The Seventh Mountain (6 page)

May God guide and keep you,

Joseph Young

Steve sat a large platter of French toast on
the table, drawing everyone away from their own thoughts. Steve had
been waiting for this. It was the first sign indicating what he was
supposed to do. The hooded figure had been right.

“I guess that settles it. I had planned to
ask, at breakfast this morning, where you guys would like to go for
a vacation. It seems to me that Albuquerque is the place that we
need to go. I’ll go ahead and schedule my leave so that we all can
go there.”

Shirley looked flabbergasted. “Honey, how
can you be so sure? Don’t you even want to have this
translated?”

“Sweetheart, we’ve already had this
conversation.”

“I know; I just want some assurance,
something more tangible.”

“This sounds trite, but it’s still true. The
proof is in the pudding. If it’s meant to be, then it’s meant to
be. If it’s not, well, then we’ll know for sure soon enough.”

Mark’s thoughts turned inward. He tuned out
the conversation while he considered what was happening.

What does all this mean?

Have I really been chosen for some special
destiny?

Why can I read the message and no one else
can?

There was other strange stuff too. Things
that he just couldn’t put his finger on. Deep inside of him
something told him that all of this stuff was true. He knew somehow
that he was a part of something very much bigger, only he didn’t
know what. His attention came back to the here and now just as his
father finished asking the blessing.

 * * *
 

Steve scheduled his leave time for
mid-August. That would put them in Albuquerque during the hottest
time of the summer. That couldn’t be helped. It was the only time
that he had available to schedule his leave.

The days of summer passed without any more
unusual occurrences. There were no more strange dreams or unknown
writings that Mark could read. Everything seemed like it was back
to normal.

The middle of August rolled around and the
family loaded up the car for the trip to Albuquerque. Steve hated
driving through the large cities. It seemed that he always managed
to hit them at rush hour. Nothing seemed more frustrating than the
bumper-to-bumper traffic, cars edging in front of you at the
slightest opportunity, vying for nothing more than one more space
ahead. Steve considered it the flow of humanity and the ebb of
intelligence. To top it off, there were two days of two adolescent
boys imprisoned in the back seat.

The Young family arrived at the hotel in
Albuquerque on schedule to start their mission. Dinner and finding
directions to this Mystery Mountain were the next order of
business. Then, the next day, they could take in some sights and
head out to the mountain. The hotel was one of those large-chain,
undistinguished, two story brick buildings with a swimming pool and
most importantly, low rates. Steve asked the clerk behind the desk,
“Do you happen to know where Mystery Mountain is?”

“It’s a mystery to me.”

The restaurant was across the four-lane
highway. It was one of those buffet chains, all you care to eat for
one low price. Four times one low price wasn’t all that low, yet it
wasn’t that expensive either. Trying to make ends meet on a
military salary was difficult at best. Savings were hard come by
and well earned.

At dinner that night Steve asked the
waitress, “Do you happen to know where Mystery Mountain is?”

“Sure don’t.”

He got the same results at breakfast.

Shirley said, “It doesn’t seem like this
Mystery Mountain exists.”

“It’s probably just not well known,” Mark
said.

“Maybe they don’t call it Mystery Mountain
anymore,” Steve said.

When the waitress returned with their
breakfast, Steve asked, “Is there a mountain around here with a
stone at the bottom with The Ten Commandments carved on it?”

“Sorry, I’ve never heard of such a
thing.”

“Thanks, anyway.”

Mark commented, “Let’s look at the library.
They have to know.”

After breakfast, they went to the library.
It was a sprawling complex of white cement and glass, one story
tall. Trees shaded park benches that lined the stone walk leading
to the front door.

The inside was a welcome relief from the
heat that was building up outside. A semi-circular counter guarded
the door attended by an older looking lady with salt and pepper
hair busying herself in its confines.

Mark said to the librarian, “Good morning.
Do you know anything about a stone at the bottom of a mountain with
the Ten Commandments carved on it?”

The librarian smiled. “Do you mean the
Decalogue Stone at Hidden Mountain?”

“I don’t know. Can you tell me a little more
about it?”

