THE BANDIT QUEEN - Chapter 22 continued

Deakin and Eden stepped into Martin’s motel room and faced the stares of three people. Deakin carried the two children’s books in his hand. He set them down on the small table and held out his hand for the letter Mala held in her two small hands. She took one last look at the yellowed envelope before she handed it over. Deakin dropped into a chair and stared at the neat writing on the envelope. He turned it over in his hand and looked solemnly at the signature on the back. This was actually his mother’s handwriting. He was holding in his hand something his mother had left for him. He’d never thought he’d ever get this far. He’d started out searching for a name, his real name. Along the way, he’d found not only his name but family and friends who had known both his parents. He glanced over at Eden and realized he’d also found a best friend. Did he really need to go any farther? He looked around at the circle of faces in front of him and answered his own question. Yes, he did. A great injustice had been done to his mother and his father and to him. He pulled a small penknife from his pocket and slid the blade under the flap of the envelope. He certainly wasn’t going to rip through his mother’s signature. He raised his eyes just before he pulled out the folded papers. Eden smiled a tiny encouraging smile and nodded her head for him to continue. He unfolded the pages and read them all the way through before he refolded the pages and slid them back into the envelope. Martin held out his hand for the envelope but Deakin shook his head and kept the envelope in his hand.
“Eden, where’s the list of letters I found in one of the books? I know where my mother went when she left Seattle, at least I know the direction she went. Those letters from the book will tell us the exact place. We were right about the numbers. They are the latitude and longitude of Salem so we’re in the right place.”
Eden slipped a small piece of paper from the center of one of the books and handed it to Deakin. Martin and Ian paged through the book and searched for any letters Deakin might have missed. They came up with several more. Deakin showed them the page and the five of them pored over the letters.
“Mala, what was Helena interested in besides her work? Where would she and Alex have gone to get away from everything? A museum, a movie, a book store? Maybe camping or hiking or something like that?”
“She and Alex liked to get away from the city. I would guess they’d go camping or boating, perhaps.”
“Do you have a state map? We may be looking for some place a short ways away from Salem? We have one in the car.”
Ian reached into a small duffle bag and pulled out a large atlas containing maps of the entire United States. He paged through it until he found the map of Oregon. Mala stared at the list of letters and tried to arrange them in some kind of order. Finally, she tore a piece of paper into small squares and wrote one letter on each, rather like Scrabble tiles. Then she moved them into different sequences without any luck. Eden moved next to her and helped her make words while Ian and Martin called out the names of different parks and towns near Salem.
Mount Hood National Forest
Fogarty Creek
Gleneden Beach
Cape Kiwanda
Cape Lookout
Cape Mears
North Santiam
Dallas
Monmouth
Lincoln City
Grand Ronde
Sheridan
“We could go on for hours calling out names. Give us some clues here, Mala.”
Mala looked up from the table with several squares of paper in her hand and laughed at Deakin. “Well, there are no ‘F’s’ in the list so that would leave out all the forests. There is no ‘P’ either so we can’t do ‘Park’ or ‘Cape’.”
Eden moved small slips of paper around swiftly and lined up several of them. She called out a question. “Any places with the word ‘rock’ in them? Or how about ‘tick’ or ‘track’ or ‘trick’ or ‘tack’ or ‘take’ or ‘rake’?”
Deakin grabbed the laptop and plugged it in. Then he searched for state parks in Oregon. There he found the mother lode. A great website popped up on the screen. He picked the search option and typed in the word ROCK. He drummed his thumbs on the edge of the computer as he waited. It didn’t take long for a list of cities to appear. He scrolled through the alphabetical lists and called out any hot prospects.
Arock
Cascade Rocks
Fort Rock
Otter Rock
Pilot Rock
Rockaway Beach
Seal Rock
Then he switched to the website belonging to the Oregon State Park Department and keyed in the search word “Rock”. Two parks showed up on the screen. Smith Rock State Park and Erratic Rock Natural Site were the only contenders. Mala and Eden tossed strips of paper around the table and tried to match their letters with any of the cities or parks Deakin had found.
Eden squealed and grabbed a scrap of paper from Mala’s fingers.
“And the winner is Erratic Rock. That’s what the letters match up to. Where is it?”
