Dead Guilty (31 page)

It
was
four
in
the
morning,
and
in
thirty
minutes
Diane would be getting up to go caving with Mike,
Neva and Mike’s friend who had gotten them access
to
the
cave.
She
had
her
backpack
ready
and
had
checked her batteries and ropes.

‘‘Would
you like to go caving with me?’’ she said,
giving Frank a kiss.
‘‘No, nor do I want to go skydiving, bungee jump
ing, or solo climbing.’’
‘‘You don’t know what you’re missing. There’s no
peace like the depth of a cave.’’
‘‘You have a little bit of insanity running in your
family, don’t you?’’
‘‘Possibly.
What
are
you
going
to
be
doing
this
weekend?’’
‘‘I’m
taking
Kevin
and
Star
to
the
Atlanta
Raceway.’’
‘‘Now, see, that’s crazy. Is Star looking forward to
that?’’
‘‘Sure,
she
loves
it.
Star
knows
quite
a
bit
about
cars.’’
Diane got out of bed and put on her clothes. She
was
lacing
up
her
boots
when
Frank
put
his
arms
around her waist and kissed her on her jaw. ‘‘Watch
where you’re going.’’
‘‘Always.’’
She loaded her gear in the SUV and drove to pick
up Neva. The two of them were dressed similarly—
jeans, tee-shirts and flannel shirts over them, lace-up
boots. Neva stored her gear in
the back and got in
the front with Diane.
‘‘Excited?’’ said Diane.
‘‘Very nervous. My parents think I’m crazy.’’
‘‘Funny,
I
was
just
told
that
too.
You’ll
do
fine.
Didn’t I hear that you’re into tai chi?’’
Neva
nodded.
‘‘I
like
it
a
lot.
Very
relaxing
exercise.’’
‘‘As I understand it, one of the objectives of tai chi
is to develop a tranquil mind and become aware of
your surroundings.’’
‘‘A lot of people think you learn to zone things out.
It’s really just the opposite.’’
‘‘That will really help you caving. You have to be
constantly aware of your surroundings, notice where
you’ve been and watch for hazards. Once you’ve had
enough practice, it’s second nature.’’
‘‘In some of the caver meetings we discussed differ
ent methods of walking in caves so you don’t get tired
out,’’ said Neva.
‘‘It’s good that you’ve done that. Fatigue is a major
enemy. Remember to keep your head as high as you
can as you walk. There’s a natural tendency to want
to stoop over inside a cave.’’
‘‘Mike
said
we’re
going
to
start
meeting
at
the
museum.’’
‘‘I
thought
it
was
a
good
idea.
Up
in
the
rock
room, probably.’’
After a pause, Neva asked, ‘‘Who killed the man in
the hospital? Everett Littleton, right?’’
‘‘It’s still open. The nurse on duty has a vague mem
ory of an orderly coming into the critical care unit.
That’s
about
all.
Garnett
likes
Steven
Mayberry
for
it.’’
‘‘And you?’’
‘‘I don’t know. It was someone who was bold and
proficient, or reckless.’’
‘‘Everett Littleton killed the three in the woods?’’
‘‘That’s what it looks like. I think he tried to tell
me
he
executed
them,
but
with
him
dead,
we
may
never know the whole story.’’
‘‘Did he kill Chris, Kacie and Raymond too?’’
‘‘I don’t know. Chief Garnett thinks either Everett
Littleton or Steven Mayberry killed them.’’
‘‘So Steven Mayberry went from forestry student to
super
ninja
serial
killer?’’
said
Neva.
‘‘A
lot
of
this
just isn’t tracking for me.’’
‘‘Obviously, there are a lot of loose ends. But our
part is over now. We’ve analyzed the crime scene evi
dence and turned in our reports. It’s up to the police
and
the
D.A.
to
figure
it
out
and
make
a
case,
if
there’s anyone left to make a case against.’’
‘‘So
many
dead,
and
no
one
to
prosecute,’’
Neva
said.
Mike Seger and a slightly husky young man with a
short straggly beard stood waiting at the curb in front
of Mike’s house.
‘‘This is Dick MacGregor,’’ said Mike. ‘‘His cousin
owns the land the cave is on.’’
