Page 71 of Five Mountain Daddies

I feel completely crushed, but excited. We walk for maybe ten minutes in silence, the only sound is the roar of the machine as it rolls along. Finally, the guys call a halt, and they shut down thetractor.

Samuel grins at me. “Here we are,” he says. “Special,right?”

I look around and shake my head. “Looks like everythingelse.”

“Listen though.” All the guys go quiet. “Hearit?”

Suddenly, I do. It’s a crackling, like it’s raining inside here, with some snaps mixed in. I move toward the wall, and it gets a littlelouder.

“What the hell?” Iask.

“That’s the mountain settling all around us,” Samuel says softly. “Sounds like that all the time in these activeshafts.”

“Scary as hell,” I say softly, and the guys laugh, but notloudly.

“Fire her up, Vernon,” Samuel says, and moves me back away from the guys and theirmachines.

I watch as they work, practiced and silent. They communicate with gestures and touches, but mainly they just do their jobs. The tractor cuts forward into the coal and the wall, and the guys help make sure the good parts move down a conveyor belt and into a collection bin. The bin’s mostly full already, so they don’t cut too long. As the machine cuts, Boone works supports up along the ceiling, this mesh-looking steel wiresquare.

When the bin’s full, they stop thetractor.

“That’s it,” Samuel says. “Now we go back, dump it off, and head backin.”

“That’s it?” I ask, laughing, astonished. “That looks…dangerous.”

“It is,” Boone calls softly. “But I make sure we don’tdie.”

“There’s more to it,” Samuel admits. “But we should goback.”

I nod, not wanting to press him. We walk back again in silence, and when we’re back in the chamber, the guys get to work emptying the machine. I walk with Samuel back over to the trolley and he leans up against it, watchingme.

I stare at the three guys as they work. This mine is so deep and dark and those shafts are so small. It’s terrifying, confusing and so impossible-seeming. I don’t know how any men can stand to be down here for long shifts, but they do it, day in and dayout.

“Other crews are out there,” Samuel says softly. “That’s just one of them. There are shafts all over this mountain. Guys with families, lives,dreams.”

I look at him. “I know,” Isay.

“Do you?” He cocks his head. “You saw what it’s like. Could you do that all day long, go home, sleep a few hours, and do it again the nextday?”

I bite my lip, looking away. “No,” Iadmit.

“No,” he repeats. “We do the hard work. So what do wedeserve?”

I don’t answer him and he doesn’t press me. We get back into the trolley, and we ride it back out of themine.

When we hit fresh air, I feel so thankful to be out of there that it surprises me. I didn’t know I was feeling so closed in, but now that we’re out in the sunshine, I feel so grateful. As soon as the trolley stops, I hop off, take off my hardhat, and take a deepbreath.

Samuel joins me. I glance at him and for a second, I wish I could shove him and yell at him. He’s such a brute and a jerk and an asshole… but he’s right. I hate to admit it, but he’s totallyright.

“Thanks for the tour,” I say tohim.

“You should get the rest of the office down there,” he says softly. “Especially thatIngram.”

I laugh softly. “Good luck withthat.”

“Yeah, well.” He looks at me and suddenly reaches out. He touches my cheek, and I feel a chill run down my spine. “Coal dust,” he says showing me his thumb, smeared inblack.

I smile at him and he smirks back. I think he’s going to kiss me, and I think I’m going to let him. Instead, he turns and walks away, back toward the shed where they keep theirgear.

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