Mountain Refuge

by Sarah Varland

  Clay caught her by the elbow and held his footing firm as Summer’s stabilized. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, a reminder of how close she’d come to falling, an accident that could have cost her everything.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course.”

  Summer took one more step in the water, then stepped out onto the shore, feeling somehow like that last brief “thank you” had been about more than just rescuing her from her fall. She was thankful to him for everything. For listening. For his protection.

  For seeing her. And still…not leaving.

  “Run to the highway.”

  Summer had been planning on it but was glad they were both on the same page. “Got it.” She took a deep breath, fatigue starting to creep up on the edges of the rush of adrenaline that had overtaken her when the shot had rung out.

  Running through the grass should have been easier than running down the mountain, but it wasn’t what she trained for, so without the extreme adrenaline she found herself tiring out.

  “Keep going, Summer. You’ve got this.”

  She pushed herself. Her leg throbbed. The more she thought about it, it had to be just a graze or she knew she couldn’t run on it, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. She’d never even been grazed by a bullet before.

  She saw headlights in the predawn fog. The highway was close, just through a small patch of spruce trees. They kept running, and then she stopped just short of the clearing on the side of the road, still in the cover of the woods. “Do we just go out there and hope no one shoots at us?” The moon had come out from behind a cloud and was providing more light—not the best timing but not something they could change, either.

  “Yes. He should still be behind us in the woods.”

  “But what if he’s not?”

  “I can’t promise you anything, Summer. But he’s not everywhere. And I don’t think it’s likely he’s going to be driving by anytime soon. He has to make it down the mountain with whatever wounds he has. And we can’t afford to spend too much time waiting. When we get to a phone we need to report all of this to the troopers so they can try to catch him and also give him any kind of medical assistance he needs.”

  She looked at him, eyes wide.

  “They teach us to shoot to eliminate the threat,” Clay said softly. “You don’t do that, you end up with dead officers. But we also are taught to do everything we can to save a life. Even the life of someone who doesn’t deserve it.”

  The man was a cop to his core, had he realized that yet? Summer felt a pang in her chest. When he realized it, would he leave Moose Haven, head back to his little Georgia town and the police force he’d left behind? No matter how she felt about him—something she hadn’t had time to decide anyway—she didn’t think she could leave to go with him. She couldn’t abandon her family, or the lodge when they needed her there.

  She wouldn’t let history repeat itself.

  THIRTEEN

  Clay could hear the fear in Summer’s voice, something he’d heard in it so rarely that it surprised him, though he knew it shouldn’t have. She had every right to fear after what she’d been through.

  So he grabbed her hand, squeezed it and smiled. “We’re going to make it, Summer.” And then he pulled her out of the darkness of the woods, knowing the safety they felt there was an illusion. Staying in the shadows would only endanger them.

  And Clay knew it. Which was why he made his feet move even though he understood Summer’s hesitations, felt them too.

  The highway was mostly empty at this time of night. He glanced down at his watch, unable to tell from the deep blue of the sky how much time they had until it was good and daylight again. The deep blue was deceiving, not really darkness but not light, either. Alaskan midnight sun confused him.

  It was 3:17 a.m.

  The headlights continued approaching from the south. Clay hadn’t been counting on anyone headed up from the Kenai at this time of night, although he guessed getting an early start to Anchorage would make sense for some people. He hoped it was that and not people who were up to no good. Even if they could get a driver to stop for them, there was no guarantee that the man or woman could be trusted—that was the risk they had to take if they had any hope of getting back to the lodge safely.

  “I’m going to flag them down.” Clay released Summer’s hand, then clicked on the flashlight he’d had in his pocket, a small penlight that gave off enough lumens that it should be able to catch a driver’s attention. He only prayed it didn’t catch the attention of the man who was after them.

  The car slowed slightly. Clay kept waving his arms and the light.

  They moved to the side of the road, then slowed to a stop.