‘‘Yeah,
it’s
my
favorite
cave,’’
said
MacGregor.
‘‘Did you like my map? I started it when I was a kid.
I don’t know much about how cartographers do it, so
I just did it my way, as the song says.’’
‘‘The
only
thing
that
matters
in
a
map
is
that
it
reflects what’s there,’’ said Diane.
Mike shot her a glance as he climbed in the back
seat. Diane was not above flattery if it got her access
to an interesting cave.
They
drove
for
twenty
minutes
and
MacGregor
chatted the whole time. Diane hoped he would tone
it down inside the cave.
‘‘Mike
told
me
you’ve
done
a
lot
of
caving
on
rope,’’ he said.
‘‘Yes, I have.’’
‘‘I haven’t done much of that. I’d like to learn.’’
‘‘Mike says he has a friend who just opened a gym
with a good rock-climbing wall,’’ said Diane. ‘‘That’d
be
a
good
place
to
start
working
on
your
climbing
muscles.’’
It was just daylight when they arrived at the cave.
They piled out of the car, and Diane left her custom
ary
note
and
map
detailing
where
they
were
going.
She had also told Frank, Andie, David and Jonas. She
never
went
caving
without
several
people
knowing
where she was going and how to find her.
They hiked through the woods, through a gate and
up
a
trail.
The
cave
entrance
in
the
side
of
a
rock
outcrop was shielded by thick brush and vines growing
out of the cracks in the rock face.
At the entrance, Diane hung her compass around
her neck and took a reading. They put on their hard
hats, turned on their helmet lights and arranged their
backpacks comfortably. MacGregor went in first.
‘‘Anybody has claustrophobia, now’s the time to say
something,’’ he said, and laughed.
Diane followed him. Neva came right behind her,
and Mike brought up the rear.
The entrance chamber was small and filled with de
tritus blown and washed in from the outside. The walls
were steep solid rock that curved upward and inward
to make a dome-shaped ceiling. The entrance didn’t
allow much sunlight to filter in, so the twilight zone—
the dim area between the light of the outside world
and
the
deep
darkness
of
the
cave—came
quickly.
Diane saw a black hole in the rear wall. She remem
bered on the map it led to a short passage and to a
larger chamber beyond—the Tail of the Lizard, MacGregor had labeled it.
‘‘Now entering the twilight zone,’’ said MacGregor,
and
he
hummed
the
theme
song
from
the
TV
pro
gram. Diane
glanced in Mike’s direction.
He smiled
and shrugged.
They
had
to
duck
low
to
enter
the
new
passage.
The limestone walls closed in with smooth, undulating
shapes with bulges that curved gently like the begin
nings of an arm carved eons ago. They were entering
the
realm
of
geologic
time
where
the
amassing
of
years
was
almost
impossible
for
humans,
who
have
been on earth the mere blink of an eye, to wrap their
brains around.
Diane
loved
everything
about
caves—the
an
cientness, the wildness, the ornate shapes, the bejew
eled and flowered mineral features, cave creatures and
even
the
absolute
velvet
darkness.
The
lights
from
their headlamps made strange shadow puppets of the
shapes and protrusions of the wall. Had any of them
been
overweight,
the
passage
would
have
been
a
squeeze. She glanced briefly at Neva. She looked fine.
The tunnel was short. It led into a larger chamber
strewn with boulders of various sizes, the largest being
the size of a human. The rock face of one wall leaned
toward the chamber, looking like it might fall over on
top of them. They were in the dark zone now. Without
their
lights,
they
would
be
as
blind
as
some
of
the
creatures who lived there.
Diane turned and examined the tunnel they had just
come through so she could recognize it from the oppo
site direction. You have to learn how to see in a cave.
You
can
see
only
in
the
direction
your
head
faces
because your light is on top of your head and points
straight
ahead.
And
in
the
darkness
of
a
cave,
the
light beam is quickly swallowed up. You don’t get the
panoramic view your peripheral vision gives you up in
the world of sunlight.
She
took
another
reading
of
the
marked
it
in
her
notebook.
They
all
books. Mike had a camera and snapped shots of the
formations,
making a
quick burst
of light
with each
picture. He wrote things in his notebook that looked
like chemical notations, from the brief glimpse Diane
got
of
them.
