Lightning flashed. Booming thunder knocked several campers to their knees. For an instant, blinding light illuminated the creekside.
“Oh, look.” Berdie released Aubrey’s hand to point at an open-sided A-frame. “Shelter.”
People scrambled to huddle under the roof, as gracious as panicked passengers on a sinking ship.
Madison held up her cell phone. “I’ve got a couple bars.”
That prompted everyone to pull out their phones. A dozen conversations ensued. Aubrey strained to pick up details. From the groans, she figured the news wasn’t good. Madison relayed that the two buses made it to camp. Unfortunately, Turquoise Lake had overflowed, swamping the narrow road to the parking lot. There was no way to rescue the rest of the campers tonight. At first light, Search and Rescue would come for them.
“Madison, may I borrow your phone?” Aubrey asked.
She held it out without hesitation. “Sure. I don’t have much power left.”
Aubrey dialed Grant’s phone, but got no answer. He probably didn’t have a signal. She held the phone for a moment, considering. If she called her mother and Bernie, Mom would light candles and send her spirit guides Aubrey’s way, then suffer a sleepless night of worry. If Aubrey called Grant’s parents, Garner might launch his own rescue force. Maybe it was better to let them think any unanswered calls meant she and Grant were having a great time. The kids could learn about their adventure after their rescue.
Or the recovery of their bodies.
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
One missed dinner, and Jeremiah’s coworkers made Berdie’s uncle Stockton seem like a reasonable guy. The rain slicker Jeremiah had given Madison was stocked with jerky, trail mix, and a water bladder. She had a similar stash in her daypack, only leaning more to the sweet side. Those who had neglected to prepare now expected the rest of the group to provide for them. Jeremiah was not inclined to share. A little hunger might drive the survival lessons home.
“How were we supposed to know we’d be stuck in the woods?” Fern asked.
“Are you crazy?” Madison asked. “That was the whole point of this camp. We aren’t responsible for those of you who weren’t paying attention.”
“Lighten up, Wilhelm,” Bender said. “Rescue is coming in the morning. Surely you can share your five hundred candy bars with the rest of us.”
He held out a hand, but Madison ignored him. Berdie crouched beside Jeremiah.
“You see how quickly they’ve degenerated from civilized people into marauding barbarians,” she whispered. “We have to be ready for anything.”
Berdie patted her side, and the telltale lump of a firearm. Jeremiah nodded.
“Locked and loaded,” he whispered. He inclined his head toward his vest, where his Smith & Wesson rested in an inner pocket.
A few saps relented and shared their food with the others. With hunger temporarily staved off, the group began a new discussion, full of whining and complaints.
“The bus ride here wasn’t that long.” Candace tugged Ellen’s spare hiking slacks over her short shorts. “It can’t be far to camp. We just follow the river, right?”
“Are you kidding?” Shirley asked. “There was a reason the road is on the other side of the creek. Didn’t you notice the cliffs on the drive here?”
“It’s not far as the crow flies,” Tweet said. “But we’re not crows.”
“I’m staying put until rescuers arrive,” Shirley said.
Berdie stood. “Quit arguing and help me get a fire going.” She pointed a finger at Shirley. “Any cracks about my firemaking skills and I use you for kindling.” Directing her words to the rest of the group, Berdie continued. “The light of a fire will draw in both stragglers and rescuers. We can boil water and make tea. Does anyone have instant coffee?”
There was a small stash of dry firewood under the A-frame, but it wouldn’t be enough for the entire night.
“Jeremiah,” Berdie continued, “please take charge of shoring up this shelter.”
“Pine boughs?” He pointed to the two open sides of the A-frame. “Wouldn’t take much to block out most of the rain and wind. Then I’ll get some dry wood.”
Jeremiah extracted a small hatchet from his daypack and removed the leather case protecting the sharp blade.
Madison shrugged out of the rain slicker and held it out. “You’ll need this.”
“Chopping wood will keep me warm. It’s still cold in here. You keep it.”
“I insist,” Madison said. “I’m a lot tougher than I look.”
