Peril by Ponytail (A Bad Hair Day Mystery) (29 page)

“Marla will have my back. I’ll give her a check-in time. If I haven’t returned by then, she can call for reinforcements.”

“Dalton, I’m thinking that I can’t let you go with just the deputy for protection,” Marla said. “I should come along.”

He shook his head. “Don’t even go there.”

“Look, you need evidence, right? I’m handy with a camera. Get me into position, and I can snap photos. Or have the deputy take the shots, and I’ll act as lookout. Either way, you could use a third person on the team.”

“I won’t put your life at risk. You are
not
going.”

“Oh, and it’s okay for you to risk yourself? What if Lovelace
is
the bad guy in charge and his influence extends to the sheriff’s office? We might trust Luke Beresby, but we don’t know squat about his staff. Lovelace could have some of them in his pocket. I don’t like the idea of trusting your life to a total stranger.”

“It doesn’t matter. You’re staying at the ranch where it’s safe.”

She narrowed her eyes. “But it’s not safe there. I’d be alone and vulnerable. I’m safer when I’m with you and we’re working together.”

Annie, who had been standing by with a look of distress on her face, pitched in. “How about if neither of you go? Let the sheriff handle it.”

“He’s occupied with a murder investigation,” Dalton said. “And our time here is running out. I have to get to the bottom of things, or Wayne will be in the same mess as when we first arrived. I won’t leave this job undone.”

“He’ll understand,” Annie said in a pleading tone. “Wayne wouldn’t want you to put your lives in danger. Please don’t go into the mine.”

“I’ll follow the arrows we marked on the walls last time. We shouldn’t have to go much deeper.”

Marla glanced at him. By the
we,
did he mean himself and the deputy, or did he include her?

His cell phone rang. “Maybe it’s Luke, and he can join us after all.” Dalton withdrew the device and squinted at it. “That’s odd. I’ve received a text message from Jesse Parker. You won’t believe this, but he’s sent me a schematic of the mining tunnels.”

“How is that possible?” It brought up two questions. How did Jesse gain access to that information, and why would he send it to Dalton?

“Wait, there’s more. Hmm, Jesse didn’t finish the sentence. It says, ‘He—.’ ”

“Text him back.”

Dalton did so. “No reply. That’s peculiar.”

“You know what they say. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“I’ll definitely have more questions for him when we return to the ranch.”

“Listen, Jesse mentioned he needed proof,” Marla said. “Think about it. Why is he so reluctant to come forward? Maybe there’s someone else besides Franks on the ranch to cause concern. He could have been about to warn you when his cell cut out. Do you really want me to stay behind when it can be just as dangerous as coming with you?”

“In a way, she’s right,” Annie said, matching their slow pace along the sidewalk. “There’s already been a fire in your hacienda and a rattlesnake in your suitcase. It’s easy to assume Franks was to blame, but he might not have been working alone. I hate to admit this, but I’m beginning to agree with Marla. She might be safer in your company.”

Dalton’s mouth compressed. “Two against one. That’s not fair.”

“You can give me a check-in time. If I don’t hear from either of you by then, I’ll call the sheriff. Marla is right about the deputy. You don’t know who you can trust.”

“Please, Dalton. I won’t get in your way.” Marla grasped his hand and squeezed it. “You know I can be useful, and we’ll watch each other’s backs.”

“Oh, hell, all right. But at the first sign of trouble, you’re getting out of there.”

“That works for me.” Her spirits lifting, she headed for their car after they arranged a check-in time with Annie and said their goodbyes. She didn’t relish the thought of traipsing into danger, but as Dalton said, it was the only way to get the proof they needed. And she didn’t like the idea of him going into the mines with a fellow they didn’t know.

After a few stops along the way to gather supplies, they headed up the mountain. Clasping her hands in her lap, Marla stared out the window. The road dropped away to her right until they screeched around another hairpin curve. Her ears popped as they climbed. They zoomed through Craggy Peak, aiming higher. The saguaro gave way to pines and other tall trees while huge boulders and cut rock bordered the road.

Dalton parked on a swath of reddish-brown dirt. There they geared up while waiting for the promised deputy to join them. They’d bought a set of equipment for him, too.

