Tipping Point (39 page)

“She told me a bit. I guess the guy was drunk and leering at anything female. She said he gave her the creeps, so she was happy to see their taillights disappear.”

“Fuck. I hope they like it where they are, and that we only gave them enough fuel to get them where they were going. They know where we live now.” Neil gripped her hand.

“If they come back and cause problems we can deal with it. In fact, I’m pretty sure we can handle anything.”

28

P
ARTING
S
HOTS

Gerry watched the interfering prick as he followed the snotty whore back into the cabin. He’d come here to show that fucker who he was messing with, ratting him out to his old man and getting him kicked out on the street.

“Family fucking emergency, my ass. Cocksucker,” he spat, thinking of the sign on the door at the knife shop.

As a bonus he’d found out why the son of a bitch had stuck his nose in his business. Apparently he was getting it on with the city-bitch now. Well, they’d soon see about that. So far as he was concerned, he’d had dibs on her. Not that he wanted to touch her now. No, now he just wanted her dead. It was her fault his life was such a mess now, after all.

He had been standing there watching as the snitch put up all those cameras, sniggering about their stupidity. Did they really think the cops were going to come running if an alarm went off? Hell, the cops were busy in town trying to keep the stores from being looted. They didn’t have time to worry about some dickhead out in the boonies. Considering how busy they were, Gerry didn’t figure they would have much time to worry about one that was missing, either, much less some city-bred cunt.

After what seemed like forever, the fuck-face from the knife shop finally came back outside. Gerry put his rifle stock snug against his shoulder. He was sighting along the barrel, his finger tightening on the trigger, when something tugged at his shirt and pulled him just the smallest bit off on his shot. Still, he was pleased to see the stain spread across the asshole’s shirt just before he went down. Now he just needed to put him out for good.

He became aware of the dampness running down his belly when he tried to operate the bolt on the rifle to load another bullet. He looked down in shock to see the arrow protruding at a severe angle through his chest. The end with the barb stuck out in such a way that it was blocking the movement of his right arm. That was when the pain kicked in and he noticed what a hard time he was having trying to draw breath.

He collapsed on the ground, only vaguely aware when the rifle was kicked out of his reach. The figure running past him was nothing more than a blur as Gerry’s last remaining air made the blood in his throat gurgle. He didn’t know or care who it was that had killed him, but he didn’t think he was going out alone. That was enough for him.

*     *     *

The crack of the rifle had Mackenzie bolting from her chair. Hearing her daughter screaming for her sent ice through her veins. She ran out the door and launched herself from the porch, with no idea what she would find.

Cam stood over Neil’s body, soaking wet and trembling from head to foot. Mac dropped to her knees beside him and felt for a pulse. It was racing, but it was there beneath her shaking fingers. Panic and hope mingled inside her. She whipped out her knife and sliced the front of Neil’s t-shirt so she could peel it back and see where he’d been hit.

From the placement of the wound, Mac knew the shot had most likely gone through his lung. That meant she had to keep blood from compressing his good lung, so she rolled him onto the side that was damaged. Any blood filling the chest cavity would stay around the wounded area, instead of affecting the healthy lung. She checked his back. The second wound confirmed a through-and-through.

“Get me the satellite phone from the truck!” When she had it in her hand she unfolded the antenna and called Billy, who still had his dad’s phone.

“Billy, get Annette over here right away. Tell her it’s a gunshot wound. Rifle I think. Lung shot. Now Billy, now!” She ended the call to get him moving, and sent Cam into the cabin for the electrical tape she had in her backpack.

“Hey, cowboy. What the fuck do you think you’re doing out here anyway? Getting shot and all that shit? You think we’ve got time for this?” He smiled up at her even though it was more of a grimace than anything else.

“You’re too sympathetic,” he gasped.

“No talking, cowboy. You’ve got a smart mouth on you, but this time use your smart brain. You need what air you’ve got. You’ll be okay, though. You could survive on one lung, but that’s not going to be necessary. We’ll make sure you keep this one.” He just smirked at her, taking her advice not to talk. Most likely because it caused him agony.

