The Graves of Plague Canyon (The Downwinders Book 3)

by Michael Richan

  “Oh, it’s one of these, but which one?” she said, running her fingers over the books and trying to decide which one to pull. “Vacuum box… vacuum box… let’s try …”

  She pulled a volume from the shelf and flipped through it quickly, the chair under her wiggling from left to right, and Carma counterbalancing by doing a slight shimmy.

  “No no no, not this one,” she said as she replaced it.

  “You think you’ve seen it in a book?” Deem asked.

  “Well, that’s what I’m thinking at the moment,” Carma said, reaching for another and opening it to random pages. She put it back almost immediately. “I could be wrong, but when you said ‘description’ it made me think that…” She paused, then stopped and turned to face them, still standing on the chair, wiggling. “I remember! It’s not in a book at all!”

  She stepped down from the chair, Winn giving her a hand. “Funny how your mind works. I could have sworn I’d seen one in a book, but then I realized where I saw one before… Lyman.”

  “Lyman has a vacuum box?” Winn asked.

  “Had one. He gave it to someone, I don’t remember who. What time is it?” She rushed into the kitchen, looking at the clock on the stove. “Lyman will be available in a half hour,” she said. “We can go down and ask him. His memory is much better than mine. One of the benefits of dying young.”

  Deem hadn’t seen Lyman in a while, and she remembered the promise she’d made to him that she’d visit him occasionally in exchange for his protection of the documents she was trying to scan. It’ll be good to catch up on that promise, she thought. Besides, maybe he’ll spill the beans on what he and Carma have been up to.

  “Then we’ll wait,” Deem said.

  “Ooo, I’ll bet you’d like some pie,” Carma said. “Mince?”

  “It’s after midnight, Carma,” Deem said. “I can’t eat this late. It’ll just keep me up.”

  “Winn?” Carma asked. “Mince pie?”

  “What exactly is mince pie?”

  “Oh, it’s delicious, I’ll cut you a slice,” Carma replied, and walked to a pantry. After she cut off a piece and placed it on a plate, she handed it to Winn with a fork and then ushered them back into the drawing room, where Deem sunk into her favorite chair.

  “Wow, that’s a really strong flavor!” Winn said after his first bite. “It’s got a zing to it.”

  “It’s a pie for adults,” Carma said.

  “So, if Lyman can tell us where the vacuum box is,” Deem said, “and we can go get it tomorrow morning, we still have to wait until tomorrow night, late, to sneak into the canyon.”

  “I figure we’ll camp in the canyon until daylight,” Winn said, “out of sight of your patrolling boyfriend. Then we can scale the cliffs in the daylight, like Aldus suggested.”

  “He’s not my boyfriend,” Deem corrected him. “Although, this should work out… I have a date with him tomorrow, late afternoon. I figured I could cancel it if I needed to, but it sounds like this schedule might work.”

  “How’s your niece doing?” Winn asked Carma.

  “I talked to Ester earlier,” Carma replied. “She says Lizzy is the same. I asked her to hold off on taking her to the hospital until we could see if you found a way into the canyon. I’ll call her tomorrow and tell her we’re making progress.”

  “Damn slow progress,” Winn said.

  “If you make it into the canyon tomorrow night,” Carma said, “that means we’d have the callum by the day after tomorrow, and it could be in Fredonia by that evening. That’s just 48 hours. I think I can keep Ester on hold that long, but probably not much longer. If Lizzy takes a turn for the worse between now and then, Ester won’t call me, she’ll just take her in — then it’ll be countdown to pulling the plug.”

  “We’ll find a way into that canyon,” Deem said. “Do you have climbing stuff in your Jeep? Rope? Cams?”

  “No, I’ll have to go back to Moapa for that,” Winn replied. “I’ll do that while you’re sucking face with your date.”

  “So crude!” Carma said, slapping Winn’s knee. “You tease her mercilessly and while you’re quite good at it, it would irritate me to no end. Does it irritate you, Deem?”

  “I’ve heard it so much, I don’t even notice anymore,” Deem said, feeling her eyelids start to sink as she relaxed in the chair.

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  Half an hour later, Winn was shaking Deem awake. “Time to go downstairs,” he said gently.

