Jane froze, her gaze penetrating the shadowy environment, when she distinguished a tall figure standing behind the shed. A glint of silver moonlit on his facings revealed him to be the man who had been inside, sitting at the table.
They took a few steps towards her, and her heart leapt into her throat.
“Hey, get over here.” He bellowed, waving his arm in the air. Jane didn’t make a move, and Trooper hunkered down low.
When, only a few yards off as if out of nowhere, another man emerged from the forest. It all became clear now to Jane; the man behind the shed had addressed him, and not her.
The figure who had left his post in the trees appeared irritated. He was a younger man than the other, of medium height and disorderly dressed, with visible wear at the elbows and knees. He reached the other larger man, whose ink black hair and large ragged moustaches hid his distinctive, surly complexion.
“I thought I told you not to fall asleep on the job-” the first man said.
“You don’t have any proof of that. I wasn’t.” the second man retorted, using his rifle to gesticulate.
“I saw you sleepin’ over there when you were supposed to be keepin’ watch!”
“I told you, I wasn’t asleep!”
“Then why did I hear some strange noises out here a bit ago?”
“Maybe the wind, or some bear. There’s plenty of wildlife that passes through here!”
“Liar, or else you would have seen me comin’. Or seen what was out here before I got here.”
“See here-“
“You listen to me!”
Jane took this opportunity to merge wholly with the shadows, and Trooper followed at her heels as she watched the two brawling men. A blinding light leapt through the trees, casting long shadows and obscuring the men as it moved across the forest and blinked out. Followed shortly afterward, was the sound of a car door slamming shut; and the man she had seen inside the cabin on her late night expedition appeared by the side of the shed.
He strode over to the quarreling men; at this point the taller one had wrestled away the rifle and held the latter by the collar.
“Knock off the tango; this isn’t a high school prom.” He began gruffly.
This startled the battling duo, and the larger man turned round to see who confronted them.
“He’s not keepin’ watch!”
“Lay off it and come inside. We’ve got work to do.” He said hoarsely, motioning for them to follow as he strolled to the front door.
The little procession went inside, and the dark evening light inched closer to the house as the lamp within dimmed with their entry. Silence grew in abundance around Jane, and her ears pricked as she strained to hear what might have been said behind those primitive, overgrown walls.
Followed by Trooper, she tiptoed to the window once more and peered in. The three men had surrounded Zack, who was bound to the chair.
“Have you searched him?” The gruff man asked, as he pulled back the right side to Zack’s jacket. Jane recognized him now, as the same man who had nearly choked her in Sady’s living room.
“Nah, haven’t done anythin’ with him. Just brought him here when we caught him tryin’ to make a break for it out of town.”
The man in charge searched the pockets of Zack’s shirt and jacket, producing finally an array of photographs.
“So you thought you could pull this job on your own, huh?” He said bitterly, letting Zack’s jacket drop back, and falling into a nearby chair with an unpleasant thud.
“We’ve got it this time, fellas. The Western Waterfront in Portland, July 22nd, 8:30 in the morning. This little rat here thought he was clever enough to beat it with the merchandise, but we know better.”
Jane could see Zack shake his head and attempt to speak, before one of the other men struck him.
“Keep your mouth shut when the boss is talkin’ to ya.” He spouted, “Hey, what are we to do with him anyhow?”
“Dump him in the river!” suggested the man who formerly kept the lookout in the forest.
“That’s too good for him,” the first man said, “The big guy wants us to throw the law a bone, so they lay off our trail. We’ll wrap him up all pretty like a Christmas present for the cops.”
The two men standing laughed heartily at this, and one of them picked up the photos from the table and stuffed them in his back pocket.
“Let’s scope out the site, we’ve already lost enough time chasing after Tinker Bell here.” The man said, rising from the table and heading for the door.
They stood for a few moments near the door, deliberating over who would stay, when the smaller one with the rifle remained behind and slumped down in the chair as the door shut.
Jane knelt down in the shadows beside Trooper, and whispered in his ear.
“Trooper, you need to create a diversion; we have to save Zack!”
Trooper stood there for a few moments, before he took off in the bushes and left her behind. Jane reproached herself for having put so much faith in the dog, concluding that he had left her to fend for herself. She leaned against the rough wood, and scratched her head as she thought of what to do next. She finally decided to wait out the man in the chair, and hoped he would fall asleep again; when suddenly, in the dead silence of the forest – she heard a noise.
Trooper had fled into the pathway at the front of the house, and began to bark. She stood back up straight to look in again through the window, and could see the man opening the creaking door.
“Go away you dumb mutt!”
But Trooper wasn’t deterred that easily, and the man gripped his rifle,
“You get out of here, you hear me? Or else I’ll-“
With that, he stepped through the threshold and disappeared into the silver mist, when Jane heard a shot pierce the night air. She gasped, and listened again; Trooper hadn’t stopped barking, but the man was growing more and more impatient.
“Stop that racket, you hear? Cut it out!”
Another shot was fired, and still Trooper’s barking persisted. Jane’s brow knitted in worry as she thought of her furry accomplice; defenseless and ignorant of the impending peril. There was nothing she could do, but hope for his safety and free Zack as quickly as she could; after all, Trooper was risking his life for him.
As stealthy as a cat, she snuck about the side of the shed; she could see the irate hunter, wielding his rifle and chasing Trooper down the lane like a monomaniac. She quietly stepped into the illuminated cabin and her gaze settled on the man in the chair, his head drooping sulkily; his eyes fixed on the floor.
As she approached him cautiously, he lifted his head; and Jane let out a stifled cry of surprise! It wasn’t Zack after all, it was-