Alex dropped his head down behind the rock and held his breath. He had to wait until the man was past and to the end of the trail. Hopefully the tracker would turn, knowing that he could be in a trap, putting him face to face with the man he was after. Alex knew he had to shoot at that instant. To hesitate would probably mean his death. He also knew he didn’t have much time. The man with the rifle would be in firing range within minutes. Alex put tension on the bowstring and waited. He raised his shoulder to wipe the sudden sweat from his eyes and tried to control his breathing.
The tracker was directly across from Alex now. Alex couldn’t see any sign of a gun. He would be killing an unarmed man. He would become just like the killers after him. Alex thought about turning and making a run for it, but then his thoughts went back to Jan and the way she had died. Rage began to build at everything these men had done to him. If he wanted to live, to have his revenge, he had to do this. The tracker had stopped. He was turning. Alex stood and pulled the arrow back against his ear. The tracker saw him and opened his mouth to shout a warning.
Alex’s hand trembled. He shouted “now” silently to himself. He didn’t feel his fingers let go, but he heard the arrow as it made a soft whirling sound in the still, mountain air. The warning never left the tracker’s lips. The arrow hit the man in the center of the throat, cutting through the vocal cords and the spinal cord behind. He fell to the ground without a sound.
Alex could hear the voices from below as he ran to the tracker. He pulled the tracker’s backpack from over the jerking arms and quickly searched his pockets. Alex took a knife and compass and, lifting the backpack, stood for a second over the tracker. The man was still alive. Alex could see his chest heaving. He was trying to say something. Alex leaned closer. The tracker’s lips clamped together, and he swallowed hard. The man’s eyes were searching his. The voices were louder. Alex had stayed too long. “I’m sorry,” he said softly stepping over the tracker, trotted down the opposite side of the mountain.
He circled as he began to climb the opposite mountain face and headed for a thick stand of trees overlooking the tracker’s position. Alex stopped when he reached the trees and leaned over for a minute, trying to get his shaking nerves to relax. The face of the tracker swam before him. He gagged, but there was nothing in his stomach to throw up. Sliding the packs to the ground, he began to climb one of the taller trees.
Alex climbed slowly, careful not to move any branches, until he was high enough to see the body of the tracker. The water was closer now and it was maddening not to take a short trip for a cool drink. The tracker probably had a canteen in his pack. Alex cussed himself for not checking before he climbed the tree. The shock of what he had done was still with him, and he began to shake. He hugged the tree tight until the shaking stopped.
The others were coming into view. They saw the tracker and stopped with their guns out. A slender man seemed to be giving the orders. He shouted, and the other three fanned out and began to search the mountaintop. The slender man walked over to the tracker. He stood there for a long moment and then pulled a gun from his waistband. The gun had a round extension protruding out from the barrel. He was using a silencer. Why would he need a silencer out here? The slender man held the gun close to the tracker’s head. Alex didn’t hear the sound but the tracker’s body jerked, and Alex knew that he was dead. The slender man shouted to one of the others, and together they dragged the body to the edge of the steep slope and threw it over. Alex felt a cold shiver go through his body.
