In the Shadow of Mountains: The Lost Girls

Chapter Twenty

  In the Arms of a Law-Breaker

  Amy was alone in the forest. Only the sound of her deep breathing filled her ears as she leaned against a tree, her chest heaving. She was covered in sweat and totally exhausted. She had pulled her blue jumper off and used it to wipe her face. Slowly she sank down against the tree, sitting on the grass with her back against it. She put her hand on her chest. It felt like her heart was going to explode. She had never run so fast for so long in her life. She wished she had a stop watch. She must have smashed her Personal Best. Miss Jenkins would have been proud of her. Thinking about Miss Jenkins made her think of the other girls. It brought it all back to her.

  Amy burst into tears.

  There was a high pitched scream. It was so loud and close that it made Amy hurl herself to the ground in shock. It was like a low flying jet that must have been so low, it must have been landing. There was a huge crash, followed by the sound of splitting wood.

  A short distance away, a car landed on the ground by a tree with another loud crash. It seemed to just drop out of the sky. All its windows popped out and its doors flew off. Amy stared at it in amazement. Its front end was all smashed. Branches and bits of debris landed on the roof. Amy instinctively stared up at the tree. Sure enough, there was a large area where the bark of the tree was missing and the wood was all splintered and freshly exposed. Beneath it, all the branches had been torn away.

  “Shit, a flying car,” Amy muttered. She scrambled to her feet and ran towards it, her exhaustion forgotten. When she was only a couple of metres away, she suddenly stopped and stared.

  There were three men in the car. Two at the front and one at the back. The two men at the front didn’t look at all well. One was slumped over the steering wheel, while the other one had fallen out the open door. There was blood on their faces. They didn’t move at all. The other man was very much alive and awake. He was upside down somewhere under the back seat. She could only see his legs waving about, but she could hear him cursing and complaining as he struggled to get the right way up.

  “Fucking coppers!” he was shouting. “Can’t drive for toffee! What are you trying to do? Bloody kill me?”

  He managed to get himself the right way up. Kneeling on the floor of the car, he threw the dislodged back seat out of the open door. At that moment, he looked up and stared right at Amy.

  What he saw was a young girl with long blonde hair, wearing a short grey skirt, white socks that were down at her ankles, and a white blouse that was all disarranged and so dampened with sweat, that he could see her bra through it.

  What she saw was a young man with short light brown hair wearing a grey leather jacket, blue sweat-shirt and jeans.

  For a moment there was no response. Then he smiled. It was a very broad, cheeky grin. It was very attractive.

  “Well, hello there, sweetheart,” he said in Sean Connery’s voice. “Have you come to give me the kiss of life?”

  Amy darted forward, grabbed his hands and tugged him out of the car. He yelped in surprise, and all she succeeded in doing was to cause him to fall on his face on the ground.

  “Hang on!” he complained as she tried to drag him along the grass. “What kind of a rescue is this? Are you trying to finish me off?”

  Amy let go of him. “Get up!” she demanded as she stood over him. “Get up! Get up!” she was almost jumping up and down in her frustration.

  “Alright! Alright!” he said, getting to his knees. “What’s the rush?”

  “They’ll be coming soon!” Amy said impatiently. “That’s what they did with us! We have to run! Come on!” Amy ran away, and then ran back again when she saw he hadn’t moved. “Come on!” she demanded more urgently.

  Still on his knees, he held out his hand to her, and said in Michael Cain’s voice, “My name’s Craig Price. Not many people know that.”

  Amy stared at the heavens in despair. Looking down at him again, she said, “There’s no time for this, you plank! They’ll be here any minute! We wasted too much time hanging about and they almost got us! For all I know, I could be the only one that got away! If they catch us, they’ll stick us in cages! God only knows what they’ll do to you, but I’ve got a good idea what they’ll do to me! Now, come on! Or I’m leaving without you!”

  “Well, since you put it like that,” Craig said as he climbed to his feet. “Anyway, I’ve had my fill of cages today. Where to, sweetheart?”

  She grabbed his hand and pulled him forward.

  Craig looked back at the car as they ran away. “What about the coppers?” he said.

  Amy glanced back. “They can’t run.”

  They ran together among the trees. Amy wanted to go faster; she wanted to get as far away from the car as possible. But Craig couldn’t run as fast as she could. She kept egging him on, but it was no use. They hadn’t gone far when Craig began to tire.

  “What do you think I bloody am?” he complained. “A long distance runner?”

