by Cari Cole
They backed into the opening in the trees.
The bear seemed to relax her posture.
Lucy was the last one to leave the clearing. As they backed up the trail, she couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong but she was too focused on the bear to put her finger on the problem.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour but was probably less than two minutes, they moved out of sight of the bear.
Lucy took a last peek. "I think she's going back into the woods where she came out."
Jane and Mae breathed audible sighs of relief but continued to back up the trail for a few more steps.
They stopped next to a fallen log and by unspoken agreement sat down to get their wits about them and stop shaking.
"That was about as much adventure as I'm ever interested in having," Jane said.
"We'll have to be more prepared next time," Mae said.
Jane rolled her eyes. "There's not going to be a next time. We could've been eaten."
"I don't think the bears around here are carnivores."
"You know what I mean," Jane said.
"Yes I do," Lucy agreed. "But we're going to have to search that cave tomorrow. Unless you want out?" She'd come back alone if she had to. Until Belle was safe at home, she wasn't leaving anything undone.
"No, I don't want out. I just wish there was an easier way," Jane said.
"If finding the Declaration was easy someone else would have done it before now. Let's get back to the van," Lucy said as she looked around, still trying to put her finger on the problem that had been nagging at her since they backed out of the clearing.
"What?" Jane said. "I don't like the look on your face. Confusion is not a good thing in the navigator."
Lucy shook her head, concentrating. The trail was clear and relatively straight, leading . . . "Uh-oh."
"What uh-oh? I don't like it when the woman with the GPS says uh-oh," Jane said.
"This isn't the trail we were on before."
Mae looked around. "You're right. How did we manage that?"
"Never mind how we managed it. How are we going to find the van?" Jane said.
"Fear. We took the easy way out," Lucy said. "But we didn't come into the clearing on an easy path." Lucy studied the trail. "The big question is whether this trail will take us back to the road."
"I think it's headed in the right general direction," Mae said.
"What does your magic GPS say?" Jane asked.
Lucy checked the direction back to the point she'd marked when they came to the creek. "We're not heading back to the last point I marked."
Jane groaned. "I'm not going back where the bear is."
Lucy held up a hand. "Wait a minute. Let me check something else." She checked the point she'd marked at the fork in the road and the one for the van. Yes! This trail was leading to a point between the fork and the parking area.
She did a little happy dance. "I think this trail is a short cut back to the jeep trail."
"What is it Tolkien wrote in one of those hobbit books--'Short cuts make long delays'? Or something like that," Mae said.
"In this case, I think the short cut will make for an easier hike."
"Easier is good," Jane said. "Let's go."
###
It was easier than the climbing and clawing they'd done on the way in, but that didn't mean it was easy. The trail was still steep in spots and overgrown but they made better time on the return trip.
"I vote we pick up something really decadent for dinner," Jane said. "Protein bars and trail mix are great for energy and staving off hunger but we've earned something great."
"What about doubles at the gym?" Lucy asked.
"I think I've burned enough calories today for a huge binge," Jane said.
"Something really fattening and bad for us," Mae said as they stepped back onto the jeep trail. "Wow, that wasn't bad at all."
"Better than the first half anyway." Lucy stopped to mark the spot in the GPS. If they needed to go back for any reason she sure as hell wanted to be able to find the trail again.
"I just want air conditioning," Jane said. "Let's get back to the van."
Lucy looked at her friends as they trudged toward the parking area. They were a sorry looking trio. Dirty, sweaty, bug-bit, scratched and bruised.
She had the tin under one arm, its lid back in place and the map safe inside.
They rounded the last bend and the gravel parking area came into sight. The van was right where they'd left it but there was another vehicle parked in the lot.
When they got closer, Lucy realized it was a US Forest Service truck and Ranger Leonard was bent over the tailgate looking at something.
He looked up at the sound of their feet crunching on the gravel and walked over to greet them. "Hello ladies." He let out a low whistle. "You look like you've had a tough time of it."
"You have no idea," Jane said looking him over.
Lucy rolled her eyes. Leave it to Jane to try and flirt when she was dirty, scratched, and bug bit.
The ranger smiled and shook his head. "Oh I think I have a pretty good idea. I thought you ladies were going to check in with me before you went into the back country."
"We didn't think about it this morning. Too worried about my aunt," Lucy said.
He got the point. "She didn't come home last night?"
"No. We decided to see if we could figure out what she was working on. I admit we weren't expecting it to be as rugged as it is here. But we made out okay." Even though they hadn't found any sign of Belle, they'd made it out in one piece--with the map.
He nodded. "Well, I really hope you'll check in with me if you come back. I like to know who's in the back country and when they're expected back."
"So you can locate our bodies more easily?" Jane asked with a wry smile.
He laughed showing a beautiful set of teeth. "Something like that."
"So, did you find what you were looking for?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact. We found the homestead Belle was researching."
"We dug up a cookie tin hidden by one of Lucy's ancestors," Mae blurted out before Lucy could poke her.
