Padding barefoot to his side, they stood together outside the tent. He turned and smiled at her, and her toes curled. At least her feet had thawed, and she smiled back. The pain had grown manageable, though she hopped foot to foot.
Jacob held her injured hand as if it would break, then expertly bandaged her palm. Cocooned in the rescue blanket, tears leaked down her cheeks as the love she felt for this man welled up. Jacob’s concern crossed his face in the form of arched eyebrows and an open mouth.
“Calm down, my love. You’ve survived a horrible ordeal, and we’ll get you home safe.” He pressed a kiss to her bandaged palm. “Did I hurt you, honey?”
Honey? My love?
The cold and pain forgotten, Destiny let the blanket fall and threw both arms around his neck. His encircled her as he dragged her into an amorous embrace. They stood beside the cliff, watching the sun rise higher in the sky. Jacob and Destiny cuddled in each other’s warmth until a horrific scream interrupted their passionate interlude.
CHAPTER 21
“I’ll kill you both!”
Destiny turned toward the bloody hulk lunging toward them. She screamed, while Jacob dove to his right. The attacker headed straight at her, and Jacob kicked out his good leg, pushing her to safety. Destiny rolled out of the way, while Jacob swung his bad leg up the moment the bloody form stumbled closer. Their attacker fell flat on his face.
Both men stumbled to their feet. Amid growls and slamming fists, she watched, terrified, as her lover grabbed the bastard and spun. Round and round they circled until the momentum caused their unwelcome guest to fly over the edge of the cliff.
Again.
Jacob collapsed to the ground. Exertion shook his obviously pain-wracked body, but he managed to crawl to her side. He looked dazed and possibly in shock. Her fingers swept over his face, then slid lower to probe his knee. When he bit his lip and pushed her hand aside, she leaned in and kissed his bloodied mouth.
He stood. When he noticed her naked body, his eyes widened. She ignored her own state of undress to stare up at him with renewed horror at what had just happened. He grabbed the discarded blanket, as she pointed toward the cliff.
“Is he gone?”
Jacob nodded, and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. With one arm cradling her elbow, they inched closer to the edge. Craning their necks, both peered straight down. The bastard’s carcass lay more than fifty feet below, sprawled at a gruesome angle on a small granite outcropping.
“Now,” Jacob whispered, “I believe he is dead.”
Unable to suppress the urge, Destiny giggled. His face turned in her direction and he stared. A smile formed when he realized what he’d said. Crinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes, slamming her with the realization of how much she’d missed him.
“I’ll go get dressed. I think my clothes are dry enough. Let’s go home.” Destiny grabbed the jeans then dug out clean underwear and dry socks from her pack. She pulled on her hiking boots while he folded the tent. She stood still as Jacob tied cast-off bits of rock-climbing rope around her to keep her torn ski jacket closed.
She accepted the offered bottle of water. He slit open the bag of granola, and they ate and drank in silence while she contemplated reaching the safety of her small home. Would Jacob stay with her?
When they finished eating, they started down the trail. Her cheeks were cold, and her entire body shook with the exertion of each slippery step. They had a long way to go, and she had no idea how she’d make it. She appreciated how Jacob clung to her, offering a little more body heat and all his strength.
Time moved at a snail’s pace, as did they. Jacob voiced his concern for her feet, but she’d insisted they had improved. Her boots, still damp, offered support. The bandage on her palm staunched the bleeding, and the blanket preserved the heat generated with each step. He’d slipped his gloves on her hands, and his knit hat—make that her hat—on her head.
They made their way through a forest filled with singing birds and twittering squirrels. Pine scent drifted on clean mountain air, sweeping away the recent odor of mud and blood. Night terrors had given way to the hope of a new dawn. Brilliant beams of sunlight pierced the treetops and made the trail easier to navigate.
“I have no idea what time it is,” Destiny said, “but I’m so happy. I’m still frozen in some places, bleeding from others, but I don’t care.”
