THE CRADLE CONSPIRACY (13 page)

“You have to do something.” Chelsea sobbed. “He came here
tonight. He...he wants me back. He wants babies with me. I can’t let that
happen.”

“Did you upset him?” Pamela asked, shifting her feet back and
forth, her gaze snapping to the photo of her husband once again. “Why did you
even let him in your house?”

“I didn’t know he was back. I looked through the window, and he
saw me. You could have warned me. You know how he can get. I had to... I let
him...” Chelsea choked back another sob. “I didn’t dare risk him flying into one
of his rages.”

Pamela tapped her chin. She probably should have warned
Christopher’s old girlfriend, but the woman had betrayed her, too. A sudden
thought occurred to Pamela. She rose and peeked into the nursery. What if she
told Christopher about the babies using Chelsea as a scapegoat? Yes. The plan
might just work. If she played it smart, she could solve two problems with one
small revelation. Chelsea’s call may have been the answer to her prayers.

“Help me?” Chelsea said.

Pamela drummed her fingers on the phone. She couldn’t reveal
her intentions. She had to string Chelsea along. “What can I do? He doesn’t
listen to me, either.” She let her voice shake, made herself sound vulnerable.
She’d certainly borne the brunt of her husband’s and then Christopher’s anger.
She had no intention of going through that again.

“You know enough to put him behind bars. The cops will believe
his mother. You can tell everyone about what he’s done. About his
hunting
trips. About the kid who went missing in the
wash ten years ago. I want Christopher put away. I want the baby safe. I want to
be free.”

“You’re right.” Pamela took one last look at the sleeping child
in the bed. “I know exactly what to do, Chelsea. You won’t have to worry
anymore. I’ll take care of everything.”

* * *

R
AVEN
FLOATED
ABOVE
the vision: a long flowing white dress. A church. A
handsome man at her side—but not Daniel. Oh, God, a man she didn’t know. A man
with blond hair, too handsome to be real. She had to be dreaming. Rings were
exchanged, then kisses.

No. This was wrong. It couldn’t be a wedding. She shook her
head, wanting the images to vanish. She wanted to stay warm and loved in
Daniel’s arms, but those strange impressions felt real. Felt true.

She cried out, devastated, even in sleep.

“Raven, wake up. You’re having a nightmare. You’re okay,
darlin’.” Daniel held her wrists, one leg thrown across her waist. “You’re with
me.”

Daniel’s calm voice shattered the images in thousands of
pieces, but her heart wouldn’t stop pounding.

Blinking against the glare of the morning light, Raven looked
down at her nude body and then stared at her left hand. No ring. No tan lines
revealing she’d even worn one. Yet she couldn’t shake the certainty in her soul
that the dream was real.

“I think I’m married,” she whispered.

Daniel released her wrists, rolled off her and sat up. Tension
emanated from his body. He tugged on his jeans and handed her a clean set of
scrubs. “You’re basing this on your dream?”

“It didn’t feel like a dream, more like a memory.” She quickly
slipped into the clothes, hating that she couldn’t have stayed naked in his
arms, with nothing between them. She’d felt so close to him, and now a chasm
wider than the wash separated them.

“We both knew this was a possibility,” Daniel said. “I never
should have touched you last night. God, I knew better. I’m sorry.”

The words hurt, even though she expected them. “How can I feel
what I do for you if I’m...?”

Her voice trailed off. She couldn’t meet his gaze. “God, this
is all so crazy.” She rubbed her eyes with shaking hands. “I have to remember. I
can’t go on like this.”

“You may not like what we discover,” Daniel said. He raised his
hand to her cheek, then dropped it before he touched her skin. “We should work
on expanding some of your memories today.”

“I know.” She bit her lip, longing for a connection with
Daniel, even though she shouldn’t. “I watched you fight to control your
memories. I have to fight to retrieve mine. For my baby. And for...myself.”

“Okay, then.” Daniel gave her a tight smile.

He opened Noah’s satchel and pulled out a laptop and a smaller
bag. He set the items between them.

“What’s all this?”

“The CTC program I mentioned. I think it’s worth a try, but I
have to warn you, it may not be easy.”

Daniel reached into the bag. “Sit back against the cave wall
and relax. I have a number of items. Hold them, smell them, use your five senses
to see if they trigger any images, any impressions.” One by one he pulled out a
baby’s rattle, a pink blanket, baby shampoo and several toys.