“Sure can, hon. It’s in Los Lunas. That’s a
few miles south of here just off Interstate 85. Some say it dates
back to one hundred and seven years B.C. It’s supposed to be
written in a combination of ancient languages like Hebrew and Greek
and such.”

“That sounds like it. Can you tell me how to
get to it?”

“Well, hon, there aren’t any roads there.
It’s out in Indian country. Excuse me, I’m sorry. I meant to say
it’s out in Native American country. You could take Route 6, park
and hike in, or you could hire a helicopter.” She looked at Steve.
“Best bet is to hire a helicopter, if you ask me.”

Mark said, “Thank you, ma’am.”

The group turned and started to walk back
out. The Librarian called as an afterthought struck her. “Mister,
if you’re going to hike in, then you had best get a guide. And if
you look for a guide in Los Lunas, they don’t call the place Hidden
Mountain. They call it Mystery Mountain. They won’t know what
you’re talking about if you call it Hidden Mountain. Although,
Hidden Mountain is its proper name.”

Steve said, “Thanks again, ma’am. You’ve
been real helpful.”

“You’re welcome, mister. Anytime.” The
Librarian watched as they left.

Out in the parking lot Steve queried, “Walk
or Fly?”

The answer was unanimous. “Fly.”

“Well then, plot a course to the airport and
let’s go.”

The general aviation and charter service
area of the airport was not hard to find. Steve drove up to the
building that had helicopters on the ground. They had several
ranging from a really old Bell “bubble” to a more modern Bell Jet
Ranger. The Bell Jet Ranger had the markings of a medical air
transport.

Mark and James got out of the car and walked
over to the helicopters. They had never been this close to one
before. They wanted to examine every aspect of the amazing
machines.

Mark came back to his dad. “Do we really get
to fly in one of these?”

“Well, let’s go inside and find out.”

Inside Steve called, “Hello… anyone here?”
He waited a moment and a short man came into the office wiping his
hands on a rag.

“Hi. What can I do for you?”

“How much do you charge to fly four people
out to Hidden Mountain?”

“Four folks… oh, about a hundred dollars.
When do you want to go?”

Steve thought that the price was a little
steep until he thought about it. Four people plus a pilot would
take a larger helicopter. Helicopters were expensive to fly and to
maintain. He said, “We could go now, if that’s okay.”

The short fellow looked quizzically at
Steve. “Can’t do it for at least three days. Low altitude flying in
that area is restricted for the Balloon Fest. Balloons from all
over the world, you know. Near about a thousand of ‘em, I
reckon.”

Steve raised his eyebrows. “Bet that is a
sight to see.”

“Yep. All different kinds. Why, last year
there was even one that looked like Jesus. There were all kinds of
animals too. One guy even had one shaped like an old tennis shoe.”
The short fellow chuckled as he spoke.

“Well, thanks anyway.” Steve turned to
leave.

“You don’t need to fly in. Take Route 6 down
by Los Lunas. You can see it from there. It’s the closest one and
it’s all by itself. You could walk to it if you had a mind to.”

“Thanks. I’ll check it out.”

“Anytime.” The short fellow turned and
walked back into the hangar.

When Steve got back to the car, Shirley
asked, “What did you find out?”

Steve started the engine after everyone got
back in. He said, “No one can fly out there for three days. There
is a big balloon fest going on. It’s supposed to be a sight to see.
He said that we could see the mountain from Route 6 down by Los
Lunas; that we could walk to it.”

“I don’t know, hon. It’s pretty hot out
there.”

Steve backed out of the parking space.
“Well, let’s go have a look-see after lunch.”

 * * *
 

Route 6 wasn’t hard to find. “The guy at the
airport didn’t say which way to turn. Which way do you want to try
first?” They were approaching the intersection.

Shirley said, “There’s a gas station. We can
ask over there.”

Steve pulled into the gas station and
parked. He got out and walked toward the service bays. He heard
from behind him, “Can I help you?” Steve turned and saw a young
man.

Steve smiled. “I’m looking for Hidden
Mountain.”

