Desert Passage Read online

  “Who are you?” Ramón boldly asked in return.

  “I’m Scott, and you’re in my tent,” the tall blonde man said, removing his hat and looking around at the boy’s belongings. “Who put you in here?”

  “We’ll put up another tent, Scott. They need a place to sleep tonight. Why don’t you get Randy over here to help set it up?” Dr. Shaw shifted his dirty glasses over his face to the top of his forehead.

  The young scientist was average in height and lanky. Ramón liked him.

  “I’m sorry, man, we’ll move our stuff,” Miguel said, standing up next to Scott, inadvertently showing everyone in the tent that he was just as tall as the young blonde man.

  Scott took a step back from Miguel and nodded his head to Dr. Shaw’s request. He wasn’t expecting Miguel to act so maturely.

  Dr. Shaw motioned for the boys to leave the tent and bring their stuff outside with them. He stood next to the burning fire pit to warm his thin body and said, “We’ll get you set up right now. Randy is a pro at setting up these tents.”

  “Thanks, Dr. Shaw, we really appreciate this,” said Ramón, hoping Randy would arrive soon. He suddenly felt tired from the drive and his left arm had started to hurt again.

  “You can call me Greg. ‘Dr. Shaw’ sounds like my dad,” he laughed.

  “Greg, do you guys eat dinner. I mean, could we buy dinner if you have some extra?” Miguel was feeling his stomach start to growl with hunger.

  “We have plenty, don’t you worry. We all get hungry out here working like we do. We won’t leave you out,” he promised. Then, seeing another young man approach, he added, “Ah, here’s Randy. He’ll get you set up. See you later.”

  Randy was short for an adult and thickly built. He had stocky, muscular legs and his long khaki shorts were almost the length of regular pants on his short frame. He quickly unfolded a thick square of blue canvas and spread it out over a new piece of flat ground.

  “Can we help?” Miguel said, picking up the metal poles he saw lying on the ground. “I’ve set up a tent before. Where do you want these?”

  Randy tipped the brim of his baseball cap up on his forehead and looked at Miguel. “Yeah, put those over by the corners of the tent and bring me the sledgehammer by my pack.”

  His strong, wide hands took a firm grip around the hammer and he pounded in the metal stakes, then fitted the poles in place. He didn’t speak again to the boys until the tent was finished. Randy stood back, put his rugged hands on his thick waist, and commented, “That’s how you pitch a tent.” He then picked up his pack and hammer and walked off toward the other end of the camp.

  “When do you think we’re gonna eat?” asked Miguel, moving the backpacks and sleeping bag into the newly constructed tent.

  Ramón sat on the ground and moved the sleeping bag over to rest his head. “My arm is really sore. It’s probably good that we stopped. I don’t think we would have made it all the way to Albuquerque by tonight.”

  “Yeah, but these guys don’t seem too friendly. That Scott guy looked like he wanted to take a swing at me,” Miguel said, remembering that there was an uneaten granola bar in his backpack. “I mean, what if they decide they don’t want us here and we have to leave in the middle of the night?”

  He ripped open the paper wrapper and bit into the oatmeal-and-raisin bar with a concerned look on his face. He couldn’t help thinking about the possibility of another cold night in the desert.

  “We’ll be all right. We’re in their territory, remember. No one invited us,” Ramón answered.

  Miguel chewed on the granola bar and kept wondering what they would eat for dinner that night.

  “I wonder what Tío is having at his barbeque. Do you think they’ll have steaks?”

  Ramón laughed as he nodded off to sleep. Safe in the blue tent, he dreamed that he was digging for buried treasure in a far off land and that Miguel was eating the biggest steak that he had ever seen.

  Chapter 31

  Miguel opened his eyes to see a small spot of light shining through the translucent blue fabric of the tent. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but after Ramón had gone unconscious, he had laid down to rest his tired legs and, before he knew what was happening, he was asleep too. He glanced around the dark interior of the tent in search of his backpack, and upon seeing it in the corner, he slid it over and took out the flashlight.

