Page 23 of Solid as Steele
“You make out anything on the vehicle?” Owen made sure to talk loud enough to be heard over the departing engine.
“No, did you?” she asked.
“Just that it was a two-seater UTV with a single male wearing a helmet.”
The engine’s rumble disappeared into the night, and Owen finally stepped back. “Let’s join Ryan but be alert.”
They strode to Ryan who was backing toward the firepit.
“What did you see?” Owen asked.
“Polaris UTV. Red and black. Male driver. Helmet. Big guy. Put him at six feet, maybe two thirty. Wore a leather jacket and jeans.”
“Sounds like the guy who attacked me yesterday, and the same UTV he was driving. I think he took my vehicle or had someone else do it. Assuming I drove out here, but I’m not sure of that.”
Mackenzie flashed her gaze to him. “You remembered?”
He nodded and described the attack. “The guy wore one of those half helmets so I could see him, but it was too dark to make out any features other than he wore glasses. That’s all for now. Not sure why the guy attacked me though.”
Mackenzie sat by the fire and drew her legs in again. “It’s good news that something came back, and the glasses could help us locate this guy.”
“Yeah, and the doc said if I start to remember bits and pieces, I have a better chance of gaining all my memory back.”
“Keep watch.” Ryan gave them both a pointed look. “And I’ll get this water boiling so we can eat.”
Mackenzie gaped at him. “How can you eat after that?”
Owen agreed. His stomach was churning. Not from seeing the vehicle, but from remembering the vicious assault.
“We have to.” Ryan stoked the fire and put the collapsible kettle on a rack above. “With all the hiking today, we have to keep up our calorie intake if we’re going to function tomorrow.”
“I’ll take the first watch starting after we eat.” Owen challenged Ryan with a just-try-me look. “And I’ll need those binoculars to do the job right.”
Ryan lifted the cord from around his neck and handed them over without a single question. “It’s a little early for shuteye, but I can always try.”
“Not too early for me,” Mackenzie said. “I’ll probably crash once my adrenaline wears off.”
Owen hoped so. And he wouldn’t wake her for a shift either. There was no way he was sleeping tonight. No way at all. Not when there was a chance this man who beat him to a pulp would return and Owen could nab him and unravel this mystery.
6
As the sun woke from a good night’s sleep, Owen sat across from Ryan at the firepit and stared at the lime green tents, knowing his gaze held longing for the sleeping bag in his tent. But he’d taken every shift last night. Not that Ryan had shirked his duty. He’d taken a stint while Owen dozed a bit by the fire. Maybe Owen’s decision to stay up all night would come back to bite him today. His body screamed from the hike yesterday. From the beating. From the lack of sleep.
But at least the night awake taught him that he was made of some pretty stern stuff. Made him unreasonably proud. Maybe that would make up for the pain and fatigue.
Mackenzie crawled out of her tent. Her hair was messy, and she had that sleepy just-came-awake look. A little bewildered. A little sultry. Her breaths coming in little puffs in the near-freezing temperatures.
Did she look this way every morning?
Man, he’d like to find out.
“You guys let me sleep all night.” She stretched her arms overhead, her top lifting and showing a creamy sliver of skin above her jeans.
Ryan looked at Mackenzie. “Were you warm enough last night?”
“Perfect.” She looked at him and then at Owen. “And before either of you say anything when we leave today, you schlepped all of these things for my creature comfort, and I’m carrying the pack out.”
“Fine by me,” Ryan said.
