Dear Readers and Reviewers, here is the next chapter and I hope you continue to enjoy the story. There is much more still to come. JBird apologizes for all glaring mistakes in this chapter, which I think is a very generous offer :D. Dear J, I tend to blame the evil worm that has infected your computer! Thank you for being able to do this at all!
And a special thank you goes to JackofSpade, whose advice was invaluable! I don't know who else could have answered my questions.
I'm going away on a training course to Berlin on Monday so I won't be able to post for the next to weeks. But maybe I'll get a chance to figure out some problems in chapter 6 and 7 that continue to elude me.
Now, let's get on with the story.
Tomorrow
by Serataja
-Chapter 5-
Interludes and Examinations, Part 1
January/Now
When they reach Central Park the light has almost gone. Martin is waiting for them and leads them to the place where the cap was found. It is overgrown and rocky territory where no one in their right mind ventures, even in daytime, for fear of being mugged. There is only a light scattering of snow beneath the trees with bare patches where the branches intertwine above the ground.
"The cap was found over there," Martin says, pointing to a big, flat rock, out in the open, covered by snow.
"Footprints?" Jack asks.
"Yes, there were footprints. We didn't get a good impression though, because the snow isn't deep enough. We tried following them but we lost them beneath the trees."
The place is crawling with police officers, so even if there had been more footprints, they are gone now.
They start their search. Soon the last light is gone and the beams of the flashlights cut through the dark. Sam sees Jack, leaning against a tree. Shoulders and head are covered by snow and he is fiddling with his light. She goes over to him, handing him a couple of spare batteries she always keeps just in case.
"Thank you," he says, his voice rough. He doesn't look at her.
A faint cry can be heard and their heads snap up.
"I found her!"
Danny's voice comes from somewhere behind them and they turn around, hastening through the tangled growth. Jack is the first to reach him. He focuses his flashlight on Danny's tall figure and the tiny baby that is struggling in his arms.
September 2001
The cold air and rain on her face woke Sam. Jack had opened the door on her side and was standing over her, trying to shield her.
"Come on, sweetheart," he said.
She tried to push him away, vaguely remembering that she had done that before, but he wouldn't budge, instead he gripped her arm hard, refusing to let go.
"Listen to me, Sam, come on."
Normally the urgency in his voice would have woken her instantly, but she was held back by the cobwebs of fever. Her whole body hurt and her throat was a painful mess.
She squinted briefly into the beam of his flashlight. Then it was put on the dashboard, illuminating the road before them. The tree that had blocked the road was gone. Sam blinked in confusion and then she understood that Jack must have backed the car up the road.
The rain that sprayed in through the open door woke her further. He was trying to put the jacket on her and she helped him. He started to work on the zipper.
"Look behind us," he said.
She focused. The road was obstructed by a mountain of dirt.
"I started to back up because more dirt was washing down on the road. This is as far as I got."
He sounded calm and composed but when he lifted his eyes to her face she saw the fear in them.
"Landslide," she stated, suddenly very awake.
"I don't know what will happen. The whole slope might come down. I think we should follow the original plan and go downhill. Maybe the trees will protect us."
She didn't hesitate. She got out of the car and grabbed his arm for support. She could stand all right, but she felt lightheaded and her whole body seemed to float.
"Just hold on to me," Jack said, grabbing the flashlight.
000
It was pitch-dark between the trees and without the light they wouldn't have been able to see where they were going. The ground beneath them was cushioned with leaves and the footing was good. It didn't take them long to reach the trail at the foot of the slope. They stopped for a moment to catch their breaths. It was still raining hard and water was dripping from the trees. Jack's hair was plastered to his head and water ran down his face. He reached behind Sam's neck, opening the zipper on the back of her jacket-collar, drawing out the hood and pulling it over her head. His own windbreaker was not equipped like that. He swept the flashlight around in an arc and they could see the trail, leading off in both directions and the waters of the creek nearby, muddy and roiling. Down here on the trail the footing was treacherous and slippery, even in their hiking boots.