  Shining the bright light directly into Ramón’s face he said, “Hey, man, get up, we’re going to miss dinner!”

  Ramón slowly opened his eyes despite the brightness of the flashlight’s bulb.

  “What are you doing? Go back to sleep,” he said, turning his body over to the other side.

  “It’s not time to sleep yet, Ramón. Get up. I mean it. I’m hungry,” Miguel said, standing up and opening up the flap to the tent. In the distance he could see the young men starting to take their seats around a campfire and eating from their plates. “Come on, get up,” he pleaded with his cousin.

  Ramón sat up and looked out the opening of the tent. He considered not eating dinner, but then remembered that they didn’t have any more food in their backpacks. “All right, let’s go,” he said.

  They walked over to the group and Dr. Shaw noticed them first. “Hey, there, come on over and have some dinner.”

  Dr. Shaw motioned for the two boys to join the group. “Scott made spaghetti tonight with his special sauce.”

  Tipping his cowboy hat away from his forehead to get a better look at Miguel and Ramón, Scott said, “Hope you like snake meat.” A few of the other guys laughed and kept eating from their plates.

  Miguel looked into the large pot of spaghetti with a worried frown.

  “Don’t worry, Scott’s kidding with you,” Greg interjected. “Grab a plate.”

  Miguel decided to believe that the spaghetti was safe to eat and piled his plate with the long noodles covered in meat sauce. The two boys sat on two empty folding chairs facing the center fire and started to eat.

  “So what did Dr. García say when you told him what we found?” asked Scott, directing his question to Greg.

  “He’s concerned that we don’t disturb an ancestral burial site. He’s going with us tomorrow to check it out for himself,” Greg replied.

  “According to my research, the canyon we were in today could very well contain the foundations of the ancient city we have been looking for,” spoke another young man named Adam.

  Adam was the group’s smartest member and had been nicknamed “The Brain” back in high school. Adam knew everything about everything and his knowledge was invaluable to the expedition.

  “Hey, Brain, did you see the cave leading from the watering hole, the one that was blocked by the large rock? I think we should check that out first thing tomorrow. Maybe the rock was put there to keep intruders out. It could be hiding something important,” Scott said, excited about the next day’s adventure.

  Brain opened his laptop and typed in some information. He always kept his computer with him. He researched everything that he discovered and was always eager to share his new information with his teammates.

  “According to the last geological survey … ”

  Brain continued to explain his scientific theory regarding the second cave until Scott interrupted him. “Hey, I bet that computer didn’t tell you we would find a body down there, did it?”

  Ramón had been following their conversation and was caught by surprise at the mention of finding a dead body in a canyon. He looked at the tall cowboy and hoped he would continue with more details about the morbid discovery.

  Brain didn’t respond. He was busy typing into his computer. His fingers moved at a rapid pace and his concentration was intensely focused on his project.

  Dr. Shaw had finished eating and was looking in the direction of the three white trailers. He thought of the conversation he’d had just a few minutes before they started to eat dinner. Dr. García was not pleased that a body had been found at the dig site. The archaeological ex
pedition was planned for research only and not for excavation. The team had just arrived two days earlier and now that an important discovery had been made, Dr. García would have to acquire new permission from the Native American people that they had been working with. It was their land and one of their ancestor’s physical remains had been unearthed. Dr. Shaw looked into the campfire and thought of the responsibility that they all shared to respect the history of the land and the importance of scientific research.

  “Greg,” Scott shouted, “what do you think of the mummy we found?”

  Ramón felt a shiver go down his spine. The thought of a mummy was even more exciting than a dead body.

  “We just don’t know what else is down there, Scott. Tomorrow we’ll learn more,” Greg said, still concerned with Dr. García’s reaction.

  Ramón had been quiet but eventually blurted out, “So is the mummy all wrapped up like they do in Egypt?”

  Greg looked up from his thoughts and answered Ramón’s question.

