The Dark Rift: Ascension (The Dark Rift Book Series 1) (21 page)

"Why, thank you, Nick. What a nice thing to say. I’m so worried about him. Actually, I'm worried about all of us. Will we ever get out of here? It seems like we’ve traveled a long way and I’m starting to feel like we're riding this thing right into some sort of trap. If I’d never opened my mouth about this place, we probably wouldn’t even be here."

Nick took Christy’s hand. "Don’t even think like that. We were being shot at. First, they killed the coroner. After that, they tried to kill us in the cabin and then they chased us through the woods and tried to finish us off there. If you hadn’t known about this place, we’d probably already be dead. They’re after something else, Christy. Like they knew we’d find out about what they’re up to and wanted to keep us from telling anyone. You shouldn’t beat yourself up about things we have no control over."

Christy managed a weak smile, but said nothing in response. Jodie could see she was tearing up and hoped that Christy wouldn’t come unhinged. She opened her eyes wider as Mei sat down next to her and started speaking quietly.

"You're not able to sleep, are you?"

"Not really. I keep wondering what we’re overlooking. And, quite frankly, I’m ready to get off this Goddamn thing. I need a bathroom and a shower, followed by a nice meal, a bottle of wine and a massage. Then I’ll rest."

Mei laughed and then rubbed her eyes. "Me, too."

Jodie could see the weariness on her face and immediately regretted her outburst. "I’m sorry for being so abrupt. You know what kind of shape I was in when you helped me after the accident the other night. It’s been too many years without any peace of mind because of the Nelson case. When I came up to the cabin, I was very overdue for time off, but I didn’t really want to admit that."

"I know the feeling. I moved up here last year to get away, too. I was in the city, had what I thought was a wonderful relationship, a nice house, a great job. Funny how the house didn’t look so great after the relationship ended. The job, either."

"How long were you together?"

"About seven years. After five years, I started feeling like we didn’t have any common ground. That’s not to say that I was right and she was wrong, but we just didn’t have anything to talk about any more. Her family had a difficult time accepting us. Then, after they met me, their prejudice against Asians pretty much wiped out the potential for any kind of family relationship. We argued about it all the time and eventually ended up living separate lives in the same house."

"That sounds awful. Sometimes people can be very hurtful." Jodie thought of her senior year in high school, being taunted and ostracized.

"Well, I think I got the better deal. She ended up getting married to please her family. She found a nice waspy man, got pregnant and walked in on him and another woman right after he didn’t show up for her first ultrasound appointment. I wouldn’t wish that kind of pain on anyone, but it was a bit upsetting when the offers to get back together started coming hot and heavy right before the baby was due. I know, it all sounds so cliché. Unfortunately, it was my life."

Jodie felt sorry for Mei. At the same time, she found herself becoming angry that anyone could treat someone this wonderful so poorly. "What did you do?"

"I told her I deserve better. I don’t have a death wish and being with her would have killed me one way or another. How about you? Any sad stories to tell?"

"Well, no. You know a lot about what my life’s been like lately. I dated during college, but felt a little bit like I was in some sort of posttraumatic stress disorder state after high school. I know you’re aware, but it was different back then, especially in a small town. You didn’t share your feelings and, if you did, you might pay a high price." Jodie stared at the blurred images of the tunnel wall through the train window. She wished she met Mei under different circumstances. She tried to imagine what that would have been like, but the simmering anger over being confined in the train car for hours overwhelmed happier thoughts.

"Wish I could get into that mind of yours, Jodie. Every once in awhile, you seem to leave us all and retreat into your own head."

"I’m sorry. I’m just getting a bit impatient with our situation," she said, thinking to herself that she wasn’t sure what exactly their situation even was. "Thank you for sharing that with me. I’m sorry you had to go through that. And this too, for that matter." Jodie looked up at Mei, whose smile seemed to lighten the dark train ever so slightly.

Christy stood up and walked over by Jodie and Mei. She bent down and whispered quietly. "I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it’s starting to smell different down here. I thought I smelled bread. Or, am I going crazy?"

