Chapter Nineteen
Beneath the Silence
Something like a whining sound penetrated the thick black fog surrounding him.
Caleb murmured something unintelligible as the darkness called him back competing with the bracing cold that had him shivering.
The whining continued, joined by something wet against his cheek. Caleb fought to open his eyes. He looked up into the face of the Malinois who was standing over him.
“Shadow.” Caleb tried to make sense of what he was witnessing. Why was Shadow licking his face...and then those final seconds emerged from the fog. The gas that had been pumped inside. Ava had been reaching for him when they’d both tumbled into the darkness.
And now Shadow was trying to get his attention.
Caleb sat up quickly. The world spun and the cottony darkness threatened. He closed his eyes and waited for it to pass before opening them again.
He looked around the space. Others were waking up. Where was Ava?
He searched those around him and the horrifying truth became clear. She was gone.
Caleb rose unsteadily. “He has her.”
Several people focused on him, confused.
“Who?” Novak managed.
“Ava. Wax has her.”
Soon, Caleb’s fear bled through the fog and they were on their feet.
“How?” Novak looked around as if expecting Wax to appear with Ava.
“I don’t know, but there was obviously a hidden door leading to an escape passage. We have to find it.”
Caleb started for the closest wall and began pressing all around. Shadow went back to the place where he’d been before the gas.
Where are you? Panic set in. He couldn’t lose her like this.
He has something.
Ava had been convinced the dog had picked up Wax’s scent near the wall.
Shadow returned to paw at the same spot. Caleb’s frustration grew until he saw it. “Everyone, back up.” He grabbed Shadow’s lead and tugged him away from the spot on the floor that was offset from the rest. Dirt that had once covered the opening was now piled up on the backside. “Down there.”
“Another trap door. That’s how he got her out of here.” Jace knelt and examined it. “The only question is how to open it.”
There had to be a way.
Caleb retrieved his flashlight and focused on the floor. Then he saw it. Against the wall something caught the light. “Is that some type of lever?”
Harper leaned closer. “It is.” She glanced up at Caleb.
Everyone stood back.
“Ready?” Jace pulled the lever and waited.
A second later the spot on the floor in question dropped down on its hinges revealing more stairs.
Shadow pulled free of Caleb’s grasp and charged down them.
“Let’s go.” Caleb took the steps as quickly as he could without falling. They were much steeper and covered in ice. “Be careful. There’s ice.” He warned the rest of the team while keeping his flashlight on Shadow who had reached a landing that had a door. This time there was a handle.
Caleb reached the dog and waited for the others. “This has to be the way he took her.”
“Or another trap,” Novak said, his voice tense.
Caleb wouldn’t accept that they’d lost her. He looked down at the dog who was now barking frantically.
“This is the way.” He gripped the handle and yanked the door open. Darkness greeted them. But not the darkness of another passage. A gust of wind screamed around them. They were out of the mine.
Caleb followed the dog out into deep snow.
Night had fallen. The storm had lessened to a few snowflakes swirling.
Shadow sniffed the air to try to capture Wax’s scent.
The bitter cold wind seemed to be preventing it.
There was only one set of footprints in the snow seemingly indicating that Wax was carrying Ava.
He spun around, trying to figure out where they were, but couldn’t. When he realized the truth, it was terrifying. They were at the summit of the mountain chain, high above Hidden Lake.
“We need help.” Novak retrieved his phone and dialed.
Shadow whimpered, missing his partner and probably feeling about as helpless as Caleb did right now.
“I’ve reached Devlin. He’s punching in our coordinates now. They’ll try and get the choppers up here to assist but the wind up here is awful.”
“I’ll dispatch my search and rescue people up here.
They have access to some Arctic Cats that can traverse this deep snow.
” Caleb used the backup phone he’d borrowed from one of the FBI agents and called Rhett O’Connor’s number.
The static on the line as well as the howling wind made it next to impossible to hear what Rhett said.
“I need you and the team to get the Arctic Cats and get up to Hidden Lake Mountain Range.” He explained what happened. “Wax has Ava.”
“I’m retrieving your coordinates now. Hang on.” Rhett blew out a whistle when he had them. “You are on top of one of the most dangerous mountains in the chain.”
