Baby, are you okay?
She looked up sharply at the sound, half afraid shed only imagined her husbands voice. But Jake stood a few feet away at the side of an unfamiliar street. She looked around, realizing shed reached the damage zone more quickly than expected. She now stood across the street from a house the tornado had lifted off its foundation and set back down sideways. The side of the house now facing her had been ripped away, revealing the ruined interior of what had once probably been a nice family home. Emergency vehicles idled at the curb, lights flashing.
Mariah? Jake reached his arm out toward her.
Realizing she hadnt answered his previous question, she swallowed hard and shook off the strange sense of unreality gripping her. Drenched and muddy, with a ripped-up windbreaker draped over his shoulder, Jake looked solid and real, dragging her into the present once more. He stepped past the emergency vehicles and hurried toward her.
She met him halfway, throwing her arms around his waist and burying her face into the damp heat of his shoulder.
Whats the matter, baby? His fingers moved lightly up her spine in a comforting caress.
She couldnt tell him about Victor, of course, but after what shed seen over the last few hours, she had plenty of ready-made excuses for her shaken state of mind. This place is just getting to me.
He cradled her face between his grimy hands. I know. But were doing good things here. He gestured toward the house. We just rescued a family of four. Looks like theyre all going to be okay, but if theyd been stuck in there too much longer
I know were doing good things. She looked into his smoky blue eyes to ground herself. Worry faded from his expression when she smiled at him. Sweet Jake, so willing to believe every word she said as long as the lies she spun maintained the little cocoon of safety and comfort theyd weaved around each other.
What would happen to them if Victor ripped it apart with the ugly truth of her real history?
Could we take a break? Just for a little while? She looked around them, eyes open for any sign of Victor. But wherever hed disappeared to, it wasnt here.
Sure, we can do that. He stroked her hair. We could go back to the truck for a bit. Maybe dig through the stuff we threw in the cooler this morning and put together an early lunch?
She smiled at the suggestion, reminded that there was little that could go wrong in Jakes world that couldnt be solved with a snack. She wondered what it was like to have lived a life so blessedly free of care.
Jake threaded his fingers through hers, tugging gently. She fell into step with him, feeling better as they moved through the busy search-and-rescue area without catching sight of Victor again. They had almost made it back to the staging area on the edge of the makeshift parking lot when a woman came running toward them down a side street that had seemed to escape any of the storm damage.
The woman caught sight of Jake, her eyes fluttering with relief. Please, my daughter She grabbed Jakes arm. Mariah saw that the womans hands were filthy and scraped raw.
The woman looked terrified. Mariahs stomach knotted in sympathy as she slipped off her own jacket and wrapped it around the shivering, rain-soaked womans shoulders. What happened?
My daughterour dog just had puppies and hid them before the storm. We couldnt find them before it hit The woman moved her hands away from Jakes arm and grabbed Mariahs hands instead. Theres a creek behind the house. She was afraid they couldve gotten down thereI wasnt paying attention.
Did she fall into the creek?
The woman was gasping now, from agitation and the exertion of running for help. All the rainthe bank just gave wayand now shes just hanging there, and I cant get her up. The woman stopped for a hitching breath. I dont know how long she can hang onand the creeks up!
Show us. Jake was already moving in the direction from which the woman had come. Mariah put her arm around the frightened mother and hurried after him.
The house the woman pointed out was at the end of a cul-de-sac edged with thick, wooded no mans land beyond the backyard. The woman took the lead, rounding the corner of the house and leading them into a waterlogged backyard that ended sharply at the edge of a steep drop-off.
Mariah started toward the creek when Jake stopped her with a quick, firm hand on her arm. Its been raining for three days straight, he said quietly. The ground is unstable. You could go down yourself.
From over the edge of the ravine, a small voice cried out in terror. Mommy, help!
Holly! the frantic woman cried, rushing toward the edge of the yard. Jake caught her, tugging her back to safer ground. The woman struggled against his hold. Shes going to fall!
Ill get her, but you need to stay here. We dont want to have to rescue you, too, Jake told the woman firmly.
