[Alaskan Quest 02] - Under the Northern Lights (7 page)

‘‘You go ahead, Emma. Jayce and I have bothered you long enough. Thanks for helping us.’’

‘‘I wish I knew more,’’ Emma said, getting to her feet.

‘‘It’s all right. It’s more than we knew before this,’’ Jacob replied.

Jayce nodded. ‘‘It’s very useful.’’

Walking away from the missionaries’ house, Jayce couldn’t help but feel a tremendous sense of frustration. It had been such a surprise to arrive at Last Chance and find Leah wasn’t there. The first people they spoke with had no idea where Leah had gone, but then they’d happened upon Emma as she was hauling in chopped driftwood for her stove. Jayce wished that Emma’s comments had given comfort instead of dread.

‘‘We’ll find her,’’ Jacob said. ‘‘We’ll find them both. We’re smarter than Chase, and we know this land better than he does.’’

‘‘But you don’t know him. He has an uncanny knack for learning and surviving. I mean, look how long the Pinkerton agents were after him. He knows how to take care of himself, but he doesn’t have any regard for others. Now he has Leah and Helaina. I want to be encouraging about this, but I don’t know how.’’

Jacob nodded. ‘‘I know. I feel the same way. But if we despair, we might be inclined to admit to defeat and give up.’’

‘‘I’ll never give up.’’ Jayce was resolved to the pursuit of his brother. ‘‘If I have to follow Chase all over the world, I won’t give up. He’s made this more personal than merely pretending to be me. He’s taken the woman I love. He’s taken the very heart of me, and I won’t stand for it.’’

Karen Ivankov awoke with a start. She sat up in bed and tried to listen to the silence around her. It wasn’t even light yet, but something felt very wrong. And then she remembered: She’d had a horrible nightmare about Leah falling through the ice. She was a young girl again—about the age when Karen had taken over guardianship.

Leah was flailing against the water and Karen had tried desperately to reach her, but it was impossible. Then in her dream she saw Jacob walk out across the ice to help his sister. Karen called to him, admonishing him to crawl on the ice to better distribute his body weight. But Jacob wasn’t listening and fell through the ice as well.

‘‘Are you all right?’’ Adrik asked with a yawn.

Karen turned. In the darkness she could only make out her husband’s outline. ‘‘I had a bad dream about Jacob and Leah. I can’t seem to shake the feeling something’s wrong.’’

She could feel Adrik turn over. He reached out to her. ‘‘Come here. I’m sure it was nothing.’’

‘‘I don’t know.’’ She snuggled down in his arms. ‘‘It seemed so real. Leah fell though the ice, and then Jacob fell through. I couldn’t help them, and they were going to . . . well . . . die. I just knew they were going to die.’’

‘‘Sweetheart, they’ve already been through life-threatening circumstances. You’re probably just dreaming this because of what happened this last summer. Leah and Jacob are no doubt doing just fine. Besides, Jayce is there to help Leah now. He’ll help Jacob as well. Don’t worry about them. God has it all under control.’’

Karen cherished the warmth of her husband’s arms and felt a small amount of relief as he pulled her closer. Perhaps he was right. It was, after all, just a silly dream.

‘‘So what do you think about my taking that railroad job?’’ Adrik asked, changing the subject.

‘‘What exactly would you do for them?’’

‘‘I’d help the teams that are planning out the route. I’d hunt and trap for them and help them find their way through the forests and such. The governor doesn’t want to see the line fall apart again, for there’s been a great deal of money put into this venture. The project has halted twice now, and if it stagnates again, he’s afraid it will never be completed. He trusts a handful of his old friends to help get the track . . . on track.’’ He grinned at his play on words.

‘‘But you’d be gone for a long time,’’ Karen said, thinking in earnest about the job offer.

‘‘Well, that’s what I wanted to discuss with you. I’ve been thinking about it, and well, I think you and the children should come with me. Move to Seward at least, or better yet, north to the mouth of Ship Creek. There’s a huge population there—nearly two thousand people. It’s mostly tents, but I’d build you a house.’’

‘‘I thought you said it would only be temporary.’’

He frowned. ‘‘It would be temporary.’’

‘‘Temporary as in years? No one is going to build that railroad overnight. Then, too, there’s talk about setting aside lands for a national park. No doubt they’ll want you to stick around and help with that. Before I know it, they’ll decide to run the line all the way to the Arctic, and I’ll be wearing a fur parka year-round.’’

