Dead Aim(2)
“That's not enough,” she whispered. “It's never enough. I can't stand by and let—” She cleared her throat and changed the subject. “Is it your rest time?”
Sarah shook her head. “I just had to get Monty some water. My canteen was empty. We still have a few hours to work until dark. It's less dangerous for Monty if he can see clearly what's out there.” She paused. “But we've just had two bits of good news. The President is coming here next week.”
“It's about time. Vice President Shepard was here the day after the dam break.”
“Yeah, I was impressed. But it's when the President shows up that FEMA and all the aid organizations get a boost.”
“That's good.” She made a face. “Maybe I can convince Karak I was only waiting for Andreas to show up so that I could give him a really big story.” She shook her head. “Nah, I'm no good at lying. Besides, security is so tight around the President right now that I wouldn't get within a mile of him.”
“I'm surprised he's coming at all. There was a bombing at the embassy in Mexico City last night.”
“The same terrorist group?”
Sarah nodded. “Matanza claimed it. And an effigy of Andreas was left burning on the lawn.”
“Bastards.” It was the third embassy attack by the Guatemalan terrorist group in the last six months. If it wasn't the Middle East, it was Guatemala or Venezuela. Juan Cordoba and his Matanza group had always been rabid revolutionaries in their own country, but now—fueled by drug money and Al Qaeda support—they had grown powerful enough to take aim at Andreas and the administration that was trying to stabilize the party in power. It seemed impossible to Alex that there had ever been a time when her country hadn't been surrounded by terror and ugliness and threats. Yet she could remember a childhood filled with trust and innocence and the belief that nothing really bad could come knocking on her door. The memory filled her with frustration and anger and immense sadness. “I hope your second bit of good news is better than your first.”
“Hey, you have to take the bitter with the sweet. At least Andreas isn't letting anyone scare him into ignoring people who need him. He should be safe enough visiting this site. All the evidence points to a natural disaster here.” She smiled. “And the preliminary report on the ground on the other side of the dam says it appears to be fairly stable. They're sending some teams up there tomorrow morning to do a final check. When the landslide buried this area, they were afraid the ground on the other side might be compromised.”
“Jesus. That's all these poor people need. Another landslide.”
“They tried to evacuate everyone from that area just for safety's sake. But it looks like they can go back home.” Sarah stroked Monty's head. “Time to go back to work, boy.” She stood up and headed for the door. “And it's a good time for you to take some photographs.”
“How bossy can you get?” Alex followed her and stood in the doorway, gazing out at the disaster site. Every time she looked at the devastation it made her sick. The Arapahoe Dam had broken five days earlier and the water had rushed down into the valley below, killing over a hundred and twenty people. But the series of landslides caused by the explosive force of the water on either side of the valley was the horror they were dealing with now. The rock slides had buried the homes and businesses of Arapahoe Junction under tons of rock, and the area was still so unstable the rescue had to be done painstakingly by hand, not machine. Her glance shifted across the jagged wreck of the dam to the hills on the other side. The rocky terrain looked blessedly sturdy in a shaky world.
Christ, she was glad there wasn't going to be another horror piled on top of this one.
“Stop looking at it,” Sarah called back to her. “Take those photos.”
Sure, take the pictures. Ignore the fact that there might be more people alive under those rocks.
“Promise me,” Sarah said.
“I promise. I'll take the damn photos. I'll get them and send them out today.” She grabbed her shovel, which was leaning against the trailer. As Sarah had said, there was still light and the job on this side of the gorge was monumental. “But not now. I can't do it now. . . .”
It was late afternoon when Alex stopped working and went back to the trailer to get her camera.
She'd cut it close and she'd have to work fast to get the photos before dark. Well, if she didn't get all she needed she'd improvise.
A helicopter was descending at the first-aid tent a few hundred yards away from the trailer and she waved at Ken Nader, the pilot, as he got out of the aircraft.