Nineteen
Kathryn and Annika led the team in among vegetation. The tracks got easier to see once they reached far enough where the sand hadn't reached. Kathryn glanced over her shoulder and saw that the other four kept the same pace. Serena and Andy walked next to each other, the number one flight attendant, Monica, behind them, and Nigel and, what was the name of that prepper guy again, yes, Leo, took up the rear. Leo carried an axe, as did Kathryn and Monica. The other three axes remained at the camp on the beach.
"It's amazing how distinct the tracks are," Nigel said. "It's as if they drove in and never drove back out. Or vice versa, I suppose, but that makes even less sense."
Kathryn studied the tracks closer as they kept walking. Nigel was right. The tracks were hard and easily distinguishable, but there were no overlaps that she could see. "That is odd," she murmured.
"Agree." Annika ducked under a vine. "And the fact that whatever drove in here did so in a straight line, more or less, is even stranger. I mean, if it ploughed in here, where are the downed trees?"
"Wait. Can we stop for a second?" Andy said. "Let me just check something out." She motioned for Serena to follow her as she veered off the path and walked into the jungle in a ninety-degree angle.
Curious, Kathryn joined them. "What did you see, Andy?"
"This." Andy pointed at a fallen palm tree. "Look."
Kathryn crouched at the bottom end of the tree. No, not fallen. Sawed off. "I'll be damned. Good eyes."
Andy pivoted slowly. "And there are more. Sometime chopped these palms off and tossed them in here."
"Judging from all the vegetation that's grown on top of them, I'd say it's been a while." Serena pushed her ponytail back over her shoulder.
"Several years," Kathryn guessed. "Okay, back to the tracks. Now we know that this was planned, but when, and by who, that's the question." They rejoined the others and kept moving further into the jungle.
"I wonder how large this island is. Did you get a sense of that, Kathryn, before you set the plane down?" Monica asked from behind.
"No, not really. The instruments were damaged, and I had problems even calculating the altitude. If I have to estimate, I would say, perhaps three-four miles across, but don't quote me on that."
"And it's volcanic. Where's the volcano? It's pretty flat," Nigel said.
"Not all volcanic islands look like Hawaii or Iceland." Kathryn smiled over her shoulder at the charming Runway man. "We could truly be on the top of a wide and flat one."
"As long as it doesn't erupt, I'm good with that," Andy muttered, making the others chuckle.
"I hear you," Annika said and smiled to Andy. "A sign that it was a while ago since it erupted is the lush vegetation. Nothing's been scorched off lately. Let's hope its dormant."
"Yes, let's," Serena said.
They made good time as the path was wide and they didn't have to chop off vines and low vegetation. Kathryn wondered why that was. "Annika, what do you think of the fact that the jungle hasn't reclaimed the soil on the track?"
Annika hummed. "That's another mystery. Logically, it would only take a few months for at least the low brushes to cover the ground."
Kathryn raised her hand and made everyone stop. "Why don't we take a minute and rehydrate. "She sipped from one of her coconuts. She poked with her axe in the dirt. It didn't budge. "What the hell? I thought the fact that we're not leaving any footprints was because the dirt had dried up so much, but I should've realized that in this humidity, that'd be impossible."
Monica and Leo tried chopping away at the track marks, but to no avail. "It's like concrete."
"Actually…" Annika felt the hard surface again. "It might be dirt mixed with something manmade to keep the road open like this.
"Road?" Kathryn looked toward the direction they came from. "You mean, this could be a road that is used still?"
"A suggestion as good as any," Annika said.
"All right. I'm getting more and more excited what we may find," Kathryn said. "Let's move on." She took the lead again and decided it was more prudent than ever to remain alert to her surroundings. If someone made this "road", then this person, or persons, could still be here. And whoever made such an effort to drive some caterpillar vehicle onto a seemingly deserted island in the middle of the Pacific, might not appreciate being found. Her imagination conjured up a meth lab of enormous proportions in her mind.
They kept walking for another hour and then they literally hit a wall.
"Whoa. Where did this come from?" Andy stood next to Kathryn and Annika, gazing up. "It has to be at least twenty feet straight up."
Kathryn knew they had ventured farther into the center of the island than the water teams had and that's why they hadn't see the elevation. "Damn. It's like the road stops straight at the wall. What the hell?" She pushed her fingers through her hair. "Can you find any signs of the tracks veering off?"
