Backtracker (96 page)

*****

Chapter
5
8

Dave
didn
'
t
want to take another step,
didn
'
t
want to see whatever had left Billy looking so stunned. At that moment, Dave
'
s strongest urge was to flee, run back to the Camaro and race off, with or without his comrade.

Still, when Billy waved a second time, Dave found himself moving forward, inching along the wall though
he'd
made no conscious decision to do so. As if his body was moving independent of his mind
'
s control, he slowly shifted toward Billy.

When Billy waved again, more emphatically, Dave drew his back from the wall and quickened his pace a bit. Too shaken and overtaxed to exert his own will, he submitted to his friend
'
s prompting; though he craved escape, Dave
couldn
'
t
summon the strength to attain it, could only follow Billy like a frightened but powerless child.

At the corner of the concession stand, Dave hesitated, reluctant to abandon his concealment. He lingered at the corner, shivering in the rain...but then, Billy waved to him again, and he gave up his refuge. Crouching low, his gaze darting in all directions, he stepped away from the corner, drifted into the unprotected area beyond the buildings.

His next steps were quicker; terrified of the exposure, he hurried to the side of his ally. Breathlessly, he slung himself close to Billy, unconsciously grabbed his shoulder.

Billy raised his right hand, gestured with the barrel of the gun. Gazing in the direction in which the .38 was pointing, Dave spotted what had made Billy stop.

The partners stood atop a long bank which sloped down from the three buildings to the lake. In summer, the bank was covered with a neat lawn upon which sunbathers spread their blankets; now, the bank was matted with dead brown turf and mud. Skirting the water
'
s edge, there was a dark, lumpy strip about six feet wide, a band of sand which was studded with lifeguard chairs during the swimming season. The band along the shore was now vacant except for a single figure.

Larry Smith stood on the shore.

As Dave had feared, the killer was indeed close. Though he stood about fifty yards away, he was still close, far too close.

Larry Smith was on the beach. His arms were upraised, extended straight in the air.

He was holding something. He was holding something in each hand.

Suddenly, Dave understood the cries that
he'd
heard. They
weren
'
t
coming from an animal.

In his left hand, high above his head, Larry was holding a baby. His hand encircled its back, gripped it under its tiny arms; its legs kicked spasmodically and its head jerked as it continued to shriek.

In his right hand, Larry held a long blade, its tip thrust toward the sky.

Too much.

It was just too much.

Yet again, Dave felt a powerful urge to run. His mind whirled; his heart pounded and his stomach twisted painfully. He held his breath, as if he feared that Larry would hear the faintest intake of air. His wide, bloodshot eyes remained fixed on the killer, and his hand tightened on Billy Bristol
'
s shoulder.

Larry Smith was on the beach.

He was holding a baby.

He was holding a knife.

It was just too much.

"
He must
'
ve taken it from the house,
"
whispered Billy.
"
I saw baby food on the floor, but I didn
'
t think much of it.
"

Mesmerized,
shell
-
shocked
, broken, Dave stared silently at the figure on the shore, listened more to the child
'
s wailing than Billy
'
s words.

"
I think I get it now,
"
whispered Billy.
"
He
'
s into devil worship or something. He
'
s gonna
'
sacrifice the kid.
"

Dave wanted to run. His terror surged like floodwaters swelling against a barricade, and he thought that he might finally be ready to assert himself, take control of his actions and escape.

"
We
'
ve gotta
'
stop him,
"
whispered Billy.

Dave was ready to run.

"
We
'
re the only ones who can stop him,
"
said Billy.

Dave wanted to run.

"
We can
'
t let him kill that kid,
"
whispered Billy.

Dave removed his hand from Billy
'
s shoulder and turned back toward the buildings. He was going to run.

Before he could take a single step, Billy grabbed his arm.

"
Here,
"
said Billy, and he pressed the gun into Dave
'
s hand.
"
You take this. You face him down.
"

Surprised that Billy was giving him the weapon, Dave let his fingers close around the cold metal of the grip.

"
Distract him,
"
instructed Billy, his voice hushed and hurried.
"
Keep him talking. Keep him from killing the kid. Tell him you
'
ll blow him away if he tries anything.
"

Dave was struck speechless. All that he could do was shake his head and gape at his partner.