“I’ll drink to that, but I’d rather down a hot cup of coffee.” His whispered words did little to comfort her, as she thought of the long trek that lay ahead.
***
Jacob wanted to add that the man who walked by her side loved her, but he bit his tongue. He’d fallen in love with her, but fear overcame hope while he realized he had no idea if she felt the same. If so, what would happen next?
Before he figured how to bring up the subject, a whoop-whoop sounded far above their heads. He craned his neck to look straight up through the branches of scraggly pine trees then squinted.
“That sounds like a helicopter. Perhaps someone did find my note.”
“Note? What note?”
“Your phone was dead, so I left a note on your counter in case someone came looking.”
“You’re telling me you had the foresight to calmly scribble a note before venturing out in the darkness to rescue me?”
“Sure. I don’t make a habit of running through the dark to save damsels in distress, but the cop in me always asks for back-up.”
“Right now, officer, I’d settle for my own bed. We can talk about all this later, though one question keeps nagging me. I want an answer.”
“To what?”
“Why are you here, Jacob?” She halted, almost pulling him off his feet.
Regaining his balance, Jacob stared at her face, where sunlight sparkled on wet lashes. He bent low and covered her mouth with his. Her cracked lips seemed softer and warmer, and he lost himself in the comfort of her proximity.
She sighed and opened her sweet mouth. His eager tongue plunged inside. When he released her, pure heat flickered in her wide-open eyes.
“Wow. My toes curled inside my hiking boots. Not a very comfortable feeling, but your kiss made up for it. I’m not so cold anymore,” she mumbled. “In fact, I can feel everything. My heart’s pounding and my stomach is churning with a warm feeling deep inside. It’s all because of you, Jacob.”
Before he could form a coherent response, barking sounded from somewhere down the trail.
“Is that a dog?” Destiny asked, pressing deeper into his embrace.
“It sounds like more than one dog.”
Authoritative voices called to the animals, followed by the low rumble of a motorized vehicle.
“Do you think someone sent a search party?”
“Let’s hope. We’re here! Help us!” Jacob yelled. Two graceful black-and-tan German Shepherds appeared. The dogs circled them, and barked, baring two sets of long, sharp teeth. Jacob held Destiny motionless with his arms around her waist.
Destiny moaned and slumped in his embrace. With her weakened voice she managed to whisper, “We’re saved.”
***
“Attention Fire Six-E-One with ambulance Six-A-One, medical emergency on the mountain. Possibly three patients on Wolf Rock Trail. Stage at trailhead and wait. PD on scene, scene is not secure. I repeat. Scene is not secure.”
The transmission ended and Josie threw on her bright blue parka emblazoned on the back with Fairfield Paramedic. Opening the side door to the ambulance, she threw other gear on the long bench seat and quickly counted backboards.
“All boards accounted for. Too bad I’m short one partner.” Pete was late, again, and she hadn’t seen him since he bothered Destiny at last night’s potluck supper.
She jumped in the driver’s seat and punched the garage door opener. Several firefighters swooped in through the rising door. She considered grabbing one of the men also trained as an emergency medical technician. With three possible patients, she wanted Pete and his superior ski
lls, but he wasn’t here.
He has the reputation of an alley cat but he’s the best paramedic in town.
She’d heard the police had called him in for questioning. She wasn’t supposed to know, but gossip swept easily through small towns. When someone of Pete’s reputation disappeared inside the police station, word spread. She’d heard cops were busy rounding up possible suspects in the murder of that college student. If they arrested him, wouldn’t someone let her know?
As she sat in the idling ambulance weighing her choices, Pete trotted in through the open bay door and jumped in beside her. She held back a smile then eased the ambulance out onto Main Street. With lights and siren blaring, the ambulance careened around a corner and headed toward the Wolf Rock Trailhead.
“What have we got?” Pete yelled over the siren.
Josie glanced his way and ignored possible reasons for his breathlessness. He ran a hand through his disheveled sandy blond hair while he stared straight ahead. Whether he’d talked to the cops again or had slipped from some woman’s bed, he should have been at the firehouse at seven.
