The Cave

by Amanda McKinney

  He watched her shrug on a blue backpack that was half her weight, and sweep her braid to the side.

  No-nonsense.

  Her gaze flickered to him again, as it had done a dozen times since she’d stepped out of her SUV. Subtle, stolen glances laced with questions—or interest, perhaps. He wasn’t sure.

  But something inside him wanted to find out.

  “What do you think?” Eyeing the excavation team, Quinn Colson slid into his backpack and stepped beside Owen.

  “She’s still got her spots.”

  “Agreed. Supposed to be one of the best around though.”

  Let’s hope so.

  Quinn leaned in. “Five bucks she’s the only one who makes it to the bones.”

  Owen narrowed his eyes. “Nope, the intern has something to prove. Five bucks he makes it, too.”

  “You’re on. The pathologist will be crying for her mommy midway through. Wait and see.”

  Owen watched Sadie stride across the clearing. Griffin wasn’t the only one with something to prove.

  “Ready?” Crawly hollered from the trailhead.

  “Not bad to look at though, I’ll say that,” Quinn slapped him on the back with a chuckle, then walked away.

  No, not bad to look at, at all.

  Owen held back as the team passed, and after pulling on his own pack and checking his Glock, he brought up the rear.

  Dead leaves and pine needles crunched underneath their feet as they fell into a single file line with Crawly, Tucker, and Colson up front, and Sadie leading Griffin and Kimi. A worn path—mostly from Owen—led the way through the dense woods, with underbrush almost as thick as the canopy of trees above, acting as a blanket, blocking the sun and dimming the waning light of day. He and Quinn had cleared the path of big rocks and branches, but it was still rocky terrain—ideal for twisting an ankle.

  He glanced at Kimi’s hiking boots—straight out of the box. She was the one he needed to watch out for.

  Sadie spoke up, addressing Crawly, “It’s my understanding the medical examiner estimated the bones to be less than a year old, correct?”

  “’Round there. Even less than that, she implied, anyway.”

  “Anyone reported missing in the cave during that time?”

  Owen’s gaze darted to the sheriff, who hesitated.

  “Not in Crypts Cavern,” Crawly said with a tone that did more than suggest that there was more to that story. Owen bit the inside of his cheek as they walked in silence a moment. Sadie didn’t know the half of it, and he intended to keep it that way. For now, at least.

  Sadie glanced back at Griffin with an expression that told him she’d picked up on the immediate tension. Her gaze slid to him, before turning back around.

  Dr. Hart didn’t miss much.

  “So, what about the anarchy angle?” Griffin readjusted his pack as they climbed over a fallen tree.

  “No anarchist reported missing in the cave,” the sarcasm thick in Crawly’s voice.

  Griffin looked at Kimi and rolled his eyes, not bothering to hide his distaste for Carroll County’s finest—which knocked the kid up a few notches in Owen’s opinion.

  “I meant, are there any notable groups around here?”

  “Not that they’d advertise. This is the Bible Belt, after all. We’ve got a few groups we’re looking at, but step one is your analysis of the bones.”

  “Anarchists typically wouldn’t hide in the shadows,” Kimi said. “In fact, I’d think it’d be the exact opposite. It’s a movement to a lot of people—not something they do behind closed doors.”

  Griffin looked over his shoulder and winked. “And here I thought you were Baptist.”

  “No, she’s right.” Deputy Tucker chimed in. “Anarchists are typically vocal about their disdain for hierarchy, God, law enforcement, whatever. They rebel against authority and more often than not believe violence is justified to those who believe in law and order.”

  Quinn glanced back, met Owen’s gaze, then turned back.

  “It’s typically someone who hates control and fights for freedom, as they see it. It’s a common grassroots belief in many anti-government groups, militia groups, terrorist cells.”

  “They thrive on chaos.” Quinn nodded. “Chaos, to them, is freedom. Do what you want, kind of deal.”

  “Punk-ass misguided kids looking to make a reason for their selfish ways.” Crawly grumbled.

