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We get moving and decide to use the engine for the last time to save our energy for the hike ahead of us. Thankfully, the tracks stay clear of any sand drifts and it’s just under an hour later when Glo calls out that there’s a junction ahead. The first two junctions we had passed kept us going straight ahead and this one’s no different, which is a problem because we need to go in the other direction. We put on the brakes on as we pass where we need to get off and it takes a bit for Beck and me to figure out how to put the cart in reverse. Once we figure it out, we travel backward past the junction and get off the cart to take a closer look at the tracks. There’s an old rusty lever that sticks out of a metal box beside the tracks to change direction but it won’t move an inch, no matter how hard Beck pulls or kicks at it.
He finally gives up and stomps towards me, his face red and sweaty.
“It’s useless! The thing won’t budge at all. We’re going to have to walk from here.”
I chew on my lip trying to think of a way to get the thing to work. We’d come so far in the cart and I wasn’t quite ready to give up on it yet. I watch as Glo gets down on her hands and knees to study the switch lever and have an idea.
“What about oil or something to lubricate it? When we pushed the cart out of the building it had been in, the wheels and axles make horrible screeching noises. Abuela had a can of black gunky stuff that she put on it and it ran smoother after that.”
He nods his head in agreement. “That might work! It might also help if we had some kind of tool to bang away some of the rust and loosen it.”
“OR...we could unlock it?” Glo’s voice rings out as she walks towards us.
I look at her in confusion. “What do you mean?”
She stops to brush off her knees and gives me a “duh” look.
“There’s a key hole on the side of the box. We need to get the key and unlock it so the lever will move.”
I look at Beck but he just shrugs his shoulders so I just ask, “What key?”
A grin splits her face. “The one in the floor where all the buttons are, silly! It’s clamped onto the hatch door.”
I stare at her for a beat before turning and dashing back to the cart and up the stairs. The panel is already open from when Beck and I figured out how to reverse the wheels and sure enough, there’s a key held against it with two tiny brackets. I can’t believe I missed it before. I pop it out of its brackets and grab the can of oily sludge from where I had stashed it under the bottom shelf and race back out to where Beck and Glo are standing beside the lever. Beck takes the can from me and pours some of the sludge down into the small opening around the lever. He moves over to the track and studies the lines before pouring more of the slimy stuff on both sides. He hands me the can back and takes the key. The key turns with no problem and the lever moves but Beck has to put a lot of pressure on it to get the switch points on the track to move in the direction we need to go.
Glo’s hopping up and down, clapping her hands, so I give her a big smacking kiss on top of her head for solving what will hopefully be our last obstacle before we park the cart. We all get back on and decide to pump instead of using the engine so that we can go slowly and watch for any sign of where my grandfather used to park the cart. The track we had been on before switching had been gradually turning to the south to run parallel to the mountains. This track heads straight for them and the rocks that look like a howling coyote. We keep the speed slow as we get closer and then start to pass the rock formation.
“The tracks are curving ahead!” Glo calls out.
I step to the front windows to get a better look and see the rather sharp turn ahead. “Slower Beck. I can’t see where the tracks go around this bend.” As we make the turn my eyes go big and I yell, “Brake! Stop, we have to stop!”
Thankfully, we were going slow enough that it was just a small jolt when Beck throws the brakes. He comes and joins us and we all look out dusty, dirty windows at the wall of rock five feet ahead of us.
“Hmmm, I guess this is it then. Who’s ready for a hike?” he asks.
Glo yells, “ME” but I just swallow down the knot that’s formed in my throat. We made it. We made the first part of the journey but I’m terrified of what we might find at the end of the next one. I take a deep breath and follow them out the door, pulling the hand drawn map from my bag. There should be some kind of pathway or trail to get us started in the right direction but I don’t see anything except rock walls on three sides. I look back down at the map and frown at what I see underneath it. The tracks go straight into a smooth rock wall. That makes no sense. Why would anyone run tracks into a wall?
Beck and Glo are unclasping the sled from the trailer and Beck yells for me to come help him get it off, but I’m fixated on the dead-end tracks. I walk the few steps to the wall, reach out and put my hand on it and feel it give slightly. When I pull my hand back, I can see my handprint where dust has come away. I look down at my hand that’s now covered in dust and then back at the wall before reaching out and giving it a hard shove. I have to take a quick step back as the whole thing ripples, releasing decades of clinging dust that billows down around me. I move back around the cart to let the dust settle and get Beck and Glo to come see what I’ve found.
