Chasing Fire
Page 127
She shifted back, narrowed her eyes.
No point baring her soul to a man who was sound asleep.
It could wait, she decided, and watched the sun lower toward the western peaks.
She saw her father running toward the pad, and L.B., and the flying tangle of Ella’s hair as she rushed after them.
Marg sprinting out of the cookhouse. Lynn stopping to bury her face in her apron. Mechanics, jumpers not cleared for the list pouring out of hangars, the tower, the barracks.
The cop and the fed standing together in their snappy suits just outside Ops.
She gave Gull an elbow poke. “We’ve got a welcoming committee.”
She climbed out the second the chopper touched ground, then ran hunched over under the blades to jump into her father’s arms.
“There’s my baby. There’s my girl.”
“A-OK.” She breathed him in, squeezed hard. And, seeing Ella over his shoulder, seeing the roll of tears, held out a hand. “It’s nice to see you.”
Ella gripped her hand, pressed it to her cheek, then wrapped her arms as best she could around both Lucas and Rowan.
“Don’t go anywhere,” Lucas murmured, then, setting Rowan down, walked over to Gull. “You took care of our girl.”
“That’s the job. But mostly she took care of herself.”
Lucas pulled him into a bear hug. “Keep it up.”
They both looked over when Rowan let out a shout, broke from Marg and ran toward the man slowly walking toward the pad.
“I told that son of a bitch he could only check out of the hospital if he stayed in bed.” L.B. shook his head at Cards.
“Yangtree?” Gull asked.
“Fifty-fifty. They didn’t expect him to make it this far, so I’m putting my money on him. Got a cold one for you.”
“Let’s not keep it waiting.”
“Do you want me to tell the cops to back off until you and Rowan settle in?”
“We might as well get it done and over. She needs it finished. I guess I do, too.”
“He just started talking crazy,” Cards told Rowan. “About me letting Jim die, about Dolly. And he said... he said Dolly called Vicki, and told her we’d been screwing around. Hinted to her the baby was mine, for God’s sake. That it was his idea.”
“You can fix it with her.”
“I’m going to try. But... Ro, he came at me. Jesus.” He touched his shoulder where the pick had dug in. “Matt came at me. I knocked him back, or down. I told the cops it’s like this crazy reel inside my head. I ran. He was coming after me. I think he was, then he wasn’t. I just kept running. Got all screwed around until I found the saw line. I followed it.”
“Good thinking.”
“I don’t know how he could’ve done what he did, Ro. I worked right beside him. All of us did. Yangtree...” His eyes watered up. “Then to come after you, to die like he did. I can’t get my head around it.”
“You’re worn out. Go on and lie down. I’ll come in and see you later.”
“I loved the f**ker.”
“We all did,” Rowan said, as Cards walked back into the barracks.
Gull stepped up. “Unless you want to do it otherwise, we can talk with the cops now. Marg’s throwing on some steaks.”
“There is a God.”
“We can get it done while we eat.”
They took seats at one of the picnic tables.
“First, I want to say it’s good to see both of you back here, safe.” Quinniock folded his hands on the table. “It doesn’t do much good, but you should know after some digging, a little pressure, Agent DiCicco learned earlier today that Matthew Brayner ended his engagement a short time ago, cut off communication with his fiancée. Also, that he quit his job.”
“I also learned a few days ago that he has a number of trophies and awards. Marksmanship. There are several people in your unit who have sharpshooter experience.”
Rowan nodded at DiCicco. “You’ve been investigating all of us.”
“That’s my job. We arrived here to question him about the same time he assaulted your associate,” DiCicco continued. “We were able to convince Mr. Little Bear to let us search Brayner’s quarters. He kept a journal. It’s all there. What he did, how, why.”
“He was grieving,” Rowan said.
“Yes.”
She looked at Quinniock. “He blamed himself, at the bottom of it, for what happened to Jim. For being weak, sleeping with Dolly, for fighting with his brother before that jump. He couldn’t live with that, so he had to blame Cards, Dolly, all of us.”
“Very likely.”
“But it was more.” She looked at Gull now. “He fell in love with the fire. Found a kind of purpose in it, and that justified the rest. He said he left it up to fate, but he lied to himself. He gave it all to the fire, turning what he loved and had trained to do into a punishment. Maybe he thought he could burn away the guilt and the grief, but he never did. He died, grieving for everything he’d lost.”
“It would help,” DiCicco told her, “if you could tell us exactly what happened, what was said and done.”
“Yeah, I can do that. Then I’m never talking about it again, because he paid for all of it. There’s nothing more to wring out of him, and no changing anything that happened.”
She went through it like a fire report. Precisely, briefly, pausing only to lean into Marg’s side when the cook set down still sizzling steaks.
She ate while Gull did the same from his perspective.
“You knew it was Matt when you caught up with me,” Rowan interrupted.
“Cards has had nothing but shit for luck all season. Cards was Jim’s spotter. You have to respect the streak, good or bad, but when you break it down it seemed like maybe it wasn’t a matter of bad luck. Then Matt couldn’t bring himself to look at Yangtree once we got him down.
“You were too busy to notice,” he added, “but Matt was the only one who couldn’t. When Janis said none of the three of you answered the radio, it was point A to B.”
He looked back over at DiCicco. “That’s it. There’s nothing more to tell you.”
“I’ll do whatever I can to close this without bothering you again,” DiCicco said to Rowan. “And I’m pulling for your friend, for Yangtree.”
