you just take whatever you can that isn’t heavy enough to slow you down.”

  Paige didn’t like splitting the group up, but it was necessary. “Remember, nothing here is worth your lives. If anyone shows up, leave.”

  “Even if it’s Wade?” Ty asked.

  Paige took a slow breath. She couldn’t let her attraction to Wade endanger them. “Even if it’s Wade. Until we know for sure that he’s not involved.”

  Connor shook his head and rolled his eyes. Paige ignored him and gathered the things she thought they might need for the trip, stuffing her small backpack with the water bladders, a couple of plastic bags, her bigger knife, a pair of small binoculars, a climbing harness, and rope bag.

  “I’d rather go with you,” Ty said.

  “I know, but you don’t have any rock climbing experience, and we need someone to stay here who can get everyone away if they show up.”

  “And you think I’m the best one for that?”

  “I know you are.” Paige hiked the backpack over her shoulders. “Don’t take any chances. With Alex’s injury, you won’t be able to move very fast. If you have to leave, head to the west. That’s the area we’ll be in.”

  “Then what? How do we meet up again?”

  “There’s a full moon tonight; there’ll be a lot of light. Find a fairly clear spot then make a smoky fire. We’ll be able to spot you from that.”

  “So will they,” Ty pointed out.

  “That’s true,” she admitted. She didn’t think they were desperate enough to track them at night yet. But it was too big a chance to take. “If you have to leave, find a safe place for the night. Then meet us tomorrow morning where we came out of the river. Right after daybreak.”

  Ty nodded and moved away, instructing Nick and Alex to pack up the camp while Paige waved Aleisha and Connor over. “I think the best camp for us will be a cave that we can hide in and camouflage so they can’t find us. That way, we won’t have to move constantly.”

  “Good idea. Let’s go,” Connor said.

  “You know, I haven’t climbed much.” Aleisha blushed. “Actually, it’s just been on the rock wall at the gym.”

  “It’s no different on a real rock,” Paige assured her. Could she lie or what? “Besides, we might not even have to do any climbing.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe I should stay here, and you take someone else?”

  “You’ll be fine,” Paige assured her. She knew that Aleisha was the one most likely to panic. Especially if she had nothing to do but sit around and think about the situation. Hell, Paige thought, she might panic herself if she thought about it too much.

  They waved at the others and set off at a fast pace. Connor and Aleisha were good hikers, and they’d reached rocky ground within a couple of hours. The ground sloped gradually for another couple of miles. Beyond that were the cliffs Paige had been looking for. The vegetation was much sparser there, but still thick enough to give them good cover.

  By mid afternoon, they’d checked out several caves and dismissed each one. Too small, no way to camouflage the entrance—there was something wrong with each one. Paige knew they had less than an hour, then they would have to head back. If they didn’t find a cave today, tomorrow she’d look for sea caves. But sea caves were probably going to be wet and finding one that wouldn’t be flooded during high tide could take some search
ing.

  Just when she thought they’d have to give up for the day, they found one that would work. It was big enough to hold everyone comfortably, and the entrance was small with plenty of vegetation around it.

  “It’s too late to move everyone here tonight,” Connor said.

  “I know. But we should be all right for tonight.” If the men hadn’t found the camp yet. The island wasn’t tiny, but it wasn’t huge either.

  Relieved that they’d found the best possible place to stay until they could get to the plane, they headed back to camp. From the top of the cliffs Paige could see the blue-green ocean to the north and east of the island. The undulating water shifted from green to turquoise to blue, tipped by white caps. As they hiked down the mountain, the foliage grew denser, eventually cutting off the brilliant blue sky and warm sun.

  A rich odor of fresh growth and decomposing vegetation replaced the salty tang of the ocean. Frogs croaked, insects buzzed, clicked and chirped in the humid shade of trees and brush.

  “You enjoy this, don’t you?” Connor asked.

  “What?”

  He gestured at the surroundings. “The environment, being outdoors, being active.”

