Aubree’s teeth pressed into her lip until it stung, and then she took a shallow breath. He didn’t know where Scarlett was. There was no way. He was bluffing. She noticed he hadn’t said Wyatt’s name and must not know it, or he would’ve used it to coax her out of the cave. If he didn’t know Wyatt’s name, then he didn’t know Scarlett was staying with the Ericksons.
She continued to crawl as he spoke until she reached the far wall of the cavern. A sliver of light came from a crevice above her and she willed her eyes to see through the thick darkness, but she could barely make out a rock a few feet in front of her.
“You’re probably wondering how we found you.” He chuckled, and his voice sounded a bit closer. “Cell phones—that’s how this whole mess got started, and that’s how it’s gonna end.”
She wrapped her arms around her legs and pressed her face to her knees to keep from shivering in the icy darkness of the hidden cavern.
“You must have some kind of a lucky charm, because you weren’t supposed to make it this long.”
She heard him step around a pile of rocks and a few pebbles scattered down the trail beside the hidden cavern. Holding her breath, she shivered and prayed he wouldn’t find her.
His voice rose a notch. “You thought you were pretty smart there using someone else’s cell phone to call your mom, but you messed up. We picked up a general location on your cell phone signal when you got in touch with her. It’s a device I had embedded in her home. See, the Feds were looking for a human leak, not an electronic one. Smart system, but I guess you know that now.”
Aubree flinched and then lifted her head from her knees to listen better. He had stopped moving, and his voice carried through the cavern.
“I thought the FBI had you under their thumb, but you were holding out on them weren’t you? How long did it take you to figure out what GREANE meant?”
Biting her knuckle, Aubree curled her shoulders inward, wanting to cover her ears to get away from the voice. It seemed the FBI still had a leak, even though Miranda was gone, but it sounded like he was unsure of how much she had told them.
“My brother got pretty excited when the government came up with GREANE. His ethanol plants were starting to feel the crunch from the economy, and then Uncle Sam came up with a brilliant plan.”
His brother. So the man speaking was Chief Ferrin. Aubree shook her head. What chance did she have of escaping a police officer? He was still talking, and his voice echoed against the walls of the cave.
“The Corn Belt was chomping at the bit to get in line for grants, and then the secretary of defense came up with his part of the plan. He was good friends with the Ohio state representatives and figured he’d offer GREANE to their state exclusively. Pretty low-down if you ask me, but nobody did, so I decided to help Secretary Walden out. My brother pays well for work-for-hire.”
Aubree flipped open the cell phone—still no service. She could see only a few feet around her, and the blue glow from the phone confirmed her fears. She was trapped. He kept talking, and although she wanted to cover her ears, she didn’t move.
“Then I made a stupid mistake. I dialed the wrong number and shot off my mouth before I realized what happened. I hurried to clean up my mess, but you just kept making the mess bigger.”
Aubree’s head spun as she tried to digest all the information he was giving her. Why was he telling her so much? If the FBI knew about GREANE, it wouldn’t matter if he killed her. He and his brother would still go to jail. Unless he thought she knew more than she really did. The roar of blood pumping in Aubree’s ears did nothing to alleviate the chill settling over her body. She tried to think what to do, but he was talking so much she couldn’t concentrate.
He was quiet for a moment, and Aubree heard footsteps on the path again. She hoped he was second-guessing himself and that he would consider looking for her somewhere else. Every sound was augmented, and her body felt as cold as the stone around her.
After a few minutes passed in silence, she began to relax—maybe he really was gone. She thought about what she should do next. How long could she stay in this freezing cavern? At first the adrenaline had kept her body warm as she had struggled to crawl to her hiding place, but now the chill of freezing temperatures was taking its toll. She hugged herself and rubbed her arms to generate some heat.
She was just stretching her legs when she heard footsteps returning. Her heart sank, and she swallowed the tears rising to the surface. She prayed for strength, begging God to spare her life for Scarlett’s sake and pleading for Wyatt’s safety. She heard a groan and some curse words, and then he started talking again.
