Death Valley Duel by Scott Graham

Author:Scott Graham [Graham, Scott]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

17

Chuck gnawed his lip, his eyes on Carmelita as she jogged away. “I’m not sure how I’m going to make it through tonight.”

“Don’t say that,” Rosie said as she filmed Carmelita’s departure. “It sounds bad.”

“I’m just being honest.”

“Carm’s doing great. She’ll do great tonight, too.”

When Carmelita disappeared in the deepening dusk, Rosie tucked her phone away. “I can’t wait for Mamá to get here,” she said.

“Me, either,” Chuck agreed.

He looked down the trail after Carmelita. Janelle’s impending arrival would do all of them good—Carmelita especially. Seeing her mother on the far side of the Coso Mountains was sure to give her a welcome boost tomorrow morning, after more than twenty-four hours and nearly a hundred miles of nonstop running.

He texted Janelle, directing her to the third check-in point on the outskirts of the tiny community of Darwin, in the middle of the desert plain between the Coso Mountains and the Panamint range. After breaking down the aid station, he hopped behind the wheel of the truck and drove east with Rosie, Clarence, and Liza, the setting sun behind them, Death Valley National Park ahead.

A few miles before the highway crossed into the park, he turned south on the deserted county road leading to Darwin, population fifty. It was nearly dark when they arrived at the remote outpost, the dusky purple sky broken by pinpricks of stars. As in Keeler, no one stirred outside Darwin’s handful of houses and mobile homes lining half a dozen gravel lanes on either side of the county road.

He pulled onto an open patch of ground on the far side of Darwin. The bladed expanse of sand was designated as the race’s third check-in point. Support crews of the other lead racers had already arrived at the site. The Team Chatten minivan was parked on the far side of the bulldozed plot. Chuck braked the truck to a stop on the near side of the plot, as far from Rick as possible.

There was just enough cell service in Darwin for him to check Carmelita’s progress on the real-time map. She continued to hold her own, not far behind the leaders.

He unfolded cots beside the truck, set up an extra camp table and opened a propane stove on it, and placed a lantern beside the stove. He emptied canned stew into a cook pot and set the pot on the stove burner.

The warm glow of the lantern enveloped the cots and table as evening gave way to night. Rosie eyed the map on her phone while Chuck stirred the stew. Its meaty aroma filled the air, reminding him how hungry he was.

“Carm’s still in eighth place,” Rosie reported. “Really close behind the first seven.”

“Is Kelsey still in the lead?” he asked.

“Yep. Matt, Waitimu, Domenico, and Hannah are right behind him. Then Margot. Then, after a gap, Carm is right behind Astrid.”

“How far is she from the turnoff to the drainage?”

Rosie brought her phone to her eyes. “I’m not sure. Can you tell, Uncle Clarence?”

Clarence studied his phone. “A few miles.

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