by Betty Bolte
“Why is it so dusty in here?” Tara coughed again, one hand clutching Grant’s shirt sleeve. “The collapse of the ground?”
Grant flicked the light around the medium-sized cave room and then back at her. “Given that somebody stored stuff here, I’d say the air here stayed dry so they could stash things for safe keeping.”
“I’d heard that the soldiers in the Civil War used caves to store provisions and weapons.” She glanced at the stack of wooden crates, the slats at various angles as they slowly disintegrated over time.
“You sound like you’re skeptical.”
“It seemed unlikely.” Yet the evidence rested on the ground at her feet. “What’s in those crates?”
Grant dropped her hand to open the top box, carefully lifting the lid and setting it aside. Tara peered around him into the interior illuminated by the pinpoint of light. Bundles wrapped in burlap sacks. Grant handed her the flashlight and reached inside to lift one out with both his hands. Carefully he unwrapped the object and then paused to examine it. Grease had been smeared on the metal of a gun. She stared in horror at the contents of the crate, calculating the number of weapons each might contain.
“Pistols.” Grant wiped the grease off and then held the gun by the butt while he examined it. “Confederate. So the tales were true after all.”
Tara stared at the weapon. She detested guns. The injuries they inflicted if they didn’t kill. No matter if they were relics from a past national civil war. She didn’t care if they were Confederate or Union. “Put it back.”
Grant aimed the light closer to her and then away. “We may need it. If not to prove the rumors were not rumors, then to defend ourselves.” He pried open the chamber and verified it was empty before slipping it into his belt. Then he reached into the box to remove a slim tan box with writing on top. She glimpsed the word “cartridges” before he opened the lid to check its contents. Neat rows of paper-wrapped black gunpowder cartridges waited to do their job. Had waited a very long time and to her mind could continue to wait. Grant snapped the lid closed and slid the box into his pocket. “Just in case.”
“Surely you won’t need that.” A simple hike had turned into something entirely more dangerous. On many, many levels. “Please.”
“I hope I won’t need to use it. We don’t know where this tunnel will lead us and what we’ll find. I promised to keep you safe, and that’s what I’m going to do. Unlike… Never mind. Those guns have been buried here for a long, long time. Looks like they were packed well to preserve them for future use. But who knows whether it will fire or not. But if nothing else, it can be a club.”
What if it misfired? She pushed the thought far from her mind. She’d not wish it on him. Tara wondered at his slight hesitation, what Grant had been about to say. But he obviously didn’t want to share whatever had happened in the past to make him so protective. Perhaps one day he would feel comfortable sharing. But for now, he’d asked her to trust him, and that request was easy for her to follow because she had every reason to believe he could fulfill his promise.
Despite her reservations regarding the firearm, she took his hand and squeezed once. “I’ll follow your lead, Grant.”
He leaned closer to press a kiss on her mouth. “Let’s find a way out of here.”
Grant aimed the flashlight ahead of them, and they moved farther into the foreboding tunnel.
Chapter 11
Memories of that day long ago when his efforts in a similar situation had failed fought to the fore. Grant pushed them away but the dark tunnel seemed endless. The beam of light proved no match for the long, winding corridor he led Tara down. He hoped with each cautious turn to find even a glimmer of light ahead.
“Stay close.” Grant placed each foot with care, testing for any weakness or obstacle before shifting his weight and repeating the process. His ability to see in near darkness gave him an advantage. He didn’t know how well Tara could see so he kept her near to him. “Walk where I do.”
“Can’t you go a little faster?” Her grip on his hand tightened, the palm damp. “I hate being in the dark.”
He wouldn’t chance moving more quickly until the path became more visible. He couldn’t risk a recurrence of his childhood failure and the resulting death. Not when he’d promised to protect Tara, that she’d be safe with him. He’d keep his promise without fail.
“Soon but not yet.”
