I felt light for the first time in nearly two years. It was like the heavy weight that had constantly been bearing down on me suddenly lessened. It wasn’t gone, but it was manageable. I felt like I could breathe again.

As we slowly got dressed, I couldn’t help but smile and laugh. We laughed about basically nothing, but we both felt so damn good in that moment. Alone in my father’s cabin, I could almost forget about the men that were chasing after her. I could almost forget that bastard Tony’s dead evil eyes.

“What was it like out there?” she asked me suddenly.

I looked at her as I pulled my shirt on. “Out where?”

“You know. In Syria.”

I shook my head. “It was hard.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s just hard to talk about.”

“Why? Painful memories?”

“Painful memories, sure. But more that civilians can’t really understand anything I’m saying, not really. Not unless you’ve been in a war zone.”

“I see. I’d have to experience it.”

“Right, but that’s the last thing you’d want to do.”

She smiled. “Good point.”

“Just be happy I’m here with you.”

“I am happy about that. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”

Just then, I heard a noise outside. I froze and Piper cocked her head at me.

“What?” she asked.

I held up my hand for silence and she looked concerned. I heard the noise again and quickly moved to the counter where I had left my gun. I grabbed it and moved to the front window, looking outside.

There, coming up the long drive, was a pickup truck. It was red and rusting, the sort of beat-up old thing that guys kept running for years and years out in places like this. It was coming up slow, and I could only see one man in the cab.

“Truck’s coming,” I said.

“Who is it?” I could hear the fear in her voice.

“Can’t tell. It’s one man, but I don’t recognize him.”

“Could it be the mob?”

“Maybe,” I said. “But I doubt it. Mobsters don’t usually drive beat-up trucks like this.”

She came up next to me and peered out. “I don’t recognize it, either. Looks like a farmer’s truck from a movie or something.”

“Stay inside. There’s a back door straight down that hall. If something happens, you go out that door and you run as fast as you can into the woods. Understand?”

“And then what? I’ll get lost.”

“There’s a town east of here, maybe ten miles off. You can cover that in a day if you try. Just look up at the sun and make sure it’s setting at your back.”

“Okay,” she said softly. “But I don’t want to leave you.”

“Do as I ask you,” I said sternly.

She nodded as I stepped to the door. The sound of the approaching pickup got louder. I gave her one more look before turning the knob and stepping out onto the porch.

The truck stopped about twenty feet away. The man that stepped out was in his sixties with a round belly and a thick bushy white beard. He looked like Santa Claus, except harder and meaner. He wore rumpled jeans and a dirty flannel shirt, despite the heat.

He didn’t look like a mobster, not one bit. But the mob didn’t always do its own dirty work.

“That’s far enough,” I called out. I held my gun loosely at my side, finger off the trigger, but in plain view.

He took note of the gun but didn’t seem phased. “Who are you?” he asked.

“I was about to ask you that.”

“I’m Randy. I live around here.”

“I’m Gates. This is my cabin.”

Randy shook his head. “Ain’t your cabin. Last I heard, Ron King owned this place.”

“Ron died a long time ago.”

“Hmm. I guess he did.” Randy grinned at me. “Said your name was Gates?”

“I’m Ron’s son.”

“So you’re little Gatesy, eh?”

“Just Gates.”

“Your daddy used to talk about you. Used to say you were the smartest little kid he ever met in his life.”

“How did you know him?”

“Your father used to come out here all the time. I live not three miles away. We used to fish together, do a little hunting, play a little poker, get into trouble. That sort of thing, you know.”

I nodded. My father knew all about getting into trouble. He was a bookie among many other professions, including a stevedore down at the docks and the owner of a very shady bar. I was pretty sure that he used to collect bribes for the Democratic Party back in the day, too. My father was not a stand-up guy, but trouble was something he always seemed to find easily enough.

“Why are you here?” I asked Randy.

“I been taking care of this place for years. I saw you pull up here, wondered who the hell you were.”

“What took you so long getting up here?”

“I’m fuckin’ old,” he said. “Besides, the game was on the TV. I figured there’s nothin’ worth stealin’ in there, anyways.”

“That’s true,” I said.

“So what are you doing here? You wanna put that gun away now?”

“I’ll keep the gun out.”

“Suit yourself.” He started walking closer to me.

“Stop,” I said.

“Son, if you wanna shoot me, then fuckin’ shoot me. Lord knows I’ve lived long enough.”

I sighed. I didn’t sense any threats coming from this old man, and his story seemed plausible enough. I could tell that he didn’t have any obvious weapons on him, and I figured that even if he did, I could outdraw him anyway.

I slipped my gun into my jeans. Randy smiled big.

“Well now, that’s better. You wanna tell me what you’re doin’ here after all these years?”

“Hiding,” I said.

“That so?” Randy said. “Not a bad place to hide, you know.”

“I agree.”

“How much supplies you got in there?”

“Just what was already stocked.”

“So my stock, then.”

“My cabin. My stock.”

Randy smiled. “Sure, Gatesy. Sure.”

“Just Gates,” I grumbled.

“Look, Just Gates. Why don’t we go inside? I’m tired and I know there’s a good bottle of whisky in there.”

I stared at him for a second, not sure what to do. He was clearly just a nice old man, but I didn’t want to put Piper in any danger.

