Nik zipped the bag and slung it over his shoulder. “Why don’t we head toward the resort? We can confirm she’s there and find out what she dreamed. You can try calling her again on the way.”
Ice did. Twice. Telling himself there was no reason for concern. With so many people in one cottage, Jeni must be sharing a bedroom, she probably put her phone on vibrate.
But his gut told him something different. The apprehension Nik exuded scared the hell out of Ice. He needed to know Jeni was safe.
“Nik? Can we use the yellow stone—it’s a seeking stone, right? Just so we know she’s really at the resort?”
“Mmm, it takes too much time. We’d be at the resort long before it could return.”
They were still thirty minutes from Rainbow Resort. Ice stared at the road ahead and willed his phone to ring.
“Unless…,” Nik said.
“What?” Ice jerked his head toward his passenger.
“Do you have anything of hers? Has she given you anything?”
“Just the statue.”
“Anything else? Anything at all. The stone can find a person quickly with something that belongs to them or something given freely—like coins, paper, even a tissue.”
Ice shook his head. He’d barely spent any time with Jeni. Even when she gave him her phone number she’d entered it directly into his phone.
He tapped his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel as he waited for a traffic light.
“Pull over,” Nik suddenly commanded.
Ice shot a questioning glance at the medicine man and found Nik studying his…arm?...jacket?
“Under the street light,” Nik motioned with his hand.
Ice glided up to the curb. “I thought we were in a hurry.”
“We are.” Nik leaned over and plucked something from Ice’s sleeve. He held it up in the light.
It was a long, blonde hair.
***
Jeni’s knees ached from kneeling on the hard ground. She shifted from one leg to the other, trying to get some relief. At least her head had cleared and Tyler no longer had to hold her up.
“Tyler?”
He grunted.
“I’m sorry about what I said; this isn’t your fault.”
“I know.”
“I was just really scared.”
“Interesting reaction.”
Jeni carefully considered what she was going to say next. If Tyler hadn’t come out here, she’d be by herself and possibly dying right now. The least she could do was explain why she’d yelled at him.
She took a deep breath. “In third grade, there was this boy I was friends with, Randy. We’d been friends since pre-school and he knew I was afraid of the dark. Anyway, one day we were lining up to go to lunch and the teacher asked me to return the basket of reading books to the supply closet upstairs. The basket was kind of cumbersome so she asked Randy to help me. Well, of course we had to get nosey and poke around in the supply closet. I was checking out some Christmas decorations or something when all of a sudden the light went out and the door slammed shut. I called out to Randy and when he didn’t answer, I realized he’d done it—shut me in there in the dark.”
She paused but Tyler didn’t say anything, so she continued. “I ran toward the door, tripped on something and fell. When I made it to the door I couldn’t open it. I don’t know if it locked from the inside or if it was broken. I yelled for Randy while waving my hands around trying to catch the string to turn the light on. I couldn’t find it in the dark. That’s when I freaked out.”
“I screamed and pounded on the door but the rooms upstairs were only used for special classes, like music or art and the science lab. It was lunch time—no one was around. Eventually I just sat down by the crack of light at the bottom of the door and cried.”
“Didn’t your teacher wonder what happened to you?”
“She’d left the class in the cafeteria and went to the teacher’s lounge to eat her lunch.”
“What about your friends?”
“Yeah, eventually they wondered where I was. Still, lunch was our only freedom all day. Not many kids would give that up to go looking for someone. But one girl did. Carolyn. She asked Randy where I was and he must’ve looked suspicious because she went right to the teacher and told her I never came to lunch.”
“Carolyn? The same one I met at Grandpa’s funeral?”
Jeni missed a beat, surprised that Tyler remembered her friend, then answered, “Yup, that’s her. We’ve been best friends ever since.”
She fell silent, wondering what Tyler might be thinking, then she laughed humorlessly. “You know, telling this now makes it sounds like nothing, but I’ve never really gotten over my fear of the dark and I’m extremely claustrophobic—put the two together…well, you know. When that door slammed shut over us, I was back in third grade again, and I panicked. I got mad at you to keep from going nuts.”
She waited. It was a huge risk; she’d just handed her adversary a buttload of ammo. Ironically, telling Tyler the story had gone against the vow she’d made back then to never trust boys.
“Hate to break it to you, but you qualified for nuts just by roaming around in the woods by yourself in the middle of the night,” Tyler said.
There might have been a question there, but Jeni chose to ignore it. Telling Tyler about her fears was hard enough—she couldn’t talk to him about her feelings for Ice. Instead she asked a question. “How did you find me?”
“I followed you. When I found your mom’s car at the side of the road, you were already out of sight and I wasn’t sure which way you went. At first I was going to search the side you parked on, and then I realized the state park was across the road and it seemed a more likely place to start.”
“You heard me leave?”
“I’m sleeping on the sofa-bed in the living room, remember?”
“Why did you come after me? Why didn’t you tell my mom and dad?”
Tyler took his time answering her question. “I guess I believed you when you said you wouldn’t go after the…creature or whatever. Plus, I knew the older guy was still in the hospital.” He sighed heavily. “I figured you were just meeting Ice somewhere. If that was the case, once I was sure you were with him, I would’ve gone back to the cottage.”
