Page 18 of Zero Visibility

“Thanks. I needed that reminder,” Ben murmured. He sure hoped Cole was right because he was worried. “I’ll let you know when Tegan is ready to travel so we can coordinate the rescue.”

“Stay safe, my friend. You’re a long way from home.”

Ben ended the call without responding and explained what he’d learned from Cole. Something still troubled him. Ben couldn’t get it out of his head how the Legion’s people had found Jen. He told his men about his concerns. “There was no way they could track her phone. She’d dumped her personal one and was using a burner phone. Unless—” He hurried back into the dining room.

“Where’s your bag?” he asked his wife who was talking quietly to the doctor.

She stared at him in shock. “In the SUV. Why?”

“There’s a tracker somewhere inside it. That’s how they keep finding you.”

Ben rushed out to the SUV and grabbed her bag. He carried it to the dining room and emptied its contents on the kitchen counter while Jen and his people gathered around. Nothing suspicious among her things. He felt around the bag itself. Someone had placed a small tracker in one of the side pockets. He held it up. “When they searched the house, they must have planted it there.”

He tossed it on the floor and smashed it. Still the damage was done. It wouldn’t be long before they were found.

“We have to get out of here before they find us.” He turned to the doctor. “You and your wife will need to come with us. These men are dangerous. They’ll torture you to get you to talk.”

Everett paled before he turned to his wife. “Go pack.” Nancy hurried away.

“We can’t use the SUV.” Will warned. “They’ll be watching for it, and the doctor’s car is too small for us all, not to mention we’re transporting a patient.”

“I know what we can use,” Everett said, and all eyes turned to him. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of it earlier. My wife and I have an RV parked behind the house. There’s plenty of room in it.”

Thank you,God,” Ben thought to himself. Whenever the need arose, God provided. “Let’s get Tegan out to the RV first.” He turned to Jen. “Gather as much medical supplies as you can. Just in case,” he added because he didn’t want to worry her.

“Doctor, we need some way to carry Tegan out to the vehicle without jostling him around too much.”

Everett considered the problem for a moment. “The mattress on the twin bed in the guest bedroom. It’s small enough to fit through the door opening.”

“Get it,” Ben said, and the doctor left with Will.

They brought the mattress into the room and slowly transferred the unconscious Tegan to it. Bundling him as much as possible to keep the movement at a minimum, Ben grabbed one end while Will took the other. Together, they carried the mattress out to the RV.

Getting it up the steps of the massive vehicle was a challenge in itself. Once Tegan was inside, they transferred him to a small bunk bed at the back of the RV.

“Fire it up, doc. We need to get out of here now.” Ben hurried back to the house where Jen and Nancy, with Peter’s help, carried out massive amounts of supplies.

With everyone seated, Everett eased the vehicle from its resting place and out onto the quiet road of his neighborhood.

“Head left up here. And hurry every chance you get,” Ben told him.

Everett did as Ben requested and covered some distance. “Where to from here?”

“When you hit the next county road, head north. We’ll have to stay on the backroads as much as possible. Hopefully, this thing will hold up to the rough going.”

“We’ll find out soon enough.” Everett turned onto the county road.

Ben made his way back to the bunkhouse where Jen and Nancy tended to Tegan. “How’s he doing?” he asked from the doorway.

Jen glanced at him and shook her head. “About the same. He’s still not waking up.”

Nancy eased past him. “I’ll finish unloading the perishables. Excuse me.”

Ben smiled at the less-than-obvious attempt to give them some privacy. He moved into the tiny room and stood next to his wife. There were many things that needed to be said.

Jen faced him. “I’m so sorry, Ben. I had no right to leave like that. I should have told you about the baby. Should have talked.” She stopped and gulped in a breath.

He gathered her close. “No, it was more my fault than yours. I didn’t give you any reason to stay. I kept secrets that I shouldn’t have, but I was trying to protect you.” He shook his head. “I should have told you what I was going through, but I wanted to spare you.” He forced a smile. “And talking has never been my strong suit.”

---