  Clay approached with caution. “Stay behind me,” he said to Summer in a quiet voice as he moved forward. The driver of the car had only lowered the window slightly and he didn’t blame them. He must look odd out there in the middle of the night, no car in sight, waving.

  “Can you help us, please? There’s a man after us and we need a ride to Moose Haven. Or to Hope if that’s all you’re willing to do.” Moose Haven was another hour and a half, Clay guessed. Hope should only be about fifteen or twenty minutes away.

  “Who are you?”

  Clay could only see part of the driver’s face but it looked to be a woman in her forties. Not their shooter. Summer had identified him as a man. He was thankful for that.

  “Ma’am, I know it sounds odd. But we’re from Moose Haven. You can call the police chief there, Noah Dawson, and he’ll tell you. I’m Clay, I work at Moose Haven Lodge and this is Summer Dawson.”

  The woman’s face brightened. “Summer Dawson? You were a mountain runner?”

  Summer nodded.

  “My daughter started running cross-country because of you.”

  Clay heard locks on the car click and held his breath. Was she giving them a ride?

  “Jump in.” She nodded toward the back seat, then looked around. “But hurry, would you? If someone is after you I’d rather them not see us. I promised my husband I’d be careful on this drive. I don’t think he was expecting anything other than the usual dangers and I wouldn’t hear the end of it if I got shot.”

  “Thank you. Thank you so much,” Summer said. Clay opened the back door and let her slide in first, then followed her. The woman pulled an impressive 180 in the middle of the road, since there was no traffic coming in either direction, and hit the gas.

  “I’m going to call the police as soon as we have a signal,” Clay told Summer.

  “Shouldn’t be long. Moose Pass is about thirty minutes away.”

  Clay had guessed longer than that. Then again, when he checked the speedometer over the driver’s shoulder it said seventy-five. Not exactly what he’d consider a careful night speed, but then again, it might be best for all of them in these odd circumstances.

  They rode in silence. Adrenaline was crashing in Clay, tiredness making his mind fuzzy. He knew he needed to stay focused long enough to get them safely home and talk to the police officers on the case, and he knew he would do it, but he was also looking forward to sleeping later, something he’d arrange with Noah so another officer could watch the lodge at that time. There was no way either he or Summer could hold up without one.

  Just as they came into Moose Pass, the first town they reached and the last before Moose Haven, Clay’s phone showed that he had service. He called the troopers first, gave the location he’d shot at the suspect and a brief explanation of what had happened. Then he called Noah.

  “Clay? Is everything okay?” Noah answered his cell immediately.

  “Mostly. We were shot at on the highway. Summer’s got a graze on her leg and we’ll need someone to look at it. We flagged down a woman, who is giving us a ride.”

  “Where is she bringing you?”

  “Ma’am? Would you mind driving us all the way to Moose Haven Lodge or should I ask someone to meet us?” Clay asked the driver, whose name he realized he still
hadn’t gotten.

  “I’m driving you to the lodge.” She looked back over her shoulder at Summer. “My daughter really looks up to you. I couldn’t face her knowing I hadn’t done what I could to keep you safe. I read in the paper about the attack the other day.”

  Clay hadn’t considered it being in the papers, but of course, especially in the small-town-feeling Kenai Peninsula, it would be widely reported.

  “Thank you.” Summer’s voice was soft. Clay glanced at her, wondering if the words about the woman’s daughter looking up to her had affected her. Unfortunately he couldn’t talk about it with her right then.

  He went back to his conversation with Noah. “She says she’ll take us to the lodge.”

  “Great. I’ve been calling you for hours. We expected you just a few hours after dinner.”

  “I know. Like I said, we were ambushed on the highway and shot at.”

  “Just the one guy?”

  “Yes, but he’s got the skills of someone who’s an experienced hunter or maybe former military.”

  Noah muttered under his breath.

  “We’re okay.”