Jack took Sam's hand, leading her downstream.
"We're going to be all right," she heard him say. His hand was wet, but beneath the cold rain his skin was warm to her touch.
There were patches where the mud was so deep that she could feel it making its way over the rim of her boots. The going was slow and it took them a while to reach the end of the path. In normal weather conditions it would have taken them to a line of stepping stones, leading over a shallow part of the creek. Now it led straight into the rushing waters.
They took cover under a tree. Here it was relatively dry. Jack looked Sam over.
"How are you?" he asked.
"A little lightheaded, but otherwise I'm fine," she answered.
He glanced around them.
"I don't really know what to do," he admitted. "We're blocked by the creek and going further downstream will only lead us to the riverbank of Cross River. It's pretty wild down there and the water is deep."
He thought for a while. Eventually he said:
"I'm so sorry, Sam. We should have climbed over the tree and just followed the road."
"Would that have been safe? I thought there was more dirt coming down?"
He sighed.
"I don't know. Probably not. I thought we were safer down here. But I'm not an outdoors man. My family is from Brooklyn. I know how to survive in New York. But out here in the wilderness…"
"Well, we're still alive. Once it gets light and the rain stops…"
Jack swept the flashlight over their surroundings. There was nothing but water, rain and the dark trees.
"We can't go anywhere, Sam," he said.
She had come to the same conclusion. The only way left was up to the road and the precarious slope. It was not really an option.
"So much for the shining armor," he said, trying to make light of their predicament, but she could see that he was afraid. Strangely enough she was not. She felt surprisingly safe.
He shifted, leaning heavily against the trunk, taking his weight off his left leg.
"Jack…?"
"It's nothing. I think I twisted my knee a while back. I was too preoccupied to notice. It's starting to hurt, that's all."
"Murphy's law? What ever can go wrong, will go wrong?"
He shot her an amused glance. She looked absolutely fearless. If he wanted to get stuck in a hopeless situation, she was definitely the person to pick to go along.
He tried to take any strain off his knee but he knew it was too late. His doctor back in New York would be furious. He had strictly forbidden Jack to do anything more then take short walks.
"What is it with that knee, anyway?" Sam asked.
He shrugged his shoulders.
"Hurt it while parachuting in the military twenty years ago. The doctor said the cartilage is eaten away and there is really nothing much he can do. I just have to live with it."
She smiled.
"Look at the bright side," she said, "If we die down here you'll never again have to worry about it."
He laughed for the third time that night.
"I'm not afraid of dying," he said. Despite the laughter there was a weariness in his voice that touched her. She supposed it was what could be expected from someone as dedicated as he was. He had seen a lot. He had taken it harder than most and he was not a happy man. She wanted to ask him what he was afraid of; instead she raised her head and listened.
There was thunder in the distance. It started up slowly, getting louder and louder, continuing to roll. Uphill trees were crashing and the ground was shaking. Jack made her lie down, all but pushing her, pressing her to the ground. He shielded her body with his, knowing that if the landslide reached them, any protection would be futile.
000
First the rain stopped.
Then the thunder ceased to roll.
There was neither wind nor the sound of rushing water.
Utter silence.
She was moving beneath him and he rolled off her. He could see the beam of the flashlight were it had fallen. He grabbed it and shone it on her, making sure she was all right. That something could happen to her was the one thing in that moment he was afraid of. She pushed his hand away, because the light blinded her, making an impatient sound. Then she sat up.
The silence continued. The slope had come down further upstream, not reaching their location. They were still alive and she was still with him.
Jack almost started to cry with relief. Sam hugged him fiercely and he hugged her back. After a while he managed to pull himself together. He was trained to deal with combat, criminals and guns. He never expected the forces of nature to be more terrifying than any of that.