Seeing him struggle to breathe, Mac died a thousand deaths, but she knew he would be okay. Even without going to a hospital, a punctured lung could be dealt with.

Cameron came out of the house with towels and the tape Mac had asked for. It wasn’t until then that it occurred to her to look around for the shooter.

“Fuck! Where is the fucking bastard? Why did he stop shooting when we’re all sitting ducks here? We need to get him moved.” Cam stopped her.

“He’s dead, mom. It’s okay.” Mac dropped back onto her knees.

“Wait. What? Dead? How?” Her hands were shaking as she tried to get a patch of Neil’s skin dry enough to tape over the wound. Neil’s moan of pain drilled a hole through her heart that she had to ignore if she wanted to keep him alive.

“I killed him,” Cameron whispered.

“Oh, Jesus.” As much as she wanted to comfort her daughter, it would have to wait until Annette was there to take over. She had to cover the exit wound in his back, which was only slightly larger than the entrance wound.

By the time the truck pulled in and Annette and Billy jumped out, Mac was just finishing. Annette shoved her hands out of the way.

“Let me work here,” she snapped. Billy tried to reach his dad, but Mac jumped up and pulled him away, wrapping her arms around him.

“Billy, look at me. He’s going to be okay, but you have to let Annette do her job.”

“She’s a fucking vet!”

“Yes, and humans are actually easier to work on than a cat or dog. She has more medical training than you realize. It’s okay, Billy. Your dad is going to be okay. We’ll make sure of it.”

Mackenzie gripped him tightly, but pulled Cameron to her as well.

“We’re all going to be okay. I promise you. He can breathe. He’s got a punctured lung, but they heal. I made sure his other lung wouldn’t collapse and I covered the holes until Annette could get here. He’s not going anywhere.”

She kept the kids with her, one on each side, as they all watched Annette work on him.

“He’s stable enough for now,” Annette reassured them. Then she suggested they try to get him in to a hospital anyway, just in case. Mackenzie called 911, hoping they still had their phones up and running, and fuel in the tank of the ambulance.

Mac managed to get through to a dispatcher. When the police arrived ten minutes before the ambulance, Mackenzie was grateful to whatever supreme being was responsible when Gilles stepped out of the car. Between her husband being shot, and her daughter killing the shooter, she needed all the friendly faces she could get. They all did.

As hard as it was for her, she decided to let Billy go in the ambulance with his dad. She said goodbye to Neil with tears in her eyes, hating that she wouldn’t be in the ambulance with him, but she knew there was no way Billy could drive right now, and he was the only person other than her who would know how to get to the hospital in Parry Sound. She knew Gilles would take her, but they would need their vehicle.

It killed her not to be able to follow right behind the flashing lights, but there were questions to be answered and Mac wasn’t going to leave her daughter to answer them alone. Neil would be heading straight into the ER, assuming the hospital still had generator power. He wasn’t going to need her until they were finished with whatever treatment they gave him, though Billy would be at the hospital by himself until she got there.

Her choices sucked. However she worked things out she was shortchanging someone she loved who needed her. Once a second constable showed up, and the coroner arrived, Gilles offered to take their statements at the hospital. Mac nodded her thanks and barely kept a handle on her emotions. Cameron didn’t seem to want to go, but she didn’t argue. Mac wasn’t letting her out of her sight anyway.

Annette remained behind to give her statement so that she could head back home when she was done and let everyone else know what was going on. Mac could have radioed over to them, but she didn’t want to take the time.

Gilles didn’t argue when Cameron got into the truck with her mother, so Mac figured they were looking at it as a pretty cut-and-dried case of Cam defending the life of another human being. When they got to the hospital, Mac went straight for Billy. Seeing him rocking back and forth on the waiting room chair broke her heart. She sat beside him and pulled Cameron down with her.

“What have they said to you, Billy?” He was shaking, and his teeth chattered a bit when he answered.

“They haven’t said anything here, but the guys in the ambulance said he was doing fine. I guess his oxygen levels weren’t too bad, and his heart was beating normally. They said something about the blood loss being contained, but they put him on oxygen to make sure.” Mac nodded.

