CRYSTAL CAVERN Page 1

Sable Chamberlin awakened to the sound of her own voice as it spiraled across the room. Her eyes flew open and she sat up, sucking in air between clenched teeth, stumbling from the sofa where she had fallen asleep. The tendrils of the nightmare clung to her. She clamped her fingers over her lips to keep from crying out again. Gradually, the familiar surroundings of her living room brought the world back into focus.

"It was a dream," she whispered. "A dream." She murmured the familiar litany Grandpa had given her when she was a child. "Dreams will always go away, then everything will be okay."

She waited for the relief those words had brought her in years past, but this time it didn't work. The nightmare was too close, and after months of struggle it seemed to be haunting her even more often.

And Grandpa wasn't around to make the truth of his words stick.

She stumbled through the dimness of the living room to the kitchen, rubbing her eyes, wishing she could sleep for the next month. Instead of turning on the overhead light, she peered out the window into the darkening sky over the small town of Freemont, Oklahoma. There must be a February storm coming in.

For the past six-and-a-half months, she had tried to accept this place as her new home, but the only reason she had even come here in the first place was to be near Grandpa.

Now Grandpa was dead.

Her true home was deep in the Missouri Ozarks, on the old farm that held so many memories—most of them good.

"Grandpa," she whispered, her voice wobbly with the tears that had hovered near the surface all week, all through the funeral, all through the press of loving relatives surrounding her and her mother and brothers.

Clouds roiled outside, and she dashed the tears from her face as she saw a flash of lightning. As distant thunder began to roll across the sky, she was startled by the beep of her cordless telephone.

She gasped, then snatched it up, annoyed by her own jittery nerves. "Yes!"

"Sable, is that you?"

She shivered in the freezing room. She should have turned the heat up when she arrived here an hour ago. "Noah." Relief.

"What're you doing back in Freemont?" demanded her elderly friend.

"You know," she said. She still had to clear Grandpa's name. Josiah Kessinger's death on Monday—five days ago—had somehow opened the floodgates on a nasty rumor that he had defrauded some locals—Noah included—of their hard-earned savings. It was crazy, of course, but since Grandpa Josiah wasn't a native of this small, tightly knit mining community, he made an easy target for blame.


"You should've stayed in Missouri," Noah snapped.

Sable shivered, still fighting off the remnants of the recurring nightmare that had haunted her these past few months.

"But never mind that," Noah said. "I got this delivery while you were gone. I think you'll want to come out and see it. I'd bring it in, but I've got my truck in town getting the brakes fixed."

"What kind of delivery are you talking about?" she asked, dabbing one last tear from her face.

"Big package. You know, big manila envelope."

"And ...there's a reason you need me to see it?"

"It's addressed to you."

"To me? Why is it—"

"It was sent in care of my address, but you're the person listed on the attention line. It's there, clear as day. It says, `Doctor Sable Chamberlin.' I figure it's something important. I was going to forward it on to Missouri, but I thought I'd call your apartment one more time before I sent it. How's your family holding up after the funeral?"

"Not well, Noah." She glanced at the digital clock on the stove. It was just 6 p.m. Why did she feel as if she were taking a medical call in the middle of the night? Because she'd been driving for six hours, and she was tired.

" 'Specially you, huh?" Noah said.

"Especially me." She'd been closer to Grandpa than anyone else, even Mom. "Who's the package from?"

"Josiah."

"Grandpa?"

"It's his writing, I can tell you that. No name on the return address, but it's Eagle Rock, Missouri, sure enough."

Fresh grief mingled with the hovering sense of horror that had convinced Sable to leave Oklahoma forever—just as soon as she got to the bottom of the nasty rumors.

She knew it couldn't be true. Josiah Kessinger would never willingly injure another living soul. It was true that he'd been strapped for money—it was the reason he'd come down here in the first place, to join an old buddy in a mining venture with the promise of riches. Grandpa and his dreams...

"Noah, could you open the envelope? If it's something important, I'll drive out to your place now." Sable looked down at the telephone recorder, which she had programmed to record every one of her conversations. Grandpa had given it to her two weeks ago, along with a stern warning to use it at all times.

Over the telephone she heard a ripping sound. Noah muttered something unintelligible under his breath, and then she heard an exclamation of surprise.

"Oh ...Lord, help us all."

"Noah? What is it?"

Noah continued his muttering, as if he were reading out loud to himself.

Sable waited. She knew better than to rush Noah Erwin through anything. He'd been a patient of hers since her second day on the job, and he was nothing if not deliberate. In the past six months, he'd also become the most important human influence in her life. Because of Noah, she and Grandpa had found hope for the future and a whole new reason for living.


Fresh out of family practice residency in Tulsa, Oklahoma, she had taken the job in Freemont to be closer to Grandpa. His business partner, Otis Boswell, had made a special effort to fly her down on a chartered jet, gave her the grand tour of the town of three thousand, and impressed upon her how much they all needed a new physician.

Amazing how different the dream was from real life. As the designated company physician for Boswell Mining, she had endured six months of long hours and low pay, but she'd been determined to stick with her first job, in spite of Grandpas apparent displeasure with her decision.

"Sable? You still there?" Noah finally came back on the line.

"I'm here." Her voice cracked with weariness.

"You better come out here." There was a hush in his voice.

"Why? What is it?"

She heard a rustle of papers over the line. "I'll tell you this much," he said, obviously reluctant to speak. "Looks like something big's been going on. I knew he was up to something, but the old rascal never was much for sharing his thoughts."

"Something big like what?"

There was a long silence.

"You should see the stuff he's dug up," Noah said finally. "All kinds of papers and letters about dirty deals, pictures, medical reports."

"Dirty deals? What kind of—"

"There's big bucks involved, that's obvious. Big, big bucks. And Sable? Better brace yourself, young lady. There's a note to you."

"I'll be right out."

"Better pack to leave," Noah said. "Come to think of it, maybe I oughta pack, myself. Here's one of those sticky notes. Says these are all copies. Originals back in Missouri. Have you got any idea where that might—" He broke off.

Sable heard a rustle of movement over the line. "Noah?"

"Just a minute." He spoke in his normal voice now. "Thought I heard something."

She felt another chill. "If you think—"

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