The Fourth Child by Jessica Winter (best classic novels TXT) 📕

the dog, he grabbed at a backpack Devon tossed his way and then handed it to Tyler. “Come on. We need to start walking.”

“We have no idea how far it is,” Eddy said as he shrugged into a pack. “We could try and maneuver their truck around this. They must have left it close by.”

“No.” Jason hefted the last bag and started around the front of the mangled Jeep, with Marty close at his heels. “It’ll take too long to move the car and all of this other debris out of the way. The guy in Bottopassi said it wasn’t far. We need to keep moving.”

“Maybe he was a part of this,” Devon suggested, as he fell in next to Jason. He was still limping, but it didn’t seem to be slowing him down too much.

“I don’t think so,” Peta said. “I think—”

The sound of a gunshot in the distance interrupted Peta, and they all stopped to listen. Jason cocked his head, and when the second shot was quickly followed by a third, he started to run. “It has to be coming from the preserve!” he shouted.

Jason used the light on the scope of his rifle to lead the way. It wasn’t much, but his eyes had adjusted enough to make good use of it. He knew from experience that brighter lights were counterproductive, and blinded you peripherally.

He tried to control his thoughts as the minutes and dense jungle flashed by. The possibilities for the gunfire were limitless, and he had to maintain control if he wanted to be of any help to whoever was under attack. Whether it was all part of a greater scenario that involved the men in the truck, or something separate, didn’t matter. They’d have to approach with caution and try to interpret as much as they could before getting involved.

“Jason!” Peta whispered, close to his elbow.

Impressed she’d kept up, he glanced back and saw that both Tyler and Devon had fallen behind to the point that he couldn’t see them. Stopping, he bent over and sucked in ragged breaths as Marty circled his legs. His left shoulder hurt like hell, as well as his head. He’d hit them both pretty hard, but the pain was just starting to blossom. Peta was favoring her right arm, and it all reminded him that not only was he the only former soldier there with combat experience, but they were all injured.

Crack!

The shot was close. Turning back around, Jason was certain he could see light up ahead. Turning his flashlight off, he confirmed there was definitely a glow coming from the trees.

“Eddy!” he whispered, beckoning the man to his side. He wasn’t sure if he could call Eddy his friend anymore, but he trusted him. It was a conviction fostered in Jason from years of wartime, and knowing when to listen to your gut. And in their current situation, being devoid of strong emotions was an advantage.

“Peta, stay here with Marty and wait for Tyler and Devon,” Jason ordered. “And don’t argue with me. I need you to watch our backs, as well as stay out of harm’s way. I have to know you’re safe.”

Staring at him, the unusual woman he’d come to respect more than anyone else he’d ever known, drew her brows together in consternation. Then, her features softened as she grasped his meaning. She took a step back and simply nodded, letting his arm go.

Guided by the light up ahead, Jason and Eddy moved swiftly over the last hundred yards, before the jungle fell away to reveal a large parking area filled with several vehicles. It was lit by some outside lights on a sprawling rambler, and the purr of a generator explained the source of power. Straight in front of them was a large barn, its double doors standing open.

Jason took it all in and processed the scene in a matter of seconds, but his brain failed to make sense of the details. He blinked, trying to properly interpret what he was seeing slinking around one of the cars.

Jaguars. Several of them. Large, predatory cats with sinuous muscles, and moving with a languid power that was enough to scare the most heavily armed hunter.

A loud, piercing scream made the cats flinch, and they all turned as one toward the barn.

A girl. It was a girl screaming. Jason recognized the stark terror of someone who believed they were about to die, and he’d never been as certain that he was there to stop it from happening.

Opening fire on the jaguars, Jason ran for the barn. As he reached the doors, he heard Eddy’s weapon erupt, and knew he’d do what was necessary to keep them away.

Jason burst through the entrance and into the murky interior, searching for the source of the cries for help. He stumbled over the body of a jaguar, and as he regained his footing, he saw another off to his left, ready to pounce.

A single shot to the head stopped its forward momentum, and as it dropped, he saw her. A girl with flaming red hair just like her mother’s, crouched with her back to a hay bale and holding a gun like a club, ready to fight for her life.

“Jessica!” Jason shouted, glancing around first to confirm they were alone, before lowering the AR.

Shaking, the girl’s eyes flitted from Jason, to the dead cat, to the space behind him, and then back again. The empty gun dropped to the floor with a clatter by her bare feet, and she hugged herself, shaking. “How…how do you know my name?”

His voice hitching, Jason swallowed down the rising sob while struggling to keep his composure. Smiling at the girl, he reached out a hand. “Because I’m your father.”

THE END

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