“They would, yes. I’m not a doctor, but I can tell you that any blood loss would mean a loss of oxygen transfer, and with one lung not working properly they’d want to be sure his brain was getting enough. They just need to be sure there was no other damage.

“If this had happened even a day or two from now, the hospital might not have been able to do anything for him. At least this way we’ll be sure he comes out of it perfectly alright.” Gilles gave her a look, but he didn’t argue with her.

While they waited, Gilles said he might as well get their statements, and then maybe they could go and donate some blood. He allowed her to sit with Cam while he took her statement, so long as she didn’t interrupt. When he asked Cameron what had happened, she answered steadily even though Mac knew she had to be scared shitless.

“One of the motion detectors went off. We were outside working in the yard, but I went in to use the bathroom and saw the flashing message on the monitor for the server. Mom must have just finished setting up the sensors and cameras at Neil’s cabin, because it was one of those that had triggered.

“I could see that guy watching the cabin, so I grabbed my bow and ran. I didn’t even take time to tell anyone where I was going. I had to swim across the river that cuts through the property, which really slowed me down. Neil must have stayed in the cabin with my mom for a while, or I’d never have made it. I didn’t even see the rifle at first. I knew he was going to do something, but I didn’t know what.

“Neil came out and that’s when he brought the rifle up to his shoulder. It felt like it took me forever to take aim, but I hit him as he was pulling the trigger. I saw him jerk a bit, so I might have thrown his shot off. I wasn’t even sure if the arrow would go into him. I mean, I’ve never shot at a living target before.”

“You have a .40 calibre Glock registered to you, right?” When Cam nodded he continued.

“How come you didn’t take that with you instead? Most people would have grabbed a gun under those circumstances I would think.” Cam shook her head.

“I didn’t think I was allowed to. That’s not our property, so I can’t carry there. I mean, it’s Neil’s property and he’s married to my mom, so I don’t really know how that works, since my mom and I own our property together. It’s kind of confusing, and I figured it would just be better if I grabbed the bow.” Gilles nodded at her and patted her shoulder.

“It was probably for the best. That way there are no questions to be raised about whether or not you did anything illegal.” He turned to Mac.

“You raised a damn good kid, Mac.”

“Fucking right I did,” she said, a relieved smile on her face.

“Okay, why don’t I tell you my end of things so we can get this over with?” Gilles took notes while she gave him the rundown.

“You can ask Billy whatever questions you need to, but he wasn’t there when it happened. I called him on the satellite phone so he could get Annette over there. She’s a vet, so she’s got enough medical training to deal with an emergency, and I’ve done a lot of studying on emergency treatments. Between the two of us I figured we’d be able to make sure he survived, even if we couldn’t get him to the hospital.”

“Yeah, about that. You mentioned something a few minutes ago about not being able to treat him at the hospital in a couple of days. What was that about?” Mac looked him in the eye.

“I’m pretty sure you already have a good idea what’s going on out there, Gilles. You’re a smart guy. The whole world is about to fall apart, and we’ve got front-row seats. Did you know they killed Trudeau?” Gilles’ mouth dropped open.

“Are you kidding me?”

“No. It happened yesterday. I’m surprised you didn’t hear about it from one of the other detachments. The power has already gone down in a lot of the major cities. Get on the radio if you can, Gilles, and find out every scrap of information that’s available.” He looked like he wasn’t sure he believed her, but he knew her better than to think she’d lie about something like that.

“This is a lot to take in, but when things get really bad bring your family to Neil’s. You won’t be able to find my place, but you know where his cabin is. Keep enough fuel in your car to get there. Do me a favour and get on the radio to Chuck as soon as you can and give him directions to Neil’s.

“I know you guys drifted apart, but I don’t know if I can reach him now, and I want him to know he has a place to bring his wife and kids. You probably don’t believe me right now, but the whole world is going dark. If you bring your family to our place, I’ll explain the whole thing to you, but for the moment just keep what I’ve said in mind.”