A Time to Mend (28 page)
Noel—they were on a first-name basis now—leaned through the open window. “Has your sister heard anything yet?” He referred to Jenna, at the house now with Kevin.
Erik said, “No.”
“Okay. Well, we have some news. Not sure what it means exactly.”
“What?” Max’s volume hit whisper or shout; there was nothing medium about it.
Danny squeezed lightly on his knee.
Noel said, “We’re missing three guys. The last we heard they were just south of Estudillo Corners, on the east side of Reina Road.”
Silence filled the car.
“The fire jumped around. Trees fell. They got . . . separated. We lost radio contact.”
Danny said, “The road runs southwest there, to a neighboring ranch. Maybe . . .” His voice trailed off.
“That’s where things went wild. We’re thinking now a third hot spot developed to the south. It’s the only explanation.”
“How? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“It happens. Where does Reina Road meet the drive to the Hideaway?”
Max said, “One point two miles southeast of the Corners.”
“And that’s the only way in?”
And out.
The words hung in the air.
Nobody said anything. There was nothing to say. They all knew it was the only way in and out. They all knew fire burned between it and Reina Road.
Noel said, “Is it a real hacienda? The old adobe kind? Red tile roof?”
“Yeah.”
“Those thick walls don’t burn. Roof would be good. Unless it’s got wooden eaves. Fire would go inside through those. If it got close enough. But if it doesn’t get too close, the eaves are protected, and the heat wouldn’t be sufficient to shoot through the windows—”
“Shut up!”
“Dad!” Danny was in his face now.
“Tell him to shut up!” Tears sprang from his eyes.
“Dad!”
“Tell him to shut up!”
Above the noise of his own blubbering, he heard the window hum its way up and close.
Sixty-four
T
hey turned off all but one lantern to conserve the batteries. The shadows deepened, and with them, fear crept in, a palpable thing.
Claire moved nearer Eddie. They leaned back against the wall, their shoulders touching, her hand on his arm. Only the stranger’s solid physical presence kept her from falling again, down into that abyss.
On the other side of her, Lexi and Willow sat beside Zak. Beyond them was the tunnel opening. Indio, Ben, and Chad—Samson’s head plopped on his lap—rounded out the half circle. Then came the pile of crumbled rock and dirt, a reminder that death had visited before in that place.
Except for Indio’s occasional soft humming, they all remained silent.
For Claire, as the long minutes ticked by, hope played a game of tag with despair. Would the fire miss them? Or would death creep down into the gold mine?
She thought of Max, Erik, Jenna, and Danny. How she ached to hold them all! To tell them how much she loved them. What must they be going through right now, not knowing if the rest of them were dead or alive?
Max . . . Did he worry for her? That would be a first. She couldn’t imagine it. In an odd way, he was so much like her father: aloof, dis-connected, his heart sealed off. Why had she never seen the resemblance? Why had she glommed on to a man who did not have the strength of character not to abandon her? She should have known.
“It’s okay,” Eddie whispered, tracing her cheek with his thumb, pushing aside the tears that now fell silently.
She turned slightly and pressed her face against his shoulder, holding her breath, stifling the cry that built up in her chest.
Eddie put his hand on the back of her head—firm assurance from a stranger that he wouldn’t leave her.
Why wasn’t Max there?
A
t three in the morning, Jenna’s tears quit. They didn’t falter; they just quit. She didn’t have any more available. The well had gone dry. Or wherever it was tears came from.
She thought she’d cried a lot because Kevin rejoined the Marines. That was nothing compared to images of her mom, her sister, and her grandparents being burned alive, being turned into ash.
“Jen?” Kevin stirred beside her on the couch where they lay together. “You’re shivering.”
“We have to go. We have to go. I am not sitting here any longer! I’ve got to get to Dad. I’ve got to get closer to them, Kevin. I’ve got to get closer.”
“Shh, shh.” He kissed her forehead. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Tears stung again.
He was so precious to her.
D
addy!” Seated in the back of the car, Jenna clutched her father’s arm. “Oh, Daddy!”
The sight of him panicked her. He was a wreck. Tears streamed down his face, and he couldn’t talk coherently.
She cried, “They’ll be okay. They’ll be okay! Danny knows. He just knows.”