  “Every civilization has a different method of burying their dead. We can learn a lot about a culture’s beliefs and customs by examining the remains.” He stopped for a moment then added, “Why don’t you and Miguel come along tomorrow?”

  Ramón’s heart raced at the thought of participating in a real expedition that searched for mummies and old relics. He quickly replied, “Yeah, that would be cool!”

  After his hasty response, Ramón considered that he and Miguel needed to continue their drive to Santa Fe. He looked at Miguel and thought of the opportunity for adventure, an opportunity that might never come again. Taking the last bite of spaghetti on his plate, he decided they would stay. The thought of hidden treasures in the desert was too great a temptation to resist.

  Chapter 32

  The morning came quickly and before Miguel or Ramón could fully open their eyes Randy was at their tent telling them that they had five minutes to pack up for the hike into the canyon gorge. Miguel adjusted his T-shirt and put on his jacket. The morning air felt cool and there was a slight breeze blowing against the flimsy tent walls. Ramón was slower to wake up. He had slept deeply and didn’t remember where he was. They both laughed at Ramón’s confusion and picked up their backpacks to join the expedition team. All the guys were standing around the morning campfire drinking coffee and eating bread rolls with sandwich meat.

  “You boys drink coffee?” asked Greg, holding out a cup of steaming dark liquid to Miguel.

  “Okay,” Miguel said, accepting the coffee. He wasn’t used to the taste of coffee but it felt good to drink something hot.

  Greg gave the boys two of the sandwiches and told them of the precautions they would need to take that day. “It’s important you stick with one of us at all times for the entire day. We can’t watch out for you and get our work done at the same time, so stay close. Remember, safety first.”

  Miguel and Ramón nodded their heads in acknowledgment of the rules and finished their coffee and sandwiches quickly.

  The sun was just appearing over the distant mountains and the desert glowed with new life. Small colorful flowers opened as the sunlight began to spread upon the open plain and the creatures that had roamed freely during the blackness of the night buried themselves in safe places. The emptiness of the desert was an illusion. Life existed in all forms and in the aged depths of time ancient civilizations breathed. The desert was a place full of history and remembrance.

  Miguel zipped up his jacket and adjusted his backpack. It felt lighter since they had consumed all of their food and water. Greg gave the two boys several bottles of water for the day and reassured them that they would eat lunch. Miguel thought about the snake meat in the spaghetti and wondered if Scott cooked all the meals.

  Ramón followed behind Miguel as the long hike commenced. They would have to walk half a mile to the entrance of the canyon, then make the deep descent into the gorge. The team’s dig site where the mummy had been found was a considerable distance from the canyon entrance. Ramón walked quickly in line with the team of explorers and listened to their conversations with rapt attention.

  “On a hunt through Yellowstone, my brother and I ran into the biggest grizzly you have ever seen. You know that bear that they use in all those movies? Well, our grizzly was twice as big, and boy when he saw us, I thought we were done for.” Scott had begun his story after being asked about bears in his home state of Wyoming.

  “He came running after us with amazing speed. You can’t imagine how fast they are! He was like a massive truck barreling downhill at us!” Scott exclaimed.

  Ramón thought of the big-rig trucks on the interstate and imagined the gigantic bear roaring down the highway chasing them on the scooter.

  “Thank God Kevin was a good shot. The bear tumbled over himself and landed just five feet in front of us!” he added.

  “The velocity of a moving object at full speed, once adjusted for the weight … ” Brain was busy calculating the weight of the grizzly based on the distance of the brothers and the incline of the hill. He did the calculation in his head and soon arrived at an impossibly correct estimation. “That bear was approximately twelve hundred pounds!” he proudly announced.

  “At least that, maybe more,” Scott bragged.

  Miguel looked at Scott and asked candidly, “Weren’t you scared? I mean, did you think you were gonna die?”

  “We all gotta go sometime,” Scott quipped bravely. Then, in an instant, his expression changed from braggart to quiet grief. He lowered the brim of his cowboy hat over his eyes and walked looking down at the desert floor, adding only a few more words, “You never know what’s going to happen. If I had known … ”

  Miguel noticed the change in the cowboy’s voice and didn’t ask more questions. He turned to Greg who had been on the phone with Dr. García, “How many digs have you been on?”

