by Kathi Daley
Oh God.
I ran faster still. Yukon was running in front of me. He must have sensed where to go because he never wavered. When I arrived at the place where the dirt and rock had settled, I found Sitka standing over Jake, who appeared to be unconscious.
“Jake.” I ran to where he was laying on the hard ground and felt for a pulse. I let out a breath of relief when I saw he had one. He had a bump on his head but appeared to be otherwise uninjured. I grabbed my radio and called Sarge, who was holding down the fort at base. “Harmony to Sarge.”
“Go for Sarge.”
“There’s been an accident. A landslide. Find Jordan. Have her meet Dani at the helipad. We’re going to need an air evacuation. And Sarge, tell them to hurry.”
With that, I stood up and slowly looked around. I wasn’t sure where Austin and Wyatt were. Had they been with Jake? In front of him? On another trail altogether?
I heard Jake groan. I turned to find both Sitka and Yukon licking his face. I knelt down next to him. “Are you okay?”
Jake put his hand to his head. “What happened?”
“Landslide. You were hit in the head with something. You blacked out but appear to be otherwise okay. Where were Wyatt and Austin before the mountain came down?”
Jake sat up. His face paled. “In front of me.”
I looked down at Sitka and Yukon. “Find Wyatt. Find Austin.”
The dogs ran on ahead, and I knew I needed to follow, but the dizziness and nausea I’d kept at bay had returned. I was fine, I reminded myself. I’d seen something I’d need to process, but the most important thing was to find my friends. I stood up and looked at the spot in front of me, where the trail had once been. This was bad. Really bad.
It didn’t take the dogs long to find Wyatt. He’d managed to find a place next to the wall of the canyon to crouch down, avoiding most of the debris from above. After a bit of back and forth, we determined he was trapped and hurt. Jake managed to get up despite his head injury to help me dig him out. It was a long, arduous process because each rock needed to be lifted and set aside. I don’t know how we found the strength to do it, but when I saw Wyatt’s face, bruised but alert, I wanted to cry in relief.
His leg was broken and his shoulder dislocated but he didn’t appear to have any life-threatening injuries. By the time Jake and I had freed him, the sun had set, but we could hear Dani’s chopper in the distance. I wasn’t sure I had any strength left, but we weren’t done. “Find Austin,” I said to the dogs, even though I suspected he was gone. I’d been able to sense Wyatt as the dogs looked for him, but when I focused on Austin, all I found was silence. Of course, if he was unconscious I might not be able to make a connection, so there was the hope for me to cling to. I tried to keep up as the dogs scrambled over the rubble. Wyatt hadn’t been all that far in front of Jake and so hadn’t been in the area of largest destruction, but the farther toward the center of the landslide the dogs traveled, the more certain I was Austin was gone. By the time Dani had landed the chopper, Sitka alerted. He’d found Austin.
Sometimes all you can do is what you have to do. Dani had brought both Jordan and Sarge with her, so they helped load Wyatt into the chopper, where Jordan went to work on his injuries. Once Wyatt was in Jordan’s hands, Dani and Sarge helped us retrieve Austin’s body. By the time we’d freed him from the rubble, it was completely dark and the temperature had dropped at least thirty degrees. Jake was still dizzy from his head injury, and we couldn’t all fit in the chopper at the same time, so Jordan went with Dani, who flew Wyatt and Jake to the hospital, while Sarge waited with the dogs and me. Austin’s body would be airlifted down as well, but it was more important to see to the injured.
“It wasn’t an accident,” I said to Sarge after we’d built a fire for warmth, then settled in to wait for Dani to come back for us.
“What do you mean, it wasn’t an accident?”
I tilted my head up so I could more clearly see the northern lights overhead. I wanted to embrace the breathtaking beauty that could be found in the Alaskan wilderness, but all I could feel was grief. “In the brief moment before the mountain exploded, I connected with someone in so much pain it was almost unbearable. I felt the rawness of exposed emotion as grief was channeled into rage.” I lowered my head and looked at Sarge. “Someone lured us up here. Someone set off explosives and intentionally caused the landslide. I have no doubt the intention was to bury us all, but I’d stopped to try to make a connection, so I was well behind the others. When I realized what was happening, I was able to warn Jake, which gave him maybe a second to retreat.” I swallowed as a lump of emotion clogged my throat. “Jake told me that he’d called to the others, but the mountain was already coming down and they were too far ahead.”