Jeni was glad Tyler couldn’t see her blush. He thought she might be meeting Ice for a midnight rendezvous—the implication there was apparent. She didn’t know why it mattered to her, but she didn’t want Tyler to think she was that kind of girl.
She cleared her throat. “Uh, just for the record, I wouldn’t take my parent’s car and drive illegally just to meet a guy.”
“Yet.” She could hear the smile in his voice. “There’s still time.”
Jeni shifted on her knees again. “How much longer can that thing run?”
“Not much longer, I hope.”
She couldn’t stand to listen to the engine rumbling away above them. She needed distraction. “So you were playing Breaking Benjamin in your car today, what other bands do you like?”
That conversation eventually turned into sort of a game where they took turns blurting out as many bands from their iPods as they could remember. Jeni used an alphabetical strategy and had reached ‘T’ when the motor above coughed and sputtered. They both listened as it hiccupped a few times and then finally stalled.
“Thank God,” Jeni sighed.
“Don’t move. We’ll want the air to clear. Plus we should listen for any signs that someone’s still up there.”
Jeni listened for noise from above while she continually shifted from knee to knee. She swore the grit had worked its way through her jeans, her skin, and now grated directly on bone. There was no indication their captor remained outside the cellar.
“This is what I think we should do,” Tyler said in a low voice. “First, if
I can raise the door even a little bit, maybe you can shove something in there so the fumes in here can escape.”
“Okay,” Jeni agreed.
“Then we can take turns shoveling out that tunnel. Whoever’s not shoveling should probably still breathe over here.” Tyler began to pull his jacket out of the opening around his face. “Ready?”
“Ready.” Jeni gripped her jacket and took a couple of deep breaths.
“Go!”
They attempted to spring into action, their stiff knees preventing an accelerated pace. Jeni groaned but kept moving. She found the branch she’d dropped when she fell. Tyler had the bigger branch and already had the end against the door.
Jeni held the limb horizontally in both hands high above her head. She positioned it at the crack at the edge of the door and leaned forward slightly. “Okay,” she squeaked out, trying not to expel her breath.
Tyler heaved and the door lifted slightly. Jeni shoved her stick forward and it jammed into the earth. She let go and it stayed put. She exhaled in a rush and darted for the furnace as she fought the urge to breathe in great gulps of air. Seconds later, Tyler was beside her.
“I think if we try…” Tyler panted, “One more time, you can get that branch in farther.”
Jeni nodded.
They both sucked in air and hurried back to their positions. Tyler heaved again and Jeni pushed forward. Her stick didn’t move. Trying again, she pushed down on the end of the branch and shoved it upward on an angle. At first it resisted, then broke through the looser surface dirt, sliding through the crack, and propping the door open an inch or so. Tyler dropped his branch and they returned to the furnace, gasping for air.
“I’ll shovel first,” Tyler said.
The cellar still reeked of fumes and Jeni put her jacket around her head to keep the poisoned gas from invading her breathing space. Without the jacket muffling the sound of metal scraping dirt, she might have missed the rustle and crunch of leaves above until it was too late.
“Tyler!” she hissed.
He paused, then he heard it too. The swishing grew louder, quickly. Tyler carefully lowered the shovel to the ground, tiptoed over to Jeni, and crouched next to her.
There was no doubt someone was up there.
Jeni’s heart wanted to explode in her chest. When the crazy guy found out they were still alive, he would find some other way to kill them. Asphyxiation might have been preferable to whatever the psychopath had in store for them now. A small cry of fear escaped from the back of her throat.
Tyler squeezed her shoulder and leaned in, his mouth close to her ear, then they both recoiled from the sound of thumps and scraping on the trap door.
The logs were being removed.
My Creator, let me live today with an open heart. Let me realize to be vulnerable is a strength, not a weakness. Let me realize the power of an open heart. Let me be available to truth. If I get into trouble, let me hear the whisper of your guidance. Let me make heart decisions and let my head catch up on that decision.
—Audrey Shenandoah, Onandaga
Chapter 11
Ice looked up from the empty space on the dash where the yellow stone had been a moment earlier. “Should we still drive toward the resort?”
“Might as well. Even if she’s not there, we’ll be near Lake Itasca.”
A cold stab of fear pierced Ice’s chest. He didn’t want to think about Jeni being anywhere, except safe in her bed.
As if reading his mind, Nik said, “Don’t worry, it’ll find her fast using her hair. If that was her hair?”
Ice pressed his lips together. He had no appreciation for Nik’s attempt to lighten the mood. “It’s hers.”
The minutes on the Jeep’s clock ticked by in slow motion. Ice tried Jeni’s phone again. He didn’t expect her to answer; it was a way to pass the time. Twelve minutes after the seeking stone disappeared, it reappeared on the dash making Ice jump.
Nik snatched it and held it in his palm, eyes closed.
Ice glanced back and forth from road to Nik. “Well?”
“She’s not at the cottage.”
Ice’s throat closed up.