Debi Schneider looked out at the sea of police cars in the Drive n’ Dine parking lot and shook her head. It was going to be a very busy morning. And cops were notoriously bad tippers, so she knew she’d work her ass off for next to nothing. Sure was a lot nicer when the Shriners Convention came to town. Those old geezers left half their life savings on the table just for a smile and a few kind words. "Hey, Red, what’s going on today? Why are all these cops here?"

The cook poked his head out of the freezer. "Don’t know. I’m takin’ out twenty extra pounds of burgers to thaw for lunch, though." His face showed concern. "You think they’ll still be here at lunch?"

"I think it might take until lunch just to feed ‘em breakfast." Debi pushed the swinging door open, glanced at the full house of customers, and went to the shelf behind the counter. She pulled out her apron, her back to the dining room as she tied the strings around her neck and waist. The room was buzzing with news and she took it all in. She honed in on a conversation between two young men at the counter behind her.

"I was on my way to the river to fish and had to turn around. Nobody’s been able to get up there yet. There was a big wreck in the middle of the forest road. Jim said it looked like a pickup, a car and a couple of ATVs on a trailer. They were all burning. Started a forest fire. So, the fire department goes up there, you know, they’re all volunteers, mostly, up here, and it takes ‘em two hours to get the fire under control. Then, the State Police started lookin’ for bodies, but, guess what? Nobody was in the wreck. Everything was just burning on its own. Spooky, huh?"

Debi moved on to her first booth and handed out menus to the four men seated there. "Good morning, gentlemen. You folks having a convention up here? I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much law enforcement in one town before."

"We’re State Police," one of the men said. "Going on a search and rescue mission. There’s some people missing. Probably, they took a hike up in the woods and got turned around or something. We'll be outta your hair as soon as they clear up the accident blocking the road."

"Missing people? Are they from here or are they vacationers?"

"Huh? I gotta say, you must be the only person in town who doesn’t already know about this. We don’t know who’s all in their group, but one of them is a police officer from here and another is an FBI agent."

"Chuck Wending? Do you mean Chuck Wending?" Debi wondered what Chuck got himself into.

"Yeah, I think that’s the name we got, right, guys?" The other three men nodded. "Why, you know him?"

"Of course I know him. Everyone here knows him. Did you say he was lost? That can’t be. Chuck Wending knows every bit of forest around here like the back of his hand."

"All’s we know is that he put in a call in the middle of the night, saying he was going up the mountain. He told some story about a shoot-out or something. Nobody’s heard from him since."

"Well, you know, there’s no cell phone reception up there. You said an FBI agent was with him. Was it a woman?"

"Yeah. Looks like you know more than you were lettin' on. How did you know that?"

"I just know Chuck Wending, is all. The woman he's with is probably Jodie Watts. She grew up in this town. What would she be doing up there with Chuck in the middle of the night?"

"Don’t know, but I sure could use one of those specials on your menu here," the man seated next to her said, pointing at a picture on the breakfast menu. "And a nice big coffee. Black." The other three concurred.

"Oh, sure. I’m sorry. I’ll get your orders in right away." What in the hell was Chuck doing, she wondered, and why would Jodie be with him? Debi was worried about him. After all, he didn't really seem in his right mind last time she saw him. She put in the order for the four men and moved on to the rest of her tables, gleaning whatever information she could get from the customers. It was clear no one knew what was happening and Debi’s concern was growing. She cared about Chuck Wending and, although they didn’t know each other too well, she liked Jodie a lot, too.

Debi went behind the counter to start another pot of coffee. She turned from the coffee maker to see a thin black man sitting at the counter in front of her. "Well, hi there. What can I get for you? Coffee’s just starting to brew."

"I’ll wait for it. And, can I get some dry toast? Whole grain, if you have it."

"Sure," Debi said, scribbling on a pad, peeling off the order slip and pushing it under a clip on the order wheel. She turned back to the man at the counter. Something about him -- maybe his clothes or possibly, his manners -- told her he didn't come from Mountain City. "You from San Francisco?"

"Why, yes, I am. I’m waiting with the rest of these people to get into the forest."

"You looking for Chuck Wending, too?"

"Yes, him and whoever else he’s with."

