Brink of Danger Read online

  Brink of Danger

  Fog Lake Suspense, Book 3

  Christy Barritt

  Copyright © 2019 by Christy Barritt

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Complete Book List

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Epilogue

  Also by Christy Barritt:

  The Other Fog Lake Suspense Books:

  The Lantern Beach Series:

  You might also enjoy …

  Holly Anna Paladin Mysteries:

  The Worst Detective Ever:

  About the Author

  Complete Book List

  Squeaky Clean Mysteries:

  #1 Hazardous Duty

  #2 Suspicious Minds

  #2.5 It Came Upon a Midnight Crime (novella)

  #3 Organized Grime

  #4 Dirty Deeds

  #5 The Scum of All Fears

  #6 To Love, Honor and Perish

  #7 Mucky Streak

  #8 Foul Play

  #9 Broom & Gloom

  #10 Dust and Obey

  #11 Thrill Squeaker

  #11.5 Swept Away (novella)

  #12 Cunning Attractions

  #13 Cold Case: Clean Getaway

  #14 Cold Case: Clean Sweep

  While You Were Sweeping, A Riley Thomas Spinoff

  The Sierra Files:

  #1 Pounced

  #2 Hunted

  #3 Pranced

  #4 Rattled

  The Gabby St. Claire Diaries (a Tween Mystery series):

  The Curtain Call Caper

  The Disappearing Dog Dilemma

  The Bungled Bike Burglaries

  The Worst Detective Ever

  #1 Ready to Fumble

  #2 Reign of Error

  #3 Safety in Blunders

  #4 Join the Flub

  #5 Blooper Freak

  #6 Flaw Abiding Citizen

  #7 Gaffe Out Loud

  #8 Joke and Dagger (coming soon)

  Raven Remington

  Relentless 1

  Relentless 2 (coming soon)

  Holly Anna Paladin Mysteries:

  #1 Random Acts of Murder

  #2 Random Acts of Deceit

  #2.5 Random Acts of Scrooge

  #3 Random Acts of Malice

  #4 Random Acts of Greed

  #5 Random Acts of Fraud

  #6 Random Acts of Outrage

  #7 Random Acts of Iniquity

  Lantern Beach Mysteries

  #1 Hidden Currents

  #2 Flood Watch

  #3 Storm Surge

  #4 Dangerous Waters

  #5 Perilous Riptide

  #6 Deadly Undertow

  Lantern Beach Romantic Suspense

  Tides of Deception

  Shadow of Intrigue

  Storm of Doubt

  Winds of Danger

  Lantern Beach P.D.

  On the Lookout

  Attempt to Locate

  First Degree Murder

  Dead on Arrival

  Plan of Action

  Carolina Moon Series

  Home Before Dark

  Gone By Dark

  Wait Until Dark

  Light the Dark

  Taken By Dark

  Suburban Sleuth Mysteries:

  Death of the Couch Potato’s Wife

  Fog Lake Suspense:

  Edge of Peril

  Margin of Error

  Cape Thomas Series:

  Dubiosity

  Disillusioned

  Distorted

  Standalone Romantic Mystery:

  The Good Girl

  Suspense:

  Imperfect

  The Wrecking

  Standalone Romantic-Suspense:

  Keeping Guard

  The Last Target

  Race Against Time

  Ricochet

  Key Witness

  Lifeline

  High-Stakes Holiday Reunion

  Desperate Measures

  Hidden Agenda

  Mountain Hideaway

  Dark Harbor

  Shadow of Suspicion

  The Baby Assignment

  The Cradle Conspiracy

  Nonfiction:

  Characters in the Kitchen

  Changed: True Stories of Finding God through Christian Music (out of print)

  The Novel in Me: The Beginner’s Guide to Writing and Publishing a Novel (out of print)

  Chapter One

  I’m there. In the crowd. People talk to me. Laugh with me. Give me high fives.

  I’m one of them. I blend in. That’s because I’m a part of this community. I fit.

  I glance around and see the people who’ve gathered on the mountainside. There’s a sense of excitement that zings through the air.

  I’ve felt it before. Whenever something new happens here in town, people get riled up. Yay for growth! Yay for tourism! Yay for more opportunities to get out of the red!

  I can’t blame people. I like to pay my bills also.

  But right now I have a bigger passion, a higher purpose.

  A smile curls my lips.

  I’m going to help people get what they deserve. Since nature hasn’t eliminated some of the worthless people of the world, I will. I like to help like that.

