ENCOUNTER by Hep Aldridge (bill gates books recommendations .txt) 📕

vodka, and cracked the seal. He took a healthy swig from the bottle and passed it around. When it got to me, I took my drink and felt the clear fiery liquid burn my throat before its warm glow spread through my insides.

“Gotta warm the insides as well as the outside,” Dimitri said. “Besides, it will help with the sore muscles I’m sure we’re all feeling.”

He was right. I guess adrenaline had been flowing for a couple of days now and keeping the pain at bay. I realized my throat was raw from breathing the cooler, thinner air at this altitude. Our trek had been a continuous uphill one, although gradual at times, uphill nonetheless, and it was taking its toll. Having killers tracking you did not make for a relaxing stroll in the mountains, and we had been pushing hard.

Joe said, “No one is going to have to rock me to sleep tonight; that’s for sure.”

“I agree,” Doc said. In fact, I’m cashing out now. That vodka did the trick, thanks, Dimitri.”

“Medicinal magic,” he laughingly said as he took one more hit off the bottle before putting it back in his pack.

We gathered more wood and banked the fire for the night, not a blazing fire but a nice bed of hot coals that spread their warmth to the surrounding sleeping bags. Sentry duty was the same as always, three-hour shifts. Reggie seemed spryer than the rest of us, so she agreed to take the first watch. It took all of five minutes for me to fall into a deep sleep, which did not end until first light the following day.

Our main coffee maker was at it again. Eduardo had the pot going and seemed like his old self. When I rolled out, he had a hot cup ready for me. We had purchased our coffee at the market since none of us really cared for the instant stuff in the MRE’s. The powdered orange drink wasn’t bad if you liked Tang as a kid, but the fresh coffee we brewed had a good kick to it and started the day off right, as far as I was concerned.

There was no action to report, so breakfast was consumed, our mules loaded, and the campsite cleared. No trace of the fire was left. Once cleared, we headed out. Everyone seemed to be in better spirits. I don’t know why. Maybe the good night’s sleep was the cause, or perhaps the vodka did the trick or a combination. Whatever it was, it felt good to be following a path for a change, even as narrow as it was. The machetes could stay sheathed today.

The grade was mild, still uphill but a more gradual slope. By the time mid-day arrived, we were ready for a break. The path had disappeared a couple of times. Luckily, we were able to follow it with the LIDAR image we had and picked it back up again. During our break, Joe deployed the drone and mapped the area in front of us. The trail had been running straight so far, but I’d feel better if we had a visual image to fall back on or refer to. Now that we were on the path, Joe could narrow his search area and lengthen it considerably, and in the same thirty-minute flying time, he was able to map miles ahead.

By the time we headed out again, we had a clear image of the path to follow and made very good time. At the end of the day, we had passed our mapped area but still had a good path to follow. Dusk was settling in, and we decided to stop for the night. As we were starting to unload the mules, Reggie came up.

“Do you guys hear that?”

We all went quiet, but I heard nothing.

“No, what is it?” I asked.

“Wait here,” she said as she trotted down the path, rifle in hand. Five minutes later, she came trotting back, grinning, and said, “Don’t unpack here; the stream is just ahead.”

We loaded back up and made our way to the stream—a beautiful clear mountain stream about four feet wide and a couple of feet deep. We still had water, but this was a real plus. We found a level place next to the stream to set up a real camp, tents, and all. We unloaded the mules and let them drink and graze on the grass growing around the stream.

Another fire was in order, and I decided to explore some before it got dark. I followed the stream downhill for about twenty yards and found another small pool. As the water exited the pool, it disappeared under some rocks and never reappeared on the other side. Hmm, must start following an underground path from here, I thought. I looked at the pool again and decided that would be a good place to try and wash off some of the travel dirt in the morning. I went back and let the others know.

Another nice evening was had, fire, hot meal, and vodka nightcap. I could get used to this, I thought. The morning came chilly with hot coffee. It wasn’t easy, but we all took turns down at the pool for a very brisk, refreshing, and quick bathing experience. The water in the stream was very cold, and the chill in the morning air added to the speed and extent of our immersion or splashing. The ladies went last, waiting for a degree or two increase in air temp before heading down.

We restocked our water supply upstream and had everything loaded by the time they returned, looking rosy-cheeked and refreshed.

“Now that everyone is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I suggest we hit the trail,” I said, taking my mule by its lead and following the stream upward. We hadn’t gone far when I noticed a strange rock standing about four feet tall next to the stream. When we got to it, I realized it was a carved marker stone almost completely covered