Freefall (22 page)

When her foot glanced off the side of the Jeep, she realized it was gaining on her. A surge of panic gave her the strength to fight her way to the shore. She climbed out of the water on her hands and knees. Coughing and shivering, she collapsed next to Owen.

They watched the Jeep sail downriver, into the darkness.

“Wow,” he said, staring after it. “That was intense.”

Hope shrugged out of her soaked sweatshirt and took stock of her injuries. There weren’t any bones sticking out of her skin. She was cold, and she might freeze to death if she spent the night in wet clothes. But she wasn’t injured, by some miracle.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“I don’t know.”

Her cell phone was gone. So much for the photographic evidence she’d collected. “Where’s your phone?”

“In the river, I guess.”

Owen still had the flashlight in his pocket. After he gave it to her, she turned on the beam and evaluated his condition. The bite wound on his forearm looked awful. There was a jagged laceration and several deep punctures. He needed stitches.

She used her sweatshirt to make a sling for his arm. Once it was immobilized, he could walk comfortably. Their best bet was to travel downriver, rather than attempting to ascend the steep cliff. Before they headed that direction, Hope caught sight of flickering flames. She was curious about the wreckage.

“You think he’s alive?” Owen asked.

“No.”

“Should we check?”

“Might be wise.”

By tacit agreement, they started hiking toward the burning truck. It was less than a quarter of a mile away, on the other side of the river. When they got close enough to see the mangled truck parts, Kruger’s fate became clear. A blackened corpse sat behind the wheel of a twisted frame. The smell of charred flesh hung in the air.

“This didn’t end well,” Owen said.

“Not for him.”

He seemed surprised by her glib comment. She’d never thought of herself as hardened, but after the events she’d lived through, she felt a little disconnected from reality. She’d shot a man at Angel Wings. Now she had another death on her hands, and she hadn’t yet processed the first one.

She stared across the river, realizing that she regretted killing the dog more than the humans. Did that make her cold?

Faith was right. Hope had been isolated in the Sierras, insulated from loss and heartbreak. She had to stop distancing herself from others. Embrace her feelings.

A searchlight stabbed down the cliff, illuminating the macabre scene. Kruger’s face was scorched beyond recognition. The skin around his mouth had burned away, exposing his teeth in a chilling grin.

She grabbed Owen by the good arm and pulled him behind a pine tree. Flattening her back against the bark, she waited for the light to pass by.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

W
HEN
THE
COAST
was clear, Hope and Owen weaved back through the trees along the riverbank, sticking close to the shore.

There was a bridge about a mile away on Kern Road. They could climb out of the ravine and walk to safety. As they neared the area where her Jeep had entered the river, Hope noticed a shadowy figure sitting on the bank. She froze in her tracks.

The man must have sensed her presence, because he lifted his head. “Hope?”

It was Sam.

He lumbered to his feet and strode forward, wiping his eyes. His clothes were soaked, like theirs. Looking back and forth between them, he blinked several times, as if he couldn’t believe they were real. “You’re alive,” he said, gripping her upper arms. With a strangled laugh, he embraced her, and then Owen. “You’re both alive!”

She realized that his clothes were wet because he’d searched the wreckage. Her Jeep must have been visible downriver. As she pictured him diving beneath the surface and swimming through the empty cab, she started to shiver uncontrollably. He’d risked his life to attempt a rescue that would never have been successful.

Had he been...crying?

He’s in love with you,
Faith had said. Hope still wasn’t convinced, but his repeated, superhuman efforts to save her felt good.

“I thought the river had swept you away,” he said, his voice hoarse. “I thought you were dead.”

With a sudden rush of clarity, she understood why she’d been avoiding his calls. It wasn’t her fear of falling in love with him. That was a fait accompli. She was afraid of
losing
him. She hadn’t allowed herself to get attached to a man since she’d given up Grace.

“I’m fine,” she said, her heart racing. “Owen needs to get to a hospital.”

“What happened?”

She gave Sam the abbreviated version, glancing toward the top of the cliff. There were multiple flashing lights now, indicating that patrol cars had descended on the scene. The trees and shrubs along the riverbank made excellent cover, but they couldn’t linger here for long without being discovered.

Sam’s euphoria at finding her in one piece disappeared. Anger flared in his eyes, masking his other emotions. “You broke into Kruger’s cabin?”

“I used a key,” she mumbled.

“What did you find?”

She told him.

“You took photos of a toilet and muddy boots,” he said in a flat tone. “That’s the evidence you almost died for?”

