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enough. Over the roar of wind and engines, she could hear bullets ricocheting off rocks. She could practically feel the crosshairs of the rifles on her back and tried not to imagine what it would be like to die out here at the hands of a madman.
    Cutter led her down the deer trail. They plowed through snow that was now several inches deep. Jagged rock blew past. Trees tore at her clothes. All the while she imagined the paralyzing pain of a bullet slamming into her back.
    Fatigue set in quickly, the high altitude tearing down her endurance. Mattie ran as fast as she could, but it wasn’t enough. Lungs and legs burning, she slowed.
    Cutter gripped her hand hard. “Come on, damn it!”
    “I’m trying.”
    “You’re going to have to try harder.”
    Her foot hit something buried beneath the snow. Her hand was jerked from his as she tried to break her fall. She plowed facedown into three inches of snow.
    “Get up!”
    Mattie scrambled to her feet, but her legs were shaking violently; she didn’t think she could continue running. “I don’t think we’re going to outrun that chopper,” she shouted.
    “What do you suggest? That we give up and let them shoot us down?”
    He had a point. But the situation seemed hopeless. They couldn’t continue at this pace. Mattie was beyond exhaustion.
    Still, he tugged her into a run. Within minutes she noticed his pace had slowed as well; she wasn’t the only one who’d reached the limit of her endurance. How could the situation possibly get any worse?
    Her question was answered when the trail abruptly ended at a jut of rock that shot two hundred feet straight up. For several interminable seconds they stood there, their breaths spewing into the cold air.
    The moment was broken when a bullet ricocheted off a rock less than a foot from Cutter’s face. “Son of a bitch,” he muttered, wiping blood from his cheek.
    “We’re trapped,” Mattie shouted, trying to stay calm, trying to think.
    The chopper passed overhead. Too loud. Too close. The engine roared as it prepared to make another pass. This time she didn’t think they’d miss. At least not Cutter. They had other plans for her that weren’t nearly as expedient as a bullet in the heart.
    “What do we do now?” she cried.
    Cutter was looking down at the ground. Mattie didn’t understand what he could possibly be thinking. They were sitting ducks here. They had to move! She could hear the chopper getting closer. Then Cutter motioned toward a pile of rocks twenty yards away. Her gaze followed his point. She caught a glimpse of tiny hoof marks in the snow.
    “This way!” He reached for her hand.
    But she pulled back. “It’s a dead end!”
    A volley of shots erupted. A hole blew through the sleeve of Cutter’s shirt. His body jolted. Mattie saw blood and smoke and heard herself scream. The next thing she knew he locked his hand around her arm and shoved her hard enough to make her stumble. Terrified that they were about to become pinned, she started to fight him. Then she spotted the black hole in the rock face of the cliff.
    “It’s a cave!” he shouted. “Go!”
    She didn’t have to be told twice. She scrambled over rock slick with snow and ice and into the protective cloak of darkness. It was like walking into the darkest of nights. Mattie could still hear the chopper’s engine. But the gunshots had stopped.
    In the dim light, she saw Cutter sink to the floor of the cave. “That was damn close,” he muttered.
    Remembering the bullet that had torn through his shirt, she stepped closer. In the dim light she could see the dark stain of blood. “My God. You’ve been shot.”
    He glanced down at the wound. A bitter sound that was part growl, part laugh, squeezed from his throat. “I guess I have.”
    “Maybe I should take a look—”
    “It’ll keep.” He reached into his belt and slid what looked like some type of baton from his belt. Using one hand, he snapped it in two. Yellow light filled the cave.