BONE LAKE
Justin Stanchfield
Montana Territory, 1883
Ice melted off the sod roof, fat drops wicking down the icicles hanging from the eaves, split splat, split splat to the frozen ground. The Chinook was late, February bleeding into March, the dawn outside the little cabin sullen and cold. Annie Tate poured coffee into a chipped enameled cup, trying not to spill, her hand shaking despite the smoky heat blazing out the cookstove. Her left eye hurt, the bruise around it puffy, painful to the touch. A few drops sloshed over the rim, darkening the plank table. For a moment she thought the man seated in front of her might strike her again, but he did nothing, silent as death. She set the pot back on the stove.
"Don’t go." She squeezed her eyes shut, biting her lip to keep from crying. She was so tired of tears. "Isaac... don’t go."
He said nothing, simply drained his cup then pushed away from the table, his shadow large in the coal-oil flicker. Spurs jangled, sharp rowels dragging the hard dirt floor. Annie watched as he pulled on his long canvas coat then wound a silk scarf around his throat, the bright red cloth a contrast to his dark nature. Isaac Tate stared at her, his eyes lost in the gloom. Outside, a horse whickered, hooves sloshing through the knee-deep snow. He reached for the door handle.
"Isaac?" Annie wrapped her arms around herself. "How long will you be gone?"
"Long as it takes," he said at last. "Why should you care?"
"You’re my husband."
"Fine time to realize it." He pulled the door open, the dank smell of melting snow pouring in. ‘Billy’s here. I’ve got to go."
"You’re just going to leave me here?"
"The cows are starving. They can’t wait till spring." He reached behind the open door, found his carbine, the barrel gray in the half-dawn, knuckles white around the stock. Isaac snugged his tattered black hat down and stepped outside. Annie took a deep breath and followed him as far as the doorway, shivering in the chill.
"I’m going to have a baby."
Isaac stopped, but didn’t turn, rain-rich wind whipping around him, moaning through the little stand of pine behind the corrals. His grip tightened around the rifle. "Maybe you ought to talk to Billy about that."
Annie watched through tears as he wandered the muddy path to the barn, icy water spilling down her back like blood across the killing floor.
***
Dewey’s Flat, Montana, Present Day
Mick Saurbeir pulled off the blacktop and parked his Taurus next to a dented flatbed, a bored heeler dog laying on it, watching him, head rested on his paws, ears flicking as Mick stepped past. He twisted at the waist, loosening his stiff back as he studied the little town. Gas station, post office, a tavern on either side of the highway that served as the town’s single street. He reached back into his car for his scuffed briefcase, leaning across the seat. The car needed washing. So did he. Mick straightened, not bothering to lock the door, and walked toward the nearest bar, the screen-door creaking as he stepped inside.
A painfully thin woman behind the bar turned away from the television hung above the shelves of half-full bottles, and limped toward him. A boozy kid, no more than twenty, the only other person in the room, barely glanced his way, his eyes not half as bright as the dog outside. The woman leaned her elbows on the linoleum covered bar and smiled.
"What can I get you?"
"Coke, thanks." Mick fished a wrinkled twenty out of his wallet. She came back from the cooler and set the familiar red and black can in front of him, beads of condensation sweating on the silk smooth container.
"Need a glass?"
"No. This is fine." He took a long drink, the too-sweet pop tickling his nose, draining half the can in the first swallow. He wanted a beer, wanted it desperately. These were the hard times, the lonely days when just the thought of that first cold rush pouring down his throat sang in his blood, humming him back to the blur he had wasted too many years inside. He took another sip of Coke, resigned that he would never again dare sample anything stronger. He was tired. More tired than he wanted to admit, the years and the miles taking their toll. Slowly, he set the briefcase on the stool beside him and opened it. A notebook and a micro-recorder sat beside an envelope full of photographs. He slipped one of the photos out, a High School picture of a pretty, brown-haired girl, and laid it in front of the bartender. "Ever seen this woman?"