Jeremiah had no doubt of her claim. Madison Wilhelm had more than proved herself.
Aubrey left ostensibly to search for firewood, but she wandered as far as she dared, shining her flashlight toward Gold Hill, hoping to signal the shelter’s location to any hikers out there, one of whom was her husband.
Pastor Olufemi approached with an armload of branches. “He will be okay.”
“Thanks,”Aubrey said, “but you don’t know that.”
“Perhaps I do. Whether or not he makes it back.”
Aubrey understood he was speaking in spiritual terms. That did nothing to ease her fears, and her lips trembled.
“Althea did not want me to come on this last challenge,” Omari said. “If I had listened to my wife, I would be back at camp, lounging in front of a warm fire inside a dry cabin.”
“I could have stayed behind, too. My job’s not at stake.” Aubrey wiped a damp sleeve across her face. “I wanted to keep an eye on Grant. I didn’t do so well at that.”
Omari chuckled. “We were all so anxious to keep our jobs and win a raise, and now we really are struggling for survival.”
Aubrey failed to see the humor. She stared into the darkness.
“I was angry when Grant partnered with Frank instead of me,” Aubrey said. “I vowed to myself that I wouldn’t treat my husband like Nel treated Stewart, but I couldn’t stop myself. What if those were our last words?”
“You felt abandoned,” Omari said. “It was natural for you to be upset. Grant is a Pinon Pine troop leader. He is well prepared to spend a night in the wilderness.”
Aubrey shivered as a thought insinuated itself into her mind. If Grant had to spend the night out there, he would not be alone. Veronica was with him. Omari finally convinced her to return to the safety of the shelter. When they dropped their wood under the A-frame, Shirley grabbed a branch.
“We can’t keep a bonfire going,” Berdie said. “There’s not enough dry wood.”
“But I’m freezing,” Shirley said.
“If the flames get much higher,” Jeremiah said, “it’ll catch our shelter on fire. Then we’ll be stuck out in the cold rain.”
The suggestion that things could get worse dampened conversation. A glum silence settled over the feeble campfire.
Aubrey was the first to see the wobbling glow of a handheld flashlight bobbing and sweeping, growing larger. She stood, wanting to run to see who it was, but fearing she would trip over a rock in the dark. As the light neared, Tweet noticed.
“Someone’s coming.”
When Grant ducked under the A-frame, Aubrey threw her arms around him. Sam straggled inside next, supporting Veronica. The sole of one of her expensive running sneakers flopped like a clown shoe. The three collapsed near the fire. The cranky campers enjoyed relief from obsessing about their own troubles as the newcomers shared their story.
“When the rain started pouring,” Sam said, “we found a mine shaft. A real one, not the open pits we’d mostly seen. We thought we could ride out the storm until morning, but then one wall started crumbling. Obviously we made it out okay, but it was close.”
“My shoe fell apart,” Veronica said. “The manufacturer owes me big time.” She wiggled her foot, making the sole slap up and down. “Maybe I should have thrown it away and gone barefoot like you, Sotheara. But the r
ocks hurt my feet.”
Sotheara dug her mud-crusted toes in the dirt. “Your feet get toughened up fast.”
“The one thing I didn’t bring was duct tape,” Grant said.
“I’ve got a roll,” Jeremiah said.
Indeed, in his woodland camouflage backpack, he had an entire roll of the heavy-duty silver tape. While Jeremiah wrapped Veronica’s shoe, she began her version of the story that Sam had just told. Aubrey and Grant snuck out of the A-frame. The rain had stopped. Damp earth and pine scented the crisp night air.
“I’m so glad you’re safe,” he said.
“I was worried sick,” Aubrey said. “Everyone else is either here or back in camp.”
“There was no cell phone signal on Gold Hill. I tried to call. All that stuff you were trying to tell me before—” Grant hesitated, glancing over his shoulder before continuing. “About Stewart’s death and Harv’s wreck not being accidents. Jessie’s concussion, then Doug being shot with an arrow. I had a hard time believing there was a killer in the camp. I believe you now.”
