Chapter 7

Colby glanced sideways at Charlie, even though it was difficult to see much in the natural moonlight.

They had been on the trail for over two hours. Charlie still wasn't talking. They had been walking side-by-side, but the professor was starting to lag a little behind, and his limp was growing more pronounced.

"It's about another hour, Charlie. We should get there around dawn. You okay? Want to stop for awhile?"

Charlie shook his head, and Colby resigned himself to more silence. Next time someone told him they were claustrophobic, he was going to take it a lot more seriously.

"Where are we going?"

When Charlie finally spoke, the sound startled Colby. He stopped walking, giving Charlie the break he hadn't asked for. "A cabin. More like a shack, maybe. Never was much to look at, and I haven't been up here in a couple of years."

"How do you know about it?"

"It was my grandfather's. I grew up in Idaho, but I spent several summers up here with him. The original mountain man. Lived off the land. Anyway, when he died, this place went to my father … who let his third wife have it in the divorce settlement. She remarried and moved to Italy. She knew I was working in the L.A. area by then, so she asked me to keep an eye on the place, said I could use it if I wanted. She wasn't quite willing to give up prime California real estate and let me buy it back from her, but I guess letting me use it was decent of her…"

Charlie shifted a little. "And you're going to leave me up here?"

Colby reached into his own pack for a bottle of water, took a drink. "Yeah. I'll be back in L.A. this afternoon, and then I'm going to find Addison. I'm going to end this."

"How long?"

Colby shrugged.

"Is this an official CIA operation? Are … resources … available to you, or have you gone all commando on me?"

Colby smiled. "Commando? I'm wearing underwear, Charlie."

Charlie knew he was blushing. Probably glowing in the dark. "Very funny. You know what I mean."

Colby hoisted his pack again, preparing to keep walking. "Don't worry about my resources, Charlie. I'll find him. This will end — one way or another."

Charlie shouldered his pack again and shuddered. "I'm not staying more than three days. If you don't come back by Sunday morning, I'm hitching back to L.A., and straight to Don. I was probably an idiot not to call him in the first place."

"If Don figures out you're missing," muttered Colby, "he won't wait until Sunday to come after you." He didn't say the next sentence out loud, just kept trudging up the trail, and spoke only in his own head.

"At least I hope not."

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Don knew his mouth was hanging open. He decided he should use it to speak.

"Look, I may resent Granger for hurting and terrorizing my family, but I never said he was stupid. Why the hell would he leave his prints all over my missing brother's house? Especially with a dead body in it. He had to know we'd process the place for prints."

Megan just shook her head, but David answered him. "Exactly."

The other two agents turned their attention to him.

"This must not be a sanctioned CIA operation." David's voice gained certainty as he thought out loud. "Last year he did what he could to protect Charlie from Addison. He ended up sacrificing a lot himself. If he knew that Charlie was in danger again, that Addison had escaped … he would go after him, CIA or not. Granger would consider Addison unfinished business."

Megan nodded slowly. "Okay. I can see that. But the prints?"

Don was beginning to see the light. "He wanted us to find out. He's an agent without back-up."

David agreed. "Right. He's a good agent, without back-up. We were his partners. We are who he still trusts." He looked at his senior agent. "Even you, Don."

"Then why didn't he just call me, or let Charlie call me?"

David shrugged. "Doesn't trust you that much, I guess. You did pretty much beat the shit out of him."

Don opened his mouth to protest, but Megan interrupted. "Never mind all that. Old news. What matters now is that Colby wanted us to know that both he and Addison are here, and that Charlie is in danger."

"Right." Don looked at David again. "So if you were Colby, what would you do with Charlie?"

"Take him to a safe house," the other agent replied immediately. "Then I'd come back and deal with Addison."

"But without his CIA contacts, he doesn't have a safe house," Don pointed out. "Where does that leave him?"

"He'd still do the same thing," Megan offered. "Get Charlie out of the way — especially after what happened last year — then deal with Addison."

"Where?", Don asked again.

David suddenly broke into a smile. "His grandfather's place."

Megan and Don looked at him expectantly.

"I've been there with him. It's a ramshackle cabin up in the mountains. His ex-sister-in-law actually owns it now, but it used to be his grandfather's, and he spent summers there with him. You have to hike the last few hours to get to it — pretty remote. He could stash Charlie there for a few days."

Don returned his smile. "You've been there? Can you find it again?"

David's smile faltered. "I was only there once. Probably a couple of years ago. I do remember that it was near Burney, we stopped there and saw some amazing waterfalls. And it was originally a homestead. Maybe Shasta County still has some old maps?"

Don checked his watch. "I'm driving up there now. Tonight. I'll check at the courthouse as soon as it's open … I hope it was his paternal grandfather, I have no idea what his mother's surname was …"

"That's probably in his personnel file," noted Megan. "If nothing is listed under 'Granger', we can call back and check."

Don smiled fondly at the other agents. "Look, this isn't even an official case for us. I appreciate all the help tonight, but …"

David crossed his arms. "Shut up, Eppes. Charlie is one of us. Colby might as well still be one of us. We're going. I'll take vacation time if I have to."

"That won't be necessary."

The agents turned to face Director Merrick as he strode toward the group. "This is official, now. One Leavenworth contact confirms an escape, today. Another says he never saw Addison return to his cell after court. That's enough for me." He looked specifically at Don. "Take five minutes to brief me on what you've got. Then, your official assignment is to go after Addison. If that means finding your brother … well, I guess we'll all just have to live with that, won't we?"

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In the gray light of pre-dawn, Colby and Charlie crossed at the narrowest point a small stream, then veered to the East.

"We should break through to a clearing any time," Colby said. "GrandDad placed the cabin in a sort-of natural bowl, for fire protection. Near the creek, for water…"

Even as he spoke, the trees and vegetation began to thin, and Charlie could just make out a wooden structure in the early light. His eyes narrowed as he squinted for a better look. Colby was right — looked like this was going to be more of a shack than a cabin.

Focusing on the building, Charlie didn't notice that Colby had stopped walking until he bumped into the larger man.

"Sorry," Charlie muttered, glancing Colby's direction. He felt a cold dread start in his stomach when he saw the look on Colby's face. Although he didn't want to, he followed the direction of Colby's eyes.

There were two figures stepping off the rickety porch of the cabin. The older of the two smiled.

"It's about time, Granger. My boy and I have been waiting for you and Dr. Eppes for at least three hours. You've gotten soft. You used to be better than this."

Colby placed a restraining hand on Charlie's arm, even though Charlie wasn't moving.

At least, not walking anywhere. He thought his knees might give out and send him to the ground, though, when he heard Colby's hiss.

"Addison."