The bartender turned the picture around and studied it, frowning slightly, tapping her left hand against the bar, the cheap silver ring on her finger clicking softly. Mick thought he saw a glimmer of recognition and pushed his luck a bit further. "Her name is Jennifer Mitchell, but she might be going by Jenny Hale."
The woman stared at Mick from under her thin, plucked eyebrows, suspicious. The boozy kid at the other end of the bar slid down and looked over Mick’s shoulder, his breath reeking. He stared at the picture, his head wobbling.
"You a cop or something?"
"I’m an investigator." Mick pushed the picture closer to the kid. "Her parents hired me to find her. She left Salt Lake City last February, and they haven’t heard from her since."
"Salt Lake?" The kid glanced at the can of Coca-cola, a look of disgust washing over his face. "You a God damned Mormon?"
Mick laughed. "Nope. Just thirsty. Do you know her?"
"Looks a little like that Janey who took up with Timmy Garr. What do you think, Vick?"
The bartender said nothing, but Mick was certain she agreed, her cheeks sucked in, looking steadfastly away. He turned back to the kid. "You wouldn’t have an address for her, would you? They told me in Butte she might have moved out here." The kid swung his head, the movement exaggerated and slow. Mick sighed and took a business card out of his case and laid it on the bar. He finished the pop and stood up. "Well, thanks anyhow. Mind if I leave the picture here? My cell number’s on the back if anyone recognizes her."
"Ain’t no coverage out here," the kid slurred, turning back to the television, the encounter already forgotten. The bartender smiled apologetically as Mick shut his briefcase. He swept up his change, leaving a couple dollars on the bar, and walked back outside. The air was cool, tinged by the scent of sagebrush and diesel fuel, the mountains ringing the deep valley framed by slate gray clouds. A gust of wind sent a plastic cup skipping across the road. He stood a moment, wondering if he should try the post office or the other tavern next, or just say to hell with it all and drive on. The screen-door banged open behind him.
The bartender walked toward him, her limp more pronounced on the uneven gravel, the photo in hand. She gave it back to him. "Look, mister..."
"Saurbier. Mick Saurbier."
"Okay, Mr. Saurbier. I didn’t want to say nothing around Donny. He can’t keep his mouth shut." She took a deep breath. "I know that girl. ‘Cept she goes by the name Janey Hall, now."
"Know where I can find her?"
She stared at Mick, holding his eye. "You really working for her folks?"
"Yes, I am."
"She’s living with a guy named Timmy Garr up by Bone Lake. She isn’t quite right in the head, if you ask me." She waited while Mick scribbled the information down. "And, Mr. Saurbier?"
"Yeah?" Something in her voice made him edgy.
"Be careful. Tim Garr is an asshole. But he’s a tough asshole." She hobbled away while. Mick waited until she was gone, then turned the ignition, rolling up the windows, suddenly cold for no reason.
***
Montana Territory, 1883
The wind was stronger, shifting to the North, the warm, damp Chinook finished. The rain was turning to snow, tiny flakes stinging Annie’s cheeks as she heaved against the sagging corral gate. The horses inside ran past her, tails high, smelling the storm, kicking up wet clumps of crap-stained snow. Annie ducked, avoiding the dangerous hooves. She didn’t like horses. They frightened her, the sheer power in their sleek bodies a force untamed. Around her they ran, finally settling down to sniff the grain bucket in her hand. She wrapped a soft rope around a dun mare’s neck and led her out of the muddy corral. Her feet already cold, Annie saddled the mare, fumbling with the cinch, dreading what lay ahead.
Snow fell heavier, the wind rising, trees swaying as she stepped into the saddle, settling uncomfortably into the stiff leather. The mare danced, pawing the ground with her front feet, angry at being cut away from the others. Annie struggled with the reigns, dragging the mare’s head around and kicking her uselessly in the ribs. She kicked harder, digging with her heels. The mare snorted but stepped out, following the wide swath the hungry cattle had left in the snow, heading toward the low, timbered gap leading to the lake and the trail beyond. Annie wrapped one hand around the saddle horn as the mare broke into a trot, slipping now and then on the icy path.
