by Anna Willett
She’d taken a step closer to Lucas, trying to watch Milly’s descent. She took her eyes off Lucas’s hands and leaned over to get a better view. Suddenly Milly dropped. Her mouth formed a shocked circle, her eyes wide and panicked. Then the smack as she hit the ground. Harper heard herself scream, a raw pained noise.
“Milly?” Both Judith and Harper had called her name.
Harper, from her vantage point above could see the top of Judith’s hat as she bent over her sister. “Milly? Milly, please.” The pain in Judith’s voice cut Harper like a knife.
“Is she okay?” Lucas sounded concerned, but there was no panic in his voice.
Judith looked up. “I don’t know. I don’t know. She’s breathing but she’s out cold. What should I do?”
“Put her in the coma position,” Harper remembered doing a first aid course a few years earlier as part of her teacher training.
“No. Don’t move her.” Lucas sounded calm, the voice of reason. “Unclip the harness, but don’t try and move her. She might have spinal damage.”
“Oh God!” Judith wailed and began unclipping the clasps from her sister’s body.
It struck Harper as strange that he wanted the harness unclipped. What difference did it make? But the moment Judith had the straps off Milly’s body, Lucas pulled the rig up and stuffed it in his bag. Why are we wasting time with all this? Before she could voice her thoughts, Lucas started giving orders.
“You stay with her and we’ll go for help,” he’d called down the cliff.
Judith stumbled to her feet and pulled her hat off. “Harper?” She looked up with terrified eyes. Harper knew she was waiting for her to tell her what to do.
“I should stay,” Harper turned to Lucas. “I can’t leave her alone down there.”
Lucas finished stowing his climbing gear and picked up his pack. “There’s no way down that won’t take hours. If we pick up the pace and jog, we’ll be near the trail in forty minutes.” He swung the pack over his shoulder and picked up Judith’s red nylon bag. “We should be able to get a signal then and call for help.”
Harper could feel a line of sweat gathering on the back of her neck. The afternoon sun sat high in the sky and the air felt heavy. “No. I’ll stay up here and wait for the medics to arrive.”
Lucas grabbed her arm and pulled her back from the edge. His fingers dug into her skin. For a second, Harper could have sworn she’d seen something cruel in his features. But it disappeared just as quickly, leaving her wondering if what she’d really seen was panic.
“Listen,” he lowered his voice. “We need to get Milly help right away. If I go alone and fall or get bitten by a snake, she’ll die before you two realise no one’s coming.” Harper gasped. “It has to be the two of us. It’s the only safe option.”
* * *
Fifteen minutes later, Harper jogged behind Lucas as they headed back to the trail. The only sounds came from the chatter of cockatoos in the trees as they cracked open seed pods, and the thump of their boots on the dirt. Her mind kept coming back to the moment Milly fell. Dropping her was part of the plan, but did he do it from a greater height on purpose? She wondered why they weren’t trying the phone to see if they could get a signal.
Harper stopped moving and dropped her pack on the ground. Her bag contained two mobile phones, her own and Milly’s. Now that the initial shock of seeing her friend fall had begun to subside, Harper’s brain seemed to be functioning clearly. She’d taken Milly’s phone while pretending to help close her pack. It had been part of the plan. Judith didn’t want Milly calling for help the minute she thought they were stranded. How could I have run off and left them without a phone? Once the plan had gone haywire, the logical thing would’ve been to give Judith the phone while Harper and Lucas went for help. Then why didn’t you? Harper asked herself. The answer was simple. Lucas had rushed her away while she was still reeling from the accident. Was it an accident?
“What are you doing?” Lucas’s voice broke through her reverie.
Harper looked up. The sun was behind him. Raising her hand to shield her eyes, she tried to squint away the glare. She could make out his shape, large and dark, haloed by glaring sunlight.
“I’m going to see if I can get a signal.” Harper couldn’t make out his features, but there was something menacing in his stance. In that moment, she became acutely aware of being alone with this man miles from anywhere.
“You’re wasting time. We need to keep moving.” His voice sounded tight, almost angry.
