Ashes - Book 2 (New Adult Romantic Suspense) (2 page)

Dead bodies?

Seven of them?

I can’t imagine what Gage is going through right now.

I make it to the spot where I’d spoken to 911 not long before, while we were trying to get help for Daniel. I’d snatched the phone away from his hysterical mother and instructed the rescue team of our location, credentials and how Gage was prepared to secure the boy, making their job a hundred times easier.

Speaking to 911 for the second time that day, I still can’t believe how we’ve morphed from a dream into a nightmare.

“911. What’s your emergency?”

The signal is weak, the dispatcher’s voice breaking in and out. I climb higher, asking the woman to hold while I find a place where it’s stronger.

Barely able to breathe, I force myself to calm down. “This is Beth Richards; I spoke to Ryan earlier regarding a child who had fallen on a Red Rock trail.”

“Yes, Miss Richards. Is there something else?”

“Yes. The fireman who assisted says he’s found seven bodies near where the boy had fallen.”

Pause. “Seven dead bodies? Please confirm.”

“Yes. Seven. Whoever you send will need climbing gear.” I look at the sun. “And lighting. He said he found them in a cave.”

“One moment.”

I wait an eternity before she comes back. “Are you at the exact same GPS location as before?”

“Yes. No. I’m further up the hill. My cell won’t work at the cliff. But I’ll be there to meet whoever responds.”

“One moment.”

I want to growl or kick a rock in frustration. I hate standing up here, doing nothing.

A few minutes later, she’s back. “Miss Richards, officials are on route. Red Rock search and rescue is on their way as well to assist. Please ask the fireman to not touch anything or disturb the scene.”

“Okay. Thank you. I’m heading back down the trail now.”

“Be safe please. I hope I don’t hear from you again today.”

I bark a short laugh, grateful for the opportunity for that momentary emotional release. “Me too.”

Back at the ledge, I wrap the rope Gage secured for me around my waist and drop to my belly to look down.

“Gage!” I call out to him and then call out again, louder.

I don’t hear him, but I see his safety line moving. I wait. And wait. Then see him coming around the corner.

Dear God, it must be bad down there. He looks terrible, as if he’s aged two lifetimes in the past twenty minutes. I pull back and search through our packs for more water. Two bottles left. Damn. I twist off the lid, take a small sip and tie a small hand towel I found around it.

I lower myself to the edge again. When I look down, he’s staring up, waiting for me to reappear.

“Head’s up.”

I drop the water and towel and watch him pour some of the water on the cloth. He lays it on the back of his neck and then takes long drinks from the bottle. I hate that I can’t do anything more for him.

“What can I do?” I call down.

He shakes his head. “What’s the ETA?”

“Not sure. Red Rock SAR is on their way. They’re the closest, but I don’t know how long it will take.”

The shadows in the valley are getting long and my ability to see Gage has grown dimmer since I left to call for help. I look up and catch my breath as the fiery red orb begins its descent beyond the horizon. Threads of light mingle with a few dotting clouds and the heavens are dyed with long rays of orange, red and pink.

The cruelty of life has never been so evident as it is to me in this moment. No matter how ugly life can be, the world moves on without seeming to care. The sun rises and it sets. Earth spins on its axis and the moon continues to cause the tides to ebb and flow.

Looking back down at Gage, I notice him also watching the sun sink into its daily slumber. It’s our first sunset together, I realize. We’ve never taken the time to … well, do anything as intimate as this. Sex, yes. Lots of it. But nothing is as intimate as witnessing the hand of God at work.

But we have witnessed the hand of the Devil at work before. I think he’s seen its evil hand at work again.

Gage turns back to me, but is distracted by something that catches his eyes. He shines his light that way and steps up onto a rock.

“What is it?” I ask him, edging further off the ledge in an attempt to see.

“Anchors. They’re driven into the rock.” His light moves up the face of the rock. “Several of them. Spaced about ten feet apart straight up the cliff.”

I scramble to my left until I’m just above his light. There’s a pile of rocks on the edge and I carefully move them away. I see it. A steel half circle with huge nail like things pinning it to the rock.

“One up here too.”

“Don’t touch anything,” he reminds me.

Shit. I don’t tell him I already have and debate whether I should cover it up. I don’t. Better to leave well enough alone.

In the distance, I hear a buzzing. I stop and listen; it’s getting closer. It takes me a few minutes to recognize the sound. A dirt bike? In the growing darkness, I can’t see it approach.

I drop to my belly again. “I think someone’s coming,” I call down to him.

“Thank Christ,” he calls back.

Chapter 3 — Gage

The sound of the dirt bike is a beautiful thing. It whines its approach, then shuts off abruptly. I hear voices. Beth and a man. I try to be patient as I imagine Beth filling him in.

A few minutes later, a rope drops from the cliff. I step quickly out of the way. “Careful!” I yell.

Almost before the words are out of my mouth, I look up and see a body hauling ass down the rock face and Beth’s head pokes back over the ledge. She gives me the smallest of smiles.

Within seconds, a dust cloud rises almost in unison with the thud of feet. It’s a young guy wearing a Red Rock Search and Rescue t-shirt.

He sticks out a hand. “You must be Gage. I’m Brent, Red Rock SAR.”

We shake. “I’m very glad to see you.” And I am. This man and the SAR team have my full respect. They volunteer for this shit and are known far and wide as the team that doesn’t quit.