Everyone spread out along what looked like blackened bedrock. They kicked the ground and pushed the vegetation aside.
"I can only see what goes for normal ground here, Captain," Leo said.
"This doesn't make sense. How could someone make a road to this rock and not leave any signs of where they went, or what they did with the caterpillar thing." Serena sipped her water. "Damn, it's hot here by the wall."
Kathryn agreed. She looked up but got dizzy when she tried to figure out how tall the rock was and if it was possible to climb it. Damn head. The headaches she had suffered from since ditching the plane, still bothered her on and off.
Annika walked to the spot where the tracks ended and stood in the shade. She took one of her coconuts and leaned against the rock to drink from it.
And the next moment, she was gone.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Twenty
Andy stared at the space where Annika stood only two seconds ago. "What the…she just fell into the rock!" About to hurry over and look for her new friend, Andy was stopped by Serena's strong hands around her arms.
"Wait, Andy," Serena said. "We don't know where she fell to."
"We have to find her." Kathryn stepped closer, carefully, but with looking grimly determined. "She was here, right? Just behind these dead banana leaves?"
"I think so." Nigel approached from the other side. "Right where the tracks end. Or disappear, rather."
"Let's spread out, but don't go to close to the rock wall," Kathryn said, her voice clipped. "There must be some sort of door. Or a type of opening."
They followed orders as if it had been Miranda Priestly issuing them. Even Leo, who was a bit on the ornery side, immediately followed suit. Monica took a long branch that had vines tangled around it and brushed at the dead leaves. After a few minutes, she stopped. "Wait. Are those some sort of rails?"
They hurried over to Monica who tucked her dark brown hair behind her ears and crouched on the ground. She had cleared an area of two square yards and was now running her finger along something that looked far too straight to be natural.
Kathryn joined her. "That's metal, and it's indeed some sort of rails. Like a smaller version of the ones you can see on the streets of San Francisco. I live there."
"They seem to lead straight into the wall as well." Andy didn't let Serena stop her this time. She stepped up to the rock and started pushing aside dead vines. It dawned on her that the surface wasn't the same texture everywhere. Right where Annika had stood, it was smoother, like granite albeit charcoal grey. "Hey guys…oh!"
A draft pulled her toward the wall and then everything went dark. Andrea felt herself falling and she screamed in terror as she fell toward what she knew had to be a certain death. Then her fall was cut short and she hit the ground with a thud that rattled all her bones. All in all, she thought she'd dropped six or eight feet. Far enough to rattle every bone in her body, but at least she was still alive.
The darkness was opaque, and it took Andy a while to adjust. Eventually her night vision was reasonably restored, and she could make out the contours of a square corridor or tunnel. She couldn't see anything looking up to where she fell down, so she started following the corridor, one hand against the wall for support.
"Annika?" Andy whispered. "You there?" There was no reply.
Andy continued forward, one step at a time, her senses elevated to not miss any warning signs of potential danger.
"Annika?" she tried again.
After walking for a few minutes, she reached a place where the corridor separated in two. Staring in both directions, Andy thought she could see that the path to the right seemed to lead to more light. She wasn't very fond of the idea of stumbling around int complete darkness. Taking a deep breath, she turned right and kept walking. She was thirsty and fumbled for her coconuts, but she must have dropped them when she fell.
The light at the end of the corridor made Andy lengthen her stride. She thought about Miranda and how she would be furious of Andy injured herself, or worse, didn't come back at all. She might actually strangle Serena and Nigel. No, she had to remain positive and take any measure possible to stay alive. She couldn't have gotten this close to Miranda only to have it snatched away from her.
The corridor ended with a frosted glass door. It didn't have a handle and wouldn't budge when she pressed on it. Andy knocked on the glass, but it only gave a muted tapping sound. "Hello? Anyone there?" Andy slapped her palm against the glass door several times. "Hello? Annika?" She glanced around herself for a buzzer, or an intercom, anything. "Hello? I'm Andy Sachs and I'm looking for my friend Annika. Hello?"
The faint echo in the corridor sang the words back to her in a melodic, metallic whisper. This gave the entire place such an eerie ambiance.
