The storm raged around them, lightning flashed, leaving red trails in his eyes, but he made ready for when the sedan hit the boulders. In a grind of screaming metal, the vehicle slammed into the huge rocks and stuck fast. The jolt went through him, tearing at muscles as the unrelenting water threatened to rip off his arms rather than allow him to escape its watery grave. A brown swirling mass rose up around them and they leaped together, scrambling onto slippery moss-covered boulders. He dug in his fingers and toes and dragged himself out of the river. Beside him, Carter scrambled up the rock like a frog and balanced as if on a surfboard, water running down his face. Kane recognized the area. Blackhawk had called this place the Devil’s Marbles. It was a great fishing hole and had just saved their lives. They climbed across the rocks and then staggered onto the riverbank. Breathing heavily, they waded through the flood and dropped onto a nearby boulder.
“Now what?” Carter leaned closer. “Where are we? We need help. They could be anywhere by now.”
Gathering his thoughts for a few seconds, Kane sat in the pouring rain. He’d seen Jenna go underwater, but the swell had picked them up and they’d surfed along. She hadn’t passed them. Most times bodies float and he’d been watching. “They didn’t go past us and help is coming. My belt has a tracker. I initiated the alarm.” He stood, ignoring the stiffening damaged muscles. “We need to keep moving. This storm isn’t easing. All we can do is search the riverbank.”
“Let’s go.” Carter took off running, his blond hair darkened by the pouring rain.
Kane followed close behind, stopping to search any piles of debris alongside the river. Floodwaters had spread across a wide area and were knee deep in places. He heard Carter yell out and then splash toward a fallen log floating in the murky water. He ran after him and the yellow markings of an FBI jacket glowed in the half-light. They’d found Jo, her arms wrapped around a log, her slicker ripped into shreds. Kane’s breath caught in his throat as Carter lifted her in his arms. “Is she alive?”
“Yeah, thank you, Jesus. She gasped when I lifted her.” Carter waded to a boulder and sat down. “Check her out.”
With freezing fingers, Kane removed one glove and pressed his fingers to her neck. He nodded. “Her pulse is a little slow. She’s hypothermic. I can’t find any major injuries. Try and wake her.” He stared ahead. “We need to find Jenna.” He pulled his soaked glove back on. “You’ll need to get Jo moving or she’ll die.”
“I know that. Go, I’ll be right behind you.” Carter patted Jo’s cheek. “Jo, wake up. Open your eyes. You can’t sleep here. I need to get you warm. Jo.”
When Jo moaned, Kane took off. He raised his voice above the storm. “Jenna… Jenna… call out. I’m coming.”
No voice came on the wind.
The storm, flood, and cold didn’t worry him. He’d been trained to withstand much more than the current conditions and had survived worse. He moved swiftly, trying to avoid the dead animals and tree branches floating past. Ahead, the river had forced its way through a bridge. Underneath, it lapped boulders leading to a high brick plateau. He headed that way. It would be a place of shelter if Jenna had made it that far. If she’d initiated her tracker ring, everyone would be heading her way. He searched into the distance for any sign of flashing lights and could only see a wall of rain.
Wading through the fast-flowing floodwater, he gripped the edge of the bridge and climbed the boulders to the plateau. Water lapped the edges and he choked back a cry at the sight of Jenna, pale as a ghost and sprawled out on her back, eyes closed and arms spread out as if she’d been thrown there. He scrambled to her side and his hand trembled as he removed his soaked glove to check her pulse. Under his fingers, life fluttered. Mud covered her face and twigs had stuck in her hair, but she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Meticulously searching for injuries, he ran his hands over her. She had superficial cuts all over, but her left arm looked wrong. He ran a hand under her jacket and grimaced. She’d dislocated her collarbone. With care, he removed her arm from her jacket. In normal circumstances he’d call for a medic to fix it, but he couldn’t wake her and expect her to walk or be carried. The pain would be excruciating. He’d performed a relocation in the field once or twice in an emergency and, biting down hard on his cheek, gently manipulated the bone back into place.
As it popped, Jenna screamed as if he’d shot her point-blank and tried to get away. He pressed her down and her eyes shot open and blinked frantically. “Jenna, easy, you’re okay. I’ve got you.”
“Dave? Thank God, you’re alive. The wave—it came out of nowhere.” Jenna burst into tears. “My chest hurts—have I been shot? Are you okay? Jo, Carter?”
Kane held her close and rocked her. “You’ll be fine. Yeah, they’re okay. Banged up some but breathing. Carter is not far behind me. This is gonna hurt. Take a few deep breaths.” He eased her arm back into her soaked jacket and helped her to sit up.
