Beneath the Veil (16 page)

Jimmy ran to the top of the hill and spotted Jackson and the others parked down in the valley. He waved his arms trying to get their attention until Jackson hit his horn in response.

“Doc, I found em.”

Jackson parked the truck nearby and then came out to greet them. “You guys okay?”

“Hell yeah,” Jimmy said. “You should have seen Willow.”

“No, Jimmy. Please.” She didn’t want the others to be frightened of her, especially the children.

“Sorry,” Jimmy said. “Let’s get inside.”

When Doc put Willow in the back of the Rover, the children greeted her with hugs.

“Willow, you look beautiful,” Tonya said, wrapping another blanket around her.

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W
hen they reached the cabin, they found their makeshift home untouched and their supplies intact. They relaxed for a spell in front of the fireplace, grateful for a hot meal and respite from the cold.

Jimmy took a last sip of coffee, stood up and stretched. “You boys ready?” His back ached from sleeping in the truck.

“Yep,” Doc answered.

Jackson nodded and then walked over and put his arms around Jen. Doc and Jimmy couldn’t hear what was said but she nodded a few times and patted the revolver in the pocket of her jacket.

Jackson walked over and joined the two men. “Ready.”

They left in the Rover and drove for several hours using an old map for directions. Finally, Doc spotted one of the warning signs talked about so often in the camp.

“Turn right here, Jimmy.”

None of the men had ever ventured near Mills Creek before. Stories about the area were common in the camp and most everyone stayed clear of it. The road was narrow and twisting and they soon reached a point where the surface was washed out and covered with stones.

“Can you make it, Jimmy?” Doc asked.

“I think so. But you boys might want to hop out in case I don’t.”

“It’s alright. We trust you.”

Jimmy put the transmission in low gear and began to crawl over the washout. They all tensed when the truck began to slide backwards towards an unforgiving drop. Jimmy regained control and was able to safely maneuver past the obstacle.

“Nice driving,” Jackson patted him on the shoulder.

They reached a plateau and pulled over to the side of the road. Doc got out and walked to an opening in the tree line where a valley stretched out for miles below them. He pulled out a pair of binoculars and focused them.

“Have a look.”

Jimmy took the binoculars and trained them on a dark spot in the distance. The area was heavily forested with a massive black circle in the middle of it.

“Damn. What the hell is that?”

“Not sure,” Doc answered. “We need to find out. I’ve never seen a forest fire burn in a perfect circle, have you?”

“No, I haven’t. It’s huge. I am guessing ten or eleven clicks across.”

“Have a look, Jackson.”

He took the binoculars and trained them on the valley.

“There’s train tracks running towards the circle, but they stop at the edge. I don’t see any roads. How are we going to get down there?”

“Jimmy and I’ll go on foot. You stay here and help guide us down.”

Doc walked around the truck and removed both of the side mirrors. He handed one to Jackson.

“You can guide us using the mirror.” Doc held it and flashed it down towards the valley. “If we go too far left, signal in rapid bursts. Too far right, signal slowly.”

“Got it.” Jackson climbed onto the roof of the truck where the view was best.

“We’ll signal back when we get down there.” Doc followed Jimmy over a rocky ledge and began the descent.

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F
orbidden to leave the porch and tired of its confines, Daniel and Max stole off into the woods behind the cabin. Willow had mentioned a river close by that tempted the boys. They followed a narrow pathway pushing each other and laughing until they emerged on the bank of a serene river. Sunlight shined between the trees and the air was crisp and clear. They stepped across half sunken stones and reached the other side of the tributary. Daniel picked up a rock and skipped it across the water. Max searched for one of his own, wandering near an ancient tree with exposed roots jutting from the red clay along the river bank. He circled the tree and found a familiar symbol burned into its trunk.

“Hey Daniel, check this out!”

Daniel ran to meet him and saw the blackened symbol in the bark of the tree.

“We need to get back,” he said in a frightened voice.