The guy wasn’t happy about their plan, but he followed his superior’s orders. His name was Pete Ralston, and he greeted them with an assessing gaze and a confident manner. He had wheat brown hair, a firm jawline, and an athletic build.

At least Beresby had sent them someone experienced, judging from the way he stowed his gear. He’d brought a heavyweight camera to take photos of the mining operation and stashed it inside the backpack Dalton had provided. They dressed like miners and smeared dirt on their exposed skin and boots. Plus, Marla wore a few layers under her outfit to bulk her up and disguise her form.

“Let’s hope the miners didn’t discover our entrance,” Dalton said, taking the lead to the hidden passage they’d discovered earlier.

“If we’re lucky, they figured the intruders were a bunch of kids out exploring.” Marla dodged a large rock in their path. “They might not have bothered to follow our chalk marks all the way.”

“Well, if the tunnel is blocked, we have a schematic of the system now. It’s only showing a portion, but I suspect that’s the section we need. We’ll find another way inside.”

Fortunately, the passage was still available, albeit covered over by a tangle of shrubbery that hadn’t been there before. The temperature dropped a few degrees as they stepped inside the passage. The air smelled dank and the illumination narrowed as they went further. Thankfully, they had several sources of light. They each had a lantern, although only Dalton’s was turned on to conserve power. Their helmets had lights, plus they had flashlights and candles with matches in their backpacks.

“The chalk marks are gone,” Dalton said, his tone laced with disappointment. “Those miners must have erased them.”

Marla wasn’t fazed by this setback. “We brought more. Take a piece out, and we’ll start over again.” She shone her flashlight along the rock face when they came to the first intersection. “Look, this section of wall is free of dust compared to the rest. I’ll bet this is where we had a mark before, and they scrubbed it clean. The dirt on the ground is disturbed in that direction as well, so it must be the right way to go.”

“I knew you came along for a reason.” Dalton marked a new arrow on the dust-free portion of rock but lower down rather than at eye level so it would be harder to find if more miners came along. He didn’t use the diagram Jesse had sent, preferring to conserve his cell phone power.

They progressed further into the manmade tunnels. The passage soon narrowed, and they ended up skirting a track for the ore carts. It wasn’t easy having to hobble forward with one foot on the other side of the rail.

Sweat broke on her brow. Avoiding thoughts of spiders and bats, Marla focused solely on their meager beam of light. She didn’t dare look down the side tunnels that extended into blackness or think about being stuck down there. Pete had taken the rear. Wedged between the two men, she felt an iota of reassurance.

Every few feet, they passed under an old square timber construction meant to shore up the walls. That notion didn’t bring any comfort. Those beams could have rotted through by now. How often did cave-ins occur?

“Maybe we should have brought gas masks,” she said as another fear assailed her. She pressed a hand to her chest, her heart thumping at a rapid pace. The walls felt cool to her touch as she steadied herself in a narrow passage. This trip lacked the sense of adventure she’d had on their earlier visit. Was it because they’d be taking additional risks ahead?

“These shafts have ventilation to the outside, remember?” Dalton told her. “That’s why it’s cool and not hot down here.”

“I’m having second thoughts about our plan. This might not have been such a good idea.”

A frown creased his brow. “We knew it would be risky, but Luke knows we’re here and so does Annie. If you want to head back to the entrance, though, I’ll keep going with Pete. You can wait for us by the car.”

“Ma’am, I’ll walk you out if you wish,” Pete offered.

She shook her head, her hair confined in a ponytail under the helmet. “No, I’m sticking with you guys. I’ll be all right.” The drop-off to their right didn’t help. It descended who knew how many levels? Their lantern light didn’t cast that far down.

She moistened her dry lips and gestured for them to move on. An abandoned cart and tools coated with grime lay alongside their path. Spotting them, she had a sudden thought.

“Dalton, do you have your firearm on you?”

“Yes, it’s tucked inside my boot. And Pete here is armed. Why?”

She halted and pointed to the collection of implements on the ground. “Those would make good weapons should we need one.” Stooping, she lifted a small-sized pickaxe. She’d feel better having a defensive weapon. However, she needed both hands free for exploration. With Dalton’s assistance, she tucked the tool into her belt before moving ahead.

