“Okay, I get it. There’s still nothing I can do.”
“That’s not good enough. You say you love me. Well, it’s time to show it. I have been on the phone all day trying to get someone to do something, but apparently the entire town is full of cowards and people who don’t care about the lives of two children.”
“Allie,” he said. “The Chief and the mayor are trying to get help from Tucson and from the state. They haven’t been able to convince them that the situation is real yet, but they will. No bodies have been found yet, so there’s no proof of anything. Just a little while longer and we’ll have more men to go search. You have to wait.”
“Wait? You want me to wait? It’s been almost a full day, Jesse. I’m not waiting any longer. Dani is going after Bobby whether I want her to or not. I won’t be able to stop her. We can’t wait for days for more cops to show up. I’m going to go with her. I want you to come, too.”
“No. You can’t go into the mine, and I’m not going anywhere. You don’t know what’s in there. It’s a stupid thing to do.”
My mother was silent for a moment. “Jesse, I’m asking you. Will you please go with us? You’re trained and you have guns. We need you.”
“My daughters need me. I can’t go on a suicide mission and leave them here. No, it’s not going to happen. I forbid you to go.” Uh-oh. That was a mistake. It never ends well when someone commands Mom to do something.
“You,” she said in that calm, icy voice that always made me and Bobby stop whatever we were doing immediately, “forbid me. Let me tell you this, Jesse Xander. If you don’t come with me and help to find my son, you can just never bother talking to me again. I’m not interested in cowards.”
“Allie, you know it’s not that. I just—”
“We’re done,” she said, cutting him off. “Dani and I are going to find Bobby. If you are a man and if you care for me at all, you will come with us. You can call me if you change your mind. Otherwise, I never want to talk to you again. Goodbye.”
I lay there, not knowing what to do. She said she was going with me, but I didn’t know if she meant it or if she was just trying to get him to go. I heard her softly sniffling. She rarely cried where anyone could see or hear her, so I’d give her a while and then ask her what we’d do. I was excited about being able to do something, but scared at the same time. I lay there for a little while, letting my mind wander, close to dozing.
I got up and went to the weapons leaning against my wall, running my hand down the wood. It had been a while since I had practiced with them. I hoped I was up to the challenge.
A soft knock on my door burst through my thoughts.
“Dani,” my mother said. “Are you awake?”
“I am,” I said. “Come in.”
She did. Her face was slightly puffy and her eyes were red, but she looked resolved. “I’m going with you. To get Bobby back.” She looked at me expectantly.
“It’s going to be dangerous, Mom.”
“I know.”
“Not just from whatever is out there. We could get lost in the tunnels or fall or something else could happen.”
“I know, Dani,” she said. “I also know that no one is going to help us look for him. If we don’t do this ourselves, we’ll never get him back. I can’t lose another one of you. I just can’t.”
“Okay. Let’s go, then.” It bothered me that she was even suggesting this. What would make my protective mother risk death for herself and me? She must have been panicked out of her mind. I didn’t think for a minute that she believed I was more capable than a dozen security guards. She just plain was not thinking clearly.
“Not tonight,” she said. “If we go after dark, we’ll probably be taken before we even get to the mine.”
“Isn’t that what we want to do? Get taken to where he is?”
“No.” She sat on my bed and put her face in her hands. “I’ve been thinking about it. If we let them take us, they’ll be in control. I think our only chance is to go there and surprise them. To do that, we need to go during the daytime. They may sleep during the day, even in the dark of the tunnels. Maybe we will have the advantage of surprise.”
It occurred to me that we were referring to whatever was in the mine as “them.” I guess we both figured it would take more than one wild animal to take all the people who were supposed to be missing. Besides, animals killed and ate. They didn’t kidnap. No bodies had been found, not even blood or other evidence. “Okay. First thing in the morning, then?”
“Yes. We’ll eat dinner, gather what we need, get some sleep, and be ready to head out at first light. Come on, let’s eat.”
