EDGE (38 page)

Linnet shrugged. “Either she didn’t think of it or wanted to get that crazy bastard to follow her away from the lodge.”

“What made you remember the raft?”

“Had these crazy dreams last night and the raft was in one of them.” She shook her head. “At least Loch Ness won’t be swallowing us whole in these waters.”

“You need to stay here. Sergei and I will go.”

Sergei lifted his head, his eyes refusing to dilate. “He’s right.”

“Are you sure the two of you are up to it?”

Cache regarded Sergei. The man looked three sheets to the wind, and he wasn’t on his game. What other choice did they have? The woman he loved was out there, fighting for their lives and hers.

Mel studied Ramsey’s cabin. It was silent. Still as death. The forest was even holding its breath as she regarded the old log cabin up on stilts. He’d fixed his roof. Shiny new corrugated metal the color of money was over the front side of the cabin, differing from the faded older part of the roof, making it look a bit like a patchwork quilt.

The trail behind her was quiet, had been the whole way here. Many times she’d paused and listened but hadn’t heard anything. Either Jed hadn’t followed her, or he was better at tracking than she’d given him credit for. She couldn’t underestimate him, which was why she was hiding in the spruce trees watching Ramsey’s cabin for any movement.

The place remained stagnant. There was no boat out front, no subsistence net in the water fishing for salmon that Ramsey used to stock his freezer and smoke in the smoke house. Kings were running. It wasn’t like Ramsey to miss out on the bounty.

Hell, she needed to get her own net fishing.

An eagle made a predatory flight over the area looking for supper. While she watched, the eagle dived, its talons dipping into the calm waters of the cove, clutching a ten pound salmon in its claws, and without breaking stride, flapped its wings and soared for the cliff above.

Mel left the safety of the forest and crossed Stir Crazy Creek, jumping from sandbar to sandbar, and using an old fallen log to traverse the rapidly running waters. On the other side, she didn’t waste any time reaching Ramsey’s door. She knocked, glanced around, and tried the knob. It turned easily in her hand. One last look around at the deserted beachfront and she let herself in.

It was dark inside the cabin and cleaner than she’d expected. Other times when she’d visited, the place was cluttered, not messy. More like the man had been on his own too long and didn’t care to put things away.

The cabin was a large open space, with a stove made from an old oil drum off to the left and a kitchen with a hand pump that brought water from outside to the right. A mismatched set of beat up couches took up the center with bookcases flanking the log walls. The bedroom was in the loft that covered the back half of the room.

The VHF radio was located on a shelf by the window that overlooked the comings and goings of anyone venturing close. A large desk was placed directly in front of the window. Mel kept an eye out as she turned on the radio, loving the static that sounded before she dialed it back. She picked up the mic, and pressed the button to speak.

Blinding pain exploded in the back of her head, spinning the view before her in a kaleidoscope of purples.

A swell of blackness swallowed her as she sank to the floor without a whimper.

C
HAPTER
T
WENTY-
F
IVE

“‘
For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he is the minister for God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil
’.”

Mel struggled to open her eyes. She felt an overwhelming need to run, but for some reason couldn’t move. Cracking open her lids, she immediately shut them as blinding pain stabbed her. A rhythmic chanting droned along with the sound of rushing water.

God, her head hurt, and she was cold.

How had she gotten wet?

The sun beat down. She could feel the heat on her face as she bumped along, each jolt causing her head to pound harder. Yet she could feel the wetness of her clothes, and her body shivered, making her wince as her head throbbed.

What the hell?

Then she remembered.

Ramsey’s cabin. Radio. Blackness.

Jed had been there.

Instead of her planning on him walking into her trap, she’d walked into his.

She silently cursed and struggled to pry her eyelids open again, forcing them to stay open. The slicing pain was enough to cause a whimper to escape. The first thing she saw was trees lining the banks of a streambed. She glanced down. No wonder she was wet. She was tied to a packboard. Probably one of Ramsey’s, made of two poles with an animal skin strung tight between them. It was used to haul out slabs of meat after a hunt. This time she was the hunk of meat tied to the frame and lugged through the wilderness. Jed was dragging the packboard up Stir Crazy Creek.

She almost laughed at the irony of it.

Her feet were drenched as they were currently under the flowing glacier runoff. So cold she couldn’t feel her toes. Her legs were following suit as water continued to splash up and drench her clothes.

A salmon swimming up the creek to spawn swam out of their way.

At some point, Jed must have taken a breather and let go of the packboard, dropping her into the water. Which explained her wet clothes, wet hair, and the reason she continued to shiver in the hot solstice sun. Under her wet hair, her head hurt, throbbed in time with her racing heart. They hit a rock, and the packboard bounced over it, slamming down on the other side. She groaned in pain.

Jed’s chanting stopped and then so did she.

“Good, you’re awake,” Jed said.