Neva
drew
sketches
in
her
notebook.
MacGregor looked like he was writing a novel. Per
haps he was, and a cave was where his muse talked
to him. Diane could understand that.
The easy trail through the cave was a succession of
tunnels and rooms like beads on a string, frequently
crossed by other passageways. MacGregor’s chatty na
ture was useful inside the cave, for he freely explained
what was down each passage they crossed.
‘‘There’s lots of mazes in this cave—little twisting
passages that all look alike.’’ He laughed, indicating
that he’d just told a joke, or quoted something.
‘‘
Zork,
an
old
computer
game,’’
Mike
whispered
to her.
Sometimes they took one of the cross tunnels when
it was marked as part of the easy route. They came
compass
and
carried
note
to a passage that MacGregor called Fish Scale passage
and was just what Diane thought it would be—a tun
nel that once had water moving through it, creating
scallops
in
the
ancient
streambed
as
it
flowed.
The
steep side of the scallops was the upstream direction
from which the water had traveled. The small size of
the scallops and the curviness of the passage told her
that it had been a fast-moving stream. Mike snapped
pictures, made measurements and explained the water
movement
to
Neva
as
she
rubbed
her
hand
on
the
water-carved surface.
Diane continued taking compass readings as a pre
lude to mapping. Direction gave her an understanding
of the cave. That was how she defined a cave—a direc
tional space through rock. Her compass readings hardwired the cave system in her mind, giving her a visual
image of it. That made it easy when she got down to
actually drawing the maps. With every compass bear
ing she took a backsight from the opposite direction
to check her first reading, in case the cave had mag
netic rocks that influenced the compass, or in case she
made an error.
Mike moved ahead. Neva followed, and MacGregor
walked quickly to catch up with Mike.
Walk slowly in
a
cave,
thought
Diane,
but
she
didn’t
say
anything.
This particular tunnel was clear of breakdown, jutting
or overhanging rocks. Not much to bump into or stum
ble over. They came to another cross passage. Diane
tried to visualize it on the map. She walked slowly,
looking at every feature of the tunnel.
Mike
had
taken
the
lead,
following
the
things
he
was interested in, and they all followed him. He fre
quently checked the map to be sure they didn’t stray
into a wild zone. MacGregor seemed to be trying to
regain leadership.
‘‘There’s
a
small
chimney
up
here,’’
said
MacGregor. ‘‘Are you game to give it a try, Neva?’’
‘‘I don’t think so—not this time. Anyone notice that
the lights are acting funny?’’
‘‘What do you mean?’’ asked Diane.
‘‘I don’t know. I think someone’s light is flickering.’’
‘‘It’s not Mike snapping photographs?’’
‘‘Maybe.’’
‘‘We better check out the headlamps,’’ said Diane.
As they walked, the tunnel changed midstream, so
to
speak,
from
a
rectangular
passage
to
a
rounded
tunnel.
‘‘Well, this is interesting,’’ said Diane.
‘‘Funny how the shape changes,’’ said Neva.
‘‘The slope too,’’ said Diane.
‘‘Yeah,
I’ve
always
wondered
about
it,’’
said
MacGregor.
Mike was scrutinizing the walls. He took photos of
the change.
‘‘What do you make of it?’’ asked Diane.
Mike grinned. ‘‘I think it’s a place that marks the
change
from
phreatic
water
movement
to
vadose
water
movement.
This
is
why
I
love
caving.
Where
else would you get to see this?’’
‘‘Ooookay,’’ said MacGregor, ‘‘I’m glad we cleared
up that little mystery—yes, sir, I’ll sleep well tonight.
What the heck does that mean?’’
Mike had started to explain, when Diane heard a
sharp crack. The next thing she knew, MacGregor was
staring at her, a puzzled look on his face.

The
first thing Diane saw after hearing the noise was
blood
dripping
down
MacGregor’s
shirtsleeve.
He
clutched at his arm and looked at the blood on his
hand, confusion showing in his eyes.

‘‘What
the
hell?’’
Mike
saw
him
and
took
a
step
toward him.
‘‘Gun!’’ yelled Diane. ‘‘Get out of this tunnel.’’