  “Not okay enough.”

  Clay agreed, but he wasn’t the kind of guy to get upset at circumstances he couldn’t change. They were alive. Now it was time to move on.

  His personal past, that last case, flashed in his mind. Was he following his own advice with that one?

  No time to think about it now.

  “I’m going to let you go.” Noah’s voice was gruff with emotion. Clay couldn’t imagine being on the other end of tonight, knowing they were hours late, knowing literally anything could have happened to them.

  “Alright. We’ll see you soon.”

  “I hope so.”

  Clay pocketed his phone. Then remembered the man he’d shot. He dialed 9-1-1, figuring the troopers might be closer than the officers in Moose Haven.

  He filled them in on the situation and the trooper he spoke to promised they’d send an officer and an ambulance to the scene.

  “I’d send more than one officer,” Clay advised, fearing they might be underestimating the man they were dealing with. “I don’t know if he has some kind of formal training, but while I wouldn’t go right to ‘sniper,’ he’s an awfully good shot at long range.”

  The trooper thanked him for the information and Clay hung up. They were well through Moose Pass now, not far from Moose Haven.

  As they turned off the Seward Highway, Clay noticed the deep blue of the sky had turned to a medium, vivid blue he couldn’t describe but that he knew meant dawn and daylight wouldn’t be far behind. He’d never been so thankful for Alaska’s odd sunlight hours—somehow he just needed to see daylight right then.

  The miles passed quickly as they approached the lodge. “Thank you again for the ride,” Clay said as the woman pulled into the front of the lodge. Two trooper cars were waiting, as was Noah’s Moose Haven cruiser and one other.

  The driver whistled. “Backup is waiting, huh?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “You keep saying ‘ma’am.’ Where are you from? Not here.” She turned to Clay.

  “Georgia.”

  She smiled. “I guessed the South somewhere from that accent. My husband and I are originally from Athens.”

  “Go Dawgs.” Clay smiled as he mentioned what was arguably the state’s favorite football team, headquartered at the University of Georgia in Athens.

  “Go Dawgs,” she agreed. “You keep this woman safe, okay?”

  “I’ll do the best I can,” Clay promised and they climbed out.

  She drove away and they walked toward the entrance to the lodge. They were met by a swarm of law enforcement, a paramedic and Summer’s family, all of them surrounding them, engulfing them.

  Tyler grabbed Summer as soon as he saw her, hugged her tight the way Clay wished he had a right to.

  “I’ll be okay. Really,” she said with a sniff.

  Clay believed it was true. About all of it. The woman was strong, maybe the strongest he’d ever met. And certainly much stronger or braver than she knew.

  If they could keep her safe for just a while longer. This guy was bound to mess up eventually, leave some evidence they could use. For all Clay knew, he might have left some already back where he’d shot at them along the highway and the creek. He’d have to have Summer give the troopers her best estimate of exactly where they’d been when the shooting had taken place. Maybe this would be the key to closing the case—and Summer not needing his protection anymore.

  *

  “I know you must be exhausted,” Erynn Cooper said to Summer.

  “I am.” Summer’s eyes were dry and it was getting harder to keep her eyelids open. At least the troopers had let an EMT see to her leg wound first. As she’d suspected it was only a graze, though a bit of a nasty one. She’d gotten worse gashes falling down scree slopes on mountains before though, so she knew she could handle it. Summer yawned. She supposed she should just be thankful that she’d had the burst of energy that enabled her to run so much that night without any rest.

  “But I’ve got to talk to you now and get some answers while things are still fresh in your mind.” Her voice was apologetic.

  “Just ask her the questions, Erynn. Don’t waste her time,” Noah snapped as he walked up.

  “Noah.”

  “I’m sorry.” He looked at Summer, then at Erynn. “Sorry, Erynn.”

  “I get it, she’s your sister. But you’ve got to keep it together if you’re going to help her at all. Not to mention if you want to be part of this investigation with how close you are to it.”

