“Get going, back to the cave.”
A lot of mumbling and threats from Jessie but they made it back to the cave. Chaco tied Jessie up exactly where he had been tied in the cave and then gagged him.
“Those guys sure have a surprise in store for them,” he told the old man.
With that, Chaco left the cave.
Chapter 67
The car came to a screeching halt in front of the cave entrance. Allen was out of the car and running for the cave before the dust settled. James was one step behind him and tackled Allen before he entered the cave. Kyle got there last and jumped on top of the two of them.
A couple minutes later Allen had calmed down. He had been simmering ever since they left San Diego. James was scared that Allen was going to kill a cop that had pulled them over for speeding outside of San Diego. Luckily, the cop didn’t delay them very long.
“Listen to me,” James got right in Allen’s face. “He still knows where the gold is. We can’t kill him yet. After we get the information from him you can have at. Fact is I’m thinking to help you. I’m sick of the punk myself. Now when we enter the cave everyone has to be in control. Allen you follow my lead and if necessary act like you are going to kill him, but remember, only fake it for now. Okay?”
“I’ve got it already. But you remember, when we have the information he’s all mine. I’m going to kill him real slow.”
“Let’s do it then.”
They all entered the cave together.
Chaco was hiding near the cave entrance and heard everything they had been saying. He waited at the entrance until they had time to get back to the old man and then screamed out, “Nighty night boys, pleasant dreams.”
He swung an old sledge hammer he had found in the cave against a support beam near the entrance. All it took was one swing and the cave came tumbling down. Chaco dove away from the entrance barely avoiding being trapped himself. An enormous dust cloud enveloped the entire area.
Once it cleared Chaco went to the front of the cave and danced a jig that even the most entrenched leprechaun would have been proud of and gave the four men in the cave a bit of advice from another Irishman he had met in New York, “Never iron a four-leaf clover, because you don’t want to press your luck.” Chaco gave out a big laugh and raised his arm as if he were holding a beer.
He danced a jig for another minute and then got in the car, where fortunately Kyle had left the keys and started the engine. Chaco had never driven before but had watched Franco many times. He put the car in gear and hit the accelerator hard. The car tires spun and the dust filled the air as he went around and around in the open space in front of the cave entrance. He had never been so happy. The car just kept going around and around. Finally he came to a stop. Dust was everywhere. Gently, he touched the gas pedal and proceeded to meander down the dirt road to the paved highway below.
Chaco reflected back to the time when he was sitting in the Irish pub with Franco and the guys singing songs with an old Irishman, the lyrics from one song came to his mind that he particularly liked.
Look at the coffin with golden handles
Isn’t it grand boys to be bloody well dead?
Let’s not have a sniffle,
Let’s have a bloody good cry
And always remember the longer you live,
The sooner you’ll bloody well die.
Chaco couldn’t believe how funny he was and started laughing uncontrollably. An instant later while going around a corner he lost control and went off the road and down a small bank. He found himself in an old creek bed and tried to gun the car to get back onto the road again but instead only buried the car wheels deeper in the sand. A couple more minutes of futile spinning of the tires and Chaco turned the engine off and climbed out.
He found some clothes and food in the back seat and when he opened the trunk the gold that the three guys had taken from him was staring at him.
Chaco couldn’t believe his Irish good luck.
Chapter 68
Chaco hiked out to the main road and tried to hitch a ride. A truck finally stopped.
“You’re a real mess young man. I’ll bet you’ve been trying to get a ride for a long time. What’s your story? Be quick about it, because I’ve got a schedule to keep.”
“I crashed my car down a dirt road a few miles back.”
The truck driver looked at Chaco suspiciously. “Where are you going?”
The only thing Chaco could think of was Kansas City. He remembered listening to a country western song about Kansas City when he was with Franco.
“I’m going to Kansas City,” Chaco blurted out.
“Now let me get this right, you crashed your car down a dirt road near Quartzsite and you say you’re going to Kansas City?”
“That is what I said, and I meant it. Can you give me a ride?”
“I should give you a ride to an insane asylum but jump on in. I’m going to Denver and that’s almost to Kansas City.”
Chaco climbed up into the cab of the huge truck.
“Put it there boy.” A giant of a man reached his hand out for Chaco to shake.
“My name is Sam Houston. My friends call me Sam”.
“My name is Chaco, and my friends call me Chaco,” he answered trying to be like his newfound friend.
Sam burst out laughing. “You aren’t from these parts, are you boy?”
“No sir, I’m from other parts.”
Sam burst out laughing again. “I’m glad I picked you up. It’ll make the trip a lot more fun.”
Chaco settled into the passenger seat and closed his eyes. He felt safe for the first time in a long time. He slept soundly for several hours. The sound of the truck coming to a stop awakened him.
“Are you hungry?” asked Sam.
“Yes, I am.”
“Do you have any money?”
“I don’t think so.” Chaco remembered the gold coins but was pretty sure he didn’t have any money. He searched his pants.
“Don’t worry. I can spot you for a lunch. First though, go over there and get yourself cleaned up.” He pointed at the showers. “I’ll meet you inside.”
