Beneath the Tombstone (The Tombstone Series) (35 page)

- - - - - -

“Welcome
to Garden of the Gods,” Tyler spoke quietly as he and Jason gazed up at the
giant red cliffs. Jason’s stomach, knotted though it always seemed to be, drew
up even tighter. Climbing the bunny slopes back at the ranch was one thing, but
these red titans rose hundreds of feet off the ground, casting their giant
shadows across the landscape in royal display; a truly fitting place for the
immortals to assemble, if ever there was one.

Jason
had signed the free registration form earlier that morning, and now he stood at
the base of what Tyler had referred to as Kindergarten Rock. Jason wasn’t
exactly sure why it was called that; it certainly didn’t look elementary to
him. He took a deep breath and exhaled sharply as Tyler began to ascend one of
the routes on the sandstone cliffs. They had gone over the process several
times, and Jason was well aware of his responsibility… namely, making sure he
got Tyler stopped if he fell.

Tyler
topped out on the one pitch run after which Jason lowered him back down, just
like he’d been instructed. Reaching the ground, Tyler smiled. “Your turn,” he
spoke cheerfully. Jason looked up at the run, fear mounting in his chest. He
wished the butterflies there could somehow magically carry him to the top. “Jason,”
Tyler said, interrupting his thoughts, “that’s less than a hundred feet… and
you’re hooked to a rope. Come the end of this week, you’re going to be climbing
a thousand feet… without a rope.” Such a kind reminder.

They
switched gear then Jason took a deep breath and began his ascent. After
climbing thirty feet or so, he slipped while attempting to execute what should
have been a fairly easy move. His heart lurched as he plummeted several feet
before the tension took up in the rope, halting his rapid descent.

“Come
on, Jason,” Tyler said, a bit of sharpness on his tongue. “We don’t want to
make a habit out of that, do we?”

“No
sir,” Jason replied from his perch.

“You
do that on the Tombstone, you’ll be dead.”

“Yes
sir.”

“Now
get back ahold of that rock, and don’t let it get away from you again.”

Jason
did and soon made it to the top. There were quite a few runs on that one rock,
so they spent a good part of the day climbing there. Jason only fell a few more
times, each fall bringing a few pointed words from Tyler.

As
the day was wrapping up, another climber approached after one of Tyler’s sharp
remarks brought on by one of Jason’s falls. The young man’s hair was a bright
blonde color and his skin a dark brown.

“Dude,
how long’s he been climbing?” he asked in truly laid back suffer fashion.

“Less
than a month,” Tyler replied dryly, never looking his way.

“Then
cut him some slack, bro,” the other climber spoke. “Let ‘
em
have some fun, you know.”

“Is
that why you climb?” Tyler asked. “For fun?”

“Yeah,”
the man sighed. “Why else do it, right? It’s like what makes my life an epic
battle, my friend.
Gotta
love it.”

“Jason
doesn’t,” Tyler said.

“Well,
I don’t blame him, man. I don’t think I could love it either with a big dude
talkin
’ all rude to me… and yes, you’re the big dude in
this story. Give ‘
em
a shot, you know? Right? I mean,
that’s like wow or
somethin
’.”

Tyler’s
face was beginning to turn red. “What’s your name, sir?” he asked.

“Sir?
Whoa. No man, I’m no sir… just a regular dude that likes to scale some stone
and glide some waves, you know?”

“Okay…
okay,” Tyler spoke sharply then sighed like this was more than he could bear.
“Well, regardless of your name and whether or not you are indeed a sir, please
go away. We’re training for something really important… like life or death
important.”

“
Gotcha
bro,” came the reply. “Like competition or
something?”

“Go
away!” Tyler barked. Jason sighed, wishing the guy would have done that long
ago. He was walking all over Tyler’s already rather frail layer of patience.

“Alright,
alright,” the young man said, raising his hands as if to put a barrier between
himself and Tyler. “Just try not to murder
all
the joy.” With that he
wandered off, looking around, as if searching for someone else with some life
problems that need fixing.

