Death Chant

by Vella Munn

  Step by step, the distance between them shrank. Then, when only some fifty feet separated them, the wolf spun to the left and disappeared into the wilderness.

  Don’t leave me! Please, come back.

  Chapter Five

  Winter’s throat was sore from calling out. Her lungs ached from the high-altitude run, and the bouncing backpack had rubbed her shoulders raw by the time she’d covered a quarter of the distance back to Potlatch. She’d repeatedly tried to get through on her cell phone. The maze of branches and tree limbs framing the path had scratched her arms and face. The cool air helped a little, but she was drenched in sweat.

  Her life would have been much different if it hadn’t been for Doc. He’d insisted she gave him too much credit and that eventually she would have found herself, but how could she when there’d been nothing to find? That’s what happens when a child has no idea who her parents are. That child goes many years looking for a sense of belonging.

  Then, at least in her case, she connects with someone.

  Murder. A killer. Motive—there had to be one. There was always a motive for murder.

  Winter continued sporadically calling for help as she headed down the path. If one of the rangers was out, they’d have a radio unit and could call in the local law enforcement to come to the murder scene.

  Finally, she heard a man’s voice respond to her calls. A figure separated itself from the vegetation. A shadowed man was heading toward her. Despite the uneven ground, his strides were sure. She had time to note his uniform and sturdy frame before she recognized him.

  Jay Raven.

  What was he doing here?

  He stopped when about six feet separated them. Whatever his reaction to seeing her, he kept it to himself. When he acknowledged her weapon with a nod, she put the knife away. In contrast to his calm demeanor, her shock and grief must’ve been written in every line of her body.

  “What happened?” he asked. “You see a bear?”

  “No.” She swallowed. “He’s dead.”

  “Who are you talking about? Dr. Gilsdorf?”

  “Yes.”

  Except for his slowly shaking head, his body was still. “You’re sure?”

  What was he thinking? And why did his eyes remind her of the wolf’s? They weren’t alike—except for their intensity. “He was murdered.”

  “Murdered. Damn.” Jay pressed his fingers against the sides of his head as if dealing with a headache. His jaw tightened and relaxed, tightened and relaxed. “Are you all right?”

  Relief flooded her at the thought that he cared about what she was going through. At the same time, she’d give anything to read his mind. “Physically, yes. Emotionally, not so much.”

  “Of course. You can’t expect anything different. Take it one minute at a time. That’s all you can get through.”

  Her gratitude grew because he was saying exactly what she needed to hear.

  “Where is he?” Jay asked.

  Still studying him, she pointed back the way she’d come. “Off the trail to Ghost Totem.” Near where I saw a wolf. “I couldn’t get through to nine-one-one.”

  He pulled a UHF radio out of its carrying case but didn’t engage the communication tool. She might’ve been wrong, but was he debating hugging her? Offering physical comfort? “You were the only one there?”

  “Yes. I haven’t seen anyone for—please, we have to tell someone.”

  “I will, but I don’t want to until I have more details to pass on.”

  What more did he need to hear? She extended her hand. “Show me how to get in touch with your supervisor or the police. I’ll tell them. It’s going to get dark and…”

  He kept the radio away from her while placing his free hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to do it all by yourself. Let me do my part.”

  The touch had only lasted a second, but it helped reassure her. Besides, along with her strength, she was losing her sense of urgency. No matter what anyone did, their actions wouldn’t help Doc.

  Her head drooped. “All right. What do you need?”

  He stepped closer. Maybe he sensed how near she was to the edge. “For starters, tell me what brought you to Olympic. The truth.”

  All thoughts she had that she’d found a sympathetic ear ended. “I told you. When I couldn’t get in touch with Doc—”

  “You abandoned your fifty-plus-hour a week job, jumped in a car, and hurried up here.” He leaned away from her. Just the same, she sensed that wasn’t what he wanted to do. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”

  The mask and everything it stands for. “If there is, it has nothing to do with right now. He was murdered. You’re a park employee. It’s your responsibility to do something.”

  “Yes.” His chest slowly rose. “It is.”

  Caught between trying to make sense of his mood and the memory of the weight and warmth that had briefly rested on her shoulder, she reminded herself she was in no condition to determine what someone was thinking. “I’m sorry I reacted as I did. It just seems strange that you’re asking me about my motives. You—you don’t suspect I—”

  “No, of course not.” He again placed his hand on her shoulder. “You’ve left me with no doubt how you feel about him. How far have you run since you spotted the body?”

  She clenched her fists to keep from covering his hand with hers. She’d never needed a touch more. “I’m not sure. Maybe a mile.”

  “And you’re positive you were alone?”

  Just a wolf. “I passed a couple of groups going the opposite way not long after I left Potlatch on my way out, but no one since then.”

  He nodded. “I wish I didn’t have to put you through this, but how did you find him?”

  Fighting tears brought on by the latest example of his compassion, she told him about hearing flies. “He was about thirty, maybe forty feet off the trail. If not for the sound, I wouldn’t have seen…”

  He patted her shoulder then took a backward step. “You have good hearing.”

  Stay near me. “I guess. I can’t—it still seems unreal.”

