Cliff Ryder - The Ties That Bind

"I don't suppose you would be willing to accept that I acted on instinct?" he asked, allowing a half smile to cross his lips.

"Not with shot groupings like that," she said. "I've been on more hunting trips than I can count and have been shooting most of my life. I don't know anyone up here who shoots with that kind of calm and accuracy." She shook her head. "Especially not when someone is shooting back."

He sighed heavily. "Look, Tina, I'm afraid that there isn't anything much more that I can tell you. I spent some time in the military — Special Forces, actually — though it was a long time ago. Those guys shot at us and I reacted. Call it muscle memory if you want."

He walked toward her, but she held up her hand and backed away shaking her head.

"I'm not buying," she said. "I may not be a genius, but I can tell when someone isn't telling me the truth. What kind of surveyor carries a gun?"

"One who wants to live…" he started to answer, but she held up a hand once more to silence him.

"I'm done for the night. I'm going to bed and tomorrow morning I'm going back to Nome and I'm reporting all this to the authorities. You can finish your so-called surveying without me. I'm not about to get my ass shot off for what I'm getting paid."

Trying another approach, he said, "That would be a shame, it really is such a nice ass…"

She turned and slapped him. Hard.

"Okay, wrong thing to say," he admitted, rubbing his cheek. "Tina, hold on a second. Please."

She arched an eyebrow but kept her silence.

"Look, I need you. You're the best guide around. And I need the best to do my job right. If you won't accept that what happened out there was just pure survival instinct, then I don't know what to tell you. I had no idea that those men were there, but I won't apologize for choosing our lives over theirs. I didn't go looking for trouble and I hope you can believe that. But I'm not very big on turning the other cheek when someone tries to shoot me, either."

"I don't know what to believe," she said. "You sound sincere enough, but something about your story doesn't ring true for me."

"I can respect that," he replied. "But truth often has a lot to do with perspective. The bottom line is that I need your help."

"My help for what?"

"To do my job. I'm not here to hurt you or anyone else. I've told you that before and I meant it. But I'm not going to stand down and do nothing while someone is shooting at me, either. I've been in dangerous situations before, and if those were small-time operators, they would have hidden or tried to scare us off. They're part of a larger group and if they're operating around here, it could jeopardize not just me getting my job done, but a lot of your people, too."

Jason could see the confusion, then defeat roll across her face. He knew he had her, at least for the moment, but he also knew he couldn't push her too quickly.

He ran a hand through his hair, more tired than he'd realized. "Look, just sleep on it, okay? We can talk more in the morning. We're both exhausted. I'll see if I can shed a little more light on the situation for you then. Besides, we'll have to talk to the local authorities and get these weapons in the hands of the right people."

Finally, she nodded. "Okay," she said. "I'll sleep on it. Right now, I'm too tired to think anyway."

Tina stomped to her room and slammed the door. Jason heard the lock click into place. She might be willing to listen to him a little more, but she obviously didn't trust him. He checked the windows in the living room and kitchen, placing small motion sensors on the rails that would send a signal to his watch. He placed another one by the door.

Convinced that the cabin was as safe as he could make it, Jason stripped off his outer layers and sank down onto the couch. Propping his feet up on the table, he rolled his head back, contemplating what a disaster the mission had been thus far.

Jason awoke to the smell of fresh coffee. He propped himself up on his elbow and pressed the light on his watch. Five-thirty. He swung his legs over the side of the couch and ran his hands through his hair, then slipped on a shirt and headed into the kitchen.

Tina was standing at the counter. Her red fleece sweatshirt was unzipped, showing off her black tank top and nicely rounded breasts. Her hair was tucked behind her ears, eyes closed, as she took a long sip of coffee. Jason could feel the room heat up — or at least his own body temperature — but put his libido in check, knowing he would have to play nice if she was going to remain an asset to him. He also knew that if this got too complicated, he might have no choice but to eliminate her and for that reason alone he needed to keep his distance. He allowed himself one more glance and then put the foolish thoughts away.

"You're awake," she said, her voice much less tense than the night before.

"I could never resist the smell of fresh coffee."

"Help yourself," she said.

Jason pulled a cup out of the cupboard and poured the coffee. He stood silent. Psychology 101. Most people hate silence and will say anything to fill it, even if what they say is a mistake. He had played human-behavior games too many times and he always won. No matter how calculating or bright his adversary.

Tina took a deep breath.

Here it comes, he thought.

She shifted from one foot to the other.

Oh, yeah. She's mine, he added to himself.

"You know, maybe we should start over," she said.

He tried not to smile in victory, but he knew he was failing when he saw her wrinkled brow.

"I wasn't saying that to be funny," she said.

"I know," he said.

She set her coffee on the counter, reached out her hand and said, "Tina Kanut, guide, trapper and on occasion not a half-bad dancer. And you are?"

Jason grinned and stared at her hand. He put his coffee down, as well, and put both of his hands on hers. He shook his head and she pulled her hand away.

"I could just leave you here," she said.

"You could, but you won't."

"How do you know that?"

"Pretty simple. You know if I was going to hurt you, I would have done so when I was already getting rid of the bodies. You also know that those were not nice men and that I was only protecting my backside. And finally…"

Jason paused, knowing that she wouldn't be able to go on without hearing the last and he did have so much fun with word games sometimes. In a life like he lived, the little amusements were all one sometimes had.

"Finally, what?" she asked.

"Finally I wasn't just protecting my backside. I was also protecting yours."

She pondered for a moment and then looked at him with renewed conviction. "You know, that's one of the few things you've said that I do believe."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because you slept out in the living room on the sofa instead of in the bedroom," she said. "If someone tried to come in during the night, you wanted to be between me and them, didn't you?"

He nodded, surprised that she had even noticed.

"I don't trust you," she said, her tone decisive. "And I don't think you've told me the whole truth. But what I need to know is if you're here to hurt someone. I'm not just taking you to any village. I'm taking you to my village. If you can't or won't tell me the truth about your purpose up here, I guess that's your problem, but I have to know that you're not out to hurt the people I care most about."

"Scout's honor," he said without hesitation. "I'm not here to hurt anyone."

She pushed away from the counter and started walking to her room, but stopped in front of him. Her hip brushed his as she said, "I bet you weren't ever really a Boy Scout."

Jason watched the way she walked, her flannel pants perfectly outlining her behind. "No," he whispered to himself, completing the old joke, "but I got kicked out for eating a Brownie or two."