Page 93 of Fear No Evil
They came upon the summit so abruptly that her head spun—as much with vertigo as with relief to find herself standing on the pinnacle of the fourteen-thousand-foot mountain. It felt like they’d climbed up to heaven itself.
The night sky, adorned with patchy clouds and sequin-like stars, stretched as far as the eye could see in all directions, flaunting the vastness of space. However immense, she felt herself to be an integral part of God’s great plan. There was areasonshe was here, on Earth, alive.
Her gaze lowered to the mountain’s twin peaks, then the saddle between them. Where there might have been nothing but ice a hundred years ago, a small lake glimmered in the darkness. Lobo’s assessment had been correct. There appeared to be just enough room on one side of it for a helicopter to land, but the fitwould be tight with water on one side and a granite sheer on the other. And then there was the wind to think of…
It buffeted them where they stood. If not for the warmth of Jake’s body, Maggie would have turned into a human icicle, even with a fever burning her from the inside out.
The commandos, who came straggling up the rise behind them, panting in exhaustion, also stopped and stared. All three looked in danger of toppling over and never getting up again.
“There’s the radio station.” David pointed it out to everyone. “I’ve only seen it once before.”
Maggie followed his pointing finger to the three solar panels Lobo had displayed on his laptop at the safe house. Hallelujah! They were a short walk away from shelter, not that Maggie could see one.
“Come!” Clutching his flapping poncho, David led the way down into the sheltered saddle. They passed the solar panels and a sturdy antenna, whistling in the wind, before coming upon a cinder-block wall and a sturdy wooden door. The building seemed to grow out of the granite itself.
The first to reach the door, David pounded on it to announce them. Maggie swayed against Jake. Just a few more minutes and she could pass out—providing somebody was here to let them in.
A light shone around the edges of the door. A bolt grated back, and the door swung outward, revealing the portly priest wearing a poncho like David’s. As they flinched from the light shining over his head—an actual working lightbulb!—he greeted them with astonished silence, then exclaimed in Spanish, “David! You’ve brought me some companions. Come in, come in! Heavens, what a nice surprise.”
They crowded into a blessedly warm but tiny dwelling. Maggie noted the radio equipment on one wall, a handcrafted cot, and even a rug beneath her feet. She was safe here. Jake would take care of her. She could let go.
“Where can I lay Lena down, Father? She’s hurt.”
“Oh, goodness. Right here.” The priest stepped toward the cot, which was clearly where he’d just been lying. Whipping back the blanket, he held it up while Jake lowered her onto it. While little more than a stretcher, it felt as soft as down, compared to the rock she’d been sleeping on. There was even a pillow.
“There you go.” The priest himself covered her with the blanket.
As Jake dropped to his knees next to her, she grabbed his sleeve. “Jake.” Her eyes wouldn’t open.
His gloved hand brushed the hair from her face. “Yes, Beautiful. Rest now. We’ll be out of here soon.”
“I want you in my life, always.” There, she’d said it. She fought to lift her eyelids to gauge his response, but they were sealed shut.
His lips, still as cold as ice cubes from being outdoors, touched her burning forehead as he rasped in a voice thick with emotion, “I’m not going anywhere.”
That was her last impression before she lost consciousness.
Jake straightened with his heart about to burst.“I want you in my life always.”The assertion was way more than he’d let himself hope for.
One look at the expectant faces around him, and he filed away her words for later contemplation. Unless and until he got them all away from El Castillo, he and Lena wouldn’t have an “always.”
With the priest busy distributing juice packs to the JUNGLA, and with Fernando hunting for the new frequency on the radio,Jake raised the antenna on his heavy-duty sat phone, walked to the other side of the room, and made the call.
The phone rang three times before Lobo answered. “What’s your status?”
“We’re in position. You can head this way.”
Lobo hesitated. “I’m afraid we’ve run into a glitch, an electrical problem on the Seahawk. We’re scrambling for a replacement part.”
No. There wasn’t any allowance in this equation for a problem. “What about another helo? What are your options?”
“Only other option is the Little Bird.”
That wouldn’t work. The Little Bird required sitting outside of the cockpit on running boards. It was too cold and too windy for that, not to mention he had too many passengers for such a small helo. “How long to get the part?”
“Unknown. We’re working every angle. I’ll let you know.”
“Out.” Jake jabbed the call to a close.