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RANGER STATION:
Jamie cannot stand still so she paces in front of the counter. She does not want to leave the station in case Wesley shows up, but staying here means feeling helpless and frustrated, and she keeps wondering if she could have saved him somehow. Larry is in his office taking phone calls, and Frank is sitting at his desk on the other side of the counter answering his phone, but she has nothing to do and it’s driving her crazy. She cannot even search for Wesley without knowing where to start. She stops pacing when Larry jumps up from his desk and walks up to the counter.
“I’ve just received a report that a wall of water is rushing down the river. It seems someone opened the dam.”
Jamie feels a sense of hope. “It was Wesley’s idea, so it has to be him. I need to get up there.”
Larry nods yes. “Go. Go. I’ll call the Sheriff and tell him what’s going on.”
Jamie spins around, runs out of the building, and climbs into a Park Service SUV. She starts the engine and races out of the parking lot, taking the road to the dam.
***
TRACK MEET:
Arnie is sitting on the bleachers and staring at the parking lot. He hasn’t seen this big a turnout in five years. That was the last time Sparrow Valley was in the championship playoffs with Darrington.
The Darrington buses arrived thirty minutes ago, and the athletes are warming up at their various events. Both schools’ cheerleaders are practicing in front of the bleachers.
He hears his phone ring and pulls it from his shirt pocket, but doesn’t recognize the number. “Sheriff.”
“This is Larry, up at the park. They’re opening the dam so the river’s going to flood. You should start sending people down the mountain before the main bridge washes out.”
“Who the hell is opening the dam?”
“Your niece, Jamie, and Patterson.”
“Patterson? Get up there and stop him, Larry. We’ve got a competition going on.”
“It’s not just the flooding, Sheriff. If that dam is destroyed, it’s all coming down the mountain into the school grounds.”
“That Cave kid told me about Patterson’s paranoia.”
“I’ve seen it myself, Sheriff. If it breaks, it’s coming down the mountain, so you had better do something.”
Arnie turns off his phone and stands to look around. Damn! Cave was right.
He hurries down the steps and across to the parking lot. Two of his fishing buddies are getting out of a pickup, and he walks over. “I’m evacuating the valley, and I need your help.”
“Is that a joke, Sheriff?”
“I’m serious. What did the river look like down the mountain?”
“It was close to overflowing down past the bridge. We were wondering why.”
“Listen, we’ve got to get these people out of here. One of you stays here with me and starts telling people to leave. The other one goes down to the bridge and stops more from coming up. I’ll send the cars down in both lanes.”
“They’re going to want to know why, Sheriff.”
“Just tell them the valley is going to flood.” His phone rings, and his friends walk away to help him with the evacuation.
He recognizes Robert’s phone number. He probably wants to gloat that he was right. “Hey, Cave. The bet’s off.”
“I don’t give a damn about your bet, Arnie. I’m trying to locate my niece, Kristy. Have you seen her?”
“Uh, no, I haven’t. Listen, Robert. You were right, and I’m trying to get people to leave. I’ll tell everyone to keep an eye out for her.”
“Thanks.”
Arnie watches two motorhomes drive into the parking lot. This is going to be impossible. He walks over to tell them to leave.
***
THE DAM:
Wesley hears a car engine gradually getting louder and watches a cloud of dust billowing up into the air through the trees down below. A green Park Ranger vehicle suddenly races up the road and slides to a stop in front of the concrete building. He stands when a car door slams shut and Jamie runs around the corner.
Jamie is all smiles as she runs up to Wesley and throws her arms around his neck, pulling him close and hugging him tightly. “I was so worried that I lost you forever, Wesley. What happened to you last night?” She hears a soft groan and lets go. “I’m so sorry. I forgot about your injury.”
“I’m okay. I spent the night in the lady’s room at the campground.”
“What? Why the lady’s room?”
“Have you ever seen the floor of the men’s room? That many germs could kill a person.”
Jamie grins and lightly shakes her head in amazement. “I’m just glad you’re all right. How did you get the dam open? Larry and I both tried to move the wheel and it wouldn’t budge.”
“You have to step on the release lever at the bottom. Otherwise it’s locked in place.”
“I knew it was you when we heard the dam was open. Is the water level dropping?”
“Not enough. It just about killed me turning that wheel and I couldn’t get it open all the way. Give me a hand letting more water out before it’s too late.”
They walk into the building and Wesley points at the base of the wheel. “That’s the release lever. I’ll hold it down and pull on this side, you push up on the other.”
Wesley steps on the lever and hears the thud, then pulls on the wheel. With Jamie pushing, it’s much less painful. The chains and gears start to loosen with repetition, and soon the dam is all the way open. He releases the latch and lets go of the wheel.
Jamie lets go and looks up at Wesley. “How did you know about the release lever?”
“I read about it on the internet a few years ago. An amazing design for 1906. They used the weight of the concrete block to seal the dam. They could bring it up to whatever height they needed for the right amount of outflow.”
“Speaking of which, we’d better go down the mountain and check on the flooding.”
“What about your family and the Caves? Did they get the warning?”
“I called Jessica and left a message to warn them about the flooding, but I don’t know if she got it in time.”
Wesley hurries out of the building. “Let’s go. I made a promise to look after Derek and his family, and I intend to keep it.”
Jamie pulls the door close as she leaves the building and climbs into the SUV. “We should stop at the station on the way and let Larry know what’s going on.”
“Do you have any water in here? I didn’t have any when I walked out of the campground. It was a long hike up here to the dam.”
“Sorry, I don’t. I’m just surprised you even made it this far with your ribs and all.”
“It’s nice to see you again, Jamie. How’s my Hummer? I already lost my hat. I don’t want to lose that Hummer, too.”
Jamie stares at him. “Really, Wesley? With all that’s happening, you’re worried about your Hummer?”
“That’s right. I won’t be happy until I get my snow cat back, either.”
“I’d better find out if my sister found Derek.” She reaches into her pocket, feels two phones, and brings them out. “I almost forgot. I grabbed your phone this morning.” She holds it out to him.
Wesley takes the phone and stares at her. “You stayed at my cabin?”
“I hope you don’t mind. I didn’t want to go all the way home. I was hoping by some miracle you would show up.”
Wesley stares through the windshield for a moment, then dials Derek’s satellite phone.