“I bet we do!” bellowed Tia, and she quickly ducked between the trees, once again discerning his heavy-footed pursuit. Tia remained thankful she trained every morning, running through the dappled light of the woods near her house. She remembered her brother once had been a marathoner and still jogged every morning in Las Vegas. She could only hope the cold, his cumbersome parka, and the restrictive rifle slung over his shoulder would slow him down.
A tremendous throbbing noise filled the afternoon air and Tia cocked her head toward the noise. It was the unmistakable whir of a helicopter.
Chapter 12
The air seemed to pulsate and vibrate, but while Tia could hear the helicopter, she couldn’t place it because her vision was obscured by the denseness of the trees. Her heart rejoiced that the police and the region’s one and only helicopter were on their trail. Her brother must have realized his peril because instantly another bullet whizzed past, ricocheting against the protruding stones peeking at her feet.
Tia whirled, once again seeking the cloaking darkness of the forest, the roar of the helicopter muffled by the denseness of the trees. The metal bird seemed to move away from her as it searched the underbrush for them. Tia desperately wished she could dash into the open to flag down the helicopter, but if her brother glimpsed her he’d certainly open fire, having nothing to lose now.
Tia recalled, as she sprinted recklessly through the thick forest, that on the right hand side of the main logging road stood a small lake referred to by everyone in the area as Empress Lake. It was supposedly dubbed that fifty years ago after the Mayor’s five-year old daughter gazed at the lake declaring she was Empress of the forest and the lake and the name had stuck. The small lake housed several rough huts occasionally visited by hikers who used the large pond as a midway point on their way to Crane Lake. It also boasted a boat dock enabling many of the town’s fishermen to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the lake and its resident wildlife.
Tia could only pray she headed in the right direction, being disoriented by the heavy canopy of pine and spruce darkening her path. She picked up her pace, stretching her long lean legs to lope like a cross country skier through the often hip-deep snow. A foraging ground squirrel immediately whirled and ducked into its burrow as Tia ran past. Less than a minute later, the high piercing whistle of a marmot shrieked a warning to its mate from a small outcropping of rock.
Her blue parka provided too fine a target and Tia heard a shrill airborne whistle before recoiling at the sharp pain spreading through her left hip. She spun helplessly, falling into the snow bank directly before her. Tia gasped in intense pain as a thousand needle points sent a firebrand of agony down to her very toes. She rolled before rising shakily to her knees, crimson droplets staining the pristine snow. Tia grabbed her scarf from her neck and shoved it against her hip under her oversized ski pants, vowing not to die in the snow like a dog, killed by her own brother.
She willed herself to stand, realizing her bright blue parka made her an unmistakable target. Underneath the jacket she still wore Ben’s flannel shirt and shrugged off the heavy coat, discarding it upon the snow before darting left to take shelter behind a large blue spruce. Not daring to stop to examine the wound, Tia continued her desperate plunge into the forest, heading toward Empress Lake.
The helicopter had moved away and Tia swore she heard rough voices in the distance but didn’t stop to find out who it was. Her only desire was to escape the strong fresh legs pursuing her so relentlessly.
Tia nearly ran into the lake, managing to slide to a stop at the spot where its bright blue waters lapped gently against the shore’s pebbled coastline. The snow had already melted away from the narrow strip of beach and it felt almost warm in the bright sunlight. Tia searched wildly for the trio of huts she knew hugged the east side of the lake and spotted them directly across from her. The easiest way to reach them would be to follow the small lake’s shoreline, but she would be a clear and open target for her brother. Instead she chose to sink back into the forest and keep to the trees.
Every so often Tia ran across a rough hewn picnic table, whose presence at the lake was compliments of the city of Timberline. At the third picnic site she paused for breath, leaning against the faded pine table as she struggled to catch her breath. She listened intently for several moments, but all remained silent except for the hoarse cry of a fish hawk. Perhaps she’d lost him! She slowed her pace, staggering more and more as weakness threatened to overwhelm her. Tia swore she heard her name at least once, but she couldn’t tell if the frantic cry was an illusion or a reality.
