Page 9 of Dead Air
Niall basked in his hunger and wonder, honest and unrestrained. In the aftermath, there was no regret or shame. He was content and utterly at peace as he dreamed, walking through a stream in his bare feet and building a new rope bridge. That’s what Niall deserved and where he belonged: well and thoroughly fucked and unbothered as he communed with the butterflies and the bees.
And that was how Cenn would keep him until it was time to hand his soul to Hugh Dùbhghlas.
Six
“Oh…God. I feel…” Niall forced his eyes open and took stock off all the aches and stings throughout his body.
He wassorein places that made absolutely no sense. His throat was tender as he swallowed and carefully pressed all over his neck with his fingers. There was a slight burn in his backside and he felt a little stretched, like he’d gotten a bit too ambitious with his dildo but Niall was almostcertain he’d gone directly to bed and hadn’t fooled around during his bath.
“I feel…awesome!”
He sat up and rocked his neck from side to side, marveling at how tight that was too. And his shoulders. As if he’d been held down and railed for hours. Fragments of a really hot dream about Chance came back to Niall as he brushed his teeth and dressed. The sex had been the good kind of rough so maybe Niall had enjoyed the dream a little too much…
“It’s going to be impossible to act normal around him now,” he predicted, then smiled in the direction of Chance’s campsite. “I don’t think he wants me to act normal.”
Niall was definitely rusty when it came to flirting with other queer men, but Chance hadn’t seemed to mind and had flirted aswell. But he had also behaved like a perfect gentleman and had only mentioned meeting for breakfast so Niall wasn’t going to read too much into it. A lot of people engaged in flirty banter and it didn’t always mean they wanted to have sex.
All thoughts of Chance and banter were paused as the morning took an ominous turn. Niall was clipping his walkie-talkie to his belt and making sure his cargo pockets were appropriately stocked when the phone rang.
“This is Summit 2.”
“Oh my God, Niall!” It was Kerry and she sounded breathless and her voice had trembled. “Thank goodness you’re okay.”
“Me? I’m fine. What’s wrong?”
“One of the hikers from yesterday is missing. We got a call about fifteen minutes ago from his sister. For some reason, she thought he might have been with you. We’ve already called for a search party but it’ll be a few hours before they can get up there.”
“Why would he be with me?”
“No idea. She sounds really shaken up, though.”
“Of course,” Niall said, nodding. “I’ll head over to where they were supposed to be camping and see if I can find anything and get some better information. Probably have to take the ATV. He might need medical attention,” he worried, receiving an answering groan.
“It can’t be helped. Just be careful and keep in touch.”
“Will do,” Niall promised and hung up.
He grabbed his first-aid kit and keys from the hook by the door and headed out. There was a narrow dirt road from Niall’s summit post to the visitor’s center at the base of the mountain, just for crew and emergency use. But it wasn’t always clear and wasn’t designed for regular vehicles. ATVs were generally restricted in the park and only permitted to a few of the permanent crew and medics because they were loud and did a lot of damage to the trails.
Niall kept to a careful crawl, scanning the terrain ahead of him for any sign of the lost hiker. He regretted not remembering the man’s name and that Niall’s only impression of him hadn’t been a very good one. His gut was already aching with concern but Niall’s heart sank when he spotted a flash of black plastic in the leaves and a beer can on the trail ahead of him.
He stopped and dismounted, searching the ground as he approached the items, not wanting to disturb anything or miss any other signs of the lost hiker.
“Hello?” Niall lowered and used a stick to clear the leaves and debris away from the can and revealed a smartphone. He gave the screen a quick tap with his pinkie, frowning when it lit up. “Still has power so it was dropped recently,” he reasoned as he stood and turned.
His instincts drew him off the trail and toward his “secret” salamander spot and the sign, marking a scenic view and cautioning visitors to avoid getting close to the edge of the cliff. He noticed several broken and crushed branches and twigs as he made his way through the trees and brush, then gulped when he saw the scuffs in the dirt and the leaves when he stepped out onto the outcropping. Someone had been through there recently and had kicked up the dirt and debris, leaving a single trail of footsteps to the edge.
Niall swung back and only noted what looked like the treads from his boots and one other pair of shoes. “Hello?” he called again, his concern rising and his heart pounding as he went to take a careful look over the side of the cliff. “Oh, flick!” he gasped out when he spotted the body below him, not far from where Niall and Chance had been the day before. “I see you! I’m on my way!” Niall shouted, snatching the walkie-talkie off his waist. “This is Ranger Gilpatrick. I’ve found him. He went off the cliff at marker 192. I’m going to make my way down and administer first-aid but we need to get that rescue team up hereimmediately. Probably a helicopter. I’ll let you know as soon as I get down there and can assess.”
“Got it. Be careful, Niall!” DeeDee shouted through the walkie-talkie’s speaker.
It didn’t take very long for Niall to collect his climbing gear and run a line from one of the thicker trees. He quickly clipped himself into a harness and repelled down the cliff with his first-aid kit.
“Hey. Can you hear me? Help is on the way,” Niall said as soon as he touched down. He unclipped himself and rushed over but Niall could tell by the man’s opened, glassy eyes and the dried blood around his mouth that it was too late. The man’s skin was pale, slightly gray, but Niall gently checked for a pulse. “Sugar!”
He fell back on his bottom, sniffing past the burning in his nose and blinking back tears as he raised the walkie-talkie and pressed the call button.
“This is Ranger Gilpatrick. Cancel the helicopter and rescue team. He’s gone. Tell them we’ve got a recovery up here and let Shelby know.”
