“This is just spectacular. “
“I’m glad you like it, ” Devon said softly. Then he did something completely unexpected by reaching out and caressing her cheek with his thumb. “Has anyone ever told you what a glorious smile you have? ” Instantly tongue-tied, she avoided his warm gaze by staring across the rippling water and stammered, “Look. There’s a campground on the other side. ” Still stroking her tingling skin, Devon glanced over his shoulder at the scattering of parked vehicles. “It’s just a day camp. Overnighters aren’t allowed in this area. ” As if on cue, a green Forest Service truck rumbled down the road, crossed the creek and pulled up to a group of men who were donning backpacks. The ranger leaned out the window to chat with the hikers, one of whom pointed up into the rugged canyon hills. “The Forest Service patrols this area several times a day, ” Devon explained. “The ranger is probably checking their plans and warning them to stay on the trails. ” He stepped away then, tucking his gentle thumb into a belt loop.
“Would you like to go over there? “
A cool breeze swept her face, chilling away the warmth of his touch. She felt oddly bereft. “
“You mean drive across the creek? “
“I don’t think Bill would approve of having his prized dirt bike used as a ferry. ” Since the Forest Service truck had just traversed the shallows , Jessica knew that the water was no more than six inches deep. “Then I guess we’ll have to walk. “
Devon stopped her as she knelt down to untie her shoelaces, i’ll walk.
Madam will ride. ” “But how-? Oh, no!” She pressed her hands to her mouth and giggled. “I haven’t had a piggyback ride since I was seven years old. ” ‘ “Then it’s about time, wouldn’t you say? ” He bent his knees, squatting down to mounting height. “Hop on. ” ‘ It was, of course, a ridiculous notion. After all, Jessica was a grown woman and grown women do not climb on men’s backs. It was unseemly. It was childish. It was foolish She silently argued with herself for about three seconds , after which she emitted a shriek of delight, leapt up, wound all four limbs around him and clung like a happy tick. ” “Alley-oop!” Straightening, Devon tucked his arms under her legs. He turned his head until their noses nearly touched. “
“Comfy? “
Another girlish giggle spilled out. “
“I feel silly. “
“No, you feel soft and warm. ” His eyes held hers for a moment, then he gave a jarring bounce and dashed toward the water with Jessica laughing so hard she could barely hang on.
And she laughed for the next two hours.
As they explored the wondrous new world, every insect, every sprouting blade of grass received a share of their attention Jessica had a million questions-about rocks formed by layers of squished mud and foil-thin flakes of pyrite twinkling just beneath the rippled surface to the gray leafed thickets that lined the steep side of the creek bed. With the patience of Job, Devon answered each question the best he could without the slightest trace of irritation. He went so far as to crawl over half-submerged boulders, searching for caddis fly larvae, which he seemed to think were the architectural marvels of the insect world. After soaking one sleeve to the shoulder, he emitted a triumphant shout and held one up in his palm. Jessica took one look at the tweaked antennae protruding from the creature’s sand tube and declared it the most disgusting thing she’d ever seen. Crestfallen, Devon tried to return the little insect to its home beneath the rock, only to slip and fall face first into the icy water. He emerged, stunned and sputtering, while Jessica dropped to the ground and howled with glee. Devon retaliated by positioning his dripping body above her and shaking like a wet sheepdog. When she squealed for mercy, he flopped beside her. They were basking drowsily in the sun, enjoying the soothing babble of the creek when the serenity was shattered by a terrified scream.
Chapter Five.
Devon jolted to his feet. “Did you hear that? “
“Yes. ” Jessica scrambled to her knees and cocked her head, listening.
“I’m not sure where it came from” In less than a heartbeat, a frantic cry for help emanated from a ravine several hundred yards behind them. Jessica stood quickly but Devon was already sprinting toward the sound. She followed with one hand flat atop her head to keep the scarf in place as she ran. After a hundred yards, her lungs were ready to explode and her legs felt like limp noodles. Gasping, she bent over, hands propped on her knees, cursing her depleted stamina. After catching her breath, she stumbled into the ravine and headed toward the group of hikers who were now clumped at the base of a craggy ridge. One man was uncoiling a length of thick rope. Everyone else in the somber crowd, seven men including Devon, stood in a circle staring at their shoes. As Jessica hurried closer, however, she saw the yawning pit in the ground and her heart sank. Praying that no one had fallen in, she came up behind Devon and touched his arm. When he looked over, his grim expression confirmed her worst fears.