  Deem opened her eyes and stood up, stretching.

  “Come on, you two,” Carma said. “Let’s see what kind of mood he’s in.”

  They followed Carma downstairs into a finished basement filled with a pool table, a foosball table, and a bar. In one corner was a big screen TV.

  “You never seem to use this room,” Winn said to Carma as they walked through it toward a closet in the back.

  “I built it to act as camouflage for the cave entrance,” she said. “The kids liked it when they were here, but they’ve all moved on and I hardly ever come down since we had A/C put in upstairs. Except, of course, to get to Lyman.”

  She walked into the closet and through another door, where Deem saw the entrance to the tunnel that ran under the house and to the hill in the backyard. Carma told them the caves went past that point, but that she’d never mapped it out, staying in just the first room of the cave system, where they normally met Lyman.

  Overhead lights popped on as Carma threw a switch, and they walked over the uneven surface of the tunnel as it angled downward slightly. Soon they emerged into a large open chamber where Lyman was already waiting for them, floating a foot off the ground in the center of the room. Lyman’s ethereal appearance was stronger than most ghosts. Deem wondered at the source of his strength.

  “Oh, good, he’s here already,” Carma said as they all dropped into the River.

  Lyman, we need a favor, Carma said.

  Lyman approached Deem, seeming to ignore Carma. Good to see you again, Deem.

  Hello, Lyman, she replied. Nice to see you, too.

  Lyman closed his eyes as she spoke, as though he was hearing beautiful music. She was always a little thrown by Lyman’s reactions to her; although he died at sixteen and looked that age, he always spoke and behaved like someone much older, and the discontinuity of it took her by surprise every time she met him.

  Thank you for coming down, he said, his eyes scanning her face. You’re falling in love with someone.

  Deem pulled back a little, blushing.

  How I wish it could be me, he said. But I know that’s not possible. He’s lucky.

  Deem heard Winn snort, and she turned to see him rolling his eyes.

  Lyman turned to Winn. Are you jealous?

  Me? Winn replied. No. Not jealous. He’s just going to need a unique personality mix to gel with Deem here. She’s picky.

  Lyman closed his eyes and faded from view for a few seconds. When he returned to full intensity, he opened them. Warren is a perfect match for you, Lyman said to Deem. If you open yourself, you’ll be very happy with him.

  Lyman! Carma interjected. Leave her love life alone. You’re embarrassing her.

  Am I embarrassing you? Lyman asked Deem.

  A little, she replied.

  I apologize, Lyman said. Winn may not be jealous, but I am.

  Now you’re really embarrassing her, Carma said. Listen, Lyman, we need to talk to you about something. You remember you used to have a vacuum box, years ago?

  Lyman was still staring at Deem, smiling, as though he didn’t want to take his eyes from her while he spoke to Carma. Six sides, inlaid with mother of pearl. Yes, I remember it.

  Well, we need it, Carma said. My niece is dying, and we’ve got to collect some callum if she’s to be saved.

  I gave it away, years ago, Lyman replied, still looking at Deem. It was beginning to make her nervous. If Lyman’s countenance wasn’t so handsome and benign, she knew she’d be freaking out.

  Who did you gi
ve it to? Carma asked.

  One of Porter’s boys, Lyman replied.

  Porter? Why would you give it to one of his gang? Carma asked.

  The kid was on the outs with them, Lyman said, or I wouldn’t have. He wanted to trade, so I did. He died a couple of days later, in Left Hand. He might have had it on him; it might be worth looking there. What’s the status of our project, Carma?

  It’s baking, Carma replied. Done in a couple of days. Then we’re good.

  Keep an eye on it, Lyman said.

  I will, Carma replied. Come on you two, let’s go back up.

  It was nice to see you again, Deem, Lyman said. I hope you’ll come back soon.

  Sure, Lyman, she replied. I will.

  They dropped from the River, and Carma led them back through the tunnel.

  “It’s creepy how he stares at you,” Winn said softly as they were walking back.

  “I don’t mind it,” Deem said. “He just seems so happy to see me, to hear my voice.”

  “Creepy happy,” Winn replied.

  “Don’t let Lyman hear you say that,” Carma warned.

