by Cindy Bell
The ranger station was nothing more than a small modular building. There were no cars or trucks parked outside. She frowned as she watched Nick walk up to the door. He tried to turn the knob, only to find it locked. He pounded on the door. He called out to see if anyone was inside. After a few moments it was clear that he hadn't gotten a response. He peered in through the small, high windows. He turned back towards the woods. He knew that Bekki was watching, and shook his head to tell her that he hadn't found anything. When he joined them once more, he sighed.
“Looks like we missed him,” he said grimly.
“Or the killer got to him first,” Sammy said with defeat.
“No, I don't think so,” Nick said. “There was no sign of a struggle inside the ranger station from what I could see. Trust me, a ranger would have put up quite a fight.”
“Either way it doesn't matter,” Bekki groaned. “Now, we still have no way to call for help.”
“We could always break in,” Nick suggested. “Once we explain the situation, the ranger would understand.”
“That's not a bad idea,” Bekki nodded.
“Nick,” Morris called out softly as he walked back towards them.
“What is it?” Nick looked up with alarm at the tone in Morris' voice. Sammy wrapped her arm around Bekki's and held on tightly.
“There's a side road,” Morris said quietly. “It looks like something's down there. It could be the ranger's truck.”
“Let's check on it,” Nick nodded. “Bekki, you and Sammy stay here while we check it out.”
“What?” Sammy squealed softly.
“No way,” Bekki shook her head firmly. “You said we need to stick together.”
“Have you never seen a horror movie?” Sammy hissed. “When you split up in the woods at night, it never leads to good things.”
Morris and Nick exchanged a long look and then Nick nodded. “All right, stay close. But be prepared, it may not be the ranger's truck.”
Bekki knew what he was insinuating. The truck might belong to the killer. As they walked quietly down the dirt road trying not to make a noise by splashing in the puddles of water, Nick played his flashlight ahead of them. It glimmered off the bumper of the truck. When he lifted it, the light revealed the ranger's emblem. Bekki breathed a sigh of relief, but Sammy clutched her even tighter.
“He must be checking on something in the woods,” Morris murmured. “Maybe he came across Penny as well.”
“Let's find out,” Nick said as he took the lead and crossed the distance between the group and the truck. Bekki watched him closely as he walked up to the side of the truck. He took a look inside and shook his head. He and Morris began shining their flashlights into the nearby woods.
“Hello?” Morris called out. “Ranger?”
Bekki cringed at the loudness of his voice. She glanced around at the woods surrounding them. There wasn't any sign of anyone approaching, but every noise that an animal made, every creak of the tree branches, had her heart pounding. There was a sudden rustling in the woods beside Morris.
“Who's there?” a gruff voice asked.
Morris took a slight step back and shone his flashlight directly at the source of the voice. Nick followed suit, with one hand on his hip. Bekki realized he was curling his fingers around the butt of his gun. Seeing that subtle motion caused her to tug Sammy back a few steps. Sammy bit into her bottom lip. Bekki could feel her trembling.
“We're campers,” Nick replied. “Are you the ranger?”
“If I could see, I could show you my badge,” the man muttered. Morris lowered his flashlight far enough to reveal the uniform that the ranger was wearing. “What's the trouble folks?” the ranger asked. “Are you lost?”
“No,” Nick replied flatly and lowered his flashlight as well. “There's been a murder.”
“A what?” the ranger sputtered and narrowed his eyes. Bekki could see that he was in his forties, with a scruffy beard and hawk-like eyes.
“The other campers, staying near our campsite, the three Girl Scout leaders,” Nick continued. “We found one of them dead in the woods by the bathroom.”
“Oh no,” the ranger sighed. “Maybe she got caught in the storm…” he started to say.
“No,” Bekki countered sharply. “She was stabbed.”
“Okay, okay,” the ranger nodded, his eyes wide. “Don't worry, just tell me where the body is?” he asked.
Nick shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. “It was by the bathrooms,” he said nervously. “But when we went back to it, it was gone.”
“I'm sorry, are you saying that the dead body of a Girl Scout leader just got up and walked away?” the ranger said and cast his gaze dismissively from face to face. “Have you four been drinking tonight? Maybe, been taking some of those magic mushrooms?” he asked. He shone his flashlight directly into Bekki's face, causing her to squint against the light.
“We saw the body,” Sammy insisted. “We know it really happened. We weren't drinking or anything else,” she frowned.
“Well, sometimes being this deep in the woods can play tricks on your mind,” the ranger suggested. “I mean, with no body, I can't exactly report a murder.”
“I'm telling you there was one,” Nick said with authority creeping into his tone. “I'm a detective,” he added.
“And I'm a police officer,” Morris added.
“Oh, are you up here on official business?” the ranger asked as he narrowed his eyes.
“Well, no,” Nick replied hesitantly. “We're up here on a camping trip.”
“Well boys, no offense, but if you're not on duty, then you're just campers to me. However, I will check things out if that will put you more at ease,” he smiled warmly.
“We think the other two women might have been abducted,” Bekki rushed forward. Nick shot her a look of warning, but he allowed her to continue talking. “We followed the trail left behind from when they moved the body. It led to an illegal distillery. I heard voices inside. They were talking about killing the other two women.”