She grabbed MacGregor and pulled him into a side
passage. Mike and Neva followed on her heels. The
lights
from
their
headlamps
made
chaotic
swaths
of
light across the walls and ceiling. But she could see
they were in a large chamber strewn with breakdown.
Diane shoved MacGregor behind a large boulder.
‘‘I’m bleeding. Is somebody shooting at us?’’
‘‘Who
the
hell
are
you?’’
yelled
Mike.
‘‘Are
you
crazy?’’
‘‘Dr.
Fallon,
you’re
a
hard
woman
to
find.
Good
thing you left maps and directions for me.’’
The voice sounded familiar, but it was distorted by
the echo effects of the large chamber they were in.
‘‘What do you want?’’ she yelled.
‘‘I want my goddamn fucking diamonds.’’
‘‘Diamonds?’’ MacGregor’s voice was approaching
a
high-pitched
squeak.
‘‘What’s
he
talking
about?
There’s
no
diamonds
in
this
cave,’’
he
yelled.
‘‘I’d
have found them already.’’
Diane turned off her headlamp and Mike and Neva
followed suit. She reached over and turned off MacGregor’s.
The
eerie
glow
of
a
flashlight
radiated
around the corner from the passage they just left.
‘‘I don’t have your diamonds,’’ said Diane.
‘‘You know where they are, and I’m going to haul
your ass back to get them.’’
‘‘You
know,
it’s
not
safe
to
shoot
off
a
gun
in
a
cave,’’ said Diane.
‘‘Then don’t give me any trouble.’’
‘‘Detective LaSalle?’’
‘‘Right on the first try.’’
‘‘How did you get here so fast?’’
‘‘I never left.’’
He walked from around the corner, holding a flash
light in his left hand just above his left shoulder. He
had a gun in his other hand.
‘‘I’m on vacation. I told them at the station up in
Buffalo that I was still working on little Alice Little
ton’s case, and to forward any calls about it to me. I
figured
if
you
ever
ID’d
the
bodies,
you’d
call
the
Buffalo police.’’
Diane could see the faint figures of Neva and Mike
slowly
moving
toward
LaSalle,
keeping
out
of
the
beam
of
his
flashlight.
No,
she
wanted
to
shout
at
them.
Don’t
try
anything.
But
they
were
moving.
Damn.
‘‘So you killed Ashlyn, Justin and Cathy?’’ Diane
desperately wanted to keep his attention focused on
her.
‘‘No. Everett made that little mess.’’
Without warning, he fired and Mike fell.
‘‘No!’’ yelled Diane. ‘‘Damn you!’’
Diane rushed toward him as Neva jumped for La
Salle. He’d seen Neva coming, and with the force of
his whole body behind it, met her head-on, knocking
her flying across a large slab of sloping rock on the
floor of the cave toward a black opening.
Neva started sliding. Diane switched on her headlamp as she ran for her. Neva grabbed and scratched
at the rocks as she slid over the edge of . . . of what?
Neva screamed. Diane ignored LaSalle shouting for
her to stop. She scrambled across the rock and looked
over the edge.
Her heart lurched in her chest. Neva had fallen
into a narrow slit between vertical rock walls. She
was slowly sinking, becoming more tightly wedged
in the gap. Below her dangling feet lay only black
ness. She was hanging in the opening above a cavern
so large that the light from Diane’s lamp did not
penetrate it. Diane reached down and grabbed her
hand.
‘‘Help me,’’ Diane yelled at LaSalle.
‘‘Leave her and get over here.’’
‘‘Hold on to the crack in the wall.’’ Diane pulled
Neva’s hand toward a fissure to use as a handhold.
Neva’s
eyes
were
wide,
frightened
and
panicstricken. Diane pulled Neva’s other hand upward until
Neva’s fingers grabbed into the fissure.
‘‘Hold on.’’
Neva’s fingers slipped out and she fell farther into
the crack. Diane grabbed her wrist and pulled hard.
She felt herself slowly sliding forward toward the edge.
If she slipped into the opening headfirst, it would be
over for all of them.
‘‘Help me, damn you! You can’t leave her like this!’’
‘‘I work for people who are going to cut me in two
with a chain saw—before they kill me. Don’t tell me
what I can’t do. I’m trying to survive here.’’
‘‘I
have
to
get
some
rope,’’
she
said
to
Neva.