She couldn’t see him, couldn’t open her eyes or move her aching head far enough back to catch a glimpse of him. His voice was the voice of his father and that alone had the shivering in her body stop cold. They were moving again, this time to the edge of the streambed, up on the bank where he let go of the packboard and she crashed to the pebbled ground.

Darkness once again embraced her with its welcoming arms.

She didn’t know how long she’d been out. The sun seemed to be in the same place in the sky, but this time of year it barely moved. They were no longer bouncing along the streambed, and she was supremely grateful for the lack of movement. Then she retained enough consciousness to become aware of Jed praying over her.

Why in God’s name would he pray for her if he was going to kill her?

She peered through slightly opened eyelids. There was Jed on his knees alongside the packboard, his hands together, his head bowed quoting scripture.

“‘And now from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ’.”

Jed’s resemblance to his father was shocking, and sent her back to that scared place in the dark recesses of her mind for a moment until she fought free from its clutches. She couldn’t afford to be that scared little girl. Scared would get her dead. She had to keep her wits about her. Somehow find a way out of this.

“Jed?” she croaked. The pain in her head urged her to embrace the darkness again, and it was a struggle to stay conscious.

Jed raised his head, beaming down at her. “AnnaMaria. I have missed you my sister-mother.”

She swallowed back the need to vomit. It was hard to concentrate through the death drums getting louder inside her head. “Why?”

“Our father has sent me. I’ve come to save you, AnnaMaria.”

“Our father?” She tried to shift, wincing as the movement caused blackness to push in on the sides of her vision.

“Your husband, our father has guided me here to save you. He is so very sorry for not fully completing your ascension.”

“He’s dead.”

“Yes. By the grace of our Lord he speaks to me. I’ve been instructed to end your suffering and therefore the members of the Ascension will be blessed by our Lord.”

Bile traveled up her throat. She swallowed repeatedly, shut her eyes and concentrated on breathing in deep gulps of air.

Jed’s fingers brushed her face. “It’s been so good to see you, AnnaMaria. I was so saddened to hear that you had not gained ascension into the Kingdom of our Lord. The members of the Ascension have been dearly punished for the infraction. I deeply apologize for our father’s failings, but rest assured. I will not fail you. No hikers will come along and interfere with your full ascension like the last time.”

“Jed, what happened to you?”

A frown appeared between his brows. “What do you mean?”

“I heard that you were taken from the Ascension and raised in a loving home.”

“Yes, it was another trial. A test of my devotion. I’ve been waiting, and I was rewarded for my patience when I was visited and called forth to come here.” He looked puzzled for a moment. “Though I was surprised over the vessel that was used to inform me of my mission.” He shrugged. “Our Lord works in mysterious ways. It is not up to us to question.”

“Is it right to take my life? Thou shalt not kill, Jed. This is my home. I am happy here.” Happier than she’d ever been. “God would want me to finish out my days.”

Jed seemed confused, stood and walked to the edge of the creek. Then he cocked his head as though listening to someone. He murmured something, waited, nodded, walked back, and knelt beside her, laying his hands alongside her face. “I understand your fear. Father has guaranteed that it will be over soon and then you will have nothing but joy.” He brushed his lips against her forehead. “I am but a servant of our Lord.”

“No, Jed. This is murder. Not some damn religious rite. I want to live. If you…ascend me, it will be murder.” It was the wrong thing to say, because he shut down, the warmth in his eyes turned cold.

“The serpent has infected you. Caused you to whore yourself with that photographer. Curse with the mouth of a sailor. It is imperative that I save your soul.” He pulled a knife from the scabbard at his waist.

“Wait!” The pain in her head screamed with the yell.
Think of something.
“Ramsey? D-did you kill him?”

“The old man cavorting with Linnet?”

“Y-yes.” He must have been watching all of them to know that. Hell, she hadn’t even known until Linnet had told her. “That was his cabin you took me from.”

“I’m not a murderer.” He fingered the sharpness of the knife’s blade. “The cabin was empty when I found it. It’s been a convenient spot to bunker down since you found my campsite. Now, we are wasting time. I have salmon to fry for dinner.”

Keep him talking.
“Altar! Don’t...don’t you need an altar?”

“Yes, I would prefer one, but our Lord will forgive me the small transgression, since it was not at my hands the altar was destroyed, but yours. He understands that time is of the essence. You must ascend before the day is through and before another trial is placed upon us.”

“Jed, please. Please don’t do this.” Tears leaked from her eyes at the finality of his countenance. She struggled on the packboard. He’d used rope to lash her to the apparatus, and from her chest to her feet, she was tightly secured to the frame.

Jed began to pray above her again, his eyes closed, head bent over the knife sandwiched between his palms. She groped around with her fingers, feeling the shape of the knife she’d put in her pocket before leaving the lodge. Thankfully, Jed had missed this knife when he’d disarmed her at Ramsey’s. She worked the knife free of her cargo pants, flipped the blade open, hissing as she cut her hip in the process. She couldn’t reach the ropes with the knife so she turned the blade and sliced through the animal skin strung tight between the two poles of the packboard, gaining her more room to move.