by Sourav Deka
Dave nodded. “Yeah they are written on trees?”
My forehead creased. “Trees, where?”
“If you head towards the east, you will find many trees with numbers. Every tree has a different number in its body. We followed it in ascending order and also in descending order,” Dave sighed. “But we didn’t find anything. It’s a dead end.”
I shook my head. “No, there must be a way. It’s like a riddle. We should discuss it with everyone. We will solve it,” I closed the diary.
“We already tried, Ross,” he said. “Everyone tried, but there is nothing except those trees with numbers.”
“Okay, can I keep the diary? I would like to try. Maybe I can find a way.”
“You are welcome dude,” he patted my back. “Give it your best shot.”
I went towards Aaron. He was practicing archery with Rowena and Keith in the camp.
“I need your gun and some bullets,” I said.
Aaron put his bow down. “Why? Is someone in danger?” he asked.
“No, everything is fine. The diary has some numbers. Dave said that the same numbers were marked in trees in the east. There may be a pattern, I want to look and find out. It may be our way out.”
“Okay, I am coming with you.”
“No, you learn archery. I will be fine. It will just take a few minutes.”
“Few minutes?” He chuckled. “You aren’t going to find anything in a few minutes.”
I pressed my lips together. “I just have to look.”
“I am coming with you. There are deadly animals in the forest. One bite from them and you are dead,” he kept his bows and arrows on the table. “You can’t go alone.”
“You are busy. Learn archery. I can do this.”
“No Ross, I am coming with you.”
I sighed. “Okay, let’s go.”
Aaron picked up his bow and arrows and we left the camp.
We went towards the east to look for the numbers on trees. As mentioned in the book there were numbers written on all the trees. I walked five miles watching the numbers observing them trying to understand what it means. All the numbers were different and didn’t make any sense. From the first tree, there were a lot of trees with numbers in different directions throughout the forest. I looked at the numbers from the very first tree and tried to memorize which numbers came first.
“It’s like a maze,” Aaron said.
“Yeah. It’s a puzzle,” I said. “There must be a pattern here.”
“Pattern?”
“Yeah, we have to find it.”
I memorized five numbers each from all four directions starting from the first tree and returned to the camp.
On mud I wrote the numbers with a stick. The numbers to the east were 111, 213, 312, 333, 313. While numbers to the west were 111, 234, 456, 434, 555. To the north, numbers were 111, 233, 765. 890, 146 and to the south, numbers were 111, 223, 334, 445, 556.
“Do these numbers mean anything?” Aaron asked.
“Yeah I think so, wait I will explain,” I opened the diary. “Dave had this copy of the diary. There are many numbers. I asked him if it means something. He said these numbers were written in the trees.”
He shrugged. “Then what? The numbers don't make any sense. We can try following the trees by ascending order or descending order. That may be the pattern.”
“No, Dave said they already tried that. So there is a different pattern.”
Aaron scratched his head. “What’s the pattern then?”
I pointed my finger at the mud where I wrote the numbers. “Look I went east today and memorized these numbers from the first tree. I memorized all the numbers in order from the first tree to all the four directions. I have written all the numbers of four directions in the mud. Look carefully, what is the pattern you see?”
Aaron twisted his mouth. “These are all numbers, I don’t see any pattern.”
“All the numbers are different and have no pattern, but look at the south direction numbers. The number was 111, for the first tree. Then the second one is 223, third one 334, fourth one 445 and so on. After the first number 111, every number is added with one as all are in ascending order of the same three numbers. For example, the first one is 111, next should be 222 and next 333, but one was added in every number after the first. Like 222+1=223, 333+1=334 and so on.”
He rubbed his chin. “So that’s the pattern?”
I shrugged. “I am still not sure. Maybe it is or maybe not. But we have to try.”
“Let’s tell dad?”
“Yeah,” I closed the diary. “We have to tell everyone.”
“Okay, I will gather everyone at night.”
Dave was listening to us. He came towards us and broke his silence. “I think you are right, Ross,” he said. “We didn’t recognize this pattern, it’s different, it’s new. It might be the answer.”
I nodded. “Maybe.”
I went to take a nap. This time I had no nightmare and slept like a baby. It was the best sleep I ever had in months. After a couple of hours, Aaron woke me up.
“Ross, wake up,” Aaron shook my arm. “Everyone is outside. Let’s tell them about the pattern.”
I rubbed my eyes, got out of bed, splashed some water on my face and went outside. It was a clear night with a cool breeze. Everyone was sitting around the bonfire to warm themselves. Some of them were cooking, while some were chopping off meats and some were sharpening their knives and axes. I walked up to them and told everyone what I figured out.
“How are you sure?” Mark said.
“I wasn’t, but now I am,” I said. “Remember the nightmares that come to us when we sleep. It’s gone now.”
His eyes widened. “What???”
“Yeah, I slept well today. As soon as I figured out the pattern, the nightmares were gone.”
Dave stood up in astonishment. “I also experienced this today when I took a nap. Same thing happened to me. I didn’t experience the nightmares. I thought it was just a coincidence, but..…...” he glanced at me. “I guess it’s a sign now.”
