Ghost Canyon (The John Decker Supernatural Thriller Series Book 7) Anthony Strong (popular romance novels .TXT) 📖

“I thought you were the big manly outdoorsman.” Tiffany sat with her legs pulled up to her chest. She bit one of her fingernails nervously. “Isn’t that why you wanted to go camping instead of going on a real vacation?”

“Just because I enjoy camping doesn’t mean I’m an expert on every animal in the Mojave.” Darwin kept his voice to a whisper. “For all I know, it was a damned jackrabbit.”

“I’m pretty sure that was no rabbit.” Tiffany glanced toward the pack with the gun in it. “Go outside and look.”

“What?” Darwin shook his head. “There’s no way I’m going out there.”

“Fine,” Tiffany said. She reached for the pack. “I’ll go, then.”

“What?” Darwin shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Well, we sure as hell can’t just sit here all night hoping whatever that was won’t come sniffing around our tent.”

Darwin put a hand on her shoulder. “Okay, I’ll go look.”

“Thank you.” Tiffany felt a rush of relief. She wasn’t sure she could actually have gone through with it.

Darwin pushed his hand inside the backpack and pulled out a flashlight, then dug back in for the gun. Armed now, he crawled toward the front of the tent. He pulled the zipper up to release the flap, clicked on the flashlight, and glanced back. “Stay here.”

Tiffany nodded.

Darwin hesitated a moment, then he took a deep breath and pushed his way outside.

The tent flap fell closed behind him, cutting off Tiffany’s view of the outside world. She rocked back and forth, hugging her knees, and waited for Darwin to return.

A minute passed. Then another.

She stared at the tent flap, feeling more nervous with each second now she was alone. She shouldn’t have asked him to go outside. Whatever was she thinking?

Another two minutes ticked by.

Her distress was almost at breaking point. She leaned forward and reached out, pulling the flap open a couple of inches.

“Darwin,” she whispered. “Where are you?”

Silence.

“Please, Darwin, answer me.” Tiffany felt a lump form in her throat. She sucked back a sob. “I don’t like this.”

Still, there was no response.

Tiffany wriggled to free her legs from the sleeping bag and crawled to the flap. She pushed her head out and looked around. There was no sign of her boyfriend.

“Dammit,” she cursed under her breath. The last thing she wanted to do was go outside, but she didn’t want to stay in the tent either. Her mind was conjuring up all sorts of dreadful scenarios. Besides, if she found Darwin, they could hop in the Jeep and leave. She was sure he wouldn’t want to stay here anymore, and she certainly didn’t. To hell with the tent. They could come back for it later. With newfound resolve, Tiffany ignored the gut churning fear in her stomach and scrambled out into the chilly night air.

She stood up and glanced around. The Jeep stood off to her left, a dark outline against the deeper blackness beyond. The fire was nothing but smoldering ashes. A canopy of stars arched over the mountains like a million pinpricks in the heavens. But of Darwin, there was no sign.

A sudden panic gripped her. Why couldn’t she see him? She edged further from the tent, wishing she too had a flashlight. Darkness folded around her like a blanket. She had the weird feeling of being totally isolated, as if she were the only person left on the face of the planet.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a flicker of movement. She swiveled as a panicked scream surged up, only to find Darwin’s familiar form emerging from the darkness behind the tent.

“I looked everywhere, there’s nothing.” He walked toward her, flashlight bobbing.

“That’s impossible. You heard that shriek.”

“I don’t know what to tell you.” Darwin shrugged. “Maybe it was just a…” He let the words trail off, his eyes snapping skyward.

“What?”

“I don’t know.” Darwin looked in one direction, then the other. “I could have sworn something flew over us.” Darwin craned his neck upward. “It was large, too. Bigger than a bird.”

“Stop it, you’re scaring me.”

“I’m scaring myself.”

“We should leave. Take the Jeep and get out of here.” Tiffany didn’t care if Darwin protested. She was driving back to Vegas with or without him. She was relieved when he nodded his agreement.

“Good idea.” He turned back toward the tent, was about to duck inside, when the shriek came again.

A dark shape swooped from the sky, barely missing their heads, before climbing back into the darkness.

Darwin swung the gun upward into the night sky and pulled the trigger, but nothing happened.

The thrum of beating wings, much too loud, filled the air. It was coming back.

Darwin aimed loosely toward the sound and fired again.

Still nothing.

“Why won’t this work,” he said, frantically waving the gun up at the firmament.

“Is there a safety?” Tiffany asked.

“Shit.” Darwin thumbed the push button safety behind the trigger guard, and this time the gun fired with a resounding crack.

Tiffany jumped and suppressed a squeal.

Darwin fired blindly into the sky, squeezing off two more shots in rapid succession.

“Did you get it?” Tiffany asked.

“I don’t know.” Darwin swiveled, eyes searching the heavens. “Maybe.”

“We need to leave. Right now.” Tiffany turned and took a step toward the tent. From behind her, Darwin let out a sharp grunt.

When she looked back, he was gone.

Fear, like an icy hand, twisted her gut.

“Darwin?” She screamed, hoping he would reappear.

And he did, but not from where she thought.

Her boyfriend’s torn body dropped out of the cold dark sky and landed on the desert floor with a thud a few feet from her. It bounced and came to rest. Darwin’s vacant dead eyes stared back at her. Blood seeped from a vicious gash across his belly and pooled beneath him.

Tiffany stifled a scream and backed away, horrified, while in the darkness above, came a beat of wings. Whatever killed Darwin was coming back. She could see it wheeling lower and lower in tight circles—a dark silhouette with red eyes blazing. And