But more trees were falling ahead of her. There was no way she could make it through. She jammed on the brakes to avoid smashing into one of the junipers as it crashed to earth directly in front of her. The Jeep fishtailed madly. Annabel spun the wheel, trying to bring the vehicle under control. She spotted an opening in the trees and tried to point the Jeep toward it. She was going to have to leave the road and try to make her way across country. With any luck, she could rejoin the road farther down the valley.
That was the plan, anyway. The Jeep shot off the road and was airborne for a split second as it hurtled over a ditch at the side of the road. Then it landed with a bounce, slid sideways, and started to tip over. Annabel had been in such a hurry earlier she hadn't fastened her seat belt, and suddenly she felt herself thrown into the air like a rag doll.
She spun crazily, with blackness and flames alternating around her, willing herself to go limp.
Then she hit the ground, and the flames seemed to go away. All Annabel was aware of was the blackness of night, welling up and engulfing her . . .
Chapter 2
The coughing woke her up.
Spasms shook her body so violently that she had no choice except to regain consciousness. With returning awareness came the heat, fierce waves of it breaking over her. Annabel forced her head up and her eyes open.
Flames were all around her, making the burning forest as bright as high noon. Smoke clogged the air and her lungs. The paucity of oxygen made her want to draw deeper breaths, but she knew that to do so would only force more of the smoke into her body. She fought down the impulse.
She looked around and spotted the overturned Jeep about ten yards away. It wasn't going to do her any good. Being thrown clear was the only thing that had saved her life, she realized. If she had been belted into the vehicle it would have landed on top of her, crushing her.
But that freakish bit of luck wasn't going to her any good unless she could somehow get away from the flames. Annabel pushed herself onto her hands and knees, then heaved herself to her feet. She staggered a couple of steps to one side before she was able to catch herself. Her head was spinning. She laid her hand on the trunk of a tree that had not yet caught fire, bracing herself there for a few seconds until things settled down inside her brain. She tried to take stock of herself. There didn't seem to be any broken bones, and she had feeling in all her extremities. No injuries other than minor cuts and bruises.
If she could find a stream, she might be able to use it for refuge from the flames. She tried to remember the details of the park and wished she'd had a chance to study a map of the area before venturing out here.
One thing was certain: If she stayed where she was, she would die. Movement was the key to her survival.
She stumbled away from the tree where she had been leaning. After only a couple of steps, she tripped on something and almost fell. She looked down and saw the portable radio. Moving carefully so as not to lose her balance, she bent over and picked it up. It hadn't been working earlier, but maybe it was now. Maybe she could call for help.
She turned the volume knob all the way up so she could hear over the crackling and roaring of the flames. At first there was only static from the radio, but then Annabel caught a few words in a distorted voice. She pressed the radio against her ear and waited for the voice to speak again.
"Tango One-Niner, come back."
That was Earl's voice, Annabel thought excitedly. He was calling Captain McPhee.
". . . firebreak established . . . under control. . . pretty bad for a few . . . One-Niner.
And that was Captain McPhee himself. The transmission was cutting in and out, but Annabel had heard enough of it to know that the smoke-jumpers were all right. They must have been on the ground before the wind shift hit. They would have found themselves facing a bigger job than they expected, but clearly, they had coped with it just fine.
Earl's voice came again, ". . .can't find . . . Jeep's gone . . . ."
They were talking about her, Annabel realized. Earl must have gotten up to the summit of Mount Diablo somehow. That was probably where he was now.
She pressed the transmit button and said, "Earl! Earl, I'm here! I'm all right, but I need help!"
". . . could she have gone?"
". . . the canyon, maybe. I'll go . . .".
"Stay where you are, Tabor. . . an order."
Earl wanted to come looking for her, and McPhee was ordering him not to. That was the right thing to do, Annabel suddenly realized. She didn't want Earl or any of the other smoke-jumpers risking their lives because of her recklessness.
She keyed the mike again and said, "Guys, I'm all right. I'll try to make it to the firebreak at the other end of the canyon. Keep an eye out for me."
There was no response. Judging by that, and the exchange she had overheard earlier, her transmissions weren't making it out of the canyon. This unit definitely had a problem, and getting thrown out of the Jeep probably hadn't helped it.