Elizabeth Goddard - Wilderness Reunion

MOVING TARGETS

After stumbling on a drug operation, Alice Wilde races through the woods as bullets whiz past, using her skills as a wilderness guide to elude her pursuers. But she doesn’t stay safe for long once one of the armed men recognizes her...and starts stalking her. When the sheriff asks her to guide his men and photojournalist Griffin Slater—her ex-boyfriend—to the crime scene, though, she can’t refuse. Alice knows Griffin’s just there for a story, but after the two of them are separated from the rest of the group, he’s the only person who can save her. And with someone willing to do anything to hunt them down, Alice must put aside their past if she wants to survive.

Griffin looked through the lens of his camera, zoomed in. His gut soured at what he saw.

“Looks like thousands of plants.”

He could make out over forty rows with maybe a hundred plants each. Millions of dollars’ worth of marijuana. But dread settled in his gut at the massive number of guards. He could sense that something was about to go south.

“Can I look through it? See what you’re seeing?”

Alice had already seen some of it when she’d stumbled on it, but obviously not the vastness. “Sure, but you’re not going to like it.”

He handed over his superzoom camera. “Did they have that many guards when you were there?”

“I mean, men chased me. Weapons fired off—I couldn’t tell how many, just that there were a lot—but now it looks like...it looks like...”

“A war zone.” Packed with armed guards ready to kill.

Their little reconnaissance mission was a mistake. They shouldn’t be here. Shouldn’t have brought Alice. Then a man’s shadow fell over him and Alice. Griffin didn’t miss the silhouette of the assault rifle.

Dear Reader,

Thank you so much for reading Wilderness Reunion, the final book in the Wilderness, Inc. series. I hope you could relate to Alice and Griffin on some level. Part of the reason for this story is I wanted to raise awareness of the devastation that’s being inflicted on public lands in our beautiful country. Not only are illegal marijuana farms catastrophic to the land, the wildlife and water, but they’re dangerous to people, especially nature enthusiasts as you see in this story.

In Alice’s case, her world was turned upside down. She’d been minding her own business when she stumbled into some bad news—she was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Have you ever been affected by others’ mistakes or “bad business”? I know I have, and though those mistakes are not anything remotely similar to the illegal marijuana farm in this story, people’s bad choices have disrupted my life at times, and even changed it in big ways. There’s nothing I can do about other people’s actions, but for myself, I must realize how all my choices in life affect others.

Regarding our decisions, we can’t know what will happen down the road, but we can always prayerfully consider our choices, and trust the One to lead and direct our path. Like Psalm 5:8 says, “Lead me, Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies—make Your way straight before me.”

My prayer for you today is that no matter the trouble you stumble into in life, that you allow the One to direct and guide you out of it, to protect you and lead you.

I love to hear from my readers. You can connect with me on my website, ElizabethGoddard.com, where you’ll find links to my social media pages and you can also sign up for my newsletter or follow me on Bookbub!

Many blessings!

Elizabeth Goddard

ELIZABETH GODDARD is the award-winning author of more than thirty novels and novellas. A 2011 Carol Award winner, she’s a double finalist in the 2016 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense, and a 2016 Carol Award finalist. Elizabeth graduated with a computer science degree and worked in high-level software sales before retiring to write full-time.

Wilderness Reunion

Elizabeth Goddard

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops.

—Matthew 10:26–27

To Daddy. I pray for His strength, peace, love and joy as you embark on your new adventure.

Acknowledgments

Every day I wake up and thank God that He blessed me with such an amazing job—the dream job of making up stories. With God everything is possible. A journey taken alone wouldn’t be nearly as fulfilling, so God has added many deep-thinking writer friends, brothers and sisters in the faith, to my life. You know who you are. I couldn’t walk this writing road without you.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

About the Author

Title Page

Bible Verse

Dedication

Acknowledgments

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

ELEVEN

TWELVE

THIRTEEN

FOURTEEN

FIFTEEN

SIXTEEN

SEVENTEEN

EIGHTEEN

NINETEEN

EPILOGUE

Extract

Copyright

ONE

Danger could lurk behind the beauty. She should know that better than anyone.

Slathered in insect repellent, Alice Wilde and her client had already hiked for three days into the Oregon mountains filled with bald eagles, waterfalls and huge, winding trees—oaks, pines and junipers—while they did their best to avoid poison oak.

This was called “roughing it” by any standard.

Marie had hired Alice to lead her on a hike in the wilderness—it had been on her bucket list, she’d said. Marie had wanted this off-trail adventure far from the overcrowded Rogue River forty-mile trail and the buzzing drones in the canyon.

Tens of thousands of designated wilderness acreage still remained to explore, not counting about a million acres of Siskiyou National Forest. They weren’t going to run out of places to explore anytime soon, which was something Alice loved about the area.

What she didn’t love? The heat, the sweat and the bugs she’d experienced during this brutal hike. She should be in a raft guiding other enthusiasts who’d come to the region to meet the white-water rapid challenge. Except Alice had never wanted to get in that river again after what had happened eight months ago. Someone had trusted her to guide him down the Rogue River through the hazardous rapids.

Rapids that had turned deadly. The man had died on her watch.

As if her thoughts had conjured the image of flowing water, she crossed a small creek—one that eventually emptied into the Rogue River miles away. Alice followed the brook upstream. Marie continued behind her, enjoying the quiet forest as they hiked. Her feet aching, Alice would need to look for a place to set up camp for the night.

She came across a PVC pipe and froze.

Someone diverted water from this brook. Totally illegal. And a bad sign.