Endless Night Part 8

The phone rang once in her ear.

She pulled open the top drawer of the nightstand, hoping for a handgun.

Another ring.

No gun. A flashlight and address book and ...

The men came in.

Chapter Six.

Without either Jody or Andy trying to brace it, the bedroom door sprang wide when the two men struck it.

"Andy!"

Andy didn't need the warning. Even as they stumbled into the room, he took to his feet. He raced past the end of the bed while Jody dropped the phone, dived onto the mattress and scurried across. She was still on her hands and knees when Andy got to the open gla.s.s door. Speeding through, he grabbed its inside handle. The door shook, but yanked him to a halt. Jody flung herself off the bed. She staggered past Andy. He hurled the sliding door shut. As it rumbled behind her, Jody thrust her hands against the balcony's toprail to stop herself. Her arms bent. Her belly shoved at the railing with enough force to bow her.

Below was a concrete slab, pale gray in the moonlight.

Beyond the edge of the concrete was a ma.s.sive rectangle of black with ripples that glinted silver.

The pool.

But straight down was the concrete. Six feet of it between her and the pool? Or maybe ten feet. Or maybe twelve.

"You go first," Andy gasped. "I'll hold the door."

Go first? Jump? Of course, jump. There's no other choice.

She looked back. The saber man was reaching for the door handle. The other guy was jogging across the bed-must've paused to do something-tike check the phone.

"Forget the door!" Jody yelled. "Jump!"

She heard it starting to rush open as she hopped and caught the toprail under her right foot and thrust herself up. Her leg was still bent when she found the rail with her other foot.

She glimpsed Andy off to the side, using both hands to vault over.

Maybe he's got the right idea, she thought as she sprang up and forward, away from the balcony.

Oh Jesus! I'm so high! Jesus!

She heard a sword cut the air behind her. It didn't seem to cut her, though.

The hot slipstream raised her hair and nights.h.i.+rt. She tried to see straight down, but the s.h.i.+rt blocked her view.

She was sure she must be dropping straight for the concrete.

Would've taken a magnificent leap to clear it and reach the pool.

Maybe it won't be so bad, she told herself.

Bend your knees and ...

Andy cried out. A quick, harsh cry of pain.

Jody's feet smacked down. The impact stung. Her knees folded. As she tumbled forward, she flung her arms up, hoping to protect her face from the concrete. But didn't get them high enough in time. They were only halfway up when she slammed and splashed.

Water surged into her mouth, rushed up her nostrils.

Made it!

She blew out air to clear them, emptying her lungs but getting rid of the water fast before it could trigger a choke or gag.

Then she clawed for the surface.

She was amazed that her leap had carried her all the way to the pool. Andy hadn't even tried for the pool. Maybe he'd known it was too far away, so he'd vaulted the railing instead.

From the noise he'd made, he must've gotten hurt.

Breaking the surface, Jody sucked air and blinked water from her eyes. She twisted around. Both men were looking down at her from the balcony.

They could jump right on me.

Neither looked ready to try it, though. Maybe they didn't want to risk the concrete.

She watched them as she breast-stroked toward the side of the pool.

If they were planning to jump, she thought, they would've done it by now. But they know I'm coming for Andy. Maybe they'll throw their knife and sword at me.

They won't do that.

Where's the ax man?

The ax man vanished from her concern when she reached the side of the pool and both men suddenly bolted into the bedroom.

"Oh, G.o.d!" she gasped.

She jumped and shoved at the edge and burst from the water. She got a knee onto the tiles, flopped forward, squirmed and scrambled up and ran for Andy, her drenched nights.h.i.+rt glued to her skin, her feet smacking the concrete.

He was sitting up, clutching his right knee and gasping and sobbing.

"They're coming," Jody said.

He looked at her. He shook his head.

Jody scurried around behind him. Squatting, she clutched him under the armpits.

"Don't," he said. "Get out of here."

"We're gettin'." She hoisted him. Stood him upright and balanced on one leg. "Try to stand on ..."

He tried and cried out and hobbled and fell backward against Jody. She stumbled away under his weight, but stayed up. Arms wrapped around his chest, she squeezed him against her.

"Put me down," he gasped. "Drop me. My knee's busted. I'm done for. Please! Get out of here while you can."

"Not without you, pal."

She hustled backward alongside the pool, hugging Andy to her chest. He tried to help by hopping along with his good leg. The injured leg hung limp, heel dragging.

"Any ideas?" she asked.

"They're gonna kill us."

"Have to catch us first."

"Leave me here. You gotta. You can get away if you..."

"Hey, shut up."

She scanned the rear of the house. So far, n.o.body was rus.h.i.+ng out.

At the end of the pool, she stopped. "Which way? You've been here. Where can we ... ?"

"Back there. The fence."

She swiveled her head and saw a block wall a few yards beyond the side of the pool. It looked like it might be seven feet high.

"Great," she muttered.

She put her back to it and made for it, towing Andy.

She watched the house.

What'U I do if they come?

If I drop him, I can make it over the wall easy.

Dad would never drop him in a million years. Not even if it meant dying.

"Maybe they won't come," she said.

"Why wouldn't they?"

"The cops might be on the way, for one thing."

"How do you figure that? You faked the call."

"Maybe they don't know I faked it. Besides, maybe the cops picked up when I made the real call ..."

"Did they?"

"Don't know."

"Anyway, you didn't tell 'em nothing."

"Didn't have to. You call 911, the computer gives 'em the address. They'll send out a car."

"Do you think they will?"

"They might. If those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds think they're coming, that's what counts. They don't wanta be chasing us around if cops're on the way." Seeing that she had pa.s.sed the comer of the pool, she glanced over her shoulder. The wall was only ten or twelve feet away. "We're gonna make it," she muttered.

"Here they come," said Andy.

The words turned her insides cold and squirmy.

They were coming, all right. The two from the balcony-silhouettes backlit by downstairs windows, one waving his saber overhead, the other sprinting ahead of him. The one in the lead must've put away his knife, maybe so he could run faster. They raced toward the pool from off to the left.

At least it's between us.

At least the ax guy isn't with them.

Things could be worse ...

Jody's back hit the wall. She twisted around, swinging Andy, then shoved him at the gray barrier, lifted him, rammed him upright against the blocks. His body shuddered and he cried out. She grabbed the waist of his jeans, stuck her other hand under his crotch and heaved him upward.

He seemed to spring into the air.

He flung his arms across the top of the wall.

The moment Jody saw that he had a purchase, she leaped clear. He kicked up his good leg. She looked back and saw the one guy-the one who'd caught her in the front yard-tilt sideways as he rounded the pool's comer. He was way ahead of the saber man.

Jody flung herself at the wall. Leaping, she grabbed its top. Her body made a smacking sound as it struck the blocks. She pulled with her arms, climbed with bare toes digging at the vertical face. Higher, higher, the rough blocks scuffing the bottoms of her toes, snagging her nights.h.i.+rt, and then the edge of the top row sc.r.a.ping the undersides of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and moving down her ribs and belly like a rasp file.

"Hurry!" Andy gasped.

He was sprawled along the top of the wall, his face only inches from Jody's right wrist.

In front of her, just beyond the wall, she glimpsed dark limbs and leaves.

Good. Not just somebody else's back yard or pool. A field?

Maybe we can lose them in the trees.