The coming of light revealed a dead gray sky, so low Nick felt she could almost touch it. There were none of Gus’s round clouds to be seen, though, just a solid, leaden overcast.
Their camp was in shambles. Half the food storage containers had been ripped open, as had the garbage bins. Two of the Fords looked like they’d been through a war. Four of their eight tires had been shredded, which left them with only one useable vehicle.
Cautiously, Nick, Royce, and Ivins opened the doors on the Ford they’d been sharing. The doors on the other cars opened, too, but no one made a move.
“Gus!” Nick called softly. When she got no response, she raised her voice. “Gus! Can you hear me?”
Not so much as an echo came back. She left the Ford. The others followed.
“The bastard probably abandoned us,” Ivins said.
“An hour ago you said he was dead meat,” she reminded him.
Ivins shrugged. “It was just talk.”
“You’re an asshole.”
“Doctor Scott,” Alcott said as he emerged from the neighboring vehicle, “that’ll be enough of that.”
“Ivins and his gun damn near got us killed,” she shot back. “If it hadn’t been for Gus, who knows what might have happened? Look for yourself. Thanks to him, the bears didn’t get all our food.”
“Keep your voice down,” Alcott said, moving close beside her. “The bears might hear you.”
“Let them,” Ivins said, cocking his pistol. Now that it was light, Nick recognized the weapon as a nine-millimeter Glock, state of the art when it came to killing people, but she sure as hell wouldn’t go up against a grizzly with one.
“You heard Gus,” she said to Ivins. “These bears are on the endangered list. You shoot one and I’ll testify against you. That’s a promise.”
Hurst spoke up. “Where’s Erickson? I thought he was with you.”
Nick shook her head. “I went to see him just before the bears came. He’d died in his sleep.”
“Are you sure? My God, where’s his body?”
Nick swallowed hard. “I think the bears found it,” she replied.
Ivins said, “I suppose we need to make certain. If we investigate the trail I mentioned we can look for his … ah, remains.”
Alcott shook his head. “I don’t think that’s wise in light of what’s happened. In fact, I think it’s time we left this place.”
“We can be there and back in a few hours. The earliest the chopper can make it in will be tomorrow. We can have them haul in some tires for the car. Surely, Donald,” he said, clapping Alcott on the shoulder, “you don’t want to give everything up on the verge of success?”
“Your chopper will be in tomorrow assuming it doesn’t snow,” Nick said.
Ivins shook his head. “In case you haven’t noticed, it’s warmed up. It’s practically balmy. Besides, I checked the weather forecast myself. Clouds sure, but no snow.” He shrugged. “Would I risk our chopper if l thought it was going to snow?”
“What about the risk from the bears?” Alcott said.
“Artifacts for your museum should be worth some risk. Besides, I happen to know that Mister McKenna is particularly interested in the gold rush era. This little extra trip could have a big payoff, Donald.”
Nick could see that Alcott was wavering. “If we’re going to stay, I should see to the Val’s rivets,” she said.
Ivins smiled. “Did I tell you that I spoke to Mister McKenna last night? We can hook up the satellite phone and contact him now if you’d like. He’s a busy man but I’m sure he won’t mind being interrupted.”
Alcott sighed so hard it deflated him. “That won’t be necessary.”
Ivins thumped him on the back hard enough to make him wince. “That’s the spirit. I loaded some gear yesterday. All we’ve got to do is get it out of the cars and be on our way.”
Nick was surprised to see Ivins shoulder a heavily laden backpack, since all they intended was to conduct a quick reconnaissance. Karen, too, grabbed a fully loaded pack, as did Lew Tyler, though that was no surprise considering the amount of camera equipment he always carried with him.
When she and Hurst were handed similar packs, she raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“Just a precaution,” Ivins explained. “You ought to be happy. You’re the one who thinks it’s going to snow.”
Nick glared but donned her pack just the same. After a moment’s hesitation, Hurst followed her example.
“If you people don’t mind,” Alcott said, his tone making it clear that he didn’t give a damn whether they minded or not, “I’ll wait here by the fire. I have no intention of walking over that mountain just to see an old mining camp. If you find anything of interest, Nick, we can discuss it when you get back.”
“Of course.”
“What if the bears come back?” Tyler asked.
“Mike has volunteered to stay behind with me,” Alcott added, the expression on his face reminding Nick who was in charge and who Mike Barlow, her assistant, actually worked for. “We’ll build up the fire,” he continued, “and we can always get into the cars, if they should return.”
For an instant, she was tempted to argue. Other than herself, Barlow was the only one with dig experience. But then there wasn’t going to be time to dig anyway.