Chapter 16 - The Decoy
The river roared through the gorge like a liquid freight train. Swollen by the massive storm, the rapids were a violent, churning mess of white water and jagged rocks, rushing southward down the mountain at terrifying speeds.
Daniel stood at the muddy bank, the roaring water drowning out the sound of the Vanguard helicopter that was currently circling a mile away, searching for their signal.
He held the bloody micro-dermal tracker in his hand. He needed a vessel. Something fast, unpredictable, and impossible to catch easily.
He scanned the debris washing up on the bank. A massive, thick branch from an uprooted cedar tree was bobbing violently in the current, caught temporarily in a shallow eddy.
Daniel waded knee-deep into the freezing water, fighting the current that threatened to sweep him away. He reached the heavy branch and pulled his tactical knife. He aggressively carved a deep, narrow notch into the wet wood.
He shoved the microchip deep into the crevice, then used a rock to hammer the wood fibers shut, sealing the tracker inside the log.
"Have a good trip," Daniel muttered.
With a violent shove, he pushed the heavy log out of the eddy and into the main artery of the rapids.
The current caught it instantly. The log shot down the river, tumbling over rocks and disappearing into the darkness at nearly thirty miles an hour.
Daniel scrambled back up the muddy bank to where Valeria was waiting, hidden beneath the dense ferns.
"It's done," he breathed, checking the bandage on her neck. "The tracker is moving south at high speed. From their monitors, it will look like we stole a boat or jumped into the rapids."
As if on cue, the distant thudding of the helicopter blades shifted pitch. The massive spotlight in the sky suddenly veered away from the forest and locked onto the river gorge. The aircraft banked sharply, accelerating southward, chasing the electronic ghost down the mountain.
"They bought it," Valeria whispered, a flicker of triumph lighting up her exhausted eyes.
"They won't follow it forever," Daniel warned, helping her to her feet. "Once they catch up to the signal and realize it's just a piece of wood, they will lock down the entire county. We have less than two hours to reach the rendezvous point."
They turned their backs on the river and began hiking north, moving higher up the mountain range.
The terrain was brutal. Every step sent a jolt of pain through Daniel’s dislocated shoulder, and Valeria was growing weaker, the physical trauma of the night threatening to send her into premature labor. But the fear of the Vanguard fueled their survival.
After an hour of agonizing climbing, the dense pine forest suddenly broke, revealing a massive, flat expanse of cracked concrete.
It was an abandoned logging airstrip, overgrown with weeds and forgotten by the world. But tonight, it wasn't empty.
Idling in the center of the tarmac, their headlights extinguished to avoid aerial detection, were three heavily armored, matte-black tactical SUVs.
Standing in front of the lead vehicle, smoking a cigar in the rain, was a massive man in full combat gear, holding a custom AR-15.
Daniel stepped out of the tree line, holding his hands up to show he was unarmed.
The man lowered his rifle, spitting out his cigar as he recognized the battered, blood-soaked billionaire.
"Well, I'll be damned," the man said, a grim smile spreading across his scarred face. "You look like hell, Danny."
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"Good to see you too, Jax," Daniel replied, practically collapsing as he and Valeria reached the vehicles. "Tell me you brought the army."
"Twenty of the finest killers money can buy," Jax said, nodding to the shadows where heavily armed mercenaries stood watch. "Your war just started, boss."