Deakin clicked on the icon for it and waited for the info to appear of the screen. “Uh, it’s a huge rock dropped by an iceberg 20,000 years ago. Six miles east of Sheridan on Hwy 18. Find it on the map.”
Martin hunched over the state map and ran his finger down the list of names until he found Sheridan. Then he turned the map over and searched for the correct highway.
“I found Sheridan but the park isn’t shown. It’s west of here, about halfway to the coast. Let’s ride. Do we all go in the same car?”
Eden quickly glanced at Deakin and then said, “Deakin and I will follow you. It’ll be too cramped if we all ride in one car.”
She gathered together their things and herded Deakin out the door before anyone else could offer an alternative plan. She stuffed him into the car and slammed the door. She had the car started and waiting at the edge of the parking lot when the others dithered their way downstairs and into their car.
“Why were you in such a hurry, Eden? We could have all gone together.”
“I don’t like that ‘Martin’ guy very much. He gives off some really pushy vibes. He can go along with us but he doesn’t have to hang over our shoulders. I have the feeling he has a very different agenda than we do. He really wanted to read your letter, you know. I think he intends to read it, no matter what.”
Deakin’s hand strayed to his pocket and unconsciously checked the safety of the letter. He stared out the windshield at the car in front of them and said, “He’s not going to see it. It has nothing to do with him or his mother or anyone else. My mother wrote it to my father. It really has very little to do with our search. There’s only one sentence in it that even brings up the theft of the project files. She just says she hid the stuff and the clues are in the books. Hey, I just thought of something. Do you think she hid it at this park or did she leave us another clue there? And how will we know it’s a message from her?”
Eden shrugged her shoulders and said, “If we see anything that refers to nursery rhymes, we can be pretty sure it came from her. We can’t even speculate about anything. Just drop it until we get there and take a look at the place. Maybe she carved something on this huge rock or on a tree or something like that.”
Deakin slumped back in his seat and shook his head. “I don’t see how we can find out anything else.”
“Don’t be so grouchy. Haven’t we already gotten farther than you ever thought we could? Hey, we found out what happened to your parents. You now have an aunt and grandparents and cousins. So what if we don’t find what she hid. It’s been a great adventure so far. We’re both still alive and there’s lots more stretching out in front of us. Smile and watch for any bad guys. We’ve been without them for so long that I’ve forgotten to look for them.”
With a start, Deakin turned in his seat and stared at the road behind them. Eden laughed at him a little and he poked her in the ribs.
“Hey, don’t hassle the driver. It’s not a good thing to do, especially at the speed I’m driving.”
Deakin punched her lightly in the arm again and resumed his scrutiny of the road. For a narrow state highway, it was definitely well-traveled. Cars zipped past constantly as they wound through the countryside. Martin drove directly in front of them and kept them at the constant speed of 65 mph. Eden considered passing him but gave it up. The traffic piled up behind her and she began to feel pressured by a truck hugging her bumper. She pulled over in the first tiny town and waited for the cars and trucks to stream past. Then she pulled back out on the highway and followed the line of cars through the town and out into the country.
After a few miles, Eden noticed the driver of the car in front of theirs. He continually edged over the center stripe to try to pass the car in front of him and then jerked back into his lane because the traffic was too steady. The other two men in the car watched the traffic through small binoculars. Eden dropped back slightly and nudged Deakin.
“Speak of the Devil. Check out those guys in front of us. They’re sure looking for someone. I don’t recognize them, do you? I wonder if they’re following Martin’s car.”
“Pull up closer to them and let me take a look. I can’t see much from back here.”
Eden sped up to give Deakin a chance and then she backed off. Deakin pulled out his cell phone and called Mala’s number.
“Mala, this is Deakin. We’re way back in the pack, probably half a mile behind your car. There’s a car in front of us with some strange men in it. They’re using binoculars to check out the cars around them. Has anyone been following you?”
“Oh, dear, do you think they’ve found us? Some men talked to Evan in California and then tried to talk to me but I’d already left. They showed up to question Marianne in Chicago but she wouldn’t tell them anything. They must have followed us from Chicago. We’re still driving the car we rented in Seattle. Have they recognized you?”
“No, they aren’t paying any attention to us. We’ll stay behind them and keep an eye on them. How far away is this big rock?”
“Martin says maybe a mile or so. Actually we can see it off to the right. Maybe we can pull into the park before they see us. We certainly won’t stop in clear view of the road. Thank you, Deakin. We’ll see you soon.”