‘‘Hold on.’’
Diane pushed back against the rock to keep from
sliding.
‘‘Please don’t let me go,’’ Neva pleaded
‘‘Neva, you can do this. Hold on for just a couple
of minutes while I get some rope. I’m letting go. Hold
on to the rocks.’’
‘‘I’m slipping. There’s no place to hold on to.’’
‘‘I have to get some rope.’’
‘‘I am so scared. Oh, God.’’
‘‘I’m going to get you out of this.’’
She
let
go
of
Neva’s
hand
and
scrambled
off
the
huge slab lying on the edge of the crevice. She turned
and faced LaSalle.
‘‘We’re going to get my diamonds,’’ he said.
‘‘I’m going to get her out of there.’’
‘‘You get the hell over here, or so help me God,
I’m going to shoot you.’’
‘‘Okay, you win. Shoot me.’’
‘‘You stupid . . .’’ LaSalle raised his gun at her and
held
it
there
for
several
seconds.
He
wavered,
then
dropped it to hip level. ‘‘Dammit, go ahead, get her
out.’’
‘‘I need help,’’ said Diane.
‘‘Well, you don’t have any.’’
Diane glanced at Mike lying on the cave floor. He
was trying to move. There was a growing dark stain on
his shirt. It looked as if the bullet hit him in his side.
MacGregor was huddled against a rock, whispering
a mantra of ‘‘Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God.’’
Diane ran for her backpack.
‘‘Don’t for a second think of trying anything,’’ La
Salle said.
‘‘With what? We have no weapons. Just rope and
candy bars.’’
‘‘Dick,’’ she called at MacGregor. ‘‘Help Mike.’’ He
didn’t
move.
‘‘MacGregor!’’
That
got
his
attention.
‘‘Mike needs help.’’
Dick MacGregor looked at her a moment, switched
on his headlamp and crawled over to Mike.
‘‘He’s bleeding.’’
‘‘Take
off
your
shirt
and
apply
pressure
to
his
wound. Do it.’’
‘‘Will you hurry up?’’ said LaSalle.
Diane didn’t say anything, but pulled a tough, al
most new nylon rope from her backpack. She uncoiled
it and began tying foot slings on one end using a bow
line on a bight, creating two nooses. She dressed and
set the knot so the parts were properly aligned and very
tight.
Neva
was
about
five feet
six,
and
she
needed
several more feet for a harness. Diane tied handhold
loops higher up on the rope.
‘‘My patience is wearing thin.’’
‘‘I’m hurrying as fast as I can. Your diamonds aren’t
going
anywhere.
You
didn’t
call
the
Canadians,
did
you? Just didn’t want me to call and alert them.’’
Diane fished candy out of her pack. ‘‘I’m throwing
you a candy bar. Snack on that while you wait.’’ She
threw it toward his feet.
He actually said thanks.
Diane secured the other end of the rope around a
boulder with a figure eight bend, tying it off with an
overhand knot to keep the rope from slipping.
‘‘I see you’re good with knots,’’ said LaSalle. ‘‘Ever
ett Littleton was good with knots. His knots never got
loose. He was one pissed-off son of a bitch. I told him
I
didn’t
have
anything
to
do
with
his
sister
Alice’s
death. That was all Ashlyn and Justin trying their to
bacco scam on the wrong people.’’
Diane didn’t say anything. She remained focused on
what she was doing. If the knots were tied incorrectly,
they
would
reduce
the
strength
of
the
rope
or
slip
loose.
With
the
rope
anchored
to
the
boulder,
she
went back to Neva, who was literally hanging on by
her fingernails.
Neva was stuck at hip level. So far there was room
around her chest for her to breathe. Diane had wanted
to make a harness around Neva’s chest, but she was
too far down for Diane to reach safely without help,
and LaSalle wasn’t willing to help. Damn. She untied
the handhold loop she had made and tied another one
lower on the rope.
‘‘Okay,
Neva.
I’m
lowering
the
rope
beside
you,
down
through
the
opening.
I
want
you
to
find
the
loops with your feet. There are two of them. If you
can, put a foot in each loop. If not, put at least one
foot in.’’
‘‘I think maybe I broke my right leg.’’ Neva’s voice
was
very
high-pitched
and
soft.
