As Ben approached the room with the cache of weapons and gear, he wondered what his cutoff would be on the dynamite. If it was more than ten years old, would it be worth the risk? He had no idea what was considered safe, and he’d have to make a call based on a physical inspection.
He grabbed the cold rock wall of the shaft as he skidded to a stop and pulled himself around the corner, into the room. Joel and Allie had really cleaned the place out. There was nothing left but a few pieces of trash and some old clothing in a pile on the floor. Ben spotted the box of dynamite right away and approached slowly. He crouched down and exhaled deeply as he lifted the lid off the dusty wooden crate.
Joel was right. There was about half a box of neatly stacked yellow sticks, along with some fuse material.
“Dyno Nobel, Unimax.” Ben read the name out loud. He recognized the yellow wax-paper-like wrap immediately. He was somewhat relieved to see that it was the same stuff they’d found in the back of the Bronco. The dynamite was only five years old, and the fact that it looked to be in good shape was encouraging as well. There was a little less of it than they’d found last time, but based on what he knew from that experience, this was more than enough to rattle the moonshiners’ cage and then some.
Ben put the lid back on the crate and took a few long strides out into the shaft. At least he could see the cart now. He ran back into the room, gingerly picked up the crate, and carried it to where the cart would stop. He might as well use the rest of his time to check the fuel level on the generator; there was no point in waiting for the cart if there wasn’t enough fuel to carry him and the dynamite up to the surface.
He followed the exhaust pipe to the rear of the room and opened the door on a plywood box that housed the generator. The gauge showed less than a quarter tank as the needle flirted with the red warning zone on the dial. There wasn’t much fuel left, but he thought it was enough for one more trip to the top. He noticed that the cable responsible for moving the mine cart ran into the plywood cover at the rear, and his curiosity got the better of him.
Ben lifted the box and threw it aside, revealing a clutch and drive gear attached to the main pulley. It’s worth a try. He grabbed the lever and squeezed the handle. The gear disconnected from the shaft driving the pulley, and the cable stopped immediately. He pulled the lever forward and felt it click into position. This caused the cable to jerk back into motion at more than twice the speed it had been moving. The generator responded as well and idled up significantly under the new load.
Ben could hear the cart coming down the shaft now and bolted for the door. He made it just in time to hit the switch and stop the rapidly descending cart before it shot past the room altogether. He wanted to kick himself for not investigating the generator sooner. All the time spent bringing gear topside could have been reduced significantly if they’d known about this. Or maybe they would have broken the whole thing with the weight they were moving.
None of that mattered now. He only needed it to work this one time. Moving as fast as he dared, he loaded the dynamite and climbed into the cart. Bracing himself and the crate, he hit the switch and waited. The cable squealed as it slipped in the overhead pulley, and a loud grinding noise came from the generator. For a moment, he thought the whole thing might fall apart right then and there.
The grinding turned into clicking that slowed and ended with a louder clank. The cable went taut and the cart launched forward, up the incline at an unexpected rate of speed. Ben wasn’t prepared for the sudden start and nearly fell backward. The box of dynamite slid across the bottom of the cart toward him, but fortunately, he was able to catch it with his foot before it slammed into the rear wall.
A few seconds ago, he had been worried about making it to the top, and now he found himself wondering how he was going to stop when he got there. Would the cart slow down and stop automatically, or would he have to grab the switch at the top? Ben eyed the brake lever and wondered if he’d made a huge mistake. Maybe the higher gear was too much for an unloaded cart.
The end of the line was coming up fast, and Ben started applying pressure to the brake handle. But he was discouraged by how little impact his effort had on the speed he was traveling. He was in big trouble if he couldn’t get this thing under control—and fast. At this rate of speed, there was no way he’d be able to hit the switch. He pictured the cart launching him and the dynamite through the container when he reached the top.
Ben repositioned himself so he could use both legs as leverage and put everything he had into moving the brake handle. He felt the steel tube attached to the brake handle bend a little, but he kept the pressure on, and eventually, the wheel began to grind along the track. It was working. Unfortunately, he couldn’t reach the switch because of the way
