“A GRIZZLY BEAR’S BEHAVIOR IS USUALLY MORE PREDICTABLE THAN A HUMAN’S. THEY ARE MAINLY CONCERNED WITH PROTECTING THEIR YOUNG, THEIR FOOD, AND THEIR PERSONAL SPACE.”
Buck and Toni had gone through all the possibilities they could think of and were now silent. They lay there, each with their own thoughts, as the car continued down the road. Finally the car started slowing down.
“Are you awake?” Buck lightly shook Toni.
“Yeah, I’m awake.”
“Remember the town we saw with all the gift shops and lodges? I think we’re going through it now.”
“Maybe we’re going back to the park!” Toni said, her voice sounding hopeful. “If we yell when we get there, maybe someone will hear us.”
But the car never turned and before long, it was gaining speed again.
“We’ve gone past the park entrance, haven’t we?” Toni said.
“I think so,” Buck said. He let out a big sigh. “What time is it now?”
The trunk glowed. “One thirty.”
“Do you think Dad and Shoop miss us yet?”
“It’s been over two hours since Rek dropped Craig at Toklat,” Toni said as the trunk turned dark again. “I’m sure they’re looking for us by now.”
“Well, it won’t be as hard to track down a missing helicopter as it is to find missing cubs,” Buck said. “Plus, the rangers will have Rek’s license plate number since he camped at Tek. Maybe there will be some roadblocks.”
“I wonder where he’s taking us,” Toni said.
“I don’t know, but I hope it’s not too far. I know it’s the least of our problems, but I have to pee.”
“Me too,” Toni said, and they both laughed a little.
It felt like a long time before the car slowed down again. It made a left-hand turn but only sped up a little. The car lurched about, and rocks could be heard hitting the underside.
“I think we’re on a dirt road now,” Buck said as he and Toni bounced around inside the trunk. “What time is it?”
Buck looked at the compass as Toni looked at her watch. “Ten after two.”
“We’re going due east now,” Buck said.
To their relief, they only bounced around for about ten minutes. Then the car slowed, stopped, and started slowly moving backward. As it moved in reverse, the car turned and seemed to be on smooth pavement for a few seconds before it stopped again. Then the steady beeping of an open car door could be heard over the sound of the running motor.
“I think we’ve backed into a driveway or something,” Buck whispered.
“Yeah, and it sounds like Rek’s gotten out,” Toni said. “I bet we’ve gotten to wherever it is he’s taking us.”
“Hopefully, we’ll be out of here soon,” Buck said.
A few seconds later the car door slammed shut, and the car slowly moved backward some more and stopped again. This time the motor turned off. The door opened and slammed shut again. Then nothing. Buck and Toni waited, but the trunk never opened.
“Where do you think we are?” Toni whispered in the dark.
“I don’t know. I don’t hear anything.”
“I think he’s gone,” Toni said. “I think he’s left us someplace.”
“We have to get out of here,” Buck said. “Move over. Maybe I can kick the backseat out.”
Buck scooted around until his head was at the rear of the car, both feet flat on the back of the seat. He gave several forceful kicks. They made a lot of noise and the seat budged a little. He kicked again and again.
Suddenly a loud bang sounded from above them on the lid of the trunk, and they heard Rek yell, “Stop kicking at the seat! You’re going to destroy my car.”
Buck yelled the first thing he thought of. “I have to pee! You want me to pee all over your trunk?”
Instantly the trunk opened. Glaring lights hurt their eyes as they looked up at Rek looking down at them, bear spray in his hand.
“I have to pee too,” Toni said.
“Okay, you first, missy. Bucko, you stay there and keep down,” Rek said, aiming the bear spray at Buck’s face. “The john’s over there.”
Buck saw Rek point back behind him as Toni climbed out of the trunk, but lying flat on his back, he couldn’t see much else. All he could tell was they were in a tall metal building. He lay there, looking at the rafters and keeping his eye on Rek. Rek seemed anxious about something and kept looking at his watch.
Suddenly Rek looked up and yelled. “Stop nosing around and get back here!”