‘‘Please
don’t
leave
me hanging by my hands again.’’
‘‘I’m going to get you out of this. The rope is going
to support you.’’
Diane dropped the end of the rope down through
the crevice in the rocks, stopping it with the end loop
near Neva’s left foot. Diane took off her flannel shirt
and used it as a pad to protect the rope from being
cut by the edge of the rock.
‘‘Okay, Neva, find the loop. You need to raise your
foot slightly.’’
Neva tried and missed the loop. She whimpered. ‘‘I
don’t want to die here.’’
‘‘You’re not going to. Concentrate on putting your
foot in the loop.’’
Neva tried again. On the third try her foot found
the loop.
‘‘Now you can put your weight on the rope. Hold
on to the handholds on the rope.’’
Neva
pushed
against
the
rope.
‘‘That’s
better.
Maybe I can climb out.’’
She strained, pulling on the rope. Diane pulled as
hard as she could on her end.
‘‘I’m stuck.’’ Neva started to cry. ‘‘It hurts.’’
‘‘Okay, Neva, I want you to listen to me. Right now
you are a cave creature and your only purpose in life
is to hang on to this rope. No matter what happens,
no matter how tired you get, no matter how much you
hurt, the only thing you have to do is to hang on to
this rope. You understand?’’
‘‘Yes.’’ Her voice was barely a squeak.
‘‘I will come back with help for you and for Mike
and Dick. Trust me. I will.’’
Diane
took
a
space
blanket
from
her
pack
and
tucked it around Neva as best she could without going
over the edge herself.
‘‘Okay, now let’s go.’’ LaSalle was insistent.
‘‘I’m going to see about Mike, and then we’ll go get
your damn diamonds. I’ll even give you some extra
from the museum if you’ll be a little patient. We have
some fine gems.’’
‘‘Well, a woman who knows how to bargain. I like
that. Look at him, then. After that, we go.’’
Diane rushed to Mike. He was conscious and pale.
His skin was cool to the touch, but the cave was cool.
She looked at his side. MacGregor started to lift his
shirt from the wound.
‘‘No. Keep it there. If you move it, you’ll pull the
clotted
blood
loose
and
start
the
bleeding
again.
It
looks like it’s slowed.’’
Diane folded parts of the shirt over the area to soak
up more blood. She put a hand on Mike’s back. He
was bleeding from the exit wound. Damn. She fished
out
her
first
aid
kit
and
tore
open
the
gauze
pads,
stacked them up and pressed them against the wound.
‘‘Hold this,’’ she told MacGregor. ‘‘When I finish, I’ll
look at your arm.’’
‘‘Dammit, this isn’t a hospital,’’ LaSalle said angrily.
‘‘You’re the one shooting people. Just one of our
stones at the museum is worth ten thousand dollars
and we have lots of them. That’s a lot of money when
all you have to do is stand there and wait a minute
or two.’’
Diane wrapped an Ace bandage tight around Mike’s
midsection. He had been silent so far. Now he looked
at her as if he were trying to telegraph thoughts.
‘‘He’s going to kill you,’’ he whispered so silently
Diane had to read his lips, ‘‘and us.’’
‘‘No,’’ whispered Diane. ‘‘Trust me.’’
Mike’s stare had an urgency as he looked at her.
‘‘He won’t let you...’’
‘‘What are you two cooking up?’’
‘‘Nothing. I’m trying to comfort Mike. What could
we
possibly
be
cooking
up?
You
have
a
gun,
and
three-quarters
of
us
are
incapacitated.
I’m
almost
finished.’’
She looked deep into Mike’s eyes. ‘‘Trust me and
trust my love of caves.’’ He looked at her, puzzled.
‘‘It’s your job to stay alive.’’
Diane looked at MacGregor’s wound. It wasn’t bad,
she was relieved to see. She put a bandage on it. She
took another space blanket and draped it over Mike
and MacGregor.
‘‘Watch the others. I’ll come back with help. Don’t
let Mike move. Talk to Neva occasionally. Tell some
jokes. You have a captive audience.’’ He gave her a
weak smile. ‘‘I’m counting on you,’’ she added.
Diane stood up. ‘‘I’m ready to go.’’