Buried Alive! Read Free Page B

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    â€œMaybe we should go tell Mom and Dad now,” she suggested. “They can still get a look at it, even if it’s moving away.”
    â€œNah, don’t bother. They’re all hung up on the wolverine stuff.” Jack didn’t feel like sharing the moose experience with his parents—or more truthfully, with his father. He wanted to develop these pictures, and if they turned out as great as he thought they might, he’d present them to his dad as proof that he could take some spectacular shots too—even if he didn’t have his dad’s experience or his expensive camera equipment.
    Once again his parents’ voices penetrated his consciousness. Olivia was saying, “A wolverine would rather run away than fight anything its size or larger. If they hunt anything, it’s usually ground squirrels. But lack of information is just one problem. The whole case has got me all turned around. For one thing, I don’t like the way those bodies were found.”
    â€œYou mean because the last two were next to snowmobile tracks?”
    â€œExactly. It doesn’t make sense, Steven. They’re such secretive animals, so why would they even come close to the trail? And two of them this last time…two males together? The fact is wolverine males are solitary. They keep to their own territories. I just don’t get it.”
    â€œWere they hit by the snowmobiles?”
    â€œThe report says there are absolutely no signs of impact. The last two bodies are at Kantishna. I’ll know more when I examine them, but it appears they weren’t hit. It’s just baffling.”
    Jack knew about the report. After they’d arrived in Anchorage, they’d driven directly to Denali, found the house they were to stay in, then quickly unpacked before heading to the ranger station, where his mother had been given a packet with pictures of the dead animals. Now he heard a rustling as his mother handed some papers to his father.
    â€œâ€¦deaths are compounded by another sad statistic,” she was saying. “This report says wolverine young have a very high mortality rate—up to 30 percent.”
    â€œFrom humans hunting them?” Steven asked.
    â€œNo. Unrelated adults appear to be killing the kits of other wolverines. But 30 percent! That’s a huge amount to lose. Which underscores how the wolverine population can’t afford the loss of apparently healthy adults. They’ll be in serious trouble if we don’t get a handle on this.”
    â€œNature can be cruel,” he told her. “Although I must admit I’ve thought about eating my own young once or twice.”
    â€œSteven!”
    He just laughed. A beat later he said, “I still think nature can’t hold a candle to the viciousness of the human race. Look at Nicky’s situation.”
    Olivia dropped her voice low. “Seriously, what could be more savage than that? The whole thing makes me sick.”
    Jack and Ashley exchanged glances. Both of them knew they weren’t supposed to be hearing this. Every time they asked about Nicky, they were told his life was “confidential.” Yet here was a chance for them to find out something—maybe just a little. After all, they were the ones who had to put up with Nicky Milano, man of mystery.
    â€œIt’s true—those people have ice in their veins,” Steven was saying. “They have no conscience. All things considered, I think taking Nicky was for the best.”
    Ashley had begun to creep forward so she could hear better, but Jack grabbed her by the arm. Any motion might alert their parents, who would be really angry if they caught the two of them eavesdropping.
    â€œI agree, but I have to admit I’m still worried,” Olivia continued. “What about Ashley and Jack? When it’s all said and done, they are our first priority. Are you sure they’ll be safe?”
    â€œOlivia,