Chapter Twenty-Nine
Gabriel
Friday Morning
Sterling Pass Ranger Station was only forty minutes up the highway.
Gabriel had turned into the gravel parking lot at the ranger station just as the temperatures and the sun were rising.
He recognized Sommer’s car and pulled in next to it.
Nothing looked off.
He’d say this was a fool’s errand except Sloane was so damned convincing.
Throughout his career, he had learned to trust his gut. And Gabriel’s gut said this was life or death.
He had to believe that, whatever was happening, Whiskey could track to Sommer, he’d make it to her in time, and his skills would somehow be helpful.
Leaving Whiskey in the car, Gabriel walked to the station and tried the door.
Lights off, everything locked tight, Gabriel wondered if the rangers had been sent out on the manhunt, searching for the kidnapped FBI special agents, no longer deep undercover, but wearing the Bureau jackets like Hester Prynne’s scarlet A.
At the back of his car, Gabriel pulled on his pack, hoping he had the right equipment with him to deal with whatever came next, then went around to get Whiskey on trail.
Whiskey knew she was heading on a search, and her whole body radiated joy.
Gabriel was going to have to talk to Reaper about getting involved with a team. Gabriel couldn’t deny Whiskey her calling.
When Gabriel leaned down to offer her Sommer’s scent, Whiskey stuck her nose into the plastic bag. She chuffed then toddled over to Sommer’s car.
“That’s right, Beautiful. You’ve got this. Where’d Sommer go? Can you show me?”
And, per the itinerary on the kitchen table, Whiskey headed straight toward the White Tail Trailhead.
Gabriel planned to race the trail until he saw the trio.
He’d say something pleasant, then keep going out of sight.
Depending on their activity, he could pitch his tent and get some sleep.
Then, like a stalker, he’d follow at a safe distance in case Sloane had a precognition, and the big bad hadn’t happened yet.
Once they got to their cars safely, the mission would be complete.
Gabriel would head home, clean up, and go and have a talk with Sommer about taking the video down that was getting Kate tagged.
But when he got about ten miles up the slope, not quite to the site where the women had said they’d be camping Wednesday night, Gabriel came across three arrows pointing off the trail, and before he stooped to read the pink trail tape, he knew it was Sommer.
Two females in serious medical distress on summit. Leaving the trail to walk toward traffic sounds for help. Please contact the ranger immediately. Then S.H. and the date.
She’d put this here today.
Should Gabriel track to Sommer or track to the women on the summit?
To Sommer. Then he’d find out the problem and make a plan with her on how to help.
There was no ranger to contact.
Gabriel opened his map app to see how things were configured. Up the road a few miles was a convenience store, so even if she hadn’t flagged down a ride, it would be easier to walk on the paved surface and a much shorter distance than getting back to the ranger’s station on the trail.
She knew what the hell she was doing. This signal couldn’t be clearer to a search party doing a hasty.
Whiskey was sniffing around the area, whole body wiggling.
“You have her, sweet girl? Can you take me to her?”
They started down the side of the mountain.
Every so often Gabriel could see where Sommer had skidded from tree to tree on the loose leaf litter.
It was probable that she’d reached the road and found help.
He’d see what Whiskey had to say about it.
And if a car passed him, he’d flag it down and go back to the ranger station to see if a rescue was being mounted.
At least there he could pick up a spotty cell signal.
Once he was assured others were involved, Gabriel would be released from the mission, and he’d head home.
Or if he were needed, he’d reach out to Reaper for support.
When Gabriel had called for assistance earlier, Reaper hadn’t mentioned the videos again.
It weighed on Gabriel that Kate’s name was connected to the videos, but at this stage of the game, there was nothing to be done but plow forward.
Solve for this emergency, then deal with Kate’s safety, Gabriel thought as they reached the roadway, and he looked around for any sign of Sommer.
Whiskey had lost the trail.
That was expected. He checked the map and decided to hike toward the convenience store. If a car went by, he’d stick out a thumb.
But as he rounded a curve in the road, he saw an accident out ahead.
Through his monocular, Gabriel saw a car was sideways in the road. A deer at the bumper, an electrical line sparking, and Sommer—very clearly, Sommer—sitting very still in the passenger seat, her window open.
As they ran forward, Gabriel calculated the thirty feet required for electrical safety and added another ten feet of cushion as he moved up the slope and closer to the car.
Damn Sloane, you nailed it.
When he was within Sommer’s easy view without moving her neck, lest she have whiplash, Gabriel cupped his hands around his mouth. “Sommer?” he called.
“Hey! Stay away! Electricity!”
