by J. T. Cross
She released his hand, and he raced up the slope, catching up with Marcus. She realized that the last thing Stuart wanted to do was hold his mother’s hand in front of Marcus. What had she been thinking?
She jogged for a few seconds to catch up to the three of them. The last thing she wanted was to slow them down.
She followed them up the slope and through the two trees the helicopter had slid between. As she climbed above them, she turned around and looked at the one on the right. It looked like someone had taken an ax and tried to chop it down.
Marcus saw her looking at the tree. “That’s where the main rotor blades hit before they shattered and went flying,” he said.
She looked around the hilltop and saw pieces of the blades. She suddenly got a queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach, realizing the magnitude of damage the helicopter had sustained. They were lucky to be alive.
Stuart bent down and picked up a small jagged piece of black material. He held it up to Marcus. “What’s this?” He asked.
“That’s part of the composite material the main rotor blades were made out of. You should keep it for a souvenir.”
He looked at it for a few seconds then put it in his jacket pocket. “I’m going to show this to my dad when he comes to rescue us,” he said.
Marcus turned and continued up the slope. They climbed hard and within five minutes, they had reached the top of the hill. They stopped on the top to catch their breath, and she turned and looked back down the path they had just climbed.
From her vantage point, she could now see exactly where the helicopter had hit the ground. If they had struck the hill on the other side, they would have drilled straight into its side and been killed instantly. They were lucky to have hit it on the downward slope.
The top of the hill on which they stood was bare so they had an unobstructed 360-degree view. To the south was another hill that rose even higher. Between their position and the top of the other hill was a small valley filled with scattered brush and a smattering of pine trees.
Marcus pointed to the south. “I think the cabins are on the other side of that hill.”
“How can you be sure?” Christie asked.
“I’m not sure of anything, but I think it’s likely,” Marcus said.
She remembered seeing the cabins but found it almost impossible to connect their location with where the helicopter had come down.
“The only way to find out is to hike it,” Marcus said and began slowly working his way down into the valley.
“This is fun,” Kelly said.
“I thought you’d like to have a nice long piggyback ride,” Marcus said.
Within forty-five minutes, they had worked their way down the hill and hiked through the valley to the base of the next hill. They stopped to rest for a few minutes.
“When we get to the top of this one, we should be able to see the cabins. Are you ready to start up?” Marcus asked, seeming somewhat impatient.
She wasn’t ready, but she knew they couldn’t afford to stop now. “Okay, let’s go,” she said, and began to slowly make her way up the hillside. Stuart climbed right behind Marcus and didn’t appear to be tired at all.
By the time she reached the top of the second hill, she was exhausted. “I’ve got to take a breather,” she said.
She felt like her lungs were on fire. She put her head down and her hands on her knees and tried to catch her breath.
Marcus squatted down and Kelly climbed off his shoulders. After a few moments, Christie joined Marcus, who was squinting as he looked out into the next valley.
“I think I see them,” he said excitedly. She looked out in the direction he was pointing and saw what could have been several tiny wooden structures nestled between the pine trees in the distance.
Stuart, who had been all smiles and seemed to be enjoying the hike, was unusually quiet. She watched him as he gazed intensely to the north. He looked back at her with a worried expression.
“Mom, there’s something on top of the hill behind us.”
That got her attention. She stood and, shielding her eyes from the sun, looked back to the top of the first hill they had climbed. Squinting, she could just barely make out wolves, a lot of them. She cupped her hands behind her ears and heard the sound of distant yapping.
She yelled at Marcus. “The wolves, they’re tracking us. They’re on top of the other hill.”
She watched as he focused on the hilltop.
“This is bad. They’re hunting us down.”
He went over to Kelly and picked her up in his arms. “We need to get to those cabins fast,” he said and took several steps down the side of the hill.
Christie watched as he slipped then regained his balance. He paused for a minute, looked up, and caught her eye.
“There isn’t much time, hurry.”
She saw fear in his eyes that immediately pushed her into action. She felt an adrenaline rush and her heart began pounding as she took Stuart’s hand and pulled him down the slope with her as she headed after Marcus.
As they bounded down the mountainside, Stuart slipped and fell, almost bringing Christie down with him. She picked him up and pulled him along with her. “We can’t stop. We can’t let the wolves get us,” she yelled out in panic.
Faster than she would’ve thought possible, they reached the floor of the next valley and began running in the direction of the cabins. There were more trees now that slowed them down as they ran around them and under low-hanging branches.
She listened for any sounds from behind. Though she still couldn’t hear any, there was no doubt in her mind that the wolves were tracking them as they ran.
She looked up ahead and saw that Marcus was pulling away from them and realized Stuart was in front of her and she was actually holding him back. She let go of his hand.
“Try to catch up to Marcus, honey. Run.”
He scooted out in front of her and began to gain on Marcus and Kelly. She pushed herself harder as she ran between the trees. Several branches hit her in the face as she passed between them.