  “Misguided youth is the foundation of terrorist groups,” Sadie said.

  Owen watched her scan the woods around her, her brow knit in deep thought, her full, pink lips pinched. She moved through the woods easily, eyes up, confident, with an awareness about her usually reserved for his buddies in the military.

  “Any Native American anarchist groups in the area?” Griffin asked.

  “Ah, you’ve heard the legends.” The sheriff glanced back with a smirk. “Not that we know of.”

  “You said there’s been divers in the lake, right? Did they find anything? Bones?” Kimi stumbled on a rock and caught herself on a tree.

  Owen watched Griffin shoot a grin back at Sadie as she shook her head. They were a close team, but it was no doubt Sadie was the leader. No pissing matches there.

  “No bones, but don’t think for two seconds that the town isn’t already dying to know if the bones are Native American or not.”

  “Gossips have already said it’s Atohi’s tribe, or his ancestors,” Quinn looked back grinning. “Limbs and all.”

  “Okay guys, the terrain gets rough up here.”

  Sadie, Griffin, and Kimi both craned to see the front of the line. Up ahead, a drop-off that marked a steep ravine with jagged rocks, fallen limbs and slick moss. Owen had climbed down it more times than he could count as a kid and could do it with his eyes closed now, but the thirty foot almost vertical drop would no doubt pose a challenge to hikers who spent most of their time in labs.

  Crawly shouted over his shoulder, “We’ll have to hike down this afternoon, but I’m getting a rope bridge secured by tonight for your guys.” He stopped at the edge of the ravine. “Colson and I will go down first and help y’all down. It’s not too bad, plenty of tree roots and crevices to grip onto. Just go slow. Grayson, you got the rear?”

  Yeah—his gaze slid down Sadie’s back—I’ve got the rear.

  They gathered at the edge of the ravine while Colson, Crawly, and Tucker descended down, using the branches and roots for balance.

  “So, you were with the Coast Guard?” Kimi stepped next to him as they watched the men carefully maneuver the rocks.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Griffin shot him a look, followed by a glance from Sadie.

  “A rescue swimmer?”

  He nodded.

  “You’ve got the shoulders.”

  Another glance from Sadie, but this time, a tug at the corner of her lips. Those lips. A breeze blew a rogue strand of hair across her face. She swept it back, her bright blue eyes twinkling in the sunlight.

  Kimi continued, “My dad was a swimmer. Same build.”

  “Why’d you get out?” Griffin asked, inching closer to Kimi.

  Owen glanced down the ravine. He never was a fan of small-talk, especially when it involved his father. “Timing.”

  “Timing?”

  “Alright,” he said as Quinn and Tucker reached the bottom, thankful to be returning to the subject at hand. “Who’s first?”

  “I’ll go.” The kid with something to prove stepped up to the edge, his manliness priority one.

  Crawly had positioned himself on a large bolder in the middle of the ravine, ready to help if needed… or watch Sadie’s ass the entire way down. Fucker.

  “There’s foot holds all the way down. Hold onto the branches and roots for stability.”

  “Got it,” Griffin grunted as he turned and began climbing down.

  Kimi stepped up next.

  “As soon as he reaches Crawly, you’ll head down.”

  She nodded, focusing on the trees past
the ravine, instead of him. He followed her gaze for a moment, into the miles and miles of dense forest that surrounded them, wondering what had pulled her attention.

  “Alright, next!” Crawly called up as Griffin passed his location.

  “Kimi, you’re up.”

  Kimi blinked, the distance behind those brown eyes refocusing to the present. “Sorry, okay, yeah.” She gripped his hand, and he guided her down past the steepest dip.

  “Grab here, then here. Good job.”

  When he was sure Kimi had found her bearings, he climbed back up. Sadie gripped the straps of her backpack as she watched her team zigzag down the ravine. She avoided his eye contact. Confident to steal glances in a group, but locks up one-on-one? Challenge accepted.

  “You ready?” He asked, excited to get his hands on her.