Both boys recognized the symbols and knew to avoid them. As they stepped away from the tree the sky opened and rain began to pour down. Daniel ran towards the river crossing with Max close behind. When they reached the crossing, the river was engorged with broken branches and debris rushing past. The boys, wet and shivering, were forced into the tree line to avoid the rising water.

“What do we do?” Max asked. “The others will be looking for us.”

“We can’t stay here. We need to go.” Daniel pointed to a path leading away from the swollen river.

“I can’t go further away from the cabin. My mom will be looking for me.”

“We have to get away from here...Evangeline is coming for us.”

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K
atie’s cries shattered the silence of the cabin, waking Marie who was asleep in front of the fire.

“Where are the children?” Marie looked around the room dazed.

“The girls are napping and Daniel and Max are playing on the porch.” Jen was busy organizing the remaining supplies in the kitchen.

Marie went into the bedroom and picked up Katie. She was sitting between Willow and Tonya both fast asleep. Marie carried her to the front door and opened it. “Max? Daniel?” she called out to the empty porch.

“What’s wrong?” Jen stepped into the doorway.

“They’re not here.” Marie’s voice was low and frightened.

Jen stepped onto the porch and pulled the revolver from her pocket. The grounds surrounding the cabin were still and both boys were gone.

“Daniel?” she shouted.

Jen circled the building and then walked into the middle of an overgrown field where she fired a single round into the air. Marie stood lost in front of the cabin with tears streaming down her cheeks.

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M
ax heard the gunshot as he followed Daniel deeper into the woods.

“That’s them!” Max turned and ran back towards the river.

“No!” Daniel called after him. “It might be a trick.”

Daniel chased after the boy, who was smaller and faster, but was unable to catch him until he stopped at the river. Jen appeared on the other side and found the boys blocked by the river with three wolves stalking them.

“Help!” the boys shouted and waved their arms when they saw her.

She fired at the animals and managed to drop one, but the others kept advancing. Seeing no other option, Daniel pulled Max into the river and they were swept downstream. The storm suddenly dissipated and the river began to slow. Jen ran for the cabin realizing the wolves would soon be able to cross. When she caught sight of the cabin, the wolves were closing in fast. She reached the porch and pounded on the door until Marie unlocked it and let her inside.

“What happened?” Marie cried out. “Where are the children?”

Jen reloaded her revolver with shaking hands and fired repeatedly through the site hole killing both animals.

She grabbed Marie by the shoulders. “Stay here and lock the door.”

Jen grabbed a handful of ammo, dropped it into her pocket and stepped onto the porch. Both wolves appeared dead, but she shot them again for good measure and then set off to find the boys.

C H A P T E R  S I X T Y - E I G H T

D
oc and Jimmy reached a clearing with a weed-choked train track heading towards the blackened area they spotted from above. The signal mirrors guided them down into the valley, but they were counting on the tracks to lead them to the mine.

“You doin’ alright, Doc?” Jimmy asked.

“Doing just fine. Maybe we could take a minute or two?”

“Sure,” Jimmy answered. He stood nearby watching for movement in the high grass surrounding them.

Doc’s knees were beginning to stiffen. He found a place to sit down and took a sip of water. It was quiet with no birds or noise of any kind. The solitude reminded him of a church he attended as a boy. Once, when the church was empty, he slipped backstage behind the altar where the stark rooms contrasted with the ornate façade outside. A strange unease crept into him that day and he got the same feeling here.

“Well Jimmy, I’m not getting any younger sitting here.” He stood, then picked up his bag and threw it over his shoulder.

“You and me both, Doc.”

Jackson watched through the binoculars as the two men walked along the tracks. He flashed two quick signals indicating that all was well. Doc stopped and flashed the same signal back. Jimmy unshouldered his rifle as they neared the blackened tree line. At the edge of the dark circle, the tracks plunged into the ground. Jimmy knelt to examine the metal rails bent at a ninety degree angle. “Now, what the hell could do this?”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Doc said.

“Look at this metal. Whatever bent these used heat to do it.” Jimmy wiped at the curve in the bluish metal.

Doc walked past him and examined the ashy soil. Blackened trees stood leafless all around.

“The whole area was burnt, yet everything’s still standing.”