Brent drops to a knee and digs through his pack. I’m surprised and grateful when he pulls out some menthol gel for my nose.

“Thanks,” I say, taking it from him.

“No problem, I can smell it from here. We don’t get too many bodies, but you never forget the smell.”

As I swipe the gel over my upper lip, Brent pulls out additional lanterns and pretty soon, the ledge is fully illuminated.

“You done?” he asks and holds out his hand for the gel. I give it over even though I want to rub it on my clothes and hair, and dip my nose into the tub. I’m gonna burn these clothes when I get home.

“Done enough. Thanks. I’ve seen more bloated and rancid bodies than I would wish on my enemy. I’m a firefighter, by the way.”

“Yeah, I heard. I don’t usually have someone who knows anything about rescue at the scene. Maybe I can learn a few tricks from you.” He gels up his nose, practically pushing the goop up his nostrils.

“Doubt it, Brent. This is your territory. When are the cops getting here? Any idea?”

He shrugs. “Nah, they’re a little slower than us. They have to drive up and then do all the police shit. Props to the FD though. You guys are on it. I guess a body isn’t really that big a hurry. It will be here when they make it.”

“What did you hear?” I ask, noticing he said ‘body’, as in singular.

“That there’s a dead body in a cave.”

I put a hand on his shoulder. “Not one. Seven.”

He turns around and his face would have been the very definition of surprise if I’d looked it up in the dictionary. “No shit?”

I say nothing because I know my expression says it all. Then I point to the menthol he’s still holding in his hand. “I wouldn’t put that away.”

Almost on cue, a slight breeze picks up and the two of us are physically assaulted by the smell of death.

“Holy Mother of God,” Brent says, then straightens his shoulders. With a last deep inhale, he heads toward the source of the smell. I follow right behind him.

Less than five minutes later, Brent and I are back on the ledge. For those women, there is nothing we can do. Our best strategy is to leave the crime scene as undisturbed as possible so forensics and the police can find the monster who did it.

I show Brent the anchor sites I found and we scour the cliff face, looking for additional clues. Up top, Beth searches for additional clues as well.

“I found something!” she calls down. “Rocks covering a hole. I didn’t touch anything, but there’s a plastic bag inside.”

“Great job, Beth,” Brent told her. “Take a break. It’s too dark to continue a search right now.”

With nothing else to do, Brent and I scale back up the rock face. At the top, I find a shivering Beth. I force her into a poncho and then we sit and wait.

And wait.

And wait.

After an hour of silence, the sound of the police is deafening. It’s fully dark now and we can’t see them, but we can hear them just fine.

I hear Beth say, “Oh thank heavens.”

I give her hand a squeeze. She squeezes mine back and we sit that way, our fingers linked together.

Now, as we listen to the authorities getting closer, I wonder how many are coming.

It sounds like an army of bees at first, just a faint buzzing sound gradually getting louder and more directional, headlights growing brighter.

The three of us stand as the first man reaches us.

“Detective Mike Hardiman, LVPD. Where are the bodies?” He sticks his hand out to each of us in turn.

I point straight down and he mumbles, “Aw hell.”

Brent steps in. “I’ve got everything set up for your team to rappel down. Who’s going first?”

“Dammit,” Hardiman says grimly. “Guess that would be me. But first, can you tell me how you found the bodies and the events that immediately followed?”

Beth and I talk over each other as we fill him in on the chain of events: Daniel falling. Me going down and assisting with his rescue. The stench. The bodies. The 911 call.

“Can you describe the scene, Gage?” Hardiman asks me and I describe it to him in absolute detail. His eyebrows shoot up when I describe the alter type area I found.

By now, two policemen, two forensic specialists and the coroner have arrived on the scene. They listen to my description and then begin their line of questioning. I’m tired and emotionally fucked, and ready to get the hell out of here. I look at Beth and she’s swaying on her feet.

I know the questions are important. Even off duty, I was the first responder. The details are essential. I know that intellectually.

But when the coroner asks, again, if I disturbed the scene in any way, I want to punch him, but instead calmly say, “I’m trained in scene preservation so I didn’t disturb anything. I did look inside, stayed within two feet of the entrance. I needed to check for any signs of life. There weren’t any.”

“What were you trained in?”

“I’m a firefighter.”

“That’s a relief.”

I nod my thanks and say, “The only thing you will find are my footprints. And Brent’s. We used the same tracks both ways. The strange thing was there are no other footprints that I could see.”

“It gets windy up here, you know.”

I forced myself not to scowl. “Yeah, but even inside, there are no signs of anyone being there,” I tell him. I look at Brent, needing this to be over with. “Ready to show them?”

I hadn’t planned to go down again, but it turns out only one of the newcomers has repelled before and they need help getting down. It is determined that Hardiman and the coroner should go down first and then decide what next action to take.

Brent and Hardiman take the lead, while I tandem with Coroner Murphy. Four men on the ledge will be crowded, but doable for the quick assessment they’ll do tonight. Beth stays up top and I notice the youngest deputy paying close attention to her. I grit my teeth and say nothing.

Once we’re all down on the ledge, I point out the anchor system I found. “I think that’s how they got down here.” I point my light at the pinned metal and the one above it.

“Hmmm, interesting,” Hardiman murmurs. “But it makes sense. They’re well-hidden and you could transport a body easily in this pocket with a rope system.”