They climbed down from the cab and a little while later Chaco met Sam in the Arby’s for dinner.
The next stop was Durango. Sam played music and they talked a lot. He turned out to be a great guy.
They were about sixty miles from Durango when Chaco suddenly yelled out, “Sam, stop the truck!”
Sam looked over at Chaco with a puzzled look. “What did you say?”
“I can’t go any further. Something is calling me here. I have to see what it is.”
At the next turnout Sam pulled the truck over. “You are one odd person, Chaco, but I wish you well.” He reached in his pocket and gave Chaco several twenty dollar bills.
Chaco was overwhelmed with his generosity. He took the money and said, “I also have something for you. It is important that you not tell anyone where you got these. I did not steal them, they are mine.” He handed Sam a handful of gold coins.
Sam couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “Are these real?”
“Yes they are my good friend, and may Inti look down on you kindly for the rest of your life.” With that Chaco climbed out of the truck and watched Sam drive off.
It wasn’t until a few days later when Sam showed a friend of his who owned a pawn shop the gold coins.
“These coins are rare…from the 1500’s. The gold alone is worth five-thousand dollars and I would say they are worth more than that to a coin collector. Do you want to sell them?”
“Oh, not right now. I have fond memories of Chaco and I’ll keep them for a while.”
“Did you say Chaco?”
Damn, Sam thought to himself, Chaco asked me not to tell anyone where I got these, but it was too late to change his story. “Yeah, his name was Chaco. An older guy about six two and weighed about two hundred. Do you know him?”
“No, I was thinking of someone else,” he said, but wa
s thinking it had to be the same guy. I wonder why Sam is covering up for him. It doesn’t matter, he must have his reasons.
***
Chaco looked about the surrounding countryside trying to figure out why he was drawn to this area and then he saw it in the distance. A beautifully carved mountain rising up to meet a long ago mesa that was slowly deteriorating and the Sun God shining through the clouds portraying Chaco’s destination as if it was drawn on a street map.
Inti was showing Chaco the way to a famous place of his ancestors…Mesa Verde.
Chapter 69
Chaco began walking up the long road to Mesa Verde and it wasn’t long before a delivery truck driver gave him a lift to the visitor center. It was early afternoon and Chaco was able to sign up for the Cliff Palace Tour at two o’clock. For some reason he knew that was where he must go.
He followed the tour guide for a short time and when no one was looking slipped over the edge of the cliff just a short distance before they reached Cliff Palace.
Unfortunately for Chaco one of the other tourists saw him climb over the cliff and hollered out to the tour guide who came running. She saw the top of Chaco’s head before he disappeared. She called the main office to report what was happening. It wasn’t long before several security personnel arrived.
Everything seemed familiar to Chaco as he climbed across the face of a large slab of limestone. Right next to him was an area where another large slice of limestone had slipped away to the valley below revealing a smooth and beautifully colored red and orange limestone face underneath. Chaco was finding it difficult to climb because there wasn’t anything to hang onto.
Why am I doing this? I know of no relationship between the Inca and the Mesa Verde Anasazi, but it is not for me to question Inti.
Chaco crept out onto the slippery rock and then he saw it, a hidden cave, which only he could see.
“This is amazing,” he said as he ran his hand over the hidden cave looking for the opening. He could use only one hand because the other was twisted into a small crack in the wall that securely anchored him.
“You on the wall,” shouted a voice from above. “Hang tight, we have climbing equipment on the way.”
Chaco looked up to see a crowd of people staring down at him. He had thought that he was hidden from their view.
Chaco kept looking for the entrance to the cave. It had to be here, he just knew it. The shadows from the fading sun started to engulf the cliff face. Chaco was becoming invisible to those above.
“We’re coming down, hold on a little longer.”
Chaco looked up to see a rope dangling down the cliff face and at the same instant he discovered the cave entrance. I have no choice, he thought, and tapped his hand on the perfect spot opening the cave door. He slid through the opening and immediately the opening closed behind him.
“He’s gone!” screamed one of the tourists from above. “I don’t see him anymore.”
Everyone craned their necks from the top of the cliff hoping to see him and then some of them looked down below for his body.
One of the park rangers called in for additional help and requested a search team.
Well into the night with spotlights glaring they searched the cliff wall and by early morning a search and rescue team was on the valley floor beneath the cliff looking for the body.
While all of this was happening the local sheriff’s office was helping the Mesa Verde employees review their visitor center tapes.
They were shocked when about noon the next day they had identified Chaco, the Inca from Peru. They tried to keep the news from the media but by the evening the story had leaked all over the country.
The headline from the LA Times read: Chaco at Mesa Verde. And the story read as follows…
Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado has been closed today by the United States Army. A full-blown search of the park is currently in progress. The military has positioned several drones to help in the search. They aren’t about to leave the park without finding Chaco. The military has cited national security as the reason for their involvement. Mesa Verde is closed until further notice. No other information is currently available.
Dr. Ortiz threw down the paper and screamed at Sanchez, “Get us a flight to Mesa Verde, today if possible. They found Chaco.”