“Oh, God, ” she murmured, horrified by the ragged, three-foot opening.
“What is it? ” “Could be a hard-rock test hole or the air shaft from an abandoned mine tunnel. At one time, this whole canyon was littered with them. Most have been filled but every so often someone sees a board poking out of the dirt and finds a new one.
” Jessica saw the fractured remnants of rotten wood strewn around the area and realized that once the protective planks had been buried by surface debris, they’d be an invisible death trap to anyone unfortunate enough to step on one. Apparently that’s exactly what had happened. Her stomach turned at the thought. At that moment, the man carrying the rope muscled through the human circle. Devon guided Jessica backward, allowing him access to the pit. The Rope Man knelt at the opening and lowered the thick cord down into the pit. “
“Larry Can you hear me, man? “
A thin reply wafted up from the darkness. ” “Tie the rope around your waist and we’ll pull you up. ” ‘ Rope Man stiffened then leaned closer to the hole. “Whays that? ” He listened for a moment then moaned, sat back on his heels and swore sharply. “He can’t use his right arm. Thinks his shoulder’s broke. “
A lanky, fuzzy-haired fellow stepped forward wringing his bony hands.
“What are we gonna do? ” Devon reacted instantly, motioning for Jessica to stay put at the same time he was moving precariously close to the crumbling edge of the shaft. “How far down is he? “
“I don’t know for sure. Fifty feet, maybe more. “
Devon nodded. “Try to find out if he has any-other injuries” He turned to the worried young man. “Is that your four-wheel drive parked by the crossing? “
Fuzzy-Head nodded.
“Do you think you can get it up here? ” Puffing his thin chest, the guy flashed a cocky grin. “I can drive that sucker up a tree if I have to. ” With that, he leapt over a pile of gear and sprinted down the ravine. As Rope Man shouted questions down into the hole, Devon turned to the rest of the group. ” “The CDF ranger has a short-wave radio. He can call for emergency crews and a medevac helicopter. ” A paunchy, middleaged fellow wearing an L. A. Raiders cap lifted a tentative hand. “My car is parked across the creek. I’ll go find the ranger. ” He waited for Devon’s nod of approval before loping away to complete his assignment “I need flashlights, ” Devon said to no one in particular. “And leather belts if you have them. ” As the group scattered like obedient children, Devon squatted beside the hole. Rope Man looked worried. “IYS not good. Larry keeps drifting in and out, like he’s having trouble staying conscious. He says his head is bleeding and-” he raked his thinning hair in frustration “-and he says that he’s standing in water. “
Devon paled. “How much water? “
“Don’t know. Every time I ask, he starts mumbling gobbledygook. ” ‘ Both men stood. There was no need for words. Both realized that if the trapped man lost consciousness, he would probably drown before help could arrive.
Jessica knew it, too.
Sickened and feeling helpless, she stumbled to a nearby rock and sat down, praying that the ranger would arrive quickly and.. and do what?
Tears stung her eyes as the hopelessness of the situation hit home.
Similar rescue attempts she’d seen on television required massive earth moving equipment and inevitably took hours, sometimes days. The effort was rarely successful. In this instance, the location was so remote that it would be nightfall before the proper equipment could be moved to the site. That, along with the unstable shaft and the victim’s injuries, made the situation seem even more futile. She glanced glumly toward the rest of the group as individuals scurried about searching for the requested items. For several minutes she watched, both perplexed and fascinated by Devon’s authoritative manner, although she couldn’t for the life of her figure out what on earth he was doing. The flashlight he’d requested was now dangling from a cord that had been fastened to his own waist. Even stranger, he’d hooked two belts together and looped them around his chest like a bandolier.
She stood slowly, her chest tightened by indefinable fear.