Tara squealed and pushed against his back when the scraping of unseen claws echoed around them. “What was that?”
“Just a rodent getting out of our way.”
Her hand tugged on his as she shuddered. “Ugh. I want out of here.”
He needed to keep her talking and with any luck maintain her present level of calm. “Why do you hate the dark so much?”
She sighed, clutching his hand in a death grip. “I’ve feared it ever since a child. When I fell down some cement steps into my parents’ cellar.”
Grant aimed the light along the rock-littered floor a little to the right, where he found the wall of the tunnel veering around yet another curve. At least she hadn’t melted into a panic. Yet. “What happened?”
“I tripped chasing after one of my sisters while playing a game.”
Walking carefully around the bend he kept the light dancing over the floor to steer Tara around the smattering of stones. “Were you badly hurt?”
“My mother found me unconscious at the bottom, blood pooled under my head. I woke up in the hospital.” Tara inhaled sharply as more scrabbling echoed in front of them and then let the breath out slowly. “I had a slight concussion from hitting my head, and of course a cut. They bandaged me up and sent me home.”
Swinging the flashlight to the left, Grant smothered a sigh of frustration. The tunnel fell away to the left and down. But down to where? “But why are you afraid of the dark?”
She gripped his hand until it ached. “The fear I felt when I fell into that dark and damp place has never left me. It was like being swallowed up by some monster of evil.”
“Surely you don’t believe in monsters. Watch your step here.” He guided her around a larger flat rock and then down a step to a lower level.
Tara laughed for the first time since their sudden descent underground. “Not monsters, no.”
Grant opened his mouth to ask her what she did believe in when the beam flickered. He jostled the handle, and the light strengthened. Although he didn’t want to, he quickened their pace to attempt to reach some exit before the batteries died. If only he’d thought about spare ones he wouldn’t worry about the one set giving out. He’d not expected they’d need a flashlight for long, if at all, since they had no intention of going caving. And yet there they were, walking along in the dark underground. The way leveled out and then turned right. When would the twists and turns end? He’d completely lost his sense of direction between the bends and the darkness. Once they found a way outside, he’d pull out the compass. But until then, they had to keep going. Keep moving. Not let fear take hold and thwart their escape from the hellhole they’d fallen into.
Like the well that his best friend Jeremy had fallen into when they were boys. He didn’t let himself think about that day when he’d bragged about his navigational abilities. Back during a time he’d thought he could do anything when it came to hiking and climbing trees. Only he hadn’t been able to prevent his friend from falling and breaking his back. From dying while Grant went for help.
Not again.
“We must be getting close to a way out.” He’d stay positive for both of their sakes.
“Do you see a light ahead?”
“No, but we’ve been walking for quite a while.” He slowed to a halt and turned the light to shine on Tara. “Do you need water?”
“Here?” Fear interlaced with the trust in her voice.
“Like I said, we’ve been walking for quite a while. We both need some. Hold this.” He handed her the flashlight and then shrugged the backpack off his shoulders. Retrieving a bottl
e from a side pouch, he twisted open the lid and handed it to her.
She swallowed several mouthfuls before giving it back to him while maintaining the light so he could see. “When we find our way out of here, we still need to locate a place to eat our picnic, too.”
Grant gulped twice and then replaced the lid before slipping the bottle into the pouch. He positioned the pack onto his shoulders, shrugging to settle the straps into place. “I’ll take that light back.”
“I should never have let you talk me into this nature outing. I’m more the town girl type.” She offered it to him, and he wrapped his fingers around the barrel, awareness of her nearness pulsing through him. Enticing and tempting him to linger. “But now that you’ve got me out here, let’s make the most of it and find a way out of this darkness.”
“You’ve got it. Ready?”
“I was born ready…”
“Cute.” He nodded and took her hand to keep her beside him as they continued on their quest for an exit. The floor sloped upward for a time, leveled off, and then curved to the left and back to the right. All the while he retained her hand and prayed the dimming light wouldn’t fail. They eased around a bend to the left, and he almost cheered.
