Hunter by Adrianne Lemke Page A

to you right now. What are you doing?”
                The
hand holding the gun dropped down, and I relaxed slightly at not having it
aimed directly toward my chest. “What’s it look like I’m doing?” His voice was
shaky, but he was trying to hide his nerves by tensing his muscles and glaring
at me.
                This
part I was unsure of. I may have experienced firsthand what this kid went
through, but I wasn’t certain how to talk him down—especially when no one could
have stopped me when I tried. A glance at Nickels showed he had his gun trained
on the boy in case he made a move on me, and I wished he could just put it
down. Having the other man’s weapon trained on him would only emphasize the
stress he was under. Oddly, Caleb waited while I considered my options, and
watched me expectantly. “It looks like you’re hurting, and trying to find a way
to make the pain stop. But you don’t want to hurt yourself, do you? Not
really.”
                He
looked surprised, and cocked his head, questioning silently why I’d think that.
After all, he was out in the woods with a gun. “You’ve been out here for hours,
Caleb,” I said softly. “Trust me. When you really want to end it, the process
won’t take hours. Only minutes.” Swallowing convulsively I continued, my voice
shaking. “You don’t want to die. You’re a smart kid, Caleb, and I understand
what you’re going through. It can end. You don’t have to stay with him. Just
tell us what he’s been doing, and he’s the one we’ll take away.”
                Caleb
looked toward the ground, but stayed focused on me as well. I didn’t attempt to
move or speak while he thought things through. “I… I don’t know what to do,” he
said desperately, swinging the gun up toward me, and making Nickels tense up behind
me.
                “That’s
okay, kid. No one really does in your situation. Trust me. Put the gun down,
and let the right person get punished for once. Please.”
                The
few minutes while he considered his options were tense. Nickels was ready to
fire if Caleb made another move. The boy was tense. His finger was on the
trigger, and the gun still aimed at me. He met my eyes, and I said, “Trust me,
Caleb.” I held out my hand. “Just give me the gun, okay?”
                He
nodded and took a few steps toward me. After another moment, he released the
trigger, and handed me the butt end of the weapon. “You really understand?” he
asked softly. Nickels put his own weapon away, and cuffed him.
                “I
do,” I said, rolling up one sleeve to show the self-inflicted scars briefly. I
covered them again before Nickels could get a closer look. “Tell the police
what your father has been doing. Show them, if necessary. If there’s any
justice, he won’t hurt you again.”
                His
lips twitched. Caleb clearly wanted to smile at the thought, but was unable to
go through with the full action. “Thank you.”
                Nickels
led the boy through the woods back to his car. I followed slowly behind,
sorting through my emotions. This case got us no closer to the serial killer,
but we helped a boy. Who—eventually—would have followed through on his plan to
shoot himself. My anger at his father, and my personal experiences, outweighed
the fear of a boy who was a finger-twitch away from shooting me just for being
there. My hands shook as the adrenaline began to fade.
                Stowing
Caleb in the backseat took only a moment, since he was cooperating fully, and
Nickels looked at me with sympathy and curiosity. “You’ve tried before, haven’t
you,” he stated. When I didn’t answer, he sighed and continued. “Do you think I
won’t still respect you? You’ve told me nothing of your past, and that’s enough
to tell me that it was bad. I’ve seen some of the scars, Jason. Trust me;