Uncontrollable (The Nature of Grace, Book 2) (22 page)

Petey cocks his head. “Oh, shut your mouth.”

We both crack up, and I immediately feel much better. Nothing like a good laugh to lift your spirit. I put out my finger for him to climb on.

“Boy, you got him right where you want him,” I say.

She smiles. “Petey says things we don’t want to hear. But most of them are true.”

He squawks. “The truth shall set you free.”

And with that he flies back to his perch. But for once, Petey has a point.

I need to get out of this funk and fly again.

No matter how hard it is, maybe it’s time I move on.

Survival Skill #19

Landmarks can be vital in determining where you are if you become lost or wind up stranded in unfamiliar surroundings
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A
fter sleeping a whole day, I finally have my strength back and go down for breakfast.

Even though I cried myself to sleep thinking about Mo and Dad and everything Birdee said, for the first time in months, I feel like I have newfound hope. Today is a new day.

But as soon as I see Birdee, the lightness that lifted me out of bed is replaced by the darkness of impending doom. She’s sitting at the table staring at her coffee mug. I stop and immediately think of Mom.

“What’s wrong?” I brace myself for something hard.

She looks up at me, her eyes red. “Agent Sweeney called this morning.”

I sit. Whenever Birdee has that look, I’ve learned it’s always best to not be on my feet. “And?”

She takes a sip of her coffee, and I think of Dad. It was always the first sound I’d hear in the mornings when coming down for breakfast. He’d be sitting where Birdee is, sipping coffee, and reading the paper.

Birdee sighs. “Evidently, Porter took the other team out to do more research.”

I lean forward. “What? But they shut the project down.”

She nods. “I know. Evidently Porter did it on his own. No one knows why, but they found out this morning. The kids never came back last night.”

I cover my mouth. “Oh my God. Was Wyn with them?”

She shakes her head. “No, he was with Skyler at the hospital.”

“Oh.” It’s the only time I’m happy he was with Skyler. “Well, thank God.” I sigh a huge breath of relief. “Do they think…?”

She answers before I finish my question. “They sent a search team out this morning and just found Madison and Big Mike. They’re at the hospital recovering. But Porter and Seth are still missing.”

I breathe the word, “Jesus.” I close my eyes and rub my temples. “Are they still looking?”

She tries to swallow a piece of bread. “Yes, but I think they’re thinking the worst.”

I jump up and grab my coat, then I stop and lean against the wall as the blood rushes to my head.

Birdee stands. “Wait a minute, where do you think you’re going?”

I sit down and wait for the dots to pass from my vision. “To the hospital. I need to see Madison and Big Mike.”

She grabs her keys. “I’ll drive.”

* * *

On the way to the hospital, Birdee and I sit quietly in the cab of her truck. The heater doesn’t seem to be working because my breath comes out in huge white puffs. I pull the bottom of my hood over my mouth. The chill of yesterday returns, and I wonder if I’ll ever be completely warm again.

I stare out the window at the snow melting. Poor Seth. I can’t help but feel guilty. I wasn’t very nice to him, and I certainly didn’t make things easy for him. But while Wyn kept me alive, Seth saved my life.

An hour later after creeping down the slippery mountain going ten miles per hour, Birdee finally pulls into the drop-off lane. I jump out and almost slip on the sidewalk. I grab the door to get my footing and then wave, “I’ll see you inside.”

As she pulls away, I run — or frankly, slide — into the hospital. The same pungent medical smell hits me when I push through the revolving door — bleach mixed with vinegar. I cover my burning nose. I hate places like this. Even though they save lives here, I’m always reminded of the ones who died. I’ve been here more than I’d like over the last few months. Besides for myself, I’ve been here with Tommy after the shooting, with Mom when she had her breakdown, and with Skyler for her foot. I can’t seem to get away from this place.

Instead of waiting for the elevator, I walk the two flights of stairs. People in white coats pass by me, not even acknowledging my presence. At the top, I stop to catch my breath. My legs feel shaky, and my head’s a bit foggy — all reminders that I could have died here, too. No matter how much I play it down, I’m lucky to be smelling anything at all.

I head for the nurse’s desk and grab the corner to support myself. “Excuse me, but I’m here to see Madison Connell and Mike Davis.”

The nurse who took care of me smiles. “When are you kids going to learn it’s cold outside?”

I force out a sorry excuse for a grin. “Seriously.”

She clicks on the keyboard and points down the hall. “They’re in a shared room recovering. Room 304 A and B.”

“Thanks.” I walk down the hall, trying to keep my eyes forward.

I hate seeing people in their beds, sick and coughing. Some are even dying. The whole scene gives me the creeps. I glance up at the wrong time and catch sight of an old man scooting down the hall. His backside hangs out of his gown as someone helps him into the bathroom. You’d think they’d resort to zippers or Velcro. It would save everyone a lot of embarrassment.

When I get to Room 304, I peek in. A sheet hanging on rings separates the room in half. Madison is closest to the door, so I assume Big Mike is on the other side of the partition.

She opens her eyes and mumbles softly. “Grace.”

It’s hard to believe it was just a day ago I was in the same place — my legs and arms aching, the bulky heating pads lying on top of my chilled body warming my organs back to life. I pull over a chair and sit next to her. That’s when I notice how red her eyes are from crying.

I point to the soggy meatloaf and green beans. “Don’t worry. I cried over that meatloaf, too.” She attempts a smile, but it falls short. I try again. “I can only assume you’re getting the same royal treatment as me.”

She sniffs and ignores my bad jokes. “Do you think he’s dead?”

The question comes out of nowhere. “Seth? No way. He’s too stubborn to be dead. He’ll be fine, you’ll see. He’s probably hiding so we all worry and then he can come back to a big welcoming scene.”

