Gil could not believe what he was hearing. Did these men think they could just come in and in invade their peace? He took another look at then gun that was sticking out of the waistband of Ted's jeans. He knew that he more than likely had more experience with guns then these two men combined, but he did not want to say so. The less he said about what he knew the better.

He looked back and saw Sara's tight-lipped expression. "Honey, isn't it time for bed?" he asked, motioning to Nora with his eyes.

Sara hesitated and stared at her husband for a few beats. Finally, she stood with Nora and took a few steps backwards. It was obvious that she was aware of his discomfort.

"I guess time got away from me," she said as she backed toward the tent.

She continued to walk backwards and Gil hoped that she wouldn't try anything brazen. Quickly she turned and retreated. Nora's innocent eyes looked back at him as she went.

When she was safely inside, Gil turned his attention back to Ted and Allen. "Look," he started, trying to be as calm as possible. "We don't want any trouble. We don't have any money on us, but we'll give the keys to the car. Just leave my family in peace."

Allen, who was turning out to be the side-kick of the duo, walked over to the fire where Sara had been sitting. He picked up Nora's small, second reader and thumbed through the pages.

"Treehouse Friends," he scoffed, tossing the book into the fire.

For a moment he watched the pages of the small book curl and burn. In a way it was symbolic of their ruined vacation. Gil felt anger boil inside of him, but he urged himself to remain calm. It wouldn't benefit his family if he erupted.

"We're not interested in any of that shit," Ted stated. "We need a nice little family as a cover in case the rangers get wind of who we are. After we get to our destination, we'll let you go."

Though it was said with a low tone, Gil did not believe him. There was something about his demeanor and the sickening glint in his eye that told Gil that he had sinister intentions.

"Then you are mistaken," Gil lied. "My wife and I are going through a divorce."

Ted shook his head. "Do you think I'm a fucking idiot?" he asked. "You two wouldn't be screwing last night if you were going through a divorce."

Gil's jaw twitched and he thought back on his private moment with Sara. Had this man been so near that he had known about his private act with his wife? Of course, he could have been guessing, but something told him that this wasn't the case.

"You've been following us," Gil stated.

Ted grinned. "Close enough to hear the good news," he said, giving him a wink. "Congratulations on the newest addition."

"You may as well turn in, Gil," Allen piped up. "Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

~0~

As Sara waited for Gil, she stroked Nora's hair and hummed her to sleep. It was obvious to her that these two men were up to something underhanded. She did not want to leave Gil out there with them, but she had Nora to think about.

When Gil finally entered the tent, she let out a pent up sigh. Quickly he hurried over to her and pulled her into his arms. Touching his check to hers , he whispered in her ear.

"They have a gun," he breathed, causing her blood to run cold.

Sara pulled back and stared at him with a wide-eyed, frozen expression. "What do they want?" she asked, looking back at Nora in a panic.

Gil looked unsure. "I think they are on the lamb and they want to use us a cover," he stated.

Sara looked puzzled, but quickly she went over to their bags and pulled out the battery powered radio. She turned it on, keeping the volume low, and turned the dial. When they found a station they waited for a song to run its course, hoping an announcer would break through.

"What are we going to do?" Sara asked in a whisper as they waited.

"Leave," Gil whispered back. "We'll wait until they fall asleep and then leave. Leave everything behind."

Sara nodded in agreement. "Yeah," she said. "Have they been following us?"

Gil nodded. "Yeah," he said.

He did not want to comment that they had mentioned knowing about the baby. That would send her into a panic. It was best he kept that information to himself.

"The authorities are asking the public to keep a look out for two men," An announcer finally said. "Who robbed a local convenience store? Both men are considered armed and extremely dangerous…."

The announcer went on to describe Ted and Allen perfectly. In addition to this, it was mentioned that Ted had been recently paroled. Gil clicked off the radio and Sara returned it to her bag.

"Turn out the light," Gil said. "Maybe they'll think we've gone to sleep."

~8~

Gil hadn't gone to sleep, but stayed awake waiting on the voices of the two men outside to silence. Sara had eventually curled up beside Nora and fell asleep, but that was only after Gil had convinced her to. It was nearing daybreak by the time everything went silent.

"Sara," he said in a hushed whisper as he gently shook her. "We need to move now."

Sara's eyes snapped open and she sat upright in a flash. Without missing a beat she reached for Nora's shoes and tugged them onto the sleeping child. Gil quietly dug through a bag and slipped the car keys and wallet into his pocket.

"Ready?" he asked, turning to lift Nora onto his shoulder.

Nora blinked her eyes open, but then they blinked close again. Sara nodded to him and slowly he unzipped the tent flap, going slowly as to keep the noise to a bare minimum.

"That's not a good idea," Ted whispered suddenly, pulling back the flap.

Sara jumped back and she felt a shock of fear shoot from the base of her neck to the tip of her toes. This was the first time she had gotten a close-up look at him, and to her he seemed like a man that she did not want to cross, yet she was not afraid of him.

"Don't try that again," he said as he zipped their tent back up.

~8~

Gil and Sara never slept. When the sun rose fully, they woke Nora up and dressed her. They were not too sure what they were going to say to her, or what they were going to do. Ted was a man who had thought of all of their avenues.

When Nora saw that the men were there, she fell silent and didn't speak. She stayed close to her parents. Ted and Allen didn't speak to them but told them to pack up. Obediently, Sara packed up their clothes, while Gil started working on the tent. When everything was ready to go, Ted tucked his gun into the back of his jeans and waved his arm at them.

He wanted them to walk in front.

Nora jerked her mother's arm as they started. "Mommy, why are they here?" she asked.

Sara smiled. "We're just helping them," she lied.

For hours they walked without speaking. Gil wanted to reach out and embrace his wife and daughter, but he didn't want to show these men any form of fear. He didn't want them to think that they an upper hand.

However, despite his cool demeanor, he was terrified. If he and Sara were alone, then they would have tried to wrestle the gun away and fought with all of there might. Nora being present added the most fear. She absolutely could not be left alone with these two men, and that went without saying.

"Gil, does your wife like it when you fuck her?" Ted asked.

Sara bit the inside of her lip, pressed Nora into her side, and covered her ears. Beside her, Gil flinched. It was obvious that Ted was trying to get a rise out of him. Did he want to fight Gil? If he did, then it would be no contest. No matter how much she loved her husband, she could not see him winning a fight against him.

"I mean, she sounded like she liked it the other night," Ted continued. "Or maybe she was faking it."

Sara looked to Gil and saw him struggling to keep his composure. She took his hand and pinched his thumb as an indication to him to not do anything that he would regret.

"What's your kid's name?" Ted asked, kicking a brush of dirt at the back of Gil's pants.

"I think its Nora," Allen said.

"That's right," Ted said loudly. "Nora do you know what sex is?"

Sara's mouth dropped and she stopped in her tracks. Gil stopped with her and he stood in front of his family protectively. Ted walked up to them and stared straight into his eyes. Sara laid a hand on Gil's arm and she felt him trembling with anger.

"You gonna hit me?" Ted asked. "Oh, please do."

He pulled out his gun and tapped it against Gil's cheek. Nora whimpered and buried her head into Sara's side. Without thinking, Sara stepped in front of it.

"Okay," she said. "That's enough. You don't want to fire that… a ranger can't be far off."

Ted tapped his finger against his head. "Good thinking, Sara," he said. "I like the way she thinks. But, I bet you wouldn't know what to do with this gun if I gave it to you."

Sara played along. "Probably not," she lied.

Ted chuckled and slipped the gun back into his waistband. "Let's keep walking," he said to them.

~8~

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