by RJ Corgan
Something odd was definitely going on between the company teams, but she still had no idea what. Kea ran through the list of the people on Marcus’ team on that fateful day: Tony, Bruce, Derek, Jon, and Reynard. None of the other teams on the ice had been within a kilometer of Bruce. Not that she seriously believed any of them was a killer, although she wouldn’t put anything past Derek. Her conversation with Jon and Erik had been unsettling, but they might have just been put off by her clumsy attempts at sleuthing. Tony was a bit of a prick, to be sure, but he had never even met Bruce until this week, nor had Marcus.
What’s harder to accept, she wondered, that Bruce killed himself or that I think I could have somehow stopped him?
God Complex, she remembered from Psych 101. Or worse, am I so fixated on trying to solve a nonexistent crime to avoid thinking about the ruin that is my love life? Healer, heal thyself.
She waited until the rain abated before approaching Derek, Lexie, and Tiko, who were busy sketching out the last of the sections. They were the last team, which meant everyone could wrap up soon. Realizing she didn’t have much time left to ask questions Kea made a beeline to Derek’s station.
“Hiya.” Derek grinned as Kea peered over his shoulder at his field notebook. “Like what you see?”
Kea frowned. “I didn’t realize the strata had that many... curves.”
Derek laughed and examined his work. “Not bad though, eh?”
“I wouldn’t know,” Kea admitted. “I’ve only ever seen Lexie with her clothes on.”
“Shame,” Derek tutted. “You’re missing out.” If he cared whether Lexie heard, he gave no sign. He flipped the page back to his section sketch. “Was this more what you were looking for?”
She pulled a face as she looked at his work. He was, it had to be said, a decent artist. More importantly, all the sections had been sampled, marked, and were bagged at the foot of the cliff. “Looks like you’re done for the day.”
“Yeah, figured.” Derek made an odd sucking noise and spit a wad of chewing tobacco onto the cobbles. He looked across to the next section where Lexie was working. “Thought I’d find a way to kill some time.”
“We’ll be finishing soon.” Kea checked her watch. “Hopefully before the sky opens up again.”
“Is that it for the season? Or are you going back up on the ice?” Derek sounded genuinely concerned.
Kea pointed up at the sky. “Everything depends on the weather. We need to collect our gear, so we must go back up. The rest of you are free today to leave of course, but we’re thrilled so many of you decided to stay.”
Derek grunted. “Most of us had plans to hang out in the city after the fieldwork and see a bit more of the country. But even that costs a fortune. Not to mention it’s the height of the tourist season. Everything’s booked solid for the next few days. You’re doing us a favor by letting us stay on.”
Looking at him squatting at the base of a filthy cliff being drenched by constant downpours, Kea found it hard to conceive the man was in any way grateful, but she let it pass. “Well, after everything that happened, we do appreciate it.”
“Dumbass...”
Kea assumed Derek was referring to Bruce. “Did you two not get along?”
“Not get along?” Derek was visibly angry. Kea had only seen the lewd version of Derek, so the change was startling. “His stupidity destroyed two of my Lancet prototypes.”
“Lancet?” Kea asked.
Derek eyed her curiously, then changed the topic. “Managers always want to save a few bucks to make themselves look good. Never understand the real cost.”
“You’re an engineer?” Kea asked, forgetting to cover the surprise in her voice. To be honest, he seemed so constantly lewd and randy, she discounted the possibility of his brain being able to capable of anything else.
Derek tapped his crooked nose with a finger. “More than just a pretty face, love. Engineer and project lead. Three years’ worth of work down the tubes, thanks to Bruce. The fat fanny.”
Means, motive, and opportunity. Kea checked off the boxes in her head. He was not the best person to be standing next to out in the virtual middle of nowhere. She looked up the length of the exposure and noted that Lexie and Tiko were starting to pack up their gear.
“Right, well,” Kea took a couple of paces back and pulled out her camera. “Why don’t you head back. I’ll wrap up here.”