Hope fell silent, not bothering to mention the photos were gone.

He turned his wrath on Owen. “You thought this was a good idea?”

“Not...really,” Owen said, wincing.

“Why did you call him instead of me?”

“I didn’t call him,” she said. “And you wouldn’t have gone along with it.”

“Exactly!”

Hope stomped past him. “Let’s continue this conversation at the hospital. I don’t know about you, but I’m freezing my ass off.”

“You’re lucky your ass isn’t scattered across the cliff,” he said, following her. “What if you’d been killed? What if Owen had been killed?”

She clamped her mouth shut, skirting around a tree. His free-solo habit was more dangerous than anything she’d ever done, but they’d discussed that already. She didn’t think it was fair for him to criticize.

Before they reached the bridge, Hope paused, seeing more lights in the distance. “Did you call 911?”

“Of course.”

“They’re here.”

“Good.”

For once, she wasn’t glad help had arrived. Ambulances came with squad cars, and she didn’t trust anyone in law enforcement. Meeks could be waiting, ready to take her for a ride. She moistened her lips, glancing across the river. There was a forest service road on the other side of the Kern. Maybe they should make a quick escape.

“Sam,” a man shouted in the distance. “Sam, are you there?”

It was Dixon.

Although they were in the sheriff’s jurisdiction, it wasn’t unusual for NPS to respond to the scene. Rangers often took emergency calls outside park limits, and the accident involved three of its employees.

Dixon’s presence wasn’t suspicious, but she didn’t trust him. He had ties to the drug smugglers. They’d held Faith in his cabin. Kruger was his brother-in-law. The facts added up, and not in his favor.

She started to backtrack, her pulse racing. Her shoulders met the hard wall of Sam’s chest.

“What should we do?” he asked in a whisper.

“Go on. Tell him you couldn’t find us.”

He shook his head fiercely. “We stay together.”

There was no time to argue, so she took him by the hand and went the opposite direction. His reluctance to leave them made her heart swell with emotion. She didn’t know if his feelings were real, or fueled by adrenaline. They’d battled several life-or-death situations together. Would he lose interest once the smoke cleared?

Hope didn’t want to think about that—and they had to survive first. Avoiding Dixon and the rescue crew meant crossing the river again.

None of them wanted to take another swim, but they didn’t have much choice. Teeth chattering, she waded into the current with Sam and Owen. When they reached the other side, she was chilled to the bone. Dripping wet, they climbed the embankment to the dark, deserted forest service road.

“Where does this go?” Sam asked, glancing to the right.

“Terminus Dam. It follows the river for a stretch and then winds around uphill.”

They started walking. Going the other way would take them right back to Dixon.

At least the hike would keep their blood pumping and prevent hypothermia.

After about a mile, they stopped to rest at a lookout point. Sam’s cell phone wasn’t working. Hope couldn’t see much through the trees lining the ravine, but lights from emergency vehicles were still visible near the bridge on Kern Road. An accident crew was working the scene at the top of the cliff. They’d need a crane to bring up the remains of Kruger’s truck.

Her sweatshirt made a wet, uncomfortable sling for Owen. She took it off and Sam used his utility knife to cut the fabric into long strips. As she bandaged the wound, she noticed a cut on Sam’s hand.

“Let me see that,” she said, grasping his wrist.

He turned his palm up, showing a deep laceration. “Your Jeep bit me.”

When she was done fixing up Owen, she wrapped a strip of fabric around Sam’s hand, tying it over his knuckles.

“How’s your sister?”

“Better,” she said, glancing up at him. “She rested most of the weekend. Had a few nightmares.”

His eyes glinted in the dark. “You avoided my calls.”

“I didn’t know what to say,” she admitted. The thought of confessing her feelings to him scared her more than their current predicament. Maybe they could keep running away from their troubles...together.

While she pondered that, a vehicle turned on the forest service road and started heading uphill. “Hide!”

They scurried behind some prickly manzanita bushes and crouched down, waiting for the vehicle to pass.

“Your sweatshirt,” Sam whispered.

They’d left the torn remains on the side of the road, and there was no time to retrieve it. She stayed put, praying the mistake would go unnoticed. An old Chevy pickup chugged around the corner, going slow. Searching.

“It’s Morgenstern,” she said.

“Should we run?”

She hesitated. The park volunteer might spot the motion and call for reinforcements. Maybe if they stayed still he wouldn’t see them.

