He turned to find Jorge standing just behind him.
The Brazilian continued. “You made a good choice.” He nodded back toward the jungle. “It’s going to be good to put some distance between us and whoever is back there.”
Zane raised an eyebrow. “You knew we were being followed?”
“Of course. We’ve been followed from the moment we left the boat. The signs have been obvious if you’re looking in the right places.”
Zane frowned. “And you didn’t tell me?”
Jorge shook his head. “I wasn’t sure at first. When we entered the jungle, I thought it was a jaguar. I’d see the occasional flash of darkness across an opening in the woods. I sensed eyes watching us. But as I began to think about it, I realized a big cat would never follow us for this long.”
Zane’s mind turned to the mole. “Do you think it’s the Chinese?”
“No, they’re not that good. Soldiers, even good ones, are too noisy.”
Zane’s frown deepened. “Do you think it’s Osak’s tribe?”
Jorge shook his head immediately. “No, I’ve been watching him. He noticed some of the same noises I did. He didn’t have the look of someone hearing friends, more the look of someone who was concerned.”
“Another tribe then?”
Jorge shrugged his shoulders. “Probably, but at this point, it’s hard to say. It’s generally been one or two approaching. Now they have to stay far enough away to escape detection.”
“They got pretty close to me earlier.”
Tocchet approached before Jorge could respond. “Sir, we’re ready to go down.”
“We’ll be right there, Sergeant.”
Zane gave Jorge a look indicating they would talk later, then followed the Green Beret over to the crater rim. When they arrived, Bennett was checking his knots one last time. Satisfied that everything was in order, he slid on specialized gloves with goat-leather palms and neoprene cuffs.
“All set?” Tocchet asked.
Bennett lifted a thumb in the air.
“Let us know how things look down there,” Zane reminded him.
Bennett saluted and said, “Yes, sir. See you on the other end.”
The soldier gripped the rope tightly and began his descent. Seconds later, his head disappeared into the fog. What was he going to find at the bottom? The more Zane thought about it, the more intrigued he became. Even if only a few of Osak’s stories were true, they were potentially headed into a kill zone. The only question was who or what was doing the killing. He hoped and prayed they’d all fare better than the others who’d gone before them.
A few minutes later, Bennett’s voice crackled out of the radio. “I’m down. There was some incline to the wall, so it wasn’t bad at all.”
“Copy that,” Zane said. “Can you give me a sitrep on conditions at the bottom?”
For a long moment, the only sound coming through the radio was heavy breathing.
Zane lifted the radio again. “Bennett?”
“Sorry. It’s dark, very dark.” There was a shuffling sound and a click. “It’s like it’s already night down here.”
“Are you able to use your flashlight?”
“Affirmative. The…”
Zane gave him a moment then asked, “Bennett?”
“Sorry, it’s just strange.”
“What’s strange?
“The plants. The trees. They just seem different down here.”
Katiya looked at Zane. “Not surprising. Think of an island, where the flora and fauna are unique.” Zane gave her a confused look, and she tried again. “Essentially, the crater rim has provided some level of separation from the rest of the jungle. It doesn’t seem like much of a buffer, but my guess is we’re looking at a very different ecosystem down there.”
Bennett spoke again through the radio. “There is something else… we’re in luck. The trail seems to pick up again down here.”
“See if you can find a place for us to set up.”
“Roger that.”
Zane turned to the group and said in a loud voice, “Okay, let’s line up, everybody. One at a time in the order I gave you. We all need to be down in the next thirty minutes. Let’s move it.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
“Well, it looks like it’s just us,” Katiya said as Tocchet’s head lowered into the foggy abyss.
“And then there were two,” Zane said.
In order to save time, they had decided to use two safety lines. While Tocchet descended using one, Zane pulled up the other one, which had been untied at the bottom. He looped it around Katiya’s waist, making sure it was tied off securely. As he double-checked the knot, he realized his body was only an inch or two away from hers. He felt another surge of warmth pass through him. It was starting to become regular now, despite his efforts to ignore it.
After tugging on her line one last time, he said, “I’m really concerned about something though.”
“Oh?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Just a little worried about someone from academia trying to rappel down a rock cliff. I’ve known a few professors, and they tend to be a little soft.”
“Is being soft such a bad thing?” She gave him a wink.
“It is when an anaconda sizes you up on the way down. They always look for the easiest catch.”
Katiya grinned and stepped closer. Good grief, she even smells good after two days in the jungle. “So, tell me”—her face was only about an inch away now—“if something happens on the way down, are you going to come get me?”
He placed a hand on her shoulder. “If I do, do you promise to behave?”
“No.”
Their eyes met. It seemed like minutes passed, then a monkey screeched from a nearby tree, giving Zane an excuse to avert his eyes. “Have you climbed before?” He turned Katiya around to examine her pack.
“A little in my gym back home.”
“How much is a little?”
“Ummm… twice.”
Zane turned her around again. “Well, then… let me give you a little tip that might come in handy. Don’t look—”
“Down,” she said, finishing the sentence for him. They both laughed. “Yes, I know. That’s one thing I do remember from my little trainer.”
“Good. I’m expecting big things now. Just remember that there are no thick-padded mats at the bottom.”
“Har, har.” A moment later, she bit her lower lip and said, “In all seriousness, what do you think we’ll find down there? You’ve been awfully quiet.”
“My honest answer? I have no idea. I’ll admit I was a bit cynical when this trip first began. I knew the government had good reason to send us out here. After all, you can’t ignore what NASA picked up. But did I really expect to find anything? No.” He let out a long sigh. “Now, I’m not so sure. Like you, I think there seems to be too much there there.”
Katiya smiled. “I agree.”
Zane pulled out his flashlight and clicked it on. “Sure, it’s easy to write off all the stories from the Papaqua tribe. But why would they pass down a lie? And even if the story got embellished a bit, I still believe there are splinters of truth in there. At this point, I think it’s safe to say something happened.
“What about the signal? Do you really think there’s something to it?”
Before Zane could speak, Bennett’s voice crackled out of the radio. “Eight has arrived. Please confirm next descent.”
Zane reached down and picked up the primary line. “Your turn, professor.”
“Don’t think you’re going to get out of it that easy. We’ll talk later.”
“And don’t think I won’t have some questions of my own. After all, you’re the expert on these things.”
“I look forward to it.” Katiya stepped closer to him once again, giving him a hard stare. “See you on the other end?”