Read Run: An Emma Caldridge Novella: The Final Episode for Free Online Page A

Sumner?” the older man said. “Banner sent us. I’m Leon and this is Brink and his little sister Carrie. That young lady over there is Samantha Yoder. We came down to get close to the FBI. We think we need their protection. Sheriff Tarnell paid us a visit.”
    “That the guy who has my gun?” Sumner said.
    Leon shrugged. “I don’t know about that, but I can tell you he’s no good. I encouraged him to leave and he hightailed it back to Sunrise.”
    “Mr. Vanderlock? Showtime,” Consalvo’s voice blared over the bullhorn.
    Vanderlock waved his consent. He turned to Sumner.
    “Once I get that loser on the chopper, you going down to get her?”
    Sumner nodded. “You bet I am.”
    Vanderlock put out a hand. “Good luck.” He nodded to the three assembled on horseback and jogged toward the Bell.
    “Why don’t you head to the FBI van,” Sumner said to Leon. “There’s an agent named Steinberg who’ll take care of you.”
    Sumner watched the four head down to the clustered vehicles before moving into position on a high rock overlooking the compound. He stretched onto the dirt, opened up the tripod legs on his sniper rifle, pressed his eye to the telescopic lens and waited for Shaw to appear.
    E MMA LET S HAW push her out of the mudroom and into the daylight. The morning sun was bright, but there remained a snap to the air. While she wasn’t thrilled at being on the receiving end of Shaw’s rifle, she was glad about one thing: he hadn’t seen Ryan hovering in the stairwell.
    “Stop here and wait,” Shaw said.
    “Wait for what?” Emma replied. Above her head she saw the black form of an approaching helicopter. The chop-chop sound increased as it flew toward them.
    “That’s my ride,” Shaw said. Emma heard satisfaction in his voice. To their left she saw a boy, not more than ten, with what looked like a bomb strapped to his chest. Her heart constricted as she saw his terrified face streaked with tears and dirt.
    She watched as the helicopter lowered into the yard, and squinted when it got so low that it began kicking up dust. It settled onto the grass, the engine quieted, and she saw Vanderlock jump out and stroll toward them. He wore battered jeans and black cowboy boots, and his tee shirt was clean but faded. She almost sagged in relief out of overwhelming gratitude, because if Vanderlock was flying the chopper, that left Sumner free and somewhere above them with a rifle in his hand. There was no one better with a rifle in his hand than Sumner.
    “Stop!” Shaw said.
    Vanderlock stopped.
    “Turn around and get back in that chopper. Why’d you turn it off? We’re leaving.” Shaw’s voice was harsh.
    Vanderlock flicked a glance at Emma and then the boy. “I turned off the engine because I have a message to deliver that you need to hear. Hard to hold a conversation with a helicopter roaring.”
    “The only message I want to hear is that we’re leaving.”
    Vanderlock gave a quick nod. “We are, but my orders are that you free the boy first.”
    “No. He’s my insurance policy,” Shaw said.
    “My orders were clear. And as Caldridge there knows, I always obey orders.”
    Emma knew that Vanderlock had never met an order that he would obey. She started analyzing the risk of pushing Shaw off balance. He would likely fire and kill Lock, or worse, perhaps trigger the boy’s IED. He was so close to the three of them that perhaps they would also be injured in the blast, but she had no doubt that Shaw would take the risk, because he was the farthest away and the most desperate. She looked back toward the house and saw Ryan standing in the mudroom entrance. Johnson was behind him, holding a gun to his head. No help there, she thought.
    “You need to disarm the boy,” Vanderlock said. He looked at Emma. “You have the usual, beautiful?”
    Her usual was a gun in a holster and a knife in her boot. She didn’t have either, having given the knife to Carrie before heading out from the