Escape from Fire Mountain (3 page)

“I heard parts of your message on my CB radio and came as soon as I could.” Nikki looked them over. “Are you both all right?”

“Molly fell off the cliff and hurt her foot. I don't know how bad it is, but it's all red and swollen. That's how we found that ledge down there.” The boy pointed below him.

Nikki peered over the edge. Jutting out from the face of the cliff was a small rock overhang. Far below it the rapids churned violently.

The wind was picking up. Nikki looked behind her. If she had been alone, she would have tried for the canoe, but if she had to carry the girl, it would be next to impossible. The fire had almost made it to the river. The flames were as tall as the trees. They arched, casting a threatening light through the dark, billowing smoke.

Nikki stepped back, gave her pack to the
boy, and picked up the little girl. “We've got to hurry now. James, I'm going to carry Molly on my back. You've got to stay up with me no matter what—understand?”

The boy's dirt-streaked face was serious. He nodded.

Nikki shifted Molly to her back and set out at the quickest pace she could manage and still carry her precious cargo. James stayed right on her heels.

The fire was close, too close. Nikki's eyes were blurred by smoke and sweat. The trees crackled and the wind carried red-hot splinters that singed holes in the children's clothes and stung their skin. Where they stood would soon be nothing but blackened stalks and burned earth. There was only one hope of escape.

Nikki's plan was to get as far away from the fire as possible and then try to go around it. If they managed it, they could rest somewhere for the night and head out for the lodge in the morning—that is, if the wind cooperated and didn't send the fire chasing after them.

As if it could read her thoughts, a sudden
gust of wind blew hot cinders in their direction. A deafening crack split the air and a large tree limb hit the ground in front of them.

Nikki jumped backward, but a tall orange flame licked out and caught her pants leg on fire. She dumped Molly to the side, dropped to the ground, and rolled to put it out.

Slowly Nikki sat up and examined herself. There didn't seem to be any real damage. Her leg was black but not burned and her jeans and sock were only singed.

Molly looked like she was about ready to start crying again. Nikki scooped her up and motioned for James, who was staring wide-eyed, to follow.

“We'll have to be more careful from here on,” Nikki said. “But don't worry, guys. There's no way I'm gonna let this old fire get the best of us.”

Nikki led her charges down a forest trail away from the fire. “Listen.” She searched the tops of the trees. As she did, she stumbled over a tree root and nearly fell. Molly clung to her neck, choking her.

It was getting close to dusk. She put the curly-headed little girl down under a tree, shaded her eyes, and scanned the patches of hazy sky.

The sound drew closer. It was a sort of vibration.

A helicopter.

It came in fast. The rotors whipped and beat the air in a heavy pulse. It was so loud she knew it had to be flying low. Possibly it was a search and rescue team looking for them.

Nikki waved and yelled, hoping to attract the pilot's attention. She grabbed the walkie-talkie from James's hand. “Emergency, repeat, this is an emergency—can you copy?”

The helicopter closed quickly and sounded as if it were coming straight at them. For less than a second she caught a glimpse of its bright navigation lights as it passed directly overhead. Then it disappeared.

Nikki continued to wave and call out, hoping the chopper would circle back and see her. She stared at the gap in the trees, wanting desperately to see the helicopter return. But she knew it wouldn't come back. It was gone.

“Why din't he stop for us?” A big tear rolled down Molly's cheek and plopped on her checked shirt.

Nikki sat under the big tree beside her. “It wasn't his fault, Molly. He just couldn't see us.” She took the little girl's hand. “But I don't want you to worry. We're going to be safe.”

James knelt beside them. “But we're way up in these mountains. How are we ever going to find our way out?”

“Hey, didn't I tell you not to worry? It may take a while, but I promise—I'll get you out of this.”

Molly sniffled and made an attempt to wipe her nose. “I'm hungry.”

“I can fix that.” Nikki rummaged through her backpack and came up with some trail mix and elk jerky. “Try some of Nikki's special homemade jerky. Actually it's my dad's recipe, but I made it.”

While the children ate, Nikki rolled her shoulders and stretched. She hadn't realized until now how tired she was. Molly was small, but after a couple of miles of being carried up and down these hills, she got heavy.

“I'm sleepy.” Molly rubbed her eyes with a dirty hand.

“I know you are, but we can't stop here. We have to get as far from the fire as possible before dark.”

She handed the toy walkie-talkie back to
James. “Is this what you used to call for help earlier?”

James nodded. “I brought it with us when we left on our trip this morning. I think it's broke now.”

“Your trip?”

“Me and Molly got up early before anybody else and took a trip in Grandpa's canoe. We were only going to be gone for a little while. But the river dragged us for miles and miles, and then we crashed on some rocks—”

“It was scary,” Molly interrupted. “We almost din't make it out of the water.”