She drew in a sharp breath. “My head is pounding already. Just
looking at these toys makes my heart ache.”

“Take it slow. You’re safe here. Close your eyes. Let your mind
wander.”

He handed her the rattle, and she clutched it tight.

“Nothing.”

“Try the shampoo. You had a reaction to the scent before,” he
said.

She did and her stomach heaved, her heart tripping in panic,
but no new images appeared in her mind.

For over an hour, Daniel took her through the CTC program.
Finally, when an image flashed on the screen for the third time with nothing to
show for it but a headache, Raven jumped to her feet. “This is ridiculous.
Nothing’s coming back to me. I’m pushing and pushing, and my head is going to
explode.”

Her eyes burned with unshed tears.

She whirled around and stared at the gray sky outside. “We’re
wasting our time here. I’d rather sit in that clinic as bait, waiting until that
maniac comes after me.
He
knows who I am. If we trap
him, I have a chance of finding out, too.”

She stalked out of the cave and walked to the edge of the wash.
The suffocating loneliness of the desert settled over her. She wrapped her arms
around her body, shaking. What if she never remembered? What if she never knew
who she was or what happened to her baby? Could she live with that?

No, it would kill her.

She stared down into the wash, and a wave of despair, deep and
dark, slammed against her.

Storm clouds gathered over the western mountains. Thunder
sounded and lightning flashed some distance away, but the ground began to
rumble, a roar coming ever closer. She peered over the wash just as a huge wall
of water raced down the rock ravine.

Daniel ran out of the cave, the whip in his hand. “It’s a flash
flood. Get back.”

She whirled around, but water splashed over the rocks and
debris, slamming into the earthen ledge where she stood. The ground behind her
gave way. She dove toward a mesquite tree growing out of rock and grabbed hold
of one of its branches. The bark cut into her hands but she held tight,
panting.

Frantic, she looked down at the swirling water. If she fell,
she wouldn’t survive. “Daniel!”

“Just hang on.”

Without hesitation, Daniel tied one end of the long whip around
the mesquite trunk and secured the other end to his belt to anchor himself. She
was so close. If he could only reach her. He leaned toward her and grabbed one
hand, but her wet fingers slipped from his grip.

The bark peeled off under her other hand and she closed her
eyes, certain she would be swept away when Daniel managed to snag her wrist. His
face strained, he began to pull her up, but to her horror, the earth beneath his
feet started to crumble. He moved back and dug his heels into the dirt, but his
body tilted off balance, leaning at an angle over the flood.

The churning torrent sped just below her feet now, but that
could change at any second. A barbed wire fence careened through the water, its
wooden stakes and wire a deadly weapon. The debris slammed against the earth. If
they fell in, they were dead.

Trouble barked furiously, but the dog could do nothing.

“What are we going to do?” she shouted. Daniel tightened his
hold on her wrist.

“I’m going to swing you toward the thicker branches over there.
When you land, crawl up the trunk then get as far away from the edge as you
can!” Daniel yelled.

She nodded.

“Okay, let go,” he ordered.

With a prayer, she did, putting her life in Daniel’s hand. He
groaned and twisted his torso. She swung once, twice. “Now!” he shouted. He let
go, and she landed on some thick branches and climbed toward the edge.

Suddenly the dirt shifted beneath Daniel’s feet, and he
dropped. He grabbed the whip and started hauling himself up.

Raven had crawled toward the cave but turned back. Trouble
grabbed her shirt and pulled, dragging her to safety. She struggled against the
dog’s hold. “Daniel!”

“Stay back.” Hand over hand, muscles straining, he clawed his
way to the top. More ground gave way. He slid back until he was waist deep in
the water. Another tree churned in the flood, heading straight for him.

“Look out!” she yelled.

He twisted just in time for a large branch to slam into his
belly. His hands gripped the leather tighter, but the current pummeled him
against the dirt and rock. Only the whip kept him from being swept away.

She had to do
something.

Raven ran to the cave and dumped out Daniel’s duffel. She found
a climbing rope and ran outside, frantically searching for something to tie the
cord on to that wasn’t about to be swept away.

Suddenly the
whoop-whoop-whoop
of
rotor blades sounded from above. A wave of air knocked her backwards, and she
dropped the rope. A military-style helicopter swooped down toward Daniel.

A man wearing a dark cap and sunglasses leaned out with a
weapon and shouted something, then raised his rifle.