  “Trauma does that.”

  Realizing he was waiting for her, she again fought the impulse to cling to him. He continued to stand close, dominating her, really. This was a man who took responsibility seriously. In addition, who and what he was lived deep inside him. Unlike her.

  Don’t go there today!

  “What now?” she asked.

  “I want to make sure I tell them as much as possible. You took off right after finding him?”

  “Yes. All I could concentrate on was getting help.” Until she’d seen the wolf. Then she’d run not just for Doc, but for herself.

  He held up his radio. “I’ll make the call, but, until they know where the body is located, there’s not much anyone can do.”

  Oh, God. “Which means I have to take you there.”

  He slowly nodded. “I’m sorry. I wish it didn’t have to be this way.”

  “So do I.” She pressed a hand to her forehead. “All right.”

  Jay reached behind him and adjusted his pack, the gesture expanding his chest and making him look even more formidable. At the same time, the everyday gesture made it possible for her to regain a little of her equilibrium. “Maybe you don’t want to be alone with me, considering what I said about Dr. Gilsdorf.”

  “This isn’t about you or me. I never thought something like this would happen.” Or to hear and see a wolf—something that takes me back to my childhood. “There’s so much I have to accept.”

  She listened as he made his call. In terse, brief terms, he explained that a visitor to Olympia had come across Dr. Anthony Gilsdorf’s body. It appeared the anthropologist had been murdered.

  “Yeah,” Jay said into the radio, “tell them it’s near Ghost Totem. I’ll relay what I learn through you once I have more details.” He paused. “No, I don’t see any reason for that yet.”

  “What isn’t going to happen yet?” she asked when he was finish
ed.

  “Making preparations to remove the body. The crime scene investigation has to come first.”

  “The police are going to get involved, aren’t they?”

  “If you’re asking about state, county or city agencies, the answer is no. National parks have their own law enforcement officers who are also rangers. They’re stationed at different regions, so they can’t all get there at the same time.”

  “Oh. Are you trained to do that kind of thing?”

  He shook his head. “I want to get the training, but I haven’t been a ranger for long. Maybe I can, in a year or so.”

  She wished he’d tell her what he’d done before that. And comprehend why who and what he was mattered to her.

  As she led them back up the trail, all too aware of Jay Raven behind her, she struggled to remain separate from the thick, green world surrounding them. The forest shouldn’t make so much of an impact. She should be focused on what would happen once she showed Jay where she’d found Doc’s body, the things she’d have to do, the people she’d have to tell.

  Instead, she surrendered as the wilderness pushed at her, slid along her flesh and entered her lungs. She tasted, tested and accepted.

  The wolf was out there. Watching.

  Why hadn’t she said anything to Jay about it?

  * * * *

  A spider was making its way over Doc’s chest. Out of the corner of her eye, Winter caught a glimpse of movement as a crow took flight from a nearby stump. Despite her vow to be strong, she couldn’t take those last few steps.

  The man who’d come as close to a father figure as she’d ever had looked lonely and discarded. His flesh, bone and muscle were no longer needed. The world was done with Doc, and he was done with the world.

  “Hopefully, I’ve made this clear,” Jay said, “but I wish you didn’t have to go through this. I’ve experienced personal loss—my parents are dead—so I have a good idea how difficult it is. If there were any other way—”

  “There isn’t.” Later, maybe, he’d tell her about his parents’ deaths, and she’d offer the sympathy he’d been handing her.

  “You’re a strong woman.”

  “I don’t have a choice.”

  Leaving her to deal with her emotions, Jay positioned himself near Doc’s head. He crouched and studied the various wounds. She couldn’t read his expression. As his silent observation continued, she decided that whatever Jay felt for Doc, grief wasn’t among his emotions.

  “Why?” he muttered.

  “Why what?”

  “Did they cut him so many times?”

  She shuddered. “They?”

  “Or he. Probably he. The cuts look deep. That took a lot of strength. My guess, there was a lot of hatred behind the attack.”

  He stood and faced her, his features somber in the shadows. She was struck by how much a part of his surroundings he was, as if he might fade into the forest. Maybe the wolf was waiting for him. Part of him.

  No, she chided herself. That wasn’t it at all. Her imagination was getting away from her. Despite her desire to do so, she wouldn’t tell Jay about the wolf. “What are you thinking?” she asked.

  Instead of answering, Jay slowly walked around Doc, keeping distance between himself and the body.

  Leaving what had been a living human being not long ago, Jay rejoined her. “Someone really wanted him dead.”

  Yes, someone had. She just wished Jay hadn’t brought that up. “Do you have any idea who it might be?”

  “That’s what I need to discuss with investigators,” he spoke softly.

  Was he thinking of someone in particular? “Why didn’t you want him in Olympic?”

  His mouth tightened. “I’m protective of what used to be Native American territory. Look, I didn’t want him here, but I didn’t want him dead. No one deserves to be treated like that.”

  His low tone touched her as the soft breeze had earlier, bringing her to the brink of tears. She forcefully stopped them. “Thank you for saying that.”

  He nodded. “Like I said, I’ve lost people I care a great deal about, nearly lost others. It’s difficult.”