When Rek yelled, something else started making noise. It sounded like pigs squealing.
“Those are the cubs, aren’t they?” Toni asked. “They’re under that tarp!”
In a flash Rek moved away from the trunk and grabbed at her.
“Ouch, let go! You’re hurting me!”
Buck realized too late that this was his chance. He started to scramble out of the trunk, but Rek was already back, standing over him. He had Toni by her hair and was pulling so hard, her head tilted at an angle.
“You’re not going anywhere, Bucko!” Rek snarled. Pushing Buck back down, Rek slammed the trunk closed. Again Buck was in the dark.
“Let me out of here!” Buck yelled. “What are you doing with Toni?” He started kicking at the seat again, adding to the noise of the squealing cubs.
Rek slammed his hand down on the trunk. “If you don’t want anything to happen to your friend, you’d better shut up!” he yelled, but his voice trailed away from the car. Buck quieted.
“Get in there,” Buck heard Rek say, “and don’t even think about coming out.”
A door slammed, and then a few seconds later the trunk suddenly opened up again.
“Get out,” Rek said, the bear spray aimed at Buck again. “And get all your stuff, too.”
Buck grabbed Toni’s backpack and camera bag as he climbed out. Squinting in the bright light, he looked around. The car had backed halfway into a huge metal building, big enough for six Green Beasts. Three big garage doors were at the front. In the back corner were two regular doors, both shut. Against the wall near the doors were two crates, each holding a squealing grizzly cub, one dark, one golden. An orange tarp lay on the floor, beside the crates. Other than that, the building was empty.
“Where’s Toni?” Buck demanded.
“She’s where you’re going.” Rek pushed Buck toward the doors. “Get in there.” He pulled open one of the doors, shoved Buck into a small room, and slammed the door again. The only thing in the room was an old desk. Toni was sitting on it.
“Are you okay?” she said.
“Yeah,” Buck answered. He dumped Toni’s backpack and camera bag onto the desk. “Are you?”
“He pulled my hair real hard,” Toni said, rubbing her head. As she spoke, the bears continued to squeal. But then there was another sound, a scraping sound like something heavy was being dragged across the floor just outside the door. The scraping soon stopped, and a few seconds later they heard the continuous beep-beep-beep of a car door left open.
“Sounds like Rek is in the car,” Toni said. “I wonder if he’s going to leave.”
“I don’t know, but I think he’s blocked the door,” Buck said. “If he’s sitting in the car, he won’t be looking this way. I’ll see if I can push the door open.” He slowly turned the doorknob. At first the door didn’t budge, but when he pushed at it with his shoulder, it opened about an inch.
“One of the bear crates is in front of it. But if we both push together, we’ll probably be able to get the door open enough to get out.”
“We better come up with a plan first,” Toni said. “Too bad there’s not a window in here. There’s a little one in the bathroom, but it’s too small to climb out of.”
“Where’s the bathroom?” Buck said.
“Behind that other door,” Toni said.
“Figures,” Buck said. “Have you looked in the desk? Maybe there’s a phone or something.”
“It’s empty.”
“Darn,” Buck said. He sat down, leaning against the wall. Toni took the sketchbook from her backpack and sat down next to him. She opened to the page where Buck had written down the directions they were flying.
“Maybe we can figure out where we are,” she said. “Sure wish we had a map.”
Buck suddenly jumped up. “We do!” he almost shouted. He ran over to the desk and pulled out the topographic map that was tucked into the pocket of the camera bag. “We never used it when we went with Craig.”
As he spread the map on the desk, Toni put her finger to her mouth. “Shhhhh.”
“What?” Buck asked. “I don’t hear anything.”
“That’s just it,” Toni said. “The car isn’t beeping, and the cubs have quit squealing. Do you think Rek tranquilized them?”
“I don’t know. Maybe they’re just sleeping, but let’s figure out where we are. If we can get out of here, we’ll know where to run.”
The two of them studied the map.
