Bitterroot Crossing

  A rotted wood bench stretched the length of the hovel. The edge of it had been chewed by something with decidedly long teeth. I sat down on it and lifted my bare feet off the ground to rub some warmth into them. The air inside was cold enough that I could see my breath. I pressed myself into the corner for warmth. I hoped Nana was not in too much of a panic. I also hoped she’d look for Zedekiah. I hugged my knees to my chest and thought about all the horrid things Axel and Crow had said. Nick getting hurt or killed was too awful to think about.

  I wondered where Zedekiah was all this time. What was the trap they’d set? Why didn’t he know I was in trouble? He usually seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to me. That’s

  when it occurred to me to scream. Surely Zedekiah would hear. Then he could get me out of here and I could warn Nick away. Of course it was terribly vain of me to think Nick would come to my rescue, especially after our last rather horrible scene together. Then I relaxed the hold on my legs some. Of course, how ridiculous of me to think that Nick Crush would come up here looking for me. Besides he didn’t even know I’d been taken from the farm. I nearly laughed to myself. Wasn’t I the daft, delusional damsel thinking all the brave knights were coming to rescue me? Then it occurred to me, maybe no one would come for me. Nana could not possibly trek up the hill. And how would she confront the ghosts anyway? Now I was depressed. I might die here in this dark, dank fur trader’s shack and no one would find me until some hikers came upon my bones lying here on this bench.

  My feet rubbed the rough, chewed end of the bench and a splinter stuck in my toe. I pulled it out and it started to bleed. “Ouch.”

  That was all I needed. I stood. “Help! Zedekiah! Help!” The entire shack shook wildly, and I fell sideways on the bench, giving my hip a good thwack. But I was determined. I stood again and yelled for help. Again the shack shook violently until I was sure it would fall off its rotted foundation and roll down the steep hill it sat upon. This time the jarring motion sent me to my backside. The force of my fall caused the locket to jump up and smack me on the nose. I’d completely forgotten about it. If it had been hanging in view all this time, it obviously had no effect on the other ghosts. I tucked it under my sweater just in case Zedekiah was looking for me. I’d hate to have him find me and then be scared off by the locket.

  As I pushed to standing, my hand pressed on a plank in the floor that moved. I pressed down on the adjacent planks. They all moved. It was a trap door. I opened it and peeked in hoping it would lead somewhere, but it appeared only to be a large, deep hole. Perhaps it was where the fur trappers hid their hides from thieves when they were out hunting. Or perhaps it was a commode. I dropped the door deciding I didn’t really need to find out.

  I debated whether or not to stand and yell one more time, but the ache on my bottom told me to hold off. Thin fingers of light were sliding through the spaces in the ramshackle walls. Although ramshackle might not have been the right term. When one considered how long this structure had stood in this place and how many storms and blizzards it had survived, it was truly quite amazing.

  It had grown very quiet outside. I made a futile attempt at opening the door, but it didn’t move even an inch. One particular gap was wide enough for me to peek through and get a glimpse of the outside. I pressed my face toward the gap. The only thing I saw was Axel gathering up a giant pile of forest litter. Fuel for the fire, no doubt.

  I swallowed hard. “Help!” I yelled.

  The light that pierced the hole in the ceiling dimmed and I looked up. Crow’s hideous face peered in. “Keep your mouth shut in there.” His foul breath seeped into the room, and I decided I preferred to be shaken around than be breathed on by one of my captors. “You need to save your voice. We’ll tell you when it’s time to yell. We’re not ready yet.”

  He shook the tiny cabin once, and I sat down hard on the bench. That was odd. They were going to tell me when to yell. What kidnappers ask their victim to yell at an appropriate time? Of course their plan could only work if Nick arrived first. But where was Zedekiah? Didn’t he have some sort of ability to track down fellow dead people? And what if Nick hadn’t survived the first trap? I washed that thought quickly out of my head. He had to survive.

  I could still smell Crow which meant he hovered somewhere nearby. I jumped up on the bench. “You know darn well that Zedekiah will be up here any minute to fetch me. Then you guys are going to find yourself in pieces. I saw what he did to Axel the other night.” I figured I would try the fear approach and scare them into releasing me. It didn’t work.