She had been a fool for falling in love with Billy Conlin. She’d been a bigger fool for letting Isaac find out. It was one thing for a man to lose a wife, far another to lose his partner. Isaac had lost both. Shivering and sick, she spurred the mare faster, afraid she was already too late. Snow swirled past, blinding her as she topped the stony ridge, a few boulders peeking up from sickle-shaped drifts. Annie waited as the gust settled down, trying to find her bearings, the trail rapidly vanishing under the falling whiteness. It disoriented her, turning her sense of direction around. Were it not for the broad trail the cattle had stomped as they followed the sleigh load of moldy hay off the ridge she would have been lost. The mare danced nervously, trying to turn her rump to the storm. Annie kicked her and started down.
Ahead, through a narrow gap in the scrub pine, she caught a glimpse of the sleigh, the little herd strung out behind, moving slowly toward a broad, perfectly flat expanse of snow. At the lead rode a single rider, breaking trail a hundred paces in front. Annie’s stomach lurched as she realized Isaac was leading Billy and the heavy, horse drawn sled straight across the frozen lake.
From far below she heard a crack, rifle sharp, muffled softly by the swirling snow.
***
Mick Saurbier drove the Taurus as far as he dared, the dirt road more suited for a four wheel drive than a highway car. He pulled off in a small meadow, the tires bouncing across the deep ruts, trying to avoid the rocks poking up, then started on foot, huffing in the thin air, the road steep and uneven. Sweat ran down his back by the time he topped the ridge, his windbreaker hanging open as he stopped to catch his breath. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand and started off again, the .357 Smith strapped under his left arm chaffing. He had thought about leaving it behind, but the bartenders warning made him think twice. The road leveled, twisting through boulder patches and stands of lodgepole, mistletoe choking the trunks, leaving misshapen growths bulging from their scaly bark.
The wind shifted, carrying the dank wet kiss of deep water with it. Mick pulled a folded map out of his back pocket, trying to make sense of the tangled skeins of abandoned logging roads and trails. He had stopped at the local Forest Service long enough to buy the map and ask the girl behind the front desk for directions. She had painstakingly traced the route to Bone Lake in red felt-tip marker, no doubt dying to ask why he wanted to go there. From the scattered reactions he had gotten around the little town it was clear most people held the same opinion of Tim Garr as the bartender. He stuffed the map back in his pocket, wishing the encounter was already over.
The road steepened once more, then abruptly ended on top of a small, wooded bench, a locked metal gate barring his path. A faded ‘No Trespassing’ sign hung on the wooden brace post, slapping in the breeze against the barb wire beneath it. Mick climbed over the gate, his weight dragging it down, swinging it wildly. He jumped to the ground on the other side, his ankle twisting painfully as he lit.
"Shit." He stood a moment, letting the pain subside. "Hell of a missing persons case this is."
He walked on, the hair along the base of his neck rising. Mick had never been a cop, never even been a fan of mystery novels or thrillers. Why he had become a private investigator remained the biggest unsolved mystery of his life. It was hard, dangerous work, and were it not for a certain talent in finding lost things, he would have given it up ages ago. He glanced at his wristwatch. It was already past four o’clock. He glanced up at the sky, the clouds darker, twisted and gray, writhing around the jagged peaks. Ahead, the road broke into a small, hilly meadow.
Once it had been a hay field, traces of ditches hidden beneath clumps of dry, yellowed grass. Sagebrush and gopher holes dominated the meadow now, prickly stands of gooseberry poking up through the piles of rotted fence poles and rocks. A forlorn plow lay tipped on its side, rusting into oblivion, while further below, nestled beside a marshy spring, stood a handful of tumbled buildings, the roofs collapsed, an ancient corral lying in broken heaps behind it. Not far away stood a camp trailer, the aluminum sides faded and dull. Mick squinted, looking for signs of life, but found nothing. More nervous than before, he trudged toward the trailer, glad now he had brought the pistol.
A faint chemical whiff clung to the trailer. Mick shook his head, disgusted. He had never been a cop but he recognized a meth lab when he found one.