“We walked for a real long time,” James continued. “Then we saw the fire and started running. That's when Molly fell down on that ledge.”

Nikki thought about how lucky the children were. About how Molly could have fallen all the way to the bottom of Deadman's Drop or how they might have been caught on that ledge in a raging inferno. She touched the little girl's ankle. “The swelling seems to be going down. It doesn't look broken. Just badly bruised and maybe sprained.”

Even though they were well away from the fire, Nikki was still concerned. The air smelled of smoke, and the wind could change direction at any minute and catch them off guard.

She stood and lifted Molly up in her arms. “We'd better get going. We'll make camp later, when I'm positive we're out of danger.”

When it was too dark to see any longer, Nikki pulled a flashlight from her bag, laid Molly down, and covered her up to her chin with dry leaves and grass. The little girl had gone to sleep while hanging on Nikki's back.

It seemed ridiculous to make a fire after what they had just been through, but Nikki knew it had to be done. Temperatures in the mountains dropped suddenly at night, and they had no coats or blankets.

While James collected wood, Nikki cleared a spot for the fire and dug a small hole with
her hands. Using pine needles for tinder and matches from her pack, she quickly had a blaze going.

“Move those rocks James and make yourself a bed—like I did for Molly. You'll sleep snug as a bug.”

A high-pitched scream ripped through the night.

James jumped. He shivered and moved closer to Nikki. “What was that?”

“I'd say it was a mountain lion.” Nikki tossed a rock out of her way, sat down, and pulled dry leaves over her feet. “They sound a lot like people sometimes.”

“Do they eat you?”

For the first time Nikki noticed just how scared the boy was. Still, he was trying his best to be brave. She reached over and tousled his hair. “I said I wouldn't let anything happen to you, didn't I? Try to get some sleep. We've got a lot of walking to do tomorrow.”

James sat back down. “Do you know where we are?”

Nikki hesitated. “Not exactly. I haven't ever been to this part of the mountains before, but I
do have a general idea how far away from my house we are. I figure if we start out early in the morning, we should be home by nightfall. Then we'll call your grandparents and let them know where you are.”

“My dad's gonna be awful mad at me. He and my mom were coming to pick us up today.”

Nikki shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe he'll just be glad you're safe.”

James shook his head. “He told me to take extra good care of Molly while they were gone and not let anything happen to her.”

“Then he can't be too mad.” Nikki looked at the sleeping little girl. Her chubby cheeks were shiny and pink in the firelight. “I'd say Molly's doing just fine.”

James lay back on the ground. “Nikki?”

“Yes?”

“I'm glad you came to help us.”

Bright sunlight woke Nikki from a restless sleep. By the position of the sun she could tell that she had slept later than she wanted to. It was midmorning. She rose quickly and poured dirt on the campfire until it was completely out. Then she shook James and Molly awake.

The exhausted group started across the mountain in the direction of the lodge. The trail was rugged. Thick tree roots and fallen branches made every step treacherous. After several hours Nikki pulled the children up a steep rise and called for a rest.

From the top of the high mountain peak they looked down on the blackened forest, still smoking in places. In the center of this once solid green paradise was now a hideously charred scar that stretched for miles. The fire had destroyed the entire face of one hillside and a valley and had then burned itself out at the river.

Nikki knew enough about the mountains and fire not to trust appearances. All it would take was a strong wind, and those smoldering embers could be whipped into another huge blaze.

“Break's over.” Nikki stood. Her back and the calves of her legs were beginning to ache. They hurt when she reached down to pick up Molly. “Come on, Little Red Riding Hood, let's hurry up and get through these woods.”

Molly giggled. “Are we going to Grandma's house?”

Nikki shook her head. “Nope. We're going to my house. There's no big bad wolf there.”

James got to his feet and picked up the
backpack. “How much longer till we get there? Seems like we've been walking forever.”

Nikki thought about it. If they continued to cut straight across the mountain, they could be there in a couple more hours. On the other hand, that way would take them dangerously close to the edge of the burn. She studied their faces. They were so tired. Nikki didn't know how much longer they could hold out.

Before she could make the decision, they heard the sound of a small engine. Nikki's face brightened. Firefighters.

“Come on, guys, maybe they can help us.”

They ran toward the noise, slipping and weaving through the trees. At the bottom of the hill was a small clearing completely surrounded by forest and hidden from the fire and the world. Tents were set up, and two men were standing in front of them, talking.

“Hello!” Nikki shouted, and waved from the fringe of the trees.

The man with his back to them turned. Nikki stopped in her tracks. It was Red Beard, the poacher. She glanced around the camp. There were rifles leaning against a tree and a beautiful ram's head lying on a piece of plastic on the ground. Two camouflage-colored four-wheelers were parked near the tents.

Nikki swallowed and kept walking. She tried to act as if nothing were wrong. “Excuse me, sir. We're lost, and we were just wondering if-”