After dinner, we got supplies together. Headlamps, extra batteries, food, a first aid kit; it was like we were going on a backpacking trip. We hadn’t done one in a while, since before my dad died, but we had all the stuff. Including WAG bags. It wasn’t pleasant to think of heeding nature’s call in a bag, but I threw several of the packs in anyway.
I threw in a coil of climbing rope as my mom walked into the room with what looked like a small suitcase. She put it on the bed and opened it up. A handgun shone dully in the overhead lamp.
“Jesse gave me this for my birthday a few months ago,” she said.
I remembered overhearing them talking. He had told her he wanted her to be able to protect herself. He taught her how to shoot and how to care for the gun. They had gone to the range a few times to practice, though she never told me. I noticed, though. I wasn’t sure how good a shot she was, but a gun would definitely come in handy. “I’ll feel silly wearing a holster, like some cowboy in the wild west, but I have to take it. We don’t know what’s down there.”
“I’m taking my staff,” I said. She nodded like she had assumed as much. “Do we have everything?”
“I think so,” she said. “We have five or six hours to sleep before dawn. Let’s rest. We don’t know how long it’ll take to find him and to get him out.”
I agreed and started heading for my room. Before I’d taken two steps, I turned and went back to her. “He’s still alive. I would have felt something if he wasn’t. Like with dad. We’ll find him and get him out.” I hugged her and felt her tremble as the breath seemed to catch in her throat.
“We will,” she said softly as I went to rest up for our mission.
Chapter 8
The low clouds, almost a fog, ate much of the early morning light. A dreary day for a dreary adventure. Mom made us breakfast as I went through everything we had gathered to take. It all fit into our backpacks, which was good, because we weren’t about to go into the mines wheeling a suitcase. I went out the front door to put our supplies in the car.
And ran into Sam coming up my walkway.
“Oh,” I said. “Sam. What are you doing here? It’s still dark. I don’t really have time to talk right now.”
“I’m not here to talk,” she said. “I’m here to go with you.”
“What? Go with me where?”
“Come on, Dani. It’s a small town, remember? I know you’re going to try to find Bobby. I’m going with you.”
“No,” I said. “No, you’re not.”
Her face pinched in irritation. She sighed. “You’re my best friend, Dani. The way I was raised, you do anything for your best friend. You could use help, and I’m here to help you.” I noticed for the first time she wore what looked like tactical clothing, black rugged material with several pockets, some of them bulging with items. She even had a belt with little pouches on it.
“What’s with the outfit?” I asked, not able to help myself.
“I’m a big fan of spy novels. So what if I dress up as a secret agent sometimes? I have skills that could be useful.”
“Sam,” I pleaded, “Please don’t make this harder on me. It’s too dangerous. I can’t let you go.”
“Are you going alone? Just you and your mother?”
“How…how did you know?”
“Small. Town,” she said. “Nothing is secret here
.”
“You still can’t go. One more person won’t make a difference, and I won’t risk you getting hurt.”
“One person won’t make a difference?” another voice said, this one with an English accent. “How about three? Would that suit better?”
Emily stepped up from around the car, Zach right behind her. They had hiking clothes on, hers coordinated grays and his tan pants and a blue flannel shirt over a t-shirt. Both carried backpacks. Zach had a baseball bat in his hand and a very large survival knife strapped to his waist.
“No,” I said. “I appreciate it, guys, but no. It’s my problem and it’s too dangerous. Go home.”
“Dani,” Zach said, eyes wet. “My dad is missing still. If you don’t let me go with you, I’ll go by myself. We’d have a better chance together. Please. I have to try to find him. It’s my dad, Dani. My dad.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but words wouldn’t come. I couldn’t refuse him a chance to find his father. I knew well the feeling of emptiness over a missing father. He was right, too. We would have a better chance together.
“Let them come,” my mother said as she came out behind me with more supplies. “Zachary is right. If he wants to find his father, we’ll do better together.”
