Page 18 of Searching Blind

Thankfully, Bea was holding up like a trooper, her sturdy frame bearing the brunt of the stretcher’s weight. She was steady and uncomplaining, and Lucy appreciated her more than she could express.

Sawyer, Zelda, and Theodore flanked the stretcher on either side when the path was wide enough, and fell into single file behind it when the trail narrowed. Sawyer moved with a steady confidence that didn’t falter, his trusty cane tapping out a reassuring rhythm on the rocky path. Theodore chatted quietly with Maya, even managing to pull a weak smile from her once or twice before she lost consciousness again.

Maya’s face was ghost white. She had lost a lot of blood, and her breathing was becoming more ragged and shallower. Lucy checked the makeshift bandage around Maya’s abdomen, but saw that it was soaked through with crimson. They needed to get her medical attention soon or she might not make it.

The trail snaked up the mountainside, dotted with loose rocks and tree roots that made the going treacherous. More than once, someone’s foot slipped, or the stretcher tilted dangerously. But they kept on, determination and adrenaline fueling their ascent.

At last the fire tower came into view, a steel frame with a wraparound balcony perched atop a bald rock outcropping.

Finally.

Lucy wanted to sob with relief. She held it in—couldn’t let the others know she’d been worried. What if she’d been wrong about the location? What if she’d misled them in the confusion after the landslide? What if the earthquake had destroyed the tower despite its fortifications? What if? What if? What if? She’d silently tortured herself with the questions and doubts throughout the entire hike.

But they were so close now. Just a little further, and they’d reach help.

Lucy carefully set Maya’s stretcher down and cupped her hands around her mouth and called, “Hello!”

No response. But someone was up there. A light flicked in the windows.

“Hello? Please, we need help. We have injured hikers.”

The door opened, and a man stepped out onto the balcony. His beard was scruffy, and he wore a faded green jacket with a Forest Service patch on the arm.

The man peered down at them from the balcony, his expression unreadable in the fading light. He didn’t call out or wave, just watched as they struggled up the last bit of trail to the tower. He had a hunter’s watchful gaze.

Lucy shifted anxiously as the seconds ticked by. Why wasn’t he saying anything? Sawyer moved closer to her side. She liked having him there. Just like in that cave last year, his mere presence soothed her nerves.

“Who are you?” the man finally asked. His tone wasn’t unfriendly, just direct.

Lucy stepped forward. “I’m Lucy Harper. I was leading a tour group when the earthquake hit. We have injured— a broken leg, a concussion, and possible internal bleeding. Do you have a working radio?”

The man studied them for another moment, then glanced over his shoulder at someone inside. He finally set the rifle down, leaning it against the balcony railing. “Name’s Ethan Voss. I’m the fire lookout here. Radio’s nothing but static since the quake.”

Her gut clenched at his words. She’d been counting on that radio. She needed to get a message to the Forest Service or, even better, Redwood Coast Rescue. They were better equipped to handle a rescue operation of this magnitude.

She swallowed the knot in her throat and forced a nod, pushing back the mounting panic. “Look, Ethan, can we come up? We really need help. There’s a girl here—Maya.” She gestured toward the unconscious woman on the makeshift stretcher. “She’s in bad shape.”

Ethan’s gaze shifted to Maya, then flicked back to the room behind him. “Not a lot of room up here.”

“But we’ll make do.” A new voice drifted down from above, followed by the face of another man. He was younger than Ethan, with a severe gaze and a grim line to his mouth. He had a bandage on the side of his head, the middle of the white gauze dark with blood. “We can’t leave them out here. Let ‘em come up.”

Relief loosened the knot in her chest, letting her breathe again. “Thank you.”

Ethan grunted something about a lack of supplies, but made his way down the zigzagging steps to the ground. He moved fast and sure-footed, despite the dimming light. Whatever reservations he had about letting them up, at least he seemed willing to help.

As Ethan reached ground level, his gaze flicked over their haggard group and settled on Maya. His jaw hardened, but it wasn’t out of indifference—there was a flicker of something else in those watchful eyes.

Without any further talk, Ethan lifted one end of Maya’s stretcher. The younger man with the bandage was already down from the tower, striding towards them in long, hurried steps. He picked up the other end and, together, they lifted Maya up the narrow stairs. Joel followed, leaning heavily on his dad and Bea. Theodore brought up the rear, hands out like he could catch them if they fell.

She felt Sawyer lingering nearby like a static charge along her nerve endings.

“Go on,” she told him. “The stairs are right in front of you.”

He moved forward until his cane hit the bottom step, then shifted to look back in her direction. “Not coming up with us, Harper?”

She flashed him a smile that felt brittle on her lips. Lucky for her, he couldn’t see how unconvincing it was. “In a moment. I just need to...”

What?

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