“I realize. I need you here as soon as you can get here. We’ve lost Wax’s scent. We’re following his footprints now. We’ll keep pushing but right now we’re working blindly.”
“What about the thermal scanner?” Rhett offered the option Caleb had forgotten about.
“I don’t have it on this phone.”
“Sending it now.” A beep assured Caleb the program had arrived.
“And I can track your coordinates from here. I’ll keep you posted on our progress.
” Rhett paused. “There’s a lot of activity taking place here.
The FBI is trying to get choppers airborne.
Up there it won't be easy. Keep safe, Caleb. We’ll get her back. ”
Caleb sure hoped his friend was right. “I’ll sign off to get the thermal software up and running.”
“I’ll call you when we’re on our way.”
As soon as Rhett hung up, Caleb downloaded the program that would enable him to use the thermal imagery to identify “hot spots” that indicated living beings.
As soon as he had it loaded there was a hit. “I have something.” He called the others over. “Two images are moving East.”
“Let’s go,” Harper told him. She grabbed Shadow’s lead and started walking through the deep snow.
None of them were dressed properly for the nighttime conditions. It wouldn’t take long before they suffered hypothermia.
Still, he couldn’t give up. They had to keep going.
Caleb took the lead while keeping close watch on the screen. He’d been up this high only once and that was during the summer. The landscape was completely different now.
The distance between them and the two images didn’t change, which meant the two were moving close to the same pace as his people were.
As hard as he tried, Caleb couldn’t walk any faster in the deep snow. His lungs burned from the cold. His energy level continued to plummet. They’d never catch up with her at this speed.
Caleb called Rhett again. “How’s it coming with the Arctic Cats?”
“We have them. We’re on our way to you now but we’re at least an hour behind.”
The news was both good and discouraging. “Keep coming. He’s on the move with her. Their images are close together, almost appearing as one. I think he’s carrying her.”
“In this weather, he’ll slow down soon.”
Caleb held onto that glimmer of hope.
“Wait, something’s happening,” Novak’s voice interrupted.
Caleb heard it more than witnessed it on the screen. “That’s an engine,” he told Rhett. “Wax has transportation.” It wouldn’t take long for them to lose him on the scanner. “Hurry, Rhett. We can’t compete with four wheels.”
“We’re coming. Don’t give up.”
Caleb ended the call and tried to hold onto the hope that help was on the way, but it was hard. As bad as he wanted to keep going after her, they’d never catch the machine. They needed to take refuge from the storm before it overwhelmed them.
“We can follow the tracks once the Arctic Cats get here,” Jace assured him. “We’ll get her back.”
It wasn’t good enough. He shifted to Novak. “She may still have her phone. Can you track it?” The FBI would have the best cutting-edge technology. There had to be a way.
“I’ll get started on it, but there's an option we can try in case he’s tossed her phone.” Novak told him the Bureau could use their dedicated satellite to home in on moving coordinates. “We can lock in on the hot spot location before it fades.”
Caleb blew up his phone’s screen and snagged the coordinates. “Got it.” He showed them to Novak.
“I’m uploading them to our satellite and... got him.”
He showed the screen to Caleb.
“They're heading toward Black Veil Peak. That’s over fourteen thousand.” There’d be no place for the choppers to land up there. It would be up to the team here and the Arctic Cats to rescue Ava.
The peak remained buried in snow save a few months a year. As far as Caleb knew there’d never been any mining inside Black Veil because of the extreme weather conditions.
But Wax knew the layout of this mountain chain. He’d created a labyrinth of tunnels using the existing mining shafts. He’d know how to disappear into the cold winter night without a trace.
And that’s what scared Caleb the most.
◆◆◆
She stirred. Tried to move. But there was no room. Her body felt doubled over on top of itself.
“Caleb,” she murmured. Where was he?
Blasts of hot air brushed across her face.
“He’s not here.” The voice from her nightmares whispered close. “It’s just me, Ava. And the moment we’ve both been waiting for.”
No! No! No! Her head screamed the word over and over again.
“She’s waiting for you. I saved her just for you.”
The fog from whatever type of drug he’d used to subdue her wore off enough for her to realize Wax was talking about Rachel.
Truth dawned quickly. He planned to kill Rachel in his sick ritualistic way while Ava watched.