Derek cocked his head. “If I wanted to kill the bastard, I’d have done it looking him in the eye, not kicking him in the back.”
Judging from the harshness in Derek’s tone, she got the impression that he was speaking from personal experience. She looked away quickly and began taking pictures of the section.
Kicking Bruce in the back? She thought. How did he know he was kicked?
After the moment that it took to regain the use of her vocal cords, she croaked out, “Noted.” Time to leave. She tossed a quick, “See you back at the jeeps,” over her shoulder as she walked further downstream. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him heft his pack and begin the slow walk back.
There were another twenty or thirty meters of section left, but from their brief reconnoiter earlier that morning they had determined that the exposed sediment appeared to be unremarkable. The rain had discolored the section, making it easier to see the different strata, giving her a good excuse to take a few more pictures. Mostly, however, she was giving herself more time to put some distance between her and Derek and, although she was loath to admit it, to let herself calm down. Her hands weren’t just trembling from the cold.
***
After another five minutes, the sky began dumping heavy sheets of rain, forcing Kea to slide her camera into a protective baggie and pull out her walkie-talkie. “Ready to head out? Over.” Tony, Marcus, and Julie replied in the affirmative. “I’m bringing up the rear,” she continued. “All volunteers have headed back to the jeep. Meet you there. Over.” She tucked the radio into her jacket and performed a final sweep for sample bags, trowels, or anything else left behind.
Trudging along the edge of the embankment, she felt the apprehension she’d experienced with her encounter with Derek subside as the wind and rain forced her to focus simply on walking. She watched as water filled the swarm of boot prints left in the mud by the volunteers. Soon they would be washed away by the swollen river, and with them the stratigraphic sections.
Sadness touched her heart for a moment as she realized that she’d never see this stretch of land again. It had been one hell of a find, particularly if they could correlate it to other historical accounts of flooding in the area. She only hoped they had collected enough data. It was only then that she realized how quickly she had slipped back into work mode, and how she had once again easily pushed any thoughts of Bruce aside.
“What the hell is wrong with me?” she asked the sky, feeling the gentle tap of raindrops splash her face.
“For a start, your breath could strip the paint off a car,” chirped a voice from above.
Blinking furiously, Kea spied a purple hooded head poking up above the embankment. It was Nadia, peering down at her, scraggly strands of hair dangling down from the darkness of her hoodie.
“What are you doing up there?” Kea demanded.
“You’re taking ages.” Nadia threw a leg over the edge of the cliff and started sliding down the embankment. “They sent me back to check on you.”
“No, don’t- the section!” Kea protested too late. The teenager scrambled down the last few feet, arriving beside her in a cloud of rocks and sediment.
Kea shielded her eyes from the churning dirt, cursing silently. Cupping a palm between her nose and mouth, she sniffed her own breath.
It wasn't that bad, was it?
She frowned at Nadia. “There’s a reason we made this path, young lady.”
“Young lady?” Nadia sneered. “Are you a nun or something?”
Kea shook her head. It was too damp, and she was too tired to waste energy reprimanding Nadia
. At least, she told herself as she surveyed the damage, they had documented the section already. She reached out a hand to steady her. “Don't make me sound like my mother. It’s not a pleasant experience, for either of us.”
“Can we head back now?” Nadia pleaded.
“You better walk three paces ahead of me,” Kea cautioned, “otherwise, I might chuck you in the river.”
“Moody,” Nadia pouted. “You and everyone else.”
“Better days,” Kea said as they continued walking along the path, “I have had.”
“Everyone started moaning on the way back about having to come back out tomorrow,” Nadia said, appearing quite happy to rat out the others. “I thought we were done?”
“Who said we’d be back?” Kea asked.
“Marcus,” Nadia replied.
“News to me,” Kea replied, attempting to hide her irritation. The section was done, and she had informed him as much at lunchtime. “Some people never listen.”
“People can be so annoying,” Nadia agreed, oblivious to the sidelong look Kea shot her.
