As if God were orchestrating the situation, another miner stepped from the crowd to speak about Ezekiel.
Gil took the chance to shuffle backward, out of the midst of the group.
His brother’s gaze didn’t shift from the miner, but Gil had the feeling Sampson was tracking his movements.
He jerked his head toward the mountain.
Sampson’s brow gathered in curiosity, probably wondering why Gil wanted him to follow. But he nodded, the movement barely perceptible.
Gil stepped back and moved behind one of the bushier cedars so he was hidden from most of the men. He jerked his head toward the mountain once more, making his message clear.
Sampson slipped sideways into a thick cluster of trees on the far side of the semi-circle of men.
They each moved backward, shifting from one tree cover to the next until they’d left sight of the group.
Gil angled to meet his brother, keeping his voice to a whisper. “I need your help to move some crates. Is everyone there at the grave?”
Sampson gave him a sharp look but didn’t slow. Would he refuse to help? He’d told Gil to forget about the sapphires, but maybe since Gil had already found them…
Gil kept his voice low. “I know where about half of our sapphires are. I need to move them out to the woods.”
Sampson shook his head. “You’re asking for trouble.” They reached the open area beside the mountain, the massive cliff face looming ahead. Sampson stopped and turned to him. “Where are they?”
Maybe hewouldhelp.
Gil pointed toward the trail that led around the southern half of the mountain. “On the other side, there’s an older tunnel that looks like part of the original cave. It leads to the upper level of that bigger cavern. The storage room is about fifty yards in.”
Sampson spun and jogged toward a well-trodden area beside the mountain.
Gil followed, though it wasn’t the route he knew.
His brother slipped through a narrow opening in the rock, and when Gil did the same, the bunkroom opened up around him.
Sampson was still jogging. “Come on.” He must know a shorter path.
Gil ran behind him through the low cavern, catching up when Sampson paused to grab a lantern and light it. They continued into a narrow passageway, jogging again as they traveled deeper into the mountain. The air grew cooler, the tunnel leading into acavern—the smaller one Jess had brought him to when he’d first met Ezekiel.
The stab of guilt surprised him, using the man’s funeral for his own purposes. But would another opportunity present itself?
Sampson turned toward the corridor that led to the larger cavern, but Gil’s gaze sought out the place Ezekiel had been cutting stone. Was that a pick lying on the floor? A weight pressed on his chest.
But he didn’t have time to grieve, Sampson had already disappeared into the next tunnel.
Gil lengthened his stride to catch up with his brother, and by the time they emerged into the larger cavern, he was breathing hard.
Sampson aimed toward the far wall to the left of where Jess had shown Gil the stalagmites, just under the wooden bridge that spanned the space above.
Sampson grabbed a rope beneath the bridge. As he pulled it out, the knots tied in the cord became apparent—all the way up to the higher level.
Sampson looked back at him. “The closet’s up there, right?”
Gil nodded. It felt like they’d been gone from the funeral a half hour, but this was a shorter path from the one he’d planned to use. And now he knew one more thing about these underground caves, a new way to maneuver should he have the need.
Sampson climbed the rope first, his broadened shoulders rippling under his shirt as he worked his way up. His little brother was little no longer.
Gil followed, the cord biting into his hands with a fury as he used all his strength to climb.
At last, they covered the short distance down the passageway until Sampson paused with the lantern in front of the hidden door.