“I don’t know that one.” The young man
tilted his head as if thinking about it.

Steve remembered what the librarian had
said. “You might know it as Mystery Mountain.”

“Si, Mystery Mountain. You want to go
there?” The young man smiled back at Steve.

“Yeah. Do you know where it is?” Steve used
both hands to point along the two directions on Route 6.

“Si. You going to walk? It’s too hot for
that.”

“I just wanted to see it first.”

The young man pointed west down Route 6.
“You go that way for a little bit. You will see it. Then you come
back and rent ATV’s. Fifty dollars a day for two plus gas. It’s a
good deal, no? Go. You will see.”

Steve scratched his head. “Thank you.” He
turned and walked back to the car.

Shirley said, “I caught most of that. ATV’s
beat walking.”

Steve glanced at her. “Let’s go have a look
first. Then we’ll know what’s involved.” He headed west on Route 6.
“He didn’t say which side of the road it’s on. I guess that it will
be obvious.”

After a few minutes James exclaimed, “Check
it out! Look at all of them.”

Shirley and Mark turned and looked out of
the passenger side windows.

“Dad! Pull over! You have got to see this!”
Mark was straining against the seat belt to look out the passenger
window over James.

Steve pulled the car over to the shoulder
and got out. He looked to the right and there they were. The sky
was filled with hot air balloons as far as the eye could see. He
walked over to the passenger side of the car and hopped up onto the
hood. He agreed with the boys. This was definitely a sight to see.
Everyone else climbed out of the car and claimed a perch to watch
the spectacle.

The guy at the airport was
right. There was a Snoopy
^®
, an outhouse, a flying saucer
and all kinds of balloons. He even saw the tennis shoe balloon.
There were countless of the regular style balloons too, every one
of them in bright, eye catching colors.

After about ten minutes or so, Mark said, “I
know why they call it Hidden Mountain. Look at the shadows of the
balloons way over there.”

Steve squinted and watched. Sure enough,
every shadow that passed beyond a certain point in the distance
disappeared only to reappear a minute or so later. Steve looked
harder. It was hard to make out against the background of distant
mountains, but it was there. It had to be more than just a couple
of miles away, unless it was very small. The terrain was too rocky
and broken to drive the car on. An ATV would be just the
ticket.

Mark stared at the
mountain.
Hidden Mountain… this is where
it really begins.

Steve said, “It’s too late to go back and
get ATV’s now. We can do that tomorrow.”

 * * *
 

Bright and early the next morning Steve
drove the family back to the gas station. The same young man
greeted him. “Buenos dias, señor. You come back to rent ATV’s,
si?”

“Yes, and extra fuel.” Steve made the
arrangements. He even opted for a small trailer with a quick hitch
to carry the two ATV’s. After a short while, they were on their way
with the trailer in tow.

They reached a spot that he thought was
safe. Steve pulled off the road as far as he dared. It was enough
to keep the car out of harm’s way while they were gone. He loaded
some snacks, a flashlight, a rope coil and military knife into the
under seat compartment of one of the ATV’s. The cooler with the
drinks was strapped to the back of the other one.

“Mark, you and James ride on this one. Your
mom and I will ride on the other one. Take it easy and be careful.
Don’t lose sight of us.”

A half hour of grimy dust and teeth jarring
bumps paved the way to the mountain. Sweat collected the dust and
held it, forming thin layers of muck on everyone’s necks and
faces.

The mountain was a very old, extinct
volcano. From the ground, the top looked fairly flat. Brush had
grown up around the base. Finding the stone was going to take some
doing.

Hours passed, and the stone remained hidden.
Mark decided that it was time for lunch and wanted to head for the
shady side of the mountain, what little shade was left. Noon was
fast approaching.

His parents were a little ways out, looking
for some feature, some clue to where the stone might be. He drove
toward them and motioned for them to follow and they did.

Two packs of sandwich crackers and one soda
later, Mark lay back with his head propped against the wheel of the
ATV. He looked up the side of the mountain, squinting, trying to
discern anything that might be a path or a road. There wasn’t
anything there to be seen as far as he could tell.