CHAPTER 7 - THE GIRL IN THE CAVE
Before opening the snack shop the next day, Daniel gave Jason a crash course on how to use the cash register. He tried to pay attention, but all the time he was thinking about how to get away from the monster machine. He managed to convince Daniel that he didn't mind diving for ice cream. It wasn't hard. Daniel enjoyed talking to the people and raking in the money as he called it.
As Jason dished up ice cream, his thoughts were on treasure. He started to imagine the flavors as different jewels.
As he handed a chocolate cherry cone to a boy he said, "One ruby in the dirt." A small girl giggled when he gave her a scoop of vanilla and said, "Fresh water pearl for a pretty mermaid."
The pace picked up. Jason stopped looking at the customers and dished ice cream as fast as possible. Sundaes, shakes and cones all had new names as he handed them over the counter.
"Maple Walnut Sundae," a voice said.
"One Strrr-ike It Rich Sundae - coming up." He dropped two scoops of ice cream in the dish. "A few gold nuggets, some gold dust, and a covering of liquid gold." He sprinkled nuts and ground up Heath bar on top and swirled caramel topping over it with a flourish. "Will that be all?" He looked up to see a girl about his own age. She wore a white tank top and cut off jean shorts. Her dark hair was tied back in a ponytail and pulled through the back of a dark green baseball cap. White lettering across the front read Turtle Island Gifts.
"That's a lot of gold. Hope I have enough to cover it," she said as she reached for the bowl. He fumbled as he handed it to her. She caught it as it started to tip. "Whoops. Almost lost my fortune."
He reddened. "Just register your claim at the cashier," he said and waved toward the checkout. To his horror, Daniel was not there. A knot formed in his stomach as he looked around the small shop. Daniel was nowhere to be seen.
"The registration officer seems to have left his post. Perhaps you could fill in for him?" she said. She tilted her head and licked her spoon.
Suddenly the room felt hot, and he was light headed. As if some other force controlled his body he found himself walking toward the cash register. He wondered if he could remember anything Daniel had shown him.
The beast lay sleeping. The green display light was dim. It was waiting. Daring him to touch the keypad. The numbers on the keys swam before his eyes.
"Oh there you are Jason."
He looked up to see a figure marching toward them. He blinked several times and realized it was the Hummer.
"I'll ring that up if you'll finish pulling that cart of ice cream out of the walk-in freezer," she said. "I got it part way. You don't mind do you?"
His eyes met hers, and there was that slight crinkle around her eyes again. The tension went out of his shoulders. He turned to the girl and shrugged. "Guess she'll ring you up." He hurried into the back room and stopped short. The freezer was closed, and there was no cart in sight. He leaned against the freezer door and closed his eyes. The cool metal felt good against his hot face, and the image of the cash register faded. How did she know?
Daniel stuck his head around the corner and called, "Jason?"
He leaned around the cooler. "Yeah?"
"Your mom's on the phone."
He picked up the receiver.
"How's it going dear?" his mom said. "Daniel tells me you're working in the snack shop. How do you like living in a hotel?"
He told her about making up names for the ice cream creations.
She laughed. "It sounds interesting dealing with the tourists." She paused. "We decided to rent that house I mentioned we were looking at. It's old but has lots of interesting rooms." There was a hopeful eagerness to her voice as she said, "Wait until you see it. You'll have such fun deciding which room you want for your bedroom."
Jason felt some curiosity, but a house in the city could never really replace the woods.
"The yard isn't very big, but there's a couple trees for shade, and there's a turret with a good view of the park. That room is probably hot in the summer, but I'll bet it's going to be great in spring and fall."
They talked a bit more about ice cream flavors and cash registers. Then her lunch break was over and she had to get back to work.
As they walked to the cave, Jason told Daniel about the call and the house.
"I like the turret," Daniel said. "If we open the windows it wouldn't be too hot even in the summer."
"But it's still in the city," Jason said.
"Sure, but she said it's not on a main street. There are some trees, and we can go to the park. Maybe you'll like it."
"Maybe."
They entered the cave and stood in the main chamber. Sunlight poured through the hole in the roof and captured dust particles that spiraled down the shaft of light. All he could hear was their breathing and the distant trickle of water.
"It's spooky in here without the tour group," Jason said. His voice sounded loud and hollow.
"Yeah," Daniel said. He cleared his throat and the sudden sound made Jason jump.
"Let's check out the pillar." Jason tried to keep his voice soft, but the result was a sinister whisper.