  He removed his pack and propped it against a rock. Watching him, she was struck by how strong he looked now that he was unburdened. How much a man. Strange that she should be aware of that tonight.

  Maybe not so strange, because grief sometimes turned people primitive.

  “I have to get back in touch with the dispatcher,” he said. “Get things going. Before I do, I need you to grasp something. It’s almost evening. Whoever comes will have to do it on foot and won’t come until first light. That means your professor and I will remain here until morning. You can leave now if you want, but you’ll have to hike most of the trail in the dark. I’d like to loan you my headlamp, but I’m going to need it.” He paused. “My suggestion is that you stay here.”

  “Here?” You, me, Doc’s body, the wilderness, the wolf?

  “I’m considering your safety. Besides…”

  “Besides what?”

  “You’ve been through hell today. You shouldn’t be alone.”

  Chapter Six

  Winter Barstow wasn’t a small woman, but, despite her hiking clothes, she struck him as innately feminine. She was in good physical condition with long lashes, large shining eyes and more than a hint of breasts beneath the practical top.

  No matter how many times he’d looked at her since they’d run into each other on the trail, every time felt new.

  The forest embraced her. Maybe that explained why he felt as he did.

  “For the record,” he told her as she repositioned herself on the log she was sitting on, “I was following you.”

  “You were? Why?”

  Winter sounded unnerved but not hysterical. Her ability to control herself was, in part, what had prompted him to explain. As for the other reason, now that his calls were over and the sun had set, there wasn’t much to do except talk.

  He brushed loose bark from a log opposite her and sat down. “You said you hadn’t been able to contact Dr. Gilsdorf for a while. I decided I didn’t want you to be alone in case—it happened anyway. I’m sorry.”

  “I appreciate your concern,” she murmured. “Who is the older man who briefly spoke to me at Potlatch?”

  “My uncle Talio.”

  “I figured it was something like that. It was as if he wasn’t surprised to see me.”

  “I didn’t ask him.”

  Her expression in the lamplight said she wasn’t sure whether she should believe him. Not that he blamed her. He’d wanted to provide her with an explanation for his presence on the trail before she had to ask. He should have given the whole scenario more thought. Truth was, he wouldn’t be here if Uncle Talio hadn’t mentioned Yakanon.

  If his desire to learn more about Winter hadn’t been so strong.

  “I shouldn’t have hurried off like I did, but—what was the word he said?”

  “Yakanon.”

  “Do you know what it means? I don’t remember coming across it in my studies, but—”

  “You don’t really want to talk about that now, do you?”

  “I guess not.”

  Thank goodness she felt that way. The last thing she needed was to have more thrown at her.

  Don’t forget that, he reminded himself. She was going through hell, and he owed it to her to make things easier for her somehow.

  “Do you mind telling me what happened to your uncle?”

  Night usually quieted him. He’d rather spend the dark hours surrounded by the forest than anywhere else. Tonight he felt unsettled. However, his mood couldn’t hold a candle to what she was experiencing.

  Lamplight was good to her, he concluded. It highlighted her thick, long, dark hair and lean body. Reminded him of how long he’d been sleeping alone.

  “He was on his way to Forks to see my brother last winter when a drunk hit his vehicle head-on.”

  “It sounds as if he’s lucky to be alive.”

>   “He is. They had to fly him to Seattle for surgery on his hip and leg.”

  “What about the person who hit him?”

  Jay stared into the night. “He broke a rib, that’s all. A damn single rib.”

  “I don’t blame you for being bitter.”

  Was that how he’d come across? “My brother’s an alcoholic. I’m aware of what it takes to fight the disease, but when the man who raised my brother and me nearly dies because of an alcoholic…”

  “You love him.”

  “There isn’t much I wouldn’t do for him.”

  “It sounds like a wonderful relationship.”

  Her mouth trembled. He had no doubt she felt the same way about Dr. Gilsdorf. They’d spread their sleeping bags on a relatively flat area out of sight of the body. Because there wasn’t that much level space, their bags were close together. Maybe having to sleep—if she could—next to a near stranger made her uncomfortable, but maybe his presence would help. A forest night complete with sounds she’d probably never heard was a far cry from sleeping in her own bed, wherever that was. The moon was only a sliver, and trees hid most of the stars. As a result, she’d become more voice than reality.

  Did she have a husband, a lover? So far, she hadn’t said anything about who was in her life or been concerned about getting a message to a loved one. He supposed he could attempt to draw that information out of her, but he’d rather her tell him.

  Listen to her voice.

  As silence stretched over them, he studied her as she sat cross-legged on her sleeping bag. She’d taken off her shoes and was massaging her right instep. He couldn’t help wondering what it would feel like to have her foot in his lap and his fingers easing away her discomfort.

  “Your animosity toward Doc—does your uncle feel the same way?”

  “Uncle Talio is a tribal elder. Being a Hoh defines him at the deepest level. Anything that impacts his people impacts him.”

  “What about you? Does it define you the same way?”

  Maybe he was wrong, but he thought he caught a melancholy tone in her voice. “Not as much as my uncle wishes it did.”