Fatal Flight Read online

Chapter Twelve

  “He killed Sky.” Max’s hands covered his face, his shoulders bowed, and he cried.

  Adam curved his arm around the older man, glad for the feel of his dad’s hand on his shoulder. “Are you saying Sky has been murdered?” he asked the sheriff, refusing to believe it.

  “My God, Max, no. Sky isn’t here. The murdered woman is a Ruby Kessler, according to the ID dumped on the floor. It looks like someone was tied to a chair. It’s overturned, and the ropes untied. Someone went through this woman’s purse and searched the drawers. A back window has been left open.

  “As far as I can gather, the dead woman untied Sky who then escaped out the back, while Cooper was in town. She’d have sought cover in the forest, but there’s over a thousand square miles of timber covering these slopes. There’s no sign of a gun, so if Sky shot Ruby, she took it with her. It’s more likely Cooper shot her with her own pistol, and we have the gun.

  “The results of the ballistic tests will take time. Meanwhile, the forensic team will sweep the cabin. The ME is on the way to examine the body. And this has now turned into a lost person case. I’m calling in search and rescue, plus my extra deputies, and sending out a plea for volunteers. As soon as it’s light, we’ll form teams and head out.”

  “We’re all volunteering, of course,” Patrick stated.

  “Then you should probably head back to town, get into some better gear, and stock up on supplies. We may find her in a few hours, but generally, when someone is lost in these mountains, it takes days.”

  Adam exchanged a significant look with his father. Or they were never found, the sheriff had left off, showing a degree of sensitivity.

  “We’ll use this clearing as our base and form search grids around the surrounding area.” He called his deputy over and began uttering another long string of orders.

  Adam got back behind the wheel. With his dad and Max silent, he drove to Tahoe.

  ****

  The owner of the biggest sporting goods store unlocked his door at Max’s request. As the news of Sky’s disappearance spread like a bush fire through the town, offers of help sprang up around them. The men picked up hiking boots, tough denims, and warm jackets; they also got backpacks, emergency kits, binoculars, and whistles.

  A light mist started falling as they came out. The tops of the mountains were hidden by low-hanging clouds. It was still pitch dark. The instrument panel in the SUV showed the temperature was hovering around thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit. Not freezing, but it would get colder at dawn’s approach.

  “Do you know what Sky had on when she left?” Adam asked Max over his shoulder.

  “Probably jeans and a T-shirt. It’s her dress of choice. They found her jacket in the truck cab with the rest of her things.”

  Silence reigned as they all envisioned Sky dressed in such light clothing, suffering through the night.

  “We’ll find her, feisty as ever,” Patrick reassured them.

  At a twenty-four-hour gas station, they filled their new thermoses, packed their back packs with sandwiches and cookies, and headed back to the site. As they drove through the town, they could see life stirring everywhere. The fire department door was open, and men were gathering inside. People came out of their houses, dressed for hiking. Volunteers climbed into vehicles and followed them back to the cabin. They had to park half a mile down the road this time, as there were so many vehicles pulled as far to the side as possible. The ambulance inched by, as they got out. The ME had finished with Ruby’s body and would be sending it to the morgue.

  “Never liked the woman. Felt there was something off with her, but never acted on my gut feeling. Was dismissing her after her month trial. If we don’t find Sky, I’ll never forgive myself,” Max confided.

  Chapter Thirteen

  They walked in single file down one of the ruts.

  The sheriff had a command post set up and was circled by volunteers when they arrived. He appointed each of the six men from SAR as team leaders and told the volunteers to gather in six teams. The leaders had extensive experience in search and rescue and carried two-way radios, set on the international frequency. They briefed the volunteers on what to look for, what to expect.

  “We’ll walk straight lines thirty feet apart. Communicate with each other, and watch out. The heavy growth on the forest floor hides fallen logs and broken rock. It’s easy to slip on one, or walk over the edge of a sharp drop. We don’t want anybody hurt out there while we’re searching. Her name is Sky. Call at two minute intervals. If she’s in hearing distance, she’ll respond. We’re looking for a woman with all her faculties, who grew up in this area. She’s probably smart enough to head downhill and follow the nearest water. There’s a possibility she may have been shot and is unable to answer, so search the ground cover as you go. Fan out in a circle, with the cabin as our center point. Report the second you find her.”