"I heard he’s got Jodie Watts with him. She’s an FBI agent who grew up here. I can’t imagine anything bad happening to them with her along."

"Really? What else did you hear?"

"I … are you from the State Police?" Debi wondered if she shared too much information with this stranger.

"No, I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself. My name is Isaiah Thomas and I work with the FBI." He pulled his ID out of his pocket and showed it to her. "I came to look for Jodie, but they won’t let anyone up the forest road."

"You work with Jodie?"

Isaiah nodded.

"Well, she’s pretty capable and Chuck wouldn’t let anything happen to her. But still, I’m worried."

"Funny, I met Officer Wending the other day and I have exactly the opposite feeling. I really didn’t get the sense that he likes Jodie too much."

"Oh, he’s just a little mixed up, is all … not very in touch with his feelings. He’s a good man, though. He wouldn’t let any harm come to Jodie if his life depended on it."

"Wish I could get out there," Isaiah said.

Debi gave Isaiah a good, long look, wondering if she could sense his sincerity. "I can trust you, right? I mean, you are who you say you are and you're up here to help find them, right?"

"Sure am. I was with Jodie for two days earlier this week. We flew in on Wednesday night. As a matter of fact, I think she said she was here that night before she met us."

"Yeah, I waited on her that night. I'm sorry for all the questions. I just need to make sure. A lot of strange things are happening around here lately. You can't be too careful, you know. You’re headed up around Jodie’s cabin, right?"

"Yeah, but they said there’s a wreck blocking the forest road."

Debi lowered her voice. "Well, there’s another way up there if you have four-wheel drive. Do you?"

"Yes. I thought I better have four wheels working in this territory."

"Okay, I’ll draw you a map, but you’ll be going out of town the way you came. Make sure you put the four-wheel drive on when you get past the millpond. It’ll be about four miles longer than going straight up there, but you’ll bypass where they said the wreck is and end up coming through the woods right around Jodie’s place." Debi grabbed the coffee pot and filled a Styrofoam cup for Isaiah. "You wait here. I’ll get your food."

"Make that to go, too, okay?" Isaiah leaned over the counter as she turned into the kitchen.

Debi noticed Isaiah straining to see. "It says Debi," she said, touching her nametag. "I’ll be right back." A few minutes later, Debi reappeared with a bag in her hand. "Everything you ordered is in the bag, okay?" she said with a wink.

"Great. Thanks, Debi. Nice to meet you." Holding up his coffee cup, Isaiah said, "I’ll be back for a refill." He dropped a wad of bills on the counter and rushed out the door.

Debi could overhear the grumblings. "Wonder where he’s goin’?" one of the men who ordered a special from her earlier said, watching Isaiah drive away out of the diner window. "Musta forgot somethin'. He’s goin’ back outta town."

"In one helluva hurry, too," the cop across the table added. "I thought the order was not to rush on this one, but he's goin' the wrong way, anyway. The call we got said the cop here exaggerates a lot. I heard he’s in luuuv with the FBI woman. Barkin’ up the wrong tree there. Dumb ass." They watched as Isaiah took off up the street.

"Well, we can tell the Federal Bureau of Ignoramuses what we found when he gets back," the State Police officer said, laughing at his own joke.

Debi went into the kitchen, shaking her head. "Red, if we were cookin’ fried jackasses, we’d have our pick of some prime stock out there." She pointed to the group of State Police as Red shot back a toothy grin.

* * *

Isaiah pulled a folded piece of paper out of the to-go bag. He opened it to find a map showing the road he was currently on with a right turn coming up by what Debi labeled as the Esso – Put a Tiger in Your Tank! – gas station. He smiled at the slogan and turned right, following the map, indicating he should drive for about four miles and turn right on Forest Road 91. Once on the forest road, he watched for the millpond so that he would know when traveling was going to get rough. Seeing it ahead, Isaiah slowed and shifted into four-wheel drive. The road before him was nothing other than two lanes of ruts filled with mud and giant boulders. He maneuvered the SUV around all the obstacles in his path.

