Crisscross Moon - 24. Chapter 24

24.

In fact, there was, and it had to do with what Cory had told me earlier. The first time we were in this cave, we found the side passage and the stream. But we were so interested in those, we hadn't noticed another opening. As Cory had suggested, it was slightly above us, halfway up a wall - above both our eye levels. We'd still been looking down.

"Do you think you can get up there?" he asked, when we spotted the dark opening. "If I give you a lift?"

"Sure," I said. Though I didn't need a lift because I quickly found footholds. And once I poked my head into the hole, I realized the cave got immediately wider. And its floor was wet.

"What do you see?" Cory asked.

"That it's big enough to climb into. C'mon."

The next thing we saw was signs of bears.

"You're sure they're bears?" he asked. "How'd they get in here?"

"The same way we did... bears can climb. And they've brought dumpster trash back with them. Mountain lions don't do that."

"What about smaller animals?"

"Some do... but look at this stuff... Look at the claw marks..."

I aimed my flashlight beam at the food wrappings so Cory could see how they were shredded.

"I'd say it looks like bears," he admitted. "But I've never seen bear garbage."

"Now you have."

"You think they're still here?"

"Where?" I asked. We were at a dead end.

"Then where are they?"

"Out for the night... Looking for more dumpsters."

"So we're safe to explore?"

It was only half a question. "You're never completely safe," I reminded him. "But we have the rifle." Cory had handed it to me before he climbed through the hole.

"Just shoot away from me," he joked.

There wasn't a lot of room to do that, but I was sure I could get a shot at the narrow opening. And we had the advantage. The bears would be trying to climb in.

We investigated the wet floor and discovered the water was coming from one side of the cave. Here, the water really was a stream, again maybe ten feet long. It came almost invisibly out of the rocks near the hole we'd climbed into. But since the floor sloped downward from there and the water seemed to stay level, the stream got deeper as it went. There was also a steady flow, and the opening at the far end - where the stream disappeared - was big enough for Cory to reach into.

At least, he thought he could. "I'd really have to be in the water to try. And the water's cold."

It was. Colder than in the outside streams.

"Wish I had my wet suit," he said.

"Do you dive?"

"Some... I was pretty good in high school."

"Where's your suit?"

"Home... in my dad's basement. I didn't even bring it to California. I knew I wouldn't have time."

"I've never dived... But I've snorkeled."

"Do you have gear?"

"We mainly used it on family vacations... We haven't taken one of those in years."

"Where is it?"

"Prob'ly in our garage."

"In this heat, the rubber'll be shot. Besides, I'm not sure snorkels would work."

I thought for a moment. "I might be able to get a wet suit."

"Where?"

"Friends of mine. They dive in the Gulf."

"Would they lend you their equipment? Some people are pretty fussy. And would the suit fit me? How big are they?"

I hadn't considered that. "Amy's taller than I am... a little. And Bryan's a bit shorter than you..."

"That might be OK... Suits pretty much go small, medium, large..."

"Then you'd be fine."

"Can you call your friends?"

"Not from here... But once we get back to the road..."

We left the cave.

"We really don't need the suit till tomorrow," I mentioned to Cory. "So there's no real hurry..."

"Maybe... But it's always dark in the caves. So what's it matter if we do this tomorrow or tonight?"

"We'll have more energy in the morning."

"And what about the bears? If they're mainly out at night..."

"That's true..."

"We're better off now."

I thought about that. "We still don't absolutely know when they'll be back."

"What're our chances?"

I shrugged. "Damned if I know... But we have the rifle..."

So we went back to the car. It was an easy walk since this cave was closer than the one my family used.

"You're sure you'll be able to find it?" Cory asked.

"Oh, yeah."

"You don't need to leave some marks?"

"There's almost no way... not with what we're carrying. And I'll be able to find it."

"Then call your friends."

I tried. I had a signal, but it wasn't strong enough. We couldn't really connect till Cory's car reached the highway.

"They said we can borrow the suit," I told him. "But they don't have a tank... at least, not a full one."

"Is there a dive shop?"

I laughed. "Not a lot of people dive around here."

Cory needed to think.

"That's probably OK... If the opening in the stream is really small, I couldn't fit through it anyway wearing a tank... And you don't know how to use one."

"Who said I was going in the water?"

"Aren't you curious?"

"Some."

"Come on... you're more than that."

"OK... maybe a little... But why do I need a suit?"

"Because the water's cold... And I'm not getting into it without having someone to pull me out. It's the same thing as you telling your friends when you're out exploring."

That made sense. But I'd never worn a wet suit before. And it turned out my friends actually did have an air tank - a small one, partly filled.

"We use it for training," Bryan said. "It's kid size."

"It might be all we need," Cory replied. He seemed intent on getting back to the cave but still wanted us to try on the suits. "No point going back if they don't fit."

They did, well enough, though mine was tighter than his. Amy was only 5'-7". "All you'll need to do," Cory insisted, "is get in the water and yank on my feet if something goes wrong. We don't even need fins. In fact, in a stream that narrow, we especially don't."

"You're sure you'll be OK?" Amy asked. "You want us with you?"

"We only have two suits," Cory pointed out. "But you're welcome to come."

"I really hate the forest at night," Amy admitted. "In fact, I hate the forest in general. I'm much better in the water."

"She's fearless there," Bryan added.

"Then stay where it's warm," I told them.

And Cory and I got back into our clothes. We stopped at my house for some sandwiches then drove to the park. At the car, we again changed into the wet suits, and I was able to find the cave after only one wrong turn.

"How long do you think we really have?" Cory asked.

It was only 11. "Probably till close to morning."

"Then let's go."

(continued)