My mouth dropped open. I stared at her. This wasn’t my mother. Who had replaced her with a clone? No refusing help, no asking for permission slips from their parents. What was going on?
“We’re going to help Zach,” Emily said. “If you won’t let us come with you, then we’ll help our other friend. She put her arm around him, but winced as she did so. Zach was always trying to get closer to all us girls. Em was probably hoping he didn’t see more in the gesture than was meant.
“Dani,” Mom said. “I don’t agree with them coming, but they’re obviously going to follow us anyway. We can’t stop them, and we don’t have time for this. Let’s go. Everyone in the car.”
Emily and Zach high-fived each other and Sam smiled at me. To be honest, I did feel a little better having them along. The more people I had with me when I faced the darkness of the mines, the better. Still, I worried if they were up to it. I worried if I was up to it. I angled my staff from the back seat up through my open window in the front, and we headed toward the mine.
When we got there, we found the area locked up tight but without a security guard. I guess they figured if someone was stupid enough to try to get in, they deserved whatever they got. Or they had run out of security guards.
At the first gate, one of the side entry points onto the processing facility, my mom took out a ring of keys. She shuffled through them and finally selected the one that fit the padlock on the thick chain keeping the gate closed. I looked at her. She must have seen the confusion on my face.
“I am the office manager for one of the offices for the mine company,” she said. “I know people.”
I shook my head. I didn’t know when she had time to get the keys, but I let it pass. My hands were shaking from nervousness now that we were close to entering the mine.
Mom pulled up to the mine entrance. It was a big gate, double steel doors large enough for a semi truck to drive through. This was the entrance to the underground. This was where it would begin.
We piled out of my mom’s Honda Accord and she popped the trunk. I got a closer look at what everyone had brought. My three friends had come equipped, with backpacks similar to those my mother and I had. Zach had his knife and his baseball bat. Emily pulled out what looked like a gnarled walking stick. When she noticed me eyeing it, she shrugged and leaned it on her shoulder. I looked at Sam. She didn’t seem to have any kind of weapon. What did she plan on doing when whatever lived in the mines attacked us? All three had jackets or sweatshirts. That was good. It could be cold underground. At least, it was in the cave tours I’d been on.
Another car pulled up to us. I jumped at the sound. Man, I was jittery. I hoped it wasn’t someone from the mine company. On second glance, I saw that it was a sporty little Audi, not something a security guard would be driving around looking for trespassers. My heart jumped when the door opened.
Jacob Benton got out and moved the seat up for someone in the back to leave the vehicle. I didn’t even notice who it was. Jacob Benton. God, he was gorgeous. He was wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie, but even dressed like that I could see the muscles shift as he moved. Sam reached over and lifted my chin to close my mouth.
“I heard you’re going into the mine to look for your brother,” he said. Did everyone in town know about this? “Is it okay if we go with you?” His eyes came up to meet mine, but I shifted my gaze away. Eye contact had been uncomfortable for me since the accident. I wasn’t sure why.
I opened my mouth to answer him as the other door opened. “We are not going with them, Jacob,” Madison Cairsen said. “We are taking over this shabby little group.”
“Oh, hell no,” I heard Zach say.
Jacob looked at him quizzically.
“Now, Madison,” Jacob said. “Don’t go—”
“No, no, Jacob,” she cut him off. “These type of people appreciate a strong hand. They need leadership. So, Danish, or whatever, let me tell you what we’re going to do.”
“Madison,” Sam said calmly, grabbing the walking stick from Emily. “If you don’t shut your mouth, turn around, and leave,” she hefted the stick as if to feel its weight and balance, “so help me, I’ll crack your head with this.”
“Whoa, whoa. Hold on now,” Jacob said, stepping in front of Madison and holding his hands up. “She’s distraught. Her sister was taken also—”
“No thanks to you and your filthy little brother,” Madison threw in.
