Page 86 of Thunder Pass

“Sarah’s a complication. I’ve alerted the chain of command to her presence.”

A complication. A complication?

“No,” she said firmly, stepped toward the cabin. “I don’t accept this.”

“I’m sorry, Ruth, but you don’t have a choice. This goes up much higher than you and me. We’re talking about geopolitics here. National security.”

“I know. I mean, I don’t understand all of it, but I know Luke is using Firelight Ridge and a bunch of innocent bystanders to get what he wants, and by the lack of a whole army coming in here to make him stop, it’s probably working. He’s going to end up with his own little kingdom, isn’t he? It’s all he’s ever wanted.”

Anthony’s jaw shifted just the way Gunnar’s did when he was contemplating something he didn’t like. “That’s up to the powers that be,” he said curtly.

“Oh really? Did you know all this land is supposed to belong to the Ahtna?” She gestured toward the pristine meadow below, the colors painted in sunset tones. “I’m sure the gold deposit ought to be theirs too. Luke cheated somehow, or paid someone off, to get boundaries redrawn.”

“Ruth, maybe you’re shocked that this kind of thing happens, since you didn’t grow up learning history, but it wouldn’t be the first time.”

“Don’t patronize me,” she snapped. “I’ve tried to make up the gaps in my education. That’s not the point. Thunder Pass is part of Ahtna territory, or used to be. Do they know that Luke is ‘negotiating’ with the US government about it? It seems only right that they should.”

“I have no idea about any of that. If they have good lawyers, they can probably get a decent settlement. That’s probably the most they can hope for. Maybe they’ll get more inholdings out of it.”

She stamped her foot on the ground, feeling as impotent as a child in the face of a clueless grownup. “I don’t understand you. How long have you been spying on Luke? Ever since you came here?”

“I wouldn’t call it spying. I was looking for that gold too.”

“Okay, but you know Luke. You’ve known him longer than I have. You know he doesn’t care who he hurts to get what he wants. And you’re just going to let him get away with this?” Her voice started to rise, but she wrestled it under control. “He wants to act like Firelight Ridge belongs to him, but he doesn’t care about anyone who lives there. He’s dangerous.”

“My mission—” Anthony began, but she cut him off with a swift gesture.

“I get it. You work for the CIA, so there’s nothing you can do. But I can’t live with that. I’m going to get some help.”

She dug into her backpack and pulled out her lighter.

Anthony laughed. “What do you think you’re going to do with that?”

“As a matter of fact…it came to me just now, when I was talking about the Ahtna. Don’t you know how firefighting works out here? There’s a mutual aid pact between the Ahtna, the Forest Service and the National Parks department. If anyone spots signs of a fire, they send helicopters to check into it. There hasn’t been any rain up here in a while. Look how dry these spruce needles are. A wildfire starting up here, this close to Firelight Ridge, would definitely bring everyone out to help.”

He stepped toward her, clearly with the intention of stopping her, but she held up her hand. Amazingly, he paused.

“Don’t you think the Ahtna at least deserve a chance to know what’s going on? These mountains are Ahtna territory, and if they’re not, they’re part of the Wrangell-Elias National Park, which means they’re supposed to belong to the people. That’s us. You and me. I just learned that I’m an American citizen and that I have rights. I’m not going to just give them up!”

After a long pause, he gave in and shook his head with a reluctant smile. “I always thought you were the best of the Chilkoots. There’s a gas can inside.”

42

As they stepped out of the Quonset hut, Gunnar caught the sound of raised voices and saw a number of guards pausing in their tasks and pointing to the ridge above Thunder Pass.

Fire.

Smoke billowed from a spot on the ridge in thick, dark clouds. Even down here, they could hear the crackle of wood being consumed by flames. As they watched, flames raced up a spruce tree, turning it into a skeleton of branches backlit by orange flame.

It had been so dry here lately, no wonder that fire was spreading fast. But what had started it? Usually, out here, lightning strikes were to blame. But there hadn’t been any thunderstorms either.

Ruth.

He knew it in his bones; Ruth had set that fire. Or maybe his father had. Either way, it was deliberate, and it had been done to give them all a chance. To disrupt. To create chaos. To raise the alarm.

As word spread about the fire, he heard someone yell to get a water hose and soak the perimeter. “Tell them not to forget the cell tower,” he warned the guard, who was sticking to his side like a burr.

“Just shut up and get your damn four-by.” He gestured at the broken-down piece of machinery. “Good luck getting it going.”

---