Suddenly the outline of the first hut loomed before her, and just beyond it, the primitive A-framed structure that denoted the picnic spot’s drop-pit toilets. Her hand brushed her leg and Tia stared blankly at the red blood staining her fingers. If only the police would spot her brother and end this nightmare! Tia lurched toward the outhouse and as she rounded its rough side, RK’s arm shot upward, his crooked elbow catching her directly upon the chin and causing her to tumble to the muddy ground.
RK stood defiantly above her, her father’s hunting rifle pointed directly at her heart as his light brown moustache twitched above his damp upper lip. He didn’t even seem out of breath.
“RK,” she managed to gasp, trying to regain control over her own bursting lungs.
The steel coldness of her brother’s unmerciful eyes stared unblinkingly at her. “So I guess this is where it ends little sister,” said RK, his voice holding little emotion.
“I don’t understand,” whispered Tia. “I’d have gladly given the company to you if you’d asked. I never knew dad planned to leave it entirely to me.”
“You miss the entire point Tia,” stated RK reasonably. “It wasn’t just because dad wrote me out of his will that I hate you. You were always the usurper, taking what once was mine alone. After dad remarried and you came along, all I was good enough for was to take over his blasted company so he could concentrate on you and your stupid children’s books.”
“That’s nonsense! Dad loved you RK. He was so proud of you.”
“Well he might have been once,” admitted RK, a twitch jerking his left eyelid, “but not after he figured out the truth and realized what I’d done.”
“Realized what?” said Tia, pretending puzzlement as the cold wind whipped her stringy blonde hair against her sweaty face. Maybe if he talked long enough help would arrive.
“He discovered I was involved in Andrew Carson’s death.”
“You! But why?”
“Andrew owed lots of people lots of money. He used to come to Vegas and stay on the Strip two to three weekends a month. Sometimes he’d call me, asking for a ‘short term’ loan just to get him through the weekend. Of course he never paid me back. He was quite a high roller and when I heard through Uncle Jeffery about his financial difficulties I decided to approach him with the answer to all his problems. I simply asked him to provide me with a few little items that would help boost my business.”
“Such as?” asked Tia bewildered.
“Some of the new technology your company was developing.”
“But you wouldn’t need that,” cried Tia. “Your company was successful on its own. Why did you need to steal Dad’s ideas?”
RK bristled. “You don’t get it do you? I didn’t need his stupid ideas; I just wanted to take them so he couldn’t gain from them. All my life I’d been overshadowed by the famous and creative Anthony Heath. It didn’t matter what I achieved because everything he did was more important. Heath Enterprises was the great big company he and Uncle Jeffery founded so it never mattered whether or not I developed my own lucrative business. No matter how successful I became, I was always second to him.”
“You must be insane!” cried Tia. “Father gave you everything. He enabled you to obtain a Doctorate’s degree from one of the finest universities. He offered to take you into the company and when you told him you didn’t want any part of that, he let you go even though it killed him. Da
d was always so proud of what you accomplished RK. I admit he was little disappointed and angry when you left, but he always followed your company’s progress, proud you’d attained so much in such a short time!”
RK shook his head in denial, his eyes shifting to her leg. “You’re bleeding,” he stated emotionlessly. Tia glanced down to her aching hip, noticing for the first time the small puddle of blood pooling under her stained ski pants.
“We need to get out of the open,” said her brother, swinging the rifle slowly toward the nearest hut. “I think we should go in there and talk some more.”
“No,” said Tia, suddenly realizing why he wanted her to accompany him into the hut. “I’m not going with you! I refuse to be killed in cold blood by my own sibling!”
RK ignored her, holding now what seemed like a one-sided conversation. “It was fortunate the Land Cruiser exploded. All the files I’d collected regarding Andrew and your father were in the back. You probably never even checked those boxes did you Tia? Oh well. Mike will bring up the Pathfinder and we’ll head toward Crane Lake where we stashed the Cessna and no one will ever be wiser. I do wish I’d discovered the disk regarding the plans for the earthquake sensor device, but suspect it never reached it destination. Jenny had been such a good employee up until then.”