No point baring her soul to a man who was sound asleep.
It could wait, she decided, and watched the sun lower toward the western peaks.
She saw her father running toward the pad, and L.B., and the flying tangle of Ella’s hair as she rushed after them.
Marg sprinting out of the cookhouse. Lynn stopping to bury her face in her apron. Mechanics, jumpers not cleared for the list pouring out of hangars, the tower, the barracks.
The cop and the fed standing together in their snappy suits just outside Ops.
She gave Gull an elbow poke. “We’ve got a welcoming committee.”
She climbed out the second the chopper touched ground, then ran hunched over under the blades to jump into her father’s arms.
“There’s my baby. There’s my girl.”
“A-OK.” She breathed him in, squeezed hard. And, seeing Ella over his shoulder, seeing the roll of tears, held out a hand. “It’s nice to see you.”
Ella gripped her hand, pressed it to her cheek, then wrapped her arms as best she could around both Lucas and Rowan.
“Don’t go anywhere,” Lucas murmured, then, setting Rowan down, walked over to Gull. “You took care of our girl.”
“That’s the job. But mostly she took care of herself.”
Lucas pulled him into a bear hug. “Keep it up.”
They both looked over when Rowan let out a shout, broke from Marg and ran toward the man slowly walking toward the pad.
“I told that son of a bitch he could only check out of the hospital if he stayed in bed.” L.B. shook his head at Cards.
“Yangtree?” Gull asked.
“Fifty-fifty. They didn’t expect him to make it this far, so I’m putting my money on him. Got a cold one for you.”
“Let’s not keep it waiting.”
“Do you want me to tell the cops to back off until you and Rowan settle in?”
“We might as well get it done and over. She needs it finished. I guess I do, too.”
“He just started talking crazy,” Cards told Rowan. “About me letting Jim die, about Dolly. And he said... he said Dolly called Vicki, and told her we’d been screwing around. Hinted to her the baby was mine, for God’s sake. That it was his idea.”
“You can fix it with her.”
“I’m going to try. But... Ro, he came at me. Jesus.” He touched his shoulder where the pick had dug in. “Matt came at me. I knocked him back, or down. I told the cops it’s like this crazy reel inside my head. I ran. He was coming after me. I think he was, then he wasn’t. I just kept running. Got all screwed around until I found the saw line. I followed it.”
“Good thinking.”
“I don’t know how he could’ve done what he did, Ro. I worked right beside him. All of us did. Yangtree...” His eyes watered up. “Then to come after you, to die like he did. I can’t get my head around it.”
“You’re worn out. Go on and lie down. I’ll come in and see you later.”
“I loved the f**ker.”
“We all did,” Rowan said, as Cards walked back into the barracks.
Gull stepped up. “Unless you want to do it otherwise, we can talk with the cops now. Marg’s throwing on some steaks.”
“There is a God.”
“We can get it done while we eat.”
They took seats at one of the picnic tables.
“First, I want to say it’s good to see both of you back here, safe.” Quinniock folded his hands on the table. “It doesn’t do much good, but you should know after some digging, a little pressure, Agent DiCicco learned earlier today that Matthew Brayner ended his engagement a short time ago, cut off communication with his fiancée. Also, that he quit his job.”
“I also learned a few days ago that he has a number of trophies and awards. Marksmanship. There are several people in your unit who have sharpshooter experience.”
Rowan nodded at DiCicco. “You’ve been investigating all of us.”
“That’s my job. We arrived here to question him about the same time he assaulted your associate,” DiCicco continued. “We were able to convince Mr. Little Bear to let us search Brayner’s quarters. He kept a journal. It’s all there. What he did, how, why.”
“He was grieving,” Rowan said.
“Yes.”
She looked at Quinniock. “He blamed himself, at the bottom of it, for what happened to Jim. For being weak, sleeping with Dolly, for fighting with his brother before that jump. He couldn’t live with that, so he had to blame Cards, Dolly, all of us.”
“Very likely.”
“But it was more.” She looked at Gull now. “He fell in love with the fire. Found a kind of purpose in it, and that justified the rest. He said he left it up to fate, but he lied to himself. He gave it all to the fire, turning what he loved and had trained to do into a punishment. Maybe he thought he could burn away the guilt and the grief, but he never did. He died, grieving for everything he’d lost.”
“It would help,” DiCicco told her, “if you could tell us exactly what happened, what was said and done.”
“Yeah, I can do that. Then I’m never talking about it again, because he paid for all of it. There’s nothing more to wring out of him, and no changing anything that happened.”
She went through it like a fire report. Precisely, briefly, pausing only to lean into Marg’s side when the cook set down still sizzling steaks.
She ate while Gull did the same from his perspective.
“You knew it was Matt when you caught up with me,” Rowan interrupted.
“Cards has had nothing but shit for luck all season. Cards was Jim’s spotter. You have to respect the streak, good or bad, but when you break it down it seemed like maybe it wasn’t a matter of bad luck. Then Matt couldn’t bring himself to look at Yangtree once we got him down.
“You were too busy to notice,” he added, “but Matt was the only one who couldn’t. When Janis said none of the three of you answered the radio, it was point A to B.”
He looked back over at DiCicco. “That’s it. There’s nothing more to tell you.”
“I’ll do whatever I can to close this without bothering you again,” DiCicco said to Rowan. “And I’m pulling for your friend, for Yangtree.”
