The Descent

But  the  entry  was  plugged  by  a  ten-foot-high  drift,  complete  with  a  wicked  cornice curling  in  at  the  crown.  It  allowed  no  light  or  sound  from  the  outer  world.  'I  don't believe it,' Kora said.

Ike  kick-stepped  his  boot  toes  into  the  hard  crust  and  climbed  to  where  his  head bumped  the  ceiling.  With  one  hand  he  karate-chopped  the  snow  and  managed  a  thin view.  The  light  was  gray  out  there,  and  hurricane-force  winds  were  skinning  the surface  with  a  freight-train  roar.  Even  as  he  watched,  his  little  opening  sealed  shut again. They  were  bottled up.

He  slid  back  to  the  base  of  the  snow.  For  the  moment  he  forgot  about  the  missing client.

'Now what?' Kora asked behind him.

Her faith in him was a gift. Ike  took it. She – they  – needed him to be strong.

'One  thing's  certain,'  he  said.  'Our  missing  man  didn't  come  this  way.  No  footprints, and he couldn't have  gotten out through that snow anyway.'

'But where  could he have  gone?'

'There  might be some other exit.' Firmly  he added, 'We may  need one.'

He had  suspected  the  existence  of  a  secondary  feeder  tunnel.  Their  dead  RAF  pilot had written  about  being  reborn  from  a  'mineral  womb'  and  climbing  into  an  'agony  of light.'  On  the  one  hand,  Isaac  could  have  been  describing  every  ascetic's  reentry  into reality  after  prolonged  meditation.  But  Ike  was  beginning  to  think  the  words  were more than spiritual metaphor. Isaac had been a warrior, after  all, trained for hardship. Everything  about  him  declared  the  literal  physical  world.  At  any  rate,  Ike  wanted  to believe that the dead man might have  been talking about some  subterranean  passage. If  he  could  escape  through  it  to  here,  maybe  they  could  escape  through  it  to  there , wherever  that might be.

Back in the central chamber, he prodded the group to life.  'Folks,'  he  announced,  'we could use a hand.'

A camper's groan emitted  from  one  cluster  of  Gore-Tex  and  fiberfill.  'Don't  tell  me,'

someone complained, 'we have  to go save  him.'

'If he found a way  out of here,' Ike  retorted,  'then he's saved us. But  first  we  have  to find him.'

Grumbling,  they  rose.  Bags  unzipped.  By  the  light  of  his  headlamp,  Ike  watched their pockets of body heat drift off in vaporous bursts,  like souls.  From  here  on,  it  was imperative  to  keep  them  on  their  feet.  He  led  them  to  the  back  of  the  cave.  There were  a  dozen  portals   honeycombing  the   chamber's   walls,  though  only  two   were man-sized.  With  all  the  authority  he  could  muster,  Ike  formed  two  teams:  them  all together, and him. Alone. 'This way  we can cover  twice the distance,' he explained.

'He's leaving us,' Cleo despaired. 'He's saving himself.'

'You don't know Ike,'  Kora said.

'You won't leave  us?' Cleo asked him. Ike  looked at her, hard. 'I won't.'

Their relief showed in long streams  of exhaled frost.

'You  need  to  stick  together,'  he  instructed  them  solemnly.  'Move  slowly.  Stay  in flashlight range at all times. Take  no chances. I don't want  any  sprained  ankles.  If  you get  tired  and  need  to  sit  down  for  a  while,  make  sure  a  buddy  stays   with  you. Questions? None? Good. Now let's synchronize watches....'

He  gave  the  group  three  plastic  'candles,'  six-inch  tubes  of  luminescent  chemicals that could  be  activated  with  a  twist.  The  green  glow  didn't  light  much  space  and  only lasted two or three  hours. But they  would serve  as beacons  every  few  hundred  yards: crumbs upon the forest floor.

'Let me go with you,' Kora murmured to him. Her yearning surprised him.

'You're  the  only  one  I  trust  with  them,'  he  said.  'You  take  the  right  tunnel,  I'll  take the  left.  Meet  me  back  here  in  an  hour.'  He  turned  to  go.  But  they  didn't  move.  He realized  they  weren't  just  watching  him  and  Kora,  but  waiting  for  his  blessing.  'Vaya con Dios,' he said gruffly.

Then,  in  full  view  of  the  others,  he  kissed  Kora.  One  from  the  heart,  broad,  a breath-taker.  For a moment, Kora held on tight,  and  he  knew  things  were  going  to  be all right between  them, they  were  going to find a way.