Page 116 of Silent Bones
They pressed on, finding more evidence as they climbed. A scrap of blue fabric caught on a thorn bush, the same color as the shirt Avery had been wearing in the trail cam footage. Boot prints in soft earth that matched the tread pattern from Dale's house. And every few hundred yards, more blood drops, suggesting Avery was injured but still being forced to walk.
The trail grew steeper as they approached the base of St. Regis Mountain, the path switching back and forth through increasingly dense forest. Noah's legs burned with the effort, and he could hear McKenzie and Callie breathing hard behind him. Dale had chosen his route well, difficult enough to slow pursuit, but not so treacherous as to prevent them from following.
The voice from the helicopter crackled through their headsets again: "Ground team, we've got visual on the fire tower. Two figures are near the structure. They appear to have stopped moving."
Noah pulled out binoculars and scanned the mountainside ahead. Through a gap in the trees, he could make out the steel framework of the fire tower rising above the forest canopy like a skeletal finger pointing at the sky. Even at this distance, he could see movement at its base. Two tiny figures that had to be Dale and Avery.
"How far?" McKenzie asked.
"Maybe half a mile. Another thirty minutes of climbing."
They resumed their ascent, the evidence trail growing fresher with each step. The blood drops were more frequent now, and Noah spotted what looked like drag marks in the soft earth where Avery might have fallen and been hauled back to her feet.
As they climbed higher, more of the fire tower became visible through the thinning trees. The structure was larger than Noah had expected, a steel framework tower rising thirty-five feet above the forest floor, with a small observer's cabin at the top. Built in the 1920s, abandoned since 1990, it had been slowly surrendering to rust and weather.
"Air One, this is ground team. Do you still have eyes on our targets?"
"Affirmative. Both figures are now at the base of the tower structure. They appear to be climbing. Repeat, they are ascending the tower."
Noah felt his stomach drop. Dale was taking Avery up to the observation deck. From there, he'd have a commanding view of the entire area and complete tactical advantage over any ground-based approach.
The final stretch of trail was the steepest yet, winding through a maze of boulders and deadfall that forced them to climb single-file. Noah's lungs burned in the thin mountain air, but he pushed harder, driven by the knowledge that every minute of delay gave Dale more time to prepare whatever finale he had planned.
They crested a final ridge and found themselves at the base of St. Regis Mountain, the fire tower rising directly ahead of them through a clearing in the forest. The structure looked even more imposing up close, a lattice of steel beams and cross braces supporting a steel observation cabin that swayed slightly in the mountain wind.
"There," he whispered, pointing upward. "Top of the tower."
McKenzie raised his binoculars. "I can see them. Dale's got her near the open windows. Looks like she's restrained, hands behind her back."
"Can you get a clear shot from here?"
"Negative. Too much angle, and if I miss..." He lowered the binoculars. "One wrong move and he could push her over the edge."
“I think that’s the point,” McKenzie added.
Noah studied the tower's structure, looking for any tactical advantage. The only way up was a single ladder built into the steel framework, completely exposed, offering no cover for an approach. Dale had chosen his position perfectly.
McKenzie spoke with the helicopter. "Air One, can you get closer to take a shot if need be?"
"Negative, ground team."
From somewhere high above them, carried on the mountain wind, came the sound of Dale's voice, calm, controlled, completely in command of the situation he'd orchestrated.
Noah looked up at the observation cabin, where Dale's silhouette was visible in the window, and felt the full weight of the trap they'd been led into. Dale had brought them to this tower for a reason. And whatever that reason was, they were about to find out.
31
The St. Regis Mountain Fire Tower loomed above them like a steel skeleton against the darkening sky, its weathered framework creaking softly in the mountain wind. Noah crouched behind a cluster of boulders at the base of the clearing, studying the observation cabin thirty-five feet above where two silhouettes moved behind open windows.
McKenzie was positioned to his left, rifle trained upward but with no clear shot. Callie flanked right, her service weapon drawn but equally useless at this range and angle. The helicopter circled at a distance, its rotors a distant whisper.
Above them, the observation cabin door opened with a rusty screech. Dale Thurston appeared on the narrow walkway, dragging Avery with him. Even from ground level, Noah could see the terror on her face, the way she stumbled as Dale positioned her near the platform's edge.
"Stay back!" Dale's voice carried clearly in the thin mountain air. "Anyone comes up here and she dies! I'll throw her over the side right now!"
Callie started to move forward, but Noah grabbed her arm. Something in Dale's voice, the panic beneath the control, toldhim this wasn't going according to the man's plan. Maybe Dale had expected to die alone with his victim, not to be surrounded by law enforcement.
Noah stepped out from behind the boulder, his hands visible and empty.