  Crow squeaked out a mean laugh and pressed his face into the hole again. I backed away. “You’re pretty but silly. Steamer and Butcher are keeping Zedekiah plenty busy down below. Besides, we’re in the middle of nowhere. Even Zedekiah has never come this high up the mountain.”

  I plopped down hard on the bench. “Darn it.”

  Chapter 31

  The frigid air was biting at our wet skin as we flew down the road. I needed to drop-off Baxter and hurry back up the hill. There was no telling what the gang was up to, but something deep inside told me Jessie needed me and fast.

  The scene was nearly comical as I pulled up to the makeshift command post Fielding had set up directly in front of our house. Several more people and several more dogs had joined the team, although most of them were still standing around, nursing cups of coffee, and studying the town map.

  The sound of my bike caught their attention. They all turned and stared at us open-mouthed. Baxter got off the bike. It took them a moment to figure out that the object of their massive manhunt was standing directly in front of them. Berta finally screamed and broke free from the shell-shocked crowd. She ran to her brother and threw her arms around him.

  “Nick saved me from the swamp,” Baxter said proudly.

  “Thank you so much,” Berta said with tears in her eyes. She’d definitely inched up higher on my people to like list. She was genuinely crazy about her little brother.

  “Where’s our dads?” I asked.

  Berta pulled out her cell phone. “Someone had reported strange noises coming from behind the town’s water tanks. They drove over there to check it out. I’ll call them right now and let them know you found Baxter.”

  The others walked over to greet us, but I had no time to waste. “I’ve got to go. Someone else is in trouble.” Sheriff Fielding put up his hand to stop me but I just waved.

  I spun my bike around and headed back to the hill hoping my clothes would dry soon and the early morning sun would warm up because I was freezing my butt off. The cold had stopped my arm from bleeding, but it looked nasty. It had temporarily occurred to me to let the sheriff and his team know there was more trouble on the mountain, but they’d been kind of useless so far. Not many of the town’s citizens were daring enough to go near the swamp. In fact, after tonight’s search, it appeared that even Sheriff Fielding went out of his way to avoid it.

  The search dogs had given me an idea though. I raced as fast as I could to the Sterling farm. I could see a cloud of smoke still lingering above. The farm came into view. It was completely quiet. No sign of anyone and no sign of the barn that once housed Mandy. There was no sign of the horse either.

  I got off my bike and ran up to the house. My knuckles stung as I knocked loudly on the door. No answer. I tried the knob. It was open so I stepped inside. The house was dark and empty. Jasper hid in the corner until he recognized me. Then his tail wagged wildly and he ran out to greet me. I was happy to see him too.

  “Come on, Jasper. Let’s get that nose of yours working again. We need to find Jessie.”

  I really had no idea where to start but I’d been at the swamp with Zedekiah. We hadn’t seen them there. It had to be up. Unfortunately there weren’t too many ways to go up. Not far past the farm, the trees grew thick enough that there were only narrow, shady trails to walk.

  I hadn’t realized how tired I was until Jasper and I started climbing higher. It felt like I’d been up for d
ays. My legs were like rubber from swimming and nearly drowning in the swamp. The arm that had been clawed by Steamer’s skeletal hand stung like mad and I was way past hungry.

  Jasper seemed to know exactly what we were doing. His nose dropped to the ground the minute we left the farm, and he had not lifted his head since. We trudged on hoping for some sign of Jessie or a ghost. Once Baxter and I had left the swamp, I’d lost track of Zedekiah. Even though my guy pride made it so I wanted to be the first to reach Jessie, I hoped Zedekiah was looking for her too. Especially now that he seemed to be on my side. Although can you ever really trust a dead outlaw?

  After what seemed like an hour, I understood exactly what the phrase felt like I was walking in circles meant. Jasper seemed to be picking up only his own scent, confirming my suspicion that we were definitely retracing our steps. Then we had a breakthrough. An unnatural breeze shot through the trees dropping a mass of pine needles to the ground. They were swept up and carried away, but the collector remained invisible. Jasper growled, stuck his nose against the ground, and trotted in the direction of the floating debris.