Adrik laughed. ‘‘The Arctic would be a very ambitious project to say the least. There’s an awful lot of rough terrain between Seward and Fairbanks; just getting it that far would be a miracle. I’m not completely convinced that a railroad line would ever be prudent in Alaska. The marshy ground in the summer would never support the tracks. They’d have to figure something out to ensure its endurance. Just look at all the trouble the earlier builders had. They used green wood and lighter rails. There are a great many places where the line will have to be rebuilt before they can ever move forward to new land.’’

‘‘But they’ll find a way. I know they will.’’ Karen’s tone held a sound of resolve. ‘‘They built the train over the White Pass,’’ she reminded her husband. ‘‘That train line has lasted since 1898, and from all I’ve heard is still in decent order.’’

‘‘But most of it is on solid rock. This project is entirely different. I’m not sure what the politicians and railroad barons have in mind, but it’s going to take more money than any of them can possibly imagine. Supplies too. I had a letter from Peter Colton just the other day. He’s been commissioned to haul supplies from San Francisco to Seward for the railroad. There’s going to be good money in it for him, but he agrees that the men involved are really underestimating the cost. Thirty million dollars was originally invested, and those men haven’t seen a dime of profit yet. I figure once they get further along, they’ll see just how expensive this project is going to be. And to what purpose is it all being built? It’s not like this line will truly amount to much.’’

‘‘Maybe they figure more people will come and settle the territory if they offer more civilized means of transportation,’’ Karen offered.

‘‘Maybe, but if you want my opinion, they’re asking a lot. Most folks in the States aren’t going to be able to adapt to the isolation. Most are used to the bustle and comfort of city life. You remember those comforts.’’

‘‘Chicago was a long time ago.’’

‘‘Not long enough. Now Ashlie talks of nothing but going to the States—to cities where she can enjoy all that the world has to offer.’’

‘‘Our daughter craves adventure,’’ Karen replied. ‘‘It’s in her nature to be that way. She has a father who constantly seeks such things.’’

‘‘Ah, as if her mother never enjoyed those things at all. Wasn’t it just the other day you were telling me how bored you were?’’

‘‘That was just for the day. I thought a trip to Ketchikan would provide a nice diversion. I wasn’t planning trips to Chicago.’’ Adrik laughed. ‘‘Just think about it, Karen. I won’t take the job with the railroad if you’re against moving to Seward. I can’t be that far away for that long. I want my family near me.’’

Karen leaned up and kissed Adrik’s bearded face. ‘‘I want to always be near you, my love.’’ She felt much better now. She could almost laugh at her earlier fears. Almost. ‘‘Adrik?’’

‘‘What?’’

‘‘Would you pray with me for Jacob and Leah?’’

He chuckled. ‘‘You know I will. In fact, you know the moment you spoke of your fears, I prayed for them.’’

‘‘I know,’’ she sighed. ‘‘I just want to hear the words out loud.’’

Jacob’s anxiety was causing him to make mistakes. Mistakes, he figured, that might cost him his life if he didn’t start paying attention. But as he loaded the sled for their trip to find Leah and

Chase, Jacob found it nearly impossible to focus on the task at hand. His sister was in grave peril. Helaina too. It was bad enough when only Helaina was at risk, but now Leah faced an uncertain future.

I don’t know why any of this is happening, Lord, but I pray you’ll give
me the strength to overcome Chase and his plans
. Jacob prayed on but felt little comfort. Sometimes he wondered if he lacked the faith to make things happen. Sometimes he just wanted to sit down with the Bible and not get back up again until all the answers were clear. But even as he’d think these things, Jacob knew there were no easy answers and sometimes, even when a man put forth all kinds of effort, God’s ways were still a mystery.

‘‘Jacob, some of us have been talking,’’ John said as he brought Jacob a requested dog harness. ‘‘We want to help find Leah.’’

Jacob took the leather strapping and met his friend’s sober expression. ‘‘John, that’s more than I can ask of anyone.’’

John shrugged. ‘‘So you didn’t ask. We decided on our own. We’re going to go with you.’’

‘‘But there’s a lot still left to do to make sure the village will get through winter.’’

‘‘We dried a lot of salmon, more than we ever have in the past. We have seal and whale meat. We’re doing good for the winter. We can’t let Leah die.’’

