“Let’s call the police!” Sean said. He tried dialing 911 on his phone, but they had no reception. Ashley tried on her phone as well, but it was no use. She felt a strangled cry come up in her throat, but she forced it down. Sean’s face was contorted with fear.
“How were they able to get a signal on their cell phones and not us?”
“I don’t know. Maybe they had special phones? We’ll keep trying to call them, but for now, we have to get out of the open!” Ashley said.
They set out walking toward what looked like far-off hills. The landscape was nothing but scrub and dry as a bone. But Ashley knew they just had to keep walking until they reached the rocks. Then they could rest. In the meantime, without a flashlight, they couldn’t tell if there were holes in the ground or if something might be slithering around.
She swallowed hard. Her parched throat ached. Her head was pounding. Sean let out a groan.
Soon all she could focus on was the scuffing sound of their feet on the desert floor. She was desperately thirsty and knew Sean was too, but they had to focus on getting to cover.
“I love you, Ash,” Sean said.
“Love you too,” she answered.
The atmosphere was so still it was unreal. Besides the scuffing of their feet, Ashley now could hear her heart pounding in her chest and her labored breath. How much longer?
***
It seemed they were walking forever, but they finally reached a group of small hills and rock outcroppings. Although they were still incredibly thirsty, the moment they reached some shelter, relief set in.
They lay down by one of the rocks and took deep breaths.
Sean looked around to try to see where they were. It was still dark and hard to tell exactly what direction they were going in, but he surmised that they were on the eastern side of where they had come in. He tried calling the police again from his cell. He still had no reception, and now his battery read “low” on his phone.
“I’m going to look for a cave,” Ashley said.
She started to walk around the side of the rocks, grasping them as she went slowly around.
“Careful, Ash. Snakes, spiders—who knows what else must be all around here. I’m not so sure if you found a cave that we should go inside, anyway.”
“Just in case we need a place to hide,” she said. “And I’ll be careful.”
She walked about a third of the way around from where they were sitting and felt an opening in between two rocks. She cautiously approached it and felt some cool air when she got up to the opening. It definitely looked like a little cave in there. She decided to get Sean first before she went in.
As soon as they approached the small opening, Sean put a hand on her chest.
“Hold on,” he said.
He reached for his cell phone and turned on the flashlight. It was weak from the low battery, but he figured it was enough to initially check out the cave before they went in. He streamed the light across the floor of the cave.
There were medium-sized stones placed in a circle and what looked to be a fire pit in the middle. Off in a corner were some wooden poles with feathers on them, a few tools for digging, a small pile of wood, and metal containers. And, stacked against a wall on a wooden shelf, were some blankets.
“Someone’s using this,” he said.
“Wow,” Ashley said as she poked her head in. “I wonder who.”
“Maybe those people who kidnapped us,” he said.
“No, don’t think so,” she said. “They have that building they held us in. Why would they come to a cave? I think it’s someone else’s.”
She slowly walked in.
“Careful,” Sean warned.
“I need to rest, Sean. And there are blankets here, so at least we can get some sleep.” She walked over to the metal containers and opened one. “I think this is water.”
“Don’t drink it. We don’t know what it is,” Sean said.
She put her nose down to smell it.
No odor.
She dipped her finger in for just a drop and tasted it.
“It is water,” she said.
Sean walked over to the containers, and they both sniffed the liquid again, then each took a small drink. They each drank a full draw.
“Oh thank God, we can survive for a while longer,” Ashley said.
Then they went silent.
***
The enormity of their predicament washed over them again. They had no idea how many miles they were from civilization, off in the middle of the desert, in a cave, with water but no food. And no weapons should the owner of the cave return and was not happy about finding two strangers in there.
Sean had a terrible feeling in his heart. He reached for Ashley’s hand. He always wanted to be her protector but didn’t have a clue what to do now.
Ashley smiled weakly at him. “But at least we have water. And each other, right?”
All Sean could do was nod his head at her. He walked over and got the blankets and lay them on the floor, very carefully and praying there were no spiders in them.
“Let’s rest. We’re going to need it for whatever is ahead.”
Ashley stretched out on a blanket. Her whole body ached from exhaustion, physical and mental. It was surreal to be here in a cave in this arid landscape. There was a big chance they wouldn’t survive. But at least here they had a chance. Back in the building all tied up, they would have had none.
Sean was still standing, alert. His phone was nearly dead. They had Ashley’s phone, but soon her battery would go too. He choked back a sob.
Ashley reached her hand out for him. “Come lay down. We need some rest now.”
He lay down beside her, and they looked up at the ceiling. It was absolutely silent. No wind, no rustling of bushes, nothing.
“I could go for a big plate of your chicken parmigiana right now. With garlic bread,” he said.
“And I could go for some of your brownies right now, warm from the oven with a glass of milk,” she said.
“Or your buttery mac and cheese with all the crusty bits.”
