“Assuming this buffer extends around the mountain, we’ll meet on the other side.”
Amanda lifted her hand. “I’m sorry, but what exactly are we supposed to be looking for?”
“Good question,” Zane said. “It’s reasonable to assume that the signal was transmitted from this mountain. It matches the location given by NASA, and it would give the sender an elevated and remote position. So what are we looking for? A way up or a way in.”
Amanda frowned. “A way in?”
“Mountains are made largely of rock, therefore we need to be looking for tunnel openings, shafts, ravines, or anything that might provide a way to reach the top,” Zane said. “We’ve already seen a stone bridge, so let’s also watch for other man-made structures, particularly any that might give us access to the summit.”
“Watch the slope as well,” Jorge said. “If it flattens enough, we might be able to make the climb.”
“So what happens if we don’t find anything and we do end up meeting on the other side?” Katiya asked. “What then?”
“Then we’ll find a secure place to make camp. That’s another benefit of doing it this way — if nothing turns up, then at least we’ll be farther away from whoever is coming up behind us.”
Katiya nodded.
“Any other questions?” he asked. Several shook their heads.
As Zane bent over to gather his belongings, he felt a hand on his arm. He looked up to find Katiya standing next to him. “I just want you to know how much I appreciate your leadership.” She nodded toward the others. “It can’t be easy trying to herd such a large group of opinionated people.”
“I appreciate that.” Zane stood and slung his pack over a shoulder. “I want you to run point on your team. I’ll feel better if you’re calling the shots.” He squeezed her shoulder. “Let me know the minute you find something.”
Zane held her gaze for a moment before shouldering his rifle and turning away.
“Want us to leave you two alone for a while?” Brett asked as the two walked off.
“You’re a regular riot,” Zane said. “So I guess I’m not supposed to give the other team some last-minute encouragement?”
“If she were any more encouraged, she might have undone her ponytail.”
“I didn’t realize you were analyzing my every move now. If you spent as much time on that sat phone, we’d probably have an extraction team on the way by now.”
Brett smiled and took a swig from his canteen.
They spent the next few minutes walking in silence. Despite the need to find a way up the mountain, Zane found his eyes repeatedly drawn back to the jungle. Who was lurking out there? Were they hiding just out of sight, waiting for the opportunity to spring another attack? He’d seen no sign of their approach, which hopefully meant they were still some distance off.
Brett looked over at the slope. “My fear is that if there is an opening, it will be almost impossible to see underneath the tangle of vines, particularly this late in the day.”
“Just keep your eyes open. As Jorge said, perhaps the slope will flatten out at some point.”
Brett elbowed Zane then pointed. Jorge and Artur had stopped and were looking at something just down the buffer.
“Got something?” Zane asked as they arrived.
“Artur thinks he saw someone,” Jorge replied.
“No, I know I saw someone,” Artur said.
Zane stopped, a frown spreading over his face. “You saw someone? Where? What did they look like?”
Artur pointed at two boulders in the distance. “There was a little girl, standing next to one of the rocks. When I looked at her… she just disappeared.”
Zane’s eyes narrowed. That wasn’t what he’d expected to hear.
“What did she look like?” Brett asked.
Artur shrugged. “She was an Indian girl… that’s all I could tell. Very young. Maybe three or four at most.”
“Maybe she lives here on the mountain,” Brett said. “And if she does, then it’s possible we’re near an entrance.”
“Possibly,” Zane whispered. Something bothered him about the sighting, but for now he tucked it away. He pulled his rifle off his shoulder. “Let’s go have a look.”
The boulders were about four feet tall, just high enough for someone to crouch behind. Zane approached slowly, not because the little girl posed a threat, but because of who might be with her. Zane lifted his rifle as he came around the rocks. No one was there.
After the others joined him, Jorge squatted and stared at something on the ground. “There was someone here.” He pointed at a faint impression in the hard-packed soil. “And the footprint seems to be about the size of a small child’s.”
Zane scanned the area. The buffer seemed to narrow just ahead, with the jungle a mere thirty feet or so from the escarpment. That was likely the direction she’d fled, although she could have ducked off into the woods too.
“Let’s keep going,” Brett said. “I believe she may be the key to getting up the mountain.”
Zane felt a pinch in his gut. Something still bothered him, although he wasn’t sure what. “You may be right, but let’s keep our eyes and ears open.”
They moved forward in the growing darkness. Not only were the jungle trees closer here, but as they traveled to the northeast, the sun was becoming blocked by the mountain.
Suddenly Jorge stopped and grabbed Zane’s arm. “Look!”
Zane stared ahead. At first he couldn’t see anything, but as his eyes adjusted, he made out a tiny figure standing about fifty yards ahead. The girl.
Brett lifted his binoculars. “She looks scared.”
“I think she’s lost,” Jorge said.
“Maybe,” Zane whispered.
“We need to help her,” Artur said.
Zane used the scope on his rifle to view the girl. She was clad in the typical garb of an Indian tribe, with animal skin clothing and a clump of necklaces looped around her neck. Brett was right, there was a look of concern on her face. Zane felt another pinch in his gut.
Zane rose to his feet. “Let’s see if she’ll let us get close.”
The four proceeded slowly. In addition to watching the girl, Zane took an occasional glance toward the trees on their right.
“She’s moving,” Jorge said.
Zane looked up just in time to see her disappear around a bend.
“Let’s go,” Zane shouted.
They sprinted the remaining distance. After making the turn, they came to an abrupt halt. The buffer had widened again, and they found themselves in a large clearing about the size of a football field. Zane frowned. The girl was nowhere to be seen.
Brett turned in several different directions. “Where is she? There’s no way she could’ve made it to the other end. An Olympic sprinter couldn’t have made it that far.”
Jorge pointed toward some scattered boulders on the left. “What about over there? That seems like the only place she could’ve made it to.”
Zane led them over to the boulders, but once again they came up empty. Jorge walked over to the base of the mountain and pushed aside some of the vines with his rifle. After looking around for a few seconds, he looked at Zane and shook his head.
Brett stared at the jungle, hands on his hips. “It’s like she vanished into thin air.”
Jorge got down on one knee and examined the ground behind the boulders. “I see signs that people have been here, but it’s hard to tell how recent the prints are.”
Zane clenched his jaw as they stood in silence. Where had she gone? The only possibility was into the jungle. But if that was true, then why hadn’t she simply run there to begin with?
Artur cleared his throat. “I need to tell all of you something.”
Jorge stood and stared at him with a frown.
After a long pause, Artur said, “Something happened back at the bridge.”