  “Why?” Winn asked, feeling bold.

  “Well, I can tell you what he did to the last person who insulted him,” Carma answered.

  “What?” Deem asked.

  “He attached a half-dozen deranged, schizophrenic ghosts to the man’s brain,” Carma replied. “The man committed suicide a day later.”

  “Shit,” Winn said. “Stare at Deem all you want, Lyman.”

  “Do you know what he meant by Left Hand?” Deem asked Carma.

  “The Left Hand mine, on the Kaiparowitz plateau,” Carma answered. “In the early 1900s, trapping gifteds in the mine and asphyxiating them was a favorite pastime of Porter’s gang, when they weren’t out hunting apostates. If this guy with the vacuum box was on the outs with Porter, that might be why he was killed.”

  “Are we talking about Porter Rockwell?” Deem asked as they walked back into the basement.

  “We sure are,” Carma replied.

  “Didn’t he die back in the late 1880s?” Deem asked.

  “He did,” Carma answered, “but he still controls a strong group of Danites to this day, and they’re just as bloodthirsty and savage as they were a hundred years ago. Rockwell killed on orders from Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, and he still takes his orders directly from Salt Lake. He and his boys eliminated large groups of rival gifteds using a variety of brutal methods. Trapping them in Left Hand was one of them, until word got out and people wised up to it.”

  They arrived upstairs and walked to the drawing room.

  “I wonder what makes Lyman think this guy had the vacuum box on him when he died?” Deem asked.

  “He said it was right after they traded,” Winn replied.

  “Lyman is usually right about these things,” Carma said.

  “So we go retrieve it? From Left Hand mine?” Deem asked.

  “Unless we can find a vacuum box some other way,” Winn answered.

  “Well, take gas masks,” Carma replied. “Who knows how the asphyxiation occurred!”

  “Carma, Lyman said it had six sides,” Deem asked. “Do you remember now if you ever saw it? Did that jog your memory?”

  “Once Lyman described it, the image came back to me, like a revelation!” Carma said, smiling.

  “Do you think you could draw it?” Deem said. “I could take a picture of your drawing and send it to my friends in Seattle. If we don’t find one in the mine, we’ll want them as backup.”

  “I’ll try,” Carma said. “Let me get some paper.” Carma walked off in the direction of the office.

  “Are you going to stay here tonight?” Deem asked Winn.

  “If Carma will allow me,” Winn replied.

  “You know she will,” Deem said. “She calls the room you sleep in ‘Winn’s room’.”

  “Still, in the interest of staying welcome, I intend to ask,” Winn replied.

  “Of course,” Deem said. “I wasn’t implying you shouldn’t ask.”

  “Kaiparowitz is a couple of hours away,” Winn said. “If we’re going to go up there tomorrow morning and be back in time for your date, we’ll have to leave early.”

  Carma returned with a sketchpad and large kit of drawing pencils. “Look what I found!” she said, sitting next to Winn and opening the pencil kit. “I saved it from my drawing days. I fancied myself an artist for a few years a while back.”

  “You draw?” Winn asked. “I’d like to see some of your drawings.”

  “You’re about to see my rendition of a vacuum box,” she replied. “That will have to do. I’m not going to dig through my old drawings, they’re too amateur. Don’t wouldn’t wait up for me to finish this; it might take hours to complete. I’ll leave it for you on the dining table.”

  “It doesn’t have to be perfect,” Deem replied, yawning. “Just enough to give them an idea what to look for.”

  “You’re reminding me of why I put the pencils away years ago,” Carma said, inspecting the pencil tips. “My frustration with perfection. You’re staying the night, aren’t you Winn?”

  “If you’ll have me,” he replied.

  “Go to sleep, both of you,” Carma said. “I can’t concentrate with you asking me all these questions.”

  Chapter Eight

  “From what I understand, the surface might be inlaid with mother of pearl,” Deem said into the speakerphone she was holding between herself and Winn as they raced toward Kaiparowitz in the early hours the next day. “And it’s no more than an inch or an inch and a half in diameter.”

  “Does it change when you view it in the River?” came Roy’s voice from the other end of the line.