Sanchez was able to get a flight into Denver the next morning and another flight about noon into Durango. They drove the last forty miles to Mesa Verde.
A sergeant at the entrance to Mesa Verde tried to turn them away, but Ortiz got on the phone to the Peruvian Embassy who then called the senator from Colorado who got Ortiz admitted. The colonel in charge wasn’t happy about Dr. Ortiz getting in but had no choice. Dr. Ortiz was put into the loop and received hourly updates of the military’s progress. He wasn’t informed of the reasons for the military’s interest in Chaco.
Great effort was put into finding Chaco but they were coming up empty. He literally disappeared off the face of the cliff. Absolutely nothing fell to the ground down below. Mesa Verde was closed down for four days before reopening. The tapes showing Chaco were reviewed over and over again but to no avail. Chaco had been at the visitor center at Mesa Verde the day that the unknown individual disappeared off the sandstone cliff. Being at the visitor center and a disappearance off the cliff does not mean one precludes the other but in this case most of those in the know believe it was Chaco on the cliff.
Chaco was enthralled that a cave very similar to those in Peru could exist in the middle of the United States. The cave was even designed to provide light during the dark hours. This cave didn’t have gold and silver like those in Peru.
There were however dozens of ceremonial masks in the cave, many with multiple gem stones. Chaco would hold up mask after mask and feel a sort of comradeship with those who had come before him. He held up one particular mask to the light and suddenly all of his questions were answered when the great traveler, Anchutepa, took over his body and answered all of his questions.
In approximately 1240 Anchutepa left Mesa Verde. The weather had changed and the growing season wasn’t long enough anymore. He traveled south with a large group. Eventually they settled in an area about two hundred miles south of Mesa Verde, but Anchutepa kept on going and for several years he kept traveling south until he reached what is now Peru. He joined a group of people living high in the Andes near Cuzco and this is where he met Manco Capac, the first Inca ruler. Anchutepa shared his knowledge of the secret caves with Manco Capac and over time the great Inca Empire evolved. There had always been speculation by later Inca leaders that some great traveler had arrived in Cuzco in the twelve hundreds and now the truth was revealed to Chaco.
Just as quickly as Anchutepa had taken over Chaco’s body he was gone again. Only this time he left all of his memories with Chaco. Chaco now knew the complete history of his people and this was why Inti had brought him to Mesa Verde.
Chaco spent several more days experiencing all the memories of those who had come before him. Sometimes the past great Inca’s would fill his body and share their insights with him. Sometimes they would talk amongst themselves about bygone days. Chaco would listen and sometimes participate in the discussions.
Chaco had become a full-fledged Inca leader and his time had come.
Chapter 70
As luck would have it the four men trapped in the cave near Quartzsite were found two days later. Their car had been seen abandoned off the dirt road and when the police from Quartzsite began checking the area they noticed that the old mine had collapsed. There were a lot of foot prints around the entrance and they immediately brought help out from Quartzsite. Six hours later four men were dragged out of the cave and taken to the local hospital. They were dehydrated and very weak, but they would all recover.
Their stories were a jumble of contradictions and misstatements. It appeared that the true story will never be known. Everything they said was nonsense. They claimed that Chaco the Inca was going to share his gold fortune, but then
he double crossed them and destroyed the cave with them in it. None of this was believable until Kyle showed a gold coin he had gotten from Chaco.
The coin turned out to be one of the pieces of gold from San Diego.
***
Chaco left the cave at Mesa Verde on the morning of the fifth day. He had collected enough water dripping from the sandstone walls to survive on. He ate the last of his food the night before and it was time for him to move on. He opened the cave entrance and peered out. No one was there.
Apparently the search had been called off and all was quiet again. All but one of the drones had been removed and Chaco saw the remaining one before it saw him and hid in the bushes. Franco had told him how effective these remote controlled planes were.
Chaco climbed down to the valley floor and stayed in the bushes and trees, working himself down the valley. After a couple of hours he reached an area with sparse vegetation. He waited until night before continuing.
For two days he traveled most of the time at night until he finally reached the main highway. He found a truck stop in Cortez and waited. It was about eight in the evening when Chaco climbed into the back of a large truck heading east. He had bought some food and bottled water and spent three days traveling until the truck stopped in Newark, New Jersey to unload.
Chaco was able to slip away unnoticed. He had several things to do in New York before he went back home.
***
The military had left one drone in the air above Mesa Verde for an additional three days just to be on the safe side. They also had placed a pair of soldiers in each of the nearby towns on the chance that Chaco might try to come through there. They monitored all the cameras that were maintained by the cities and any other cameras they could locate where private businesses had positioned them. There was a camera at the truck stop in Cortez but the soldiers were two days late reviewing the tapes. When they did, they saw Chaco climb into the back of a Nationwide truck in Cortez. It took a few hours to determine the truck’s location. By the time they had found the truck in Newark, New Jersey, Chaco was long gone. The truck had been unloaded earlier that morning.
Within the Dead Space Page 21