Deakin flipped his phone closed and relayed the conversation to Eden. She nodded and concentrated on the car and the road in front of her. Deakin slid down in his seat and watched for the entrance to the park. The driver of the car in front of them drove straight past the entrance to the park without a second glance. Eden quickly pulled into the small parking lot and drove to the far side of the small rustic building housing the ranger’s office. Mala ran quickly over to their car and handed a park pass through the window.
“Follow us along that road over there. We have to walk to the rock. I asked the ranger how long this park has been open and she said it has been here for at least twenty-five years, maybe even more.”
Eden parked her car at the end of the lot in the deep shade. A minivan blocked the car from any casual observers. She and Deakin slipped out of the car and stretched the stiffness out of their bodies before they headed for the beginning of the path. A wide well-used trail led through the dappled shade of tall evergreen trees. Silence descended on them as they moved purposefully down the path. Martin led the way with Eden directly behind him. Deakin brought up the rear behind the other two members of their party.
Mala turned to him and asked, “What are we looking for? Do you have any ideas?”
Deakin shook his head and said, “It’ll have to be something that’s fairly permanent. It has been almost seventeen years, you know. Would she have carved something into the rock?”
Mala shook her head doubtfully and answered, “I can’t imagine her defacing any natural site but she was in a desperate situation. She was capable of anything. She was certainly strong enough to do something like that.”
Bright sunlight marked the end of the path and the five of them stepped into the clearing in front of the rock. Deakin stared up in amazement. “Rock” was not exactly the word he would have used to describe the vision in front of him. A rock is small enough to pick up and toss into a creek. This was not just any old rock. It was a huge chunk of mountain weighing around forty tons. In the far distant past, a glacier had carried it on its back until it had melted and left it resting on the floor of a wide valley. Bushes and trees grew on it now and paths wound up the side to the lookout points on the flat top.
Mala looked sadly at her thin leather shoes and said, “You’ll have to climb without me. These shoes will never make it. I’ll follow the path around the rock and check the sides of the rock for any graffiti Helena could have left.”
Deakin followed the others along the well worn track up the side of the rock. He ran his fingers along the rock, feeling for any indentations or gouges. Martin spotted several places that had once been spraypainted but they were too close to make out what the words might have spelled out along the side of the giant rock. Occasionally he caught a glimpse of Mala as she moved slowly along the path around the base of the boulder. She waved and pointed at parts of the rock and then shook her head. Eden dropped back to climb with Deakin. She murmured softly in his ear.
“Martin tried to find out if I read the letter but I blew him off. Look, he’s really moving fast. There he is, over to the right, almost to the top edge. Can you see Ian? Oh, I see him now over by that small tree.”
“Mala is down there. You can just see the red of her blouse through those two trees.”
“Where, Deakin? I don’t see anything red.”
Deakin looked again and then moved slowly along the ledge they stood on. About ten feet to the right, he stopped and looked down.
“I can see red from here. She’s down there between those trees. Now, she’s moving farther around the rock. She must not have found anything yet. Let’s follow Martin to the top.”
Deakin and Eden moved back to the trail cut into the side of the rock. Steps had been chiseled out of the smooth sections and large chunks of rock had been piled in strategic locations to make the climb accessible for more people. Deakin followed Eden up a rather long flight of steps which ended at another wide ledge littered with small pebbles. Eden massaged the tight muscles in her calves. Then she sat down and dangled her legs over the edge.
“Sit down for a minute and rest. It’s a great view. Look out over the valley to those mountains over there. Wouldn’t it be great to live around here? The air smells so clean, doesn’t it? Shall we move up here when this is all over?”
Deakin looked down at Eden’s tangled hair blowing in the breeze and let out a huge sigh. Then he dropped down next to her and began dropping small pebbles over the side. Eden took his hand and held it in her lap. She filled her lungs with the crisp air and laughed loudly.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing, nothing at all. Just because I laugh doesn’t mean I’m laughing at you. Sometimes I laugh just ‘cause everything’s great. Look, there’s Mala down there. She may have found something interesting. She’s just standing there.”
Eden leaned farther over the side of the ledge until Deakin was sure she was going to overbalance and join Mala at the base of the rock. He threw his arm around her waist and held her steady while she stared down at the trees and bushes below them. She turned a worried face up to his and said, anxiously,
“I think something might have happened to Mala. She’s not moving at all. Do you think she hurt herself? Someone else is down there with her. You can just see them through the branches.”