  “If we split up, we’ll have a better chance of one of us finding her and communicating faster with the others,” Patrick suggested. He held up his own hand radio. They all carried them and had set them at the given frequency.

  “Good idea, Dad. Thanks for being here.” Adam hugged his father and watched as he strode away to join a group at the far side of the cabin, where a narrow path led into the forest.

  “I’ll go this way.” Max picked the group angling off from the back corner.

  Adam caught up with the group heading straight back from the open window. His take on Sky was she’d travel through the woods like she’d fly—the straightest line between two points. He plotted an imaginary vector that lined up with the downhill slope and headed out, taking his place in the jagged line.

  The going was tough. Dead fall, covered with slippery moss, slid his feet out from under him. Dried branches springing from the trunks of the pines formed a dense web of wood, sometimes impenetrable. Within two minutes, his face and hands were scratched, and he jarred his hip when he stepped on a rock that tipped beneath his foot.

  His lungs, tightened by fear, couldn’t hold the oxygen he needed to keep moving. Disregarding his discomfort, he worked his way through the woods calling Sky’s name and hearing those around him echo it, until the whole world seemed filled with the lament. “Sky, Sky, Sky.”

  ****

  Sky spent her second night on a ledge, her back wedged to the stone wall behind her. She’d fallen over the edge in the dark. One second, she’d been on firm ground. The next, it disappeared, and she was tumbling, hitting trailing branches and protruding rocks. She’d landed on the ledge, a drop of only about ten feet, she calculated, as she huddled in the stygian darkness. Shivering, she curled into a ball on the hard rock. Why didn’t I take the time to find a jacket or blanket, before escaping the cabin?

  Tears trickled down her chilled cheeks as she thought of Ruby lying on the hard floor, bleeding and wondering if help would ever come and if it would come before Cooper returned and finished her off. Either way, Sky knew she’d failed the woman. Her anxiety spiked when she thought of Max. If Cooper’s sniper had done his job, Max and the hangar would be burned—gone. Tears of anguish soaked her cheek, dampened her collar. She couldn’t help either of them. She was lost. Starting out in the dark hadn’t helped. She’d tried her hardest, falling over downed tree trunks and slipping on mossy patches. She’d walked into the broken ends of several dead branches thrusting out in the dark like stabbing knives. She had a ragged tear on her neck, another on her arm. She could feel the warm seep of blood trickling down her goose-fleshed skin.

  But none of that would have stopped her. If only she hadn’t fallen and trapped herself on this peanut butter and jam ledge. Be grateful it prevented you from crashing to your death, she reminded herself. Wrapping her arms tighter around her torso and pressing her hand over the cut on her arm, she closed her eyes and forced deep drafts of oxygen into her lungs. She must calm herself, stop crying for Ruby, and believe Max was all right, then she could focus on getting off this ledge at first light.

&n
bsp; Lake Tahoe sat at an elevation of 6,225 feet. Ruby had driven uphill for over twenty minutes before reaching the cabin, and Sky had only managed to hike downhill for several miles before falling onto the ledge. The temperature this time of year could drop below 20 degrees Fahrenheit at night. She hoped the fact they’d had a warm spell would keep it above freezing. She didn’t want some hiker finding her corpse months from now. But if she couldn’t break free of the forest by tomorrow night, who knew.

  She opened her eyes, hoping the sky would be a touch lighter. Murky black cloaked her. She pressed the toggle on the side of her aviation watch and lit up the screen. Three ten, hours to go before dawn. Pops had given her the watch when she’d passed her instrument test. It was her most prized possession after Sky Dancer. If he was alive, he’d be so worried about her. He’d tear down the whole mountain looking for her.