“Wait just a minute, young lady,” the ranger said with a hardness in his voice. “Are you trying to tell me that there is illegal activity occurring in my patch of mountain?” he demanded.
“Yes sir,” Bekki replied. Nick stepped a little closer to her.
“I heard it, too,” Nick replied. “I can show you where it is.”
“Okay, let's just take a breath here,” the ranger said. “First things first, we need to get back to the station and make a call so that we can get some support up here.”
“Good,” Morris nodded.
“The ladies can sit in the truck, you guys can hop in the back,” the ranger offered as he opened the passenger side door for Bekki. Bekki was just about to climb in when she caught a look in the ranger's eyes. She couldn't quite place what it meant, but it made her uneasy.
“Maybe we should just walk,” Bekki suggested as she turned towards Nick. “It's not far.”
“The less time exposed, the safer we will be,” Nick reminded Bekki. Bekki studied him for a moment, and then nodded. She was beginning to think that she was letting her fear run away with her. She slid inside the truck and waited for Sammy to climb in beside her. In the dim illumination of the dome light she noticed something on the floorboard of the truck. Her stomach twisted the instant she saw it. It was the Vervay concealer that she had seen Penny using.
‘That ranger is a hunk,’ she recalled Penny saying. If that concealer was in the truck, that meant that Penny was, too. The ranger hadn't mentioned anything about knowing Penny, the other Girl Scout leaders, or giving any of them a ride. Sammy was just about to climb into the seat beside her, when Bekki suddenly pushed her back out.
“Bekki,” Sammy gasped as she almost lost her footing. The ranger was watching both of them intently. Nick and Morris were piling into the bed of the truck.
“I'm sorry,” Bekki spoke quickly. “It's just, I've had to pee for so long now, I can't wait any long
er.”
“The station has a bathroom,” the ranger said sternly and tried to guide Sammy back into the truck.
“No, seriously, I can't wait,” Bekki groaned. “I'm sorry, this is so embarrassing, but if I hold it a second longer I'm going to burst.”
“All right,” the ranger reluctantly said. He stepped back so that Sammy could let Bekki out. “Don't go far,” the ranger warned. “You go ahead and get in the middle,” he instructed Sammy.
Bekki's heart jumped. She was terrified that if Sammy got into the truck she would never see her again. Bekki grabbed her hand tightly.
“No, she has to come with me,” she said, her stomach churning. “I can't go out there alone.”
“I'll go with you,” the ranger offered, his eyes narrowed.
“What's the hold up?” Nick asked as he jumped back down from the bed of the truck. Morris followed suit.
“Your lady friend needs to tinkle,” the ranger said with a smug look.
“Bekki?” Nick looked into her eyes. That was all it took for him to know that there was something very wrong. He glanced from her, to the ranger, and then back to Bekki.
“I'll stay with you and Sammy,” he said. “We can walk up to the station.”
“I don't know where you folks are from,” the ranger said with annoyance. “But if there's a killer loose in these woods, you don't want to be out here alone. You're better off just coming with me.”
Morris was starting to catch wind of Nick's tense behavior. Nick had rested his hand against his hip once more.
“We'll be fine,” Nick said calmly. “You should get to the station and call for help right away. We'll be right behind you.”
“I'm not going to leave you here alone,” the ranger said gruffly and looked straight into Nick's eyes. “Too many city folk think they can handle these woods, but it's a lot more dangerous than you think,” the way his voice lowered with each word, made Bekki think that he was trying to get a double message across. Was he warning them not to cross him?
They were in the awkward position of not being certain that they were being threatened. Only Bekki knew the truth about the ranger, or at least what she assumed to be the truth.
“I need to find a place to go,” Bekki reminded everyone in an attempt to ease the tension that had built around them.
“I think there's a spot that's good over there,” Nick said as he met her eyes. He pointed to a partially cleared trail in the woods. “You and Sammy go ahead, Morris will keep an eye on you. From a distance,” he added. He faked a look of warning at Morris.
“Right man, I won't be looking,” Morris held up his hands innocently.
“We'll all head back with you when they come back,” Nick explained to the ranger. The ranger immediately relaxed at the idea. Bekki could feel Nick's eyes on her as she made her way down the trail. She had no idea what his plan was, or whether he even knew what she suspected. She tried her hardest not to glance back over her shoulder at him. It might ruin the illusion that Nick was trying to create. Once they were a few feet into the woods, Morris turned to look at Bekki.
“What was all that about?” he asked.
“I saw something on the floorboard of the ranger's truck,” Bekki explained. “It was the bottle of concealer I saw Penny using.”
“Concealer?” Morris asked and scratched his head. “So?”
“It was Vervay,” Bekki explained.
“Vervay?” Sammy's eyes widened. “What are the chances that two women would have that concealer on the mountain, and no woman would leave that behind if she had a choice. That costs an arm and a leg.”
“I'm not following,” Morris frowned.
“I really believe that she was in his truck, Morris, she was with the ranger some time before she died. Which means he's lying to us by not mentioning it. I think he had something to do with it,” she said firmly.