Jason
topped out and was lowered back down. “So why
have
you been so… you
know, like all
talkin
’ rude to me, bro?” he asked, a
hint of a smile on his lips as he did his best to mimic surfer boy’s laid back
tone.

Tyler
sighed and smiled a little at the imitation. “Because you’re a friend. And a
good man. And I don’t want you to die. I don’t like you getting the feeling
that if you fall something’s going to be there to catch you because, come
Friday, there won’t be.” He looked up at the giant rock before them. “So, every
time you fall, I’m going to give you a lecture… make it as uncomfortable as
possible. The subconscious is a strange and powerful thing; we want to make
sure yours knows that falling is a bad, bad thing.”

They
spent the night in nearby Colorado City, and the following day returned to the
red rock formations where they resumed their rock climbing lessons. Along about
noon, they stood before a very peculiar looking rock formation. It was joined
at the base but rose up in three different sections, like multiple blades
joined side-by-side, forming one knife.

“What
do they call this one?” Jason asked, nodding up to the rock formation.

Tyler
smiled as if he had been about to explain that anyways. “Three Graces,” he
responded.

“Because
there’re three of them, I assume?”

“Yep.”

“But
why are they called graces?”

“Because
of first Corinthians thirteen,” Tyler answered then paused, looking
thoughtfully up at the formation before beginning to recite the passage. “And
now these three remain,” he pointed at the grace rock on the left, “faith,” he
pointed to the one in the center, “hope,” he pointed to the one on the right,
which rose above the other two, “and love.” He smiled and looked at Jason.
“Which is the greatest of the three?”

“Love,”
Jason replied, understanding dawning on his face as he gazed up at the rock
formation, as if seeing it anew. “Wow, that’s their names?”

“Yep,”
Tyler smiled. “And the greatest is love, just like the scripture says. Love
will take you higher and further than any other feeling. Hate, anger… they
could cause a man to lose his life, but only love could bring a man to lay it
down willing.” He looked down and kicked at the dirt thoughtfully. “Hopefully
that’s not how your story ends, Jason, but if it is,” he looked up, “what an
ending.”

For
some reason, his friend’s words brought a strange sensation of something akin
to peace within Jason. They climbed for the rest of the day then, a short time
before sundown, they headed back towards the ranch, making the loop around Pikes
Peak, over to its other side.

After
they got home, as Jason was trudging up to his shack, Tyler stopped him. “The
Tombstone’s in two days, right?”

“Yep,”
Jason replied as anxiety sprung up in his heart. “Day after tomorrow.”

“You’re
ready,” Tyler assured him. Jason nodded his head, hoping the tall horseman was
right.

- - - - - -

That
evening, the next morning, and throughout the entire day, one thought plagued
Jason’s mind: where was the evidence that he had asked for? Where was the proof
that Misty was okay… or at least alive? After the horses had been fed that
evening and everyone had eaten dinner, Jason went up to his shack and sat on
his bed just to pray and try to work things out in his mind. Honestly, he was
new to the whole prayer thing. He just talked to God like a good friend.

Jason
raised his head and looked at the picture of Misty on the table. But as he
gazed at it, something new caught his eye. Leaping to his feet, he rushed over
to the table and moved the picture to one side. A small USB memory stick was
revealed, sitting on the table where the picture had been. Jason snatched it up
and held it close to his face for inspection. This had to be the answer!

He
flung the door of his shack open and went tearing down the hill. “Tyler!
Tyler!” he yelled as he burst into the main ranch house. “You got a computer?”
he called out, making his way towards the living room. Tyler was on his feet
and heading Jason’s direction in a hurry when they spotted one another. “You
got a computer?” Jason inquired again.

“A
computer?” Tyler asked incredulously. “What do you want a computer for?”

“This,”
Jason exclaimed, holding up the memory stick. “I found it in my shack. I think
it may be from Misty’s kidnappers.”