Like me.
“Dispatch said three patients on the mountain. I can’t think why anyone would be up there in this cold or at this time of day in November. It snowed last night, too. Even hikers wait until the sun gets higher.”
“What else did they report?”
“The police are already on scene. We have to stage at the trailhead. Guess we’ll have to wait and see. Hope we don’t wait too long. I’m starving.”
“You’re always hungry. I’d think after last night’s feast, you wouldn’t have to eat until Monday!” Pete laughed aloud.
“Not funny.” She bit her lip to keep from responding further. Fuming at Pete’s insensitivity about her appetite, she drove into the parking area at a crawl and maneuvered the ambulance out of the way. She snapped off the siren, but left the flashing emergency lights on.
“Leave the engine running to heat up the back compartment. If our patients are hypothermic, they’ll need the warmth.” After barking orders, Pete busied himself setting up needed medical supplies in the back.
Josie unbuckled her seatbelt and stared at three town patrol cars, two state police cars, two K-Nine units, and a Fish and Game department truck.
A familiar police officer stood near the truck and he acknowledged her as she climbed from her rig. He seemed to falter before he walked over to talk.
“Hey Jimmy. What have we got so early this morning?”
He was good company when he came over to the firehouse to share lunch. Sometimes Pete walked in and caught them talking. Pete looked jealous at those times, which gave her hope. Unfortunately, Pete pretty much ignored her the rest of the time.
His hesitant steps made her skin crawl.
Something’s up.
“The station got a scare this morning. Tilly Johnson drove into a snow bank near the PD parking lot then jumped out of this big ol’ Land Rover yelling for help. Took several minutes to calm her down and find out what she was screaming about.”
“Oh my goodness. What was the problem?”
“She shoved a piece of paper into the Captain’s hands. Seems a professor from the college wrote it,” he paused. “Tilly found it at Destiny Blake’s cabin.”
Josie felt all color drain from her face. A chill raced down her spine the moment his words sunk in.
“What happened at Destiny’s cabin?”
Jimmy looked right at her, paused again, then laid it out for her. “Someone broke down her front door and forced their way in,” he gulped, “someone with large footprints. Destiny and the intruder ran up the mountain. The note said he followed them up Wolf Rock Trail. The note was dated very early this morning, sometime after midnight.”
“Crap. What’s going on right now, Jimmy? Dispatch said we might have three patients on the mountain. You must know something. Tell me, damn it!” Tears threatened as she choked back a sob. She refused to cry. If someone was hurt, she had to be ready to help, not stand around sobbing like a little girl.
“Fish and Game and the K-Nine officers went up the mountain on an all-terrain and radioed in that they found three people,” again Jimmy paused.
“What? Tell me.”
“Josie,” he whispered, “There’s been a fatality.”
CHAPTER 22
“Who is dead? Please Jimmy, I need to know. Is Destiny still alive?”
“The deceased is a young male, and that’s all I am allowed to say at this point. It appears he plunged from the top of Falcon Ridge.” Jimmy put his arm around her.
“What about Destiny?” she asked, collapsing into his embrace, gaining comfort and strength.
“The other two are being escorted down the trail. Last report said they’re in bad shape, but very much alive.”
He pulled her close and she silently wept in his embrace. Wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her uniform, she caught a glimpse of her partner, Pete as he stepped down from the ambulance and then stopped dead in his tracks.
Why is he staring at us?
***
When Pete spied Josie in Officer Franklin’s arms, his gut wrenched with a pang of jealously “What’s up with that?” At times, when he found the two together at the firehouse sharing a meal, he usually ignored weird feelings, where Josie Miller was concerned. Truth be known, even those innocent scenarios made his chest clench.
Now here they are, embracing in broad daylight.
Forcing his legs to respond, he sauntered over to them, feigning disinterest. He stared at the trailhead. Locking his thumbs inside the front pockets of his uniform, he rocked on his heels.