Jimmy walked to a tree and snapped off a branch. It was black all the way through. He pulled out a hunting knife and plunged it into the tree’s charred trunk. Its bark crumbled away like coal dust.

“What could do something like this, Jimmy?”

“I seen a jet engine burn down a hanger once. It scorched the area pretty bad, but nothing like this.”

They walked into the ruined forest with the ground crunching underfoot. Rusted mining equipment dotted the landscape and an old truck sat parked along a stone wall. The truck was scorched black with its tires melted into hardened pools of rubber. Doc pulled a lantern from his bag when they located the entrance to a mine tunnel. He grabbed Jimmy’s arm as they entered the tunnel.

“Listen,” he said.

A distant pulsing sound emanated from deep within the mine. Doc stopped to examine the walls of the tunnel rubbing his fingers over stone which glowed with a pale red color. He turned down his lantern, expecting to find complete darkness. Instead, the tunnel was illuminated with a dim red glow.

“I’ll be damned,” Jimmy said. “Reminds me of the night vision we used in the military.”

“Why would Evangeline need night vision?” Doc asked.

“Beats me,” Jimmy answered. “Look at this.”

A gleaming hollow tube pointed at a section of wall where a smooth core was burned through the stone.

“What do you think it is?” Doc asked.

“Not sure. There are no controls on it, but its some kind of machine. Check out this hole.” Jimmy ran his hand around the laser smooth lining of the opening.

They continued further in and reached a point where the tunnel split with rusted tracks leading in two directions.

“Which way?” Jimmy asked.

“This one,” Doc pointed to the left. “The sound is coming from down there.”

The noise grew louder and static electricity in the air made the hair on their arms stand on end. The walls of the tunnel pulsed and the red glow intensified as if emanating from within the stone itself. The lantern reflected off a massive steel door mounted into the far wall of the tunnel. Doc and Jimmy walked closer to examine the doorway which was nearly ten feet high and the same width across.

“Looks like a blast door,” Jimmy said, running his fingers across the metal.

Doc tried to move a wheel located in the middle of the door.

“Think we oughta give her a spin?”

I think we should, Jimmy.”

Jimmy stepped forward and grabbed the huge wheel. “You might want to stand back a bit, Doc. No telling if this door was meant to keep things in or out.”

Doc moved back and aimed his pistol at the door. The wheel gleamed in the glow of the lantern as Jimmy spun it.

“Smooth,” he said.

The door unlatched with a loud click and release of pressure. Jimmy pushed the door inward allowing the dim glow of electric lights to shine out from the doorway. He continued pushing until the door rested against a metal sidewall. An identical door stood thirty feet from the first opening.

“Pressure lock,” Jimmy’s voice echoed in the chamber.

The air inside was warm and humid and water droplets clung to unmarked steel walls. Doc walked inside where Jimmy was examining the second door. He tried spinning the wheel, but it wouldn’t move. A red light glowed on the wall next to the door.

“I think we need to close the first door before we can open the second,” Jimmy said. “You better wait outside.”

“No dice, Jimmy.”

Doc pushed the first door closed and the chamber pressurized with a muted pumping sound. The light on the wall flashed yellow and then turned green. Jimmy spun the wheel and the second door unlatched, revealing a squadron of soldiers waiting outside. The men were fitted with breathing devices and carried automatic weapons. Doc and Jimmy dropped their guns and raised their hands.

C H A P T E R  S I X T Y - N I N E

J
en moved quickly along the pathway, desperately looking for the boys. When she reached the riverbank, the water had receded and the woods were quiet again. She hid behind a tree when she heard the sound of footsteps crunching on fallen leaves. Suddenly, Daniel appeared out of the brush, wet and exhausted.

“Daniel!” Jen shouted.

He froze for a moment, and then smiled when he realized it was her.

“Max is gone,” he said. “He was able to make it to the river bank, but I went further downstream. By the time I got out, I lost site of him.”

“Max?” Jen shouted to the silent woods.

Daniel walked to a clearing near a shallow pool of water and found a path with footprints pressed into the mud.