Mariah put her arm around the womans shaking shoulders. Well get her, she promised. She couldnt blame the woman for her hysteria; the little girl didnt sound that much older than her own sweet Micah.
What if her son were down there, clinging to God knew what, trying not to fall?
Stay here, Jake told Mariah as she started after him.
I weigh less. I can get closer to the edge. You can hold on to me, Mariah argued. The little girl was still crying in fear, her voice ringing in Mariahs head until she thought shed go mad.
What if it were Micah.
Jake frowned, clearly unhappy with her suggestion, but a moment later, he nodded. Well see what will work. Just go slowlythe ground could go at any minute.
His warning was unnecessary. The spongy ground beneath her feet grew more and more unstable the closer she got to the edge.
Nearing the precipice, she dropped to her hands and knees, creeping forward until she could see over the edge. The drop-off was sheer and farther down than she expected. The creek that rushed past about ten feet below was swollen and muddy, littered with storm debris that moved at an alarming speed. Five feet below and about three feet to her left, a tiny girl with stringy black curls gazed up at Mariah with wide, terrified brown eyes.
Help! Her grubby hands were wrapped around a piece of chain-link fence jutting from the side of the drop-off. It must have been part of an old fence that no longer stood in the backyard. Mariah wondered how securely it was wedged into the muddy bluff face. How much longer could it hold the child?
Jake hunkered down next to her, flat on his belly. His brow creased when he took in the childs perilous situation.
We could use a rope, Mariah murmured.
Im not sure she can hold on long enough to go for one, Jake replied, keeping his voice soft so the child couldnt hear.
Can you reach her if I hold on to your legs? she asked.
I dont think so, but maybe we can haul the fencing up high enough that one of us can reach her.
He slid on his belly until he lay just above the childs precarious spot. Mariah scooted over beside him.
Holly, my name is Mariah, she called. This is Jake. Can you hold on tight to that fence a little longer?
My fingers hurt! Holly wailed.
I know, but I need you to hold on real tight, okay? Jakes going to pull the fence up now.
No! the little girl cried in terror. Ill fall!
No, you wont, Holly. Because youre going to hold on just like you hold on to the monkey bars at school. You like to play on the monkey bars, dont you? Mariah said gently.
Holly nodded, then shrieked as the fencing shifted, dropping her down a half a foot.
Mariahs heart skipped a beat. Hold still, Holly. Let Jake do it all. You just hold on.
Behind her, Hollys mother was nearing hysterical, calling out her daughters name in a keening chant.
Jake slid forward until the top part of his torso hung out over the ravine. The dirt at the edge of the drop-off crumbled under his weight, shifting him farther forward than anticipated. He grabbed at the top chain links of the jutting fence to steady himself.
Jake! Mariah called, her heart stuttering.
Im okay, he said, regaining his balance. He tugged at the chain-link fencing, as if testing its strength. Without the crossbar that would normally give it stability, it was remarkably fluid, since apparently whatever posts had once been connected to the links had fallen away long ago.
Mariah reached down and caught the top edge of the fencing to give Jake more leverage. Ready, Holly?
Holly stared up at them wordlessly.
Lets do it, Jake said.
Here we go. Hang on tight for me! Mariah tugged at the piece of fencing, catching her breath as the part of the fence embedded into the earth worked completely loose. The rusty chain links dug into Mariahs fingers as the childs full weight hung from the dangling fencing.
Holly started crying softly.
Ive got you, Holly, Jake called, quickly shifting one hand down until he caught a lower section of the fencing and pulled it up, bringing the little girl with it. Hand over hand, Mariah and Jake tugged the fencing upward, inches at a time, while Holly clung like a baby monkey to the metal links.
Big, brave girl, Mariah murmured as Jake finally tugged Hollys small form within reach. Letting go of the fence, she wrapped her fingers tightly around the childs tiny wrists.
Anchoring herself in the muddy yard with the toes of her sneakers, Mariah hauled the little girl up to the bluffs edge in one sharp movement, rolling onto her back and bringing the girl the rest of the way to solid ground.
Holly clung to her for a second, until she caught sight of her crying mother. Scrambling up, she raced across the muddy yard and threw herself into her mothers waiting arms.