Her teeth chattered like castanets and he needed to get her warm, but it would be impossible. Dressed in only in a T-shirt and jeans and soaked through, he had nothing to give her to help. He’d need to make his own heat and sitting here wouldn’t cut it. When her head dropped and her eyes closed, he gave her a little shake. Keeping her awake was essential. He frowned. “We lost the woman in the sedan and haven’t found her body. She was dead when we pulled her out. We’ll get search and rescue onto it. Right now, we need to move or we won’t make it back to the boys. Can you stand? Once we’re off this ledge, I’ll carry you.”
“I think so.” Jenna groaned when he helped her to her feet. “I’m bruised all over.”
Kane lifted her down from the plateau and they waded to safer ground. He scooped her into his arms and kissed her cold lips. “Snuggle up to me and keep warm. I’ll carry you back to the Beast.”
“It’s miles away.” Jenna pressed her head against his shoulder. “You can’t carry me that far.”
Kane smiled. “I can and I will. I know Carter and Jo are just ahead of us and Wolfe will be on his way. All we need to do is follow the river back toward town and he’ll find us. Keep talking to me, Jenna.” He wrapped his arms around her and waded through the water. “Don’t worry, everything is gonna be fine.”
Nineteen
Wolfe discovered the Beast parked some distance away from the bridge on Maple. Water lapped around the wheels. He drove closer and noticed a pile of clothes on the back seat, including Kane’s distinctive black Stetson and Carter’s snakeskin cowboy boots. They must have planned to go into the river. Closer to the swirling muddy torrent that used to be a crystal-clear river, blue and red lights flashed from the ambulance, and beside them a team from search and rescue unloaded crafts from trailers. Having no idea of the nature of the emergency, Wolfe had come alone. He used his satellite phone to call Jenna’s office and spoke to Rio. “Yeah, there’s a vehicle washed up alongside the river. Something else has happened here. Search and rescue is already on scene. Did Jenna call in her position?”
“Yeah, she reported a vehicle had been washed into the river. Since then, we’ve had reports of a landslide in the mountain. It took out one side of Dead Man’s Drop. The entire contents of the rock pool released into the river. The damage is being assessed. The mayor engaged search and rescue. Our orders were to remain here and be ready to assist where necessary. I haven’t heard from Jenna since then, but she has Jo and Carter with her as well as Kane.”
A wave of concern knotted Wolfe’s gut. Kane hadn’t contacted him because he couldn’t and his tracker was used only in a dire emergency. Whatever had happened was bad, real bad. “I’m on scene and there’s no sign of Jenna or the others. Kane activated his tracker. I have him about a mile downstream but have no way of getting to him. I’m heading now to speak to search and rescue. They have boats. I’ll keep you in the loop.” He disconnected.
He had fishing waders in the back of his van. He carried everything he might need in an emergency. He climbed into the back and pulled on his slicker and waders. He stuffed foil blankets into his medical kit and headed out. After explaining that the sheriff and her deputy and two FBI agents had likely been washed downstream, he climbed into one of the boats and they skimmed along the top of the floodwater. He kept checking his satellite phone and the map with the constant beep that told him Kane’s position. Peering through the downfall, the destruction from the rush of water surprised him. Trees had been dragged out by the roots and tossed around as if they’d gone through a hurricane. Long strands of wheatgrass hung from branches like Christmas tinsel, and animals both alive and dead floated by. He gripped his phone, inside a plastic bag, constantly wiping the rain blocking his view. His attention moved from the screen to scan the way ahead. The beep told him they were getting closer, but would it be Kane’s body that floated past them next? He shook his head, not willing to consider Kane’s life would be taken so easily, but after all, he was only a man.
“I see something moving.” The search-and-rescue guy at the front of the boat turned and looked at him. “No, two people.”
The boat accelerated and, through the pouring rain, Wolfe made out Carter and Jo. Relieved, he blew out a breath, went to his bag and pulled out foil blankets. As they came alongside, he stared at Carter’s wide grin. Soaked through with long hair plastered to his face, he looked fine but Jo’s exhausted expression told him she’d been through hell and back. She had blue bruises under both eyes and scrapes all over. He knelt in the boat and held out his arms. “Hand her up to me.” He lifted her into the boat and she curled up on the bottom shivering. He covered her. “Keep the blanket around you. I’ll check you over real soon.”
One of the search-and-rescue guys came forward waving a Thermos. Wolfe looked at him. “Thanks. We need to get these people warm.”
“I’m mighty glad to see you, Shane.” Carter slid into the boat. “Dave is somewhere behind us. He went looking for Jenna. She was with Jo when they got washed into the river. We were trying to extract a woman from a vehicle when the wave hit.”
Swallowing hard, Wolfe handed him a blanket. “Do you know if she’s alive?”