Isaiah's stomach started to grumble. Realizing he was hungry, he glanced at his watch and estimated he’d been driving for almost an hour now. He pulled the dry toast out of the bag Debi gave him and bit into the gravely wedge. Drinking the coffee was out of the question because of the condition of the road. At times, Isaiah felt like his teeth would be jarred from his head. Finally, after another mile of creeping around boulders and spinning in the mud, he recognized the outline of Jodie’s cabin beyond the trees.

He parked the SUV on the side of the muddy trail and walked to the edge of the woods. Although he couldn't see what was going on, he could hear the noise of tow trucks and grinding metal from the accident scene off in the distance. The acrid smell of burning rubber mixed with wood smoke still hung heavy in the air. Isaiah crept up to the cabin, listening. It looked dark and empty. Jodie’s car was gone.

Isaiah stepped onto the porch and up to the door. Looking through the window, he saw no sign of anyone inside the cabin, so he slid on his examination gloves and tried the knob. Locked. He pulled a thin piece of metal out of his wallet and inserted it into the lock, fishing back and forth, finding the tumbler, pulling up and turning. The lock opened.

Isaiah turned the knob and entered the living room of the cabin, closing the door quietly behind him. The first thing that struck him was that everything was very neat. Not only in order, he noticed, but not one thing was out of place. Jodie liked to keep the cabin clean, but not quite this clean, he thought. The smell of bleach permeated the air. Looking in the kitchen, he saw no dishes in the sink, no evidence of habitation whatsoever.

He walked back to the living room and turned down the hallway toward the bedrooms. Again, nothing looked like it was out of order. The beds were stripped and the floor spotless. Isaiah thought it looked like someone expended quite a bit of effort removing evidence. He knew he wouldn't find fingerprints or bodily fluids. No evidence of anything or anyone.

Once he was sure no one was in the bedrooms, he went back to the living room and pulled out his flashlight. A glint from something struck his eye as he swept the light around the room. He bent down, looking under an end table and saw the bottom of a bottle. The rest of the bottle was wedged underneath the sofa. He gently pulled it out and turned it over, thinking it was odd for a full bottle of wine to be lying on the floor. "Cabernet Sauvignon. Another nice choice, Jodie." Then, Isaiah saw something that made his heart race. On the label, above the vintage, was a drop of blood and a short piece of dark hair. "Looks like a nice choice for a weapon, too." He placed the bottle in an evidence bag and went outside.

They must have cut a tree down, he thought, looking at the fresh stump and a stack of wood piled next to the cabin. "Actually, several trees," he muttered, noticing rings of sawdust and two more tree stumps. He walked over in the woods and stood next to the second stump, then pushed a few of the logs in the pile over, revealing a hole blasted in the side of one log. "Gotcha," Isaiah said. About five minutes later, he was finished carving a hole in the log and retrieved a slug. "Wow, Jodie. What went on here? This looks like some serious ammo."

Isaiah searched the cabin again, and locked it on his way out. The report he received late last night indicated there was some trouble with Jodie’s neighbor too, so Isaiah got back in his SUV and pulled out of the rutted path and onto the forest road. He drove about a mile before he saw the first driveway and turned in. The place looked quiet. Maybe too quiet. Isaiah pulled his muddy vehicle in front of the cabin, got out, and approached the door. He knocked. No answer. He leaned over and tried to get a view of the cabin interior through the front window. Everything looked okay, no evidence of a break-in and no sign of anyone at home. Nothing here to look at, nothing at all, Isaiah thought, which for him was a huge red flag. "Time to see what’s up the mountain," he said.

Getting back into his rental, Isaiah followed the forest road as far as he could take it. The road appeared to be freshly graded, making the trip much easier than what he experienced earlier. He found it odd they didn't grade the other road, too. He was starting to feel quite confident in his assessment that a highly skilled cleaning crew had come in and cleaned up the mess. Isaiah was sure they were responsible for starting the vehicles blocking the forest road on fire, too. He drove until the road narrowed into a pathway and pulled the truck over to the side, stopping and watching for any movement. When he was satisfied he was alone, Isaiah jumped out of the vehicle, grabbed his map and a bottle of water, and started walking.