  Within moments the dog had found a scent on the trail. His tail went crazy and he picked up his pace. I followed close behind. I kept telling myself Jessie was alright. She had to be. I really needed her to be alright. Ghosts or not, I was going to hurt these guys badly if they’d harmed Jessie at all.

  Jasper picked up his pace. We were getting closer. Even I could sense it. I braced myself for my biggest ghost showdown yet. My body was weakened by a long night and I was completely defenseless. As handy as the fire extinguishers had been, they were definitely more cumbersome than the usual pistol or knife. And riding on a motorcycle with a bulky extinguisher was just plain hard to do.

  There were plenty of broken tree branches on the ground so I picked up a few that were sturdy enough to disrupt some ghost molecules. I’d seen what Zedekiah had done to Axel hours earlier and decided temporarily separating them from their own body parts was my safest bet. I only hoped that Steamer and Butcher were still hunting down Steamer’s dismembered hand. I didn’t need to take on all four at once. In fact, with the way I was feeling, I wasn’t too confident about taking on two.

  I glimpsed some movement through a break in the foliage and reached down to grab Jasper’s collar. The dog whined disappointedly but then sat quietly as if he understood that I planned to sneak up on them. Axel was busy building what looked to be the fuel for a gigantic bonfire while Crow sat perched on a large stone. The stone sat pressed against the door of a small cabin.

  Suddenly Axel picked up his kindling, flew to the top of the cabin, and shoved the pine needles through a hole in the roof.

  Jasper chirped out one shrill bark and wagged his tail.

  “Yep, Jasper, think we found her.” I needed to move fast. The hole in the shelter would make it easy for Axel to start a fire from within. He wouldn’t need to be invited inside. The opening gave him free access to the interior. The wood of the shelter was old and rotted and would catch fire instantly. I took a deep breath and stepped into the clearing brandishing my mighty tree branch.

  Crow glanced up and laughed so loud I thought he’d fall off the stone. Axel laughed with him. There was no time to plan. I stormed toward Crow and sliced my tree sword down through his head and right through the center of him. He came apart like a banana peel. It definitely put an end to his annoying bout of laughter. Both halves of Crow fell off the stone as I swung my branch back up and heaved it into Axel’s head. His head tore off and flew into the bushes still attached to the front of my branch. Before they could pull themselves back together, I grabbed hold of the stone and pulled. It was way heavier than I’d expected. I barely budged it when I heard a soft, sweet voice inside.

  “Hello? Anyone out there?”

  I pressed my face to the crack in the door. “Jessie, I’m going to get you out of there. Just hold on.”

  “Nick! Be careful. They want to kill you too.”

  “That’s why I’m hurry--” Just then fingers burning with ice wrapped around my throat. Crow had zipped himself back together. He swung me around, flew with me across the clearing, and smacked me against a tree. Getting plowed into rough tree trunks was really starting to get on my nerves. His grip on my neck had not loosened and I couldn’t take even a small breath. My feet and hands flew uselessly through vapor as I tried to free myself. Jasper raced toward us and tried to bite Crow’s feet. He was having no more luck than me.

  Flames shot up, temporarily lighting the entire clearing. Axel had found his hideous head. He held a ball of fire up high in his hand and smiled proudly at it. I wanted to yell out but couldn’t. Axel carried the fire to the roof and shot it through the hole. The shack went up instantly. Axel gave it a solid push and sent it rolling down the small hill it had sat upon for years.

  The intensity of the fire increased as it rolled along the forest floor finally stopping against a rock. I could feel tears at the back of my eyes. My lips and face were numb and I was fading in and out of consciousness.

  Suddenly the grip on my neck loosened. Crow’s hands were turning back to vapor. Zedekiah said they could solidify body parts only temporarily. Crow’s eyes filled with rage as he realized he was losing his grip on me. I gasped for breath and jumped through him. I stumbled forward, got my balance, and ran to the burning shelter. It was completely engulfed in flames. “No!” I dropped to my knees and tried to climb through the smoke and flames to get through the open bottom. It must have been a thousand degrees inside. Before I could push past the intense flames, I heard a voice from behind. I twisted around.