“Aubree, come out, come out, wherever you are.” He laughed, and the familiar gruff cackle that had haunted Aubree’s dreams for the past year echoed through the cavern. Aubree’s skin crawled with goose bumps. “This isn’t a game. I really need to talk to you. Now where could you be hiding?” Then she saw a beam of light. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and her throat constricted as she watched the light from his flashlight trying to break into the darkness.
She had scooted her way into the far corner of the cavern, and the light illuminated a large boulder to her right. She ducked behind the boulder and her shoes scraped against the rocks. The light danced around the rocks. He must have crept along the crevice of the cave and knelt down to look in the opening. Aubree hoped he was too large to fit through the narrow opening. The Internet only showed pictures of his brother, and he was of average height and build.
“If you want something done, apparently you have to do it yourself. So I’m not going to waste a lot of time here. I realize it was my fault. I’m the one who dialed the wrong number, but you should’ve spoken up sooner. I had it all set up so my brother and I could cash in.
“We just needed someone to get the secretary of defense out of the way. I was going to take an early retirement and head to the Bahamas. But now I guess Europe will have to do. A private investigator can do pretty well over there.”
He grunted and cursed again. “I’m surprised you were able to put everything together.” His voice bounced off the walls of the cavern, and Aubree couldn’t tell how close he was or if he’d tried to crawl through the opening.
“I’m a betting man, and I’m betting that you haven’t filled anyone in on that last detail you figured out. You were waiting to do it in person, so the information wouldn’t get into the wrong hands, right?
“Well, they might find enough evidence to convict my brother of some bribery scandals, but unless you identify my voice in a line-up, there’s not enough evidence against me, and they can’t really line up Robert Walden’s death with any of the GREANE business you know about.”
With a shudder, Aubree realized her hunch was correct—Chief Ferrin thought she knew more about GREANE than she did. She wished she could cry out that she didn’t know, but he would never believe her, and it would give away her hiding place. Aubree tried to curl into a tight ball behind the rock.
Chief Ferrin coughed. “You should’ve known the fall-out would be too big from something like this. Hank would’ve found you if I hadn’t. His best buddy is cold, hard cash. I told him I bet I could find you before the Feds.”
Who is Hank? Aubree wondered, but her thoughts were cut short by the sound of a boot scraping against rock. As he was talking, he had shimmied his way into the cavern.
“I’m just lucky I’m willing to bet your life on it, instead of mine.” His voice moved closer to her hiding spot.
A deafening shot ricocheted against the cavern, and Aubree covered a scream. Hot tears slid down her icy cheeks as she realized there would be no more running.
TWENTY-SEVEN
THE ADRENALINE COURSED THROUGH her body now, and she didn’t know what to do. He had missed his shot, but she didn’t know if he could see her. Aubree didn’t dare lift her head to see where he was. She tried to quiet her breathing. Her ears were ringing from the echoes of the gunshot, and she knew Chief Ferrin was moving closer
. Her chest hurt from holding her breath, and the tension pounded in her head.
She heard movement a few feet in front of her and shrank against the rock.
“I’m tired of playing hide and seek—found you.” His light landed on her foot sticking out from behind the boulder.
Aubree looked up and screamed. When the beam of light moved, she saw the glint of a gun in his hand. He was going to kill her.
“You picked the perfect spot to hide a dead body—better than a manhole.” His deadpan voice punctuated the stillness.
Someone grunted, and Aubree heard rocks skitter across the ground. Then she heard Wyatt’s voice shout, “Aubree, move!”
The light tilted. Chief Ferrin looked toward Wyatt’s voice and pointed his gun. Stifling a scream, Aubree dove to the other side of the boulder as gunshots reverberated through the chamber. She covered her head with her hands. Then she crawled toward Wyatt’s voice and the only way out of the cavern.
Someone moaned. Aubree sat still for a minute to get her bearings and listened.
“Aubree, hurry. I don’t know if I hit him.” Wyatt’s voice sounded strained and frantic.
