by Bruno Miller
“Here, we brought you something.” Joel shouldered his AR and handed Martin an old grocery bag containing a pack of crackers, an apple, and a plastic two-liter soda bottle filled with water. It wasn’t much, but it was all they could scrape together right now. Ben hoped the meager provisions would breathe some life into Martin and at least keep him upright until after they could sort out the old man’s place.
“Thanks, guys.” Martin barely had the words out before he was guzzling water faster than he could swallow it.
“Easy there. Go slow,” Ben warned. Martin wouldn’t be able to keep an eye out for trouble if he was puking in the bushes.
“We’re heading up to the big place. We’ll come back and let you know what we find.” Joel let Martin know what they were doing, but he hardly paid them any mind; he was too busy trying to get the crackers open and eat the apple at the same time.
“Just make sure you get on that horn if you see or hear anything… Martin.” Ben had to call his name to get his attention.
“Yeah, yeah, sorry. It’s been a while since I’ve had anything like this.” He held up the apple before taking another oversized bite. The man was starving, and although Ben felt good about giving him a little something to eat, he wondered how much he could be trusted to stand guard right now.
Unfortunately, they had no other options at the moment. Ben thought about having Joel stay behind but decided against it. Besides, they had the gate locked. If anyone wanted to get inside the compound, they would have to either build up enough speed to ram their way through the fence or shoot the lock off, both of which they would hear even if Martin failed them.
Ben, Joel, and Gunner made their way back through the camp and past the smaller homes until they could see the multiple-container structure. From the cover of a holly thicket, Ben checked the place out one more time through his scope and made sure they weren’t missing something obvious. Joel held Gunner steady as he pulled against his collar and panted heavily. Ben noticed Gunner’s sudden enthusiasm and wondered if he was picking up on something or someone inside the place.
The structure dwarfed the other meager homes and was actually five containers of various spray-painted earth-tone colors joined together, three on the bottom and two on top. They were positioned so the backside of the bottom units butted up against the steep rocky hillside. The front of the home, which faced the rest of the compound, jutted out into the air and was supported by pilings with cross bracings between them. There was a deck attached to the front of the structure, and it was also supported by pilings. A set of stairs on the side led up to the deck and the first three containers.
The whole place was draped in camouflage netting that had seen better days and now mostly consisted of leaves and sticks tangled in the webbing. The stairs were the only way in that Ben could see from down here in the camp. Unfortunately, the front of the house had plenty of windows, and anyone coming up the stairs could be easily spotted from inside. Ben studied the place for a while but saw no movement or light coming from the windows, so he decided it was time to move. The longer they waited to do the inevitable, the more cover they lost from the onset of dawn.
“All right, it looks quiet. Keep Gunner with you for now.” Ben led the way with Joel holding Gunner’s collar and following a few paces behind. Gunner would earn his keep when it came time to go inside, but for right now, Ben didn’t want the dog’s eagerness to explore giving them away.
He was really hoping the place was empty, but they were going to treat it otherwise. They were too close to wrapping this thing up, and he wasn’t leaving anything to chance. He wished Rita or Martin had been able to give them more concrete numbers. The possibility of them making a mistake on their head count was a justified concern. Although Martin seemed more certain of his count, Ben was still leery.
The first thing Ben noticed when they reached the cover of the overhanging deck was that the containers weren’t just nestled up against the side of the mountain; they actually extended into the side of the rock face. The deck overhang provided a covered area underneath the dwelling that was still very dark, and he and Joel hid there for a second while he listened. There was a gentle tapping sound he couldn’t make sense of. It seemed random and mechanical in nature, and he dismissed it as something trivial.
Slowly, Ben crept toward the stairs and started up. The steps swayed and creaked. Ben turned around to see Joel and Gunner joining him.
“Easy.” Ben wondered if the biggest threat to their immediate safety here was the poorly built house. As more light spilled into the forest from the impending sunrise, he began to see just how rundown the place was. This wasn’t how he wanted to start his day, and that cup of coffee he wanted so badly seemed further away than ever.
He crouched down at the top of the stairs and inched across the deck to the row of windows that covered the front of the dwelling, careful to stay low until he reached the front door. Once there, he signaled for Joel to stay put while he listened again. Nothing other than that tapping sound, only now he could feel a slight vibration in the deck as well. It sounded like a generator, maybe. But that didn’t worry him. A generator was something the moonshiners would have left running when the still blew up.
Ben motioned for Joel to come to him with Gunner. While the two crossed the dilapidated old deck, Ben sized up the door. It was a much more substantial door than the other homes were built with. The knob was a keyed entry with a deadbolt above it.
Please be open. Please be open. Ben tested the knob, and of course, it was locked. He reached for the keys he’d taken from the old man and realized he didn’t have them anymore. Perfect.
In the chaos, the keys must have fallen out somewhere in the compound or near the gate. There was a chance the set of keys Sandy took from the guard held the key to this door, or maybe there was one hidden around here somewhere. But there was nothing out on the deck but trash and leaves. He didn’t have time to look for a key or run back to get a keychain from Sandy that might or might not have the right key.