Mariah pushed up onto her elbows, locking gazes with Jake, whose smile of relief and love brought tears stinging to her eyes. The rain obliterated them before she could blink them away, but the ever-present burn of guilt remained.
She had to tell him the truth. Somehow.
But not here. Not now.
As she eased to her feet, careful of the unstable edge, movement several yards behind the woman and her little girl caught her eye. A man stood at the edge of the property, staring at her with malevolent intensity that even the driving rain couldnt obscure.
Victor.
Forgetting where she was, she took a faltering step backward. The soggy soil beneath her feet trembled under her weight. She stood very still, her gaze still locked on Victor as she waited for the ground to settle enough to dare a step away from the edge.
For a second, she thought it would hold. Then the ground fell out from beneath her, and she was plunging straight downward, the swirling flood waters looming up to meet her.
The last thing she heard before she entered the icy water was Jakes voice howling her name.
Chapter Three
The world was dark and upside down.
Bleak and icy cold, the atmosphere closed in on Mariah in fetid waves, adding to the numbing shock that had already turned her arms and legs to flailing, useless appendages.
She hit something hard, shoulder-first, and realized she wasnt as numb as shed thought. As pain scorched along her nerve endings into her fuzzy brain, her head burst upward through the murk. She felt the sharp sting of air on her face and drew in a quick, sweet breath.
She saw something large looming toward her at an alarming rate of speed. She almost threw herself sideways to dodge it, until she realized it was a large, weathered tree trunk jutting out into the swollen creek bed. She braced herself, pulling her feet up so that her legs could cushion the impact. Her tennis shoes hit the trunk and she immediately bent her knees to absorb the hit, twisting toward the creek bank so that the rebound would push her toward land.
The ploy worked. Her back slid against the rock-strewn shoreline, shoulders digging into the mud. She grabbed handfuls of mud, anchoring herself, fighting against the swirling current. Her foot touched something harda rough boulder embedded in what had once been shoreline, though it was now underwater thanks to the flooding. She planted her feet on the rock, letting it help her stay in place.
Rain was falling in driving sheets, adding power to the flood waters racing past her precarious, half-submerged perch. Her surroundings were unfamiliar, the rushing water and rat-a-tat of rain hitting the canopy of trees above masking any sounds that might have identified her whereabouts.
She heard the sound of something falling toward her. Lying on her back, holding her position with every bit of strength she had, she could only lay her head back and roll her eyes up as far as they could go to see what was coming.
Dark, intense eyes stared back at her from a swarthy, time-weathered face.
Victor.
Her heart stopped so long she thought shed died. Then it burst to life, racing faster than the flotsam swirling past her. There was nowhere to escape. If she let go, shed be sucked back into the maelstrom again. She doubted shed be able to surface for air this time before the water took her completely.
Interesting situation. Victor edged his way down the incline toward her position on the bank, looming over her like a conquering giant. So completely at my mercy. You must wonder if I have any mercy left in me, after what you did.
She didnt speak, though anger started to drive out the fear, spreading heat through her cold limbs. What she did? All shed done was tell the truth about what she saw him do.
Your husband is looking for you. I wonder if hed care what happened to you at all if he knew the truth about you.
She sucked a quick breath through her nose, struggling against the urge to lash out at Victor for his cruel taunts. Looking away from him toward the swollen creek, she found her voice. Of course hed care. Hes a decent human being.
Victor was silent so long that Mariah sneaked another look at him. His eyes were narrowed, his expression contemplative. Was he planning how to get away with another cold-blooded murder? All hed have to do was pry her fingers away from her death grip on the muddy bank. The water still covered almost two-thirds of her body. Her foothold on the rock wouldnt withstand the rushing power of the flood.
Mariah! Jakes voice rose above the waters roar, coming from somewhere above.
A shock of relief rattled Mariahs whole body, so sudden and potent that she nearly lost her grip anyway. She dug her fingers deeper into the mud. Im here!
Victor moved suddenly, reaching down to grab her fingers. She struggled against his touch, terrified.
He twined his fingers through her hair and tugged, sending paralyzing pain shooting through her scalp. Im trying to save you, you stupid bitch. He loosened his grip. Hes watching.