Leopard 04 - Wild Fire

hands.
    “You know how to use this?”
    Artureo nodded. “My grandfather taught me.”
    “I expect you to protect them. Isabeau, I’ll lead you out, but you take over when I get to the water tower.”
    “I can do it,” Isabeau assured him, feeling slightly sick.
    It was difficult to keep from staring at the dead body slumped on the floor, blood pooling around his head. So like her father’s death. She realized this was exactly how her father had died, only Rio had been the shooter, and her father had tried to kill Conner. Her stomach lurched at the memory and she pressed her hand there hard.
    Conner’s fingers curved around the nape of her neck. His mouth brushed her ear. “Are you all right? Are you up for this? I can take you all and come back.”
    She forced a smile. “I’m good. Let’s do it.”
    Conner went first, breaking the padlock on the back entrance and cautiously opening the door to peer out. The yard was in chaos. The sound of gunfire was sporadic, but men ran in all directions. The main house had turned into a wall of flames, the fire burning ferociously. Heat poured off the roiling conflagration so that it was impossible to get too close to the inferno.

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    Conner found a niche inside a particularly thick bushy area and he waved to Isabeau. She sent Artureo first, and the teenager held hands with the youngest. They formed a chain with Isabeau bringing up the rear, hurrying as quickly as they could while hugging the walls of the building and staying in close to the hedges until they crammed like sardines into that small spot.
    Isabeau looked toward the garden. Many of the trees and bushes were already on fire as the wind, mostly created by the fire itself, sent sparks flying through the air. Two bodies lay sprawled in the dirt, and the wheelchair was still tipped over on its side. She couldn’t help herself, she began searching above their heads for any sign of the leopard. The large cats preferred to be up high and often dropped down on the unwary prey. Systematically she searched the rooftops and trees. Her gaze landed on the water tower and she froze.
    Conner signaled again and they followed the winding flowerbeds, staying low and stopping whenever Conner held up his hand. “Rio’s waiting by the wall,” he told Isabeau. He stepped out to get a better look at the terrain between the children and their destination.
    “Conner!” Isabeau shouted a warning.
    He ducked back into cover and looked up just as a bullet kicked up dirt inches from his foot. Imelda held a squirming Mateo in front of her, his feet right on the edge. “Get back, all of you, or I’ll drop this little bastard.”
    “Isabeau, I’m going to shoot toward the tower and drive her back. Take the children and run as fast as you can for the rain forest. Get them over the fence. I’ve called up the others to help me here. Leonardo will guide you, Marcos and the children.”
    Before she could reply, Conner was firing, the bullets carving chunks of wood from the tower around Imelda. She screamed, swearing, and stumbled backward, dragging the boy with her. Isabeau took off running and this time Artureo brought up the rear. She didn’t look back—or up—she just ran for the fence.
    The high fence loomed in front of her far more quickly than she’d bargained for and at the last second she gathered herself and leapt for the top. Her body shrieked a protest, every muscle cramping. She might have missed on her own, but Marcos caught her outstretched arm and dragged her onto the thin plank that was the top. She forced herself to keep going, landing on the rain forest side, trying not to feel the terrible burning in her body. Leonardo jumped off and began tossing children to Marcos. The man caught each one with amazing dexterity, handing them down to Isabeau.
    Conner didn’t dare risk a glance to see if Isabeau had made it to the fence safely. He kept up the volley of shots and then sprinted to the bottom of the water tower out of Imelda’s sight. Rio took up where Conner had left off, spitting bullets around Imelda to keep her away from the edge of the tower with the boy.
    Once under the water tower and hidden from sight, Conner removed his shoes and stuffed them into the pack he always carried along with his weapons. He tied the pack securely around his neck and began to climb fast, staying inside the wooden structure for most of the way up. He