“No!” Raven screamed.

Chapter Nine

The helicopter’s blades forced a downdraft that threw Daniel off balance and buffeted him toward the water. Desperate, he grabbed a tree branch, using it and the whip to climb back up. The rotor blast stung his eyes. He tightened his grip, and the leather from the whip cut into his hands, the sting sharp as it bit into his palm. If he let go, he was dead.

What the hell was Noah doing here in the CTC chopper? Elijah fired a few rounds from the semiautomatic out the side door. As the helicopter turned, angling to hover near, Daniel braced himself for another gust then fought against the rush of man-made wind.

Damn idiots were going to drown him.

He couldn’t let go of the whip. He’d fall. No one could survive the swirling water below. He’d be slammed against the rocks at high speed. If the blows didn’t kill him, drowning would.

The helo dove again, really low, almost as if trying to skirt the water. Daniel whipped around to see what they were doing, but Elijah’s attention was far from Daniel.

Elijah’s line of sight led straight to the flat mesa about fifteen feet above the outcropping.

Two figures held automatic weapons pointed directly at Raven.

Daniel crawled higher, and the tree limb bent precariously lower. He had no time left. With a curse he rammed his boot into the broken branches then, hands bleeding, he pulled himself onto solid ground with the whip. His leg throbbed—hell, his whole body did—but he scrambled to Raven. He shielded her, then shoved her into the protection of the cave.

Gunfire peppered the exact spot where she’d been.

He felt Raven’s heart pounding, but no faster than his own. “Stay here.” He grabbed his weapon and bolted to the cave entrance.

Elijah sent off another round of gunfire toward the mesa. Two heads ducked down.

Daniel scanned the terrain for a way to get to the bastards. A small path caught his attention. It might take some climbing. He grasped a handhold, but the sandstone crumbled. With all the rain, he couldn’t count on a good hold. Suddenly the chopper flew up several feet, and Elijah raised his weapon, but before he could fire, a spray of bullets pelted the helicopter. The chopper reeled away, but an arc of fluid spewed from near the tail.

Daniel’s heart stopped as the chopper swiveled out of control and pitched toward the outcropping. They were going down.

Elijah hung on to a safety strap, then with fury in his eyes, sent one last burst of gunfire. A man fell from the mesa to the ground.

Trouble bolted across the terrain at the bleeding man, who crawled toward his weapon.

The man lunged for his gun, but Trouble leaped on him, growling. The dog grabbed hold of the guy’s arm, clamping down. He cursed, twisting against the animal, rolling toward the edge, but Trouble wouldn’t let go.

“Stop,” Daniel called out. “You’re going to fall.” He snagged the dropped rope from the ground at his feet and tossed it at the second gunman.

The guy ignored him, trying to break the dog’s tight grip.

The man struggled to stand, but the ground gave way. He and Trouble tumbled into the rage of water.

“Trouble!” Raven ran toward the cave opening. A loud explosion rent the air, and a blast of heat seared the cave.

Oh, God, had Noah and Elijah made it out?

“Stay put. I have to check the helicopter!” Daniel shouted, waving Raven back. “There’s a second gunman.”

Raven’s frantic gaze whipped around, taking in the horrific fireball. In the distance, a motorcycle engine revved, then faded away.

Daniel raced to the wash’s edge, searching for Noah and Elijah. The only way they would have survived was if they had jumped into the floodwaters. Some choice. Burn or drown.

He caught sight of Noah’s dark head bobbing, then Elijah’s blond one. They fought to reach a long flat rock perched a third of the way into the wash. There was a small plateau nearby, just above water level. If Noah and Elijah could get to it, they might have a chance.

Daniel whirled around. “We need another rope...”

Raven was already digging into his duffel. She pulled out the second climbing rope.

“Hurry,” he said. “They don’t have much time.”

Daniel and Raven raced along the crumbling edge of the wash, and he searched the chaotic maelstrom.

Trouble’s body was wedged against a thick log, and he struggled to stay afloat.

“Trouble!” Raven screamed.

“I see him. He’s heading for the rock.”

“We have to help him,” she said, then her face paled, and her hand clamped to her mouth. “Is that Noah?” Raven asked, pointing.

Daniel followed her gaze. A dark-headed man’s body bobbed facedown in the water. Noah? It couldn’t be. Not after surviving four tours and countless missions.

