Page 30 of The One that Got Away

Her heart pounded in her chest, a drumbeat urging her forward as she positioned herself behind a thick stand of shrubbery. She crouched low, senses heightened, waiting for the moment to strike. A solitary figure appeared, slightly distanced from the rest, his attention fixed on following Oliver's tracks. This was the man she would take down.

As he neared her hiding place, oblivious to the trap laid before him, Lisa sprang into action. Her movements were fluid—those of a mother who had transformed her fear into fortitude, her caution into combativeness. She remembered the self-defense classes taken after leaving her troubled marriage, never imagining they'd serve her in such a life-or-death context.

She caught the man by surprise, her forearm colliding with his throat, cutting off his air. As he staggered, she swept his legs from under him, sending him crumpling to the snow. His weapon skittered away, useless. With swift efficiency, she delivered a disabling blow to his temple, ensuring he wouldn't rise anytime soon.

"Stay down," she warned, though her words were unnecessary—the man was out cold, a silent testament to Lisa's resolve.

Oliver's breath came out in clouds, visible in the sharp Alaskan air, as he reached the ridge where Lisa was crouched. The moonlight cast an ethereal glow on her wavy brown hair, now damp with sweat from the exertion. Their eyes met for a fleeting moment, the unspoken fear and determination passing between them like an electric current.

"Are you okay?" Oliver whispered, his voice rough with concern. “I lost them, I think.”

Lisa nodded, her breaths coming in short bursts that matched the erratic pounding of her heart. "We can't keep running," she said, the icy wind carrying her words away almost as quickly as they were spoken. "They'll just come after us again. We have to end this."

Her fingers brushed against his, a silent promise of solidarity. The smell of pine and earth filled their senses, grounding them amidst the chaos.

"Let's use the old cannery," Oliver suggested, the gears in his mind turning as he envisioned their escape. "No one goes there anymore since it shut down. It's full of hiding spots, and we know every inch of it."

Lisa's eyes lit up with the spark of strategy. "We can make it look like we're cornered," she added, piecing together the plan. "And when they move in…."

"We take them by surprise," Oliver finished for her, the corners of his lips tilting up in a grim smile. "There are plenty of tools left behind we can use as weapons. And the upper walkways—they won't expect an attack from above."

"Exactly." Lisa's reply was firm, her resilient spirit shining through despite the tremors of adrenaline that coursed through her veins. She had faced darkness before and would face it again, not just for herself but for Ava, Daniel, and all her children.

"Let's go, then," Oliver said, extending his hand to help her up. They moved swiftly, their footsteps nearly silent on the forest floor as they made their way toward the shadowy silhouette of the cannery looming in the distance.

As they approached the derelict structure, Oliver's knowledge of the town's hidden spots became their greatest asset. They slipped through an opening in the fence that time and neglect had hidden from casual observers. Inside, the musty scent of old fish and rust assaulted their nostrils, an olfactory relic of prosperous times long gone.

"Remember, stay quiet and hidden until the right moment," Lisa instructed, her voice barely above a whisper as they split up to cover more ground.

"Always," Oliver replied, his dark eyes reflecting the steel within him.

With its labyrinthine corridors and secret alcoves, the cannery offered a haunting backdrop for their high-stakes game of cat and mouse. Lisa felt a kinship with the shadows as she melded into them, her presence as imperceptible as the ghosts that some claimed still haunted the place.

Time seemed to stretch and compress in odd ways as they waited in ambush. Each second was a drumbeat of anticipation, each minute a lifetime of hope and fear intertwined.

The trap was set, and now all that was left was for their pursuers to step right into it.

Oliver's figure darted between the rusting equipment and stacks of wooden pallets, his movements a silent dance in the dim light. Lisa crouched behind a corroded old conveyor belt, her breath steady despite the thunderous pulse in her ears. Dust motes danced in the slivers of light that pierced the gloom, each particle charged with the electricity of their peril.

The trap was simple yet ingenious—a network of tripwires connected to a cacophony of metal cans and tools, poised to create a diversion. The pursuers, they hoped, would be drawn by the noise, allowing Lisa and Oliver to circle behind them.

A sudden crash echoed through the cannery, the sound of their plan springing to life. Lisa's heart leaped into her throat. She exchanged a glance with Oliver from across the room; it was time.

"Go!" she mouthed, and they surged forward.

Lisa's muscles coiled and released as she sprinted, her once cautious trust now an unbreakable bond with Oliver, who moved like a shadow a few feet beside her.

They rounded a corner, and there they were—two figures caught off-guard, searching for the source of the clamor. Oliver's hand found Lisa's, a fleeting touch that conveyed years of unspoken promises. Then, with the grace of the fisherman he once was, he cast a length of heavy netting he had salvaged, ensnaring one of the men.

"Lisa!" Oliver shouted, a rare break in his composure as the second man turned on him.

Time seemed to fracture, seconds splintering into moments of raw terror and fierce determination. Lisa sprang into action, her body moving with the self-defense techniques drilled into muscle memory.

"Back off!" she yelled, her voice slicing through the tense air. Her leg shot out, connecting with her assailant's knee in a perfect arc. He stumbled, giving her the opening to drive her elbow into his solar plexus.

The man crumpled, gasping for air, but Lisa didn't pause to watch. She was already at Oliver's side, helping to subdue the trapped pursuer, when someone sprang at him from the shadows. Lisa watched as Oliver tumbled to the floor with a thud.

“Oliver!”

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