“I see the light at the end of the tunnel.” Grant stopped and lowered the flashlight so Tara could stand on her tiptoes to look over his shoulder at the welcome sight.
“Did you have to say that? Even if it is literally true.” She chuckled and gave him a gentle push. “Keep moving, buster.”
“As you wish.” He grunted when she punched him. “I’ll stop with the movie lines, okay?”
“Please.” She chuckled as they hurried toward the end of their confinement.
Relief and anticipation flooded through Grant as the opening neared with each stride. Relief to successfully navigate out of the inky passage. Anticipation for figuring out where on earth they had wandered to. He’d pull out his park map and compass. Then calculate their position. Soon he’d have them on the right trail again. As soon as they reached the sunlight.
Tara released his hand as they drew ever closer to the end of the tunnel and greater visibility. The last twenty feet they practically ran by silent agreement. When they emerged into daylight, Grant stopped at the edge of a steep precipice overlooking a wide valley with high hills flanking it on all sides. At the bottom, a creek wiggled its way between the trees. Several large black birds circled above the valley. At the far end, a low layer of fog obscured the ground.
“Let’s figure out where we are.” He removed the backpack and withdrew his tools. The handheld compass proved useless, however, when the needle slowly rotated in a circle, never stopping its arc.
Tara grabbed the bottle of water and drank a few sips, then handed it to him. “So?”
“My compass is broken.” He drank and then offered the bottle to Tara, who took it and replaced it in the pouch. Grant scanned the sky and then shook his head. “I can’t tell where the sun is in the sky. The light seems to come from all around. Must be the height of the hills surrounding us.”
“We can’t stay here so what should we do?” Tara shifted the pack on her back, running her hands under the straps to ease the weight on her shoulders. “If we find a place to eat, my load will get lighter.”
“Okay, and while we do that we can sort out our next steps.” Grant perused the area in front of the cave and then pointed to the left. “There’s a trail leading into the valley. If we follow the river, we should eventually find civilization. Or at least a park ranger.”
They hiked down the slope to the trail, and then picked their way slowly down to the bottom of the winding path between rocks and underbrush. Pebbles loosened by their clumsy steps skittered downhill.
Tara tapped his shoulder as they turned the last time before reaching the bottom of the trail. “That fog is getting worse.”
Grant glanced to where she pointed and halted in his tracks. He could no longer see the far end of the valley. Scanning the area, he shook his head in disbelief. “The cave is gone.”
“What?” Tara spun around to peer up the way they’d come. “That fog is rather unusual…”
Grant nodded as the layer grew into a wall of white mist, swirling and boiling into a barrier moving toward them. Almost like watching a storm front build on the horizon and advance across the sky. Except within the confines of the hollow. Odd indeed.
“It does seem late in the day for such a phenomenon to occur.” Grant had never known fog to rise to obscure higher elevations so quickly. Or at all. “We should keep going before we can’t see our way.”
“Do you know where we are?” Her puzzled expression revealed her distrust of his plan.
“No.”
“Then do you know how to get where you wanted to go?” She wrapped her arms around her waist, tapping her index finger on her elbow.
“I know that if we don’t move, we’ll be in the fog and unable to find anything.” He held out his hand, palm up. “Are you with me?”
She stared at him, studied the approaching fog, and then slapped her hand into his and sighed. “Lead on.”
“I won’t let anything happen to you, Tara. Believe me.” At her reluctant nod, he squeezed her hand and led her on down the valley. Hopefully not into trouble. Especially since he had no earthly idea as to where they were or in which direction they headed. Good thing he’d brought the pistol.
Chapter 12
“Stop. I can’t go on without eating something.” Tara placed one hand over her rumbling tummy. The sound echoed in the hush of the woods. “Please?”