Then there was a small, barely audible, snap coming from the glass door. Not daring to hesitate, Andy pressed on the door and it swung open as if operated by some super-strong hydraulics. Peering inside, Andy saw a vast, underground space. The walls here looked like that smooth rock wall she'd touched before falling into this place. "Annika?"
"Over here," a sonorous voice belonging to Annika said, but she was still out of sight. Andy turned around a formation that seemed to grow out of the rock.
And just stared.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Twenty-one
Annika knew what Andy felt as she watched the other woman gape at the surroundings. When Annika fell through the small opening after the lava formation shifted, she had thought this was how she died. She landed on her back and totally lost her breath as the air was pressed out of her lungs at the impact. There was no way to climb up that she could find and all she could do was take the tunnel, clearly manmade, and see where it led.
"Astonishing, isn't it?" Annika now said to Andy and walked over to her.
"Yeah, that's one word for it," Andy said, pivoting to take it all in.
"If we can find something to carry this in, it could be a great help to the others." Annika mimicked Andy and turned around to try and make sense of what they saw. An entire wall, at least thirty feet long, boasted cabinets with glass doors. Some were slightly misted, suggesting the content was frozen or refrigerated. The cabinets, or freezers, were filled with packaged and canned food.
"What is this place?" Andy murmured. "And who can possibly have put this hear? And when?" She walked up to the closest cabinet and hesitantly put her hand on the handle.
"Let's see if there's a date on any of the food." Annika waited until Andy had opened the door and then pulled out a flat package. Reading on the label, she saw it was chicken casserole. "It's like one of those MRIs that soldiers eat when in the field." Annika turned the package over. "And it is good for another ten years, holy crap. And package…two years ago." She stared at Andy.
"That's pretty recent. And the freezers over there look pretty new too." Andy rubbed her neck.
"Did you hurt yourself falling down?" Annika asked, worried.
"A little, but I'm okay." Andy looked around the room again. "This is huge. What's that over there?" She pointed at the far wall. Only the area they were in were lit by small spotlights high up on the ceiling.
"I haven't gotten that far." Annika put the MRI back and started walking toward the darker end. Andy joined her. As they approached the new area, more spots switched on automatically."
"Damn. This place must have sensors," Annika said.
A new set of cabinets came into view. A kitchen. Annika shook her head. "I suppose they need to have cooking capabilities." She ran her hand over the counter and the kitchen island. No dust. That made her nervous.
"And it's not just any kitchen. Looks like a really high end one. This is a state-of-the-art cook top." Andy opened a cabinet. "And real china. Crystal glassware. If I didn't know better, I'd swear we were in Miranda's kitchen."
"No kidding." Annika turned and spotted a large oak dining table with ten chairs. Behind it was a group of couches able to hold just as many. On the wall, she saw a large flat screen television. "This is insane. Someone has built a—a-bomb shelter here and they have the biggest TV I've ever seen."
"Yup. Like Miranda." Andy scanned the area around them. "But where do they sleep?"
"There was another corridor, remember? I bet it leads to more rooms. Like bedrooms and bathrooms." Annika rubbed her arms as she tried to sort through the thoughts bombarding her mind.
"And another dark area," Andy pointed out and began walking to the farthest corner of the large space. "And you know what, you'd think it would be cold down here. It's just pleasant."
Annika agreed. The chills she felt running through her body was not because of the room being cold. It seemed a perfect seventy-two degrees. She joined Andy as they approached the last corner to explore. More spotlights switched on. Annika felt a dip in the floor and stopped. At the same time, the last item in the underground space was revealed.
"That explains the tracks." She walked over to an odd vehicle. Made from metal, it was at least twenty feet long and seven feet wide. It looked like a cross between a small tank, a boat, and a car, where it sat on rails by the wall. That's what she'd felt on the floor. Rails. Annika circled it slowly. "What the hell is this?"
"Looks like it can function both on land and water." Andy opened the door on the left side of the vehicle. "Like a hybrid?"
"Yes. You're right." Annika joined Andy at the open door. She peered inside and saw ten seats. "Wow. It can transport quite a few people."
"It looks a lot like my brother's boat," Andy said, motioning for the dashboard. "And my dad's vintage car, oddly enough. Think it moves?"
"I suppose it's possible." Something dawned on Annika. "God, Andy. Think about it. If that thing is used to enter this place, then why is it here? I mean, wouldn't it be where the owners are? For them to use when they need to get into this place?"