The man’s body smashed off a rock and flipped onto his back. Daniel let out a relieved sigh. “It’s not him. It’s the shooter who fell from the edge.”

Even at thirty feet, Daniel could tell the gunman was dead. He couldn’t see his eyes, but the guy had barbed wire wrapped around him and a steel rod impaling him through his chest.

“Stand on that rock. You’ll have a good view. Keep Noah and Elijah in your sights and point them out,” Daniel said. “I’m going to help them.”

She gripped his hand. “Be careful. Please.”

“Always, darlin’.” He looped the rope over his shoulder. The water moved fast. If it rose much higher the cave would be flooded, as well. He watched the waves shove a log past. The way looked clear. He had about fifteen feet to get to the levee.

Daniel shoved his feet between rocks trying to get a firm grip. If he slipped, there was nothing to stop him from being swept away. Knees bent, he picked his way as fast as he could, gripping boulders, avoiding debris.

A fence post scraped his arm, but within minutes he’d reached the dry land.

“Daniel!”

Raven pointed at twelve o’clock. Trouble was headed his way. The wet dog clung to the log, but he stared at Daniel.

Daniel maneuvered himself in front of the log, and when the dog got close enough, Daniel grabbed him under his shoulders, falling backward.

Trouble’s legs went out from under him. He whined and licked Daniel’s face.

“You’re welcome.”

Daniel got up and studied the mountains. The clouds still hovered over the peak. He looked at his feet. The levee had narrowed. The water had already risen several inches. Within minutes the one rock jutting out of the wash would be underwater.

Desperate, he searched the churning rapids, then he saw Noah’s dark hair. The man clung to a small rock, but his grip was slipping.

“Noah!”

He couldn’t hear Daniel.

Noah’s grip slipped, and he plunged under the water. Daniel gauged the distance, ready to jump in, but instead of heading toward the rock, the current carried him to the side.

“Damn it.”

Daniel raced down the ten-foot rock. Noah was a few feet away. Daniel took a deep breath and plunged into the churning water. His hand gripped the collar of Noah’s shirt. He grimaced at the weight.

Suddenly Noah’s arm reached around and gripped Daniel’s wrist. He heaved, dragging Noah to safety.

Trouble nosed Noah’s hand, and the man rubbed the wet fur. “That was fun,” he said, his voice full of irony. “Elijah?”

Daniel shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“There!” Raven yelled.

Daniel turned and recognized the man’s sandy blond hair. Trouble let out a frantic bark.

“We can’t reach him.” Noah panted. “He’s too far.”

“But he can grab this.” Daniel uncoiled the rope, forming a lasso. Who knew junior rodeo would come in handy in his life? He had one shot. He eyed the spot, swung the rope and let it fly. The loop landed just in front of Elijah.

If only he would see it. He looked very, very still.

Suddenly Elijah ducked underwater. A large log popped where his head had been. Then a strong tug grabbed the rope. He’d slipped his shoulder into it.

Daniel and Noah pulled on the line, veering the man toward their sinking island. He grabbed the rock and turned over, gasping for air.

“You guys always have this much fun on the job?” he gasped, coughing up some of the muddy water. “Remind me never to agree when you volunteer to pilot that flying gas can,” he grumbled at Noah. “I’ll take the lab any day of the week.”

“Just another day at the office,” Noah joked. “You make a good cowboy,” he said to Daniel.

“We’re not safe yet. The level’s still rising.” Water lapped at Daniel’s feet.

Elijah couldn’t hide his exhaustion.

“Can you make it?” Daniel asked Elijah. He gestured across the rapids.

Elijah nodded, his expression fierce and determined.

Daniel looped the rope around Trouble’s collar, then each man secured the line between them. By the time they’d knotted themselves together, the level had reached their ankles. Trouble had become unsteady. He slipped down and nearly fell in.

“Ready?” Daniel asked.

They nodded. As quickly as possible, they maneuvered across the faster-moving flood. Finally, they reached the edge where Raven stood. Daniel sat back, his legs suddenly feeling the stress of being in thousands of square feet of roaring flood.

Raven dropped beside him and wrapped her arms around him. “God, you scared me.” She tentatively touched his cheek. “You’re hurt.”

“We’re alive,” he said.

“Barely. So let’s not do that again.” Noah scowled at Daniel. “You had to choose
this
godforsaken place to hide out during a flash flood?”

