The only consolation was that the second half of the tunnel was relatively free of debris, while in the first half they had encountered a number of small cave-ins. It had slowed their progress considerably, making the icy water a faster, if somewhat painful, change of pace.
They had been underground for hours, far longer than expected. And unless the remainder of the shaft was in better shape than the way they’d came, their chances of finding a way out anytime soon weren’t very good.
Clay continued pushing forward through the water, maintaining a slow enough pace to keep the ripples to a minimum. He held his flashlight above his head, allowing him to see the bottom clearly, or at least well enough to spot any surprises. But maintaining a clear view wouldn’t be a good trade-off if their slow progress resulted in frostbite.
He paused to look ahead and could hear the chattering of Li Na’s teeth.
“Not much farther.”
The teenage girl behind him nodded, but said nothing.
The truth was she had no idea what she was doing. She felt sure the man in front was trying to help her, but she didn’t know anything about him. She finally spoke to distract herself from the biting pain in her legs and feet.
“Mister Ishmael. W-Why did you come here?”
Clay stopped again, momentarily. He smiled at Li Na under the glow of his light. “My name is not Ishmael. It’s John.”
She looked at him with a confused expression. “Why did you say it was Ishmael?”
He turned back around and continued. “It’s kind of a joke.”
“Oh.” She didn’t understand the joke. “Why did you come here?”
“To find the case you’re holding in your arms.”
In the dark coldness of the cave, she’d almost forgotten she was carrying it and gripped it tighter. “My father’s case?”
“Yes. Did your father tell you what was inside?”
“Not exactly. I wasn’t awake the last time he came.” After thinking, her expression changed to quizzical. “You didn’t know I was here?”
“I did. But only shortly before I arrived.”
“I see. So you weren’t expecting… all of this.”
Clay grinned again but continued moving. “No.”
Li Na shrugged and tried to lighten the mood. “Surprise.”
Clay chuckled. “Your English is very good.”
“My father was a soldier. He told me it was important to learn English, like the Americans. He said someday they would have to learn Chinese.”
“Your father sounds like a wise man.”
Li Na’s voice grew quiet. “He was.”
They continued in silence for several minutes before she spoke again. “So what exactly is in this case?”
“I’m afraid it’s a long story.”
“I think we have time.”
“Not enough,” Clay responded. He stopped again and shined the light forward. The end was in sight. In the distance, he could see wet soil rising up from the water.
Several minutes later, they made it to dry ground where Clay immediately dropped his things. He focused his light on the bag and unzipped it, retrieving the thermal blanket.
“Here.” He moved to Li Na, who had just sat down against the rock wall, wrapping the blanket around her legs and feet. “It’ll warm you up faster.”
“Thank you.”
He stood up. “You’re doing great.”
“It doesn’t feel like it. I can barely stand up. I’ve been sick.”
Clay nodded. “Are you hungry?” He turned back to his bag and pulled out a small package. He cut it open with a knife and handed it to her.
“What is this?” She took the thick, brown plastic bag and turned it over.
“It tastes better than it looks.”
“What’s an MRE?” she asked, reading the letters off the bag.
“Food. It’ll give you some energy.”
Clay sat down on the opposite wall and watched Li Na take a bite of an unrecognizable chunk. After chewing, she raised her eyebrows and took another bite.
“Not bad, huh?”
“It’s very good.”
Clay leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He hadn’t slept more than an hour in the past two days and without much food, he was reaching a new level of exhaustion.
“Where are we going?”
He rolled his head from side to side. “I’m not sure yet. First we need to get out of here.”
“How much farther do you think it is?”
“Hopefully not far. We’re headed back uphill, which is encouraging.”
“What does that mean?”
“Encouraging? It means… hopeful. Of course, a little luck wouldn’t hurt either.”
“Do you believe in luck?”
He grinned and closed his eyes. “I do right now.”
Li Na stared at him in the ambient glow of his flashlight. It was the first time she’d gotten a good look at his face. Or at least all of it. He was handsome, for an American. With dark hair and a square jawline, he reminded her of someone she might see on television. He was also tall and very tired.
“Are you in the military? In America?”
“I am.”
“Like a soldier?”
“Not anymore. Now I’m more of an investigator.”
“What’s that?”
“Someone who tries to find things out.”
“Oh.” She took her last bite and folded up the empty plastic bag. “My father admired the American military.”
“Is that right?”
“Yes. He said Americans fight for honor.”
“We try to. Usually.”
“You don’t always?”
“Unfortunately, not.”
“My father said that you-” She stopped suddenly when Clay’s eyes shot open.
“Shh!” He held his hand up, signaling her to be quiet. His eyes stared at her, unmoving. “Did you hear that?”
“Hear what?”
He angled his head slightly. He heard it again. They both did. A distant thump.
Clay was instantly on his feet. He grabbed Li Na and pulled her up, whipping the blanket from her legs.
“There’s someone else in this tunnel!”
“Are you-” Clay cut her off, clamping a hand over her mouth.
“Yes, I’m sure,” he whispered. “We have to go! Quietly.”
He stuffed the blanket and empty plastic into his bag, hefting it back onto his shoulder. The rest he gathered quickly before stopping and looking at the case in Li Na’s hands.
They had traveled almost another quarter mile through the tunnel before Clay suddenly lowered his light and turned it off, plunging them into blackness. He remained still. “Do you feel that?”
“What?”
“A breeze.” Clay closed his eyes in the darkness and held his breath. He was sure he felt it. An almost undetectable flow of air. “Come on!” He turned the light back on and surged forward, with Li Na stumbling to hold on.
A hundred yards farther and Clay stopped again. This time when he briefly turned off the light, Li Na didn’t need an explanation. She could see a ray of light in the distance.
“Is that the end?”
“I think so.”
Clay turned the flashlight back on. Clumps of rocks and dirt littered the floor of the tunnel as they’d seen at the other end. As they neared, the light grew brighter to illuminate the mouth of the tunnel, largely hidden from the outside beneath a curtain of roots and vines.
Clay stopped at the curtain of vegetation and separated several vines. There wasn’t much to see. Just a narrow path outside, almost entirely reclaimed by the forest.
Clay powered off the flashlight, tucking both it and the phone into the pocket on the leg of his pants.
“Stay close.”
He unslung his HK in a smooth motion, raising it to his cheek. He then took a step forward and let the rifle slowly emerge from between the vines. His eyes searching left, then right.