  “Uh…” Deem looked up at Winn. Winn just shrugged back at her. “Don’t know about that. We forgot to ask.”

  “Well, I’ll ask Steven to show me the drawing when he gets out of the bathroom,” Roy said. “I don’t know how to pull up pictures on these infernal things, and Steven made a beeline to the bathroom as soon as we got back from breakfast. How he thinks he can eat biscuits and gravy at his age is beyond me. You know, Deem, I give you this warning purely out of compassion, but the plumbing doesn’t work the same when you get older. Things go right through you. Things you used to be able to eat when you were young just turn to…”

  They heard a fumbling on the other end, and they heard someone in the background say “give me that!” After some rustling, Steven’s voice came on the line. “Hello? Deem? Winn?”

  “Hi, Steven,” Deem answered.

  “Hello,” Winn jumped in. “Did everything work out with Maynard?”

  “Yes, he came up here and helped us out,” Steven replied. “I want to thank you for referring him. He was very helpful.”

  “Oh, good,” Winn said. “He’s a good guy. Glad he could help.”

  “Steven, I sent you a picture of a drawing, just like last time,” Deem said. “It’s called a vacuum box.”

  “Hold on,” Steven said, and there was a long pause. “OK, I’ve got it. Looks simple.”

  “Recognize it at all?” Deem asked.

  “Not right off, but that doesn’t mean I can’t help you out,” Steven replied.

  “We’re on our way to try and recover one from a mine,” Deem said. “If we come up short, we were hoping you might be our backup. We need it to collect callum to help save a gifted woman who’s in a coma down here.”

  “I’ll see what I can do, and I’ll do it today,” Steven said. “I’ll call you back as soon as I find something.”

  “Oh, thank you!” Deem said. “I’m sure the woman down here will thank you as well!”

  “Any news on Jason?” Winn asked.

  There was a short pause before Steven answered, “No, there’s nothing new. We’re still searching, trying everything we can.”

  “I’d be happy to go back out to St. Thomas,” Winn offered. “Check things out, see if it has anything to do with his disappearance.”

>   There was another pause, then Steven said, “No, you don’t need to do that. I really don’t think he’s down there. Something tells me he’s up here, somewhere.”

  “But it’s been so long,” Deem said. “Shouldn’t we try everything we can? It’s no skin off our back to check into it, Steven, really.”

  Another pause. Deem looked up at Winn, wondering if Steven’s pause meant he was offended.

  “I hate to put you on a goose chase,” Steven said. “I believe in my heart he’s up here somewhere. I can’t stop you, but I don’t want to waste your time either. I don’t think anything will come of it.”

  “What makes you think he’s up there?” Winn asked.

  “It’s a feeling I have,” Steven said. “It’s hard to explain. Maybe it’s a father/son thing. But I know he’s not at St. Thomas.”

  “Alright,” Deem said. “Well, good luck. We’re all hoping you find him soon.”

  “Thanks,” Steven replied. “I’ll let you know what I find. Call me and stop me if you wind up retrieving one from the mine.”

  “Will do,” Deem said. “Bye.” She hung up and lowered the phone.

  “I don’t get it,” Winn said. “If my son was missing, I would search everywhere. If someone offered to help, I’d take their offer.”

  “Maybe he knows more than he’s willing to tell us,” Deem said. “Maybe he knows for sure that his son is somewhere up there. That’s what it sounded like to me.”

  “Not just a hunch he has?” Winn asked.

  “Nope,” Deem said. “I think he knows.”

  “But he doesn’t want to say,” Winn replied. “Why not?”

  “I don’t know,” Deem said. “I guess it’s one of those things you have to trust someone about.”

  “You know, I asked Maynard how his trip up there went,” Winn said, “and he uncharacteristically clammed right up.”

  “Something’s going on,” Deem said.

  “For sure,” Winn replied.

  ▪ ▪ ▪

  “We’re gonna need bolt cutters,” Deem called back to Winn, who was unpacking items from the Jeep. “This place is locked up like Fort Knox.” She pulled on the heavy chain that wrapped between the iron door and a post sunk into the ground. Faded metal warning signs, attached to the front of the door, advised that entering the mine would violate state law. There were bullet holes in the signs, an indication of their attractiveness as targets.