"What a clever insight?" a stern female voice said from behind. "What the hell are you two doing here?"
Before either of them could turn around and answer, Annika heard the eerily sound of someone cocking a shotgun.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Twenty-two
Kathryn was frantic, but refused to let it show, or take over. She had to find Annika and Andy and have them all return to the beach. Why had she been so hellbent on trying to find out about the caterpillar tracks? She had endangered Annika whom she found herself irresistibly drawn to…and Andy, the lovely young woman that Miranda Priestly clearly loved with all her heart. Even a blind fool could see that. What if she had to return to the beach without the missing women? Well, Kathryn's troubles would be over because Miranda would kill her.
"We need to get in there to save them," Serena said gravely. "It is not an option to return without them, even to get more help. It'll take too long."
"I know." Kathryn pinched her nose, trying to sort through the whirling thoughts. "We can't try to rescue them without sending someone back to report on where we are and what happened."
"Oh, god." Nigel paled. He was as reluctant to face Miranda as Kathryn was.
"I know. I'm sending back Leo and Monica. "Explain what's happened. Monica, you stay behind and help Chuck keep the passengers calm. Continue the water runs and food gathering. Leo, you bring back people you feel are strong and ready to help." Kathryn knew she had gone to that single-minded place where she could regard everything with a certain detachment and be decisive. Like when she saw the island and knew where to ditch the plane.
"All right," Leo said and nodded at Monica. "Let's go then. We need to get back here before it gets dark." He turned to Kathryn. "Here. A fire striker. You should be prepared to set small fires here before dark. In here, you won't be able to see a thing as the vegetation shuts out most of the moonlight."
"Thank you, Leo." Kathryn was grateful to whatever deity that had place Leo and his prepper partner on her plane. She watched him and Monica head back along the caterpillar tracks. Turning to the others, she placed her hands on her hips. "All right. Nigel, you're going to have to remain out here. Serena and I will try to follow Annika and Andy."
"Wait a minute." Nigel held up a hand. "What makes you so certain that disappearing the same way will help at all? We could end up with four missing people instead of two and for no good reason."
"I know, but we can't just stand here. We've gone over the damn rock formation several times and there is no other way in except where the rails are."
"And if you get trapped in there? What will become of the rest of the crew and passengers?" Nigel stood his ground. "As much as my entire being screams I should go in and rescue Six and Annika, it has to happen with some sort of plan. Not go in half-cocked and just add to the problem."
Kathryn relaxed by sheer willpower. "Damn it, you're right, Nigel. And what did you mean by Six?"
"My pet name on Andy." Nigel smiled carefully. "I have an idea. You ready to listen?"
Kathryn nodded. "Of course."
"Let's arrange for the small fires first, like Leo said. That way we won't be taken aback when darkness hits, which is does from one minute to the next here. Then we go locking for some boulders, or large rocks. After that, we start braiding some of the vines. At least teen feet long braids."
"And what do we do then?" Serena asked.
"When Six was engulfed by the darn rock, I definitely saw her go downward. Not just in, but down. I suggest we block the opening from closing again and lower the two of you down into what recess in there in a controlled way. That way, I should be able to assist you in coming up if there's no other way." Nigel wiped his hands on his trousers. "What do you think?"
"Brilliant plan," Kathryn conceded and knew her panic of watching Annika disappear had clouded her thoughts more than she thought. "Thank you. Let's get to it. Serena, you collect dead vines for us to use as kindle. Nigel, can you locate the boulders? I will start to cut down the vines."
"All right." Serena saluted and started her assignment. Nigel went further into the jungle on his hunt for large rocks. Kathryn took two seconds to fortify her strength. She deliberately ignored her headache and looked up at the closest tree. Vines wrapped around the trunk, but the branches sat close enough for her to be able to climb it to hack off the vines at the right length.
As she made her way up the tree, she thought of Annika. The tall blond, so statuesque and with a unique, understated charisma that pulled Kathryn in, was not going to die trapped inside some dame rock formation. Kathryn would get her out—or die trying.
Xxxxxxx
"Take your gun with two fingers and drop it on the floor. Kick it over here. Now."