“She’s under…”
“Water?” Ice moaned. “Oh God…”
“Ground,” Nik said, squeezing Ice’s arm. “She’s in some kind of underground area.”
“Like a cave?” Ice whispered.
Nik turned his head slowly from side to side, eyes closed. “Perhaps, but the shape seems too well defined.” The medicine man sat motionless, employing all of his senses. “There must be a road not too far away…I smell exhaust…and…wood smoke? Also, a prevalent earthy smell—like wet dirt—my guess is the place is probably near water.”
“Great,” Ice muttered, “that narrows it down.” The area had hundreds of lakes. He stopped at an intersection and rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans. “Left toward the resort or right toward the state park?”
Nik held the stone out to Ice. “Take it.”
Ice raised his eyebrows, but accepted the stone.
“You have a connection with Jeni, sense her.”
Ice cupped the stone in both hands. Though his heart beat at an accelerated pace, he closed his eyes and tried to clear his head of all thoughts except for Jeni. He sought her essence; her soul.
He had no idea what he was doing.
Setting the stone on the seat next to him, Ice made a right turn. He cruised the highway skirting the east edge of the state park, guided by intuition, nerves humming on overdrive.
He nearly flew past the cars on the side of the road.
Nik pitched forward and then was flung back in his seat as Ice slammed on the brakes. He threw the Jeep into reverse and backed to the cars. “Both of these cars were at the cottage. I think the silver one is Jeni’s cousin’s.” His voice wavered and he swallowed hard. Oh God, she was with Tyler. “Should we…should we find the police down at the lake?”
“Ice.” Nik waited until his apprentice met his gaze. “Don’t jump to conclusions. Let’s check it out here first.”
Ice leaned forward, struggling to breathe normally, and retrieved a small flashlight from his glove box. He nodded across the road. Toward Lake Itasca. Nik followed him into the woods and they proceeded silently, tracking a trail of footsteps and broken foliage. Ice noted with dismay the two sizes of footprints.
They came to the park road and crossed, picking up the trail. A few steps from the blacktop Ice heard Nik mutter, “Burial grounds.” The medicine man’s words made Ice’s chest constrict further, and he forced himself onward, his pulse racing.
Wrinkling his nose, Ice glanced at Nik. “Smell that?”
Nik nodded.
Ice frowned. Why did he smell exhaust here, a few yards off the road? As glimpses of the lake appeared through the trees, the gassy smell grew stronger. Then his flashlight glinted off something ahead and he hurried forward. When the shape came into view, Ice slowed to steady the beam and trace the object. Was that a motorcycle? On its side?
He shook his head. That’s what he smelled. Someone was screwing around on their dirt bike in the woods and it quit or ran out of gas, so they’d left it behind.
Except it was like five a.m. Ice paused and narrowed his eyes. Why would the fumes still linger in the area?
He stepped into the clearing and flicked his light over the bike and some nearby logs. Something here was not right. He could feel it. Coming closer, he scanned the disturbed ground, the hot ball of dread in his stomach flaring with newfound fuel.
His light stopped on a metal ring. Wet dirt. Not a cave. He met Nik’s eyes and without a word, they both rushed to the trap door and shoved the logs covering it out of the way. Ice grasped the ring and flung the heavy door open as though it was made of Styrofoam. A rush of fumes issued from the space below.
He directed his light in
side and gasped when the beam revealed two bodies lying lifeless on the cellar floor. His brain worked to reconcile the scene before him with his expectation that Mishebeshu had slain Jeni while Tyler watched helplessly.
“No,” he choked the word out.
Nik reached out to grab him, but Ice was already in motion. He dropped into the cellar. “Nonononono,” he moaned, falling to his knees.
Though she was on her face and her hair hid her features, Ice knew it was Jeni. His hand shook as he reached to gently roll her over. He pressed his thumb on her wrist, eyes downcast and welling with tears.
“Ice?” she said, pulling her hand away.
Ice’s head snapped up and Jeni threw herself into his arms. Over her shoulder he saw Tyler sit up and stare wide-eyed.
Then they all started asking questions at once.
“Save the explanations for later,” Nik called down. “Get out of there, it smells terrible!”
Tyler already had his hands on the lip of the hole, and his face lifted to the fresh air. He hoisted himself up and Nik helped haul him over the edge. Ice pulled Jeni up from the ground and lifted her by the waist as she held her hands out to Nik and Tyler, then he clambered up to join them.
“Are you all right?” Ice asked Jeni as they tramped into the trees.
“I am now.”
He put his arm around her, fingers curled over her shoulder. She slipped her arm around his waist and he sighed, letting the tension of the past few hours ebb.
“I thought you went after the monster and he got you. Then, I saw you down there and…you were…it looked like you guys were dead.”
“That was the plan, we wanted whoever tried to kill us to think he’d succeeded and then Tyler was going to jump him.”
“Someone tried to kill you? How did you get in there in the first place?”
Jeni began telling Ice about her second dream, but as they emerged into the clearing next to the road, Tyler approached anxiously. “It’s almost six o’clock. We’d better get back before you’re grounded for life.”
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