She crawled as fast as she could against the jagged rocks, trying not to cry out as the frozen earth dug at her skin. She didn’t know where Chief Ferrin was, and she couldn’t hear anything from behind. She headed for the beam from the flashlight on the ground and hurried to pick it up, shining it around to see where Wyatt and Ferrin were.
The light illuminated a body sprawled in front of the boulder she had been hiding behind. Chief Ferrin wasn’t moving. She focused the light on his body, but it was too dim to see any blood or gunshot wounds. She turned back to Wyatt.
“I can’t tell if he’s alive—” She stopped when the light fell on Wyatt’s legs covered in blood. “Did he shoot you?” Her voice caught in her throat.
“It looks worse than it is, but I need you to help me get out of here,” he whispered. “It’s my leg. I don’t know where the bullet hit me, but I’m losing a lot of blood.”
She felt the color draining from her face but hurried to his side. The low ceiling of the ice cave crowded the small space where he lay just inside the cavern. “What should I do?”
“Get out and then help pull me out where we can see my injury.” Wyatt groaned.
Aubree pointed the flashlight at his right leg and gasped. She pulled the boot from his left foot and then peeled off his sock.
“What are you doing?” He winced and groaned with pain.
“I’ve got to stop the bleeding before I move you,” Aubree explained through chattering teeth. She wasn’t sure if the cold or the shock was making her shake, but the skin on her hands hurt as the freezing air touched it.
“Wrap it around the wound. If it’s not gushing, it’ll slow the bleeding,” Wyatt’s words were laced with pain.
She made a makeshift bandage with Wyatt’s sock, tying it around his leg, and then climbed over him toward the opening of the cavern. She tossed the flashlight out in front of her and then reached back for Wyatt’s arm.
“Try to push yourself forward with your other arm.” The opening to the cave was too shallow to stand, so Aubree propped herself up on her elbow and pulled. Wyatt’s muscular build only moved a few inches, and Aubree groaned. “I’m not strong enough.”
“Use both hands,” Wyatt said. “I’ll push myself with my good leg.” He grunted and reached for her. She scooted closer to the opening and pulled as Wyatt pushed against the rocks. They moved a few more inches, and Aubree’s head stuck out of the jagged opening. Wyatt breathed heavily. “Now get out and reach back in. You’ll be able to pull me out from a standing position.”
She scooted across the floor of the cave, gasping every time her arms touched the sharp rocks. Then she positioned her feet on solid ground and pulled, using all the strength she had. He only moved a few more inches and cried out.
“I’m sorry, Wyatt. I’m just not strong enough.”
“Try grabbing me under the armpits and count to three,” Wyatt gasped. “I’ll push as you pull.”
She grabbed his torso, counted, and heaved him out of the cavern. She stumbled back and barely caught herself before she tripped into the frozen pool of water.
Wyatt sucked in air and clenched his fists to keep from crying out. She noticed his gun tucked into the waistband of his jeans and reached for it. With shaking hands, she set the gun on the ground beside them and crouched by his leg. Wyatt grabbed her arm.
“I think you should go for help.”
“I can’t leave you here alone. What about the other guy in the car?”
“There were two others. Chief Ferrin must have come from somewhere else.” He closed his eyes and took another ragged breath. “I shot one guy, and I think the other one is still looking for me. I hid in the trees on the side of the road and threw a bunch of rocks around to make noise and then snuck back here.
“I was coming to get you, but then I heard Ferrin talking. I couldn’t see where he was at first, and then I figured he’d gone in looking for you.”
Aubree scooted closer to Wyatt’s leg and lifted the leg of his pants. He winced.
“Don’t pull up my pant legs. Get my pocketknife and cut it open by the seam,” he said through gritted teeth.
Aubree followed his instructions and inspected his wound. Blood oozed from a gash that revealed muscle fibers. She gagged and looked away.