“Got it. Are you alright?”
“I’m hanging in. I could use some help.”
“That’s quite the situation. Sit tight.”
“Sitting!”
“I have a sat phone. I’m calling for help.”
“Thank you. You have no idea. Can you tell them the driver is dead?”
“Dead?” Gabriel turned to Whiskey. “Down, stay,” he said, and she immediately complied. Gabriel walked forward to the point where he could see around the open driver’s door. A woman lay, unmoving, on the ground. And from the setup, it was clear what had happened.
“Is this one of your friends?” he asked.
“No, oh thank god, no. Marna and Abbie are at the summit, very ill. We think norovirus. They need help.”
Gabriel waggled his sat phone at her then started the connections.
Knowing that emergency services were already in the field, Gabriel thought his best chance of getting help here fast was for him to reach back out to Reaper.
Reaper expected Gabriel’s check-in.
Using his sat phone and going back and forth, Gabriel explained the two emergencies. Reaper said he’d use the Iniquus switchboard to get paramedics and a line truck heading their way. Then Gabriel went back within view of Sommer to tell her the plan.
“I’m Gabriel, by the way.” And then to make her feel safer, he pulled his badge from his thigh pocket and said, “Special agent, FBI.” Though sure, she couldn’t see it from his distance.
He’d brought his ID in case anyone was blocking the trails during the manhunt. Tamra’s Pump and Go wasn’t in this section of the mountain range, but Gabriel didn’t know what Finley’s team had found after he handed over the address.
It didn’t hurt to have some clout.
“You called me Sommer. You didn’t find me by happenstance.”
“No, I came here looking for you. My dog tracked you here.” Gabriel sat down beside Whiskey and gave her scritches.
“She tracked me even when I was in the car?” Sommer’s brow furrowed.
“She lost you on the road, and I thought you might have caught a ride. I was hoping to hitchhike back to the ranger station and see if you made it there safely.”
“You said FBI.”
“I’m not here in my official capacity,” he reassured her.
“Whew. Okay then. You should probably lead with that next time.” She tipped her head. “But you were looking for me.”
“Sloane was out front of your house trying to find where you’d hidden your key under your garden rocks. She was pretty frantic, so I broke in to get your hiking itinerary.”
“Broke in?”
“I didn’t break in exactly,” Gabriel amended. “That would have been illegal. It was more like I leaned in. I found an unlocked window. It was helpful that you left a copy of your route on your kitchen table. Good plan.”
Now her brows slid up her forehead to her hairline. “Sloane forced you up the mountain?”
“First, I made some calls to see if we couldn’t get you some help, and help isn’t available right now. There are two massive searches that have pulled people in from the tri-state areas. Resources are stretched thin. Three healthy women who aren’t overdue isn’t going to re-route anyone.”
“Thank you so much. You’re right. I’m not supposed to be home until Saturday night. I can’t imagine that anyone would be willing to go look even if they were facing the wrath of Sloane.”
“Your sister was panicked,” Gabriel said, “and given her condition, I thought, why not go myself?”
“Why not? Wow. I’d say above and beyond.”
“Your sister was very convincing.” There was a stretch of silence between them, and Gabriel felt pressure to add.
“It felt like the right thing to do. And selfishly, I’ve had a lot of stress at work lately.
I was grateful for the opportunity to get outside for some tree time.
Though I’m sorry for how all this is going down. ”
“Getting outside and being physical is how I cope with life, especially work.”
“And I got the bonus of a little dopamine from doing a good deed. I appreciated the opportunity.” Yeah, Gabriel heard himself hammering the word opportunity, and he sounded like an idiot.
“I’m so grateful. Thank you.”
“Help is on the way,” Gabriel said. “I’m not sure what I can do for you until they get here.”
“Talking would help if you’re okay with it. Do you have siblings?” Sommer asked.
“An older sister, Cathy, and my brother, Daniel.”
“Daniel and Gabriel.” She stressed the last three letters when she pronounced the names. “Are you twins?”
“I’m three years older.” There was another silence that needed filling. And under the circumstances, Gabriel flailed for the right topic. “Sommer Hayes, that’s poetic.”
“Isn’t it?” Her smile looked tired. “I’ve always loved my name. My sister not so much.”
“Sloane?”
“Yeah, I don’t know what she doesn’t like about it. I prefer mine, for sure, but Sloane is okay, too. To me it sounds royal. To her, it sounds like slug.”
“Do your parents have S names?”
“Parents Harry and Ines. Sloane and I are identical twins. Though she has bigger boobs and stretch marks now.”