Before she could isolate the source of that fear she was distracted by the distant thrum of an engine. She turned, gazing down the ravine as the roar grew louder. In a moment , a black pickup lurched into view. Rope Man loped over to meet it. The fuzzy-headed driver rolled down the window and the two men talked, casting agitated glances toward the open pit. After a moment Rope Man stepped away, allowing the compact truck enough room to inch a tedious U-turn between the narrow canyon walls. When the vehicle’s tailgate was pointed toward the shaft, the driver shifted into reverse. Hand signals guided the truck backward until the rear wheels were six feet from the opening. Rope Man climbed into the pickup’s open bed. Devon followed, carrying one end of the rope. Using a series of secure knots, they tied the braided nylon line to the steel roll bar arched behind the truck’s cab. When they’d finished, Devon jumped to the ground and carefully arranged the rope so it extended over the truck’s tailgate. At first bewildered, Jessica soon realized that they planned to use the truck to pull the man out of the pit and assumed that the rope had been positioned in such a precise manner in order to transfer some of poor Larry’s weight from the crumbling lip of the hole to the truck’s steel chassis The idea would have seemed plausible except for the problem of getting the rope around the victim in the first place. Obviously, the wounded fellow was in no condition to accomplish the task on his own. As Jessica was mulling over that particular obstacle, the truck moved, slowly forward until the rope was stretched flat. At that point, Devon scooped up the free end and looped it around his waist.
Jessica blinked. It took a moment before her stunned brain could react.
“What are you doing? ” Other than a muscle twitch below his ear, there was no indication that Devon had heard her. She crossed the flat quickly and yanked on his arm. “No! You can’t go down there. You can’t!” He jerked the final knot, took a shaky breath and patted the fingers that were clawing his biceps. “I have to. ” She stepped back, horrified, disbelieving. “No, you don’t! Help is coming.. experts… people who have the equipment to do this sort of thing. “
Devon nodded toward the pit. “He could be dead by then. “
“And if that shaft collapses, you’ll both be dead!” Frantic, she grabbed his arms and shook as hard as she could. “Look at you! You’re white as a sheet and dripping sweat. You know as well as I do that if you go down that hole there’s a damned good chance you’ll never come up again. “
He didn’t bother to argue. “Someone has to do it. “
“Then why does it have to be you? ” she demanded.
“Because I’ve had similar experiences. “
“How similar? ” “Well, I’ve bellied through guerrilla tunnels in Southeast Asia and I once spent three days in a bat cave. ” He smiled thinly. ” Don’t worry. Everything is going to be fine. ” A shout from the pickup truck caught his attention. He nodded at Rope Man, then lifted Jessica easily and set her to the side. ” Stay out of the way. I don’t want you to get hurt ‘,
“Please, ” she croaked, too terrified to say anything more.
After untangling her fingers from the slick fabric of his Windbreaker, he brushed his lips sweetly across her mouth. The brief kiss affected Jessica like a bolt of lightning. She was still reeling when he abruptly released her and went to the edge of the shaft, where Rope Man was waiting to lower him into the abyss. When the line went taut, Rope Man circled one hand over his head. The truck slowly backed up. As the earth swallowed foot after foot of rope, Jessica watched in horror, her head spinning, her lips still tingling from Devon’s kiss. She didn’t understand-could never understand-what made Devon Monroe tick. She’d recognized terror in his eyes yet there he was, suspended into the jaws of the earth like so much human bait. And this wasn’t the first time she’d seen him defy death. On the drive home from the airport he’d charged into traffic as though compelled by some deep, intractable force the same force, perhaps, behind his reputation as a journalist of fearless tenacity and unquestioned courage. But this wasn’t courage. It was madness. All Jessica could do was wait for it to be over. For what seemed a small eternity, Rope Man continually called down into the shaft, then tipped his ear to catch indistinct replies. Although Jessica was numbed by shock and fear, she heard Devon report that the shaft widened at the base. For some reason, Rope Man considered that to be good news. Slightly buoyed, she took a shaky step toward the opening. wh-hat’s happening down there? ” Rope Man answered without taking his eyes off the taut rope that was still moving downward. “He’s almost to the bottom. ” Jessica couldn’t look at the hole. Instead, she watched the truck inching toward them. “Then what? ” “That depends on what he finds. If there’s enough room to work, he’ll try to bring Larry up”
“And if there’s not enough room? “
“Then he’ll hold Larry’s head out of the water until help arrives. “
Jessica’s knees nearly buckled. “You mean he’s going to stay down there?
“Don’t know, ” he muttered absently. “We’ll have to see- ” A shout echoed up from below. Rope Man held up a palm and shouted to the truck driver.