Arriving at the T-junction where the path straddled the edge of the lake, the clouds unleashed their cargo, drenching the air with thick drops of water, heavy and cold. Kea saw that the two-by-four planks Tony and Marcus had laid down the day before to assist the crossing were still there. It had slipped her mind that they would have to take them back. She sighed. Even with Nadia’s help, the planks were too heavy to carry, given the weight of her pack, which meant they would have to return another day. Still, she considered, they could at least shift them so they weren’t washed away.
“Give me a hand, will you?” Kea crossed over the planks. Warily eying the cold glacial lake below, she knelt in the mud. Gouging her fingertips into the space between the wood, she tugged, but suction held the wood firmly in place.
Wrinkling her nose in disgust, Nadia sunk her hands into the goo and pried out the other end. Together they pulled. Grudgingly, the planks popped free, accompanied by a series of grotesque sucking noises.
“I’m never going to get this crap out of my nails,” Nadia moaned. “I’d murder for a long bath.”
“You and me both.” Kea reached out her hand and helped the teenager out of the mud. Together, they picked up the planks and walked across the last stretch of bridge. “Don’t worry, on the way back to the airport, there’s a thermal lagoon. You can soak until your heart’s content-”
The earth fell out from under them.
Kea’s hands scrabbled against the hard gravel as she tumbled down the embankment toward the water. There was a heart-stopping moment of nothing before she felt her palms push through a hard, flat surface. Then a cold black wall slapped against her face and swallowed her whole.
The shock of the icy water burned as it slid beneath her clothes, scalding as it flooded down her back. She screamed again, causing a fountain of bubbles to vomit out of her mouth. Kicking fiercely with the leaden weight of her boots, she shoved her head above the water, gasping for air. She clawed at the vertical cliff of loose sand, desperate to pull herself back up, but the soft, wet sediment bled through her hands. The slope was too steep, she realized. Her attempts only resulted in an avalanche of sand and gravel that spilled onto her face, blinding her.
A shriek nearby signaled that Nadia had not yet drowned. Kea felt a surge of adrenaline rush through her. She tried once again to find her own footing, but the water was too deep here, the current too strong. Heaving in a gulp of air, she found herself sinking beneath the surface. Thrashing frantically, her limbs felt heavier with every movement as her energy was leached away by the cold. Once, twice, she breached the surface. Without thinking, she sucked in a deep breath before slipping into the dark once more.
The breath gave her a moment to think. Or perhaps it was the realization that she didn’t have the strength to reach the surface again. Her limbs flailed about her in a wild panic, but her mind no longer played a part. She felt detached, as if she was watching everything happening from a distance. The strangely calm sensation allowed her to consider the problem.
The slope was too deep here, she needed to move further along to where the embankment leveled out. She allowed herself to be pulled along with the current, kicking repeatedly, finding that her feet felt heavier with each stroke. She was still sinking deeper.
Her pack was filling with water, she realized slowly, pulling her down to the lake bottom. Fingers numb with cold, she fumbled for the pack’s release clasp, a tight sodden tentacle of nylon that clung tightly around her chest. She yanked it free. The pack dropped away, and she felt suddenly propelled her upward. Breaching the surface once more, she took several quick, trembling breaths before striking off along the shore, kicking with her legs and grabbing at any rock to pull her along. Five yards. Ten. Twenty. Finally, her feet hit firm substrate, and she battered her hands against cobbles, trying to gain purchase on the bank.
A yelp caused her to look downstream. A bundle of purple clung to a boulder in the middle of the river. Nadia. Although she was unburdened by a pack, she appeared stranded, mewling like a wet kitten.
Get them back alive, Carlyle’s voice echoed in her head. Without giving herself time to reconsider, Kea shoved off from shore, swimming desperately towards Nadia. Her body was already numb, but she used the current to assist her, steering as best she could with her leaden legs. She blew out jagged breaths between each stroke, her teeth chattering furiously. Unfortunately, she misjudged her momentum and slammed into Nadia, knocking her grip off the rock. The teenager thrashed wildly, latching onto Kea, her arms forming a death grip around Kea’s throat.