Sam buried her hands in his hair and kissed him. Then she wiped the rain off his face, leaving smears of dirt and he wondered if she knew that she was wiping away tears, too She seemed pretty much all right, considering that she had just survived a landslide, was running a high fever and most likely had her heart broken by him.
"Look," she said.
She pointed to the creek.
Where there had been the wild water only a couple of minutes before, there was now only a small trickle.
"I'll be damned," Jack said softly.
"What happened to Murphy?" she asked.
"Died in the landslide…?" he said, shaking his head, numbed by the incredulity of it all.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. Slowly they made their way over the slippery stones in the now dry creek. He was mumbling to himself, ignoring the pain in his leg. He didn't want to use her for support.
"What did you say?" Her voice was raspy and exhausted but she still seemed to be in good spirits.
"Nothing."
"Did I hear something about Moses and the Red Sea?"
"I'm not religious."
Their voices seemed very loud in the stillness around them and Sam instinctively lowered hers.
"What do you believe in, Jack?"
"Murphy's law. But my belief has just been shattered, so be kind."
"They call this a 'deus ex machina'."
"I'll believe in him then."
He all but dragged her up the opposite bank of the river. He started to sweat with the pain but his bad leg was still supporting him. They came back on the trail and after only a couple of yards they were out in the open. The sky had cleared but morning was still hours away. Sam stopped and he almost bumped into her. The lights of a small town could be seen in the distance but she was pointing upwards.
"Jack, look…"
He leaned on her.
"All those stars. You never see something like that in New York."
He groaned, not lifting his head.
"Do you see them, Jack?"
"I see them all right."
Her skin was hot and she was shivering with cold, so he pushed her gently forward. She started to walk again and ten minutes later they finally reached their destination.
000
The inhabitants of Crossville had been woken by the rumble of the landslide, and many of them were out on the street. They quickly gathered around the two mud-covered survivors who came crawling out of the woods.
Before Jack could start to explain, the Minister of the local church came rushing to his side.
"Agent Malone, oh my God. You were up on the road when it happened?"
John Scopes was a small, round man. Very religious in a way that Jack didn't especially care about.
"Praise the Lord," Scopes exclaimed. "It's a miracle."
Jack tended to agree with the man, but would never admit to it.
"And who is this? The colleague you were picking up? What a lovely companion!"
Jack squeezed Sam's hand and looked at her. She had never looked worse in all the time he had known her. He put the other hand on Scopes' shoulder.
"If you could get us to some place dry and warm, we'd be grateful. Agent Spade here has been ill since yesterday evening and I'm afraid-"
"Certainly, certainly," Scopes cried,delighted and Jack felt as if he had stepped into the wrong movie. How could that man be so enthusiastic in the face of near catastrophe?
"Come with me, come with me. I'll take you home. My wife will take care of everything."
He led them through the people who had gathered around them. Greetings were mumbled. Jack had spent a whole day in Crossville and everyone knew who he was. It was a small, tightly knit community and he had expected hostility towards the intruder, the Federal Agent who was looking for a killer amongst them, but they had been friendly. And it had only taken Jack three interviews to discern that something was being hidden in this town.
He was convinced that some of them knew who the killer of Felicia's family was, that they were protecting him, and that they were trying to deceive him, the man from the FBI.
Jack's hand went down, lightly touching the gun holster clipped to his belt, a reflex meant to reassure. A nasty jolt went through him when he realized that the holster was empty. He had removed his gun on the drive down to Anchorage because it had been digging uncomfortably into his side. It was still sitting in the glove compartment of the car.
He took a deep breath, wishing he'd taken Sam's outburst at the airport literally. They could have gone looking for her suitcase. They could have been on their way to Honolulu by now.
Instead they were trapped in a small town at the end of the world, the only incoming road blocked by the landslide, the phone line probably down and his cell phone was resting peacefully beside his gun, both lost in the landslide.
Oh, well, the service had been pretty bad anyway.
TBC