Sarge was silent for a moment. I imagined he needed that time to try to process what I’d just said. To lose a member of the team to a random landslide was bad enough; to lose him to a madman was another thing entirely. “So you’re saying Austin was murdered.”
I nodded. “Yes. I’m saying that.” I took a deep breath as my entire body began to shake.
“Are you okay?” Sarge looked me in the eye. He put his hands on my shoulders and gave me a little shake.
“I’m okay. It’s just that…” I couldn’t continue. I tried to speak, but at that moment I couldn’t even breathe. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as a flash of memory seared through my mind.
“Just that what?” Sarge said persuasively. “You didn’t finish what you were saying.”
I shook my head. I couldn’t speak. I didn’t want to remember.
“You know you can trust me.”
I nodded. Sitka and Yukon were sitting so close to me, they were practically in my lap. I could sense their distress. I needed to pull myself together, but I wasn’t sure how I was going to do that.
“I want to help you, but you need to finish your thought,” Sarge insisted.
I put my arms around the dogs and took comfort in their warmth. I let them lick the tears from my face, and then I answered. Softly at first, but as my voice found its footing, I went on with more intensity. “In that moment, when I connected to whoever set off the dynamite that caused the landslide, I saw something else. A memory. Not my memory, his memory.”
Sarge frowned. “Okay. What was it?”
“It was Val.” I felt my body begin to shake again. “He was with her. The man who killed Austin was with Val when she died.”
Recipes
Spinach Tortellini Soup—submitted by Sharon Guagliardo
Sauce Pot Meatballs—submitted by Vivian Shane
Chuck Wagon Casserole—submitted by Patty Liu
Chicken Divan—submitted by Joyce Aiken
Spinach Tortellini Soup
Submitted by Sharon Guagliardo
This is another recipe we enjoyed from a friend.
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1 tbs. butter
2 cans chicken broth (College Inn)
16-oz. can stewed tomatoes, chopped
1 pkg. fresh or frozen cheese-filled tortellini
1 pkg. frozen spinach drained or 1 pkg. fresh, cleaned and chopped
Sauté garlic in butter. Add chicken broth and tomatoes. Bring to boil; add tortellini and spinach. Simmer until tortellini is done.
Meanwhile, prepare basil-parmesan topping (below).
Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into large soup bowls, drizzle on olive oil, and generously sprinkle with a tbs. or two of the topping.
Top each serving with a little Parmesan cheese and serve with garlic bread and a nice tossed salad.
Serves 6 to 8
Basil-parmesan topping:
¾ cup freshly grated imported Parmesan cheese
¼ cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves
Coarsely ground black pepper to taste
Blend Parmesan cheese, fresh basil, and pepper in a small bowl. Use as garnish.
Note: I add a package of frozen meatballs, quarter
ed, along with the broth and tomatoes.
Sauce Pot Meatballs
Submitted by Vivian Shane
One of my favorite oldie-but-goodie recipes. Most of the time it’s just my husband and myself, so I like recipes you cook once and eat twice! I make spaghetti and meatballs one day and then meatball sandwiches the next with the leftovers.
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
1¼ cups water
2 8-oz. cans tomato sauce
1 lbs. ground beef
½ tsp. garlic salt
¼ tsp. thyme
¼ tsp. pepper
1 tbs. parsley
In a deep saucepan, bring to a boil the onion soup mix, water, and 1½ cups tomato sauce. Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Mix ground beef, seasonings, parsley, and remaining tomato sauce. Shape into 16 meatballs and gently place in sauce. Simmer uncovered for 25 minutes, turning occasionally.
Chuck Wagon Casserole
Submitted by Patty Liu
1 lbs. lean ground beef
½ large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, medium-size, chopped
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tbs. chili powder
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 large can whole-kernel corn, drained
Pinch of ground cumin
1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
Hot red pepper sauce to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 2-qt. casserole dish with Pam Original. In a large skillet, brown meat until lightly browned. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic salt, and chili powder; stir till vegetables are softened. Scrape mixture into casserole dish; add tomatoes, beans, com, cumin, and Worcestershire sauce. Season with hot sauce, salt, and pepper, stir well, and bake uncovered 30 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over top and continue to bake until top is golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Serves 6 to 8
Chicken Divan
Submitted by Joyce Aiken
A good friend brought this to me when I had surgery nine years ago. She makes it for potluck suppers at her church and for her husband's birthday every year, and they love it. We love it too!