“Okay,” Kea managed to spit out as she pulled Nadia's arm away so she could breathe. “It’s okay.”
They floated with the current, and Kea used the opportunity to swing the girl behind her. Gently lifting Nadia’s chin with the crook of her own arm, she used her other arm start to paddling back to shore. “Come on,” she whispered, “we can do this together. Kick, just keep kicking.”
Just keep kicking, Kea repeated over and over in her head. She didn't think she could make it. The glacial meltwater that fed the river meant the chilling cold might consume them at any moment. Her arms ached and her hands were so numb that she wasn’t even certain she was holding Nadia anymore. Only Nadia’s repetitive swearing informed Kea that she was still with her, still conscious.
Kick. Kick. Thud.
Kea bellowed as her boot thwacked against a rock. Cursing, she pushed upward and found purchase with her other foot. A bend in the river ahead had caused sediment to accumulate, giving her enough ground to start slagging toward the shore. She half-crawled, half-walked into the shallows. Nadia, appearing to regain her strength now that they were out of the water, helped her stand. They wobbled like contestants in an awkward three-legged race as they stumbled through the shallows before splaying out on the cobbles.
“I,” Nadia gasped as she spat out a mouthful of glacial water, “hate,” her words juddered from between her quivering jaw and chattering teeth, “nature.”
Kea ignored her. The storm pelted the earth and water around them. Her arms were still shaking uncontrollably. She ripped off her jacket, its sodden weight slapping against the ground. Tugging at the pocket that held the radio, she tried to pull apart the Velcro to get to the zipper but found she was just pawing uselessly at the nylon fabric. Her fingers refused to feel, to bend, to yield. She wanted to scream in frustration, but she could barely manage to draw breath. At last, she was able to pull open the Velcro with her teeth. She yanked back the zipper, coating her lips in grit. Pulling out the radio, she watched in horror as it dripped water and mud onto the sand. Cursing, she flicked the power switch. Nothing.
“What’s wrong?” Nadia asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Kea felt the radio slip out of her hand and thud into the mud. She closed her eyes and felt the raindrops patter on her eyelids. “Nothing,” she said at last. “They’re coming. Just hold on.” She rested he
r head onto the rocks, surprised at how comfortable they felt. “Don’t fall asleep, just hang on. I just need a few minutes to get my strength back…” She trailed off as her mind slipped into the shadows and she felt the arms of sleep embrace her.
Chapter 13
DARKNESS.
Warmth.
Naked.
Kea did a mental doubletake.
Yes, she realized, very naked.
She let out a long groan and inhaled slowly, aware that she was still shaking. Her nostrils filled with the scent of patchouli that stirred long-buried memories. It took her back to the days of noodles, pot-filled dorm rooms, and the crisp scent of autumn leaves.
“You know,” Zoë whispered into Kea’s ear, “if you wanted to get naked together, all you had to do was ask. Throwing yourself into a lake does smack of desperation.”
“I didn’t know it was an option.” Kea felt cold, clammy, and distinctly uncomfortable. Her hair was wet and freezing. The corrugated floor of the jeep beneath the flimsy emergency blanket dug into her back. “Besides, there’s nothing romantic about this.”
Zoë repositioned herself so she could look Kea in the eye. “How long has it been?”
Kea looked down at her chest, saw that Zoë was only wearing her underwear. Kea looked up again quickly, and unable to meet the woman’s gaze, settled for staring at the ceiling of the jeep instead. “You’ll have to be a bit more specific.’
Zoë laughed. “I was actually referring to hypothermia treatment.”
“First time on the receiving end. We had a volunteer get hypothermia once,” Kea said, remembering a previous field season. “But that wasn’t due to anything so exciting. Just from walking, exhaustion, sweating, and wearing the wrong clothes.”
“Never had anyone leap into a glacial lake before?” Zoë teased, but her tone was warm, her smile kind.
Still quivering, Kea struggled to remember what had happened. “I didn’t leap exactly...” She looked around the inside of the jeep. The engine was still running, the windows steaming up.