“Okay, okay, let’s see it for ourselves,” Mark said. “We will sleep tonight and see if the nightmares are gone or not.”
Aaron scoffed. “Oh, you mean if someone doesn’t get a good night sleep, you are planning to get stranded here forever?” he said.
Mark’s nose wrinkled. “No, I didn’t say that.”
“But it looks like it.”
“Look, kid. In the past few years, we already travelled twice in ascending and descending order by following those trees. It’s not an easy task. We had to travel a lot of miles. It can take months, even a year. It’s not easy to survive like that.”
“So what? You won’t try again. We got a new pattern and disappearing of the nightmares is a good omen. We have to try no matter what.”
Mark stood up. “We are living here for years, Aaron,” he said. “I just want to see it for myself if the nightmares are really gone or not.”
I turned towards everyone. “Why don’t you all say anything? Is he the leader of us?” I raised my voice.
“What’s the harm in waiting till the morning?” Keith said.
Aaron looked towards dad. “Dad, say something.”
“It’s just one night, Aaron,” dad said. “Mark wants to see if the nightmares are gone or not, that’s all.”
“I understand, but we shouldn’t back away from this. We have to try. We can’t live here for the rest of our lives.”
“None of us wants that,” Keith said. “Just wait for tomorrow morning, dude. It’s just one night.”
I nodded and jammed my hands into my pockets. “Okay, tomorrow Aaron and I will go following the pattern, whether you all come with us or not.”
“I will also go with you. I believe you,” Andrea smiled.
I nodded and smiled back.
***************************
I woke up early. It was a pleasant morning. We could hear birds chirping in the trees from our
mud houses. Aaron was sleeping on the bed next to me. I shook his arms to wake him up.
“Hey, wake up. Did you get the nightmares?” I asked.
Aaron rubbed his eyes. “No Ross, this is my first night of good sleep in months,” he said.
I smiled. “Well then we should be ready for the journey, I guess.”
“Yeah, I knew you were right. I just hope everyone realizes it.” he got off his bed and went to splash some water on his face.
I went outside. Andrea was sitting alone near the bonfire looking at the birds chirping on a nearby tree. I sat beside her. “Enjoying the morning?” I smiled.
“Yeah, I guess,” she smiled back. “Every time I go to sleep, I watch my mother coming to kill me in different places with different things,” she looked down. “It was scary and terrible. You were right, Ross. I didn’t see something like that tonight.”
“I also saw my mom, dad and Aaron killing me in my nightmares,” I gulped. “Those were horrific nightmares I ever had. But from today everything will change, we will finally get out of this forest.”
“I hope so. What about the seeds after we go home?”
“We will go according to the diary. It will lead us to the seeds.”
She lowered her head. “I just hope we don’t get killed before finding it.”
“We won’t die, Andrea. We won’t.”
“Aren’t you scared?” she gazed into my eyes. “Many people died for the seeds.”
I took a deep breath. “I am scared, but when I think about it. Now I don’t think about the future too much, I only think about the present,” I shrugged. “I don’t know what stories god has written for my life.”
She grinned.
“Let me ask you a question.”
“Yeah,” she twirled her hair.
“Isn’t your mother scared?”
“What do you mean?”
“Your mother knows that going after the seeds is dangerous. Still she sent you with us?”
She wrapped a curl around her finger. “Well, she didn’t agree at first, but I convinced her that I want this. I want to have this adventure, no matter what happens,” she chuckled. “I know I get scared easily, but still I wanted to do this. If we find the seeds, it will be revolutionary. It will change the world and I want to be part of it, you know.”
“This is dangerous, Andrea.”
“I know,” she gulped. “But I want to learn to survive in situations like this.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Really? I didn’t know that.”
“Well, I am learning,” she smiled. “To achieve something in life we have to take risks, isn’t it?”
“Yeah,” I smiled.
We talked for an hour. She told me a lot about her, how she was good in school and got bullied. How she grew up travelling from place to place. She was only seventeen, but she had travelled half of the world as Gloria changed her home from time to time. It made me remember my old life when we were living with Uncle Bill. I guess I was not the only one who felt like we never had a permanent home. We were the same and had a lot in common. I also shared my story, mom leaving me when I was a child and my other childhood stories, how Aaron and I grew up.
The camp’s people woke up. They seemed happy. I could see it on their faces. Keith came to me. “I didn’t have nightmares. Thank you dude,” he hugged me. “We should follow the pattern. I think you really found a way out,” he said.
I nodded. “I am glad that you realized it.”
Dad came to me with a grinned face and hugged me. “Well done son, the nightmares are gone. You were right. Maybe you really found a way.”
I smirked. “I told you.”
“Yeah, having a good night’s sleep is a sign,” he patted my back. “It’s worth a try.”
“Thanks dad.”
I felt a sense of relief. Everyone was satisfied. They wanted to take the risk. It was a win. We could follow the pattern and see where it leads. Wow, I finally did it, I was so happy. We are one step closer to escape from this never ending forest.