2 cans cream of chicken soup
½ cup Miracle Whip + a small amount of milk
16-oz. bag frozen broccoli, thawed but not cooked
4 chicken breasts, roasted, then chilled and cut into cubes
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup bread crumbs
3 tbs. melted butter
Mix soup and Miracle Whip and add small amount of milk to make it pourable.
Spray a 9x13-inch pan with Pam. Layer in this order, using all of each item once:
broccoli on the bottom of the pan
cubed chicken
soup/Miracle Whip/milk mixture
sprinkle with cheddar cheese
sprinkle with bread crumbs
drizzle butter over all
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until bubbly.
You can cut this recipe in half and use an 8 x 8 pan. Don’t freeze leftovers because of the Miracle Whip.
Books by Kathi Daley
Come for the murder, stay for the romance.
Zoe Donovan Cozy Mystery:
Halloween Hijinks
The Trouble With Turkeys
Christmas Crazy
Cupid’s Curse
Big Bunny Bump-off
Beach Blanket Barbie
Maui Madness
Derby Divas
Haunted Hamlet
Turkeys, Tuxes, and Tabbies
Christmas Cozy
Alaskan Alliance
Matrimony Meltdown
Soul Surrender
Heavenly Honeymoon
Hopscotch Homicide
Ghostly Graveyard
Santa Sleuth
Shamrock Shenanigans
Kitten Kaboodle
Costume Catastrophe
Candy Cane Caper
Holiday Hangover
Easter Escapade
Camp Carter
Trick or Treason
Reindeer Roundup
Hippity Hoppity Homicide
Firework Fiasco
Henderson House
Holiday Heist – January 2019
Zimmerman Academy The New Normal
Ashton Falls Cozy Cookbook
Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mysteries by Henery Press:
Pumpkins in Paradise
Snowmen in Paradise
Bikinis in Paradise
Christmas in Paradise
Puppies in Paradise
Halloween in Paradise
Treasure in Paradise
Fireworks in Paradise
Beaches in Paradise
Whales and Tails Cozy Mystery:
Romeow and Juliet
The Mad Catter
Grimm’s Furry Tail
Much Ado About Felines
Legend of Tabby Hollow
Cat of Christmas Past
A Tale of Two Tabbies
The Great Catsby
Count Catula
The Cat of Christmas Present
A Winter’s Tail
The Taming of the Tabby
Frankencat
The Cat of Christmas Future
Farewell to Felines
A Whisker in Time – September 2018
The Catsgiving Feast – November 2018
Writers’ Retreat Mystery:
First Case
Second Look
Third Strike
Fourth Victim
Fifth Night
Sixth Cabin
Seventh Chapter
Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mystery:
Finding Justice
Finding Answers
Finding Courage - September 2018
Finding Christmas – November 2018
A Tess and Tilly Mystery:
The Christmas Letter
The Valentine Mystery
The Mother’s Day Mishap
The Halloween House
The Thanksgiving Trip – October 2018
Haunting by the Sea:
Homecoming by the Sea
Secrets by the Sea
Missing by the Sea – October 2018
Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mystery:
Murder at Dolphin Bay
Murder at Sunrise Beach
Murder at the Witching Hour
Murder at Christmas
Murder at Turtle Cove
Murder at Water’s Edge
Murder at Midnight
Seacliff High Mystery:
The Secret
The Curse
The Relic
The Conspiracy
The Grudge
The Shadow
The Haunting
Road to Christmas Romance:
Road to Christmas Past
USA Today best-selling author Kathi Daley lives in beautiful Lake Tahoe with her husband Ken. When she isn’t writing, she likes spending time hiking the miles of desolate trails surrounding her home. She has authored more than seventy-five books in eight series, including Zoe Donovan Cozy Mysteries, Whales and Tails Island Mysteries, Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mysteries, Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Series, Writers’ Retreat Southern Seashore Mysteries, Rescue Alaska Paranormal Mysteries, and Seacliff High Teen Mysteries. Find out more about her books at www.kathidaley.com
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