"Well, well, Jennie," he muttered, "Aren’t your parents going to be proud when I tell them where I found their little girl." He rapped against the door, trying not to act as nervous. He was about to rap again when he heard footsteps behind him.
A girl in a long, gray coat rode past the ruined barn, seated high on a dun colored mare. Mick waved at her, trying to catch her attention. If she saw him, she paid no attention. He waved harder, shouting. "Hey? Hello?"
The woman ignored him, kicking the horse hard in the sides, taking off at a canter toward a low saddle in the hills behind the abandoned homestead. Mick stood, angry at his luck, and started in the direction she had gone, his ankle throbbing. He paused a moment to check his watch. Madder than before, he looked back toward the girl on horseback, but already she was gone.
***
Montana Territory, 1883
Annie clung to the saddle horn, praying the mare kept her footing as they skidded down the icy trail. The timber closed in tighter, towering sentinels shrouded in snow, deep shadows blocking her vision as they descended. Scared as she was, Annie urged the mare faster, desperate to reach the lake. Through the storm, she heard the cattle bawling at each other, their nervous voices dampened by the swirling snow. It pressed against the air, loud as a freight train, a surging, liquid wall of sound, the distance impossible to gauge.
"Please, let me be in time," Annie whispered, understanding all too well what Isaac was doing, leading Billy, the herd behind him, across the frozen lake. Billy, poor trusting Billy, would follow Isaac across the lake, never realizing until it was too late that he was being lead to his death. Another crack split the air, the sound of thick ice snapping. Annie kicked the mare harder.
The frightened animal lurched sideways, her balance lost. Annie leaned out of the saddle, trying to get clear before the horse went down. Together, they slammed into a tall lodgepole, dislodging a brief avalanche of snow from the boughs above. Annie yelped in pain as the horse fell, catching her beneath the saddle, her foot snared in the stirrup. The mare leapt back to her feet, Annie struggling to free her leg, her left hand wrapped around the reigns. The mare shied, dragging her a few paces before stopping. Soaked and cold, pain spreading up her hip, Annie struggled to her feet, patting the sweating horse on the neck, calming her. She was shaking, the idea of climbing back on the skittish animal almost beyond her. She took a tight hold of the reigns then swung aboard, the mare dancing in tight circles before she managed to get her pointed once more down the uneven trail. Faster they moved, the ground leveling, the trees thinning at the base of the hill. The mare whickered, a dark, indistinct parade resolving out of the flurries, the herd already moving across the snow-covered ice, following the sleigh, a lone rider far in the lead.
"Stop! Oh, God, please stop!" Annie let the mare have her head, lunging toward the lake, the smell of black water swelling in the cold air.
***
Bone Lake, Present Day
The sun clung a moment to the rocky lip, then fell away, shadows swallowing the last drops of gold, the clouds bursting briefly into flame. Any other time Mick might have stopped to admire the impossible swirls of orange and neon pink, but not now. He zippered his jacket, the air chilling as twilight settled over the forest, walking faster down the narrow trail, still unable to find the horse’s tracks in the hard-packed earth. The footing was difficult, sharp rocks jutting up. Mick tripped, stumbling forward, landing hard on his elbow.
"Damn it!"
He clambered to his feet and started down the trail again. The path dropped into a deep, rocky bowl, enormous boulders, the edges tumbled smooth by the glaciers that had left them millennia ago, looming between trees. The scent of cold, deep water was stronger, an ancient smell that roiled in Mick’s senses, primeval emotions floating to the surface. If a mastodon had run trumpeting through the trees ahead Mick wouldn’t have been surprised. Desperate for a better view, he climbed to the top of the nearest outcrop, and moved cautiously toward the brink.
A small lake lay at the base of the hill, a narrow, sandy dropping into deeper water like a dark, baleful eye. Mick leaned away from the boulder’s edge, dizzy in the gathering shadows. The wind rose, rich with the scent of decay and water so ancient it had been old when man first kindled spark to flame. Mick stared at it, shivering. Far below, riding hard across the swampy ground around the outlet, a rider on a lean, dun horse charged toward the shore.