Leonard frowned. "You ladies were digging for artifacts on federal property?"
"No! I know better than to mess up an archaeological site." Lucy held up the tin. "This was hidden under the hearthstone of the cabin by one of my--I'm not sure how many greats--grandparents. He fought for the Union in the Civil War. Didn't make him too popular in these parts I imagine."
"That's interesting." He held out his hand. "Mind if I take a look?"
Actually Lucy did mind but she didn't really have a choice. "Sure." She bared her teeth in a pretend smile as she handed him the tin.
He pried the lid off and reached inside, pulled out the map and unfolded it.
"Civil War era, you say?"
Lucy wasn't sure whether admitting that would be good or bad but lying to a federal agent didn't seem like a good idea. "We think so."
He looked it over. "A treasure map? Who'd you say buried this tin?"
"A man named Paul Morris. He and his wife homesteaded here before the war."
He looked pained. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you ladies to come back to the office with me."
Mae looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "You're arresting us?"
There There Little Lady
Jane muttered, "Well hell." Mr. Ruggedly Handsome was morphing into Officious Prick.
Flop sweat greased Lucy's palms but she stood her ground. "You're making a mistake."
"Now, I didn't say anything about arresting anyone. But I can't just let you walk away with what might be a valuable artifact." He studied the map.
"I think it's a clue," Mae said.
Lucy wished she could cast a spell to make Mae lose her voice. "I think it's just something my ancestor created for his own amusement. I doubt the map means anything."
"Whatever it is, we need to determine if it belongs to you or the
US Forest Service." He put the map back in the tin and put the lid on. "Now, you ladies don't look like the criminal type. And since I have this tin and the license number of that van, I figure I can count on you to follow me back to the office so we can discuss this."
Jane gave him the "eat shit" look.
"Of course we'll go to your office," Lucy said.
He nodded. "I'll drive slow so I don't lose you."
He watched them get in the van before taking the tin and getting in his truck.
"He's got the map," Mae said. "I can't believe it."
"I can," Jane said. "He's an officious prick. I thought he had romantic potential but I was wrong."
"He's just doing his job. I should have checked the rules for Cohutta before we came." Lucy blamed herself. She knew the rules about digging. Artifact hunters and amateur archaeologists frequently caused irreparable damage to archaeological sites. Damage that made it difficult or impossible for the pros to obtain meaningful data on the site. She should have warned Mae and Jane to keep their mouths shut.
"But it's yours," Mae said. "Your great great times however many grandfather put that map there for his family."
"And I'm sure we'll be able to convince Mr. Leonard of that fact." Lie. She wasn't at all sure about anything except the fact that they'd have to find a way to work around the problem if Ranger Leonard took the map.
"I think old Ranger Rick is just looking for an excuse to arrest us," Jane said.
"His name is Bill and I'm sure the last thing he wants to do is arrest the three of us. He'd be laughed out of the macho law enforcement fraternity," Lucy said.
###
"I ought to arrest you," Bill Leonard said after he listened for the second time to Lucy's explanation. "This sort of digging on federal land is illegal."
"Come on," Jane said. "We're not talking about some valuable artifact. The only value here is to Lucy and her family."
"Maybe so, but you ladies should have made the proper applications before disturbing the homestead."
Jane made an exasperated sound and held out her arms. "Fine, just handcuff us and get it over with. My ex-husband is a pit bull of a lawyer. When he gets through with you, you'll be the one catching hell. We wouldn't be doing any of this if we were getting some help in finding Belle!"
The ranger held up his hand. "I'm not going to arrest you. I am going to confiscate the tin and the contents. You can make application to have the items returned."
Mae started to say something and Jane gave her a poke.
"You can count on it."
"In the meantime, I hope I don't have to warn you about any further treasure hunting in Cohutta."
They all shook their heads.
He didn't look convinced. "You're free to go. Next time I might not be so kind."
Lucy gave Jane a little pinch to keep her from saying something stupid.
###
That night they debated whether to check out the cave in the morning or wait another day and let the authorities take over the search.
Lucy didn't want to wait. "We know where the cave is. I think we should check it out."
"But Ranger Rick has the map," Mae said.
"Maybe we won't need it," Lucy said. "If the search for the document is tied up with Aunt Belle's disappearance we can't afford to wait for some bureaucrat to decide whether we can have our property back." Chances were remote that Belle was anywhere near the cave but at this point Lucy was past desperate and edging toward panic.
"You win," Jane said. "But can we at least buy some Off?"
###
The hike was just as miserable as the day before but at least this time they knew what to expect.
Lucy hadn't had any luck in getting the police to jump in a day early and her calls to the local hospital still hadn't turned up any unidentified patients.
The B Girls were still on their own.
When they reached the spot Lucy had marked in the GPS, they all looked up and saw nothing but an unremarkable area of exposed rock. Not only didn't it look like a pair of lovers, from this angle Lucy would have sworn it wasn't visible from the site on the other side of the creek.
