Untraceable

Survival Skill #46

When in a survival situation, always trust your instinct. Usually, it’s right.

~

Another man enters the shrinking space. “Damn it, what the hell is going on in here?”

My mouth drops open, and I smile. “Carl!”

Al bends over and snatches his gun off the floor. “Man, I thought you’d never get here.”

Carl ignores me and frowns at Al. “You’re making things messy. First Joe, then thrill kills, and even the dang dog. Then you go and toss Billy over the canyon. Now, you’ve got two teens down here? How long do you think it’ll be before people start snooping around, looking for them?”

I watch them talk with my head swinging back and forth between them, not quite computing what they’re implying.

Al shrugs. “Didn’t hurt us with Joe, did it?”

I interrupt and address Carl with tears in my eyes. “Wait. You’re in on this?”

Carl ignores me and lifts his hat off his head to smooth his hair. “Damn it, Al. You’re risking everything. Getting careless. I’m not letting you take me down on this one.”

Al pushes Carl who backs up a few steps. “Look, don’t be getting in my face. You had your chance to lock me up a while back. Instead, you wanted in on this. So don’t be threatening me, you’re in this just as thick as I am. If not more.”

Carl grits his teeth. “Look. I started this operation months ago, and I can do it without you.”

Al puffs up his chest. “You wouldn’t. I don’t care if you’re the boss or not. It was my idea.”

“These are my people out here, and they’ll back me up if they need to. Without me, you got no operation. So shut up if you want to get paid. Get Les outta here, and try not to kill anyone else. We got enough blood on our hands.”

Al salutes. “My pleasure, boss.” He grabs Les by both arms and drags him through the door. “Damn, it’s like hauling a hippo.” I can hear Al cackling at his stupid joke all the way down the tunnel as he grunts and groans from dragging the extra weight.

Once Al’s gone, Carl faces me and clicks his tongue. “Now what am I going to do with you?” Suddenly, skinny Carl appears large and in control.

Shaking my head, I move in front of Mo, protecting him. “No, you can’t be involved with them. Not you. Not this.”

Carl smiles an impish grin. “Sorry to let you down, Grace. But things are more complicated than you realize. A man’s got to take care of his family and life the best way he knows how.”

Tears fill my eyes. Memories of Carl plague my mind. How he helped Wyn and me hang up a tire swing or how he taught us how to shoot a can from fifty feet away. “I don’t understand. How could you?”

Carl glares at me. “What choice did I have? It was either this or watching a town I love, the town I grew up in, slowly crumble to dust.” I stare at him blankly, but he goes on without my response. “Surely you’ve seen what’s been going on. Shops closing. People leaving. Who do you think is breathing life back into it?”

I speak slowly. “You’re not doing this for the town. You’re doing it for yourself.”

“You should thank me,” he snaps back. “Our town would have dried up and washed away if it wasn’t for the money I’ve been putting into rebuilding it. Then where would we be? Poor, jobless, no future!”

“But this isn’t the way to do it!”

Carl shakes his head. “What do you know? You’re a teenager. You don’t have bills to pay. You don’t have to worry about anything. This town is all most of these people have. Without it, who would they be? What would they do?”