  Her focus remained on her team, unaware he’d just spoken to her. The woman had been staring heat waves of interest into him minutes earlier, but now, total ice queen.

  What the hell?

  He frowned, noticing her rigid stance, her quickened breaths, her right foot hooked under a rock.

  And then it hit him.

  Sadie was scared of heights.

  He fought the chuckle threatening to bubble up. He couldn’t help it. It surprised him.

  He cleared his throat. “Dr. Hart—”

  “Sadie.” She snapped.

  Jesus.

  “Uh, Sadie, okay. You ready to head down?”

  Her tongue rolled along the side of her cheek as she stared at the valley, still as a statue, except for the rapid rise and fall of her chest.

  Scared was an understatement. This chick was terrified.

  Dammit.

  His training kicked in as the playful glances they’d exchanged earlier faded to the background. He stepped closer.

  “Sadie,” he lowered his voice and spoke slowly as he would to a preschooler. “We have a heights issue here, don’t we?”

  Her neck snapped to him like a Cobra striking, her eyes narrowed, ready to fight. “Heights issue?” Her tone was high, her words quick, and he knew her adrenaline was pumping a mile a minute. She looked back down at the rocks.

  “It’s okay. I’m going to be with you the entire time, okay?”

  “No, no, it’s okay. I can do it.” Her voice shook.

  “Well,” he casually shrugged, “I’ve got to get down myself, anyway, so…”

  Her hand darted out and gripped his arm. She looked at him, a desperate plea in her eye. “Look. No one knows, okay?”

  “No one knows what?”

  “You know…” she nodded to the ravine.

  “That you have a fear of heights.”

  “Shhh.” She hissed. As if everyone could hear them down below.

  “Your team doesn’t know?”

  “Right. I… don’t want them to know. God.” She closed her eyes. “It’s so stupid. I can’t believe…”

  “It’s not stupid. Fear of heights is one of the most common phobias, followed by public speaking.”

  “Oh. Well, that I can do in spades.”

  Yeah, he had no doubt this woman could mesmerize a crowd for hours.

  “This you can do, too.”

  She inhaled, held, then blew it out and looked below, still gripping his arm. “I think they know something’s up.”

  He glanced down at Colson, Tucker, Griffin, and Kimi who were at the bottom, and then at Crawly in the middle, staring up with a what-the-fuck look on his face.

  “No they don’t, but hey, if you need some time, I can tell them to go on and we’ll catch up. Hell, I can go back to my truck and get ropes and you can just ride the breeze down if you want. No big deal. This isn’t a big deal.”

  The words seem to hit her. “You’re right. This isn’t a big deal.” She squared her shoulders and narrowed her eyes, her chin jetting out like a little girl forcing herself up after a fall from her bicycle. “Let’s do this.”

  He couldn’t fight the grin this time. Cute was quickly mixing with her sex factor.

  “Good girl. Alright, give me your pack.”

  “What? No.”

  “It’ll be easier to climb down without it.” He reached forward—

  “You remove this pack, I’ll remove that hand.”

  Cute like a rattlesnake. His grin widened. “Alrighty, then. Okay, I’m going to go down a few feet first, like I did with Kimi, and I’ll inch you down little by little. The key here is to take it slow. There’s no rush. Screw them. Alright, here I go, okay?”

  She nodded, her nostrils flaring as she inhaled.

  He kept his eyes on her as he lowered himself past the first tree, its roots snarling along the jagged edges, then past the steepest dip. Then, he locked his foot in a crevice.

  “Okay, Sadie, it’s go time.”

  “Go time,” she repeated in a whisper, her skin pale as a ghost now.

  “You got this. Hey. Hey.” He waited until she looked at him. “You’ve got this.”

  She continued incessantly nodding—like a neurotic tick—as she turned and squatted, and it took every bit of his restraint not to reach up and pinch the thing.

  “Grab the rock in front of you there, yes… good job, now, step down…”

  No step down.

  “Step down onto the ledge.”

  No step. Sadie was frozen like a toy fireman locked in a ladder-climbing position.

  “Sadie. Step down.”