Harper reminded herself that he was probably behaving strangely because of the accident. After all, he’d dropped Milly. The shock and guilt of that would be enough to shake anyone up. Even so, she thought it best to not aggravate the situation. “Yes. You’re right,” she tried to keep her tone casual. “I’ll just check if I’ve got a signal and then we’ll go.”
A flash of black darted out of the glare. Lucas snatched the pack out of her hands. “Stop fucking about,” he growled. His hand slid under her arm and wrenched her to her feet.
“What?” Harper stuttered.
“Move.” Lucas pushed her forward.
Harper stumbled and nearly lost her footing on the uneven ground. She tried to turn around, but Lucas’s large hand slapped the base of her back and shoved her forward. This time she did lose her balance. Her boots skidded on a patch of loose stones. She tried to correct her balance and nose-dived into the dirt with a tooth-jarring thud.
Too shocked and breathless to speak, Harper flopped over onto her back. Her first reaction, outrage. He actually pushed me, her mind screamed. Then more sinister thoughts overtook all other feelings and she began to realise she might be in danger. Lucas loomed over her. There was no trace of the shy, almost lost, young man she’d befriended at the gym. Her instincts told her to run but with him so close, she doubted she’d get far before he grabbed her.
“Get up and move!” The last word turned into a bellow.
Harper flinched and scrambled to her feet. She wanted to argue, but the clamp of his hand on her shoulder silenced her. Whatever Lucas had in mind, she had no choice but to go along with it, at least for now.
After ten minutes of hiking over uneven ground, with Lucas squeezing her shoulder, Harper snapped. She dipped her right shoulder and sidestepped to the left. Lucas, caught by surprise, lost his grip. Seizing the opportunity, Harper turned and ran. Still heading for the trail, she found herself fighting against shrubs and shaggy trees. Her pack bounced against her shoulders. Still moving forward, she shrugged the straps off her shoulders and let the pack drop behind her.
Lucas’s footfalls thumped the earth, the sound competing with the hammering of her heart. She rounded a jagged crop of granite and collided with a solid mass. The impact smashed the air out of her lungs and sent her sprawling onto her back. Harper had hit the ground, her tail bone striking something raised and blunt.
Lucas had gotten in front of her. How could that be? Her panicked mind tried to make sense of what she was seeing. No, not Lucas, but someone who looked very similar; only this guy was bigger, his face scarred with deep pock marks.
“Where are you going?” He grinned, exposing unusually small teeth. Harper tried to crab-walk backwards. “No you don’t.” He reached out a muscular arm and grabbed the front of her shirt.
Harper batted his hand and kicked out with her feet. He ignored her attempts and pulled her up. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he spun her until he had her back to him and then pulled her close and pressed himself against her. A sour musky smell invaded her nostrils.
“I’ve got her,” he called as Lucas rounded the rocks.
Lucas nodded, his face solemn. He sauntered towards them breathing heavily. Obviously his physique comes from lifting weights, but his aerobic fitness is pathetic. The thought didn’t give Harper any satisfaction, instead a finger of ice travelled up her spine. She was at their mercy. She didn’t want to give either of them the pleasure of seeing her cry, but tears blurred her eyes and
she was powerless to stop them.
If Lucas noticed her crying, he made no comment. He stood a few metres ahead of them and regarded her. When he spoke, it was to the man behind her. “You been waiting long?”
The man holding her, buried his face in the back of her neck and sniffed. “Yeah, but it’s okay. I like it here.” When he spoke, his hot breath sprayed the back of her neck. Harper hunched her shoulders and pulled her head forward.
“Lucas, why are you doing this? Please just let me go.” Harper hated the tremble in her voice. “I won’t say anything to anyone.”
“My name’s not Lucas. It’s Martin. Martin Crowell.” He jerked his chin up. “That’s my brother Archie.”
Harper sucked in air as if jolted by an electric shock. Crowell was Drew’s last name. That meant these two men holding her captive were his family? How could she have been so blind? The resemblance was there as clear as day. Only it had been ten years since she last saw Drew. Over time his face had blurred in her memory. Now, looking into Lucas’s eyes, she could see the truth. No, not Lucas, she reminded herself. Martin. A ghost from the past. Harper’s legs quivered.