Annika slowly turned around and then did as the woman said, and then held her hands up and away from herself as she. She refused to focus on the shotgun, but instead locked eyes with the woman behind it. Illuminated by the bright spots, she didn't look like anyone Annika had pictured staying in this…this bugout location. Yes, of course, this had to be some sort of prepper place. Someone's safe place to bugout to if the world went to hell. Still, the woman aiming a shotgun at Annika's center mass looked more like soccer mom than a rough and tough prepper. Perhaps it was Annika's preconceived ideas about what preppers were like that had drawn a completely different picture in her head. This woman was dressed in jeans, a grey sweatshirt, and blue sneakers. Her long, black hair was kept in a long braid that hung forward over her left shoulder. The other shoulder was already occupied by supporting the butt of the shotgun. She could be in her early forties, perhaps. And obviously seasoned around weapons.
"My name's Andy," Andy said quietly. "This is my friend Annika. We were passengers on a plane going from Tokyo to Los Angeles. Our captain had to set the plane down on the water just outside the island. There are almost three-hundred people on the beach fighting to survive."
"Really?" the woman said, her voice clearly showing she was not buying it.
"It's true," Annika said. "We found the tracks when we explored the beach and we followed it in case it led to a place that could have something useful for us. We don't know when we're going to be saved and there are several children among the pass—"
"Children?" The woman lowered the shotgun and inch.
"Yes. A four-year-old, and a ten-year-old." Andy sighed. "Not to mention several senior citizens and one pregnant woman. We go on water runs to the waterfall and try to give everyone coconuts and bananas, but it won't be enough if our rescue takes longer than we hope for."
"I see." The woman pulled something from her back pocket. Pressing a button on it, she spoked rapidly. "Glenn. I have two involuntary intruders in my sights over by the hybrid. Bring everyone."
"Gotcha, Chris. Going by the weapons locker."
Annika's heart hammered painfully. Bring everyone? Who else lived here? How hostile was their situation as this Glenn person who was going by the weapons locker? Annika glanced at Andy who in turn didn't take her eyes off Chris.
"Please," Andy said. "We don't mean anyone any harm. We haven't stolen anything. We only fell through some hatch and ended up here, I swear."
"I might believe you, if just a tad, but the others will have to make their own judgment call."
Annika could hear people approach and tried to estimate how many they could be. She remembered the dining area with ten chairs. So, nine more? Ten armed individuals against two…not the best odds. She inched closer to Andy and too her hand.
Andy squeezed Annika's hand back. "We'll be okay," she murmured.
Annika wasn't so sure.
Twenty-three
Andy had lost track of time. How long had they been down here? An hour? Two? No doubt, Kathryn and the others were going nuts. When Miranda found out, she'd be seriously pissed. Glancing over at the table where the ten inhabitants had sat in a very long impromptu meeting that neither she, nor Annika, dared to try and speed up, speaking between themselves in hushed voices. Annika and Andy sat on the floor by what the woman, Chris, called the hybrid.
She had not expected the nine others to entail four senior citizens and two preteen children, both girls. A man, which Andy figured was perhaps the first woman's husband, and the girl's father, as there was a family resemblance, had glared at them and brought a sidearm. Since the "Glenn" that Chris radioed earlier had said he'd swing by the weapon's locker, it made sense. Another man and woman, both in the late twenties, early thirties, completed the gang, and what struck Andy was that they all looked—normal, for lack of a better term. She wasn't sure what she'd expected, but not this…this family?
Chris rose from the table and walked over to them, not carrying the shotgun this time, which was marginally reassuring. It didn't escape her notice that the guy with the sidearm still had placed his gun in a sort of relaxed-but-ready position. "Andy. Annika. You've put us in a bit of a bind."
"I realize that." Annika spoke calmly as she stood. "Still, it can't compare to the bind the passengers and crew are in."
"We understand that. And we're not unsympathetic to your situation." Chris sighed. "You have to realize that we've gone through great length to keep our facility confidential. The fact that you're aware of this island, let alone that you've found our bunker…it defeats the purpose of this place entirely."
Andy had also gotten to her feet and now she tried to understand. "Why do you need a bunker to begin with?" She was curious and exasperated at how these people could contemplate their privacy outweighing the wellbeing of close to three-hundred people. "I can't think of a reason that is more important than helping the people on the beach."
"Hold your horses," Chris said, palms toward Annika and Andy. "Of course, we're going to help you."
