CHAPTER NINE
'It's his truck'
97 hrs 45 mins
10.30 am
I don't want to look at my watch. When I did this last night, the time seemed to pass more slowly. I have a new idea. It came to me, as I was looking at all the rocks around me. Why not find a hard rock and use it to break the boulder? There's one in a hole in the canyon wall above me. It is round and black. I reach up and pull it out. It's perfect - just the right size and weight.
I hit the rock hard against the boulder. Little bits of stone fly into the air. It's working. I continue, but soon have to stop because of the pain in my left hand. I decide to rest for a while. Early afternoon is usually the warmest time of day. But today it's only thirteen degrees, the coldest day so far. It also means that tonight will be the coldest night. Realizing this makes me want to do something while it's still light.
The problem with using the black rock was that it hurt my left hand. But what if I tie a sock around my hand to protect it? I do this and it works. By 6:00 pm, I have taken off more of the boulder in three hours than I did in four days. But it's still not enough.
And even with the sock there is too much pain in my left hand to continue. I put down the rock. I feel sure I won't survive another night in the canyon. I finally accept this. There is nothing else I can do to save myself.
110 hrs 15 mins
11.00 pm
The canyon feels as cold as ice. I have been awake for over a hundred hours. Another night of the sitting - standing routine will kill me. I haven't had any clean water since eight o'clock yesterday morning, only urine. How much longer can I survive?
Death could come at any moment. I am so certain of this that I take the knife and write the dates of my life on the canyon wall. When I have finished I read them by the light of my headlamp: ARON OCT 75 - APR 03.
Around midnight, I have another vision. I am walking alone through the canyon wall. On the other side is a living room. I step inside and look around. A little boy in a red shirt comes into the room. I guess he must be about three. Suddenly, I know who he is. He is my future son and the room is in my future home. The little boy runs across the wooden floor, laughing.
I pick him up with my left arm. My right arm has no hand. Then I put him onto my shoulder and he laughs even more. He holds my arms in his little hands and together we dance around the room. The sun is shining and I feel free, happy, and alive.
The vision disappears. I am back in the canyon again, but now I don't feel the same as before. Seeing the boy has changed everything. Now, even with the cold, pain, tiredness and thirst, I am sure I will survive.
On Thursday, May the 1st, Kyle Ekker was looking at a map of the Canyonlands area on his office wall. The clock above read 9:07 am. Already that morning, his men had searched the top and center of the area and found nothing. What about the Robbers Roost canyons in the south? The only roads down there were made of rocks and sand. It might take longer to search.
He called Glen Sherrill, the head officer for the area. When Glen answered the phone, Kyle described Aron's truck. 'It's a red Toyota. License number NM 846-MMY.' 'I think I've seen a truck like that,' Glen replied. 'I'll radio one of my men and ask them to check.'
Kyle thanked him and put down the phone. Twenty minutes later, Glen called back. 'Officer Kyle?' 'Speaking.' 'Glen Sherrill here. We've found the truck you're looking for. It's in the Horseshoe Canyon parking lot.'
By 10.00 am, the good news had reached Elliot, Steve, and Mrs. Ralston. Steve immediately arranged for a rescue team to join the police and help in the search. Half an hour later, they were on their way. Things were now moving fast.
