He traced one gloved finger along the cheek of his latest creation. Smooth. Almost perfect. A likeness of a woman he knew better than anyone. Not Ava, but the likeness was close.
“Do you hear them?” he whispered to the figure. “The dogs. The voices. She’s come back to me.”
His gaze flicked toward the narrow vent he’d built in the ice wall. An old mine pipe now served his purpose. On the air, it carried faint words, fragmented but recognizable.
Whispers came from those trapped below. He strained and heard her voice. Confident despite being trapped below earth.
He exhaled softly. “Brave little Ava. Always pretending she isn’t afraid. Come find me. I know you can,” he murmured. “Let’s finish what we started.”
???
The first collapse came like thunder. But the aftershocks were the scariest because they kept coming. And just when it finally felt safe, the mountain proved different.
Another scream ripped through Ava’s frame and barely cleared her lips before Caleb’s hand clamped around her arm,jerking her back away from the continuously falling debris. The force drove her into his chest—solid muscle, warmth, and the faint scent of pine and gun oil. For one suspended heartbeat, the world was just that—his body shielding hers from death.
After what felt like an eternity, the roar ended, and reality returned in a cloud of choking dust.
“You okay?” Caleb’s voice rasped near her ear.
She turned her head slightly, her temple brushing the edge of his jaw. “I think so.”
Ava checked on her K-9 partner and confirmed Shadow was safe.
The Malinois pressed tight into her thigh, body quivering with both fear and anxious for the next command.
Once more, Caleb tested the radio in an effort to reach their teammates. “Comms are dead. I lost my phone and the flashlight. Do you have yours?”
“Not the flashlight, but my phone is still in my pocket. Hang on.” She pulled the phone from her pocket. As soon as she hit the button to get the phone out of sleep mode, a chilling sight grabbed her attention. “The battery life’s down to twenty percent.” She clicked on the flashlight app and scanned the area. The beam cut through the silty haze, landing on the wall of rubble that sealed their exit.
“We’re not getting out that way,” Caleb whispered.
Ava steadied her breathing, pushing back the tremor that wanted to rise. “He did this on purpose,” she said. “He wants us alive.”
“Alive, but boxed in. You think he’s coming after us?”
Wax didn’t do anything by accident. This was done deliberately to reveal another clue.
“Are you sure you’re up for this again?” Caleb’s concern for her was right there in his eyes.
“I’ve been up for this since the night I got away.” Brave words. Ones she wasn’t sure she could back up.
Their eyes locked, and the past they’d once shared was there once more. The last time she’d seen that look, she’d been bleeding, broken, and leaving him without a goodbye because staying meant reliving her captivity. Caleb had been her anchor once. But back then, she hadn’t known how to stop drowning.
Now, she knew the only way to stop it was to bring down Wax.
“Then we move forward,” he said finally. “Together.”
“Together,” she murmured and clutched his hand. “I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather go through this with.”
Shadow’s bark snapped the tension.
Ava smiled at her K-9 partner. “You, too.”
The dog pawed at the right-hand side of the pile of rocks his nose pressed to a faint seam.
“There’s a small opening,” Caleb said, crouching beside the dog. “Air is moving through it. Unfortunately, it’s not big enough for us to get past. We’ll have to get some of these rocks out of the way first.”
Ava knelt beside him, their shoulders brushing. “Where do we start?”