Up ahead, Marcus and Stuart continued to pull away from her. She was having trouble seeing them between the trees. She began to panic, afraid she might lose them and get lost.
“Wait!” she yelled out to them. She saw Stuart turn around and motion for her to follow them, and then he continued after Marcus.
Her lungs were on fire as she took in gulps of air. She couldn’t stop. She knew she had to try harder to keep up.
Suddenly, she realized she could no longer see them. She continued running in what she thought was a straight line until she was completely out of breath. She stopped for a moment, taking in ragged gulps of air as her lungs continued to protest with burning pain.
When she could breathe again, she put her hands on both sides of her mouth and yelled, “Marcus.”
She listened, but didn’t hear any response. Then she began to hear yapping sounds echoing through the trees. The wolves were closing in. She looked both ways, now completely disoriented.
The sounds of the wolves were getting louder and seemed to be coming from behind her. She ran in the opposite direction, praying she would find Marcus. She ran for a minute then stopped and began to cry. Though she felt hopelessly lost, she took off running again.
“Christie, over here.” It was Marcus’s voice, but she wasn’t sure where it came from. She stopped and listened intently.
“Marcus,” she yelled out at the top of her lungs.
Then she saw him run from behind several trees, holding Kelly. He waved at her.
“Over here, hurry!”
She ran in his direction. As she got closer, he ran back between the trees. She made a beeline to where she had seen him last, running through the closely spaced trees and into a clearing where Marcus stood holding Kelly.
Stuart stood next to Marcus for a moment then ran to Christie, wrapping his arms around her. “We thought you were lost,” he said with tears in his eyes.
&
nbsp; “Not anymore,” she said, looking around the clearing and seeing three weathered and dilapidated log cabins, all of which backed up to a thick line of trees. Her heart sank as she realized they were abandoned. She wondered how long it would take the wolves to find them.
Chapter 9
Luc rode to the east along the riverbank in search of Chuck. So far, he had not found a single clue. He looked at his watch, wondering if Kate had fared any better.
He had been riding for fifteen minutes. They had agreed that they would each ride in the opposite direction for fifteen minutes and if they found no trace of Chuck, they would return.
He turned the quad around and began riding back to the west. As he rode along the rock-filled riverbank, he mentally replayed the events, trying to discern the exact moment that Chuck had disappeared. One minute he had been there, the next he was gone.
When Luc thought back to the river crossing, he remembered having been entirely focused on saving Kate from being swept down the river, but still, he should have noticed something. He was at a total loss.
He glanced at his watch again. Another twelve minutes had passed. He hadn’t been wild about Kate’s insistence on them splitting up and each searching for Chuck in a different direction, but she wouldn’t relent. He had no idea what he would do if she disappeared, too.
He felt he should have seen her by now. His anxiety was mounting. Then, he saw something moving in the distance next to the river. A massive feeling of relief flooded through his body.
He accelerated, eager to see her, and find out if she had found anything. Several minutes later, they met.
“How did it go?” he asked her.
“I didn’t find anything. I guess you didn’t either.”
“No, I didn’t.” He looked at her closely and could see that her eyes were red and looked like she had been crying.
“Luc, we just have to find him. What could have happened? I feel like it’s entirely my fault. I should never have asked him to come.”
“He could still be okay. He’s a big, strong, smart guy, and he’s well armed. He must’ve had a good reason for riding off.”
“I know. I’m just so worried.”
“Remember the agreement we made at the lake?” he asked.
She looked confused.
He reminded her, “If we got separated we would meet at the lake on the way back out?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“He might be there right now waiting for us.”
A flicker of a hopeful smile appeared. “I hope you’re right.”
“We should probably move on.”
“Okay,” she said as the tears began to well up in her eyes.
He didn’t know what to say at that moment. There were no promises he could make, nothing he could do, so he turned his quad around and began riding back toward the east. As he rode, he wracked his brain, trying to figure out a reason for Chuck’s disappearance.
* * *
Victor Solanich looked at his watch. They had been riding for over an hour and so far had seen no tire tracks or any other traces of Luc Moon’s rescue party. He was beginning to worry. Having to continually scan the opposite riverbank had slowed their progress more than he had expected.
They were paying a high price for being on the wrong side of the river, he thought. He had not yet seen a place where they could safely cross. At some point though, Luc’s party would most likely head away from the river, leaving tire tracks behind.
Victor put his hand down to signal that he was coming to a stop. He climbed off his quad and took off his jacket. He was becoming uncomfortable. The weather was turning warmer, something he hadn’t expected, considering the temperature in Manatuk at that time of year. He folded up his jacket and strapped it alongside his tent.
He walked back to his men. “You guys have been keeping your eyes on the other riverbank, right?”
“Yeah, but we haven’t seen anything,” Turner said.
He looked at the other man.
“Nothing, haven’t seen a thing,” Russell echoed.
