Marc Brandel - An Ear for Danger

Then she received a letter from Ascención, saying Dusty was planning to go to L.A. Ascención enclosed a copy of the crossword puzzle that Dusty had printed in Lareto. The Mexican hadn’t understood what the puzzle was all about. But he knew Dusty was up to something.

“Well, I didn’t figure it all out at once,” Mercedes went on, “but I did know who Dagwood’s wife was: Blondie. So I started watching that store where the contest entries were sent. It wasn’t long before Dusty showed up there to collect his mail. I tried to break into the store the next day. But the burglar alarm scared me off.”

After that she kept a close watch on the rancher and found out where he was staying. Then one day she followed him out to The Jones Salvage Yard. Driving slowly past the house, she saw Dusty talking to Jupe on the porch. She hid her car and crept back to the house.

“I could hear you talking,” she said. “And what struck me at once was your voice. It was just like Brit’s!”

So she had started to fit things together. Disguising herself as a Mexican, she followed Jupe and his two friends to Lareto.

“I saw Dusty pick you up there in his Jeep. So I moved into a room in the village on the other side of the lake and got in touch with Ascención again. I spied on you in the woods. And when Blondie made friends with you right away, well, it wasn’t hard to figure out the rest.”

They walked on for a while in silence.

“Do you mind if I ask you a couple of questions?” Jupe asked.

“Go ahead.”

“How do you know Ascención? And what happened between you and Dusty that made you — ”

“That made us hate each other so much?”

“Yeah.”

“It goes back a long way,” Mercedes told him. “My mother died when I was a child. My father was a mining engineer working for a Mexican company. I was brought up in Mexico. Ascención used to take care of me as a kid when my father was away on mining trips. In those days Ascención owned the whole ranch. He was doing fine, raising cattle and horses until Dusty came along — ”

“And took over the ranch from him.” Jupe remembered those deeds he had seen in Dusty’s office.

“Yes. Like most ranchers, Ascención owed money to the bank. And Dusty bought up the notes on the loans. Before Ascención could sell enough cattle to settle his debts, Dusty foreclosed on everything. I went to court to try to help my old friend. But Dusty knew the right people to pay off. In the end Ascención lost the ranch to him.”

Jupe looked down into the valley and across to the next range of mountains. He hoped Mercedes was wrong and Ascención would show up soon.

But there was no sign of him.

And then Jupe felt a sudden blast of heat. Without warning the air, the whole land around him changed.

It grew hotter. And darker.

Looking up, he saw a great gray cloud spread across the sky. He felt that shivering of the earth again. He could see the mountaintop from where he was now. A jet of dark smoke was shooting up out of it. A jet far thicker and heavier than any of those white plumes he had seen before.

Suddenly he understood. He could have kicked himself for being so dumb. Why hadn’t he realized the truth earlier? Pete had even wondered why the white smoke didn’t hang about in the air. That wasn’t smoke — it was steam.

“It’s a volcano ,” Jupe said in a choked voice.

Mercedes clutched his arm, pulling him to a stop. Shielding her eyes with her hand, she looked up at the mountain too.

“Yes,” she whispered. “I never knew there were any active volcanoes in the Sierra Madre. But I’ve seen them in Hawaii. And this one’s about to explode!”

“I’m into rock music in a big way,” Bob told Brit. “Really into it. But some of those stars can be a pain in the neck.”

The three of them — Bob, Brit, and Pete — were sitting around in the cave, waiting anxiously for Jupe.

The tension was so thick you could pierce it with a pickaxe. Bob and Brit chattered on as if they didn’t notice. But they wondered to themselves how long they could keep the desperate rancher under control. The man kept struggling against his bonds and yelling.

“I’m into rock too,” Brit said. “And I can’t believe you really know guys like the Survivors.”

“Sure, they hang around the office all the time.”

“But Mexican music is hot too,” Brit said. “Does your boss handle any Mexican singers?”

Bob shook his head. “Latin music is a whole other scene.”

Pete, who had heard Bob’s pop music stories until he was blue in the face, was writing a long letter to Kelly Madigan.

“Dear Kelly,” he wrote, “It’s really wild in the mountains. Right now I’m sitting in a cave with a guy who’s tied up with ropes. No, we’re not into whips and chains up here, but. ”

Pete threw down his pad and glanced at his watch. “It’s over two hours since Jupe left,” he said. He crawled to the end of the tunnel to look for him again.

Dusty wasn’t writhing around anymore. He was kneeling on the floor. Trussed up the way he was, he obviously found kneeling more comfortable than lying down.

“Hey, Brit,” Dusty called in a croaking voice. “Bring me a drink of water, will you? My throat’s so dry I can’t swallow.”

Brit and Bob exchanged questioning looks. Bob nodded.

“Sure.” Brit picked up the clay water jug and carried it over to the rancher.

From where he was sitting, Bob couldn’t see what happened next. One moment Brit was holding the jug to Dusty’s lips. Then it shattered on the floor and Brit was lying on his back. The rancher was holding the sharp point of a sheath knife against Brit’s neck.

Dusty’s hands and feet were free. The cut cord dangled from his wrists.

“You idiots.” He laughed in a wild, gloating way. “You should have had the brains to search me. I always carry a knife in my boot.”

He pressed the blade against Brit’s throat, threatening his jugular if he made a move.

“Okay, Bob,” Dusty called in the same jeering voice. “Bring me Brit’s rifle. Go on. Move it.”

Bob knew the rancher wouldn’t hesitate to cut Brit’s throat. The rifle was leaning against the wall. He picked it up and walked over to Dusty.

“Drop it there. Where I can reach it.”

Something in Dusty’s voice made Bob’s blood freeze. Dusty wasn’t just willing, he was eager to use the knife on Brit. Bob dropped the rifle.

Still holding the knife against Brit’s jugular, Dusty picked up the rifle and cocked it.

“Now go face the wall, Mr. Big Shot. And put your hands on your head.”

“No sign of Jupe. But there’s something real weird. ”

Pete had returned through the tunnel. It took a second for his eyes to adapt to the dim light. Then he saw Bob standing face to the wall with his hands locked together across his head.

“What’s going on. ” he began. Then he saw Dusty. The crazed rancher was sitting astride Brit’s chest, the threatening knife in one hand and the rifle in the other. His finger was on the trigger. The barrel was aimed at Pete.

“He faked us out,” Bob explained. “He had a knife in his boot.”

“You! Up against the wall too!” Dusty shouted at Pete.

For a wild moment Pete thought of rushing the rancher. Firing the rifle with one hand, Dusty might miss him in the half-darkness.

But there was no way Pete could reach Dusty before he sliced that gleaming blade across Brit’s throat. Pete turned and faced the wall beside Bob.

“What do we do now?” Pete whispered.

“Hang tight till Jupe gets back,” Bob whispered back.

“Hands on top of your head and shut up,” Dusty shouted at Pete. “Serve you right if I plugged you both.” He laughed viciously.