Mick slid off the boulder, hurrying toward the lake as darkness settled around him.
***
Montana Territory, 1883
The frightened mare lurched across the soft, wet snow, the thin veneer of frozen mud crunching underfoot, the wet earth sucking her down. Annie clung to the saddle, little more than baggage, no longer in control of the animal. She was screaming, her voice lost against the herd’s roar, Billy unable to see her through the snow.
But Isaac did.
He spun his horse around, already off the ice, and stared at her from across the lake, making no attempt to warn her off. Annie squeezed her legs tight around the mare’s chest, hauling back on the reigns, afraid the thin leather straps might break before the horse stopped. A sinewy creek, deeper than it was wide, wound past, the snow hiding it, a dangerous invitation to stumble. The little mare plowed ahead, heedless of the danger, her neck stretched out, ears laid flat against the back of her skull. Annie wrapped a dally of leather around her wrist, yanking the mare’s head around, finally bringing the wild charge to a stop. Shaking, her legs weak, Annie shouted until her lungs burned.
"Billy! Stop. The ice is breaking!"
Maybe he heard her, the sleigh with it’s load of rank, brown hay slowing near the center of the lake. Annie stared, horrified as the ice heaved, lifting the sleigh and its driver a few feet before drooping, settling into a concave circle filled with slush and water. It crackled, giant’s feet crushing the bones of the dead, a rippling curtain of sound. The horses drawing the sleigh struggled, bearing down against their traces, unable to break free from the brownish sludge. Billy leapt from the plank seat, leaning far out across the harness tree, knife in hand, trying to cut the team loose. Panicked cattle tumbled one after another into the water as the ice folded, splashing and bawling, only their heads showing. Annie watched as the sleigh listed to its side, slowly sinking into the water pouring up through the fractured ice.
Billy cut the harnesses free, the huge chestnut horses floundering. He clung to the hay, scrambling to stay on top as it became sodden and water-logged, already sinking. The cattle swam around him, churning through the broken bits of ice, steam rising in the cold air. A few managed to get clear before the lake swallowed them, stampeding back the way they came, water rising in their wake. Sick to her stomach, all thought gone but to save the man she had sacrificed both honor and marriage for, Annie kicked the mare, slapping her flanks with the reigns. The horse humped up, startled, bounding across the dark ring of water lining the shore and onto the ice.
"Hang on!" Annie slapped the reigns from side to side, working the terrified animal into a frenzy. Closer and closer she came, spouts of water hurling up with every lunging step, the knee-deep snow hiding the slush beneath. Annie leaned forward, heedless of the danger. "Hang on, Billy! I’m coming!"
"No! Go back!" Clinging to the hay, he waved her off, but she paid him no mind, unable to stop the mare if she had wanted. She was close enough now to see his face, icicles hanging off his long mustache, his eyes wide. "Annie, get back!"
The world began to tilt, snow rushing up, the sky twisting as the dun mare stumbled, flipping head over heels into the black water. Annie barely had time to gasp before the water hit her, stealing her breath with its icy kiss.
***
Bone Lake. Present Day
A fingernail moon hung above the horizon, a ghostly sickle in a pale blue sky. Mick Saurbier jogged the last few yards to the water’s edge, desperate to pick up the trail before night fell completely. The lake was calm, short rolling waves lapping against the crumbling shore, the water dropping alarmingly into the black depths a few paces out. The girl at the Forest Service had told him an improbable tale of a herd of cattle drowning in the lake, their bones still visible under the silt, but all he could see were lily-pads and sunken logs. He stood, catching his breath, squinting in the fading light, trying to catch a glimpse of the girl on the horse.
"She comes here every night, you know."
Mick spun around. A diminutive woman, brown hair tied back, sat on a boulder, hidden in the shadows, her knees drawn up to her chest. She was thinner than the photographs her parents had given him, dark circles under her eyes, but unmistakably the same girl. Mick walked toward her, wishing his heart would stop pounding in his throat and smiled, wondering how he had missed seeing her. "Jenny? Jenny Mitchell?"
