They drove in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts. Lake Calumet lay to the south of the city and had once been a busy shipping station and industrial centre. When business declined, it became a landfill site, but even that had proved unsustainable. Now it was just an abandoned industrial wasteland in the shadow of the Bishop Ford Freeway, popular only with migratory birds and the occasional intrepid birdwatcher.
It was a place Kassie had heard of, but never visited. And as they rolled up the rough track to the chain link perimeter, ignoring the ‘Danger! Keep out!’ signs, Kassie could see why. A huge, derelict grain elevator, skeletal and sad, stood guard over a plethora of abandoned industrial buildings. A relic of former prosperity, the whole place was now forlorn, decaying and probably dangerous, numerous signs on the fence warning of toxic chemicals buried within the landfill site.
It was impossible not to feel sad when taking in the decrepit spot, but the sight of a bald eagle circling overhead reminded Kassie of why they were here. Playing nervously with the hem of her sleeve, she stole a look across at Adam. She could tell he was feeling the same as her – he looked very tense, repeatedly drumming his fingers on the steering wheel.
The car rolled to a stop and Adam killed the engine. Pocketing the keys, he peered out at the ominous sight beyond.
‘We’ll take a quick look and if we see anything suspicious, we’ll call it in,’ he said quickly, making to open his door.
He turned to her, as she laid a hand on his arm.
‘You’ve done what I asked. You should go home now.’
Adam was about to protest, but she talked over him:
‘Whatever’s out there, I can face it alone.’
‘Give me some credit, Kassie,’ he replied, dismissively.
‘I know you never wanted any of this, that I’ve caused you nothing but trouble.’
‘I’m not letting you do this alone.’
‘Please, Adam,’ Kassie insisted. ‘You have a wife, responsibilities. Go home to Faith, let me finish what I started.’
‘I said I would do this last thing for you and I will. There’s no question of me leaving you here alone …’
He gestured to the desolate wasteland.
‘But if this proves fruitless, if you’re wrong, I want you to promise that you will let me help you. We can get you some residential care perhaps.’
‘Agreed, but –’
‘Then let’s get on with it. We’re wasting time.’
Adam’s words pricked her conscience – every second could cost Madelaine dear – but still she hesitated. Was this fair? Could she really do this? But Adam had already climbed out, circling round to the trunk of his car, and reluctantly Kassie followed suit. He rejoined her swiftly, having found a flashlight. The sun was nearly below the horizon now and soon they would be lost to the darkness.
‘Let’s do this.’
He marched off and Kassie hurried after him. They followed the tall, imposing fence until they found the main gates. They were solid, well-made structures, designed to keep out metal thieves, and were secured with a large padlock. They walked towards the forbidding barrier, wondering how they might gain access, but as Adam’s flashlight beam fell on the padlock, they immediately saw that it was broken. Adam flipped it out of its holding to examine it more closely, then showed it to Kassie – one arm of the padlock had been cut clean through, presumably with bolt cutters.
‘Doesn’t mean anything,’ Kassie mumbled. ‘Could be thieves …’
Adam didn’t look like he believed this any more than she did, but to his credit he held his nerve, yanking the gates open. They walked slowly on, passing an old warehouse. The dying sun cast weird shadows over the ground, and on more than one occasion Kassie felt she saw the outline of a man. But it was just her mind playing tricks on her, or so she told herself. On they went, past stacks of abandoned packing cases, deserted grain stores and empty offices, walking in silence, their eyes raking the site for wooden outbuildings.
‘Do you think we should kill the flashlight?’ Kassie said suddenly. ‘I mean, if there is someone here and they see our beam …’
Adam was looking at Kassie as if she had finally gone mad, but, reluctantly conceding the point, switched it off.
‘There’s probably enough light from the freeway for us to make our way.’
‘Ok,’ Adam replied, sounding a little less than convinced. ‘But stay close.’
They pressed on, pushing deeper into the site. The buildings were closer together here and they were forced down a narrow alleyway. Kassie kept tight to Adam, her eyes roving the darkness. Surely they would be at the water’s edge soon and then –
Suddenly someone lunged at her. A dark shadow coming straight for her. With a half-scream, she stumbled back into Adam’s arms, a hand up to protect herself … but it was just a startled pigeon, flapping its shabby wings as it fled up and away into the night, fodder perhaps for the circling eagles.
‘Sorry,’ Kassie whispered, as she righted herself.
Why she was whispering she couldn’t say. But she had a knot of tension in her stomach and something was telling her to be watchful. Stealing her way to the end of the alleyway, she peered around the corner and finally she saw the lake. It looked like a large, black spot on the landscape, framed by the towering freeway, a dystopian image of decline and decay. It sent a chill down her spine, but screwing up her courage she emerged from the alleyway and took a couple of faltering steps forward.
Even as she did so, she felt a firm hand restraining her. Adam pulled her back into the shadows and directed her attention to a small building that stood a little further along on the edge of the lake. It was a shack of some kind, old and weatherbeaten, and wouldn’t have looked any different to the other abandoned structures on site, except for the fact that a dancing light emanated from within. More intriguing still was the SUV that was parked in the shadows beside the shack.
‘Do you think that’s Madelaine’s?’ Kassie gasped, pointing at the vehicle.
Adam shrugged, but Kassie thought she knew the answer. She turned back to the shack, which stood in glorious isolation by the lake, utterly alone save for the dozens of birds nesting on the surrounding wetlands. This was it then. They had found Madelaine. And if they wanted to save her, it was now or never.