They looked at each other and grinned. Daniel held up the battery-operated lantern and led the way into the gloom at the back of the cave. The artificial light cast eerie shadows on the walls. Jason looked into the hole at the base of the pillar where the coins had been hidden. His eyes traveled up the column to where the rock blended with the shadows and faded into the blackness above.
"So where do you think we start looking for the dead eagle?" Daniel said.
"Very funny. Shine the light over here."
Daniel obligingly swung the lantern around. Jason pointed to the ground.
"There's footprints back here."
"There was a tour yesterday, you know."
"But look. These lead away from the others." Jason took the lantern and started following the footprints. They led along the back wall to a narrow passageway. The ground began to slope downward. Soon it became so narrow they had to walk single file. He ran his fingers along the damp, clammy wall. The path came to an abrupt stop at a metal gate.
Daniel peered over his shoulder. "End of the road," he said.
Jason pointed to his feet where the last footprint was clear in the soft dirt. Frustrated, he grabbed the gate and shook it. To his surprise it popped open with a faint creak. Several steep steps led up.
"Let me tie my shoe," Daniel mumbled.
"Okay, I'm just going to take a peek."
"Don't do anything to make our insurance go up."
Jason crept up a step and looked over the top. He was on eye level with a long passageway. He was amazed to see a torch at the other end. It gave off a faint, pungent, smoky odor. The dim light illuminated a girl sitting by a pool. Long dark hair flowed down her back and was held in place by a leather band that circled her head. The fringe on the bottom of her deerskin dress hid the tops of her beaded moccasins.
"Daniel?" At the sound of his voice she looked in his direction. Jason felt Daniel's hand on his ankle. He turned back and whispered, "There's a girl up here."
Daniel climbed up beside him, and they looked down the passageway. It was dark. He held up the lantern and the light showed an empty corridor.
They scrambled up the remaining steps and raced down the path, skidding to a stop at the water's edge. It was a dead end. Behind the pool a thin curtain of water flowed down a solid wall and trickled into the pool.
Jason raised the lantern high and looked for another way out. "Where did she go?" His voice sounded flat and muffled. "There was a torch. Didn't you smell it?"
Daniel sniffed. "I don't smell anything."
The odor was gone, but he was sure he hadn't imagined it. He looked into the pool. Rock pinnacles reached up from the vast depths, straining for the surface. He shivered and turned away.
"She was here," Jason said. "Those footprints had to be hers."
"They stopped at the gate though."
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"That's because this floor is too hard to leave prints. It's all stone. I tell you she looked right at me. She looked like an Indian girl right out of the past. She was even dressed like one."
"You're giving me the creeps Jason. Maybe Silas is right and this place is haunted, or else you're seeing things. Let's get out of here." He started back down the path.
Jason trailed behind. "I'm not seeing things. You saw the footprints too."
But when they got back to the gate, the footprints were gone.
"We must have rubbed them out when we walked over the top of them," Daniel said.
"Who do you think put the gate in?"
"Who knows? It's been here long enough for the latch to break off. Maybe someone fell in the pool a long time ago, and they had to put something up to keep kids like us out."
"That's a pleasant thought," he said as he pushed it back in place.
When they came outside Jason was surprised it was still daylight. A warm breeze ruffled his hair. It felt good after the dark dampness in the cave.
"Let's take the path through the woods," he said. "We can take a break in the shade by the boulder."
"And look for more coins?" Daniel said.
"Remember what Bradley said. You never know."
"Well there's more chance of finding an eagle out here. Maybe the poem was talking about an eagle outside the cave instead of a place called Eagle Cave." He looked up and scanned the rocks. "Then again, there have been rock slides. If there ever was an eagle's nest up there, it's probably buried in the rubble now."
They walked on in silence for awhile.
"Silas said he saw McPherson and others. I wonder if he saw the girl," Jason said.
Daniel shrugged. "Dad's been giving tours out here every week for several years. He's never seen anyone other than the tourists."
"Must run in the family," Jason muttered.
"What did you say?"
"I say, I wonder if Silas saw anyone in the cave when he was our age." He thought about the picture of Silas in front of the hotel. "The boy in the picture doesn't look anything like the old man. Funny how people change. But they both have the same fine wispy hair. One white. One blonde." Then he stopped suddenly and said, "Oh!"
Daniel turned back. "Oh?"
"The boy in the cave. The one wearing the flannel shirt. Same straw hat. Same blonde hair. It was Silas."
Daniel was silent as he thought it over. "He did say you looked familiar. Do you think the boy saw you?"
Jason nodded. "That's when he ran out of the cave."
"That had to be over seventy years ago for him. Like?some kind of time overlap."
Jason nodded. "That's too much for me. I'm not Einstein. Let's go get something to eat."