“Did you hear something?” A confession, Aubrey hoped.
“Saw. A rock nearly struck Bender. Rankin pushed him out of the way. Of course, Bender just got mad at Rankin. I caught a glimpse of someone on the hillside above us, but he, or she I suppose, disappeared before I could tell who it was.”
“Where was Candace?”
Grant frowned. “I couldn’t say. The trail was thick with boulders and scrub oak. Anyone could have been nearby.”
“Bender claimed someone tried to kill him when he fell in the mine pit, so when he started the same song and dance about being hit with a rock, people chalked it up to self-centered paranoia. We were more worried about Lavelle at the time. And then Rowdy.”
Aubrey filled Grant in on those incidents quickly.
“That explains the helicopter.” Grant pulled her into a hug. “This entire trip was a mistake.” He leaned back, studying Aubrey’s face, his green eyes teary. “When we get home, we’re doing some serious talking about our future.”
“If we have a future. We’re not out of this yet.”
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
Jeremiah doubted most of the campers realized how lucky they were to have found the A-frame shelter. The roof kept the rain off, and the small fire provided heat. It would be an uncomfortable few hours until the rescue they’d been promised, but they would survive. Just when Jeremiah thought his coworkers had achieved a state of kumbaya, another argument broke out.
“I’m sick of granola bars.” Shirley scanned the faces of people huddled around the fire. “Half of you are packing heat. How about shooting a deer?”
“Mmmm.” Sam licked his lips. “Nothing like wild game cooked over a campfire.”
“That’s disgusting,” Sotheara said.
“Rowdy made me lock my .22 in his gun cabinet,” Jeremiah said. “Otherwise I’d be happy to rustle up some squirrels.”
“That might be the only smart thing Rowdy did,” Fawn said.
“You’re not the only one with a gun.” Shirley focused on Rankin.
He scowled and turned away. Probably afraid he couldn’t hit a moving target. Shirley didn’t call out Bud. The old wrangler had his revolver strapped to his hip, in plain view. He had been deadly quiet since the challenge went sour. Although he didn’t appear to give a rat’s behind about anyone, Jeremiah gave him credit for staying with the group.
One other person carried a firearm, but Jeremiah wouldn’t out the woman with a cannibal ancestor. Under Omari’s expert laying on of guilt, those with food once again donated to those without. Jeremiah tossed in an energy bar, but he kept the jerky under wraps.
Bender pulled a silver flask from an inside jacket pocket. As he upended it, a single amber drop slipped past his gaping mouth and plopped onto the dirt.
“Who has liquor?” he asked.
Heads shook and people mumbled various forms of “no.”
“You’ve got to be kidding,” Bender said. “Out of this whole crew, no one thought to bring a bottle? A flask?”
“Try a cup of tea,” Sotheara said. “It’s chamomile.”
Bender slapped Sotheara’s hand away, spilling the tin cup of precious tea. When the girl’s eyes filled with tears, Jeremiah clenched his hands into fists. She might be an annoying foo-foo vegetarian, but she didn’t deserve Bender’s abuse.
“It takes a long time to boil water at this altitude,” Berdie said.
“I don’t need tea.” Bender struggled to his feet. “If I’m going to spend a miserable night without an adult beverage, I might as well be on foot, on my way to camp.”
“If we leave,” Omari said, “Search and Rescue will have a difficult time finding us in the morning.”
“They’ll find me at camp,” Bender said. “With a drink in my hand. Who’s with me?”
“I saw the trail on the map,” Tweet said. “It winds all over the place.”
“And the trail won’t be level,” Grant said. “There will be obstacles. Ravines and boulders. Hard hiking in daylight, and we’re in the dark.”
“I have a flashlight,” Candace said.
“Me, too.” Rankin pulled a penlight out of his pocket.
There was a long dangerous hike between the safety of the A-frame and the doubtful chance of reaching camp. Jeremiah watched as the group broke down the middle: those willing to wait for rescue, and those who insisted on bucking the survival odds by leaving. When Madison picked up her pack, Jeremiah stepped in front of her.