The tunnel forked. According to indications, they should take the left descending route.

After another ten minutes during which Marla felt as though the walls were closing in on her, they entered a large chamber with multiple levels. She glanced around in alarm. Now what? Had they gone this far before?

Her breath hitched, and her fingertips turned icy.

Dalton must have heard her gasp because he patted her shoulder. “Marla, stay calm. We’ll find the way.” His firm tone soothed her.

“Hey, is this one of your arrows?” Pete pointed to a faded mark on one of the columns.

“Yes, I believe so. Those earlier miners must have taken a different path to intersect with us. Be careful of these rocks.” Dalton sidestepped past a pile of boulders. The mark pointed down another black tunnel. Gripping a piece of chalk in his hand, he reinforced that arrow as well as another one aimed toward the exit.

A tap on her helmet made Marla jump.

“What was that?” Her heart raced like a runaway ore train.

Dalton whirled to face her. “What?”

“Something tapped my head. Did either of you touch me?”

“How could I touch you when I’m in front? And Pete is over there. Your imagination must be running wild.”

“It’s the ghosts. They’re warning me. I’m sensitive to these things.”

“Come on. We shouldn’t linger. It wastes our batteries.” Swinging the lantern, he gestured forward.

Shadows followed her as she scurried in his wake. As they proceeded deeper into the tunnel, she noticed a vibration underfoot.

“Do you feel that? We must be getting close to the mining operation.” Her voice echoed in the gloom.

The passage curved, and suddenly a faint glow showed in the distance. It couldn’t be long now. With a surge of energy, she plunged ahead, following Dalton’s broad back. Noise from machinery pierced the stillness as they approached an overlook into a chamber that led several stories down. Dalton dimmed his lantern so they couldn’t be spotted.

“Get out your binoculars,” she suggested, glad they’d thought to buy an inexpensive pair.

His forehead creased as he peered below. “This must be where we ended last time. That’s the operation, all right.”

Pete got out his camera, but as he focused, a curse left his lips. “We’re too far away. I can’t get any pictures from up here. We’ll have to move closer.”

“I don’t see any more chalk marks,” Marla said. “What do we do? I’m not climbing down that rickety ladder, plus we’d be spotted too easily that way.”

“I’ll check our schematic.” Dalton gave Pete the binoculars for him to take a look and withdrew his cell phone. “We also want to track the path of the ore. We’ll have to go down there and hope we blend in with these outfits.”

Marla studied the activity below with apprehension. Where did those workers ascend to the surface? It could be miles from this point. And wouldn’t someone notice if three people showed up unexpectedly?

“I think if we head down that tunnel over there, it’ll descend to where we want to go,” Dalton said. “Don’t bet on it, however.”

“Great, that’s reassuring. Make sure you mark our trail.”

While Pete handed him back the binoculars, Marla took a sip of water from the bottle in her backpack. Although her throat was parched, she didn’t want to drink too much and have to use the potty.

Another tap came on her helmet. She jerked upright. Were the ghosts of dead miners following her? If so, for what reason? Maybe they resented the intrusion into their earthly tomb. Or were they tapping on her head to warn her not to go any farther?

Marla glanced at her watch. They’d been underground for a couple of hours. At least Dalton’s lantern was holding out, although he’d bought extra batteries for all of them.

When they had descended a few more levels and saw the guys drilling not far from their position, she was glad their excursion would soon be over. They could accomplish their task and leave.

Hovering in the gloom with their lighting turned off, they divested themselves of their backpacks after Dalton made another chalk mark on the wall. Marla gave him the pickaxe to carry, while she rummaged in a pile of debris and found a small sledgehammer. She’d donned gloves to hide her delicate hands and painted nails.

She eyed the deputy in his dirt-smeared coveralls. “You won’t be able to reach your weapon in that getup, will you?”

He gave her a broad grin as though enjoying their excursion despite his misgivings. “Not to worry, ma’am. I have another one inside my boot.”

“Oh, yeah? Your boots look a little too shiny to me, even with that coating of dust. They might give us away. Dirty yourself up some more.” She and Dalton did the same. Although she hated to scuff her brand new pair, it was a matter of survival.