  “Yeah, I guess I do.” Paige shrugged. “What’s not to like? A lot of nature, not a lot of people.”

  “Is that why you agreed to do the show?”

  “Partly. It kind of seemed like a free vacation. Money wasn’t bad either.”

  They trekked through the jungle until they came to the river they had crossed earlier.

  The river was extremely shallow and narrow at this point. Perfect for spearing some fish for dinner. Paige was sure she’d be happy to never eat fish again once she got off this island. But for now, it beat being hungry.

  “Show me how you do that,” Aleisha said, wading over to Paige.

  “Just stand really still until the fish are used to your legs in the water,” Paige explained, handing her a knife. “Then when one comes by, spear it and put it in the bag.” She stabbed a few more fish and tossed them into the bag.

  “I’ll never get the hang of this,” Aleisha said as she poked at a fish and missed.

  “You have to be patient,” Paige advised, skewering another fish. “Besides, it takes a lot of practice.”

  “Is this something your mom taught you?” Aleisha asked.

  “Yeah, it is. When I was about twelve, I think.” “Your mother taught you to spear fish when you were twelve?” Connor looked surprised.

  “It was on a wilderness camping trip to Alaska. My first.”

  “First camping trip?” Connor asked.

  “No, first one to Alaska. After that, Mom took me every year. Must be nice living there.”

  “Only place for me,” Connor agreed. “Not many women like wilderness camping. Especially in Alaska.”

  “Mom took me on a lot of trips. I loved them as much as she did.”

  “Your father didn’t go with you?” he asked.

  “Dad wasn’t really the camping type. He had his own interests.” Paige laughed. “Dad had a cabin in eastern Oregon. It was supposed to be a hunting cabin, but he really used it for poker games and watching football.”

  “Nothing wrong with either of those activities.”

  Aleisha finally managed to spear a small fish and yelped with joy.

  “Look! I finally got one!”

  “See? I knew you could do it.”

  “It’s awful small.” Aleisha looked at it critically. “I’m going over there to see if I can get a bigger one.” She dropped her fish in the bag and waded out to a deeper part of the river.

  Connor and Paige continued to spear fish until they had enough to feed the group that night. Paige called to Aleisha to follow them as she and Connor started for the far side of the river.

  Paige had just dropped the bag of fish on the river bank and turned to check on Aleisha’s progress when a shot rang out and Aleisha screamed.

  CHAPTER

  TWELVE

  SHELBY THREW HER BAG ONTO THE passenger seat of her Mini Cooper and slid into the driver’s seat. Normally driving two hours to see a client would be a pain in the ass, but today she was looking forward to it. A chance to get out of the office. Clear her mind. Think about her cases, her business. It didn’t hurt a bit that she really enjoyed driving. And the road to the coast was a pleasure. There was usually very little traffic at this time of day and she could drive fast. There was always the chance of getting a speeding ticket, but sometimes it was worth it.

  Shelby backed out of her driveway and threaded her way through the in-town traffic of Portland. Less than an hour later, she was on the winding road to Lincoln City. She down shifted around a curve, enjoying the responsiveness of her little car. The conversation with Paige’s grandmother and “uncle” Robbie still bothered her.

  Shelby clearly remembered Paige telling her that she was going to visit her grandmother for a few days, then going on a wilderness camping trip. She could be remembering the conversation wrong, but that was highly unlikely. Shelby had an almost eidetic memory. As an agent for the Federal Security Agency, she’d often been in circumstances where it was imperative she remembered what she’d heard, seen, or read, exactly. She’d learned to remember everything without taking notes.

  Why hadn’t Paige’s grandmother heard from her? And why hadn’t Robbie Malloy known where Paige was? Shelby knew that Paige was extremely close to Robbie Malloy. He’d been Paige’s father’s partner for years. Paige had grown up with him, and they were still close. Oh, maybe not in a talk-every-day way, but she knew that Paige contacted him on a regular basis. Paige was always telling him about her life. What she was doing, how everything was going. Shelby knew it was a way of keeping Paige connected to her father who had died almost a year ago. Still, even Robbie hadn’t known where Paige had gone.