“It usually doesn’t rain now. There’s been a drought.” He glanced at Raven. “We needed to be near town in case there was a breakthrough.”

Noah’s jaw throbbed. “How’d these guys find you?”

“I don’t know. Not because they followed,” Daniel said. “I made sure of it.”

Elijah brushed some mud off his soaked jeans. “Maybe whoever’s after Raven has a few toys. Satellite locators, listening devices.”

Noah let out a curse. “I bet that’s it. I gave the sheriff your coordinates because I needed to talk to you.”

Raven looked stunned. “You don’t think he’s part of this?”

“I don’t trust anyone right now,” Daniel bit out, wiping his hand across his face. “If the sheriff’s clean, then the perps probably bugged the phones. That would explain why they keep turning up.” Daniel looked over at the raging water. “I wish we could get prints on the gunman. He handled that weapon like he’s shot an automatic weapon before.”

“You think he was military?” Noah asked.

“Yeah. Even hurt, the guy had a few moves.” Daniel glanced down the wash. “I doubt we’ll find his body anytime soon.”

“What do we do now?” Raven asked, slipping her hand into Daniel’s.

“Get out of here.” He panned the landscape. “The second shooter could come back. I’ll use the SAT phone to call the sheriff, pray his line’s not being monitored. He’ll have to arrange to pick us up. I can’t get the four-wheel drive out for days.” Daniel paused. “What were you guys doing out here anyway?”

“We couldn’t get through to the SAT phone,” Noah said. “Maybe the cave blocked the signal?”

“I didn’t want to risk leaving it in the weather.” Daniel cursed. “What was so important that you had to risk this weather? Not that I’m not damn glad you did.”

Elijah met Noah’s gaze, and the look they shared sent a chill of foreboding through Daniel. He tugged Raven up against him.

Her entire body tensed. “You know something, don’t you?” What little color remained drained from her cheeks.

Elijah sucked in a deep breath. “I took the evidence we gathered and ran some preliminary tests. The blood on the toy box lid and the carpet was yours. So far I can’t identify the other blood sample, but we’re checking databases.” He shifted. “I got curious about the hair from the locket so I tested it. The results are...surprising.”

“Tell me,” Raven pleaded.

“According to the DNA, the baby in the locket is not you, Raven. She’s not your child, either. In fact, she’s not related to you at all. But she is related to your attacker.”

* * *

T
HE
HOSPITAL
LOOMED
on the horizon. Christopher skid the dirt bike into the parking lot. He fought to pull the key out, then yanked off his helmet. They’d killed Tad. His only friend. The sole person who understood him.

The damn weapon Christopher had used had jammed. That bitch should be dead—her and the meddling men she’d somehow collected.

Just like a woman to ruin everything.

Christopher shoved the kickstand of his bike in place and glared at the saddlebag where he had hid the weapon. He’d toss the thing later. A ballistics specialist could trace the bullets he’d managed to fire back to this gun. For now he had to figure out how to get rid of the woman. He had to fix this.

He stared up at the hospital. When his mother had called to tell him his sister was here, he couldn’t believe it. She’d looked perfectly fine when he’d seen her. Rosy cheeks, healthy. Even better than the pictures he’d received while in Afghanistan. What had happened?

He didn’t need this now. His mom could be so stupid and gullible. She’d been oblivious to his dad’s lovers, his businesses, the illegals crossing their land for a fee. She wasn’t capable of taking care of herself, so he was stuck with her.

He stomped into the hospital, mud clinging to his combat boots. His expression set, he ignored the fearful looks when he crossed the lobby to the elevator. Let them think what they liked. He hit the up button. The lit numbers above the doors crept down. Eight, seven...

Too slow. To hell with this. He stalked across the tiled floor and yanked the staircase door open. Then, taking two steps at a time, he rushed to the third floor and burst onto the pediatrics ward.

A nurse glared at him, then held her finger to her lips. He scowled at her, and she paled. Could she see her death in his eyes? He felt angry enough to kill anyone in his way.

Damn Tad. Why’d he have to get shot?

A floor-to-ceiling mural of giant bears with balloons grinned at him from the wall. He hated bears. If he had had his gun with him now, he would have strafed it.

He made his way down the hallway, looking for room three-fifteen. He stopped outside the oncology unit. Oncology couldn’t be right. Three-fifteen was in the cancer ward? What the hell was wrong with Christina?