The rock was nearly the same color as the surrounding earth. What trick of the light or distance made the contrast so much more obvious from a distance? If, that is, they were in the right spot.
"I suppose we have to climb up there now," Jane said.
"You suppose right," Lucy said.
Jane stared uphill and shook her head. "It's a wonder we haven't already broken our fool necks. If we live through this we deserve a medal."
"Finding Belle in one piece would be enough reward for me," Lucy said.
Jane looked contrite. "I'm sorry, I know how worried you are. Hell, I'm worried too. I just don't know how much good we're doing."
Lucy shook her head. "I don't blame you. This hasn't exactly been a four star getaway. I just hope it ends well."
"I'm sure everything will be just fine," Mae said. "We just have to do the best we can."
There wasn't any visible cave entrance but that wasn't surprising. Nothing looked the way Lucy imagined it would. "I'll go first. You probably shouldn't follow too close in case I fall. Better if only one of us gets hurt."
The slope wasn't a straight up and down 90 degrees, but it was close. Lucy figured if she lost her footing there was a fifty/fifty chance she'd slide rather than drop like a rock tossed off a cliff. Not great odds, but then again this whole hunt was a long shot.
The bottom of the rock formation was about thirty or forty feet up. Not an impressive distance when you're standing at your front door looking down your driveway. When you're standing and looking up, that same distance is a lesson in perspective. Thirty feet is very high. Bone breaking high.
Lucy started to climb--carefully using hands and feet to push and pull herself up one small step at a time, testing hand and footholds as she went.
"Looking good!" Jane called when Lucy was about halfway up. "I'm starting up now."
"Be careful. See if you can work your way up a little to one side or the other in case I slip," Lucy said. As if to prove her point, the laurel she grabbed with her right hand pulled free. She wobbled, looking for her balance, trying to tip in favor of the hill and not the empty air behind her.
She groped around with her left hand and let out a big whoosh of relief when she found a root to grip and pulled herself back tight to the hill.
"Point made," Jane said. She took two big steps to the right before starting her own climb.
Just before Lucy came within reach of the rock formation, she wondered if they were going to have to cling to the hillside like monkeys on a tree while they looked for the cave entrance.
She scrambled up to the level of the rocks and saw that the answer was no. The reason the rock was exposed was the hill had receded around it making a ledge with secure footing. They'd be able to explore the formation without worrying about falling--if they were careful.
Lucy looked back down the hill. Jane was making good progress although she wasn't looking exactly thrilled.
"Just a few more feet and you can take a break."
"It's not a break unless it involves air conditioning," Jane said as she crawled up beside Lucy.
Lucy leaned out to see where Mae was and realized she hadn't started to climb yet. "What're you waiting for?"
Mae looked up with a too-big smile on her face. "I think one of us should stay down here. In case of emergency."
Lucy wasn't buying Mae's excuse for a single second. "Are you scared?"
Mae hesitated before shaking her head. "I just think we need to be smart."
"She's scared," Jane said under her breath.
Lucy agreed, but there wasn't any point in pushing. "Okay, we'll let you know if we need you to come up."
Mae nodded. "Be careful."
"We will." Lucy turned her attention back to the hill.
The rock formation extended above their heads nearly the same distance
they'd climbed from the bank of the creek.
"You see anything obvious?" Jane asked.
Lucy shook her head, searching for anything resembling an opening into the hillside.
"This isn't going to be easy is it?"
"Probably not. But we can hope."
They inched around the formation, looking for anything promising.
"I think we should concentrate on the underbrush. I mean what are the chances there's some sort of secret passage hidden by a rock door?" Jane said.
After fifteen minutes of pushing aside laurel and briars they'd checked all the likely spots on the periphery of the formation without having any luck. Nothing even vaguely resembling a cave entrance.
They sat down on the ledge at the base of the formation to sip water, snack on protein bars and consider their next move.
"You sure you want to stay down there and miss out on all the fun?" Jane asked Mae.
Mae lifted her own water bottle in salute. "I'm looking smarter by the minute."
"You're gonna be jealous when we find the cave," Jane said.
"Or she's going to have a great time with the I-told-you-so," Lucy remarked.
"I'm having a good feeling about this for some reason," Jane said.
Lucy snorted her disbelief.
"I know. I know. Optimism isn't my style. In fact it feels a little creepy."
"Only you would find optimism creepy." Lucy put her water and the empty Power Bar wrapper back in her day pack. "Let's get back to work and see if you're right. I'll take this half."
"You got it."
Standing on the forearm of one of the lovers after checking out the lower areas of the formation, Lucy looked up to see what waited for her. The view wasn't encouraging. Exploring the upper part of the formation was going to require some sort of climbing or safety equipment.
She was pretty sure Jane had dated a guy who climbed or rappelled or both. She seemed to recall complaints about rope burns and scraped knees. Maybe Jane would have some suggestions.
Lucy edged in Jane's direction putting her hand out to brace herself on the lover's upper arm--and lost her balance when her hand traveled a couple of feet farther than expected.
