Sniper's Justice (Caje Cole Book 9) by David Healey (best classic books txt) 📗

ears ringing from the crack of the rifle, he finally allowed himself to take a deep breath. So much of this trip had reminded him of his age, especially the hike up into these hills, but he suddenly felt like a young man again.

“I’ll be damned,” Cole said, inspecting the boar. He felt adrenalin surging through him, making him feel twenty years younger. “He was an ornery critter.”

“I thought for sure he was going to plow you over.”

“Close,” Cole agreed. “If I’d missed him, this would be a different story. Wouldn’t that be a way to go?”

“But you don’t miss.”

“Not if I can help it, boy.”

Cole looked in Hauer’s direction. Hauer saw him and gave him a nod, but his attention was soon claimed by more movement among the trees. The dogs and drivers were still at it, and this time they saw the flash of a stag’s white tail, like a flag in the woods.

The mountain stag was running far ahead of the hounds, right in their direction.

“Here he comes, Pa Cole!” Danny whispered intently. Caught up in the excitement, he seemed to have momentarily forgotten his opposition to hunting.

Danny was right. The stag seemed to be headed right at them.

Cole raised his rifle, lining up the shot. Unlike the boar, the stag had no intention of leaving the cover the woods and charging them, but ran along the treeline, presenting its flank to Cole. Although the stag was farther away, this running shot was easier in some regards. All he had to do was lead the target. The fine optics of the Leica scope made the stag spring closer, gathering all the light of the overcast day.

Then at the last moment, the stag broke to the left and into Hauer’s quadrant. Cole lowered the rifle, leaving the stag to Hauer. Off to his left, Hauer’s rifle cracked. He saw the stag stumble, but it kept right on going. Before Hauer could fire again, the stag disappeared deeper into the forest.

Hauer came walking over to them. “I hit him,” he said. “I am sure there is a blood trail. I will give him a minute to settle, and then I will go into the forest after him. With any luck, he did not get far. It is going to be dark soon, after all.”

“Need help?”

“I can manage,” Hauer said. He looked down at the huge boar that Cole had brought down. Oddly enough, the German did not seem at all bitter that Cole had managed to bag the animal. “Congratulations on your boar. He is a monster!”

“You got that right,” Cole agreed. The tusks were several inches long. They would have ripped him right open if the boar had gotten any closer.

“You stay here,” Hauer said. He held up the walkie talkie. “I will let the others know where we are, and that we will need some help bringing out this game.”

“Sounds good to me,” Cole said.

Hauer nodded and headed off into the forest to track his wounded deer. Finding the animal wouldn’t be easy in the dark, so Cole hoped that it hadn’t gotten far. He was a little surprised that Hauer hadn’t hit the stag harder, with a more accurate shot. Yes, it had been a running shot, but the quarry had been fairly close to Hauer.

Cole smiled to himself, thinking that the old German sniper was finally missing a step—maybe two. Cole had dropped his target while Hauer was having to chase after his stag.

Up on the ridge, the dogs had changed direction and were no longer running toward the valley. The barking faded, then disappeared altogether, as if the dogs were being called back for the day. Was the hunt ending?

Around them, the shadows grew deeper. Through the overcast haze, he watched the sun slip down over a big hill to the west, and it was as if a curtain had been pulled across a window. Dusk arrived instantly. With the last of the daylight fading, the temperature dropped quickly. Cole felt the chill creeping into his old bones.

“Might as well do something with this boar while we wait for Hauer,” Cole said. He took out his hunting knife and with Danny’s help, expertly field dressed the boar. When some of the other hunters and beaters came along, they would be ready to drag the beast out. That alone wouldn’t be an easy task. They were many miles from the lodge, deep in the mountains, and Cole did not look forward to hiking back in the dark, which was how things were shaping up. At least the others would know the way and hopefully, have a flashlight. Cole didn’t have one. They had started out at first light, and now it was growing dark. He hadn’t planned on a full day in the field.

He also had the nagging realization that he didn’t have a map. Maybe Hauer had one? He didn’t know how far these mountains went. He did know that this was a preserved area, essentially the equivalent of a national park, which meant that there were no towns or villages. The setting sun gave him a rough indication of the direction they had come from, but that was about it.

Meanwhile, they kept listening for a rifle shot that would indicate that Hauer had found his wounded stag and dispatched it, but there was nothing.

“That stag must have made a run for Paris,” Cole said. “Either that, or it was already down.”

Night was coming on fast. The valley had become eerily quiet.

“What’s that?” Danny asked, pointing toward the tree line. “I think I see Herr Hauer.”

Cole followed Danny’s finger, saw a shape move among the trees in the last of the light. Definitely two-legged. Definitely making no effort to come toward them. The hair on the back of Cole’s neck raised. They were being watched.

“It’s Hauer, all right,” Cole said.

All at once, realization crashed down on Cole. Hauer had the walkie talkie, which was the only means to let anyone know where they were.