Page 95 of Fire Peak

Hopefully that meant the end of meditation time.

She knocked on the door. “April. It’s urgent, let me in.”

April’s shuffling footfalls across her gazebo floor didn’t sound at all urgent. Charlie drummed her fingers against her thighs in unbearable anticipation. As soon as the door opened, she burst in.

“Vasily and the Chechens are going to set fire to the lodge.” She was panting so hard she could barely get the words out. All that painful running around had caught up with her. “And they have hostages, two teenagers. You have to do what they say.”

April was wearing a white kung-fu type of uniform and headband to keep stray hairs out of her face. Her expression, usually grumpy enough, was now outright grim. “I’ve already told them no. You’re wasting your time.”

Charlie’s phone dinged. Found her?

Yes. But she says no.

A photo came next, or rather, a photo of a Polaroid. It showed a man flat on his back in the snow, a dark gash on his forehead. Rime and frost made his face look like a statue. A young woman crouched over him. Was that April? Show her.

Charlie turned her phone so April could see it. “They said to show this to you.”

April looked away, then back at the photo. Her mouth quivered, then tightened.

“April. Is that you and Bulldog?”

No answer.

Wait a minute. The story she’d read about Bulldog’s death said that he’d been found frozen in the forest and gnawed on by wolves. The man in this shot was dead, for sure. In the forest. With a beard. But he didn’t look mangled the way the news article had described.

“So you left Bulldog in the snow to get eaten by wolves, is that what happened?”

Repulsed, she shifted gears. She needed to get April onboard, not accuse her of murder.

“All that is ancient history now, April. Listen! They have two teenagers they’ve taken hostage. They’re going to burn down the lodge. Can’t you work with them, give them something? What are they after?”

“The mountain, of course.” April tightened the brown belt around her robe. “I tried giving them something. I thought if I let them do some small-scale mining, they’d be satisfied. But it was a mistake.”

“Why?”

“It wasn’t enough for them. They want me to sell Fire Peak to a mining interest. A mining interest! Can you imagine?”

Something clicked. “And Vasily would get half of that money, based on that old agreement he and Chadwick signed about sharing future mineral profits. Maybe all of it, since Chadwick is dead.”

“Doesn’t matter, because I said no. Principles are only principles if you stand up for them. I won’t change my mind.”

That was exactly what the Chechens had texted. April will not cooperate. “I don’t understand. You told them no. So why are they bothering to burn down the lodge now? What’s the point?”

“To demoralize me, force me to sell the land. Then their investors can swoop in. I put all my money into this lodge, I have nothing else.”

“But isn’t the lodge insured?”

April gave a laugh that held no amusement. “It’s too remote, no insurance company operates out here. But it’s just a building. There are much more important things than buildings.”

“Yes, people! Two teenagers. Nick’s daughter and Elias.”

At the mention of Elias, April’s expression actually brightened. “Elias is strong. He’ll get them out of danger. It’ll be fine. We just need to stay strong. I have a plan.”

“A plan? What plan?”

April straightened her spine and gestured at Charlie’s phone.

“Tell them if they set that fire, they’ll end up with nothing. Less than nothing.”

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