“Or one of your buttermilk donuts.”
“We better stop torturing ourselves,” he said.
She sighed. “It’s normal to talk about food when you don’t have any. And I’m going to close my eyes and dream of your lemon tarts and your profiteroles.”
“Then how about your mom’s homemade meatloaf with gravy or your glazed short ribs?
A Shakespeare quote for Twelfth Night entered Ashley’s mind. “He is a heavy eater of beef. Me thinks it doth harm to his wit.”
Sean chuckled ruefully. They squeezed hands, and Ashley rolled over. Soon, exhaustion took its toll, and they were both asleep.
The cave was as quiet as a tomb, and the soft darkness was comforting. They were out of time, suspended in a surreal world.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ashley awoke with a jolt. She stared out into the opening of the cave. It was getting light. They’d slept the rest of the night away. She quietly crept to the opening and peered out at the landscape. Early morning shadows had distorted the images of the rocks again and painted the sand. She looked back at Sean, still asleep on the blanket. She’d wake him up in a few minutes, but first she wanted to go outside and look around.
She crept cautiously around the corner and took in the desert floor. It was still and vast. What had just looked like scrub in the harsh daylight looked like a woven blanket with shots of blue, gray, and dark purple in it. Shafts of light from above were rippling across the sand.
The early morning air was chilly, and she wrapped her arms around herself. It smelled fresh and clean and with a scent of sagebrush and peyote.
She turned around to head back and wake Sean. As she rounded the corner to the cave, she heard a muffled grunt, then a large foot come from behind the rock. She stopped breathing and ducked back around the corner.
“Who’s there?” the voice commanded.
There was nowhere to run, a
nd she wouldn’t leave Sean. She stepped out in full view with a defiant look on her face.
“Don’t you even think about—” she started to say.
The man in front of her looked shocked.
“Sani!” she yelled.
Ashley ran and gave him a big hug.
He hugged her back, then looked into her eyes. “I am so happy to have found you.”
“We were kidnapped.”
Sani said, “I know. It is a long story. We will talk about it. First we have to get to the police, then the protest. John will be arriving there soon.”
Ashley’s eyes were bugging out. “Sean’s in the cave. Let’s get him.”
Sean had woken up at the sound of the noise outside.
Just as Ashley and Sani went in, Sean was dashing out.
“Sani! What are you doing here?” Sean asked.
“I should ask you the same thing. How did you find my cave?” Sani said.
Ashley and Sean looked at each other.
“We should’ve known,” Ashley said. “It looked familiar.”
“Yeah, and thanks for the water. Don’t know what we would have done without it,” Sean said.
“You’re welcome. Now you can tell me all about it while we are on our way,” Sani replied.
***
They walked to Sani’s truck and got in, both explaining how they were kidnaped by a man named Zola and a woman named Olga and then brought to the large warehouse. And that they had gotten a call from “their man on the site” and told the protests were ramping up and that they had to go, leaving Ashley and Sean in the dark, tied up. They explained how they got out and walked for a long time until they saw the hills and rocks and discovered his cave.
“And here we are. We collapsed in here and drank your water and took a rest. We don’t know where we are or how far we are from civilization,” Sean said.
“But you must know. Where are we?” Ashley asked.
“You are about ten miles from the road. We will soon be out of here.” He kept his eyes peeled as he drove.
“Why did you come here?” Ashley asked.
“I come periodically to check up on that warehouse. I know people from the mining company use it and are always in there planning things and storing things. I come to keep an eye on them. I’m sure they don’t know about my cave and are not skilled to live out in the desert, so I can observe them and see what they are doing. It helps me and my people to keep an eye on what’s happening. They have given away many secrets here without knowing it. And when you went missing and had to check out of the hotel early, the police found your car by the side of the road. I asked around and thought about where you could be. Then a vision came to me that you had been brought here.”
“Zola and Olga are terrible people. And greedy. And they were on the phone to some guy at the proposed mining site who is obviously in on everything and told them to get to the protest. Plus, they are planning terrible things. We overheard a lot back in the building,” Ashley said.
Sani had a grave look on his face. “Tell me.”
They explained everything that they had heard. Sani looked more upset than ever.
“John is in danger,” Sani said. He drove faster.
“Try your cell phones now and call the police. Tell them we are heading to the mining site and to meet us there. There is no time to lose!”
Chapter Thirty
They took off down the highway at a high speed. The sky was very light now and the mountains in the distance were majestic.
Ashley got through to 9-1-1 and briefly explained what had happened and where they were going. The 9-1-1 operator asked her some more questions and the address of the site. Ashley gave it to her, then said, “We have to go now. Time is of the essence. Please send the police there!” and hung up.
Sean kept scanning the surroundings and glancing back to see if they were being followed. There was a car far back in the distance, but it was hard to tell who it might be. Sani gripped the wheel and kept speeding.