Her dad pulled her into an embrace, squeezed tightly, and cried against her shoulder.
Through her own tears, Jenna soothed him as best she could. Through the window she saw Kevin with her brothers, drinking the coffee they had brought from the house.
She and Kevin had talked their way through the roadblock. Danny had told her on the phone to mention “Vallecitos Canyon.” The phrase worked like “Open sesame,” a magical command that moved police cars and softened stern tones.
There was still no word. Firefighters were missing. Her family was missing. Distant flames raced down the mountainside toward Santa Reina, lighting up the predawn sky like noonday.
T
hey were down to one working lantern.
Claire held Lexi tightly to herself. She kissed the top of her head and shuddered at the thought of total blackness.
Zak and Eddie had gone up through the tunnel to check on things, using the lights on their helmets to illumine the way. Indio sang softly, choruses and old hymns about God’s faithfulness. Ben and Chad stood, stretching upright as far as they could, their hands pushed against the ceiling. They joined in with some of the familiar verses. Claire hummed to herself now and then when she had an extra breath.
“Mom, I think I’m okay with dying. Nana tells me often that Jesus loves me. But I really don’t want to go yet.”
“Of course not, hon. Jesus understands. You’re still young.”
“It’s not just that. It’s like, I mean, He’s very real tonight. More real to me than ever before. And what have I ever done for Him? Not a whole lot.” She sighed. “I suppose He hears this stuff all the time from people when they think they might die at any minute.” She raised her voice to mimic. “‘Oh, just let me live, and I’ll do whatever You want from now on! I swear I will!’”
“Probably.”
“Nana reminded me that I don’t have to be perfect. He just wants me to be real with Him. He wants me to trust Him with my life.”
“Nana always has the best advice.” Nana as well as those teachers and pastors who had influenced her at church so many years before. In spite of some confusing lessons on marriage, they opened up to her the world of God’s love and forgiveness, a merciful place of peace.
“Lex, when we let God be head of our lives, everything is right, even when it’s all going down the tubes. Like tonight.”
“Are you making crazy promises to be perfect and do better?”
“Oh yeah. First thing I’m going to do is make you chocolate chip cookies, because I haven’t for such a long time.”
Lexi giggled. “Sounds good to me.”
She smiled. “But I realize I’ve tried my whole life to be perfect. And you know what? It hasn’t worked. I think I’ll listen to Nana, too, and just try to be real, especially with God. A night like this one puts things in perspective.”
“That’s for sure. Will you go back to Dad?”
Claire stilled. “I—I don’t know. That may depend on him. If he can live with me being real, that would be a good starting point to work from.”
“It’s not about rules, is it? Even no-divorce rules.”
“I suppose I still believe God doesn’t want us to divorce. But . . .” The little girl from the basement grabbed hold of her emotions again. What was it? A hurt. An agonizing pain. Terror beyond words.
“But what, Mom?”
“Earlier, when I was crying . . . I was reliving a time when I got locked in a basement.” She told her daughter the story.
Lexi sat up and peered at her in the dim light. “That’s awful.”
“Yes, it is. My parents abandoned me. In other ways, your dad abandoned me. I’ve never felt safe and secure, not really. I know I need to forgive them and him. I know God helps with that sort of thing. But still it hurts so much. I don’t think that forgiving means I have to live within the old parameters that allow them to do it to me all over again.” She blew out a breath and thought for the umpteenth time,
Max should be here.
Lexi squeezed her hands. “I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, honey.”
She saw movement behind Lexi. “Ah. Our heroes return.”
“Good news!” Eddie crouched in the center of the group, grinning.
Zak raised a fist toward the ceiling. “Yeah! The fire has passed!”
Everybody cheered, Samson barked, and Chad whistled.
Indio said, “Yes, God is so good.”
“Amen,” Eddie said. “We crawled out to the opening and couldn’t hear a thing. Couldn’t see any flames. But the stones over the entrance are hot to the touch. More than likely our path is full of ash and cinders. So unfortunately, we need to hang out in here awhile longer, give the earth time to cool.”
Ben asked, “How long?”
Lexi laughed and stood up. “Papa, he just told us we’re not going to burn to death tonight, and you’re concerned about how soon you can check on the damage and look for Chester?”