  Amy was tired, too. She had already done a lot of running that day, and she couldn’t have gone on much further even without Craig in tow. There was only one alternative.

  “We’ll have to hide!”

  Amy looked around for a good spot. There were lots of low bushes and undergrowth near some of the trees. She headed for a rather large clump gathered around a tree nearby, pulling Craig with her.

  “Come on! This way!”

  Amy led Craig around the bushes, weeds, brambles and saplings to the far side before diving in. It was quite dark and cool inside, with a musty and earthy sort of smell. Craig moaned almost immediately as she pulled him in beside her, and he let go of her hand.

  “Bloody Hell!” he said, fighting against the branches that tore and scratched at him. “This is an expensive jacket you know!”

  “Keep quiet!” Amy whispered, down on her knees.

  “Couldn’t you have picked a bigger bush?”

  “Get down on your knees, you twit!” Amy grabbed him and pulled him down next to her. “See? Better now?”

  Craig looked around. “Huh! Trust me to fall in with a country expert.”

  Amy shook her head and crawled further into the bush, dragging her jumper along in her hand. She moved quite quickly, and Craig watched her hips moving rhythmically as she crawled along. He suddenly smiled and crawled after her.

  “You don’t happen to have a frying pan and sausages stashed away somewhere?” he asked her.

  “This isn’t a joke, you know!” Amy said over her shoulder. “You’ll see! We’re still near enough to see what happens. I just hope they don’t start looking for us. If they’ve got dogs, we’ve had it.”

  “Who are ‘they’?” Craig asked.

  “Come on, I’ll show you. But keep quiet.”

  Amy continued to crawl forward on all fours. She went to the other edge of the bush and peered through the leaves back the way they had came. “I think I can see them,” she whispered.

  “I’ve got a great view here!” Craig remarked.

  Something about the tone of his voice made Amy look round. Craig was right behind her, staring up her short skirt.

  “Will you get serious!” she hissed at him.

  “I am serious! You’ve got a marvellous arse, and I love those skimpy red knickers you’re wearing!”

  She felt his hand rubbing the back of her thighs, and as she felt his fingers moving up between her legs, she suddenly twisted round, grabbed him by his ear, and pulled him forward.

  “Ow! That hurts!” he complained.

  She ignored his protests, pulled him up level with her, and pointed his head at the approaching men. “Look!” she told him.

  He looked.

  “Fuck me…”

  It was just as before. In the distance among the trees, they saw men with pikes and nets rushing towards the wrecked car. They began to search around it. Some of them pulled at the two men Craig had called policemen, dragging them out on to the grass. A w
agon with a cage on it rattled into view. Then two Knights rode up on horses. They talked to the men, who pointed at the policemen on the ground.

  Craig strained his ears. “Can you hear what they’re saying?”

  Amy shook her head. A moment later, and the two policemen were carried to the wagon and put inside the cage. They looked very limp. The wagon moved off, but no sooner had it gone before a team of horses appeared in its place. Men attached ropes to the wrecked car. They walked around it, picking up bits and pieces and throwing them back inside it. Even the dislodged back seat Craig had thrown out was retrieved and stuffed back inside. Finally, everything was collected, the horses strained, and the car was dragged away.

  Amy watched it disappear, and wondered if their minibus had gone the same way. The two Knights rode off, the rest of the men trotting after them.

  “They’re not searching,” Amy said in relief, not realising how fast her heart had been beating.

  “They probably figured the coppers were the only ones there,” Craig replied.

  “You see!” Amy said, turning towards him. “I told you! Do you believe me now?”

  “Yes, I believe you. Thanks for saving me. What’s your name?”

  “Amy,” she said. She stared at him, wondering why he didn’t seem to be scared or worried at all by what had happened. He seemed very relaxed, almost amused by it all. His eyes were a light blue. They were very attractive.

  Craig stared at her face. “You’ve got green eyes,” he said.

  “I had noticed,” she replied tartly.

  “You’re a real stunner. How old are you?”

  “I’m sixteen.”

  “God, I bet you haven’t been laid yet.”

  “Do you mind?” Amy said indignantly.

  “No, I don’t.” He grabbed her hips and pushed her over. In a second he was on top of her, his arms wrapped tightly around her.

  Amy felt his body on top of hers; he was already between her legs. She could feel his weight bearing down on her, and she could feel his excitement. He had an erection, and the feel of it caused her to panic, and she kicked and struggled madly.

  “No! Stop it! Please!” she begged.