  “Why are cobwebs always so sticky?”

  Jasper barked and ran up the hill where the shack had been rocked off its foundation. There standing in the filtered rays of sunlight, holding open what appeared to be a trapdoor, and wiping wildly at her sweater, stood the girl who had stolen my heart.

  Chapter 32

  I wasn’t totally sure what scene I would find when I climbed out of the hole, but this one surprised me. As Nick spoke to me through the slats of the shed, I was so excited I’d nearly bounced through the rotted roof. Then his words were choked off midsentence, and I was sure Crow had hurt him or worse. Now he stood below, in front of the burning heap that was my prison moments before. He looked weary and pale but happy to see me.

  A broad, white smile spread across his face and he lifted his arm and waved weakly.

  My elation at seeing him alive and well ended quickly. “Nick, watch out!”

  Crow jumped out of nowhere with thin, reedy tree branches. He grabbed Nick’s hands and yanked them above his head. Axel swooped in and grabbed his feet. Within seconds he had Nick fastened to a tree, his hands and his feet bound tightly and, no doubt painfully, with the long twigs.

  I stomped down the hill toward the ghosts.

  Nick looked in agony. “Jessie, run! Get away from here.”

  “I have no intentions of leaving without you, Nick.” I put my hands on my hips and scowled at Crow and Axel. “You know, I’ve been fairly polite as a hostage. But now my feet are freezing and they hurt like the dickens. I’m very hungry, and I’m very tired.” I was near enough to the burning heap of wood to be warmed by it. The flames were diminishing and some of the planks glowed nicely as if they sat in the fireplace. The bottom edge of the shack that had been buried for many years in the damp soil had not caught fire.

  I grabbed the unburned end of one plank and broke it off just as Crow swept down on me. The hot glowing portion skewered him like a hot toothpick through sausage. I yanked it back out. A circle with a foot long diameter melted out of Crow’s center. He stared at it almost as if it pained him, but I was certain it didn’t. A horrible smell filled the air, and I thrilled at the possibility that I’d done some permanent damage. Again, my elation was cut short when the smoldering, gaping hole closed up leaving only traces of putrid smelling smoke lingering in the air around Crow.

  Crow’s cruel glare did not leave
me or my glowing stick as he spoke to Axel behind him. “Give that boy a good lashing with one of these hot pieces of wood, Axel.”

  Obviously excited about the prospect of torturing his prisoner, Axel shot over to the burning wood. He leaned over to rip off a red hot strip. I plunged my own burning stick through his face. His entire head melted like wax on to his shoulders. It was a hideous sight.

  Unfortunately I forgot to retrieve my stick from his melted head.

  Nick yelled out a warning just as I turned right into Butcher’s icy clutches. The way his now solid fingers bit into my arms told me he was an extremely angry ghost with alarmingly strong hands. I struggled to free myself, but his grasp strengthened to the point where I was sure he’d snap my arm bone.

  “We figured you two were going to botch this up.” Steamer was up on the hill looking down at the hole I’d hidden in when they set the shack on fire. His sinister glower landed on Axel. “Idiot.”

  Butcher spoke above me sending his foul breath cascading over my face. I held my breath. “Get that head of yours back together, you fool, and gather some more long twigs. We’re going to truss her up just like the boy.”

  Within seconds Axel’s head reappeared. Poor Jasper snapped and bit at their legs the entire time they tied me up but to no avail. It’s hard to get a good toothy grip on vapor.

  Crow glared menacingly at the dog, and I feared for his safety.

  “Jasper, run.” The dog looked hesitant to leave. I motioned with my head, the only part free to move. “Go, now.”

  Obediently, he loped off down the hill.

  “We were finishing them off just fine.” Crow barked. He grabbed his own burning weapon, flew over to Nick, and held it menacingly close to his throat. “But it looks to me like this Crush is still alive, for now. Thought you two were going to take care of him.” Crow pressed his face into Nick’s. “How’d you like a branding, boy?” He pushed the stick toward Nick’s throat. Nick pulled his head back but the tree stopped him.