  Of course, Paige might have just wanted to get away. She might not have wanted to visit her grandmother. Shelby knew they didn’t get along all that well and had never been close. And Paige might not have had a chance to talk to Robbie. After all, she had left on the vacation on very short notice. And it was probably not any of Shelby’s business.

  Shelby laughed. That had never stopped her and probably never would.

  She down shifted around a corner and pressed on the brakes. They felt a little mushy, which was strange since she’d just had the Mini in the garage last week. The mechanic had said everything was fine. Maybe she was just imagining it. The next curve was even sharper and Shelby pressed on the brakes again as she down shifted. The brakes were definitely softer. Her foot went almost to the floor.

  This was especially bad since she was going downhill and there were more curves coming up. Shelby down shifted again and applied the brakes. The engine whined and her foot went all the way to the floorboard.

  She’d been in worse situations and stayed calm. She pulled up on the emergency brake, but it had no effect. Shelby cursed whoever had done this because she knew it had to be deliberate. Even if there was something wrong with her brakes, the emergency brake would still work unless someone had messed with that as well.

  Pushing all thoughts out of her head, Shelby concentrated on slowing the car. She whipped around a curve, veering into the on-coming lane in order to clear it. There was a slight upgrade coming up and that was probably her last chance to slow down. After that, it was steeply downhill for several miles. Shelby scanned the roadside for a likely place to stop. Nothing but forest.

  Crap!

  She hated to wreck her little car, but she didn’t see any other way out. She swung around another curve and pumped the brakes, hoping for a little resistance. There was none.

  She’d slowed down to under forty miles per hour. Bracing herself, she steered the car off the road. Crashing through the brush, she aimed the car at a large tree.

  The seatbelt tightened across her chest as the air bag exploded.

  CHAPTER

  THIRTEEN

  ALEISHA’S ARMS FLEW OUT AS HER
body was propelled backward into the river. The smile on her beautiful face shifted to an expression of surprise, then shock. Blood blossomed on her shoulder. The water splashed up around her when she landed. Then she disappeared under the surface.

  Paige ran through the stream, making a beeline for Aleisha as several more shots whizzed into the water. A thin stream of blood marked the spot where she’d fallen. Paige reached into the water and pulled her up by the arm. Aleisha coughed and sputtered, struggling to her feet.

  Paige wasted a little breath on her opinion of the men’s ancestry when she saw the bullet hole they had put in Aleisha’s shoulder. She pulled her up, throwing an arm over Aleisha’s shoulder, and dragged her to the shore and up into the jungle brush.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Paige gasped to Connor, pulling Aleisha along.

  They stopped after a few minutes once they were far enough into the jungle to be sure they couldn’t be seen. Paige leaned Aleisha against a tree, shrugged off her backpack and dug out a shirt she had stuffed in the bottom. Not the cleanest bandage, but the only thing she had. Using her knife to rip strips from the shirt, Paige pressed the temporary bandage against Aleisha’s shoulder. Aleisha winced but didn’t say a word when Paige secured the bandage in place with another strip.

  The bullet was still lodged in her shoulder, and blood oozed from the wound, but it didn’t look like an artery or major vein had been hit. As soon as Paige was done, Connor pushed her aside and threw Aleisha’s uninjured arm over his shoulder.

  “You break a trail. I can carry her if I have to,” Connor said.

  Paige nodded and started plowing a path to the camp where, hopefully, the others were waiting for them.

  Paige knew Aleisha had to be in a lot of pain, and she had to hand it to her for being able to stumble along with Connor’s help. They made it back to camp, and Connor lowered Aleisha to the ground. Ty and Nick rushed over, Alex hobbling behind them.

  “Heat some water and get that first aid kit out of my pack,” Paige instructed.

  “What happened?” Ty asked as Nick ran for the first aid kit.