Falls Like Lightning (27 page)

“The sins of the father . . .”

“To the family, if the legend was true, it was blood money. They chose to keep it a buried secret. Perhaps a penance of sorts.”

Silas set down his steak knife. “Not to mention a protection from lawsuits.”

Elle shifted in her seat. “From the surviving families of the miners who died. But how did the man from the cabin find it?”

“I asked the same thing. Apparently, deeper into the interview, the wealthy man mentioned a story his father told him about a cousin who also suffered from mental illness. The cousin had shown up one evening at their home asking for money. He spoke of setting out on a backpacking trip in the west. The father sent him off with a hundred dollars, and the cousin was never heard from again.”

Silas scratched the back of his neck. “So he discovered the gold cache and wanted to keep it for himself?”

Weathers shrugged. “That, or he felt compelled for some reason to be its guardian. I’m not a psychiatrist, but the FBI profile inferred that the old man’s motives might have been driven by transference of his own guilt for something onto the crimes associated with the gold. I don’t know. It’s over my head.”

Elle huffed. “And Shivner thought he could just sail off into the sunset with the gold then, didn’t he?”

Weathers raised and lowered his eyebrows. “Didn’t count on the gold having a guardian. Since it legally belongs to the surviving family, the Feds needed to know what their wishes were. Ninety percent will be set aside for descendents of the miners injured or killed in the family’s gold operation. Of the remaining ten percent, they requested five go to Bo Mansfield’s next of kin and the other five to Pendleton’s.”

Silas breathed deep. “Bo asked me to see to his sisters. To make sure they were okay.”

“This will provide more than enough to pay for their educations and to buy homes, if that’s what they’d like.” Weathers lifted his glass. “To the lost, then.” He glanced from Silas to Elle. “And to the found.”

CHAPTER

46

A
gain at the doorway, one foot from the slipstream.

Silas cinched the parachute straps over Elle’s white lace dress, shaking his head with the thought of how fast the past year flipped by.

Wind whipped through her curled locks. A pair of goggles rested on her forehead, and a new diamond band shined on her finger. Silas pulled her against his pressed black tuxedo and tightened everything down for their tandem jump. He ran his thumb along the unfamiliar band on his own ring finger. An unending circle, once worn by her father.

The engines roared. Verdant hillsides rolled out below them. Madison sat on the bench seat, strapped between the Weatherses. She grinned, gripping Rose tight in her lap.

Elle set her goggles in place and blew her a kiss. Silas waved. Elle leaned back. “You sure you’re ready for this, Kent?”

He wrapped his arms around her waist and shouted over the din. “I can’t help but follow you.”

She laced her fingers with his.

Three.

Hands on the doorframe.

Two.

Feet on the threshold.

One.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

T
hank you to all who stood with me through this long-fought and rewarding labor.

To Jesus—there is no greater joy than walking in step with you.

To Sarah Beth, my constant companion and beloved bride—thank you for your unwavering support and partnership throughout.

To my children—Daniel, Claire, and Noah—you are our wonderful joy.

To my mom—somehow you made it into this book as well. No surprise there. Thank you for the gift of your abundant love.

To our treasured parents and all our extended family—for your continued support and advocacy.

Thank you to Karen Schurrer for her intuitive editing, to Dave Long for his support for this story, to Noelle Buss for all the publicity support, and to the entire talented team at Bethany House Publishers.

Thanks to Janet Grant for your wise counsel and savvy representation.

To Mike Berrier, Katie Cushman, Carrie Padgett, and all those who’ve been there since the beginning—you’re my brothers and sisters of the pen.

Special thanks to former smokejumper Pete Briant for sharing your insight and providing me an inside glimpse into that unique world.

Thanks to Jeremy White for loaning your fireline pack for the cover design team.

Thanks to you, the readers, both near and far—please keep in touch. ([email protected])

And finally:

To all the smokejumpers and wildland firefighters who battle through smoke, heat, and grit to save lives, property, and the environment—from the most remote recesses of our nation to standing between flame fronts and homes—may God bless you and keep you in His abundant grace.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S
HAWN GRADY has served for over a decade as a firefighter and paramedic in Reno, Nevada, where he lives with his wife and three children.
Booklist
says
Through the Fire
“certainly shows that Grady has promise as an author” and that he “captures the novel’s milieu perfectly” in his follow-up thriller,
Tomorrow We Die
—a book
Romantic Times
declares “a definite page-turner.”

Visit his Web site at
shawngradybooks.com
.

Books by

Shawn Grady

Through the Fire

Tomorrow We Die

Falls Like Lightning