  Craig saw the look on her face and the sudden tears in her eyes. He realised how terrified she was and how this wasn’t a good idea, and he immediately backed off. He climbed off her and rolled over. He kept his arms around her, but twisted her around when she tried to get away, pulling her on top of him. She now had her back to him, but she still struggled.

  “Let go!” she demanded. “Please!”

  Craig hung on to her. “Hey, shush now! It’s alright! I’m not going to do anything! Stop wriggling, will you! I was just kidding around, that’s all!”

  “You were not!” Amy snapped. She continued to struggle, kicking her legs. “Let go of me!”

  “Alright! Calm down! I’ll let go of you! Just don’t run away, that’s all! I won’t do it again! I promise! I’m not usually like that! Maybe the shock got to me or something! Just don’t run away!”

  He let go of her. Amy rolled clear. She climbed on to all fours and stared at him, still panting from her struggles. For a moment she did think about running. She was sure she could easily get away from him. But then he smiled at her, and held out his hands in supplication.

  “I’m sorry, okay,” he said very calmly. “I didn’t mean to scare you like that. Just don’t run away. It’s better if we stick together. At least you’re not alone. And you can always twist my ear again if I get out of hand.”

  Amy sat back on her heels. “You made me cry,” she said wiping the tears from her face.

  “I’m sorry,” he said again. “You really are scared, aren’t you?”

  “Of course I’m scared! I’m lost in some strange place where men dressed like Sir Lancelot chase people and put them in cages! I’ve lost all my friends, and all you want to do is rape me!”

  “I’m sorry. I can’t help it. It’s not often I find myself in the bushes with a beautiful, blonde, sixteen year old school-girl. I promise I won’t scare you again. Cross my heart.”

  He did as he said, smiling at her. Amy stared at him. There was something very endearing about him. Even after what he had tried to do, he could still make her feel at ease. It was the way he smiled, and those light blue eyes. She knew why, of course. He was just the type she fancied, damn it.

  “How old are you?” she asked him.

  “Twenty.”

  “What were you doing with those policemen?”

  His smile broadened into that cheeky grin. “About six months if they had got me to court!”

  Amy looked alarmed, so Craig quickly added, “Don’t worry! I’m only a street trader. It’s just that I don’t have a licence, and let’s just say that some of my goods aren’t exactly kosher!”

  Amy relaxed. She didn’t know why, but she believed him. Or maybe she just wanted to believe him. She didn’t really want to be alone again.

  He nodded towards her. “Is that a matching set?”

  She looked down, wondering what he meant. Then she noticed her open blouse with her red bra in view.

  “Yes,” she said. She reached down to fasten the buttons that had come un-done while they had wrestled about, and found some of them were missing. She also felt how damp her blouse was. She had been sweating so much from all the running and panicking that it was completely wet. She sniffed at herself.

  “Oh, God, I must stink,” she muttered to herself.

  “You smell great,” Craig replied with that cheeky grin. “I love the smell of hot, sweaty women!”

  Amy didn’t react to his remarks. Instead she looked at him sadly and shivered. “I feel cold,” she said. She kept shivering. Shivering or trembling.

  The feeling had come over her all of a sudden. She suddenly felt very cold and very light-headed. It must have been the cool air under the bushes. She came out in goose-bumps.

  Craig crawled over to her. For the first time, his expression held real concern rather than amusement. “It’s probably a bit of shock, that’s all,” he said, taking off his jacket. “Here, put this on.” He draped it over her shoulders and pulled her closer.

  Amy didn’t resist, instead she fell off her knees and ended up sitting in his lap. She was still shivering. He wrapped his jacket tightly around her, his arms doing the same. She still made no moves to fight him off. Instead she rested her head on his shoulder, and slowly her shivering subsided. She began to breathe evenly.

  “Are you alright now?” Craig asked her.

  Amy didn’t reply.

  He looked down at her. Her eyes were closed. She must have fainted.

  He sighed. “Trust me,” he muttered to himself. “The first time I find myself with a gorgeous young girl in my arms, and I have to come over all paternal.”

  Craig sat cross-legged in the middle of the clump of bushes with Amy sat in his lap, sleeping soundly. He stroked her blonde hair, running his hand along its length, feeling how fine and straight it was. He brushed some loose hair from her face and caressed her cheek and jaw. His hand moved down to her throat and then back up to her chin. Her skin felt so smooth and silky. He touched her lips, pulling at them slightly with his fingers. She moaned softly, but didn’t wake.

  “Gosh, you are beautiful,” he said to her. She wasn’t listening.

  He hugged her tightly and stared out at all the trees. It was beginning to get dark.