Part 16 (1/2)

”I didn't say I saw him. I said I thought I saw him. Woodie Keenan looks just like him from behind. And you know, in detective stories, they say that you can't disguise the way someone looks from behind. The way they stand and walk always gives them away.”

Kristy said, ”But I don't think Woodie is wearing a disguise. How could Karl Tate make himself look that young?”

Charlie said, ”Kristy. You guys! Let's get going.”

”I know what I saw,” Claudia said stubbornly.

”What you thought you saw,” said Kristy. She paused. ”We need to tell Charlie and Sam what's going on. But let's concentrate on getting out of here first. We'll tell them at the lodge.” She ran into the house where Charlie and Sam and Woodie were waiting.

I waited until the place had aired out some, then went inside and packed my knapsack. Fortunately, there was a break in the storm, enough to see the trail along the lake and the bright blue Shadow Lake trail markers.

”Stay together,” Charlie said sternly. He handed around the flashlights ”just in case,” while Kristy packed the emergency flares in her backpack. She also put matches in watertight bags and zipped those into the pocket of her ski parka.

Charlie went on, ”If you lose sight of the person ahead of you, yell immediately. And loudly. And don't go off the trail. Shadow Lake is frozen, but it is dangerous. There's lots of thin ice above the underground springs that feed it.”

He didn't have to warn us twice. I personally planned on staying right on top of whoever was in front of me. Abby of the Yukon I am not.

I saw Sam pat Stacey rea.s.suringly on the shoulder. Stacey didn't jump or act startled. Hmmm. Must have worked that one out, I thought.

It was slow, hard going. The snow was over the tops of my snow boots. I had laced them over my pants legs and put on my ski pants for extra warmth, but I could feel the snow seeping in and melting, and making my clothes cold and wet. We had to lift our feet high for each step. I tried to step into Claudia's footprints, since she was walking ahead of me. Poor Charlie, I thought. Being the trailbreaker couldn't be any fun.

Amazing that the snow had filled up Woodie Keenan's snowshoe tracks so fast. Charlie could have used those.

Something crashed through the woods behind me. Claudia looked over her shoulder. Her eyes widened. ”Abby! Look out! It's him! It's Karl Tate!”

And from out of the swirling whiteness of the blizzard, a dark form hurtled toward us from behind. He shouted something I couldn't understand.

I stooped, grabbed a chunk of ice, and threw it at him. It docked him right in the head. He reeled back and fell. His face looked truly deranged.

That won't stop him long, I thought frantically. I wasn't going to be able to hold him off with s...o...b..a.l.l.s. I needed a rock. A big rock. Or maybe a big stick. I looked around desperately.

”Run!” screamed Claudia.

And then someone else came running through the woods from one side.

”Freeze!” a voice ordered. ”Don't move!”

Kris Renn skidded to a stop in a spray of snow, and half-crouched, her arms up and her hands gripping a gun.

I let go of the branch I had grabbed (unfortunately, it was still attached to the tree) and held up my hands.

Karl Tate didn't move. Slowly, Renn took one hand off the gun and reached in her pocket. She pulled out a badge. ”Detective Kris Renn,” she said to me. ”Special Unit. Put your hands down. It's him I'm interested in.”

”It was you I saw in the woods with a gun,” Stacey said.

”I've been on his trail for some time,” Detective Renn explained. ”He's violated the terms of his parole by leaving Connecticut, among other things.” She bent over, put handcuffs on him, and sat him upright. She looked at the red mark on his head. ”Hmm,” she said, glancing at me. ”Good aim.”

”I'm the a.s.sistant coach of a softball team,” I said inanely.

Kristy snorted. And then we all started laughing. It was such a relief. It had been Karl Tate after all. Karl Tate had been stalking the BSC, paying back the members who'd helped catch him by terrorizing them.

Funny. He didn't look like a terrorist, sagging against Detective Renn. He looked old and tired.

”I hope I didn't hurt him,” I said.

As if in answer, he groaned. His eyelids fluttered.

”Do you need help?” Stacey asked Renn.

The detective said, ”I can handle it. My cabin's just down this trail. I'll take him there until this storm blows over. I can radio the situation in.”

”Cool,” said Claudia.

”Would someone mind telling me what's going on?” asked Charlie.

”Well,” said Kristy.

Woodie asked, ”Is this a joke?”

”Tell us at the lodge,” said Charlie.

Detective Renn hauled Mr. Tate to his feet. He reeled like a drunken man on a subway train.

”Be careful,” she told us.

”We will,” I said. I flexed my arm. ”How about that pitch?” I boasted.

Claudia said, ”You are such a show-off.” But she was grinning. We were all relieved that1 Karl Tate had been caught. Now we could continue our weekend without fear.

”I'm planning on entering the Olympic Ice Hurling Event,” I said.

”Oh, brother,” said Kristy, and we set off down the trail for the lodge.

Chapter 22.

Mary Anne.

”Hide!” hissed Shannon.

We all dove for hiding places. I jumped behind the door. Logan crouched down behind a chair, and Shannon and Astrid crawled under the desk.

The kitchen door opened.

Had Mr. Tate come back? What would he do to us if he caught us?