Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2)(48)

Beth glanced at her beer bottle. ‘Same reason I’m not supposed to be doing this. Probation. And it really wasn’t a big deal. Everyone was scared. We all overreacted.’

‘But you argued with Alice?’

‘Is that what you’ve heard?’ Her eyes were hard to read in the dark. ‘We all argued with Alice. Anyone who says different is lying.’

She sounded upset and Falk let the words settle.

‘How is everything else?’ he said eventually.

A sigh. ‘All right. They might let her out tomorrow or the next day.’

Falk realised Beth was talking about her sister. ‘I meant you,’ he said. ‘Are you going okay?’

Beth blinked. ‘Oh.’ She seemed unsure how to answer. ‘Yeah. I suppose. Thanks.’

Through the window to the lounge, Falk could make out Carmen curled up in a battered armchair in the corner. She was reading something, and her hair fell loose and damp around her shoulders. Around the room, off-duty searchers were chatting or playing cards, or sitting with their eyes closed in front of the open fire. Carmen raised her head and nodded as she saw him.

‘Don’t let me keep you,’ Beth said.

Falk opened his mouth to answer but was drowned out by another crash of thunder. The sky burst lightning-white, then everything fell dark. He heard a collective murmur of surprise followed by a groan from the lodge behind him. The electricity was out.

Falk blinked as his eyes adjusted. Through the glass, the low glow of the lounge room fire threw faces into black and orange shadow. The corners of the room were invisible. He heard a movement in the doorway and Carmen appeared out of the gloom. She had something under her arm. It looked like an oversized book.

‘Hi.’ Carmen nodded at Beth, then turned to Falk. She frowned. ‘You’re wet.’

‘I got caught in the rain. Everything okay?’

‘Fine.’ She shook her head the tiniest fraction. Don’t talk here.

Beth had tucked the beer bottle out of sight and her hands were folded primly in front of her.

‘It’s pretty dark out there,’ Falk said to her. ‘Do you want us to walk you back to the cabins?’

Beth shook her head. ‘I’ll stay here for a while. I don’t mind the dark.’

‘All right. Be careful.’

He and Carmen pulled their hoods up and stepped out from the shelter of the porch. The rain stung his face. A few low-level lights glowed around the grounds, whether powered by solar or emergency generator Falk didn’t know, but it was enough to help them see their way.

Another flash of lightning lit the sky and the raindrops formed a ghostly white sheet. Through them, Falk caught a glimpse of someone running across the carpark. Ian Chase, soaking wet in his red Executive Adventures fleece. It was impossible to tell where he had come from, but from the way his hair was plastered to his skull, he had been out in the storm for a while. The sky went dark again and he vanished from sight.

Falk wiped his face and focused on the path in front of him. It was slick with water and mud, and it was a relief when they rounded the corner and were under the cabin awning. They stopped outside Carmen’s room. She had zipped the large book inside her jacket, against her chest. She pulled it out now and handed it to Falk while she searched her pockets for her key. It was a scrapbook with a laminated cover, he could see now. The corners were a little damp and on the front was a sticker with the words: Property of Giralang Lodge. Do not remove from lounge. Carmen turned in time to see him raise his eyebrows and laughed.

‘Come on, I’ve taken it fifty metres. I’m going to return it.’ Carmen opened her door and let them in, both a little breathless from the cold and the rain. ‘But first, there’s something you should see.’





Day 2: Friday Night


They argued about what to do until it grew too late to do anything.

Finally, as the sun set in the south, they walked a little way down the hill, looking for shelter. When the last of the day slipped away, they made camp where they stood. Made camp in the best way they could, at least.

They pooled their resources in a pile on the ground and stood in a five-point formation, torches out, silently observing their haul. Three tent canvasses, intact; less than a litre of water, split unevenly between five bottles; six muesli bars.

Beth looked at the meagre pile and felt the first stirrings of hunger pains. She was thirsty as well. Despite the cold and her damp clothes, she could feel the sweat from the uphill hike sticking under her arms. Her water bottle was one of the emptiest. She swallowed. Her tongue was thick in her mouth.

‘We should try to collect some rainwater overnight,’ Lauren said. She was also staring at the mostly empty bottles with a nervous look in her eyes.

‘Do you know how to do that?’ Jill’s voice had a pleading note.

‘I can try.’

‘And where are the rest of the muesli bars?’ Jill said. ‘I thought we had more.’

Beth felt rather than saw her sister’s eyes flick towards her. She didn’t look back. Get stuffed, Bree. Beth’s conscience, for once, was clear.

‘There should be at least a couple more.’ Jill’s face had taken on an unhealthy grey tinge in the torchlight and she kept blinking. Beth wasn’t sure if it was grit in her eyes or if she simply couldn’t believe her surroundings.