The captain paces back and forth across the worn hardwood floor muttering to himself, phone clutched tightly in his hand. "I shouldn't have let her go, I shouldn't have," he says , mentally kicking himself for the hundredth time today.
He stops and tries to call, but like the dozen of other times before it goes straight to voicemail. "Where can they be?" Horrid Images come to mind as he starts pacing again. "I'll never forgive myself if something happens to her, never." He glances out of his office window to find Kirk is on the phone. "Maybe that's them now." Throwing the door open, he dashes to the detective's desk.
Glancing up, Kirk shakes his head and then returns to his call. "So, your cause of death is an OD? I'll be sure to let the sergeant know, thanks, Sharon." Hanging up he looks up and says. "I still haven't heard from either of them, captain." Pausing for a second he smiles and says, "Knowing Jerry as well as I do, he probably insisted they grab a bite to eat before heading back." He chuckles and then adds. "And knowing how cranky he can get, I'm sure the sergeant agreed just to shut him up."
Joe taps the face of his watch and says, It's been nearly four hours since Rachel's said they were heading back. And I know Jerry's a big dude, has a big appetite and all, but surely it wouldn't take him this long. Besides, we'd be able to get a hold of them if they stopped at a diner, right?"
"Cell phone signals are spotty out there captain with the mountains and all."
"Especially if they're down in a valley somewhere." Jeff adds.
Shaking his head, Joe says, "My gut is telling me something is wrong guys, really really wrong."
"What do you want us to do sir?"
"I want you to use their GPS to trace their steps. You can do that, right, Kirk?"
"I can try, sir, but with the cell phone signal as spotty as it is, I'm not sure how much it actually picked up." Seeing the look on his boss's face he quickly adds. "But, I'm sure Jeff and I can use what it did and figure out the rest." Tapping a few keys, he says, "We can do something with that." It actually didn't show much of anything, but he didn't want to tell the captain that and upset him more.
"Keep me posted, guys."
"We will,, captain."
###
The Sergeant and her detective find themselves trapped in their car at the bottom of a cliff, wedged tightly between two large trees. Both car doors are jammed, making it impossible to escape. Jerry is stuck between the seat and the dashboard imprisoning him more. Of course, the potential presence of the killer lurking nearby only intensifies their unnerving situation.
"I can't leave you alone like this, knowing the killer could be out there somewhere. I just can't." Rachel says. With her gun in hand she quickly scans their surroundings again.
"I doubt if anyone will be able to find us if you don't." He glances around his eerie surroundings and adds, "I'd rather not be stuck out here all night waiting on someone if I can help it."
"But what if..
"If the killer was going to finish us off, he would've done it by now don't you think? Besides, we don't even know if the killer had anything to do with what fell up there. It could've been a loose boulder, dead tree limb, or even a kid pulling a prank."
"We did see a falling rock sign a few miles back. And neither of us actually saw what it was. I just assumed it was him because of his threating phone call seconds before."
"You know what they say about assuming, right?"
Rolling her eyes, Rachel chuckles and says, "Ok professor you made your point, I'll go, but promise me you'll keep a close lookout until I get back, just in case."
"Holding up his gun, he says, "I'll be fine, now go."
Busting the side glass, she turns and says "I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Be careful out there." He chuckles and adds. "Grace." Grace, short for graceful, is a nickname he gave her when she first started on the force, claiming she has some type of accident every other week. And there for a while, his observation seemed to ring true."
Laughing, she says, "I will." Climbing out the window, she starts up the steep incline.
***
"Hello, Kirk, did you find them?" Joe asks as he continues to pace back and forth across the station floor.
"Not yet, sir."
"Where are you?"
"We left the first house about an hour ago and look to be almost to the second house now."
"Keep me posted."
"Yes, sir. I will. And sir don't worry I'm sure they're both alright."
"I wish I was as certain as you are, Kirk."
"You would've heard otherwise if they weren't. So no news is good news, right, captain?"
Kirk smacks his partner's arm. Giving him a stern look he shakes his head.
Jeff whispers "What?"
Muting the phone, Kirk turns and says, "Don't give him something else to worry about for god's sake."
Running his fingers through his thinning hair, Joe mulls over what was said. "I probably would've heard something by now if something was wrong. Keep me posted, guys."
"We will, sir."
"Hanging up the phone, Jeff turns and asks, "What was so wrong with me saying what I did?"
"Now you mentioned not being notified,, he'll worry they couldn't get a hold of him and start calling every police station and hospital in both states."
####
The hot afternoon sun begins its slow descent over the horizon, casting a warm glow across the lush landscape. With every bit of determination she can muster, Rachel continues her arduous climb up the steep mountainside.
Reaching a small cliff, she stops to catch her breath. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she opens her phone hoping she's high enough for cell services, but quickly discovers she still doesn't have a signal bar. Rachel then sees a warning light in the corner of her screen. She looks up to find her phone is at ten percent. She eyes the murderous hillside she has yet to climb, and thinks, I hope I can make it before it dies. Taking a few more breaths, she pushes herself on.
Every muscle in her body aches. Her lips are caked with dirt as is her hands and face and her throat is painfully dry. I should have grabbed my water before I left. She picturing the bottle in her mind. What I would give to have a small sip of that or any liquid cold or warm about now. She suddenly recalls a survival show where they drank their own urine in order to survive. Picturing it in her mind, she crinkles her nose and thinks. I hope I won't have to resort to that.
Hearing a loud rumble, she looks up to see what looks to be the entire hillside tumbling toward her. Landslide, Rachel thinks, darting out of the way. She plasters herself against the mountain and waits. The rumbling gets louder as a mix of dirt and rocks continue to fall from above her. She then hears someone say, "I see the car." She looks over to find a rescue worker propelling down the cliff. "Over here, she says waving her arms around. Her throat is so dry she barely makes a sound. Licking her parched lips, she swallows the glob of dirt lodged in her throat and tries again. "Over here." She manages before a large rock plows her to the ground.