We packed our necessary things like tools, foods, clothes and all the stuff and started our journey. It was going to be a long one. We used to travel for the whole day. In the evening, we stop and make our area safe by lighting fire, so that we can sleep safely at night. Sometimes it stayed night continuously and we had to wait until the sun rose up again.
A week passed. One night when we were asleep some noise woke us up. It was the sound of motorcycles. We all sat on the ground and looked around. After a few seconds, dozens of motorcycles arrived and stopped around us. There were two people on every bike. A tall black man with a scar on his right cheek came to us. I recognized him, it was Roland Tanner.
CHAPTER 8
“Aha, Ross Cromlin,” Tanner gave a devilish smile. “Aaron Cromlin…. Oh… my…. God! Richard Cromlin, you are alive?” he clicked his tongue. “I was pretty sure that I cut your throat.”
Dad gave a quirky smile. “Sorry to disappoint you.”
“Who the hell is this freak?” Contessa said.
“Let me introduce myself, sweetheart,” Tanner widened his hands. “I am Roland Tanner, a billionaire looking for immortality. These two punks,” he pointed his finger towards me and Aaron “Ran away from me and I came here finding them,” he said.
“How did you get here?” I asked.
He half smiled. “I found out the hotel where you stayed last time. There was an address on your bed.”
“Oh god!” Andrea rolled her eyes and looked at me. “I forgot the note on your bed.”
“I went to the address and discovered the magical door. I came prepared,” he adjusted his tie. “Now tell me, where are the seeds?”
“The seeds aren’t here,” I said.
“Really? Then what is this place?”
“We don’t know.”
“You don’t know? You came here before me.”
“It’s a prison,” Dave said. “You are trapped here with us.”
Tanner raised his eyebrows. “What? No, this forest exists for a reason.”
“It’s a prison, that’s it,” Martin said. “We just have to get out of it.”
“Then tell me how can I get out of this bloody place?”
“You came prepared, isn’t it?” I chuckled. “Why don’t you figure it out by yourself?”
Tanner took out his gun and glared at it. “You have to tell me or I will make you.”
“We are on our own and you are on your own,” dad said. “We don’t have anything to do with you. Find your way by yourself.”
Tanner rubbed his temples. “I can’t let you do that, you know,” he looked at his men. “Capture them.”
“Wait! Wait!” Rowena raised her hands. “Capturing us won’t solve anything,” she said.
“Then darling tell me how to get away from this place. I will spare all of you,” he shrugged. “Everybody wins.”
“No, Rowena, you don’t know him. He is dangerous,” Aaron said. “If he finds the seeds he can do terrible things. He can’t be trusted.”
“Don’t listen to them,” Tanner said. “They just hate me because I tried to kill their dad. His dad made me roam around from place to place, played me for years, and led me to different places to distract me. He cost me a lot of time and money. It was his fault,” he raised his voice. “I don’t want to do terrible things. I just want to live forever and rule the world.”
“Rule the world?” I scoffed. “Are you listening to him?”
“I will make this world a better place, way better than it is now.”
“No,” Rowena shook her head. “You don’t deserve the seeds.”
Tanner twisted his mouth. “I guess I have to try this the hard way,” he walked towards me and pointed his gun at my head.
I scoffed. “You are going to kill me? Go ahead.”
“Really?” he smirked. “You are that brave?”
“Yes,” I clenched my jaw. “Come on, let’s see if you have the guts or not.”
Tanner took away the gun from my head. “Okay, how about her?” he pointed his gun at Andrea. “What if I kill her?”
“No!” I hissed.
Tanner shot Andrea in her arm. She screamed and fell down.
“Nooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!” I ran towards her.
“The next bullet will be in her head if you don’t tell me the way out.”
Andrea was screaming in pain. Contessa took out some herbs and applied it on her arm. “The bullet passed through her flesh. It was just a flesh wound. She will be fine,” she said.
I turned to Tanner. “Okay, I give up. I will tell you,” I said.
Tanner smiled. “That’s more like it.”
“There are numbers on trees.”
“Yeah, I saw some.”
“There is a unique pattern. We have to follow it, maybe it’s the way.”
“Good, let’s go then.”
“We are not coming with you,” Aaron said.
“Why? How would I know if you are not lying?” Tanner said. “What if this is a trick?”
“It’s not a trick,” I said. “I am telling you the truth. I will show you the way.”
Tanner nodded. “Okay, Remember,” he gazed into my eyes. “My men are always watching you. If anyone tries something, anything, they will shoot you in the head. Trust me, they don’t miss.”
I nodded.
*****************************
We continued our journey after eating some food. We followed our pattern for a week. The numbers just didn’t end, but we didn’t give up, we kept going. In the way Dave got sick. Contessa treated him but it took days and slowed us down. It made Tanner angry and he wanted to leave him in the forest to die. He wanted to go on, but we refused.
“He is slowing us down,” Tanner yelled.
“We are not going to leave him,” I said. “Just wait for a few days. He will heal.”
Tanner shook his head and pointed his gun at Dave. “Keep moving or else I will kill him now.”
I came in front of his gun. “Look, this happens here. The weather changes here instantly. People get sick. Don’t you have any feelings?”
“Don’t talk to me about feelings,” he said. “Move or I will kill you both.”