“We flew northeast at thirty-eight degrees,” Buck said. He put the compass on the map. “So here’s where we crossed the highway, and Healy must be that town we flew over. But we went past that. I’m guessing we landed here, near Lignite.” Buck pointed to the map.
“Then we drove south,” Toni said, her finger following a highway. “Here’s that town with all the gift shops just before the park entrance. The map says it’s called Glitter Gulch. We turned left about an hour from there.”
“So we must be on this road, right here.”
“Shhh!” Toni said suddenly. “Listen! This time I do hear something!”
They were both quiet for a second.
“It’s a motor running!” Toni exclaimed.
“Someone’s outside!” Buck added. “And listen, the garage door is opening. Someone’s driving in!”
Buck started yelling. Then, rushing to the door, he put his shoulder to it. The cubs started squealing again as Toni joined him. Pushing with all their might, the door slowly moved a couple of inches, but Rek’s face was right there. The bear spray was pointed toward the opening.
“Keep your mouths shut,” he said. Buck immediately pulled the door closed.
“Whoever that is, I think they’re coming for the cubs,” Buck whispered. “When you went to the bathroom, Rek kept looking at his watch like he was expecting somebody.”
“Let’s listen,” Toni said. “We might learn something.”
The two stood quietly by the door as the cubs squealed on the other side. The motor turned off, and the garage door closed. Then a vehicle door slammed shut. A female voice spoke out loudly over the noise of the bears.
“Rek, what have you done with those two children?” Romana’s voice demanded.
“Ohh!” Toni gasped.
“I can’t believe it!” Buck whispered. “It’s the Rails!”
“They’re part of this!” Toni whispered back. “And they know Rek!”
“They knew he kidnapped us too!” Buck said.
“They’re in there.” Rek’s voice was right on the other side of the door.
“They’d better not be hurt,” Romana said.
“They’re fine. I couldn’t just let them run around here, waiting for you to show up. Where have you been, anyway? You were supposed to leave Tek first thing this morning, but I saw you out walking around on the riverbed. That kid pointed you out.”
“It sounded like Romana’s truly concerned about us,” Toni said. “What do you think we should do?”
“Let’s yell and push open this door,” Buck said. “Pretend we couldn’t hear them and we don’t know they’re in on it. Pretend we’re glad to see them. When this door opens, we have to run out fast, bear spray or no bear spray. We can’t do anything locked in here.”
“Okay,” Toni said, “but we might need our things, and I’m not coming back in here after them.”
“We had plenty of time until we had to move your car,” Gerald was saying as Toni stuffed the map and her sketchbook into her backpack.
Buck grabbed the camera bag. “Ready?” he whispered.
Toni whispered back, “Ready!”
Buck and Toni started yelling as loud as they could. “Help us! We’re in here!”
They pushed at the door. It slowly budged.
“Help us get out!” Buck yelled.
“Rek, push that crate out of the way,” Gerald demanded.
As Buck and Toni pushed on the door, Rek pushed the crate away and the door suddenly flew open. Buck nearly fell to the ground, but Toni dashed out past the bear crates and looked across the garage. The Rails’ RV was on the far side. A small trailer was attached to the back.
“Romana! Gerald!” Toni called out as if in surprise. “It’s you! You found us!”
As Toni raced to Romana and put her arms around the woman, Buck regained his balance. He started to run, but Rek grabbed at his arm. Buck swung the camera bag at him as hard as he could and hit the man in the stomach. Rek stumbled backward, giving Buck time to run over and stand with Romana and Toni near the RV. Rek started after Buck, but Gerald stepped in his path.
“Leave the kids alone,” he said, his voice hard and unyielding. “You’ve made enough of a mess already, and we’re not adding assault to the list.”
Toni was still hugging Romana.
“I was so scared,” she said, ignoring that she’d heard what Gerald had said. “That guy kidnapped us!” Tears were running down her cheeks.
“You’re okay now,” Romana said, then she turned to Buck. “Oh, look at your head. We need to get that washed up.”
“I can clean it up,” Toni insisted. She held up her backpack. “I always carry bandages with me after what happened to my finger. Can we go in your RV?”