"I like the sound of that, if you, sir, stop pointing a gun at my air marshal and my friend." Kathryn's voice startled everyone and made Chris swivel toward the entrance from the corridor and "Glenn" raise his weapon. There, Kathryn Janeway stood together with Serena, and axe in one hand and the other hand placed on her hip.
"Oh, god. There's two more," Chris said. "Well, come on in, Captain." She had clearly seen the insignias on Kathryn's epaulettes.
"Thank you." Kathryn walked over to Annika and Andy, while Serena remained by the door. "You all right?" She gave them a quick onceover.
"We're fine." Annika bent and kissed Kathryn's cheek.
Kathryn briefly touched Andy's arm. "Miranda might just let me live."
Andy smiled wanly. "You, yes. Me—I'm not so sure."
Turning to Chris, Kathryn introduced herself and Serena.
"I'm Chris," Chris said, omitting any last name. "This is my husband, Glenn, our daughters, our respective parents, and my sister and brother-in-law."
"Quite the vacation place you've got here," Kathryn said after nodding at everyone. "And I realize we're party crashers, but I also hear you intend to offer some kind of help."
"We can't have anyone else come down here, but we can offer food and water. That and making sure the authorities know where to look for you, would be helpful, right?" Chris set her jaw, clearly not about to go any further.
Kathryn relaxed visibly. "You'd be helping more than you realize."
"Agreed then. Kia," Chris said to the older of the girls. "Go fetch one of the satellite phones, please. Write down the exact coordinates of our island for Captain Janeway."
"But mom…?" Kia looked shocked.
"I'm going to assume that the four of you here will understand we can't be part of your rescue in a more practical sense. Nobody can know of this place, or who we are. Once you've established contact with the ones who will come to your rescue, you have to tell them this phone belongs to one of you. It can't be connected to us."
"All right." Kathryn didn't sound as if she entirely understood.
"Come on, let's stock a cart with food. You can take it up through the elevator. Just leave outside it once you're done and we'll retrieve it later." Glenn came up to them, his arms full of food packages. "We get new shipments when we're here so you're not putting us out."
Andy thought the lanky man looked quite friendly now when he had holstered his sidearm. After curiously observing Kathryn being busy talking with Chris out of earshot with everyone else, she walked over to one of the grandmas who stood by the fridge holding the water. "Hi. I'm Andy. Sorry about all this." Feeling silly, Andy didn't know what else to say.
"Oh, hush, girl. I'm glad you all survived, despite everything." They began pulling out crates of water bottles.
"This'll be plenty, thank you. We've gathered water continuously from the waterfall and—"
"Good grief, girl. Among all those darn Komodo dragons?" The grandma looked shocked. "They can be very dangerous."
"They can?" Andy nearly dropped her crate. "But we've been sending teams throughout yesterday and today." She swallowed. "We better hope help arrives quickly."
"No doubt, once they know exactly where you are, it will. In the meantime, you can have all the water you want from us. We've tapped into the groundwater that feeds the waterfall. We store it on bottles for convenience and if something should happen. We'll do fine as well." The older woman helped fill up half the cart that was at least nine feet long.
"Here are some of the energy bars that mom makes us have." The youngest girl came up to Andy, dragging a large cardboard box. "We hate them. You can have the lot."
Andy had to smile. "Did you ask your mom?"
"She didn't, but she's right. You can have them. At least that saves me to have to nag them about it—this time around." Chris helped carry the MRIs. "If you ration this and keep eating of your bananas, I reckon you'll do fine." She looked at the well-stocked cart.
"You've been more than generous. Thank you." Andy wanted to hug the woman for helping to save lives but restrained herself. There was a quality to Chris that in a way reminded her about Miranda—and a stranger only hugged Miranda if they didn't value their lives.
"It's the right thing to do," Chris said. "Good thing there are four of you as you have to get it out of the elevator yourselves when you get to ground level. I imagine there will be able hands to help you pull it to your fellow passengers."
"Yes. We have a couple of more people outside." Andy waved Serena over and they took the hands between them and began pulling the cart toward the door. Kathryn and Annika took up the rear together with Glenn and Chris.
Andy turned and waved, thanking the rest of the family as they were about to go through the door. She then tugged at the handle again. The large cart moved with ease but needed some shimmying when they reached the junction.
At the place where Andy and Annika had fallen down, Chris raised her eyebrows when she saw the braided rope made from vines hanging down against the far wall.