“Whoa. What do you think you’re doing?”
“Going to camp.”
Jeremiah shook his head. “There’s no telling what could happen out there.”
Madison frowned, but not in an “I’m angry” kind of way. More like an “I’m thinking” expression creased her brow.
“I’ll stay,” she finally said. “On one condition. If my team goes, I go. Deal?”
That was a no-brainer. Berdie Placer would make the right choice.
“Deal.”
Half a dozen people clustered near Omari and Berdie like chicks seeking shelter under a hen’s wings. When Aubrey lifted her pack, Grant reached for her hand.
“The A-frame group is gathering over there.”
“I’m just moving closer to the fire,” Aubrey said. “I’m not leaving.”
Grant smiled, his whiskers rippling across his sunburned cheeks. “You’ll be safer here.”
“And so will you,” Aubrey said.
His smile disappeared. “I have to go with Bender.”
“Grant, no.” Aubrey pulled him away from the noisy discussion. “They’re all going to die. If Mother Nature doesn’t get them, they’ll kill each other.”
“And I need to be there to prevent that from happening.”
“If you’re going with them, I’m going, too.”
Grant brushed damp hair away from Aubrey’s eyes. “No. Stay here. Please.”
“Your coworkers are on the verge of drawing names from a hat to see who we eat first. If you want me to stay, you’d better plant your butt on a tree stump and settle in for the night.”
“This might be our last chance to find that dump site,” Sotheara whispered to Berdie.
“Your quest is not worth risking your neck.” Berdie shook her head. “We stay here.”
“I have to go.” Sotheara pulled the straps of her daypack over her shoulders.
“Sometimes you have to lose the battle to win the war. If your rash actions lead to your death in the forest tonight, who’s going to carry on your precious cause?”
Sotheara had sent regular updates to Sage, but Operation Clean Sweep lacked one important detail: physical evidence.
“It’s a risk I’m willing to take for the planet.”
“Suit yourself,” Berdie said, “bu
t don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
In the end, only Berdie, Omari, Shirley, Ellen and Bud opted to stay behind. Sotheara was afraid Jeremiah was going to tie Madison to the A-frame, but he relented when she said something about majority rule, and “a deal’s a deal.”
Grant checked everyone’s gear, and looked them over for signs of hypothermia.
“The most important thing is for us to stay together,” Grant said for the third time.
The rain had stopped, but whenever Sotheara brushed against vegetation, it released a shower of moisture. She glanced one last time at the comforting glow of the fire, then turned to face the dark, soggy wilderness.
Whenever they stopped for breaks, she started shivering. Bender couldn’t keep up the pace, so there were frequent breaks. Leaving the A-frame had been a bad idea.
Following the river was easier said than done. For the first half mile, the trail hugged the riverbank. Then it delved deep into the woods. Once they lost the trail entirely, until Jeremiah figured out a rockslide had taken out a section of trail. Bender started complaining again. Not that he ever actually stopped whining. He just ran out of breath from time to time. He was on another pointless rant when Grant Sommers held up a hand.
“Quiet,” Grant whispered.
“Finally,” Fawn said. “Someone has the nerve to tell—”
“Shh!” Jeremiah stopped, squinting into the forest to the right of the trail.
Sotheara strained to see what the men had spotted, but the forest was a blanket of blackness. Then she heard it.
“Don’t panic,” Grant said. “There’s a bear—”
“Bear!” Fern shrieked.
She shoved her way through the group and bolted. Tweet followed. Sotheara felt frozen in place, until the word erupting from everyone’s lips ignited her own blind panic.
“Run!”
Aubrey was determined to stay with Grant, but the group parted like a school of fish bisected by a shark. Flashlights strobed off trees. People scrambled north, south, and west. No one headed east, the direction of a bear’s snuffling and growling. Grant vanished. He’d probably followed the code of the Pinon Pine troop and sacrificed himself to save his undeserving coworkers.
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