Rek and Gerald were arguing. Romana looked over to them and back at Toni.
“Of course, dear,” Romana replied. “The door’s not locked. I’ll be right in, but I better go see what’s going on with Gerald first.”
Buck and Toni hurried around to the other side of the RV. Buck pulled out the RV’s step and opened the door. As soon as they were inside, Toni locked the door behind them.
“Let me go to the john,” Buck said, “and then we’ll figure out our next steps.”
Buck tossed the camera bag onto the couch, went into the bathroom, and closed the door. Toni looked out the window. It looked like Romana, Gerald, and Rek were all arguing now. She slowly slid the window open just a crack. They were talking so loud, Toni could hear them plainly.
“You better not leave those two alone very long,” Rek cautioned. “You can’t trust them.”
“You’re the one we can’t trust,” Gerald said.
“What on earth were you doing anyway?” Romana asked. “Flying around with that ranger and then kidnapping the kids?”
“I fly for anybody who hires me, and the park service is one of them. I was just making a little extra dough. I didn’t know those brats would be coming.”
“But kidnapping? You could have just taken the kids back to Tek,” Gerald said.
“No, I couldn’t. Buck recognized me.”
“He wouldn’t have recognized you if you hadn’t been so stupid on the bus,” Romana said. “Kicking her hand like that. What’d you do that for?”
“She got in my way.”
When Buck came out of the bathroom, Toni was sitting on her knees on the couch, holding the camera up to a slightly open window.
“A little covert coverage,” she whispered to him. “And they’re talking so loud, I don’t need the shotgun mic.” Buck gave Toni the thumbs-up and joined her on the couch.
“So where’s the money?” Rek was saying.
“I’m not paying you a cent,” Gerald said. “All I hired you for was to fly those cubs out and keep them safe for a couple of days. Kidnapping wasn’t part of the deal. I figure it’s worth your paycheck for me to figure out what to do with those kids.”
“Oh no, that’s not the way it’s going to happen. You’re not leaving here with those cubs without paying me,” Rek argued. “I did everything you wanted. Those cubs are right here like I said they would be.”
“I want to take a look at them,” Gerald said. “Make sure you haven’t hurt them.”
“I’m going to check on those kids first,” Rek said. “I know they’re up to something.”
He started toward the RV, but this time Romana stepped in front of him.
“You’ve scared them enough,” she said. “I’ll check on them.”
Rek and Gerald hurried toward the crates, and Romana headed toward the RV. Toni quickly shut off the camera and put it back into the bag.
“We’ve got to keep up the act,” Buck said, “until we can come up with a good plan.”
Buck raced to unlock the door as Toni slid the window closed. Then they sat side by side on the couch, both tense again.
“Are you two okay?” Romana asked when she opened the door. Her voice sounded concerned, but as she stepped inside, her eyes weren’t on Buck and Toni. She was looking out the window, toward the crates.
“We’re fine,” Buck said. “Just a little shook-up.”
“Can we stay in here?” Toni said. “I don’t want to be near Rek.”
“I don’t blame you,” Romana said, but she seemed distracted by whatever was going on between Gerald and Rek. “But I need to get back out there. If you’re hungry, there’s peanut butter and jelly in the cupboard. I won’t be long.”
“That sounds great,” Buck said, playing along. “We haven’t had anything to eat since breakfast.”
As Romana left the camper, Buck and Toni let out sighs of relief. Buck looked around. Like most campers, everything was tightly stored away while traveling.
“Let’s see if we can find their phone,” Buck said. “Maybe we can get a signal here.”
Toni started going through the kitchen drawers as Buck went into the bedroom. Romana’s red fleece lay rumpled on the bed, and Gerald’s backpack sat on the floor, leaning against the closet door.
Maybe he has a phone in his backpack, Buck thought. He hurried over, flipped open the top flap, and looked inside.
“Holy cow!” he said, and raced to the door, almost running into Toni, who was charging into the bedroom.
“Look what I found!” both of them exclaimed at the same time.