  Summer looked at her brother, who’d raised his eyebrows. “I’m the police chief of a town who’s had a murder and an attempted murder in the last week. I’m staying on this case.”

  “She’s your sister. Do you really have the right to ignore that connection and how it might be affecting you?”

  “It’s a small town. We’re all connected somehow. It wouldn’t make sense for me not to be on it. And I don’t technically report to you, I’d like to remind you.”

  Summer looked back at Erynn, exhausted but still awake enough to be slightly amused by the familiar tension and banter between her brother and the other law enforcement officer.

  “Let’s focus on your sister and not jurisdiction, alright? I’m sorry I said anything.” She looked back at Summer. “Can you tell me what happened yesterday in your own words, starting from the beginning?”

  “I can. You know about the breakin here…”

  “It was more than that. It was attempted kidnapping,” Noah interjected.

  Summer shuddered.

  “We all know, Noah.” Erynn spoke softly, her eyes never leaving Summer. “Keep going.”

  Summer knew her brother was getting testy because he was so concerned, and appreciated Erynn ignoring his displays of crankiness. She also appreciated Erynn’s quiet voice. Her head was starting to hurt a little. Lack of sleep and dehydration, she guessed.

  With that in mind, she reached for the water bottle Clay had brought her before he’d been taken in another direction to give his statement. Summer wished they hadn’t been split up, but she supposed she understood why they’d all want to talk to the two of them separately, see if their stories had any differences or if they’d both noticed the same details.

  She took a long drink and then looked up. “Clay and I went to Anchorage because…” She hesitated. Neither of them was technically supposed to be investigating so she wasn’t sure how to phrase what their intentions had been without giving that away. Noah had been the one to suggest they talk to APD, but Summer still feared if she phrased it wrong they’d know she’d been investigating. “We felt like the case had reached a dead end and hoped talking to the officers at APD might help, since they’ve been working the case longer.” There, that was vague but true.

  Erynn nodded.

  “They had nothing and then we were run off the road while we were driving in
Anchorage. We didn’t feel safe staying in town so we headed back to Moose Haven. We’d been driving awhile outside Turnagain Pass—”

  “Can you guess how far?”

  “I’m not sure. We’d crossed Silvertip Creek but hadn’t reached the Canyon Creek rest area yet. That’s the best I can tell you.” Even when they’d gotten into the car earlier, it had taken Summer about twenty minutes to focus and realize she should have been paying attention when they passed landmarks to give herself a better idea of exactly where they’d been. Thankfully if someone drove her back, she believed she should be able to pinpoint their location fairly accurately. Mountain trails tended to imprint themselves on her memory.

  “That’s pretty good. That’s the area troopers went to just now after they got Clay’s call.”

  Summer thought again about how he’d been genuinely concerned for the well-being of the man who’d been after them. Something about that messed with her mind. What a weird balance a man in his line of work—former line of work, technically—had to maintain, between justice and mercy. Summer wasn’t sure she could keep both of them in mind like that so well.

  “We’d slowed down, I think. I was asleep, but when I woke up we were almost stopped, so I assume Clay had slowed. There were construction cones, I do remember that, so maybe that was some kind of setup.”

  “Extremely likely, I’d say based on gut instinct, but we should know more when the team out there is finished investigating.”

  “The man shot at us, at the tires, I think, and then Clay told me to get out and run, so I did.”

  “And you ran for how long?”

  “I have no idea. Miles? Hours?” She shook her head. “It’s hard to think about either when you know someone behind you has a gun and wants you dead. Maybe Clay will know. I do know we stopped eventually, near a large canyon wall-type area of Six Mile Creek. Clay thought we should rest a bit, I think he’d planned on at least me getting some sleep, though that didn’t happen. He was hoping to reach either the Hope Cutoff or the Seward Highway, whichever made more sense to get to, to get help.”