BLOOD TIES (Decklan Jennings Thriller Book 1), Philip Duncan [bill gates book recommendations TXT] 📗

since he had been here, but everything still looked the same. Never in a million years would he have guessed the next time he came back, it would be for this. Still looking around at all of the familiar sights, he smelled something in the air.

Fire?

There was only one campfire here, so he made his way down the concrete steps, past the kitchen and across the bridge that connected the two sides. Decklan noticed the bridge looked new.

Looks like another flood took it out again.

On the other side, he made his way to the right. The campfire was only fifty or so yards away from the bridge, so the flame was easy to spot. The closer he got the easier it was to see that the fire had been going for quite some time, at least a few hours.

Where the hell are you, Parker?!

Only a few feet away now, he spotted something on the ground. He reached down to pick it up. It was a partially burned note. Must be Parker’s. It was impossible to tell what the whole thing said, but he could make out a few words.

I’m so sorry, Deck.

This indicated to Decklan that his little brother was feeling remorse and guilt for his actions and probably knew he was coming. Could it be another suicide note? He wasn’t sure but he did know one thing. He needed to find him fast, before it was too late.

He tossed the note back into the fire to finish the job. He looked around, trying to figure out where Parker would go. Something clicked again. Another memory. He turned around and faced the trail opening that led up a steep hill and deep into the Virginia mountains. He remembered the two of them playing in the woods for hours as kids. The same woods he would now enter to continue the hunt for his little brother.

The hill was steep enough that Decklan had to toss his rifle over his back to allow himself the use of both hands. The initial hill was probably two hundred yards long and the climb was slow and hard. Once at the top, the ground leveled back out and the only things he could see were trees. It made for a fun game of hide and seek, but not so much for tracking someone down. He pulled out his 9mm and started making his way deeper into the woods. He was on high alert and every little noise shot his heart rate up that much higher than it already was. He started to hear some rustling of leaves about fifteen yards in front of him, but the dense landscape made it hard to get a good visual. He slowly worked his way toward the noise, trying his best to keep quiet. Then, without warning, a deer shot off like a rocket.

“Son of a bitch!” Decklan said out loud, as his heart pounded against his chest.

He took a few seconds to take some deep breaths and try to bring his heart rate back down and regain his focus before continuing. Several more minutes passed by and still no sign of Parker. He knew it wouldn’t be easy and he probably wouldn’t just happen upon him standing out in the open, but he also knew the farther he went, the more dangerous it got. He came to a clearing in the trees and found himself looking out into the vast, open mountains. It was a stunningly beautiful view, and one couldn’t help but to take in the true beauty of nature. Up here in the mountains, it seemed that the rest of the world didn’t exist. It was secluded, peaceful, and rewarding in a way that only Mother Nature could provide.

Decklan wished he could just stay in that spot and completely break away from reality. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option right now. He still had a mission to finish, so he turned back into the woods and kept going. After what seemed like hours, when it was only minutes, he came to another clearing. Only this time he wasn’t at the top of a hill looking into the mountains. Instead, he was at a riverbank. He paused for a moment as he watched the water flow down the mountain, separating the two sides, and wondered if Parker would have crossed the river. He knew it would make him harder to track, but he would have to risk getting into the ice-cold water and being miserable once he reached the other side. Plus, once nightfall came, the temperature would drop and only make things worse.

Decklan knew he needed to decide because every second he wasted was only allowing Parker to get that much farther ahead. Plus, he wasn’t one hundred percent sure that Parker had even come this direction. Everything up to this point had been done on gut instinct, but luckily for him, it usually paid off. He decided that he needed to make the cold swim across. The water wasn’t so powerful that it would sweep him downstream, but it wasn’t completely still either. Getting across would require some effort and he was worried he wouldn’t be able to do with his rifle. He took the rifle off and set it on the riverbank. He re-holstered his pistol and made his way across the river. Once he was out, he did his best to shake off any water that could be shaken off; the rest would just have to freeze to his body. Cold water didn't bother him much anymore since he had to spend a lot of time in it when he was in the forces.

He took his pistol back out and made his way into the new side of the mountain. This side was similar to the other, with lots of trees and little visibility. However, for a reason unknown to Decklan, it seemed quieter on this side. Even as a kid who spent hours playing in these woods, he had never been to this