“How’s the wife, Jimmy boy?” Pete said, but continued to stare straight ahead. Jimmy quickly lowered his arm and gave Pete a steely gaze.
“My family is just fine, Thayer. Maybe you should settle down and find you one woman to love. Most nights I see your car parked all over town. Juggling all those hearts seems like an awful lot of work.” Jimmy paused, kissed Josie on the forehead, and headed toward other officers who waited by the trailhead.
“Bastard,” Pete said as he dug a booted toe into the mud. He turned to look at Josie and froze. Her tear-stained face stole his breath. “What did he do to you?”
He pulled her to his chest and wrapped both arms around her as she sobbed. When she swallowed back the tears and sighed, he closed his eyes and hoped she’d surrender to the pleasure of being in his arms. Her solid form, pressing against his, felt so good.
“Jimmy is a friend. He relayed awful news, then offered comfort and a shoulder to cry on. That’s all. Why were you so mad at him?” She pulled back slightly and looked at him with swollen eyes.
“I thought he was hitting on you, Josie. He had no right ‘cause he’s married. Besides…” he paused, “I want to be the one to comfort you when bad things happen. We’re partners, right?”
When she smiled the moment his words hit home, wonderful urges flowed through him. He wanted to explore these feelings more deeply. Too bad duty called.
“Jimmy said Destiny Blake is one of the patients being brought down the mountain,” she sobbed. “She’s alive, but injured. Another man is dead.”
Pete held her tightly. An image of Josie’s beautiful friend slipped into his mind, but all thoughts of her soon faded. Standing here, with Josie in his arms, he realized he no longer wanted to pursue Destiny.
An all-terrain’s high-pitched engine rumbled as the vehicle appeared on the trail. It sailed past the trees and into the clearing. Pete looked up while Josie struggled to quiet her sobs. The two passengers had a clear view of Josie wrapped in his arms. As Pete set Josie aside, he glimpsed a slight smile on Destiny’s blue-tinged lips right before she slumped sideways. The man sitting beside her held her limp form to his chest as the vehicle pulled to a stop near the ambulance.
“She’s passed out! Hurry!” the stranger pleaded.
***
Two uniformed medics sprinted toward Jacob. As the blond-haired ma
n examined the unconscious Destiny in Jacob’s lap, he barked orders at his partner. The female paramedic returned to the ambulance, threw open the back doors, and tugged on the stretcher. Pulling and cursing as she dragged it through the mud, she reached the patient in short order. Jacob helped them transfer Destiny’s limp body to the stretcher.
With tears stinging his eyes, he hopped back a step so they had room to strap her in before they ran back to the ambulance. Jacob hopped after them. They lifted Destiny and the stretcher into the warm cavity of the ambulance. The man climbed inside, but when the woman shut the doors, Jacob yelled, “Let me in!”
She turned to him, and then pressed a hand in the middle of his chest. Jacob lost his balance and fell against the back bumper.
“Sir, are you injured?”
Jacob nodded and then held back a curse when she pointed toward the side door. Three steps stood in his way.
“Let me help.”
Those three simple words blanketed his achy body with a tranquil mantle of calm. He let her assist him up the stairs.
“I’ve crushed my left leg, exacerbating a recent injury. I’m very cold, but never mind about me. What’s going to happen to my Destiny?” he asked, nearly choking on the words.
The woman seemed taken aback. Had she noticed his claim on her patient?
“My partner is helping her, sir. She will get warm blankets and oxygen. Does she have any specific injuries?”
“Ah, her palm is split open. She lost a lot of blood, but I bandaged it. She’s frozen and might have internal injuries. That bastard who attacked us threw her to the ground, twice,” he explained before taking a deep breath and adding, “She fell over the edge of the cliff, but managed to climb up.”
Startled by the emotions surging inside his throbbing, pain-wracked body he barely reacted when the female medic pushed him down onto the bench seat. The limp body of Destiny lay inches away. The paramedic buckled the safety belt around his hips, then cupped his chin, forcing his face from Destiny to her.
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