"Clear here,” René said, after peering cautiously around the corner.
Cade edged around the side of the hut and carefully made his way to the window. There was no sound, other than the distant rumble of thunder, and no unusual smells riding the air. Yet, his instincts burned with the sensation that something was off, that something was about to happen.
He peered through the grimy glass. The hut was small, with little more than a cot, several chairs and a table. The fireplace across the far side of the room looked recently used, with the wood in the hearth still glowing—though the heat was obviously fading.
Why would the women who'd so ruthlessly castrated two men light a fire to keep Ike warm?
They wouldn't. They'd only do it for themselves, which meant someone had to have been close by when Ike escaped. And they'd let him. Tension rode across his muscles, and it was all he could do not to swing around and scan the tree line.
He'd been in far worse situations than this, so why was he so damn jumpy now?
Because for the first time, it was personal. And for the first time, he actually had something to lose other than just his life.
He glanced over his shoulder. René was crouched near the corner and studying the tree line intently.
"Anything?"
"Startled bird to our right.” René's sharp gaze met his. “Could be nothing."
And it could be something. “You armed?"
René's sudden grin was answer enough. Definitely insane, these Sinclairs.
"Be careful. I'm going in."
René nodded and returned his gaze to the forest. Cade rose and turned the doorhandle. After ensuring there were no wires attached anywhere, he pushed the door wide open. The smell of smoke and wood rushed out to greet him, along with a staleness that suggested the cabin had been closed for long periods of time. If Jina or Anni, or whatever her real damn name was, was staying here, she obviously didn't believe in airing the place out.
He stepped inside, keeping his back to the wall and his gun at the ready as he scanned the small room. Nothing. Not even the ropes Ike was supposedly bound in.
Frowning and feeling more and more like things were very wrong, he walked across to the small cot. The blankets were stacked in a neat pile at the end of the bed. Ike certainly wouldn't have bothered, and it was doubtful his captors would have cleaned up after him. Nor was there any sign of blood on the mattress itself. There would have been if Ike had lain there.
He looked around the room. No blood spots anywhere else, either.
Ike hadn't woken up here. Hadn't been here.
He rubbed a hand across his eyes. Christ, why hadn't he checked the kid for signs of psychic intrusion? If Candy had shields strong enough to keep him out, it was a fair bet that either she, or the other bitches in this game, had strong psychic skills. Strong enough to imprint false memories into the kid's mind, anyway.
"René?” he said softly.
"Yeah?"
"It's a trap."
"Fantastic."
Cade wasn't entirely sure whether that was meant sarcastically. “See anything?"
"Nope."
He walked to the side of the door and peered out. The forest around the clearing was still. Perhaps a little too still.
"What's the quickest way out of here?"
"Run like hell for the main trail. Harder to hit running targets."
"But not impossible.” He had hit running targets. He suspected their hunters might be able to, too. Why let them walk into the hut and discover the lie if they weren't sure of the outcome? Or the fact that they could bring their quarry down?
"Are we to be wolf targets or human targets?” René continued.