  Had he phoned Gita looking for information? Had he called Adam, she wondered? How she wished Adam’s warm arms were wrapped around her now. She’d give a lot if she could rest against his strong body. She shivered, wondering if hypothermia was setting in. Images of Adam kept flashing in her mind, broken images, one running into the other. The smooth flesh over his ripped body. His brilliant smile when she received her award. The heat of his hand against her bare back, as he’d led her into the hospitality suite. The look of pride on his face when he watched her perform. The look of hurt in his eyes when she’d talked of sex and rejected his offer of love.

  “I’m such a coward,” she moaned into her bent knees, pulling her thighs tighter against her trembling body. For a while, she lost herself in memories of his lovemaking, for that’s what it had been, passionate, and powerful, tender and meaningful. They’d created something with their bodies and minds she’d never experienced with Brian or her high school boyfriend.

  “Such a coward,” she reiterated, thinking how she’d pushed Adam away; her subconscious insisted on testing him.

  “But he’d already passed,” she whispered. “He’d accepted all of me and offered me anything I needed to make a relationship with him work.

  “More time certainly wasn’t the answer,” she groaned again, feeling the emptiness opening inside her as she thought of the weeks since he’d left. Time she’d filled with busy work, but that had had little meaning without Adam.

  She rested her head on her knees and closed her eyes, willing sleep, hoping to make the night pass faster. An owl hooted. She thought she heard a twig break above her. She held her breath, froze in place, imagining a stalking mountain lion? Had a bear smelled her and come looking for a late supper?

  As the interminable night dragged on, her mind played tricks on her. People visited her on the ledge. Gita told her she had to come home.

  Her dead father beckoned her. “Jump off the edge. It’s a thrill you don’t want to miss.”

  In more lucid moments, Sky hugged the wall, afraid she would do something crazy and jump off the ledge, as hypothermia took hold.

  Sky, Sky, Sky.

  She dreamed Adam was flying with her, through the bright blue sky, holding her hand, as their bodies glided and swooped in and out of billowing clouds.

  Sky, Sky.

  She jerked, opening her eyes. Blinking, she wondered where she was, who was calling. She heard it again.

  “Sky?” Was someone calling her for real?

  Pressing her back to the stone wall, she clambered onto her feet, moaning as pain struck every limb.

  “Sky.”

  She listened intently. Yes, a voice had called her name. Was it Cooper coming to kill her?

  “Sky?”

  Another voice sounded, deeper, further away. Then another. They were searching for her!

  “I’m here,” she shouted, her voice coming out no louder than a whisper. She cleared her throat and licked her dry lips. “I’m here.” This time, she sounded stronger. She took a huge breath and yelled as loud as she could, “Over here.”

  A whistle blew shrilly. “Quiet. I think I heard her.”

  Adam’s voice, she was sure it was Adam’s voice. Silence descended. Not even a bird twittered in the early light of day.

  “Over here,” Sky cried out with all her strength. “I’m on a ledge.”

  “Keep calling, Sky. We’re coming.”

  Adam, for sure it was Adam. Her heart took wings. He’d come. He was looking for her. She was certain he’d still be looking for her three weeks from now, if he hadn’t found her.

  “Adam,” she shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth and turning so she could look up the cliff. As dizziness assailed her, she grabbed onto the granite slab and slid down onto her knees, her face pressed to the rock. What’s happening? Why am I standing? I’m not supposed to stand up. Danger. She tipped her head up, staring up into the sky. Her eyes glazed over.

  His face appeared above her. “We’ve got you, Sky. Are you hurt?”

  She shook her head. “I’m dreaming you,” she decided.

  “We need rope,” he yelled over his shoulder. For a few seconds, his face disappeared, but she clung to the sound of his voice, as several men rigged a climbing rope so he could belay down the drop.

  When he landed beside her, she pressed against him. “You’re a really nice dream. Hold me,” she demanded.

  He pulled her close.

  “You came. You searched for me…didn’t abandon me,” she slurred over the words, but got them out.

  He pressed her away. “You’ve got blood on your face. You did hurt yourself.” His gaze sharpened.

  For a second, she thought he was annoyed because she’d left a streak of blood on his jacket. Old tapes of Brian’s disapproval streamed through her brain.

