My jaw dropped as I watched her open the hatch to the bunker and climb inside. How did she get in there? It was a fucking bunker for crying out loud. It was supposed to be secure! On second thought, maybe my open-ended invitation to use Badger’s cabin had been rescinded, or maybe my brothers in Croftridge were dealing with a situation I wasn’t aware of.
Before I could think better of it, I pulled out my phone and dialed Badger. He would be pissed at the early hour, but it couldn’t be helped.
“This better be good, Copper,” Badger grumbled into the phone.
“It might be; you tell me. Do you have a woman staying in your bunker at the cabin?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light and casual.
“WHAT?” he yelled, damn near rupturing my eardrum.
“You heard me. I came up to the cabin last night to stay for a few days. Found her just inside the tree line sitting on top of a huge boulder trying to get away from a couple of wild boars. This morning, I watched her sneak out of a window upstairs and run off to the bunker.”
“Why was she in the cabin?” he asked.
“Because one of the boars got her leg. She tried to run away after I shot the beasts, but I caught her. I was going to question her, but then I realized she was hurt. Called Splint to come and sew up her leg. She didn’t want to go to the hospital, so I crushed up a sleeping pill and put it in a glass of whiskey for her. She was out within ten minutes and slept until about thirty minutes ago,” I explained.
“How the hell did she get into my bunker?” he asked.
“I take it that means she’s not a Blackwings’ project?”
“Excuse me?”
“She’s got damsel in distress written all over her. I thought she might be someone you guys were helping, like with Ember.”
“Son of a motherfucking bitch!” he cursed.
“Not following, brother.”
“When all that shit went down with Ember, I bet no one thought to lock up the bunker. And I know for a fact no one but me has been up there since then, and I didn’t check it,” he explained.
“That explains how she got in, but I think we need to know how she found it in the first place, and why she is using it.”
“Completely agree. You want me to head up there?”
“Not yet. I’m going to hang back and watch. See what she does. If she tries to take off, I’ll follow. No worries, brother. I’ll get some answers from her,” I said.
“You sure?” he asked.
“Yeah, she’s not a threat, but something’s going on with her. Honestly, I think it’ll be fun to see how this plays out.”
He chuckled into the phone, “Only you would. Thanks, Copper. Call if you need me.”
“Will do.”
I quickly threw together a rudimentary pack in case I needed to track her while keeping my eye on the bunker. As expected, the little sneak tossed two bags out of the hatch before she climbed out. She glanced around one time, picked up the bags, and darted for the trees.
I smiled to myself. Let the hunt begin.
* * *
To my surprise,she only hiked a mile or so from the cabin before she stopped and started setting up a campsite. She worked quickly and efficiently. Once she had her small tent up, she crawled inside and zipped it closed.
I kept my distance, watching her through binoculars. When twenty minutes passed and she still hadn’t come out of the tent, I took that as my opportunity to find my own place to camp. As I got myself setup, I couldn’t keep my mind off of the mysterious woman. I had so many questions for her when the time came. And it would come. I would make sure of it.
I continued to watch her from afar for the rest of the day. She only came out of the tent to gather some wood and get a small fire started. What was she doing? I fully expected her to keep moving, not pitch a tent a mile from the cabin. By nightfall, it was clear she was staying put for the night.
When early afternoon rolled around the next day and she still hadn’t emerged from her tent, I started to worry. I tried to wait her out, but my gut was telling me something was wrong. Giving up on the cat and mouse game, I made my way to her campsite and called out, “Hey! You okay in there?”
Nothing.