Deakin leaned slightly over the edge and stared below. Then he quickly climbed to his feet and pulled Eden up also. He peered over the edge once again and met the eyes of a pair of binoculars scanning the side of the rock. He turned to survey their path up the rock. He shoved Eden in front of him and hustled her up the path.
“There’s someone down there with Mala but I don’t think they’re helping her. I saw the flash from a pair of binoculars. Those guys must have backtracked and found Martin’s car. Let’s get up to the top and tell the others about them.”
Eden stopped short and turned to him with a mulish set to his mouth. “What about Mala? Shouldn’t we make sure she’s all right?”
Deakin shook his head. “We’ll just run right into those men. We have to get to the top and take a different path back down. Do you have a map of the park? I know Martin had one.”
Eden checked her pockets and shook her head. Then she made up her mind and headed quickly up the path in front of her. The closer they came to the top of the rock, the steeper the path grew. They were both out of breath when they pulled themselves up onto the top of the huge rock. The 360 degree view stopped Eden in her tracks. She turned a slow circle and realized for the first time why people climbed mountains. She felt closer to God than she ever had and the wind seemed to scrub her inner self clean. Deakin set off to catch up with the other two men. Martin was checking the top of the rock for markings while Ian ran his fingers over the wooden posts of a large signboard.
Deakin reached Ian first and joined him in his search. “I think our shadows came back. I saw someone down at the bottom near Mala. I hope they haven’t hurt her. Where are the other paths off this rock?”
Ian turned a shocked face to the boy and darted a hunted look around the rock. “My god, surely they wouldn’t hurt her, would they? We have to get down there.”
He looked around once again and then turned helplessly to Deakin. There wasn’t a flashing neon sign pointing to another path so he really didn’t know what to do next. Deakin looked closely at the signboard in front of them and ran his finger over the wooden surface of a map of the park. There was even a little sign that said, “You are here.” Without a word, he pointed off to his right and sent Ian on his way.
Eden joined Martin in his search and told him about the men below. He looked quickly around and picked up a long stick from the ground. He leaned on it to test its strength and swished it through the air a few times. Eden followed his lead and walked over to an outcropping of rocks to pick up her own stick. As she stepped to the other side of the pile of rocks, she tripped over the exposed root of a small tree. The toe of her shoe dislodged several more rocks. She brushed them out of her way and reached for a branch that was wedged between several large chunks of rock. When she picked it up, she realized it wasn’t a branch. It was a tire iron. She brushed off the caked dirt and poked around the rocks with it. How on earth did a tire iron find its way to the top of a huge rock? A vague idea flitted through her mind and she glanced around for Deakin. He stood halfway across the rock with Martin and both men were staring at the edge of the rock. Scrabbling sounds and muttered curses drifted up over the edge. Eden slipped to the other side of the rock and checked for more intruders. She hid behind a large boulder and watched fearfully as a filthy hand reached up over the edge and felt around for a firm hold. Without a thought she bonked the knuckles of the hand with her tire iron and listened to a muted screech of pain. The body attached to the hand slipped back down the path. Eden heard the shower of pebbles which accompanied the man’s retreat. After a minute, the man crept up to the edge and peered over. Then he heaved himself up and crouched down on the other side of Eden’s rock. Eden peered over the top of it just as the man stood up. Their eyes widened in surprise and they both ducked down again.
This time Eden peered around the edge of the rock and the same thing happened again. She jerked back again and almost laughed out loud. This was too much like being in the middle of a cartoon. The smile dropped off her face when she heard a metallic click from the other side of the rock. She scrabbled quickly backwards and worked her way around another large rock. She slid her eyes around the squared off edge of the rock and watched a black gun float through the air, followed by the rest of the man. She pulled back out of sight and looked around the rock for the cavalry. Deakin and Martin stood halfway across the rock and faced the opposite direction. They didn’t know about this man. She bent down, picked up a handful of pebbles and tossed them at the feet of the man with the gun. Martin whirled around at the sound and pulled Deakin into the shelter of a thick bush. Eden stood motionlessly until the man began moving again. Then she stepped with each movement of his feet. Her only option was to get behind the man and clunk him on the head with her tire iron.