Page 51 of Guarded By Them

“Yeah.” Kodee nodded. “That’s exactly what we do. Ryan needs to have access to healthcare, though we’re going to need our IDs for that, and for working, too, but we’ll worry about the details when we get there.”

Dillon held up a hand. “Hang on. Isn’t it going to look strange if Ryan goes into a medical office with no medical records under his name? They’ll know right away that the amputation was done within the last year.”

Kodee shrugged. “People change their names all the time. There are plenty of legitimate reasons.”

“And plenty of illegitimate reasons, too, like you’re running from the law.” Dillon folded his arms across his chest.

“That’s something we’ll have to deal with once we get there.”

Dillon glared at him. “If we get there, you mean.”

“We can’t cross legally with this car either,” Kodee pointed out. “God only knows what it’s been used for in the past. The license plate could easily get flagged.”

Dillon nodded. “He’s got a point.”

“And if we tried to drive over, we wouldn’t be able to take the money or guns either. We’d essentially be trying to start up a new life in Canada with nothing.”

“We could put the money and guns with Rue?”

He raised both eyebrows. “Yeah? And then what happens if she gets caught with all of that? She’d be the one who’d be blamed for it. They’d question her about where she got it from and what she was planning on doing with it.”

“I’d never mention any of you,” I interrupted. “I know how to keep my mouth shut.”

“I know you do, Rue, but that’s not the point. We’re supposed to be protecting you, not creating an even more difficult situation for you to get out of. And the money and guns have nothing to do with you. They were earned and bought before you even came into our lives. No way should you have to take the fall for trying to smuggle them into a different country.”

This was getting more and more complicated the longer we talked about it.

A wave of exhaustion rushed over me as though from out of nowhere. I was tired. So tired. I was tired of fighting all the time, and the running, and the fear. I wanted to crawl into a super-king-sized bed and wrap the guys around me and sleep for a year.

“There is one other option.” We all looked to Ryan, waiting for what he was about to say. “What if we don’t go anywhere near any of the official borders, and we all try to sneak in together?”

I looked at him with hope. “Would that mean I’d be able to stay with you?”

“Yes,” he nodded, “but again, if we’re stopped, it would mean we’d all go down.”

I put my face in my hands. “I don’t want to get the rest of you in any more trouble.”

“You’re not,” he said, warming to his theme. “We’re all in this together. We dump the car as close to the border as we dare, and then do the rest on foot.”

Kodee frowned at him. “You’re saying that we don’t cross at one of the main border crossings?”

“Exactly.”

Kodee twisted his lips as he thought. “There’s the border crossing near here at Sault Ste. Marie, but other than that, we’ve got nothing but water between us and Canada, unless we head west to Minnesota.”

“Then we head to Minnesota,” Ryan said, decisiveness filling his voice. “If we’re on foot, we’ll be able to listen out for any signs of border patrol guards, and they’ll be less likely to notice us. We’ll have to dump the car, so no one can flag that, and we can carry the bags and guns.”

Kodee still didn’t look convinced. “What about your leg? If you’re talking about hiking, it’s going to be harder than you can imagine. There’s a reason there’s only a ditch marking the border around those areas, and that’s because the trees and the topography form their own border. There are parts we’re going to need to basically cut our way through. Even experienced hikers would struggle. Plus, that’s a lot of miles to cover on foot. And what about Dillon, too? He’s been shot.”

Dillon flapped a hand in the air. “It’s a graze. I’m fine.”

Ryan gave a determined nod. “I’m not saying it’s not going to be easy, but we can make it.”

“Even with your leg and Dillon’s injury?”

Ryan’s lips set into a line. “Even then.”

Kodee turned to me. “What about you, Rue? Do you think you can handle it on foot?”

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