Jacob felt the words cut to his heart. ‘‘No. We can’t let Leah die.’’

‘‘So we want to go and help get this man. He needs to go back to the authorities and leave us all to go on with our lives. He’s caused a lot of problems.’’

Jacob nodded but was silent.

‘‘What about that other woman?’’ John asked.

‘‘Helaina?’’ Jacob shrugged. ‘‘She’s in danger too. Chase Kin-caid is a ruthless man. He doesn’t care who he hurts so long as he gets his own way.’’

‘‘If he kills them,’’ John said sternly, ‘‘I will hunt him like
nanook
and kill him too.’’

‘‘I don’t want you to make pledges like that,’’ Jacob replied, shaking his head. ‘‘Chase is as crafty as the bear, but he doesn’t need to be gunned down by us. We need to let the law take care of it.’’

‘‘Sometimes the law can’t help you up here. Sometimes the law can’t help you at all.’’

‘‘It may seem that way,’’ Jacob answered, ‘‘but God still expects us to obey the laws of the land. Unless, of course, the legal authorities want us to go against God’s law. Then we have reason to make a stand.’’ He sighed. ‘‘No, we have to trust that God will see us through this, John.’’

‘‘I don’t want to see Leah hurt. She’s a good woman,’’ John said, turning to go. ‘‘We’ll be ready to head out when you are.’’

‘‘John, I’ll only agree to your coming if you promise to head back if we don’t pick up the trail within the week. Will you promise me that?’’

John waved. ‘‘I give my word. I think we’ll find them, though. We’ve got the best tracker in the village going.’’

Jacob laughed. ‘‘And who would that be?’’

John gave a sly smile as he glanced back over his shoulder. ‘‘Me, of course.’’

Chapter Six

T
he cold cut through Helaina and numbed her hands and feet. The old man who watched her vigilantly night and day seemed not to notice her misery, although Helaina had mentioned it more than once.

‘‘Please could I have a blanket or a fur?’’ she asked once again. ‘‘Just something, please. I’m freezing.’’

She knew the temperature had dropped steadily since Chase Kincaid had taken her from Nome. She had tried hard to keep track of the days, but the darkness was confusing, and the old man seemed to keep no clock or watch.

To her surprise, the man brought her an old wool blanket and dropped it on the ground beside her. With her hands and feet bound, she had great difficulty in wrapping the warmth around her body.

For days now she had plotted and planned how she might escape, but the problem of her clothing always ruined her plans. She was hardly dressed for Arctic winter, yet that was what she would face. She really had no idea of where they were, but Chase had told her he was taking her north, and from what she could figure by watching the sun, it seemed to be true.

The other thing that concerned her was her own health. She felt weakened by the meager meals and poor conditions he’d forced upon her. Her head ached and she’d developed a cough. It wasn’t going to be easy to escape under any circumstance, but if she truly were ill, it would make matters much worse. One thing she could count on: Chase would have little, if any, sympathy for her situation.

Helaina tried not to think about what would happen when Chase returned. He’d been nothing but a problem since her brother, Stanley, put her on Chase’s trail. Stanley had warned her that Kincaid was a master at keeping himself out of the hands of the law, but Helaina hadn’t taken him seriously enough.

She thought back to the high price she’d paid to get the ship’s captain in Seattle to take his freighter into the dangerous waters of the far north. She had given him the ridiculous amount of money he’d demanded, although she thought, in some ways, the man saw her request as a challenge. Could he get his ship up and out of Norton Bay before the winter froze him in?

She might have been able to talk him into undertaking the mission for a lower price by challenging his abilities, but Helaina had not had time to appeal to the man’s ego. And so she had paid his price and had gotten to Nome ahead of Jacob and Jayce and the Pinkerton agents her brother had sent along.

I wanted to redeem myself, yet now here I sit. And I can’t even be sure
Jacob and Jayce even know anything about my kidnapping. They may have no
idea that Chase took me, and even if they do, they may have no desire to come
after him and save me
. The thought sunk in as a crashing wave of defeat. What if no one cared that she’d been taken? After all, Stanley was thousands of miles away and still recovering from the wounds Chase had given him earlier in the year. What if Jacob, Jayce, and Leah arrived in Nome and realized Helaina’s fate, but upon talking it over, decided to head home instead?

‘‘This is impossible,’’ Helaina muttered.

‘‘You talkin’ to me?’’ the old man questioned.