“I’ve
got a laptop,” Tyler said excitedly as he rushed from the room. He hurried back
in shortly and sat the computer on the dining room table before opening the
screen towards Jason as he and Susan gathered around. “Just stick it in that
slot there,” the tall horseman instructed after everything loaded, pointing to
the side of the computer.

Jason
did so. There was only one file. He clicked it, and after a few moments, a face
popped up on the screen. “Misty,” he whispered softly. Her hands appeared to be
tied behind her back.

“Hi
Jason,” she spoke, looking directly into the camera. She paused for a moment
then smiled tearfully. “They told me of the request you made; you wanted proof
that I’m alive. As you can see, I am. I know what they want you to do. I almost
decided not to do this so maybe you wouldn’t climb, but,” her bottom lip began
to quiver, “but I love you for being willing to die for me… and for so many
other reasons.” She paused and sniffed. “Just don’t – okay. Don’t die.”

She
was silent for a moment. “I know the truth, Jason,” she said, seeming to look
deep within his soul, her words sending a jolt through his body. “All of it,”
she added. “Don’t hold it against yourself. I’m not holding it against you.”

Tears
streamed from Jason’s eyes as he watched the ones roll down Misty’s face. She
paused for a moment and wiped them from her cheek with her shoulder before
going on. “It looks like you’ve become a hero to this nation,” she said then
looked down for a moment as the tears continued to flow. She looked back up and
added, “And to me.” She sniffed before concluding, “Be careful Jason… I love
you more than anything.” And then the screen went blank.

“I
love you, too,” Jason said in a choked whisper as tears rolled down his cheeks.
“Misty’s alive,” he said, turning to a teary eyed Susan. One of Jason’s tears
streaked across his lips as he smiled. Seeing his wife almost didn’t seem real.
In his mind, he knew she had been a part of his life, but to his heart, it was
beginning to seem like the life they had shared had been nothing more than a
sweet dream.

“What’d
she mean by all of the truth?” Tyler asked, interrupting Jason’s thoughts.

Jason
didn’t answer. He just rose to his feet and looked down at the now blank
screen. “Can I take it up to the shack?” he asked.

“Sure,”
Tyler answered kindly, but a curiosity shone deep within his eyes.

Offering
no explanation or further words of any kind, Jason walked from the room and out
the door. Relief filled his heart knowing that not only was Misty alive, but
she knew the whole truth… she knew this was all his fault and still loved him.

Something
else came to mind: the fact that Misty said she knew the whole truth meant more
than one thing. For her to know the whole truth, the kidnappers had to know the
whole truth. And that simply left no doubt in Jason’s mind… Denton was the
kidnapper. Just like Jason and the doctor had suspected, he must have over
heard the doctor’s men running their mouths in the bar telling everything,
including Jason’s pathetic plan to win back the heart of his wife.

As
soon as Jason got inside his shack, he lay down in his bed and placed the
laptop on his stomach. Opening the computer, he looked into the eyes of his
wife and listened to her words, playing the short clip over and over again.

His
mind drifted back to a time when he and Misty had sat on the beach on their
honeymoon, watching the sun go down across the glimmering ocean. Misty had
always dreamed of going back there again for a second honeymoon. Then there was
the time he’d brought a puppy home. Misty had hugged the little ball of golden
fur, trying to decide what her name should be. After seeing the rebellious
streak the puppy had, only one name seemed to fit – Dixie. Jason remembered
coming home and looking out the back window to find Misty and Dixie in an epic
battle of tug-of-war over an old rug that Misty had thrown out.

Jason
looked towards the table at the picture of Misty in her wedding dress, standing
proudly by his side. Everything looked perfect... but Jason knew better.
Everything she had done, all the fights they’d had, beneath all the frustration
she’d shown, just a few words could sum up all the others she’d used – “Put me
first.” The whole blow up over the credit card, their disagreement on children,
and all those other things they’d fought over – at the base of all those
problems lay the simple fact that she wanted Jason to put her first. Most of
their married life, rather than put her first, Jason simply went along and let
things fall into whatever place they landed. He now realized that his uncaring
attitude had been the main cause of many of their fights.