Free Love's Dream Song by Sandra Leesmith Page B

your theories. In fact, there’s evidence…” He pointed to some initials and a date carved into the sandstone. “…that shows these have been discovered before.”
    “That’s true. In fact, the owner of the property,” he gestured toward Jess, “showed me these ruins.”
    “How did you find the artifacts, then? Wouldn’t they have been pilfered by now?”
    “The ruins had been dug out, but I found something everyone else had overlooked. Come with me.”
    Dr. Davidson led the group to the small room built in the far left corner of the cliff. “Inside this cave I found the collection of stone tablets. The history of the Anasazi were written on these.”
    Standing in the corner of the room, Autumn watched the men and women take turns peering in to the dark hole. She knew it smelled damp and musty from the trickles of water that seeped down the far wall. Light from the lantern cast eerie shadows.
    She concentrated on the engraved slabs of rock so she wouldn’t feel claustrophobic. There were so many people crowded into the small space. It helped a little. The tablets were fascinating. They reminded her of Aztec carvings she’d seen in Mexico. The writing was similar, but the tablets here were much smaller. These were about twelve by eighteen inches and at least three inches thick. They could be lifted, but not easily.
    For about twenty minutes, Autumn managed the crowd. But finally, the press of people got to her. She scrambled out of the room and onto the ledge. Gulping air, she let the claustrophobia pass.
    “What happened? Are you all right?” Jess came out of the room to stand by her.
    “I’m fine,” she said, but her voice sounded husky and strained. Shaking her head, she admitted. “No, I’m not. I’m not crazy about crowded rooms.”
    “Bad experience?”
    She nodded. “When I was ten years old, we lived in Rio de Janeiro. It was Mardi Gras, and I got caught in a moving crowd of people. They pressed me into a wall, and I thought I’d be squeezed to death. It was two hours before my brothers finally found me.”
    “What did they do?”
    “Pounded a way through the crowd and then taught me karate.”
    “I see.” He smiled.
    Feeling better, she leaned against the wall. Jess pressed against her, and again last night’s walk came to mind. His kiss had been unexpected, but not her reaction to it which annoyed her no end. Had he experienced any of the old feelings or had the kiss been the excuse for delay he’d claimed it to be?
    Sun-bronzed hair cut across his brow, while his khaki shirt stretched over solid muscle. He’d been worried about her just now, and she wanted to thank him for his concern. She hesitated, wondering if she should be frank or wait for a better time.
    The opportunity slipped by when Wayne led the party out of the cave. Connie followed and cast a quick glance their way, but immediately turned to say something to the professor. The others carefully brought out the tablets and assembled them along the inside wall of the lodge. Autumn joined them, in a way relieved by the interruptions. She wasn’t sure she could handle any of Jess’s possible responses.
    Dr. Davidson issued orders and managed the handling of the ancient carvings. His ring of authority proved he hadn’t lost his touch in supervising such a monumental dig. Finally, the carvings were all displayed for the experts to examine. They huddled together in the small space and talked excitedly.
    “This is incredible,” the cartographer said. “I still find it hard to believe the Anasazi were from Mexico.”
    “The Mexican Connection was suspected by some,” Dr. Davidson said as the studied the tablet before him. “They set up a system of trade and established outposts or trade centers.”
    “I thought the common theory was that several years of drought forced the Anasazi to abandon their homes and move on,” Jess spoke up.
    “That has been a theory for years—and what I believed, I might add—until I found