Page 45 of When the Silence Breaks

“Doesn’t look like it, unless it’s buried beneath our feet, maybe covered in a landslide we can’t detect.” Or possibly completely removed by the military without anyone knowing.“My guess is there’s a cave up here. We just can’t see it. Not yet. Let’s look around.”

“A cave?”

“For shelter, like I said.” She’d expected to find plane parts or the bulk of the fuselage remaining in place after decades with no one discovering it. “Look, if he hid in a cave and the mark is pointing us here for that reason, then you could find what you need inside. This is a good thing.”

“I hear you.” She still sounded distressed. Like she’d put all her hopes on finding this spot marked by the map—after decades. Eighty years. Almost a century.

“How far are we from where you found that piece?”

“This is a higher elevation than where I found it, about two miles away.” Too many possible reasons existed for why the metal remnant landed where it had, so he wouldn’t dwell on it.

The ground trembled beneath his boots. The wind was cold and brutal, even for the start of autumn, but he’d experienced worse. He’d want to make it back to base camp before dark. He also needed to make sure their followers were not still tracking them, and if they were, then it was time for a new game plan. Keeping close, they trekked along the bottom of a rocky ledge that rose hundreds of feet above. A dark space caught his attention.

He tugged on Sarah’s sleeve and pointed. “See? There’s an opening just there.”

Her eyes bright, she glanced his way. “I see it.”

Putting that look in her eyes made him feel good, something he hated to admit. She started off toward the cave, and he pulled her back. “Let’s be cautious in case a bear made a home there.”

“Or a mountain lion.”

“Or someone is in there, which I doubt,” he said. “But wildlife is a strong possibility.”

“Come on, Ryder. What’s your real take? Do you think it’s the spot indicated on the map?”

He heard in her tone what she didn’t say. She was second-guessing this entire mission. Not like he hadn’t done that. Not like he didn’t have regrets. He didn’t like caves because they came with too many unknowns. But if they were going to find the truth, they had to walk straight into the dark.

“We won’t know until we get inside.” And that’s what worried him most.

At least it wasn’t snowing. Yet.

Approaching the narrow mouth of the cave, he withdrew his sidearm. He didn’t look forward to squeezing through that small opening. Small and yet large enough to hide something dangerous. He crouched at the mouth of the cave. Scanned the ground and snowmelt-slick stones. No fresh tracks and no prints or claw marks. He didn’t smell the usually musky odor of a den.

Gun in one hand and flashlight beaming in the other, he spoke over his shoulder. “Wait here. Let me make sure it’s safe.” He expected her to push back.

“I have no issue waiting here while you disenfranchise a bear of his home. But what if he makes a run for it? I’m standing right in his path.” She actually grinned.

He liked this woman. “You make a good point.”

At the cave entrance, he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted into the space. “Coming in! Last chance to clear out!”

He waited. No sound. Nothing shifting around. He only heard the slight echo of his own voice. Ryder gestured for her to join him.

Stepping slowly and deliberately, he entered the cave and shined his flashlight across the rock wall. He cleared his throatand stomped loudly to be doubly sure he didn’t surprise a sleeping bear.Sorry, bear.Once inside, Ryder took in the dark, cold, and dank empty space.

He was relieved and, yeah, actually surprised. “Looks clear for now.”

The cave wasn’t deep—more like a rock shelter carved by time and gravity. Massive slabs leaned into each other, forming a ceiling low enough to force them to crouch. “This looks like a fissure cave.”

“A what?”

“Stress cracks in the bedrock. You know, tectonic or glacial activity.”

“That doesn’t sound comforting.”

Wind had swept grit and pine needles across the uneven floor. Old scat and claw marks told him animals had holed up here in winters past.

Sarah moved around and shined her light on the walls and ground. She blew out a big sigh. “Nothing. I don’t understand.”