Wild Fiction

James crouched down next to Conrad and ran his finger along the lines that marked vehicle tracks. ‘The original cache is probably overgrown and will be almost impossible to find without help. My guess is that our friends Corp and Hog have already located it. They have all the information from Sir Betelgeuse and are way ahead of us. What we need to look for are fresh markings off these tracks. The loot will have been brought here by vehicle and so it’s going to be stashed somewhere near a place that’s accessible to a van.’
‘He’s right,’ Conrad said pulling a notepad out of his breast pocket and scribbling on it. With his pen he traced a line along the tracks and marked a spot in the middle of the forest with an X.
‘James, I want you and Genevieve to take the map and search the roads I’ve marked. Rebecca and I will go west to the other side of the estate and we’ll meet at that spot I’ve marked with the X in three hours. Remember to tread lightly and if you see or hear anybody then hide. These men are dangerous and capable of murder. If you think you’ve found something, call us on the mobile. Rebecca and Genevieve, do you have your mobiles?’
They nodded back at him.
‘Make sure you have each other’s numbers. Set the phones to vibrate and disable any sounds on them.’
Rebecca and Genevieve stood next to each other pressing buttons on their mobiles.
‘How will you know where to go if we have the map?’ Genevieve asked.
‘Rebecca has a photographic memory and is just about to study it, aren’t you?’ Conrad stood up and turned to Rebecca with a smile.
She smiled back, put her mobile away, and knelt down turning the map ninety degrees to get a better view. She ran her fingers over it, mumbling the names of the places as she read them, before standing up. ‘Consider it saved to disk captain,’ she said tapping her finger against the side of her head.
‘Well done, then if we’re all ready, let’s go,’ he said taking Rebecca’s hand and walking off with her.
Genevieve folded the map such that it revealed the part of the estate they were about to enter. ‘Ready?’ she said looking at James. He nodded at her and they exchanged smiles before they set off down the path. James turned his head briefly to look at where Conrad and Rebecca were but they had already disappeared out of sight.
Genevieve and James walked in silence for twenty minutes. James’s mind was racing with thoughts and questions he had for Genevieve. He wanted to ask her all about the author. He also wanted to know exactly what had happened to the book they had been in. He kept the questions to himself and decided to ask at another time. They had an important exercise ahead of them and he knew he needed to focus on it.