Read Online Shortage (Best Laid Plans Book 2) by Nathan Jones - Free Book Online

could barely catch glimpses of the road downslope through the branches. He once again heard them before he saw them, and as he quickened his pace he was relieved to see Lewis crouched on the game trail ahead staring down at the road. His cousin had his HK G3 out and balanced in a firing position with his elbows on his knees. Before Trev could get too close Lewis must have heard him coming, because he abruptly stiffened and began to pivot his way, bringing the larger caliber rifle to bear.
    Trev froze, hoping his cousin wasn't trigger happy. Luckily Lewis looked before he aimed, and recognizing him he immediately lowered his weapon. His cousin gave him a relieved smile and motioned, and as Trev caught up he led the way along the trail, ghosting after the interlopers.
    They tailed the group for over a half hour, well past the hideout, and then once he was satisfied the men below planned to continue following the logging road Lewis found a spot where they could see the road for a ways from behind cover and posted up there. Trev settled in beside him, taking out his binoculars to follow their progress.
    What he saw didn't please him. His earlier suspicion that the men were tailing the refugees was correct, since although they were moving faster than the huddled group on the highway below they were constantly passing a few pairs of binoculars between them and looking through the single scoped rifle they possessed. Their eyes were always either on the refugees or on the road farther south, and from the way they kept pointing that way as they talked Trev had the unsettled feeling they were planning something.
    And soon.
    When he expressed these fears to Lewis his cousin frowned. “Maybe they're guarding the refugee caravan and they were using their binoculars to make sure their friends are all right.” But as he said it he lifted his rifle to look at them through the scope and see for himself.
    Trev shook his head. “They didn't look like guards. Believe me, they've got nothing good planned for those people down there. I think they're planning on setting up an ambush where the valley narrows a few miles south of here. They could position themselves on the slope directly above the road and the people below would be sitting ducks.”
    After a moment Lewis sighed and lowered his rifle. “Maybe you're right. If so what do you plan to do about it, go down and warn the refugees? By the time you got there it could be too late, or you could end up getting ambushed along with them.”
    Trev couldn't believe what he was hearing. “What are you saying, that we should just head back to the hideout like it's not our problem?”
    “It isn't our problem,” his cousin said patiently. “And that's lucky for us, because if it was it'd be two of us against seven of them. Your aim may be a bit better after some practicing this last week but you've never been in a gunfight. Neither have I for that matter. What if those guys down there are retired soldiers or deserters from the Armed Forces? 99 times out of 100 we'd be committing suicide.”
    “They aren't wearing fatigues or anything,” Trev pointed out. “And their weapons didn't look standard issue either. I think they're just a bunch of hoodlums searching for easy pickings. Maybe rioters down from the cities to the north now that they've been picked clean.”
    “It's still seven against two and we don't know what we're doing in a fight. Those sorts of numbers will get us killed.” Lewis looked at his face and made an annoyed sound. “Look, I can guarantee you they're not staying in the mountains, and once they get through to the other side we'll probably never see them again. Let's just head back to the hideout and let them do their thing.”
    His cousin had a point, but at the same time Trev didn't think he'd ever be able to forgive himself if he let those refugees get attacked without doing anything about it. “Can you just really walk away from a bunch of innocent people who are