Chapter 3 - The Edge of Hawthorne RidgeThe road ended beside a line of tall pine trees.
Preston helped Madison out of the car and guided her toward the viewpoint.
The wind had strengthened. Far below, a river cut through the canyon like a silver thread.
Madison wrapped her coat around her body.
“We should go back.”
“One picture,” Preston said. “The last photograph of us before we become parents.”
He positioned her near the stone barrier.
Madison looked toward the empty trail.
“Where is everyone?”
“The weather probably scared them away.”
Preston held up his phone.
“Move a little closer to the edge.”
Madison did not move.
A cold feeling spread through her chest.
“Preston, give me my phone.”
“What?”
“My phone. You never returned it.”
“It’s at the cabin.”
“Then let’s leave.”
She turned toward the car.
Preston caught her wrist.
The movement was fast enough to frighten her.
“You’re hurting me.”
He released her immediately.
For one second, they stared at each other.
Madison saw something unfamiliar in his eyes.
Not anger.
Calculation.
She slowly stepped away from him.
“What is happening?”
Preston looked toward the cliff and then back at his wife.
“You were never supposed to ask questions.”
Madison’s breathing became shallow.
She placed one hand over her stomach.
“The baby is moving.”
“Stop.”
“Our child is frightened because I’m frightened.”
Preston’s expression tightened.
“Don’t use the baby to manipulate me.”
Madison could barely believe what she was hearing.
She began moving toward the car, but Preston blocked the trail.
“You’re in debt,” she said. “That’s why Dad kept calling.”
Preston laughed without humor.
“Your father has always thought I wasn’t good enough.”
“This isn’t about him.”
“It has always been about him. His company. His money. His rules.”
Madison looked over his shoulder and saw the headlights of a vehicle briefly appearing through the trees.
Celeste’s rental car.
The truth arrived all at once.
The secret messages. The unexplained absences. Celeste’s sudden knowledge of private family matters.
“You’re having an affair with her.”
Preston said nothing.
Madison backed toward the stone barrier.
“You brought me here because of the insurance policy.”
“You should have trusted me,” he said.
“I did.”
“That was your mistake.”
A low mechanical sound moved across the sky.
Neither of them looked up.
A county rescue helicopter was returning from a training mission. Because of the approaching storm, its pilot had activated the aircraft’s thermal and high-definition cameras to monitor the ridge.
The camera captured two figures near the cliff.
It captured Preston moving forward.
It captured Madison raising her hands.
And it captured him pushing her.
Madison fell backward beyond the barrier.
But she did not fall directly into the canyon.
Her coat caught on a twisted pine branch growing from a narrow ledge several feet below. The branch slowed her fall before breaking, dropping her onto a shelf of rock hidden beneath the viewpoint.
Pain shot through her side, but she remained conscious.
Above her, Preston looked over the edge.
Madison pressed herself against the rock and covered her mouth.
From his position, he could not see the ledge.
He waited.
Then he picked up her scarf, threw it into the canyon, and walked away.
Madison heard the car engine start.
She tried to call for help, but her phone was miles away.
Rain began falling.
The ledge was narrow, and darkness covered the canyon. Madison knew that if she lost consciousness, she and her unborn child might not survive the night.
She whispered to the baby.
“Stay with me.”
Minutes later, a beam of light swept across the cliff.
The rescue helicopter had returned.
The camera operator had reviewed the footage and alerted the pilot.
A rescue worker descended on a cable through the rain.
When he reached Madison, she was shaking but conscious.
“My husband,” she whispered. “He tried to kill us.”
“You’re safe now,” the rescuer said.
Madison looked at the camera attached to his helmet.
“Did you see him?”
May you like
The rescuer nodded.
“We saw everything.”
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