“So this is about revenge?” she asked, trying to keep the tremble from her voice.
“Those two.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “They didn’t just kill our brother, they destroyed our family. When I saw you at the gym, I recognised you straight away. Archie and me were at the inquest with our mother. You probably didn’t even notice us.” He gave a smile that reminded her of lightening flashing. “You were too busy supporting your friends to notice two kids who’d just lost their brother.”
“Luc…” she stopped herself. “Martin, nobody meant to hurt Drew. What happened …” She searched for an explanation. Words that would show these men how sorry she was, but apologies seemed empty. “I liked Drew,” she said. “He was a good guy.”
Martin flinched. Whatever he’d been expecting her to say, that wasn’t it. Something flickered across his face. It might have been regret, but the look vanished. Sensing she’d found a weak spot, Harper pushed on. “Drew wouldn’t want this. He wouldn’t want his brothers hurting people.”
“You barely knew him!” he snapped. “You don’t know anything.”
“I know he was a good guy.” She searched for the words. “Kind and genuine. He’d hate what you’re doing.”
Martin stepped closer, his face red with emotion. Regret or anger, Harper couldn’t tell. “I don’t expect someone like you to get it. We have to do this.” He looked at the man holding her. “My brothers deserve payback. Payback for what happened to Drew and Archie.”
Archie gave a grunt of agreement.
“It’s the only way.” Martin continued. “Once this is over, things can be better again. Archie and me are leaving Western Australia. Going to start a new life.”
“So now what?” She took a shaky breath. “You and your brother are going kill me?”
“Not straight away,” the one holding her, Archie, whispered close to her ear. His arms, enfolding her waist squeezed and she felt herself being lifted off the ground.
It was the chance she’d been waiting for. You won’t get another, she told herself and leaned back against Archie. She swung her legs upwards, the side of her boot caught Martin under the right side of his forehead with a hollow thud. He staggered left.
“Hey!” Archie sounded more surprised than angry.
Before he had time to react, Harper drew her knees up and pumped them out into Martin’s chest. Pushing off his ribs like a swimmer pushing off the side of the pool. Martin had lost his balance and hit the ground. At the same time, Archie stumbled backwards. Harper felt Archie falter and threw herself back with enough force to topple both of them over.
Archie smacked the ground and let out an “Oomph.” Harper landed on top of him. He let go of her waist to steady himself. She saw her chance and took off like a bull out of a gate. Head down, arms pumping she headed right, towards the trees with the cold wind slapping her face. Behind her she heard Archie bellow something and then rush after her.
* * *
“Harper?”
She opened her eyes. Above her the sky hung low with dark clouds backlit by streaks of orange. She moved the fingers on her right hand, scraping the wet dirt. She was still in the pit. How long had it been since Judith left? She had no idea but the fading light told her evening approached.
She sniffed and the odour of damp earth filled her nose. She tried to lift her head and a shard of agony pierced her chest. She dropped her head and lay still, panting.
“Harper?”
There it was again. The voice drifted across the pit, high and mocking, but with a wet slurp on the r.
He was close by. She could feel his nearness. Judith tied him up, but maybe he’d freed himself somehow. No, Aunty Joan’s voice spoke up. He’ll never get up again. You bashed his head in. Harper visualized the rock hitting the back of Archie’s head and heard the crack of his skull. A sound that reminded her of the day she’d dropped a honey dew melon when unloading groceries from the boot of her car. The melon hit the concrete and broke open, spilling pinkish orange pulp in a gloopy puddle. Archie’s skull had cracked like that melon. Harper swallowed. Would she ever stop hearing that sound?
She waited. Listened. Imagining Archie lumbering towards her, head hanging at an unnatural angle, angry eyes bulging, glaring, accusing her of trying to kill him. A sound. Harper yelped.