Somehow Ava held back the scream. She couldn’t show weakness in his presence.
“Where is she?”
She tried to move her arms and realized they were now zip-tied together. She was in some all-terrain vehicle moving at a slow rate of speed.
Think!
She glanced toward Wax who was focused on driving. Through the dashboard lights, she could make out his profile and realized Wax was no longer wearing his mask. The thought was chilling. He wasn’t trying to hide his identity any longer.
She’d expected a monster and she’d found one in his eyes but the man driving now could be anyone you’d meet on a street. Nondescript. Tallish, medium build. Possibly graying hair.
The phone!
She wiggled her foot enough to realize Wax hadn’t found it. Her team would be able to track her through it.
They’d find her. They had to.
“You made your choice, Ava,” Wax said with regret. “It’s a pity you didn’t want to join the family tradition.”
Those chilling words gripped her heart. “What tradition? There’s no family connection between you and me.”
Wax laughed gleefully. “Oh, but there is and I can’t wait to tell you all about it before...” He left the rest unsaid but she knew.
Before she died.
Ava had to stay strong. By the time her team located her and Rachel it might be too late.
It was up to her to find a way out. Just like it had been last time.
“We’re here.” The excitement in his voice told her this was just the beginning of the terror.
Don’t go back into that blackhole.
It had taken years to crawl out. Her life and Rachel’s depended on her keeping her head.
Wax stopped the vehicle and got out. Ava’s heart thundered in her ears. She tried to get into a position of offense. The space was cramped. Wiggling around so that her feet faced the door, she drew her legs up against her chest and waited.
The door opened. She shoved her feet against his chest. Wax stumbled backward. Getting her feet out of the UTV and steady on the ground proved a nearly impossible feat.
She grasped the open door with her restrained hands, steadying herself.
Now what?
Wax managed to keep his footing. He lunged. Ava fought with all her strength but it was a losing battle the moment she felt the needle prick her neck.
◆◆◆
He cursed and raised his arms angrily while the last of the fight went out of her. She collapsed on the snowy ground.
He should leave her there to die. The thought pleased him but it went against everything he had planned for her.
His once sweet Ava would soon become his final victim before he left Montana.
Everything else was in place. He’d leave her and the other one for them to find along with the truth. And then he’d move on to better hunting grounds. Maybe someplace warmer. He had all new identification. Howard Linkletter—a play on his real name—made him smile.
He stared in disgust at her sprawled form. “You’re making me work too hard for you.”
Wax bent down and hauled her up over his shoulder. Her arms flopped against his back.
He’d need to get the Arctic Cat UTV out of sight.
They’d do their best to track him. The only means of finding him would be the Cat’s track.
The second snowstorm moving in would cover them up giving him the time needed to deal with Rachel and Ava.
Then he’d leave his mountain cathedral and his pretties behind for good.
Doubts crept in. Was he ready to give them up after twenty-five years? He traversed the icy stairs until he reached the cathedral where Rachel waited.
Her eyes widened as he entered.
“No, Ava! No!” She screamed her friend’s name.
“Yes, that’s right. I have her. It’s time for the rituals.”
Wax placed her limp form onto the floor before he faced Rachel. “Shall we begin?”
Rachel shook her head. “No. You don’t have to do this.”
He stepped closer. “But I do. You and Ava are the last pieces of my puzzle to complete.”
Her fearful eyes turned hard. “You can kill us, but you won’t get away with it. I can promise you this.”
He chuckled at her spunk but didn’t respond.
There was work to do. Wax went to the altar he’d set up and lit the burner beneath the vat of wax that had gone cold.
He’d perfected the combination of soy and beeswax.
The vanilla and Tonka bean essential oils.
Then came the mica powder to give the pearl white, champagne gold and opal shimmer.
Once the wax melted, he stirred it carefully until it was blended to perfection.
Behind him, Ava stirred.
He turned and went over to where she lay. He leaned down and got into her face. “You disappoint me.”
She glared at him. “You think I care?”
He jerked back. Just like her mother.
“You’re a monster and you deserve to die.”
He resisted the urge to strike her. He wanted her statue to be perfect.
“Before I kill Rachel and then you, I’ll explain how you and I are connected and you can die knowing you are my daughter.”