Page 78 of Peace Under Fire

The Rover’s tire tracks, as well as their footprints, would act like a homing beacon. And there wasn’t time to mask the tracks. They needed to get some distance from here.

“We’re going to have to hike out.” He shut down the motor.

“To where?” Mandy asked, her tone borderline terrified.

“To one of your neighbors. We can borrow a rig there.” But not the closest. That would be the first place the bastards after them would check.

A red glow lit the trees and sky to their right. An explosion rent the hushed night.

It was time to get moving. “Everyone out.”

“Wait!” JoAnn’s voice rose.

There was the oddest edge to the word. It wasn’t terrified or even worried. It sounded more resigned or maybe frustrated. “There’s another option.”

Another flash of red in the distance, another explosion. Nope, the bastards on the snowmobiles were not good ol’ boys out for a midnight lark.

They needed to get into those trees and get out of here. It wouldn’t be long before they had a bunch of snowmobiles crawling up their asses.

“Everyone out of the car.” Squish reached for the door.

JoAnn’s voice sharpened. “Listen to me. I can shield us from sight. They won’t see us. We won’t have to leave the SUV. We won’t have to move your friend.”

That stopped Squish cold. He turned to Mandy. “What the hell is she talking about?”

“She doesn’t know about this, dumbass!” JoAnn yelled. “Look. I can prove what I’m saying.” Slapping one hand on the passenger window and the other on the dashboard, she leaned forward, glaring at him from across Mandy’s body. “Go outside, take a couple steps back. Have a look. You’ll see.”

Squish shrugged, then yanked out the Land Rover’s key and reached for the door. He was already headed out, so no skin off his teeth. Suddenly he frowned, his hand rising to his forehead. He felt…strange suddenly. His mind had gone hazy and started to hum. If this was the precursor to a migraine, he’d never had this symptom before.

Just his luck to get hit with a damn headache now. Talk about shitty timing.

But as he shoved the door open and stepped out of the Land Rover, the foggy, tingly sensation faded. He took another step forward, away from the SUV, relaxing as the mind fog and humming vanished.

Thank Christ.

He pressed the icon on the SUV’s remote to lift and drop the tailgate and turned to face the Land Rover. “Everyone out. I’ll—”

He reeled back, his arms windmilling in shock.

The Land Rover was gone.

CHAPTER 19

“What the fuck?”

Squish closed his eyes, waited a heartbeat, then opened them again. Still no sign of the vehicle.

He could clearly see the tire tracks going into the woods, but then they just stopped in the middle of the thicket. Tree trunks and branches were visible from behind where the Land Rover should have been parked. But no vehicle.

What the actual fuck?

He rubbed his eyes, almost blinding himself with the SUV’s key. It was a good thing he hadn’t dropped the key in his shock at finding his ride gone. They’d never find it in all this snow.

JoAnn’s declaration shot through his mind. She’d said she could shield the SUV and everyone in it from sight, that she could make it so no one would see them. He hadn’t believed her, of course. Who in his right mind would?

Well, he’d either gone batshit crazy in the space of seconds, or she’d done exactly what she’d claimed she could do. Holy shit.

He shook his head, trying to shake the niggling terror that he was hallucinating—again.

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