“That was a little odd.”

Rickards gave the older man a fleeting smirk and continued walking.  “Trust me—you got off easy.”

The path slowly became arduous, extending another several hundred yards toward the upper canyon walls.   The ground was precipitous as the light rain continued dampening the soil, eroding their traction.

Rickards slipped several times with the added weight of Townsend’s probe, almost falling the third time but managing to support the case between both hands.  Behind them, several of the children followed, including Julio, climbing with little effort.

When the trail finally leveled, the three adults stopped to catch their breath, looking down upon the Quechuan village and spotting dozens more houses extending farther downriver where the stream widened and wandered away.

The professor stared ahead, panting, following the trail forward as it continued up another, gentler rise.  “How far did Mike make it?”

Joe looked at Angela with a pained expression.

“Right here,” she answered.

A brief look of surprise flashed across Townsend’s face before all expression left it, and he slowly peered down around his own feet.  Examining the area, he gradually lowered himself onto one knee with his arms crossed and exhaled.

It was here.  Here where his old friend had left this world forever, without ever knowing Townsend’s regret.  Without even the benefit of a simple apology.

As if reading his mind, Angela spoke softly.  “He didn’t seem the type to hold grudges.”

“He wasn’t,” nodded Townsend, still kneeling.  “But I would have liked to tell him I was sorry.”

“All of us would have,” replied Rickards dryly.  “For a lot of things.”

The older man remained motionless for a long time before breathing in deeply and rising to his feet.  “We did have some fun together in those days.  God, what an exciting time it was.”  He peered up at the patchy gray sky above them.  “Even through all that civil rights mess.  Lord, the things we talked about.  The ideas we had.  About the present.  About the future.  As if we were glimpsing the building blocks of the universe itself.”

Angela beamed back at him until he looked down once more and mumbled something to himself.

Then, raising his head, Townsend immediately walked past them, leaving Angela and Joe to follow, briefly noting the children had stopped.

It was another long trek before they reached the familiar narrow gap between two giant boulders, where they rested, and Joe lowered the professor’s case onto the hard ground.

“This is as far as we go.  What you came for is just on the other side.”

“You’re not coming?”

“We’ve already been.  If we come now, you won’t see it.”  With that, Rickards reached down and hefted the case with Townsend’s probe once again, pushing it up onto one shoulder and preparing to push it over the top of the gap, where there was a wider opening.