  Around me, the crowds jostle . . . still waiting for the big event. The sun peeks over the mountaintops, and the gorge stretches below. The parking lot behind me is full of vehicles.

  I haven’t seen this much excitement since the sky lift to Dead Man’s Bluff opened on the other side of town last month.

  The tourism rate here in Fog Lake has grown by 10 percent in the past year. That’s what the Visitors Council said, at least. Now people don’t come only for the water sports or the pretty fall colors. They come because there’s adventure to be found in these Tennessee mountains.

  I grip the wooden railing in front of me and stare at the zipline in the distance. I’m still waiting. Salivating. Feeling like the circus is coming to town.

  I’ve practiced looking surprised after the tragedy strikes.

  My bottom lip will drop. My eyes widen. I might even mutter unspeakable words beneath my breath.

  The one thing I can’t do is smile.

  But I’ll want to. Oh, will I want to. A
fter all, I’ve been planning this for weeks now. Every single move. I’ve done all the research. Figured out my timeline. My targets.

  Nothing has been done by chance or by accident.

  And it’s all led me to this moment.

  I smile—I can still do that right now because no one knows what’s to come.

  My dad taught me the importance of timing. Not many people know, but he was a lumberjack. Well, he was a certified arborist.

  Same difference.

  What I’d done was much like felling a tree. You have to make the right cuts in the right places, and, at the right time, the whole thing will come down in the direction you want it to fall.

  He also taught me patience. You can’t rush things. You have to trust that you did your job as you should, and, at the proper moment, your plan will come to fruition. You’ll get the payoff of a job well done.

  My mom, on the other hand, taught me the art of being subtle. Never be heavy-handed, she would say. Leave people guessing. Stay below the radar. She’d done that throughout her entire marriage to my dad.

  Both of them are dead now, but their memories live on in me. I’m like a sapling that grows over a grave, continuing the circle of life.

  My mom’s advice is why I plan on making people speculate. I don’t want to be obvious. What fun is there in that? Then the authorities would find me. I won’t accomplish what I want.

  Now, I like to think of myself as the Woodsman.

  That’s a nice nickname, isn’t it? Maybe that’s what I’ll call myself. Why not? No one else will. Because no one else will have any idea who I am.

  The question is: Will Ansley ever realize it? Will she ever realize that I’m doing all of this for her?

  It doesn’t matter. Again, the end goal is the important thing.

  No one else will know my plan . . . and, if they do find out, I’ll have to silence them—for good. I’ll wipe them out. And, just like the trees in the forest, they’ll cry out in silence with no one to speak for them.

  But I’ll sacrifice many to save the one.

  It’s the least I can do. I’m doing my part to make this world a better place. I’ll be misunderstood. But I don’t care.

  I grip the railing.

  Now I just wait.

  Chapter Two

  Ansley Wilder tightened her harness and flashed a grin at her fellow adventure guide, Thickie Anderson. Excitement laced her voice as she said, “I get to take the inaugural flight on the zipline today. It’s practically like being on a maiden voyage.”

  He scowled at Ansley. But Ansley had won this contest fair and square, so he shouldn’t complain.

  Thickie was his actual birth name, which pretty much made his parents sadistic. Who would name their child that? But, apparently, he’d been a big boy from birth—eleven pounds, as he liked to tell the story. Today, the man was solid, stocky, and short.

  “You know I should be the one doing this.” Thickie checked her harness and tugged especially hard as he tightened it around her legs.

  Ansley ignored him and readjusted the radio in her pocket. She’d need it in order to communicate with the crew after she reached the platform on the other side of the gorge. Behind them, she could see the rest of the team getting ready—the other guides who would zip over the line after her. They all needed to be in place for opening day.

  Dustin Wiggins, the owner of Mountaintop Adventures, should be joining them any time. He was probably in his office right now counting his profit. This new course had been an expensive venture, but it should have a big payoff. They were sold out for weeks.

  “You’re the one who decided to make a contest out of this,” Ansley reminded Thickie, taking a step back as a rush of nerves swept through her. Feeling some nerves kept her fresh, kept her on her toes. “I won because you couldn’t take the heat.”

  “It was a staring contest.” Thickie scowled again, his expression still dark and unhappy. He tugged at the red cap he always wore backward. It helped hold his long, dark hair out of his face. “I thought we were joking.”

  “I never joke about these things.” Ansley winked.