“What did my father used to wear on his left hand?” I asked Randy.

“That damn stupid Mason ring or some shit, whatever it was.” He grunted. “The hell you still testin’ me for? Must be hidin’ from somethin’ serious.”

That was right. In every picture I’ve ever seen of my father, he always wore his masonic ring on his left hand ring finger. He rarely wore his wedding ring, though. I didn’t want to put Piper into danger, but this man clearly knew my father, and probably knew him better than I did.

It was hard to pass up on the chance to talk to someone that really knew him. It was probably an unnecessary risk, but we were relatively safe. Plus, there was plenty of time to kill.

“I have a girl with me,” I said to him. “Her name is Piper. You should forget you ever saw her as soon as you leave. Got it?”

“Sure,” he said, shrugging. “Couldn’t care less about a piper.”

I nodded and opened the door. “Come on in.”

He smiled and we went inside together.

Piper was siting at the kitchen table. She stood up as soon we stepped inside. Randy smiled big at her.

“Well, you must be the piper,” he said.

“Nice to meet you.” She gave me a look.

“Pipes, this is Randy. He lives around here. He knew my father.”

Understanding bloomed across her face. “Well, then,” she said. “You should come inside and get comfortable.”

“Don’t mind if I do,” Randy said. He went into the kitchen area and opened a cabinet. He fished a bottle out from behind some pans and poured three drinks. He passed them out before sitting back down at the table.

“That’s better,” he said. I held my drink loosely, still standing. Randy slugged his drink back and poured another before raising his glass for a toast. “To dead ol’ Ron King, the best bastard I ever knew.”

“Here, here,” I said. We all drink. Piper made a face and I grinned at her.

“How long have you lived around here?” she asked Randy.

“Hell, most of my life.”

“And did you know Gates’s father well?”

“Pretty good, I’d say. Ron used to come up here, oh, three or four times a year. We’d spend a day or two fishin’ and huntin’ and drinkin’, which is what he wanted to do and I’m always willin’ to do. Then he’d disappear.”

“Randy has been taking care of this cabin,” I told Piper.

“Ah,” she said. “That explains it.”

“Sure does,” Randy said. He frowned, looking around. “How long you two plan on bein’ here?”

“Not sure,” I said. “As long as we want, most likely.”

“Sure, sure,” Randy said. “I was just thinking, not much stuff in here. How about I come up with some supplies tomorrow morning?”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “That’s a nice offer.”

“I’d expect to be paid,” he said, laughing. I relaxed a little bit. “I could use a little pocket money and I bet you two could use a little food. What do you say?”

“Sounds good,” Piper said quickly before I could answer. “Thanks, Randy. That’s really nice of you.”

“Of course.” He poured three more drinks for the group and knocked his back immediately.

I sighed, drinking mine. I didn’t know what to make of this guy. On the surface, he seemed like just some normal backwoods character, but there was something a little off about him, something a little strange. He knew my father but he was pretty vague on the particulars.

“Well, then,” I said to him. “Let’s say you come back tomorrow morning?”

“Okay then.” He stood up. “I got the message. I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.”

Piper blushed and I sighed. “It’s not like that,” I said.

“Sure, it’s not, sure.” Randy grinned at me and walked to the door. “I’ll be back tomorrow morning, assumin’ the rains don’t make the roads impossible. Sleep tight, you two.” He shut the door and went outside.

I watched him get into his truck, turn around, and drive off. I turned back to Piper. “I have a bad feeling about him.”

She cocked her head at me. “Really? He seemed nice.”

“He’s strange. And how did he know we were here?”

“He said that he saw us.”

“He lives miles away. How did he see us?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know.

“There’s something off about that guy, Pipes.”

“He knew your father.”

“Maybe. Probably. It’s hard to say.”

“We’re safe, Gates.” She walked toward me. “You got us to safety. You can relax a little bit.”

I shook my head. “This is the mob we’re up against. I can’t relax for a second.”

I walked away from her, over toward the kitchen, my mind a hot dense sphere of thought and worry.

“You can have the bed tonight,” I said. “There’s only one. I’ll take the couch.”

“Oh,” she said. “Okay.”

I frowned at her. “I won’t be sleeping much anyway.”

“I understand.” She walked back toward the bedroom. “I’ll get settled.”

“Sounds good.”

She disappeared into the back room and I leaned up against the counter, worry rolling through my body. I noticed her disappointment, but I didn’t understand exactly why she was let down. I was trying my best to keep us both alive, and I needed to stay sharp. I couldn’t let some strange guy lull me into a false sense of security.

The thing that kept bugging me was how Randy knew that we were in the cabin. He didn’t come up right away because he was watching some game, but that didn’t seem right, either. If some strangers were going into his cabin and he saw them, he would have followed them right away. Otherwise, how could he have known that the car he saw was going to his cabin? There were other cabins in the area.

Randy wasn’t telling us something. I was absolutely sure of that. He knew something abut this cabin that he wasn’t telling me. Why else would he have kept it in such good condition for so long? I couldn’t imagine it was out of loyalty to my long-dead scumbag father.

I had to keep an eye on him on top of everything else. I was stressed, but I wasn’t going to break. I had to protect Piper. That was my goal above all else.

Nobody was going to come close to touching her so long as I was around to stop them.