“That's an awful big jump,” Morris hesitated. “I can't say that I get very trustworthy vibes from him though.”
Sammy opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get any words out, the sound of a bullet being fired carried through the woods. Bekki froze. Sammy jumped into Morris' arms. The next sound was someone running, very fast towards them.
“Nick?” Bekki cried out with fear when she finally found her voice again. Her eyes had filled with tears. Had the ranger shot him?
“Run!” Nick shouted breathlessly when he reached the part of the trail where they were huddled. “Fast!” he added as he grabbed onto Bekki's arm to pull her along with him. Morris did the same with Sammy and they ran blindly through the woods as fast and as far as they could go. When they finally slowed, Bekki was gasping for air.
“Are you hurt?” she asked as she turned into Nick's arms. He held her tightly for a long moment before shaking his head.
“No, I'm fine,” he said calmly. “I could tell that you suspected the ranger, so I confronted him about the distillery. He admitted to knowing about it, and then told me I'd never have the chance to report it, because I would be dead, too. He took a shot at me, but I got away.”
“I can't believe the ranger is involved in this,” Sammy moaned. “Now, what are we going to do?”
“We're not going to be able to hide,” Nick explained in a serious tone. “It's quite obvious that they know these woods better than I do. Getting off the mountain isn't going to be an option either. Now they know we know. They know that we're law enforcement. They're never going to let us get out of here.”
“So, basically you're saying we're all going to die?” Sammy asked incredulously.
“No, that's not what I'm saying,” Nick sighed and glanced over at Sammy. He put his hand gently on her shoulder and met her eyes. “What I'm saying is that we're going to have to do everything we can to stay safe, and get out of this, even if it means fighting.”
Morris wrapped his arm around Sammy's waist and pulled her close to him. “We're going to get through this,” he murmured to her. “I promise.”
Sammy nodded. She couldn't bring herself to speak. Nick turned back to Bekki and met her eyes intently.
“I think we'd all feel better if we knew that backup was on its way,” Nick sighed. “We need to head back to the ranger station.”
“Don't you think he'll be waiting for us?” Bekki asked fearfully.
“Maybe,” Nick frowned. “But either way we have to try to get a message out. If he's waiting for us, then we'll deal with it when we get there. I can tell you this much, I was able to get away because he's a terrible shot. He might be a murderer but he's no expert.”
“He might not be an expert but who knows how many accomplices he has,” Morris reminded Nick.
“I know how dire the situation is,” Nick said as calmly as he could. “We have to do something. Hiding in the woods, from people who know these woods better than I do, is not going to cut it.”
“That's why we need to fight back,” Bekki reminded him.
“But we're not going to do that unless I know that we can count on some backup,” Nick said gruffly. “I'm not going to argue about this.”
“Nick's right,” Morris glanced over at Bekki. “Taking the few extra minutes to try to get a message out could make all the difference later.”
“Then it's decided,” Sammy nodded. “I know I'll feel better if I think someone, anyone, knows what is happening on this mountain.”
“Let's find our way back,” Bekki said quietly. As they walked along the path Bekki was uncomfortable. She felt as if someone was watching her. She knew it was only her paranoia, but she couldn't shake the idea that someone was just beyond the trees, waiting for the opportunity to attack. It wasn't long before they were near the ranger station again. Bekki felt incredibly uneasy at the idea of being back there, near the place where Nick had been shot at not long before.
“The truck isn't there,” Morris whispered as he peered through the trees.
“It looks empty,” Nick nodded. He glanced along the path they had just traveled
down. “It probably won't be for long. Let's move fast,” he took Bekki's hand and nodded towards the ranger station. “Even if it's locked we're going in.”
The group ran across the clearing to the small structure. Nick was prepared to break the lock, or a window, but when he reached for the door he found that it was partially open. He glanced from Morris to Bekki and then back at the door. He gestured for them to stay a few steps back. Bekki heard the swift swish of Nick's weapon being drawn. He nudged the door open with his boot. He flipped the light switch on and did a quick search of the interior.
“It's safe,” he muttered in a dazed voice. Bekki frowned as she stepped inside behind him. She could tell that he was upset. Nick was sorting through the decimated remains of every communication device in the station. The CB radio had been crushed. The telephone was ripped out of the wall and the receiver shattered. There were no computers in sight that could be used to send a message out. Even the distress signal that could be activated in case of a forest fire was completely destroyed.
“He knew that we might come back here,” Bekki said quietly. “So, instead of waiting for us, he eliminated our chance to call for help. He is probably looking for us.”
“Cells?” Morris asked as he pulled out his phone. “Maybe there's a better signal here.”
One by one they checked their phones to find that none had a signal. Bekki felt her stomach lurch. Now they were truly stranded, and not only were they faced with a killer on the loose, they had two abducted women to save.
“There's not even a case of water,” Morris said with dismay. “He made sure there was nothing to help us here.”
“No weapons either,” Nick muttered. “Let's get out of here.”
Chapter Nine
When the four friends gathered in the woods again, Bekki could tell that Nick was frustrated. His cheeks were flushed, and he was choosing his words carefully so as not to upset the girls.