  The wind swept across the mountaintop, a brisk reminder that fall was in full swing. It was only early October, but the leaves around her were already starting to turn, and the temperature had eased from sweltering to pleasant.

  It was the perfect day for this event.

  “Are we ready?” Ansley asked.

  Thickie nodded toward the cable that stretched from the wooden platform into what appeared to be a vast expanse of nothing. “The question is are you ready? Everyone is here watching and waiting for our test pilot to give her approval.”

  “The sooner we get this over with, the sooner all these adventure seekers can get their thrill on. We’re scheduled to take our first guests in,” she glanced at her watch, “twenty-eight minutes.”

  Ansley stared out into the great unknown. Even standing here was exhilarating, and not for the faint of heart. If someone had a fear of heights? This wasn’t the adventure for them.

  This new zipline was one of the most extreme in the Smoky Mountain area. The cable, nearly a mile long, stretched across the Dry Bones Gorge. The gorge itself dropped nearly 150 feet to the river, where tubers and whitewater rafters could be spotted—only they looked the size of toys so far below.

  Ansley would glide across the cable to the next platform on the other side of the gorge. When she arrived, Thickie would follow. There were six platforms all daisy-chained together, and each needed to be tested and manned.

  This was going to be a fun day here at Mountaintop Adventures.

  Ansley had worked there for the past three years, and the old zipline courses no longer excited her. She could practically do them with her eyes closed.

  This one? It got her heart racing. She’d been across a couple of times already, but each morning the crew had to inspect the lines to make sure there was no damage from the night before.

  “Don’t forget—fear can be healthy,” Thickie reminded her, hooking her trolley to the cable above and casting her a knowing look.

  “Fear is a crutch.” Ansley flashed a grin. She didn’t need a lecture from Thickie. She’d worked here longer than he had, and, as a local, she knew this area like the back of her hand. “Let’s do this!”

  Before he could say more, Ansley ran from the platform and launched into the air. The trolley above her caught, and she whizzed across the steel cable stretching through the air.

  For a moment, her head swirled at the enormity of the space around her. At the vastness of being surrounded by nothing but air. At the thrill of danger that came with being on the zipline, suspended and free.

  Endless miles of mountains stretched in the distance. Fog Lake could barely be seen to the south of her. Below, a small river that formed the gorge rushed with fury.

  Visitors were going to love this attraction.

  Ansley stared straight ahead at the landing where she’d stop in a minute. Normally, a coworker would be there waiting for her to ensure she stopped correctly. But someone had to be the first one across.

  Thankfully, she knew what she was doing. She’d tighten her handbrake and slow down before she got too close. Otherwise, she’d ram into the landing at the end.

  A rush of exhilaration swept through her. It didn’t matter how often she did this, she loved the adrenaline surge.

  She was halfway across the cable, nearly in the middle of the gorge.

  As her trolley continued to whiz above her, something shifted.

  Ansley sucked in a breath, her senses on full alert.

  She must be imagining things.

  But she knew she wasn’t.

  She’d done this enough to know that something didn’t feel right.

  She just needed to make it to the landing, and then she could check out the zipline.

  Concern coursed through her.

  Ansley felt another slight shift.

  What was that? She grabbed the radio from h
er belt and squeezed the button.

  “Guys, I think something is wrong,” she muttered into the device.

  “What do you mean?” Thickie asked.

  Another shift made the hair on Ansley’s neck rise.

  It was almost like . . . the cable above her was slowly being plucked apart.

  Just as the thought entered her head, another pop filled the air.

  The tension above her broke.

  She plunged into air, into nothing.

  Her arms flailed, reaching for help.

  As the air left her lungs, her life flashed before her eyes.

  Ryan Philips slammed the door to the Fog Lake Fire Department SUV and paused in the parking lot. He inhaled deeply, letting the fresh mountain air fill his lungs.

  This area was quite the change from Philadelphia. A good change. A chance to start again using the lessons from his past to make him a better, wiser person.

  Or was he running from his mistakes?

  He shook his head. No, he’d left just as many mistakes behind here in Fog Lake when he left seven years ago as he had in Philly. Now it was time for things to return full circle.

  As the new fire chief in town, Ryan was ready for the responsibility that had been entrusted to him. He just prayed he didn’t let anyone down.

  He stepped toward the crowd in the distance, ready to make his first official appearance in town. Ryan had only arrived in Fog Lake last night. His first order of business was refamiliarizing himself with the town and the people here.