"
You
'
ll have more luck keeping him occupied,
"
said Billy.
"
You know more about this whole mess, all the shit he
'
s done. You
'
ve got a better shot at distracting him than I do, and I
'
ve got a better shot at getting that kid away from him. No offense, but I
'
m better with the physical stuff.
"

Grimacing, Dave slowly shook his head.

"
You distract him, and I
'
ll sneak up behind him,
"
continued Billy, stealing a quick glance down the slope at the killer.
"
I
'
ll grab the kid and run like hell. Then comes the tricky part.
"

Dave shook his head. Billy
'
s words rushed over him like the rain, chilling and unwelcome, ominous and unstoppable.

"
You
'
ve gotta
'
shoot him,
"
Billy whispered urgently.
"
Once I grab the kid, you
'
ve gotta
'
shoot the son of a bitch.
"

Dave
'
s pained grimace deepened, and he shook his head more forcefully.

"
While you
'
re talking to him, move up as close as you can,
"
said Billy.
"
As soon as I
'
m out of the way, start firing. Just pretend you
'
re shooting milk jugs out in my back yard, and don
'
t stop till he
'
s down.
"

"
Let
'
s get out of here,
"
groaned Dave.

"
Gun
'
s loaded,
"
said Billy.
"
I know you can do it. Remember, it
'
ll be just like target practice.
"

"
Please, let
'
s go,
"
Dave moaned desperately.

"
Just put him down,
"
said Billy.
"
I
'
ll even finish him off for you. You can do it, man.
"

"
No
,
"
hissed Dave.
"
Let
'
s go.
"

"
Good luck,
"
said Billy Bristol, squeezing Dave
'
s arm.
"
This one
'
s for the
Double
-
Doubleyoo, man.
"

Before Dave could even think of trying to stop him, Billy darted away and disappeared behind the concession stand.

*****

Chapter
59

He was trapped, now;
he had
no choices left, no alternatives. Over the course of the day,
he'd
steadily whittled down his range of options, limiting the possibilities with each new decision...and now,
he had
no choices left. There was but a single course which he could follow, one route which he now
had
to take.

As terrifying as it was, he
couldn
'
t
avoid his new assignment. Though his instincts demanded that he bail out and run, he knew that he
couldn
'
t
shirk the dangerous duty before him.

Billy Bristol was already committed to the foolhardy raid; he
couldn
'
t
be called back,
couldn
'
t
be withdrawn from the maneuver. He was going to risk his life to save the child...and give Dave a chance to kill the killer.

If Dave
didn
'
t
follow his partner
'
s instructions, Billy
'
s life would be forfeit. If Dave
didn
'
t
distract Larry, and Billy still attempted the raid, Billy would surely be detected and killed by the knife
-
wielding menace. Sneaking up on the killer would be difficult enough with a distraction; the only cover anywhere in the beach area was atop the slope, the three buildings which stood some fifty yards from the shore. Dave
didn
'
t
doubt that Larry would quickly notice Billy if his attention
wasn
'
t
drawn elsewhere.

Earlier, at Wolf
'
s Rock, Larry had pledged not to kill Dave or B
illy, had, in fact, claimed to
be
Billy Bristol, come from the future to change his own past. Larry
'
s claims
couldn
'
t
be validated, however, and Dave
didn
'
t
dare rely on his promises; with Billy
'
s life at stake, Dave
couldn
'
t
stand by and hope that the killer would stay true to his word.

Dave had no choice. He was petrified, dazed, exhausted,
didn
'
t
want to
see
Larry let alone
speak
to him...but
he had
no choice. He
didn
'
t
know what he could say,
didn
'
t
know how he could force even a single word from his constricted vice of a throat...and, most critically, he
didn
'
t
know if he could
shoot
Larry when there was still a chance that
he'd
told the truth about time
-
travel...but
he ha
d
no choice.

He ha
d
no choice.

He ha
d
no choice, and
he ha
d
to begin immediately. Billy was on the move, and Dave had no idea how far
he'd
already gone.

Taking a deep breath, Dave turned and gazed at Larry. The killer was shaking the child and the knife in the air, foisting them at the dark sky as if to proclaim his victory.

Dave cleared his throat. Slowly, he took a step forward.