Ashley started to panic. “Aren’t you worried we will get pulled over?”
“I won’t stop,” Sani said. “And if they try to catch me, they can chase me to the site, and I’ll explain there. We can’t waste any more time!”
Ashley turned and looked at Sean. He put his fingers to his lips and stared back at her.
In a few miles, Sani turned right and took off down a side road. They drove for twenty minutes more, then started climbing up a mesa. Ashley could see many cars and trucks in the distance and a growing number of people.
Off to the left, there was another rise, and a long stream of people kept climbing toward the construction site. As they got closer, she could see a mass of protestors chanting and dancing together.
There were all kinds of people, Native Americans and all races, holding hands and peacefully singing with their hands held together.
Some had signs that read, “Leave our land alone” and “Please don’t hurt the Earth.” Some signs were more direct. “Greed is why you’re here,” “Shame on you!” and simply, “GO HOME!”
Ashley and Sean had never seen anything like this before. It was amazing. Her heart almost stopped. Then the tears came.
“Look at that,” Ashley said. “They are really committed to stopping this.”
Sani’s voice dropped to a near whisper. “Yes, they are. And rightly so.”
As soon as they reached the plateau, Sani pulled over, and they got out. There was a stage set up, and speakers were mingling and looked as if they were getting ready to talk. Sani took off and shouted back to them.
“Go close to the stage! Keep your eyes open and be careful. I’m going to look for John!”
Ashley and Sean walked to the edge of the stage and waited. They kept looking around nervously, but didn’t see Zola or Olga.
Ashley noticed that people from the mining company were at the back of the speakers, waiting for their turn to speak. They wore hardhats and had slogans on their shirts. But still no sign of Zola and Olga there.
She whispered to Sean, “Where is everyone from in the warehouse?”
“They’ve got to be here somewhere,” Sean said. “They’re probably hiding in the crowd, looking for John.”
People were mingling everywhere. Ashley glanced around again and noticed the crowd had increased substantially. She wasn’t good at numbers, but she estimated about five hundred-plus in the crowd.
Sean leaned in. “There must be about a thousand people here.”
“That much? I thought about five hundred—”
Just then, Sani got onstage. He stepped up to the microphone and spread his arms wide. The crowd quieted down.
“Welcome, my people. And welcome to all of you who came to support these precious native lands. Thank you.” He paused and scanned the crowd. “We are in crisis. Dunphy Mining Company wants to strip this land as far as the eye can see to mine it for their profit. We cannot let that happen. This land was where our ancestors roamed and where our families have raised their children. They say that it will bring much needed jobs to the area, and while that is a factor in their plan to go ahead with the mining, the price we will pay for the destruction to the land will be far greater than the jobs we will gain. They say the mines will also put money back into the economy, but most of the money will go to their corporation and others that they do business with, not us. They will enrich themselves at the expense of all of us, not only the Native Americans, but all of the other residents of many backgrounds who are from this area and have made a home here. They plan to pay a low minimum wage that won’t make any of the laborers rich. And the jobs will only be temporary, until they have depleted these hills, then they will take all their machinery and leave the land scarred and barren. Most of you already work in the surrounding towns, anyway. I implore you to think this through and realize that in the long run, we have nothing to gain and everything to lose.”
A great roar of shouts and applause rose from the crowd. Sani ra
ised his arms to the sky, and the roar continued. It grew louder and louder, and the crowd pressed up to the stage.
Ashley shivered. It seemed as if all around them people had been touched by what Sani had said and were supporting him.
Then, a man from Dunphy Mining Company stepped up to the mic. A loud chorus of boos went up. He cleared his throat and spoke calmly and with confidence.
“My name is Paul Anderson. I have listened to the impassioned words of Sani and respect them. This is precious land. It has a long history, a deep meaning, and there is much to be said for leaving it alone. I understand how everyone who lives here must feel. Not one of you should see this land destroyed. It is sacred.”
He paused, and his eyes scanned the crowd.
Ashley gasped. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Was he coming around? Was Dunphy Mining going to abandon the project? He seemed so eloquent and compassionate that she was confused.
Mr. Anderson let out a long sigh. Then he raised his arm with a fist up and spoke.
“But Dunphy Mining has no intention of destroying this land. We have drawn up the most comprehensive and sensitive plan to carefully extract the metals that has ever existed. With the new technologies of the present day, we can separate the metal from the earth with minimum damage to the surroundings, and when we do leave, we will not only fill in the earth, but we will replant the native grasses, shrubs, and trees that you see here now. It will look as if nothing has been touched within a year after we leave.”
There were some more boos and dissenting voices yelling around them, but not as many as before.
“Prove it!” one protestor said.
“How is that possible?” another protestor asked.
“Why take the metals in the first place? Why can’t they remain in the ground?” a third protestor asked.
Ashley Crane Cozy Mystery Boxed Set Page 58