“I don’t know what to do.” She tried to calm her trembling voice. “But I got a call out earlier, and someone must be coming. Maybe I can try the cell phone again to see if help is on the way—I don’t want to leave you.”
His skin looked pale, but he squeezed her hand and whispered, “That’s a great idea. But be careful.”
“I won’t go far.” She put a hand on his cheek and hurried out of the cave. The sunlight blinded her for a second, and she shielded her eyes. There was no one in sight. Flipping open the cell phone, she walked to higher ground, willing the bars to increase and give her a strong signal. She took a few steps to the side of the cave but stopped when she heard the sound of tires crunching on gravel and sirens whining.
She rushed back to the front of the ice cave and cried out, “Wyatt, the police are here, and there’s an ambulance coming.” The first police truck stopped beside Wyatt’s pickup and the silver Corolla. The officer stepped out to check the vehicles and Aubree waved her arms and screamed, “Help! We’re up here. Wyatt’s been shot!”
The police officer jumped back and dashed to his vehicle. Aubree could see an ambulance wasn’t far behind the police pickup. She stood on the outcropping of rock outside of the cave for a moment longer as the police approached. A third vehicle, a police cruiser, created clouds of dust as it raced along the dirt road behind the ambulance.
“Wyatt, the police are coming now,” she shouted, and then she hurried to meet them. Aubree could feel the adrenaline pumping through the air as police officers spread out in the parking area.
“Bring a stretcher. He’s shot in the leg.” Aubree shouted at them.
The first police officer approached her with wary eyes. “Is anyone still armed inside?”
“There’s a man inside the hidden cavern of the ice cave. He was trying to kill me, and Wyatt shot him. I don’t know if he’s still alive.” Aubree hesitated, trying to think how to explain the situation. These police officers would definitely not take kindly to seeing one of their own shot. “He killed my husband a year ago. He was a dirty cop. He had two other men with him. They shot at us earlier.”
The officer bristled. “Miss, I’d like you to go on down to the patrol car and wait.” He pulled his radio from the clip on his shoulder and yammered out a bunch of police code Aubree didn’t understand. She could see he already thought of her as a possible suspect.
“But Wyatt is in there. I was in the witness protection program, and Chief Ferrin found me and was going to kill me.”
The officer stopped speaking and glared at her. “Go down
to the patrol car.”
Two more policemen ran up the path, followed by a couple EMTs. “We’ve got a possible armed and dangerous man and a cop down inside.” The first officer said and pulled out his gun.
Aubree’s lip trembled, and she stepped out of the officer’s way as he hurried inside. She looked out at the patrol cars parked next to the ice cave, and her stomach clenched. What if Chief Ferrin could convince these guys that she and Wyatt were at fault?
Another police officer stepped toward her. “Do you know anything about the man in the car down there?” He pointed at the Corolla, and Aubree recognized the slumped form of one of the men who had shot at her and Wyatt earlier.
“Is he dead?” she asked.
The police officer glared at her. “Yes. Do you know how that happened?”
Aubree’s eyes narrowed. “He was trying to kill me and my friend, and there’s still someone out there with a gun.”
“I need you to come with me.” The police officer reached for her arm, and she flinched. He paused when more sirens cut through the commotion.
Aubree shaded her eyes against the sun and blinked rapidly, and then she screamed. “It’s the FBI!” She knew that the black Hummer rambling up the road toward the cave with sirens blaring, followed by three other unmarked vehicles, had to be federal agents.
The police officer stepped back and pulled out his radio, speaking rapidly. “We’ve got a possible armed and dangerous man loose near the Paris Springs Campground, requesting back-up.”
Aubree ignored him and once again waved her arms toward the convoy of federal agents. When the Hummer screeched to a stop and Jason jumped out, Aubree stepped away from the police officer and slumped onto a nearby rock. Agents rushed past her into the ice cave with guns drawn.
Within minutes, Jason had learned the morning’s events from Aubree, and three of the agents were crawling inside the cavern to retrieve Chief Ferrin. Jason crouched beside Aubree. “Are you hurt?”
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