The pickup rolled past the sweatshirt and stopped, shifting into Reverse. So much for not getting caught. He took out a flashlight and pointed it at the wet bundle. She had to take action before he communicated this find to NPS. Morgenstern was a loose cannon, but he hated Kruger and Dixon. He might help them just to be contrary.

She scrambled out from behind the bushes. “Over here!”

Morgenstern moved the beam of light to her face. “Banning?”

She squinted, shielding her eyes with one hand. Sam and Owen rose up behind her. “We need a ride to the hospital.”

“They’re dredging the river for your Jeep.”

“Can you help us?”

He harrumphed an agreement, motioning with the flashlight. “Get in.”

There wasn’t room in the front seat for all of them, so Sam climbed into the bed of the pickup. Hope sat in the middle, between Morgenstern and Owen. The truck smelled like sweat and menthol cream.

“Take the long way,” she said.

He stepped on the gas, heading uphill. The road passed by Terminus Dam and circled back toward Visalia, where the nearest hospital was located. Morgenstern didn’t argue with her about the route or ask any questions. Although he was a brooding, taciturn sort of fellow, his lack of curiosity struck her as...curious.

“How did you know we were out here?”

“I didn’t,” he said.

“You were just driving by?”

Morgenstern frowned, his uneven mustache covering his entire upper lip. “No. I heard about the accident on my radio.”

As a volunteer, he wasn’t supposed to have a radio among his personal belongings. She didn’t see one inside the truck, either. While she looked around for it, puzzled, he picked up speed, traveling a little too fast around the curves.

Something wasn’t right.

She glanced at Owen, who appeared tense and pale beside her. Morgenstern gripped the wheel with hairy knuckles. For a man in his sixties, he was in pretty good shape. He was tall and knobby, carrying no extra weight.

“Where’s your radio?” she asked.

“I must have left it in the trailer.”

“Do you have a cell phone?”

“Nope. Things cause cancer.”

Although it sounded like a typical Morgenstern statement, cranky and cynical, she knew he was lying. She’d seen a cell phone in his trailer just a few days ago. He’d put his bologna sandwich right next to it.

Why would he tell her he didn’t have any communication devices? There was only one reason she could think of.

He didn’t want her to call for help.

Judging by his increasingly reckless driving, Morgenstern was aware of her suspicions. He took the turns at full speed, his tires kicking up gravel, slipping on the soft shoulder. Sam was getting the ride of his life in the back. He banged on the rear window in an unsuccessful attempt to get Morgenstern to slow down.

“You couldn’t leave well enough alone,” he growled. “You had to poke around in everybody’s business.”

Hope gripped the dash with one hand, bracing herself for a crash. Owen also assumed a defensive posture. He looked ready to protect her from Morgenstern’s blows. “You were in on it with Kruger?”

“Your whore sister wasn’t even hurt.”

She wanted to punch him for badmouthing Faith. “Why would you get involved in this? You hated Kruger.”

“I hate Dixon more. We had that in common.”

Morgenstern’s animosity wasn’t difficult to understand. Dixon had been in the unenviable position of laying off the “less productive” employees when the recession hit. Morgenstern and his wife were among the first to go.

She didn’t know why Kruger resented his brother-in-law. Dixon had given him an honest job and a decent home. Instead of appreciating those generous gifts, Kruger found a way to exploit the situation further.

One thing was clear: these men had conspired
against
Dixon, not with him. Hope had run away from the wrong man—and jumped right into the enemy’s truck.

“It’s over now,” she said, her stomach clenched. “They’ll investigate and connect you to Kruger. The evidence at the cabin...” She trailed off, aware that Kruger’s boots and toilet tank wouldn’t raise any eyebrows. Not without a statement from her or Faith.

Morgenstern concentrated on the road, his face a cold mask. They’d arrive at the dam in moments.

Terminus Dam was on the opposite side of Moraine Lake, built along the edge of a very sheer cliff. It was a long way down to the bottom. Hope’s breath quickened as she pictured their bloody corpses at the base of the spillway. When the river water poured in, which happened at regular intervals, their bodies would be swept clear.

She turned to Owen, her pulse racing. “Jump out on the next turn,” she said in his ear. “I’ll be right behind you.”

He nodded in agreement.

Morgenstern put the pedal to the metal, as if anticipating their actions. When they spun around the curve, Owen opened the door and tumbled out. He timed the escape perfectly, rolling clear of the tires. Hope scooted across the seat, eager to follow. Morgenstern grabbed her by the hair and yanked her back. Pain seared her scalp.

She balled her hand into a fist, blinking the tears from her eyes.