  Dr. Shaw folded up the cell phone and attached it to the clip on his khaki pants. Dr. García was joining the team after lunch. He was meeting with the tribal chief to inform him of the previous day’s discovery and to ask for permission to continue with the excavation. Dr. Shaw hoped that the team could continue with their research. He was eager to make a name for himself and to be respected in the field like Dr. García was. He turned to Miguel and replied, “This is my fourth dig in the southwest desert, but I’ve also been on expeditions to Mexico and South America.”

  Miguel was impressed. Dr. Shaw was a real explorer, traveling the world looking for important discoveries. “So how long did you go to college to become a doctor?” he asked.

  “Well, first I finished my undergraduate work, then I enrolled for my graduate studies. In total about eight years,” Dr. Shaw said casually.

  “Wow, that long? Did you always want to be an archaeologist?” Miguel added.

  “Well, actually I consider myself a scientist, sometimes an anthropologist. I study people, how they lived, their customs,” he answered, reflecting on his own self image. “I was always interested in history and people in ancient civilizations. When I saw pictures of ancient Egypt and the ancient Meso-American cultures, I could imagine myself back in time, living like they did.”

  Miguel had never seriously considered the daily customs and rituals of ancient cultures before. He had been a good student at school and his history classes had interested him the most, but the last few years had been different. School wasn’t exciting anymore. He didn’t enjoy reading the outdated textbooks and listening to hours of memorized lectures. His grades were below average, and it worried him. He knew that he couldn’t play soccer if he didn’t maintain good grades.

  “Why couldn’t school be exciting like this?” he thought to himself. He then decided he would tell his next history teacher that the class should take a field trip through the desert to see what he saw, history before his eyes.

  The team of explorers and scientists continued their walk through the desert terrain toward the canyon.

  Chapter 33

  The rim of the canyon
was not visible until the team had crossed over the last small ridge that ran through the desert floor. Greg led the team down the narrow descent into the canyon gorge, slowly pacing the others and bracing himself against the strong rock formations which had formed walls on each side of the climb. Miguel and Ramón kept their eyes on the stone steps and always had at least one hand on a stone wall. As the rocky staircase widened toward the bottom of the gorge, the walls opened up and a valley full of green foliage was displayed. Short leafy trees grew in groups and a steady stream of mountain water ran through the valley floor. The team continued their hike past the verdant valley and began a short climb that led into a rock wall.

  Greg noticed a figure waving from the top of a cliff they were approaching and commented, “That must be Eric. I see he survived the night up here.”

  “He’s never been the same since the Nepal expedition,” observed Scott, adjusting his daypack and fastening a hunting knife to his thick leather belt. “He’s always meditating. What happened up on that trip, anyway?” he questioned Brain, who was walking last in the group.

  Brain didn’t respond. He was too busy calculating the changes in desert temperatures for the last three centuries.

  Eric walked easily from his superior position on the cliff and quickly joined the others. He was dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved white T-shirt. He slung a daypack from one shoulder and a strange drum-like instrument from the other. His hair was raven black and hung loose over his shoulders. As he walked toward the team of young men, his tanned face held an expression of quiet contentment and peace.

  “How did it go up there?” asked Greg, stopping and looking at Eric.

  “The canyon spoke to me last night,” he replied with a distant look on his face.

  “Did it tell you where we should dig?” quipped Scott, laughing as he passed Greg on the path.

  Eric ignored the cowboy’s remarks and took a large breath of air. He glanced at Miguel and Ramón for a moment then proceeded to follow the group. The others followed and soon arrived at their destination. Carved into the cliff wall was a mass of stone and clay buildings. They were square in shape and had flat roofs with large doorways cut into the walls. Miguel and Ramón looked at the structures with curiosity and followed Greg to one side of the established dig site.