“Yeah. What’s wrong with that?”
“Give it a rest. Let’s celebrate the moment.”
Indio clapped her hands. “She’s right. We’ll eat dessert first. Chocolate before apples!”
She unpacked the food they hadn’t been interested in earlier, and Lexi distributed it. Eddie sat back down next to Claire, removing his helmet.
He said, “Good news, huh?”
“Yes.” She shook her head. “But it’s so horrible not being able to reach my family and tell them. I can’t imagine what they must be going through!”
“There’s nothing to be done about that. Just imagine the sweet reunion. Focus on that; otherwise you’ll get an ulcer before we get out of here.”
She tried to imagine it. Max would blame her for being at the hacienda. Jenna would be an absolute mess, inconsolable. Had she called Kevin? Danny and Erik would be exhausted and irritable, unable to handle their emotions. The sweet part wasn’t coming to her.
She sighed. “It’ll be awful out there.”
“Yes. The devastation will be worse than anything you’ve ever seen. But the earth replenishes itself. Buildings can be rebuilt.”
“Actually, I was talking about the awful impact on my family. What about yours?”
“Well, I told you my ex-wife lives in Washington. She won’t know. Hopefully our two grown children in LA haven’t heard either. They probably assume I’m fighting the fire, but the department might not notify them yet that we three are missing. My special friend, Sheila, knows I’m at the fire. I can only hope she hasn’t gone to the station and found out.”
“I wish my family didn’t know. It’s not like they can do anything. It seems cruel if your kids or friend would be told.”
“It’s a cruel world.”
“I’m starting to feel safer in here. I’m not sure I want to go back out there.”
He smiled. “Everything is going to be all right. And that’s not just the official rah-rah version.”
It clutched at her again, a gnawing sensation in her stomach. Fear paralyzed the little girl who craved safety.
“Claire, what’s wrong?”
“I’m so afraid.”
He touched her arm. “We’re really going to be fine. And you’re going to be just fine reuniting with your family.”
“What if the lights go out?” She heard a childish whimper in her voice.
Eddie squeezed her arm. “Don’t worry. I’ll stay with you, lights or no lights, in or out of this mine, for as long as you need.”
I
ndio watched her daughter-in-law fall apart again, quietly this time, her face turned in to Eddie’s shoulder.
Once more, Indio asked God why He had brought along a stranger to offer comfort instead of Max.
“Is there more chocolate?” Chad asked.
Indio smiled and handed him an unopened bar of Cadbury’s dark. He was a sweet young man. Obviously churched, since he knew the words to all the hymns. Samson had loved him at first sight.
Ben polished an apple against his flannel shirt. “We’re just like the Israelites in Egypt. We got passed over tonight. The angel of death saw the entrance to the tunnel and just kept on going. I wonder what he saw on our doorpost that sent him on his way.”
Chad bit into the chocolate. “I left a prayer there. I bet we all did.”
Indio grinned. “Yes, I bet we did. Hallelujah.”
“Nana,” Lexi said. “How did you know?”
“Know what?”
“That we’d make it?”
“I didn’t.”
“You kept saying things like ‘Hallelujah.’”
Indio shrugged. “God is God. Glory belongs to Him—no matter what. It’s my job to give it to Him—no matter what. You know how Job in the Bible lost everything? When he whined about it, God asked him if he hung the stars in the sky. God comes through, even if it’s not how we think He will or how we want Him to.”
Ben said, “At least He gave us a clue. Three clues. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego showed up just when we needed them.”
“Yes. And I’d like to have them all over for dinner soon. Chad, you’ll bring your wife and baby? Zak, you come too.”
They stared at her, silent, odd expressions on their faces. Ben’s jaw worked slowly at the bite of apple.
“What?” she said.
Lexi inhaled sharply. “Oh, Nana.”
Ben slid near her and put an arm around her shoulders. “Love.”
“What?”
“The fire. Most likely it hit the house. We might have a roof and walls, but nothing else.”
Lexi whispered, “No gardens.”
Something snatched Indio’s breath away.
She hadn’t thought about the aftermath. She had been so focused on the moment, so intent on prayer—for their safety, for Max and her grandchildren, for courage and peace for them all—she hadn’t imagined her home being destroyed.