"Really?" she said.
"Well, I wasn't going to drop like a rock, like these two," Kathryn said, indicating Andy and Annika.
"I suppose. I see you've propped up the door. Good thing the elevator works anyway." Glenn walked over to the side and opened a hidden panel. "Push the cart all the way over there. Stand on either side of it, well away from the wall."
Andy and the others did as he asked. Chris stepped forward and handed Kathryn the promised satellite phone. "For the next forty-eight hours, you can dial us. I've preprogrammed the number. After that, it will cease to exist. Just in case there's a hiccup. I want you to promise not to let anyone else know about this."
Kathryn looked down at the satellite phone and then back at Chris. Her eyes glistened, and she cleared her throat before she spoke. "You—you are an amazing family. Thank you. Again."
Chris returned Annika's gun to her as well and took a step back after nodding at Glenn.
The elevator moved up, making hardly any noise. As they reached the ground level, the sliding door folded, rather the slid, sideways to the left. Outside, the sun had almost set, and small fires burned in a semicircle around the opening to the elevator. Andy stood closest to the exit and stepped outside into the humid evening.
And that's when she saw Miranda Priestly drop to her knees.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Twenty-four
Miranda couldn't imagine ever regaining the strength in her legs enough to get up from the dirt. Around her, small bonfires lit up the clearing next to the large rock formation and the sun was retracting its last rays. A devastatingly beautiful setting, but all she could feel was the remnants of fear of losing Andrea forever to whatever—or whoever—dwelled in the depths of the volcanic mass.
"Miranda!" Andrea rushed to her side and helped her to her feet. "I'm fine. I'm truly okay."
Pulling Andrea into a fierce embrace, Miranda sobbed. Only once, but that was because she knew if she allowed a second one, she wouldn't be able to stop herself from crying for a long while. "You truly are infuriating," she said huskily. "We're going to have to discuss this habit of yours."
"Habit?" Andrea pulled back a few inches and looked at Miranda. "I object to that." She smiled gently. "I've never fallen down a shaft before."
"Fallen?" Miranda felt her cheeks go cold and pale.
"Oh, crap. I mean, this situation is hardly habitual in any way." Andrea looked caught. "Serena is fine too. And look what we…found." She motioned for the cart that the other pulled out from the opening in the rock. "Food. Water. And toilet paper."
"What…where…?" Miranda clung to Andrea as she stared. "That was all in there?"
"Yes. We're going to have to come up with a good story before we reach the rest of the passengers, or we'll be breaking a confidence that our rescuers placed in us."
Kathryn and Annika joined Miranda and Andy. Kathryn met Miranda's eye with her own level gaze. "Hello, Miranda."
"I should hate you for what happened to Andrea and Annika, but as they're back—and with supplies—I suppose…I'm grateful." She snorted as Andy whipped her head around to gape at her. "Oh, please. I've been known to say thank you and please. Once in a while."
"During leap years," Andrea muttered, making Serena and Nigel chuckle.
"So, what's our cover story?" Annika said quietly.
Kathryn wrapped an arm, almost absentmindedly, around Annika's waist and pursed her lips. "The less lies, the better, so let's keep it simple. We found a cave in the jungle that held some supplies and a cart. Nobody was there and just as we left, we set off some warning system that closed it off. If someone spots the satellite phone, it came from the same place. I intend to keep it close to the vest as we don't want a stampede."
"Thin." Nigel shook his head. "Very thin."
"I know, but I honestly think they'll be so grateful for the food and the water that they're not going to ask too many questions."
"Not to mention not having to go on water runs—and have toilet paper," Andrea said. "Besides, those Komodo dragons are dangerous as hell."
"I heard that too," Annika nodded.
Miranda mimicked Janeway and kept her arm around Andrea. Perhaps Andrea thought Miranda needed the support, because she pulled her even closer with an arm around Miranda's shoulders. "I agree," she said. "Not knowing anything about what you faced beyond that folding door, I doubt the others will object to things that will end up saving their lives.
"Not to mention, confirm our location via the satellite phone," Annika added. "Who knows what system the electrical storm took out."
"Oh, god," Miranda closed her eyes hard. "Of course, nobody can make any civilian calls, but what I wouldn't give to call the girls and reassure them."