I don’t tell her what I really think. That even the best outdoorsmen die in these mountains from hypothermia. The survivors are just lucky. Like me.

She shivers a little. “I hope so.”

I tuck the blanket around her the way Wyn did for me. “What happened out there?”

Madison closes her eyes. “We found two more wolves dead. The same way. Coming back, Porter got turned around. It was awful. Somehow, Big Mike and I got separated from him and Seth. We hiked all night, never stopped once.” Tears start streaming down her face. “I thought we were going to die.”

I try not to cry. “I know how you felt. It’s scary.”

“I’m not going back out there. Ever. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“It’s okay to feel that way. It might change in time.”

Her statement takes me back to the weeks after Dad died. The times I stood at the window, looking out at the wilderness I had once loved so much. How it had gone from a safe haven to a nightmare in such a short time. My haunted memories of holding Dad in my arms as he took his last breath, and the last time I saw Mo. Back then, it was all too much.

My breath catches in my throat, and I squeeze my eyes shut. When I open them, Madison is staring at me. “You okay?”

I nod. “Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking about something.” I try to comfort her by sharing. “I was remembering saying the same thing to Mom after my dad died. I didn’t think I’d ever go in those woods again. Look at me now.”

She picks at the little tie on her gown. “I heard about that when I moved here. I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thanks. Me, too.” I quickly change the subject. “Did Porter tell you Katie cancelled the project yesterday?”

She frowns and sits up straighter. “No. He didn’t say a word about that. Just told us we were going back out. I was a bit surprised but figured he knew what he was doing. He’s a tracker.”

“Yeah, me too.” I keep my suspicions to myself for now.

“What will happen to the wolves?”

I pat her arm. “Katie said they’ll extract them and bring them back to the reserve. They’ll be safe there until spring.” The words sound good so for now I pretend to believe them.

She lays her head back. “Oh, good.”

A deep cough comes from behind the curtain. “Can you guys keep it down? I’m trying to sleep.” A big black hand pulls back the flimsy blue curtain. Big Mike is lying in a bed that’s way too short for him. His feet are bandaged and hanging over the end, and one hand is wrapped in gauze. I know immediately why he’s so bandaged up. Frostbite.

I wheel over in between them on the stool. “Hey, Big Mike. How are you?”

He lays his head back. “Hey, Grace. What are you doing here?”

“I heard what happened. Wanted to be sure you guys were okay.” I shrug. “I guess I know how you feel.”

He stares ahead. “Well, I’m alive if that’s what you mean. But I may never play football again if my feet don’t heal.”

I try to cup his free hand, but his palm is twice the size of my whole hand. “That won’t happen. You’re too strong.”

He turns his face toward me. “Let’s hope so. I won’t know for several weeks.” He winces.

I can only imagine how bad his feet and hand must hurt. Dad always said frostbite was so painful.

I try to keep him positive. “You weren’t out there too long. The chance of you losing anything is slim.”

He stares at the ceiling again as his eyes water, like he’s willing God to hold back his tears. “They found Seth yet?”

I look down. “Not that I know of.” I look back up with confidence. “They will, though. It’s just a matter of time. He’s with Porter, so they should be fine.”

“Stupid kid. Too stubborn for his own good. I told him to stay with us, but after we found those wolves, he went ahead for some reason. Porter went after him, and then everything went to hell.”

My phone goes off. I read a text from Sweeney.
Porter found. He’s alive and on way to hospital. No sign of Seth
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My heart sinks. This is not good news. “They found Porter.”

Madison starts to cry. “Thank God. Where’s Seth?”

I just shake my head.

Her eyes grow wider. “But they were together the last time I saw them.”

Big Mike nods. “They were arguing about something.”

“Do you know what it was?”

“Nah. I assumed it was because Seth was being a tool bag and not following Porter’s directions, but they both went off down the path. I saw Porter grab Seth by the shirt.” He looked at Madison. “We waited for like thirty minutes, and they never came back. Porter had all the gear, so we got lost. Then it started to snow.”

“The worst part was the wolves,” Madison said. “They howled all night. We were afraid to stop and lay down.” She smiled over at Big Mike. “If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here.”

Big Mike coughs and looks embarrassed. “I did what anyone would do.”

I smile. “Looks like there are a few heroes around here.”

I pull out a map and lay the paper on Big Mike’s bed. “So where were you guys? Do you remember where you saw Seth and Porter last?”

Big Mike studies the areas and eventually points to a spot on a marked trail. “It was about here. We saw a pack — a big one, too, like twenty of them — and we were following them. Then we found the dead ones close by.”

I eye the spot. “Do you remember anything about the area that would stand out to rescuers?”

Madison calls out behind me. Her eyes are closed. “Waterfalls. Pretty ones, too. All iced over and glistening like some kind of sculpture.”

“That’s got to be the Chasteen Creek area in Smokemount.”

Big Mike nods slowly. “Yeah, that sounds familiar.”

I fold the map. “That’s quite a hike. Especially in winter.”

He eyes me. “You don’t need to tell me.”

“I bet.” I stand. “Did you tell Agent Sweeney all this?”

Madison blurts out. “No. We haven’t seen him. But Reynolds came by and was working on getting extra volunteers to help.”

I glance out the window at the drifting snowflakes. Not too bad, but thick enough when you’re in the woods. “You can never have too many people looking.”

A voice pipes up behind me. “You’re not thinking of doing anything stupid, are you?”

Survival Skill #20

There is a simple method of handling an emergency situation. Remember the acronym S.T.O.P.:  

Sit — Think —  Observe —  Plan
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