  Nada.

  Fuck.

  He took a second to assess the footholds, then shifted his weight and shimmied onto a ledge that was barely wide enough to hold his big toe. After confirming it was free of moss—thank God—he released his weight, grabbed onto a tree root and placed his hand on the small of her back.

  “I’ve got you now.” He edged closer and wrapped his arm around her waist—a tiny, deliciously curvy waist—and gripped. “I’ve got you. Step down.”

  Her body trembled, every vibration pulsing against his skin like some erotic aftershock of an earth-shattering orgasm. He wished.

  “I’ve got you,” he whispered in her ear. “You’re safe.” He lingered a moment, fighting the urge to trace his tongue down the porcelain lobe. The trembling eased, then, in slow motion, she lowered down onto the first ledge.

  A couple of cheers sounded from below but she didn’t flinch. Hell, he doubted if she even heard it. Sadie was in the zone—exactly where he wanted her to be. Well, besides in his bed.

  “Good job, Sadie.” He caught a scent of her perfume. Light, understated, fresh. Sexy.

  “Oh my God. This is crazy…” she whispered, as if to no one in particular.

  “Hey…” he whispered back.

  Sadie turned her head, her face an inch from his. Her big, blue eyes locked on his, panic melting into a touch of surprise as she stared back. It was as if time stood still for a moment. A lump caught in his throat as he opened his mouth, and instead of saying whatever the hell he had planned to, he searched her face as she did the same.

  Holy hell.

  She ran her tongue across her lips and his zipper almost popped open.

  Pink flushed her pale cheeks, then, as if pulling an ice-cold beer away from him in the middle of the Super Bowl, she looked away, leaving him… surprised, confused… and wanting more of whatever the fuck just happened between them.

  “What?” Sadie asked quietly, staring at the rocks two inches from her nose.

  “What?”

  “You said hey.”

  “Oh.” What the fuck was he going to say? “Uhh, just… good first step, let’s keep going.”

  She nodded, that tongue of hers darting around her cheek again. A nervous tick apparently, and also, an uncontrollable force that wiped every bit of his good sense away.

  “Alright, right foot, next step. I’ve got you.”

  She nodded, and this time, moved a nanosecond faster than before. Progress.

  Baby steps.

  Keep up the rhythm.

  “Okay, now le
ft.” He kept his arm around her to prevent another wax figure freeze scenario. And also, because he liked the feel of her body pressed against his.

  She descended with him, each movement smoother than the last.

  Keep the movement fluid, the mind busy.

  “So, you do a lot of public speaking?”

  A handful of seconds of dead air ticked by.

  “Usually, yes. Conferences, colleges. God, Owen—Owen, right?”

  Ouch. “Right.”

  “I am so freaking embarrassed.” She shook her head. “This is… I’m usually not this bad. I mean, if I’m not in the lab, I’m working outside, on cases just like this. I’ve hiked my whole damn life.”

  Her tone was changing from terrified schoolgirl to utterly pissed off.

  “Don’t worry about it. Sometimes phobias creep up on you. Trust me, I’ve seen it.”

  “You have?”

  “Absolutely. We do a lot of jumping out of helos…”

  She cut him a glance laced with annoyance.

  “Okay, bad visual. Anyway, it’s part of our job. We train hundreds of hours for missions like that. I’ve seen grown men, who have jumped dozens of times, completely freeze up for no reason. Begin questioning everything they’d learned, every mission they’d run. Everything.”

  She nodded, the white of her knuckles starting to resemble flesh again.

  Good.

  He continued, “It happens. Even in front of your team.”

  She rolled her eyes at herself. “Yeah, but I’m betting you didn’t have to cradle your team members like babies like you are with me. I’ll never live this down.”

  “Well, it’d be hard to cradle when jumping out of… you know.” Pause. “But can I tell you a secret?”

  Another glance, this time with perfectly sculpted eyebrows popped.

  “If I were standing behind a podium with a microphone in my mouth, I’d need to be more than cradled, Dr. Hart.”