She didn’t require a great deal of food to survive, but if she didn’t eat she’d end up fainting on the hard ground. Knowing sandwiches and chips awaited them, she simply could not prolong their picnic another minute.
Grant turned to look at her, skimming her from head to toe with his frowning gaze. On a sigh, he shrugged. “Fine.”
She lifted one brow, miffed by his attitude. Did he not realize how long they’d been walking without any sustenance? Her grumbling stemmed from tired feet and sore legs from all the ups and downs they’d traversed. Probably even more so by the fact she hadn’t eaten much for breakfast, and they’d been walking for hours. “I can’t help it that I’m hungry.”
“I know.” He shook his head and then pivoted to survey the trail and its surroundings. “Just where did you have in mind?”
Trees and brush stretched as far as Tara could see in any direction. A few trunks from fallen trees hid among vines and bushes. Moss decorated several boulders that poked from the ground here and there among the undergrowth. The rustle of leaves hinted at the presence of small critters, perhaps mice or birds searching for food. So no sitting on the ground. She quaked at the thought. What she didn’t detect, as her stomach growled again, was a decent picnic spot. But she’d make one if she had to.
She scanned the underbrush again, taking her time to consider each feature and space. “Over here. Come on.”
She led Grant to one of the fallen trees and dropped onto its rough seat. The grooves of the bark bit into her buttocks but she ignored the discomfort, at least for a short while. Wiggling out of the backpack, she set it on the leaf-strewn ground between her sneakers. Opened the topmost flap and rummaged inside.
“Here?” Grant tested the steadiness of the log before slowly adding his weight. “It could be rotten and collapse out from under us.”
Tara retrieved a wrapped sandwich and handed it to Grant along with a shrug. “I didn’t see any signs of debris that would suggest it wasn’t sound. No little piles of sawdust from termites enjoying the wood. Or even holes in the bark. Besides, some of the leaves are still pale green, so it didn’t fall very long ago.”
“Good point.” He unwrapped the sandwich halfway, holding it in one hand as he took a bite. “You’ve keen observation skills.”
Tara pulled out another wrapped sandwich and took several bites before speaking. The blend of the beef and cheddar with horseradish sauce
filled her senses with delight as it satisfied her hunger with each morsel. Swallowing, she tossed a glance at Grant. “That’s so much better. I feel more human and not such a monster.”
Grant balled up the wrapper and pitched it into the open pack. “You could never be such a thing, even when hungry.”
“I don’t know that my sisters would agree with you.” She put her wrapper into the pack and retrieved two bottles of water, handing one to him. She thought of how they’d ended up in this unknown part of the forest, not even certain they were still in the state forest. How the earth moved beneath their feet, tumbling them into the large sinkhole and then the tunnel that brought them to the valley they explored. She chuckled as she reviewed her own imagery. “Here I always thought it was just a song.”
Grant lifted both brows and cocked his head to one side, staring at her as if she’d lost her mind. “What are you talking about?”
Tara laughed outright, a sound of relief and happiness. They had survived quite a fall and managed to find a way to the pretty valley where they enjoyed a quiet meal together. She’d had worse dates in town. “You know, the one where the earth moves under the singer’s feet and all that?”
After a moment, he barked a laugh but merely flashed a grin before sobering. “It’s so not funny. You could have been hurt or worse.”
“We’re relatively unscathed, so no worries.” She could almost see his protective instincts twinkling in his aura. If she could read auras. Really, she didn’t need to because his intentions came across clear as a pane of glass. “Ready to continue?”
He swigged from his bottle and recapped it. “Sure—” He stared over her shoulder, his eyes moving to indicate she should look behind her. His gaze stayed steady as his eyes narrowed. “Slowly.”
When she did as he suggested, alarm filled her as he reached for the gun. Then a snarling growl reached her ears. She pivoted in place. Spotted the pack of five wolves standing on the path, heads low and even with their shoulders as they watched the two people. Their prey.