“Madison!” Jacob said. “Don’t tempt me to step out of the way. Dani, she’s upset. Don’t take her too seriously. We want to help. We need to go look for Allison too, but we can help you find your brother. What’s his name? Bobby?”
Things were happening too fast for me. Sam threatening Madison. That horrible cheerleader bitch wanting to go with us. Jacob knowing my name, even Bobby’s. My head was spinning and I wasn’t sure what to say.
Mom came to my rescue.
“Listen, Madison,” Mom said. “You can come with us. If you do, you will follow directions. You will not try to take over. When we say hop, you will hop. Otherwise, you’re on your own. I don’t want to be responsible for you to begin with.”
“Do you know who I am?” Madison started, looking to be winding up for one of her rich-girl rants. Jacob stepped up to her and put his hand over her mouth.
“We’ll do what we’re told, Mrs. Prado. Don’t worry. I’ll remind her if necessary.”
“Thank you,” Mom said, mollified. “What is your name?”
“Oh, sorry,” Jacob said, removing his hand from Madison’s mouth slowly, looking at her as if afraid she would continue her rant. He wiped his hand on his pants, leaned over, and held it out, grazing my shoulder. “I’m Jacob Benton, ma’am.” I noticed that he maintained eye contact with my mother as he said it. I hadn’t ever really been close enough to him to notice that habit.
He shook my mother’s hand and then put his hand on my shoulder. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to push by you like that.” He had touched me. Twice. I stared dumbly at his mouth as he smiled at me. It slipped a little when I didn’t respond in kind and when I wouldn’t look into his eyes. I was too shocked for the first and too uncomfortable for the second.
“And I’m Tyler Lennon,” another voice said. I turned and found someone else standing there. He shook my mother’s hand, too.
Tyler Lennon was one of the great oddities at our high school. He was commonly referred to as a music dweeb. He somehow fancied himself a rock star, constantly emphasizing his last name as if he was actually related to John Lennon. He was lanky, awkward, and not good at all in social situations. Normally, he would be relegated to the “weird kid” status in school, but he wasn’t. He and Jacob had been friends since they were in first grade, and that afforded Tyler a soci
al status much higher than mine or my friends, almost equal to the popular kids.
“Nice to meet you, Jacob, Tyler. Do you have supplies? We’re not sure how long it will take to find the missing people.” As she said it, my mom adjusted the holster on her hip. She looked odd with it strapped there.
“We thought of that,” Jacob said, face brightening. I sighed and then looked around to make sure no one noticed. Sam did and smiled at me. “We have backpacks with food and headlamps and extra batteries.” He pulled the packs out of his car and handed Tyler’s and Madison’s to them. She grimaced. I figured she thought Jacob would carry it for her.
“Do you have…anything you can use as a weapon?” Mom said, obviously uncomfortable with asking that of a kid.
“I brought these,” Jacob said, bringing out a couple of sticks just over two feet long. I recognized them. Escrima sticks.
“Do you know how to use those?” I asked, overcoming my shyness around him in my excitement.
His face lost some of its shine and colored slightly. “No, not really. I got them a few years ago because I thought they looked cool.” He turned them in his hands. They were made of dark hardwood. “I figure I can swing them and hit something. It’s better than nothing.”
“Can I see them?” I held out a hand. It had been a long time since I had practiced the forms I knew for the sticks, but when he handed them to me, they felt good in my hands, just a bit heavier than the rattan practice weapons I had used. I stepped away from everyone else and ran through what was simply called Stick Form #4 in my style, whirling the weapons, blocking imaginary blows, and striking my invisible opponents. The dull whisper as the sticks cut through the still morning air invigorated me. It had been too long.
I ended the form in an attention stance with sticks crossed in front of me, the salute and ready position. When I turned to hand them back to Jacob, I saw that everyone was staring at me. My face heated more quickly than I would have thought possible.
“Oh, ah, I used to play around with them. A little.” I handed them back to Jacob and busied myself with putting my pack on.
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