RK suddenly lunged forward to grab her hair, fingers clenching her straggly ponytail. The rifle swung toward her chin. “Now, are you going to go to the hut on your own steam or do I have to drag you there like some disobedient cavewoman?”
Tia wagged her head defiantly and RK gave a short animal-like snarl, suddenly swinging the butt of his rifle against her head. A sickening red wave washed before her eyes as she struggled to stay conscious and fight against him. RK had nearly dragged her to the door of the hut when he froze and swung his rifle up, eyes widening in terror.
Tia fell backward as he abruptly released her, her eyes unable to focus upon the silver blur streaking by her.
The wide jaws of the loafer wolf locked around RK’s neck and he fell to the ground screaming, his hands trying to push off the heavy loafer wolf.
“Sugar!” shouted Tia, realizing that once a loafer wolf’s jaws closed on its prey they could never be opened involuntarily.
Using her diminished strength, Tia tried to pull the loafer off her brother, but the canine kept tearing at the throat of the man who dared hurt the one human he loved. Unable to retain a grasp on the wolf, Tia fell back onto the snow with a thud and covered her eyes with her hands, unable to witness the vicious attack. Her head swam as Sugar’s snarls and growls diminished a few minutes after her brother’s hoarse screams ceased altogether. Tia became aware of another noise as the helicopter hummed above the rough roof of the hut, its blades vibrating the cold air and bringing her to her senses.
Sugar flinched and unlocked his jaws, streaking for the cover of the spruce forest. A uniformed officer she didn’t recognize perched in the open doorway of the helicopter, his rifle aimed down at the wolf, finger tightening on the trigger.
“No,” she screamed. “Don’t shoot!”
Paul’s arm shot out and pushed the officer’s rifle down as they watched the wolf trot away, blood dripping from his jaws. The sight of her brother’s blood staining the white purity of the snow proved too much for Tia and she fell back against its hard coldness, unable to bear another conscious thought.
Takero Shumimora strolled over to RK’s body and studied it grimly. The gruesome sight caused his dark brows to narrow, accentuating the already deep furrows between his eyes.
“This is the man from the photograph,” he stated, in the perfectly accented English he’d obtained from years of study at Ohio State University.
Jayce Morgan joined him and bobbed his bristled head. “Isn’t it strange, Takero, how what goes around comes around?”
“We have a similar phrase in Japan,” observed Takero. “Hopefully no hunters will succeed in tracking down the poor beast that rendered such appropriate justice.”
“What beast?” asked Jayce Morgan, as another dark blue Suburban roared up, disgorging four grim-faced men dressed in identical dark green parkas.
A young man, his hair already beginning to silver at the edges, began to take photos unhurriedly and precisely. Another older man with dark creases etched into his stoic face paused before the wolf print and adjusted his sunglasses.
“This is truly a dangerous country,” was all he said, as he stepped over the tell-tale track.
As the helicopter surged through the cold sky, Paul tried to make Tia more comfortable and laid a cold hand upon her face, which resembled white porcelain. Jon lay near her, his three broken ribs tightly bound but still aching painfully as the helicopter hit pockets of wind and vibrated in protest. Jon watched Paul’s tender ministrations and clenched his teeth. If only he’d managed to sort everything out before her ex-fiancé had appeared.
“Come back to me sweetheart,” he whispered under his breath, his own dark face lined with pain and worry.
“She’s lost so much blood,” Paul stated to the accompanying Federal Agent, who unfortunately was no more capable than he as a medic.
Clearly Tia needed a transfusion, and fast. Timberline was equipped with a small serviceable clinic and Paul’s first plan was to admit her there, but if the hospital proved inadequate, Paul quickly decided, she would be airlifted to Anchorage, the nearest big city.
“Can’t we go any faster?” Jon threw at the competent helicopter pilot, who shook his salt and pepper head negatively.
“Too dangerous since the wind has picked up. Better safe and steady. Don’t worry, we’ll get there.”