She closed her eyes. She had no strength left to run or fight. Whatever happened now, she’d have to face alone. The seconds stretched out. She waited. A whirring growl echoed over the pit. Not the sound of a dead man’s feet shuffling across the dirt, but a helicopter. Harper opened her mouth to laugh and a sob ripped from between her lips. In the distance a dog barked.
Chapter Twenty-seven
Judith braced herself against a gum tree and bent forward. She took long even breaths, massaging her left side just above the hip. Her legs itched with the desire to move, but she knew if she didn’t work out the stitch, she’d be forced to stop again in less than a minute. Every second wasted could mean the difference between life and death. No, she told herself. I won’t accept that. Milly’s okay. I just have to get to her in time.
Her plans didn’t stretch as far as what she would do when she found Lucas and her sister. Maybe she wouldn’t have to do anything. He didn’t make any move to hurt her when she was with Milly. The possibility that Lucas was a coward who could only strike when he got a woman alone crossed her mind. She wondered if without his brother he was powerless to act. Or getting us one by one is part of their sick game. Her thoughts shifted back and forth on an endless loop of hope and despair.
The cramp in her side eased and Judith straightened her back. She remembered something Lucas said when he stumbled upon them earlier that day. He mentioned wandering around in the dark, then hearing the screams. It had bothered her all day, but until now it hadn’t occurred to her that the screaming started before it got dark. If she’d been thinking clearly, instead of arguing with Milly, she’d have realised he was lying. She only hoped Milly wouldn’t pay for her mistakes.
The forest around her lay in shadows with only murky light filtering through the storm clouds. She slid her hand down the tree and pushed off. Heading south seemed the safest course of action. That way, she’d run along the path Milly and Lucas would take if they were heading back to the trail. He could be leading her deeper into the wilderness, a voice in her head whispered. No, his brother was near the hiking trail and as far as Lucas knew, so was Judith. He’d head back, she felt sure of it.
Judith jogged through the trees. Branches and sticks grabbed at her arms and clothing. She slapped them away and tripped on the sloping ground, her knees pounding the dirt. Her legs trembled with the strain. She’d been on the move for hours, running on sips of water, crackers, and an energy bar. She didn’t know how much more her body could take. She took hold of a fallen log and pushed herself up. Her knees we
re bloody, the red a stark contrast against her grubby legs. She wondered how Milly was holding up. Had Lucas hurt her? Killed her? She couldn’t let her thoughts take her in that direction. She had to believe her sister was alive.
Minutes later, Judith felt the wilderness thin and spaces grow wider. She wandered into an open area where bush grasses reached as high as her knees. Hands on hips, she looked up and sucked in gulps of air. The light was softer, almost murky on the green and yellow waves of the wild grass. The urge to lay down in the coolness of the damp clearing and close her eyes almost overwhelmed her. Her knees began to fold of their own accord. Judith covered her face with her hands trying to will her body to keep moving.
On the other side of the clearing lay a small scattering of trees, their limbs twisted and bent from a lifetime of strong westerly winds coming off the Indian Ocean. Branches shimmered and undulated as if moved by an unseen force. Judith frowned and stepped back confused by what she saw. Her hand reached behind her and hovered over the knife. Suddenly the trees shook as a flock of white cockatoos rose out of the foliage and into the dusky sky. Their startled shrieks filled the air as hundreds of powerful wings batted their way east.
The urgency of the birds’ screams turned Judith’s bones to ice. They seemed to be screaming at her, warning her. She lurched forward and broke into a run. Within a minute, she’d crossed the clearing and entered the trees. The weak light threw shadows and streaks of grey in every direction. Judith halted and strained her eyes against the dimness. When her vision adjusted, she began to make out a shape.
At first her mind registered another fallen log, but a second glance revealed the truth. Milly’s right arm lay half-buried in damp leaves, the white skin of her forearm a stark contrast against the brown foliage; her face turned to the sky as if watching something intently. Judith opened her mouth to call to her sister, but the words caught in her throat. Milly’s legs, still clad in black track pants, were barely visible on the forest floor. The stillness of her sister’s form seemed unnatural.