  He unzipped his jacket, pulled the tail of a flannel shirt out of his pants, and used it to wipe her face. His touch was so gentle tears welled up. She blinked them away. How could she, for a second, have thought he’d react like Brian? She felt such shame; her blood flooded her face, warming her chilled flesh.

  She brought her hands up, covering her cheeks.

  Adam caught them, looked at the blood staining her hand. “Where are you hurt, Sky?” The extreme worry in his voice snapped her into focus. She looked at her bloody hand. “I scratched my arm, pressed on it to stop the bleeding. I must have wiped the blood on my face. It’s nothing, Adam, truly. I’m all right. Just cold.”

  He stripped off his down jacket and bundled her into it. “Do you think you can hang on my back while we climb out of here?”

  She nodded, licking her lips, her body going into another fit of shivering.

  “I can get a trained SAR guy to carry you up. Or we can rig a harness and belay so you can climb out yourself. Which—”

  Before he could finish, she navigated around him and scrambled onto his back.

  “Right.” He didn’t waste any more time. “Climbing,” he called up.

  “Belay on,” the answer floated over the edge of the cliff. In two minutes, they were at the top, and eager hands pulled them over. Sky was laid on a stretch of canvas, in a tiny space between deadwood and towering trunks. A man wearing the SAR insignia on his jacket administered first aid. Adam hunkered beside her and offered her coffee from his backpack. She tried to hold the cup to drink. But her body was wracked with shivers. He braced her from behind, so she was half sitting and tilted the cup against her mouth, offering her tiny sips. The warm liquid, topped off with a slug of brandy from the first aid kit, sent a hot stream of energy into her stomach but didn’t stop the shivers shaking her apart.

  Adam pulled out his two-way radio. “Max, Dad, we have her safe. She’s suffering from hypothermia, some bruising, and several cuts, but she’s going to be fine. Spread the word to the other teams, will you?”

  SAR had Sky wrapped in several blankets and cocooned in a silver heat-reflective sheet. “We’re calling in a helicopter to airlift her out,” the team leader told Adam. “We’re moving her five hundred yards west where there’s a small clearing that will allow the pilot to drop a basket.
”

  Within minutes, the volunteers had found and trimmed two narrow saplings and threaded them into the pockets on either side of the canvas sheet, forming a stretcher.

  “This is going to be rough on everybody,” the team leader explained, assigning Adam and the three strongest men to the stretcher handles. “Move slow and steady. One man might take all the weight, while the others are climbing over deadfall. Take your time. I’ll go ahead and plot the easiest route for you.”

  Sky took in a haze of green with an intermittent beam of sunlight through the heavy weave of branches. She felt each bump and drop, as the men straddled four-feet wide logs, fought their way through heavy brush, and slid over moss-covered rock. It brought back her terrifying journey in the dark. Her shivering increased as mixed up images slid in and out of her mind. The men were talking but not making any sense.

  Adam’s face blocked the haze of green. “Sky, how are you doing?” His gray eyes filled the space above her, dark with worry. She tilted her lips, trying to ease his concern, but his eyes turned into a starburst of color, and the world went black.

  ****

  Sky woke up in her bed. Through the open door of her room, she saw Adam stretched out on the sofa, a light blanket over him. She drank in his long body, bare feet protruding from under the throw. His thick black hair was tousled, and his face softened in sleep, making him look younger. He lay on his side, one bare arm draped across his chest. She followed the play of muscle and tendon under tensile skin. He had a deep tan, probably from all those years under the Texas sun and the fact he took off his shirt whenever possible. His clothes were something he wore as a social nicety, not a status symbol advertising his wealth. She was certain he’d be happier naked most of the time.

  She shifted and drew in a gulp of air as she bit down on a moan of pain.

  His eyes opened, stared into hers. For seconds, neither moved nor spoke. When his eyes lightened to luminous gray, radiating tenderness, she wondered if he’d seen her longing for him on her face.

  “You’re in pain.” He threw off the throw and walked toward her.