Following Ranger’s lead, she moved to the edge of the forest, stopping beside a wide juniper. From there they had an unobstructed view of the cabin. There were four windows on the east side, two on either side of the central door. The window she’d climbed out of was at the far north end, about a hundred feet away. Seeing Ranger advancing, she matched his pace, watching the cabin and praying they’d be able to reach Hastiin Sani in time. He was strong and they’d be able to help him very soon.

“The van’s gone,” Ranger said. “They must have jumped in and let it roll downhill or we would have heard the engine. I’m going into the cabin. Stay back and behind cover just in case it’s a trick.”

He’d just finished speaking when they both noticed a thin ribbon of white smoke coming from the window at the far end. A heartbeat later, the entire window blew out, followed by a burst of orange flames.

“He’s inside the room at this end! We’ve got to get him out!” Dana cried out.

Dread chilled her spirit, but knowing that her friend’s life depended on them gave her all the energy she needed. “I’m going in to get him.”

They heard a vehicle engine start up somewhere well away from the cabin. “The kidnappers are taking off. They heard the sirens, too,” he said. “Let’s go.”

Dana recalled her brief impressions of the room adjoining the one where she and Hastiin Sani had been held. “There should be a fire extinguisher on a corner shelf to the right of the woodstove in the main room.”

“I’ll grab it.”

Dana stopped by the first window and called out to Hastiin Sani, but there was no response. “I’ll climb in here while you go through the front door. Give me a leg up. I left Hastiin Sani in this room.”

“No, the smoke is already spreading. Let’s both use the front door. If we can get to the fire extinguisher, that’ll buy us a little more time.”