Page 55 of Wilderness Search
Willa grabbed atthe hand clamped over her mouth and tried to pull it away. Whoever had hold of her was big. And strong. He jerked her off her feet and started dragging her, one arm clamped over her throat, cutting off her air. She continued to bat at him feebly, until he struck her with his fist. She reeled, vision blurring, but concentrated on keeping her wits about her. She remembered she had the coat hanger in her hand. With all the concentration she could muster, she gripped the coat hanger near the end, then waited until she felt the man’s thigh against her leg. She reached back and plunged the wire end into his leg with as much force as she could muster.
The man swore, but not loudly, and kept his hold on her. But he loosened it enough she was able to slide down his body, out of his grip. He grabbed her shirt and she heard it rip as she lunged away from him. Then she was running, into the darkened woods, ducking and weaving and praying she wouldn’t run over a cliff or into a tree.
Aaron almost collidedwith Scott as the camp owner staggered around the side of the pit toilet.
“Deputy!” he exclaimed, and clung to Aaron. “Did you see which way he ran?”
“Who?” Aaron helped Scott stand. The camp owner was red-faced and breathing hard, his hair disheveled.
“There was a girl. One of the campers. I saw her over here by the pit toilets. By herself. That’s not safe. We tell the kids to always go to the pit toilets in pairs, especially at night. Then I realized she wasn’t alone. Someone had hold of her. She was struggling. I ran up and yelled and the guy let her go and lunged for me. He stabbed me.”
He looked down and Aaron saw the trickle of blood down Scott’s thigh. He pulled out his radio. “We’ve got a bleeding man over here by the pit toilets near the bonfire,” he said.
Jake responded that he would be right there, echoed by someone else.
Aaron stowed the radio. “What happened to the man who attacked you?” he asked.
“He ran off,” Scott said.
“Which direction?” Jake asked.
“Up toward the lodge, I think.”
Jake jogged up to them, Jamie close behind. “What’s going on?” Jake asked.
Aaron gave them a quick recap of Scott’s story. As he was talking, Scott interrupted, “Now that I’m thinking more clearly, I don’t think the camper was a girl,” he said. “It was a boy. A little boy. It can be hard to tell when they’re little, but I’m sure now it was a boy.”
“What happened to the boy?” Jamie asked.
“He ran off,” Scott said.
“Which direction did he go?” Jake asked.
Scott looked around. “I’m not sure. Back toward the bonfire?”
“Do you know the boy’s name?” Jamie asked. “Which cabin he’s in?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t. It all happened so fast.” Scott put a hand to his head. “I’m not feeling so well.” He carefully lowered himself to the ground and buried his face in his hands.
“The ambulance should be here soon,” Jamie said.
“I don’t need an ambulance.” Scott looked up. “I just need to rest a moment and I’ll be fine.”
“The paramedics are on their way,” Jamie said. “You can let them check you out.”
“I’m going to look for the guy who stabbed him,” Aaron said, and headed toward the lodge, leaving them to deal with Scott.
The grounds of the camp were deserted, with all the campers and staff at the bonfire. Aaron slowed to a jog, then a walk. The lodge was bathed in floodlights, but he didn’t see anyone up there. Scott’s attacker could be hiding in the shadows.
Aaron thought better of running into trouble and keyed the mic again. “I’m up here at the lodge, where Scott said his assailant headed,” he said. “I don’t see anyone, but it might be a good idea to get a few people up here.”
“We’re headed your way,” Gage replied.
Aaron settled in the shadow of a tree, where he hoped he would be invisible to anyone watching. After a moment he keyed the mic again. “Scott said something about one of the camperswho ran away. Someone should look for him—or her, Scott seemed confused on that point—and make sure they’re okay.”
“Jamie’s already on it,” Gage said. “Sit tight until we get to you.”
He leaned against the tree and stared up at the lodge. He hoped someone would tell Willa what was going on. He would text her when he got the chance, but didn’t want to light up his phone, in case someone was watching. She would be all right, he told himself. She had always been good at looking after herself.