“What is it?” Beck asks when I tell him about what happened.
“I don’t know but it’s not solid so there’s probably something behind it!”
He walks up to it and pushes it a few times seeing the rippling for himself and then drops down to the ground, runs his hand on the steel rail until it connects with the wall and gives a tug on it.
“It’s a tarp of some kind! Help me pull it up from the ground.”
The three of us start to pull the tarp away from the ground and find long, metal pegs that had been holding it down. Once the bottom is free, we work on the sides of the tarp which were secured to bolts anchored into the real rock walls with some kind of hard plastic bands. Once the whole thing is free except for the top, Beck grabs a corner and drags it to the side, letting the sun shine into the opening.
I move into the space cautiously but I’m surprised to see that it isn’t as dark inside as it should be. Looking up, I can see that there is an opening at the top that lets in plenty of light. The space inside is at least twenty feet across and forty feet deep with the tracks stopping towards the end of the space at a small wooden barrier. There are metal shelving units all along one rock wall that hold boxes and piles of tools. I take another spin around and look up at the opening, realizing that my grandfather had created a natural building to store his cart and tools. He had used the natural rock and created doors on either end with the heavy plastic fabric that was the same color as the terrain. It was a perfect way to camouflage his supplies and transportation. I call Beck and Glo inside so they can look around and head to the opposite end of the opening.
The opening at the far end is much smaller than the main opening, maybe around six feet across. I cut away the plastic ties holding it to the wall and kicked out the metal pegs in the ground until I can move the tarp to the side and see what’s outside. The back side of Coyote Rock is to my left but on the right is the pathway I have been looking for! I can see it leading up past the rocks and deeper into the mountains. This is the way we will go next.
Beck calls my name from inside so I go back in and join him and Glo who are standing by four blue plastic barrels. Beck has removed the lid on one of them and is peering inside of it. He looks up at me with a grin.
“They’re full of water! Not great tasting water, but water!”
I smile back at him and take another look around at the pick axes, shovels and shallow pans that are piled up on the shelves.
“It makes sense. My grandfather would have used this as his staging area to go into the mountains for his mining. I bet if we looked through these boxes we’d find some old food stores too. Probably nothing edible after over thirty years but it’s probably here somewhere.” I look around again and nod. “Come on, let’s get the cart in here and then go through this stuff. We need to decide if we are going to stay here for the rest of the day or start the hike.”
Beck nods. “It’s got to be almost noon by now. We would be out in the hottest part of the day if we left in the next hour or so. Maybe we should wait and go early tomorrow morning, start when it’s a bit cooler. It’s going to be hard no matter when we go but being out in the sun all day, we’ll have to be very careful and make sure we cover up.”
I grab Glo who’s scooping water from the open barrel with her hands and letting it flow back in.
“Hey, we might need to drink that stuff! Who wants to drink dirty girl hand water?” I just shake my head at her silly grin. “Come help me bring the cart in. Beck, you hold the tarp back so we don’t rip it down.”
Glo and I get back on the cart and I release the brakes while Beck pulls the tarp back as far as he can reach. I pump as slow as I can so that we’re barely moving. I’m worried that the tarp will catch on the top of the cart and rip down from where it’s secured on the top. I’m sure there’s a better way to move the tarp but I don’t really want to waste any more time figuring it out. I like the idea of having the cart hidden in case Boyd is still after us. Maybe if he doesn’t see it, he’ll just keep going past us and end up in Mexico.
I sigh in relief when the cart slides into the opening without catching on the tarp and Beck lets it drop down to cover the opening again. I feel safer already. Once I set the brakes, I point Glo towards the supplies on the shelves.
“Give me a hand unloading this stuff. I want to get the sled loaded up so we’re ready to go.”
I laugh at her when she tries to pull two water jugs from the shelf and they both drop to the cart’s floor. I pick them up and use my chin to point at a small box.
“Stick to the lighter things sweetie or you’re going to lose a few toes!”
She rolls her eyes at me but does what I say so I carry the jugs off and find Beck wrestling with the sled to get it off the trailer. I drop the jugs and move over to help him. Once the sled is down the three of us work together to load it up with as much as it will hold. If the valley works out then we don’t want to have to hike back here anytime soon.
We’ve just finished up the loading and are about start exploring the boxes my grandfather stored here when the light in the area gets brighter and a voice rings out.
“Hello, brother!”
The massive bang that follows those words has Glo and me screaming and ducking.