“Are these really necessary?” snarled Jon to the somber Federal Agent as he rattled the restraining handcuffs.
“Sorry Sir,” said the polite agent, looking truly regretful. “But Inspector Shumimora says you are to remain in custody until this case is fully resolved. My deepest apologies for your discomfort.”
Jon ground his teeth and scowled as Paul smoothed back Tia’s hair. He just had to get out of these cuffs!
“I’ve read your file,” said the Japanese detective politely. “But first let me introduce myself; I’m Inspector Takero Shumimora of the Tokyo Corporate Espionage Division. As you are probably aware, product development secrets from Heath Enterprises were discovered to have been sold to a prominent Japanese Firm by a small company located near Quebec named Hamini Manufacturing. This ‘firms’ real intent is to transport and sell developmental secrets obtained by corporate espionage to any company willing to pay the price. We’d been watching RK Designs after a complaint was lodged by two separate individuals regarding suspicions Heath was stealing and selling sensitive information.
“Tia had nothing to do with it!” blurted out Jon before he could stop himself.
He sat stiffly in Jayce Morgan’s small office after receiving treatment from the Timberline Clinic for his head wound and busted ribs. Tia remained in surgery and he wanted to be by her side, not here under the inquisitive eyes of Inspector Shumimora.
Takero continued smoothly. “I’m absolutely positive Ms. Heath is innocent. Any involvement she’s had with the entire affair has been inadvertent at best.”
“That’s entirely correct. I believe a good man to talk to might be Paul Dale. He seems to have a finger on the pulse of Heath Enterprises. Both he and Tia told me she’d washed her hands of the company a long time ago, before moving up here to work on her children’s novels.”
“And so,” said the Detective vaguely. “That clears her. Do you admit you were watching her house?”
“Yes,” admitted Jon, bracing himself for the onslaught of questions he knew was coming.
“And not for romantic reasons?”
“Not until later.”
The slim detective laughed, revealing straight white teeth. “We have evidence that points to one Canadian National, a Michael Puchalet, in the murder of your sister, Jennifer Simons.”
Jon jerked. “He killed Jenny?�
��
“It appears that way. RK Heath was aware your sister had gotten wise to his method of obtaining new ideas for his company and others. I believe he had her “rubbed out” as the Americans say.”
Jon couldn’t answer, tears suddenly welling in his eyes.
“Unfortunately, much of the evidence we have is only circumstantial. Your sister sent you and Ms. Heath a file regarding her suspicions?”
“Neither of us ever received the documents. I... I believe they were removed from her person when she was killed.”
“That is unfortunate. However, Mr. Puchalet has now met his maker, compliments of a partner who didn’t share his taste for murder. Mr. Newcastle is a very fortunate man in many ways. The bullet only grazed his abdomen and his valiant actions in trying to save Ms. Heath will certainly help reduce any time he may have to spend in your prison system. And you, Mr. Simons, are free to go.”
“I am?”
“But of course. The handcuffs were only intended to restrain you since you appeared to want to harm the person of Mr. Dale. I’m a staunch advocate of crime prevention.”
Takero smiled whimsically and Jon had the grace to grin back. Now, if he could just get someone to drive him back to the clinic.
Dr. Burns and his efficient nurse Rose quickly wheeled Tia into the one operating room in Timberline. It had seen its share of birthings, broken limbs, logging accidents, and bar room brawls, but never a gunshot wound that hadn’t been an accident. Tia drifted in and out of consciousness after her surgery while Jon and Paul fretted and awaited the doctor’s prognosis in the cramped waiting room. People kept dropping in to check on Tia’s progress, murmuring in quiet whispers under the glaring florescent lights.
Jon finally met the woman called Mary Whitebird who was Tia’s good friend, and Tory’s mother, Nancy Leukowski, who he recognized from the general store. The gangly Tory had also sauntered in accompanied by a burly loud man named Roy, who demanded that his Tia receive the best care possible. Both Paul and Jon bristled at his possessive tone, momentarily shaken from their mutual dislike by his manner. Just how many men here were in love with Tia?
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