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

green moss. North, Cole thought. He filed that information away.

Cole got down on the forest floor to one side of the tree trunk and Danny took the left side.

“You be my eyes,” Cole said. They didn’t have binoculars, but his grandson’s youthful eyes would be almost as good. They were using scout-sniper tactics now. “If you see any movement, you let me know. I’m going to stay on this here scope.”

Again, the scope amplified Cole’s vision, but it limited his field of view. All that he could see was a tangle of trees and underbrush, albeit crystal clear. He would rely on Danny to see the big picture spread out before them.

Their noisy flight through the woods had driven all the forest creatures into hiding. Not so much as a bird flickered through the branches.

Any movement that they did see would be Hauer coming after them.

Time passed slowly, but Cole was patient. Hell, he had spent a lifetime getting to this moment. He could wait. It was Danny that he was worried about.

With autumn, enough litter and leaves covered the forest floor that Cole was confident they would hear Hauer coming. There were quite a few pine trees in places, however, creating essentially a smooth carpet of needles. Nonetheless, Cole was convinced that if they didn’t hear something, then they weren’t being pursued by a man at all, but by a ghost. Then again, a lifetime of shooting meant that Cole’s hearing wasn’t what it used to be. He hoped Danny’s eyes and ears were sharper.

“There!” Danny whispered hoarsely. “I see him!”

Cole scanned the woods but saw only the tangle of branches.

“On a clock face, where would he be?”

Danny thought. “Two o’clock.”

Cole moved the scope in that direction. Sure enough, he saw a flicker of motion. Not enough yet for a clear target, but it was Hauer, all right, and he was on the move toward them.

Hauer was an impressive tracker, but Cole remembered that about him from the war. Grudgingly, Cole had to admire the man’s skill. Then again, they had been plowing through that woods, leaving a trail of broken branches and disturbed leaves. On the plus side, their trail was leading Hauer right into Cole’s rifle sights.

He waited patiently. Hauer was moving cautiously so that he came closer ever so slowly. But as he did so, the screen of tree branches in front of him diminished, giving Cole a clear shot.

“He’s getting closer!” Danny whispered urgently.

“I see him,” Cole said calmly.

Still, he took his time, letting Hauer work his way in. Cole had the rifle balanced in his arms, his elbows locked into the forest floor, his legs spread out behind him. He felt the whole steadiness of the ground beneath him. Other than having the rifle placed across a log, this setup didn’t get any better.

He let a breath out. Took in a deeper breath and held it.

Cole was a hunter through and through. He never missed a day in the woods. Even so, he was out of practice for shooting at two-legged prey. He hesitated for just a moment before pressing the trigger.

It wasn’t any fit of conscience. Cole had to admit that some part of him was enjoying having Hauer in his rifle sights just a little too much. For a marksman, this was the ultimate prey: another sniper. The moment before he fired was like some forbidden, delicious pleasure.

“Pa Cole, what are you waiting for? Shoot!”

Danny’s nervousness made his voice too loud. His voice carried through the quiet woods.

Through the scope, Cole saw Hauer crouch and freeze. He had heard Danny.

Hauer was searching the forest. Cole watched him through the scope as his gaze moved in their general direction. He was so close that Cole could see his face.

Then Hauer did something totally unpredictable. Instead of obliging Cole by holding still, he charged through the forest, closing the distance between them.

Cole did not hesitate any longer. His finger took up the last bit of pressure on the trigger.

However, this was like shooting at the charging boar. The target did not hold steady but danced in the crosshairs, juking right and left in a way that the boar had not. Cole couldn’t get a fix on him.

The rifle fired. Instantly, Cole ran the bolt and kept his eye on the scope, hoping for a second shot. He caught a glimpse of movement and fired again.

Through the scope, Hauer was gone.

“Did you get him?” Danny asked.

“Hush now,” Cole said sharply. Danny had already given them away once.

Seconds later, they had their answer. Cole’s luck must have run out with that boar.

A rifle shot crashed through the trees. In the same instant, Cole felt a burning pain rip down the length of his right arm and shoulder.

That son of a bitch Hauer had just shot him.

Cole had the presence of mind to roll behind the tree before a second bullet passed through the space that he had occupied only an instant before.

He switched the rifle to his left hand. His right arm was just about useless and already going numb. He wouldn’t be able to shoot back now.

Danny saw the blood on his grandfather. He stared at the crimson flow in shock. “Pa Cole, you’ve been shot!”

“Never mind that,” Cole said, struggling to his feet. “We’ve got to run!”

Chapter Twenty-Two

They crashed through the forest, not caring how much noise they made.

“Keep going,” Cole panted, urging Danny on. “We need to put some space between us and him.”

“You think he’s coming after us?” Danny asked.

“I know he is.”

The only way to go was up. Hauer had cut them off from the valley and the only familiar territory they knew, forcing them up the mountain. It was also the only path to help and safety that Cole was aware of. What was beyond this mountain they were climbing? Another mountain. And maybe another beyond that. That was a lot of territory to cover before they had any hope of coming across a village or a road. Hauer