"Miranda. Listen." Kathryn squeezed Miranda's hand briefly. "When I talk to the airline, I'll make sure all the next of kin gets personal calls from the staff as soon as humanly possible. I'm told I have some influence with the airline brass. Might as well put it to good use."
Miranda could have hugged Kathryn. "Thank you."
"We better get going. I don't want anyone coming to look for us." Kathryn nodded at Leo and three young men who looked very fit. "You can perhaps start wheeling the cart toward the beach? The rest of us will be right behind you."
As the men began pushing the cart over the uneven ground, Kathryn looked around the rest of the group. Miranda waited impatiently for the captain to work something out.
"All right. I'm not sure how much it'll help, but I suggest we all grab some branches and begin erasing as much of our footprints as possible. Not to mention the track marks left by the cart."
"Good idea. At least over to that natural lava peer you wanted to climb," Annika said, which rendered her a glare from Kathryn.
"Agreed." Then Kathryn smiled and motioned for everyone to find branches. "I'm not going to waste any time. I'm going to start dialing." She flipped up the antenna and walked a few yards away from them. Miranda held her breath until she could here Kathryn speak over the phone, even if she couldn't make out what she was saying.
Miranda took Andrea by the hand, which held a familiar sense of reassurance and comfort, as well as…something romantic? In this environment? Yes. Actually. "Let's fine some long enough. I have no interest in walking all the way back to the beach hunched over."
"Good thinking." Andrea walked over to the edge of the small clearing, pulling Miranda with her. "Here are some that have half-withered leaves on them. They should smooth things over.
Miranda helped pull several of them free. "We should do two each." She'd honestly rather hold Andrea's hand, but she couldn't very well say that. They over to where the path led to the beach and waited for the others. Nigel, Serena, and Annika came pulling two branches each as well.
"Great minds think alike," Nigel said, pushing up his glasses before he gripped the branches. "When we get back to New York, I'm calling your manicurist, Miranda. I'm getting the callouses from hell."
Miranda had to laugh. "I'll spring for it, for all of us."
Kathryn came over to them, still on the phone. She motioned for them to follow her as she grabbed a torch and started walking. Now they were close enough for Miranda to hear what she was saying to the person at the other end of the satellite link.
"Have you run my control number yet and confirmed my identity? Well, finally. Put me through to Barbara Norton. Yes, I want the CEO directly." Kathryn waited, and Miranda could hear the stress in her voice, even if Kathryn no doubt played it down. She admired the captain for shouldering this disastrous turn of events so well. "Thank you. Barbara? Yes, it's Kathryn Janeway." Kathryn took a trembling breath. "I managed to do a controlled water landing and so far, all the passengers and the crew are accounted four and in good shape. We're on an island way off our course as we had to circle an electric storm. It still took out a lot of our instruments and the engines." Kathryn stopped, and Miranda and the others did as well. Handing over the torch to Annika, Kathryn pulled up her shirt sleeve. Holding her arm close to the torch, she continued. "Barbara, I'm going to give you the longitude and latitude now. Repeat it back to me." Rattling off a set of numbers, Kathryn then listened as the CEO of Intrepid Airlines repeated them. "Correct. I'm going to call you back every hour on the hour, and if I'm asleep, then my co-pilot, Chuck Taylor, will do so in my place." Kathryn glanced at Miranda, who was on pins and needles at this point. "Now, and here is where I'm going to trust you to do what is right, Barbara. I can't lend this satellite phone to anyone else, least of all civilians, without causing an uproar when it dawns on people that the batteries won't be enough for two-hundred and eighty some people to call home. I need your minions to do that for us. Call everyone's next of kin they have listed and let them know that we're alive." Kathryn tensed as she waited. After a few, ghastly long, moments, she relaxed so dramatically, Annika had to drop her branches and grab her around the shoulders. "Thank you, Barbara," Kathryn said. "I won't be able to tell most of the passengers about this, but those who are here know now."
Yes, I do, Miranda thought, feeling quite dizzy. Caroline and Cassidy will know I'm alive and that's going to make all the difference. The same went for Andrea's parents.
"All right," Kathryn said. "Any ETA you can give me on when we can expect the rescue effort to reach us?" Kathryn lowered her head as Barbara gave her answer. "Ah-huh. Okay." Kathryn closed the phone after saying goodbye.
Miranda's heart sank as Kathryn looked up with tears streaming down her face.