"Every night, she comes here," the girl said, continuing on as if Mick wasn’t there. Her voice was low and sad, too weary for someone so young. "I hear her wandering around behind the trailer, too, crying. She’s lonely. So lonely."
"Jennifer?" Mick cautiously extended his arm. She turned, her eyes red-rimmed and glassy. "My name is Mick Saurbier. I’ve been looking for you for a long time." He waited for a response, but got none. "Your parents want you to come home."
"I can’t go home," she said softly, turning back to the lake. "I can never go home again."
"Your folks think you can. Whatever happened between you is in the past. They want to work things out."
"No." Jenny sighed. A cold wind rustled the branches behind her, stirring the loose strands of hair peeking out across her high forehead. Mick stiffened, listening to the familiar thud of hoof beats against the hard-packed earth. He turned toward the sound but saw nothing, the skin on his neck prickling. The girl slid off the rock and walked down to the waterline, kneeling, stirring little circles with her fingertips. "I can’t leave her now. She’s so lonely."
"Jenny, there’s nobody here but us."
She kept making circles in the water, watching them fade away. Mick knelt beside her and took her by the wrist, pulling her back from the lapping water. She didn’t struggle, simply rose to her feet and stared across the darkening lake. Tears dampened her cheek, shining in the twilight.
"Let’s go somewhere and we can talk about it, okay" He led her toward the trail, walking backwards to keep from threatening her. He never saw the broad-shouldered figure step out of the trees, a thick, dry branch tight in hand. It whistled as he swung, cutting a fast arc, splintering against the back of Mick’s head. He rolled to the ground, bright points dancing in front of his eyes. The man with the stick stepped over him, the branch poised for the next strike.
"Didn’t you listen? She don’t want to go anywhere with you."
***
Bone Lake, Montana. 1883
No thought. No breath. Annie sputtered, flailing wildly, trying to find something to drag her out of the cold, cold water. It burned, fire against her skin, crushing bands of iron tight around her ribs. She gasped, unable to fill her lungs, her wet coat dragging her deeper into the horrible darkness. Beside her, the dun mare was swimming, panicked, already weakening. A drowned steer bobbed against Annie’s back. She spun around, clinging to the icy body.
"Annie! Give me your hand!"
Billy Conlin, lying face down on the floating mat of hay, reached out, leaning precariously across the frothing water. His lips were blue, his face deathly pale, but his grip was strong as he pulled her closer, struggling to get her out of the water and onto the slowly sinking raft. He drug her higher, water rolling around them.
He never saw Isaac raise the rifle to his shoulder, the bullet tearing though his chest, throwing him backwards into the lake. Blood spread in an oily film across the slush and broken ice. Annie turned her head, her muscles stiff with cold, watching as her husband put the rifle back in his scabbard and rode away. Too cold to cry, she tried to reach Billy’s body, but her arm refused to move, the frigid water leaching up through the hay, sucking her down.
***
Mick rolled, the branch thudding beside him, shaking the ground. He clambered to his feet, ignoring the pain and dizziness, his mind racing to catch up to the attack. Swaying and unsteady, he backed away, his retreat blocked by the thick underbrush.
‘I don’t want any trouble."
‘Yeah?" The man raised the stick again. "Too bad, cause you just found some."
He swung harder, left to right and back again, wild and uncontrolled. Mick tripped over an exposed tree root, tumbling backwards into the water. It broke around him, washing over his face, the water so cold it stole his breath, forced every thought from his brain but to get out of the frigid weight crushing him. He tried to stand but there was nothing below his feet, only deep, black water. Down he went, unable to rise, his skin on fire as he sank. A slick tangle of water-logged trees caught his leg, rubbery branches tangled around his leg. Mick thrashed, desperate, to break free, ripping loose from the submerged trap. Gasping, he splashed to the surface, crawling hands and knees onto the silty shallows.
"You son of a bitch." Tim Garr stood on the rim glaring down, his face a demon’s mask in the fading light. "I told ‘em I’d kill any fucking cop who came around here."