Ben felt his frustration level building, and the feelings of anger about how these idiots had interfered with their lives began to swell inside of him. They could have been in Cloverdale by now, or at least very close. Instead, they were stuck in some god-awful hillbilly hell. And quite frankly, he’d had just about enough.
Chapter Eighteen
Joel could see the look on Ben’s face when the doorknob didn’t turn, but it still caught him off guard when his father stood up and took a step back on the deck.
“Move back.” Ben spoke in a calm but firm manner. His dad hadn’t bothered to whisper this time, and Joel recognized that tone of voice; he knew it meant something was about to go down. Joel watched his dad take the M24 off his shoulder and lay it down on the deck.
Using both hands, Ben leveled the Desert Eagle at the door. Joel still had his hand on Gunner’s collar and yanked the dog back with him as he tried to get out of the way. He ended up on his butt and scooted back across the deck a few feet in an effort to move away from the door and the carnage that was about to be unleashed.
His dad repositioned himself between Joel and the door and let loose the power of the .50-caliber handgun.
Boom…boom!
Joel wasn’t sure what happened to trying to be quiet, but apparently they weren’t worried about that anymore. The smoke and dust hadn’t cleared yet when his dad sprang into action and kicked the door in.
“Use your pistol inside.” Ben’s parting words were only just audible over the ringing in Joel’s ears from the door breach. Gunner, on the other hand, was overwhelmed with excitement and pulled out of his grip to chase after Ben, who’d already disappeared inside before Joel even had a chance to stand up.
He scrambled to his feet and readied his grandfather’s .45, using the flashlight grip like his dad had shown him. Only use it in short bursts. Joel repeated the rule to himself a few times in his head and thought about what his dad had said. Too much light and he’d make h
imself a target.
Joel did his best to keep up, but his dad and Gunner were moving aggressively through the interior. These containers were larger than the ones used for the other homes in the camp, and the three on the bottom floor were all open inside, forming one big room for the most part, except for a few dividing walls here and there. Joel was able to catch up when his dad stopped at another set of stairs that he presumed led to the two containers on top.
This was Joel’s first chance to take a good look at the sparsely furnished but cluttered space. There were a few really nice-looking pieces of furniture and a fancy-looking bed, but they seemed out of place compared to the rest of the things. Most of it looked like junk and stuff he’d rather not touch. Overall, it stunk of mildew and smoke. Joel did his best not to bump into anything, but the floor was a minefield of garbage and random stuff.
Realizing he was standing in what must have been the kitchen, he made the mistake of looking around for something they could possibly eat, but he soon regretted it when he noticed a plate of fly-infested leftovers sitting on the counter. The sight was enough to turn his stomach, and it suddenly felt very warm and suffocating inside the dank little shack. The distraction caused him to misstep and kick an empty glass jar across the plywood floor. It took what felt like forever for the jar to stop rolling, all the while making an impossible amount of noise. It was just his luck to kick the jar into the only open section of floor in the place.
“Hey, stay with me. I need you.” Ben made eye contact before starting up the stairs. Joel tried to shake it off and occupy himself with the last opening they had come through; he knew his dad was counting on him to bring up the rear, so he needed to step it up and do his part. How could he expect his dad to include him in more of this type of thing if he couldn’t handle what little bit was asked of him already?
Joel kept an eye on the front door while moving into a position halfway up the steps to the second floor. He stopped when he could see the second-floor space and the lower floor at the same time. Before he could think about joining his dad upstairs, Gunner appeared at the top of the steps. His dad wasn’t far behind and shaking his head.
“Nothing. Nothing of ours, anyway.” Ben’s disappointment was visible. Gunner pushed his way past Joel on the stairs and jumped the last couple of steps to the first floor below. Something had Gunner’s attention, and both Joel and his dad watched as the dog sniffed his way around the room. Gunner didn’t stop moving until he reached a spot along the back wall about halfway across the three-container-wide room.
“What is it, boy?” Joel asked.
Gunner responded by getting even more excited and letting out a few high-pitched cries while dancing around the same spot in the wall. Ben was on it in a split second, and Joel helped him as they cleared away empty wooden crates, the same kind he’d seen all over the camp, some filled with moonshine jars.
The removal of the crates revealed bare rock with a crude wooden door fashioned over an entrance. Ben and Joel stared at it for a moment as if it wasn’t real. But it was, and surprisingly, there was no lock. Not one they could see, anyway. Faint yellow light escaped from the edges of the door. Joel put his eye up to one of the larger cracks and tried to peek past the door. He was surprised at the cool draft of air coming through the crevice, but it felt good on his face. He watched his dad cautiously step up to the door and work his hands around the edges.
“I don’t think it’s locked.” Joel wasn’t sure why his dad was looking for a key; it was just a flimsy plywood door, much less sturdy than the one they had just kicked in.
Ben continued searching the perimeter of the opening. “I’m making sure it isn’t rigged.”
That was something Joel hadn’t even considered before now. He had a lot to learn yet, and sometimes it was painfully obvious, even to him.