He looked at them and wondered just how hard they had really been trying. Regardless, he had been scouring the opposite bank himself and hadn’t seen anything either.
Again, he wondered what he was going to do when they did find their tracks. He still had no way of getting the quads across the river. He suddenly considered the option of crossing right there.
“Have you guys noticed the river’s getting wider?” Victor said.
The smaller man nodded. “Yeah, but it’s still too deep to cross,” he said with a hint of concern in his voice. He took out two cigarettes, handing one to the other man, and they lit up.
Victor walked to the edge of the river and carefully studied the depth and speed of the water. They might be able to walk the quads across, one at a time, he thought. With three men on each, it might work if they were careful. But then again, he hadn’t yet seen a pressing reason to cross.
He quickly decided it was not yet worth the risk. Besides, he knew that if the river continued to widen, they would likely find an even better place to cross.
He turned away from the river and was engulfed in the smell of cigarette smoke mixed with the wild scent of blossoms. That smell, carried on the warm breeze, somehow made him feel more alive than he had in months. He suddenly wished Serena were there.
He walked back to the men. “We’re going to continue on this side of the river. If it gets any wider, we’ll cross over then.” He climbed back on his quad.
He glanced back at the men. “Remember, keep your eyes open for tracks leaving the bank,” he said and pulled away. He rode slowly while continuing to carefully search the opposite bank.
They rode several more miles and the river continued to widen. Still, he saw no tracks and was beginning to worry that they had somehow missed them. He decided they would cross there and came to a stop.
The two men pulled up behind him. They sat looking around and then began to grin.
He didn’t like the man’s expression. “We’re going to cross here,” Victor said gazing out over the river and then back at the men. “We should be able to get across without too much of a problem.”
The smaller man began to laugh.
The man’s laugh irritated him. “What’s so funny?”
“You’re slipping up, Victor,” he said with an even bigger grin.
Victor felt his temper flare but controlled himself. He didn’t like these men, and he didn’t particularly trust them either, but he couldn’t afford to alienate them.
“Why do you say that?” he asked with the unreadable blank expression he sometimes wore.
“Look behind you.”
Victor turned around and looked down at the rocks and pebbles that lined the riverbank and didn’t see anything in particular. He glanced up to where the rocks stopped and bare earth began. His eyes froze. There were knobby tire tracks all over the dirt. Luc and his party had crossed over to his side. This was a very good turn of events. He smiled at them.
“Good work. You guys just earned yourself a thousand dollar bonus,” he said, climbing off the quad and walking over to the tracks.
He studied the area. Not only were there tire tracks, there were also footprints, two sets, one large and one small. He guessed one was Luc’s girlfriend and the other was one of the two men. Where was the third set, he wondered? Maybe one of them never left the rocky bank. Yes, that was probably it.
He walked back to the men. “Two of them were up there but they didn’t go any farther away from the river. They must have continued east on this side.”
“How do you know they didn’t go back to the other side?” the larger man asked.
“Serena said he knew where he was going. If he did, why would he waste time crossing to the wrong side of the river? No, I think they stayed on this side. Let’s move out,” he said, climbing back on his quad.
He pulled away, accelerating faster than he had all day. It was going to be a lot easie
r keeping his eye on this side of the embankment, he thought. He had the feeling he would soon be catching up with Luc Moon.
* * *
Luc began to slow his pace along the riverbank. He was beginning to think he must have missed a landmark. He hadn’t looked at his watch in a while but guessed they had been riding at least an hour. He had expected to see something that would jog his memory before this.
Once again, his thoughts shifted to Chuck. What could have happened to him? No amount of thinking had yielded a potential explanation. He felt terrible about Chuck, but he also had a job to do, he couldn’t stop, he had to focus and keep them moving forward.
He studied the trees and vegetation surrounding the areas on both sides of the river. It looked like they had entered a transitional area with both pines and broadleaved trees. He noticed the temperature was climbing and the air seemed more humid.
He looked up ahead, and thought he saw bushes growing in the middle of the water. Something was up, he thought. They quickly arrived at a fork in the river.
He stopped. Kate pulled up next to him as he stared at the split. He couldn’t remember it in the vision, yet it somehow seemed familiar. He got the distinct impression they were on the right track.
“I think we’re getting close,” he said and smiled at her. He thought she was looking tired and strained, but he didn’t know what to do about it.
“How are you doing?” he asked her.
“I’m okay. I’m just worried about Chuck, that’s all,” she said in a grim tone.
He slowly pulled away and continued on until three large rocks in the middle of the river caught his attention. He stopped again and stared at the rocks. There was something familiar about them, about that part of the river.
Small, disjointed parts of the vision came trickling into his mind and he began to understand. He was at the spot where he had left the river and gone into the forest.
He glanced up the riverbank and scanned the edge of the trees as Kate pulled behind him. He turned back to her and their eyes met. He pointed out to the rocks.