"I’m not a cop." Mick pulled himself upright, standing in the knee deep water. "I just came here to talk to Jenny."
"Bullshit." Garr swung again, trying to reach Mick with the splintered club. "You bastards have been watching us all summer and I’m sick of it."
Arm stiff with cold, Mick reached into his coat and drew the Smith, his hands shaking violently as he leveled the barrel at Garr’s chest. The pistol felt impossibly heavy, as if gravity had suddenly doubled. Garr’s eyes widened, but instead of retreating, he jumped into the water, cold drops spraying out as he slogged through the muck.
"Draw on me, will you? Well fuck you!"
"Stay back." Mick’s teeth chattered as he pulled the hammer, the cylinder advancing with a satisfying click. "Stay the hell back."
The club whisked past his face, the wind warm against his skin. Tim Garr swung again and again, beating the air in front of him, murderous intent in every strike. He was enraged, driven by anger and the meth lodged in his tightly-wound nerves. Mick felt the fallen log behind his legs, stopping him. Garr stepped forward, the stick behind his shoulder, twisting at the waist for more power. Mick pulled the trigger.
The muzzle flash was blinding and quick in the darkness, the Smith jumping in his hand. He had never shot anyone before, never even drawn his gun in defense, and now that he had was surprised at how little he felt. No fear, no triumph, simply relief as Garr twisted, driven by the bullet’s force, landing face down in the water. The body went down, blood spreading as he bobbed to the surface, the exit hole a sticky red stain between his shoulders. The waves animated the body, arms and legs moving long after life had fled. Mick floundered to the shore and pulled himself up, shaking with cold, sick to his stomach as the adrenaline left his system.
He thought about pulling Garr out of the lake, but couldn’t. Colder than he had ever been in his life, he set the pistol beside him and turned to find Jenny. A loud splash to his left pulled his eyes back to the lake. Jenny was wading hip deep toward the deep water, screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Billy! Stop!" She nearly tripped over Tim Garr’s floating corpse, ignoring him as she struggled toward the center of the lake. Without warning, she shot down, falling off the shallows, breaking water a few seconds later, gasping, her arms beating the water, a sick, slapping noise as she fought to stay above the surface. "Billy!"
Mick shut his eyes, his body recoiling at the mere thought of the icy water. He drew a quick breath, then stumbled back into the lake, falling headfirst in a clumsy dive, trying to reach the girl before she went under. Ice closed around him, his arms and legs refusing to obey. His hand closed around her collar, but he couldn’t find the strength to pull her to shore. He sank, tiny bubbles popping out his nose, the dull realization that he was dying swirling in his brain as the water took him down.
Something brushed against him, a surging, powerful body, sharp hooves gouging his legs. Too dark to see, Mick fumbled instinctively for the animal as it passed, grabbing the saddle horn. Still clutching Jenny’s collar he clung tight, the horse lunging to shore, eyes white-rimmed as the mare struggled up the steep bank. Mick felt dirt beneath him and let go, Jenny falling on top of him, too exhausted to move. He hit the ground, staring up into a pair of sad, dark eyes, the girl riding the horse as transparent as frost on a winter morning. She smiled once, the crescent moon shining through her.
Then she was gone.
Mick lay on the stony ground, weak and shivering, water running off his clothes, turning the dirt around them to mud. He forced himself to his feet, pulling Jenny with him, slapping her softly to revive her. Dazed, she stumbled with him, leaning against him. Mick kept them on the trail refusing to stop, refusing to think about what had happened. Time enough for that later. Later when they were dry. Later when they were warm, the lake’s cold bite cleansed from their bodies. He could wonder then, wonder and mourn the life he had taken and the dead that had saved them. Up the slope they moved, warming with the exertion, away from the black, silent lake. Jenny whimpered, a pathetic animal sob, shock only a few degrees away. He let her rest a moment, catching his own breath as the trail steepened, the wind moaning through the trees.
Far in the distance, he heard hoof-beats fading softly into the night..
***