“You follow with Gunner and watch behind us,” Ben instructed. The sliver of light at the bottom edge of the door grew as Ben pulled the wooden panel back from the opening. Joel wasn’t sure what he expected, but it definitely wasn’t a long, poorly lit tunnel carved into the rock. A string of lightbulbs, half of them burned out, ran along the ceiling and disappeared as they followed the shaft slightly downward into the mountain. There was also a set of tracks that followed the shaft as far as he could see. It must have been an old mine.
Joel was too busy taking it all in to realize that his dad was already making his way inside. Then he felt the pull of Gunner’s collar on his hand. Ben was already a few paces ahead and moving fast, given the slope of the mine shaft. Joel snapped out of it and followed along, ducking every few steps or so as he passed a set of timbers that ran up the walls and supported a heavy beam at the ceiling. The tunnel was high enough to stand up in, but the supporting timbers and random cables hanging from the ceiling occasionally forced him to bend down. Between the overhead obstacles and the loose shale pieces on the floor of the passageway, navigation took some effort. With Gunner pulling, at times Joel felt as though he were sliding downhill rather than making a controlled descent.
Joel stepped over an old lantern lying on the floor, steering Gunner to the far side of the shaft to avoid any broken glass. How far did this go? He wasn’t claustrophobic, but he knew enough about mine shafts to be concerned for their safety.
There was no shortage of abandoned gold and silver mines in the San Juan Mountains back home in Durango. In fact, the mines and long-abandoned mining camps were some of the most popular spots along the jeep trails he and his friends frequented. They were also among the most dangerous places if you wandered too far off the trail. There were plenty of stories about people who had ventured into the mines or old structures and were never seen again.
This place reminded him of some of the mines he’d shone a flashlight down into, but that was the closest he ever dared get. Some of the structural supports in here showed signs of rot and decay. Joel wondered how old this mine was, but even more importantly, how safe was it in here?
The temperature was the only good thing about the experience so far, and he was thankful for it. It must have been at least ten degrees cooler in the mineshaft than it was outside. That was little consolation, though, and Joel would gladly take the heat over this feeling any day. He found that there was no need to hold Gunner back anymore. The dog seemed as concerned as he was about where they were headed and was happy to stay well behind Ben. It was a good thing, too, because Joel needed both hands to help navigate the shaft and keep his pistol ready. The angle of descent was mild, but the loose rocks underfoot made traversing the cavern more difficult.
Joel noticed his dad slow down and stop. Then he signaled for Joel to do the same. Joel crouched down and grabbed Gunner’s collar again, pulling the dog against the wall with him and making them as small a target as possible. There was nowhere to hide in here, other than behind the timber supports that, at best, provided eight inches of cover.
Joel looked back the way they had come in. There was no way they had moved that far into the mountain. He’d been checking behind them occasionally, but he couldn’t even see the entrance anymore. They were a good ways down in the shaft, well past the distance he was hoping they would have to descend when they first found the mine. No matter what, there was no quick way out. Going back would be a lot harder on them, especially since they’d be moving uphill and fighting for traction the whole way.
While holding Gunner, he watched his dad and used the back of his pistol-holding hand to wipe his brow. As much as he tried to fight it, he was feeling the effects of the schedule they’d been keeping. The lack of sleep and good food was starting to bother him. He’d convinced himself that he was fine, but there was no denying the fatigue he felt now.
His limbs were heavy, and more than anything, he wanted to just sit down somewhere comfortable. But they were a long way from that, and he knew it. He couldn’t allow those thoughts any space in his head right now. He needed to push through and help his dad because he wasn’t just fighting for himself and his f
amily—this was for Allie.
Chapter Nineteen
If it wasn’t for the missing gear and supplies, Ben would have abandoned this search long ago. The loss in elevation hadn’t gone unnoticed over the last fifty yards or so of the tunnel, and all he could think about was that if they did find their things down here, it was going to take a colossal effort to get them topside. He wasn’t sure where he was going to find the energy for that type of undertaking, although right now, he’d just be happy to find their stuff. This was their last hope.
Ben was optimistic, though. He could still hear an engine running. He couldn’t put his finger on it when they first heard the noise outside, but he was fairly certain it was a small generator. That would explain the lights. The farther down the shaft they traveled, the louder the noise became. He was expecting to find the source soon, maybe in a larger space with all their belongings. Judging by the way the sound echoed off the walls, he guessed that they had to be close. He certainly hoped so, because he was eager to get back to the others. They’d been gone longer than he wanted already. Searching the old man’s house had turned into a trip down a rabbit hole.
Ben checked back with Joel and made sure he was hanging in there. He was worried about his son after the incident upstairs and thought he was going to lose him there for a second. He knew this was a lot on all of them, but they were close now; he could feel it.
For the first time since they entered the mine, they were approaching a break in the shaft. With his eyes, Ben followed the loosely strung lights around to what must have been the room with the generator. But why go through the effort to energize and light an empty mine shaft? There had to be something worth the trouble down here. Ben glanced past the opening on his right for a moment. The shaft continued down into the earth. The lights did not, however, and Ben could only see several feet into the pitch-black hole. He was tempted to check a little farther down the shaft using the flashlight, but they didn’t have time for that, and he didn’t have the energy.
