“We should move.”
Denny jumped at the sound of Greymore’s voice. The shine from the flashlight was fading to a yellowish glow, the batteries draining away. “I’m scared, Paul. Scared to sit here hiding, scared to move.”
Paul managed a weak smile. “Me too, Denny. Here’s how I see it. We can’t sit here forever. That means we move at some point. The longer we sit, the hungrier and more tired we get, the weaker we get. Our best chance is now, and we still have some strength and light left to work with.”
It wasn’t much, but it was enough for Denny. He stretched as he stood hunched in the low-ceilinged cave. He removed his backpack and pulled an extra flashlight, clicking it on briefly to make sure it worked. “You’re right, let’s go.” He had wanted to sound brave, or at least not scared shitless, but it didn’t work. His voice came out as a shaky squeak.
(104)
Mossy and Billy followed the markers, careful not to move too quickly. It would be too easy to miss a marker hidden by dust or fallen rock and make a wrong turn that could be deadly. They stopped at every fork or intersecting tunnel until they found the marker. At one point, had they veered off-course and gone left instead of straight as the marker told them, they would have met a very lost Robert Ortiz.
“Mossy, I think we should go back, this is taking too long.” Billy recognized the whine in his voice but he was running on pure adrenaline and emotion at this point and had little control over what he sounded like.
Mossy stopped and bent to face Billy. “Listen, we know the others entered from the other side of the cavern. They must have gone in through the opening you found by the lake. We’ll go out the way we came, go through the woods, and try getting back in from that side.”
“And if it’s blocked…”
Mossy grabbed him by the shoulders and cut him off. “If it’s blocked, we’ll blow up that bridge when we come to it.” He said it with a confidence he didn’t feel. “Let’s keep moving, okay?”
Billy nodded and Mossy nodded back, his heart aching knowing Denny might be back there crushed under fallen rocks, or worse, killed by the monster he had created. Either way, how could he face his daughter? He stood and turned, focusing only on finding the next marker.
They arrived at the ladder exhausted and covered with dust from the cave-in. Mossy was barely able to climb the ladder and it was only visions of Janice and Denny that kept his body moving. He could see the events were wearing on Billy as well, mentally more than physically. His sister and best friend were in there, oh, and not to mention he’d just seen something that only exists in horror movies kill a kid he knew. He had not spoken of the creature since they left the cave-in, only of finding Denny and Julie.
“Billy… can you get us… to the other entrance?” Mossy gasped.
“Sure, but first can we take a break? Just a few minutes?”
Mossy looked at the young boy with a new sense of admiration. He had no doubt the break was for him, not Billy. The boy could run back the way they came, grab the backpack… Mossy’s heart stopped for a full beat when he realized what he’d done. Now everything that happened this night had truly been for nothing. His heart restarted causing him to gasp. I will find a way, he thought. “No time to rest, lead the way, young man.”
Mossy began to feel better in the fresh night air. It didn’t hurt that they were moving downhill and not having to stop every few minutes to crouch down and move rocks looking for a marker. He didn’t know how far a walk it was to the entrance, but as much as he wanted to get there quickly, he dreaded every step because of what it might lead to.
(105)
Denny stepped into the cavern and flashed his light around. Clouds of dust still hung in the air but it had thinned enough for Denny to survey the damage. It was worse than he thought it would be. Giant mounds of rock obscured his view in every direction, except where the lake started. Part of the rear wall had collapsed completely, making the cavern seem much smaller than it had been. He felt deflated, exhausted. There is no way anybody survived this. He leaned against the wall and slid to the ground, unable to hold back the tears. His entire body shook from anger, sorrow and exhaustion. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and for some reason it calmed him enough to get his tears under control. He was still shaking as he stood and faced Paul. Shining his light up, he was shocked. Greymore looked like he’d aged ten years. His eyes were sunk in his head, surrounded by deep purple depressions. His face was pale and haggard, too pale. Denny moved the light down and saw his shirt was soaked completely through. The wound was worse than he’d let on. A lot worse.
Before he could speak, a sound came from somewhere in the cavern. It was a small sound, just a single moan generated out of sheer pain and terror, but to Denny it was hope. “That’s Julie! Paul, you stay here, rest, I’ll find her.” Paul nodded weakly, his eyes starting to go glassy, and sat down against the cave wall. Denny pulled off his own shirt and wrapped it under Paul’s armpit and tied it as tightly as he could on top of his shoulder. It would have to do.
Without thinking about what else might lie behind the rocks, he headed in the direction he thought would take him to Julie. “Julie! Can you hear me?” He listened carefully, and was rewarded with another faint moan. “Julie, I’m coming! If you can’t speak, try to pick up a rock and bang it against another one!” He was moving from one mountain of rock to the next, searching for a way through. By the time he heard the clacking of two rocks, he knew what he would have to do to get to her. Swallowing a mouthful of rock dust and some of his fear, he headed toward the lake.
The cave-in extended partway into the water but not all the way to the far wall. As he took a first tentative step into the black water, he remembered the roiling whirlpool and the unearthly speed of the thing that came out of it and took Buddy. Still, he took a second step and a third, now up to his knees, feeling his way with his hands, praying for a break in the rocks before he had to go much deeper. The click-clack of the rocks, of Julie’s rocks, kept him moving.
Four steps, now five. Click-clack. Click-clack. Up to his thighs. Six. Seven. He gasped as the icy water went to his waist. Eight. Now he had to hold the light higher to keep it dry. A couple more steps and he would have to swim. He inched his foot forward and his hand slid on top of the rocks. Carefully, he pushed his hand deeper and met with no resistance. He reached across with his other hand and placed the flashlight on the ledge. Click-clack. Fainter now even though he knew he was closer. “Almost there, Julie.” He whispered, not sure if it was true or not.
He climbed carefully out of the water, the slippery rocks underfoot threatening to send him headlong into the beast’s pool. But he was careful, and he was driven. Too much depended on this for failure. Click-clack. He was now kneeling on the small ledge and he could see a way to get down the other side. Where Julie was from there he didn’t know. Click-clack. But he knew he was closer.
He climbed down into the shallow water on the far side of the rock ledge and scampered to shore. He made his way slowly toward the rear of the cavern where he thought Julie was, climbing over piles of fallen rock when he could, finding a way around them when he couldn’t. He could see the far wall less than twenty feet away. Where is she? It had been a few minutes since he’d heard the rocks banging together.