Gladioli in August

by Clare Revell

  “Probably really shouldn’t do this over your bra,” he said.

  “Don’t even think it.” Her eyes sprung open to see him grin and she shook her head. “Fink.”

  He blew her a kiss. “Put your shirt on, woman.” He helped her into it. Then as she finished fastening the buttons, he pulled her into a hug.

  Jael winced and closed her eyes, resting her cheek on his chest, hearing his heart beating. The need for comfort pushing the intense pain to one side. “I should never have taken this posting.”

  “But then we’d never have met.” He kissed the top of her head and lifted her chin upwards. His hand cradled her face, his fingers stroking the back of her neck and her ear. “And my life would have been poorer for it.”

  His lips covered hers. She responded to him, letting all the feelings she’d been hiding for so long finally show.

  He broke off and leaned his forehead against hers. “When we get out of here, and we will get out of here, I’m going to take you to dinner. Somewhere the earth won’t move and there isn’t a volcano in sight.”

  “If we get out of here.”

  “When we get out of here.” His fingers gently wiped away her tears. “I love you.”

  It took a moment for his words to sink in, by which time his eyes had darkened and he looked away. She closed her eyes then drew in as deep a breath as she could. “You…you do?”

  His pain filled gaze returned to meet hers. “I do, most ardently I do.”

  A slight smile crossed her face. “Ardently?”

  He winked. “I may have read the odd Jane Austen book in my time. I. Love. You. Most. Ardently.” He punctuated the words with kisses.

  “Love you too,” she said. She slid a hand down his face, over the stubbled cheeks. “And I would love to have dinner someplace safe with you. Let me go check the entrance.”

  She pushed to her feet and slowly made her way to the entrance. “It’s blocked.”

  “Can you move any of the rocks?”

  “I don’t know I—” She broke off in a scream of terror as the side of the wall moved and the rocks tumbled towards her.

  ****

  Micah struggled up as Jael screamed. Pain shot through him, but he pushed it to one side. He made his way across the cave. “Jael? Jael answer me.”

  No answering shout came.

  Terror shot through him. Was she buried under the fresh rock fall? He tugged desperately at the rocks, grunting with both effort and pain. He managed one before the pain in his back made him stop. “Jael…” he yelled.

  God, please, don’t let me have lost her…

  “Jael. Answer me…”

  “I’m here,” she replied from behind him. Her hand stroked his arm, but still he jumped.

  “How did you not end up under that lot?” he asked, prayers of thanks rising as he spoke.

  “There’s a side tunnel,” she said. “I’ve no idea where it goes, but I saw it just as the rocks fell. There’s fresh air in there, so perhaps it leads to the surface somewhere.”

  Micah hugged her. “I thought I’d lost you.”

  “If an earthquake and one of those pyroclastic thingies can’t get rid of me, a simple rock fall doesn’t stand a chance.” She kissed him. “So how about we get out of here?”

  He nodded. “I’ll get the pack.”

  “I’ll do it.” She crossed the cave swiftly, picking up the pack and the flashlight and then took hold of his hand.

  He squeezed her hand and walked slowly with her down the tunnel. He was grateful the rocky floor was relatively level as every step was agony, compounded by the intense burning of his back and shoulders.

  They reached the entrance and stood just inside, ash still falling like snow. He glanced at her. “Turn around and I’ll get the phone from the pack.” She turned, and he somehow managed to retrieve the phone one-handed. He rang the base, but of course there was no answer. “I don’t know any other numbers,” he said. “There’s no point calling Dad because he wouldn’t pick up and wouldn’t know what to do in any event.”

  She held out a hand. “Let me try.” She took the phone and dialed quickly. “It’s ringing. I just hope Kyle picks up….No, it’s the answer phone. Do I leave a message?”

  He shrugged and wished he hadn’t as pain ripped through him. “May as well.”

  “Kyle, it’s me.”

  Micah moved behind her and searched through the pack for painkillers.

  “He’s picked up.”

  “Good.” He pulled out a pack of heavy duty ibuprofen and took three. At least he could dry swallow pills, something his sister had never been able to do.

  “I don’t know how long the signal will last. We’re still on Tiampu, but need help. We’re aiming for the base at Achor, but I don’t know if…” She covered the phone and frowned. “He doesn’t know.”

  “I guess word hasn’t reached England yet.”

  “Then I need to choose my words carefully.” She uncovered the phone. “The plane crashed. Micah has a gash on his leg and a back injury…burns. He can walk with help. We need you to… Kyle, shut up and just listen. We need you to contact the…because there is no one there. I need you to call the Red Cross HQ in London. They’ll know what to do. We need the navy contacted as you can’t get a plane in just yet.”

  She shook her head and looked at Micah. “Kyle needs the sat phone number.”

  Micah took the phone. “The number of this phone is 555-9876-6542-881.” He watched as Jael eased her back against her hands, her face creasing with pain.

  “And you are?” the voice on the end of the phone demanded.

  “Micah Norris, Jael’s pilot.”

  “She said the plane crashed.”

  “I flew into an ash cloud; there wasn’t much I could do about it once the engines stalled.” He frowned as Jael shook his head. “He has to know, honey,” he said. “The volcano erupted. We need you to let the authorities know there are survivors on the island who need rescuing.”

  “Sure. Let me speak to Jael.”

  She took the phone and rolled her eyes. “He’s always called me honey. It started as a joke and…look, I’ll explain when I see you. I’m fine, just bruised from the crash, that’s all.”

  Micah ran his fingers across her brow, mopping the blood trickling from the cut. He wasn’t happy with her lying to her brother but wasn’t going to call her on it.

  She brushed his hand away. “OK, please just send the help we need as soon as possible. Love you…” she looked at the phone. “The signal is gone.”

  “Let’s get out of here. We need to get to the base. That’s where the rescue will come. Keep your mask on.” He took her hand again, leading her out into the grey, broken landscape.

  13

  Nothing was the same. What once had been a lush, green, forest-covered hillside was nothing but broken trees. It almost appeared misty, but the ash and dust mixed with the twilight to create a spooky atmospheric air. Above and behind them, the mountain continued to vent ash and smoke.

  Micah struggled with every step. The ankle-deep ash hampered his movement, almost as much as the pain in his leg did. The cane didn’t help on the uneven ground.

  After twenty minutes, they came across an upturned wagon caught in the lava flow with two bodies underneath it. He tugged Jael away. She didn’t need to see this. “Keep moving, honey.”

  “Kyle overheard you call me that,” she said, walking again. “He was asking questions, but I didn’t know what to say, so I avoided it. At least it distracted him from the erupting volcano comment. He wanted to know if you were joking.”

  “Yes, it was to wind you up at first,” he said. “But now, I mean every single letter and syllable. I can stop if you’d rather.”

  She shook her head. “I like it. Kyle’s just very protective. I’m sure once he gets to know you, he’ll come around.”

  Micah stopped and looked at her. Trepidation ran through him. The thought that her family might object to any relationship hadn’t
occurred to him.

  She tilted her head. “Teasing. He’ll love you like I do.” Then she grinned. “Well, hopefully not the way I do. Holly wouldn’t like it.”

  He chuckled. “Nor would you or I.”

  They walked a little further. “I’m going to have to rest,” he said. “Sorry.”

  “It’s OK. There’s a fallen tree over there we can sit on for a few.”

  He nodded and slowly headed towards it. He sat gratefully and closed his eyes, for a moment allowing the pain to overwhelm him. Please, Lord, give me the strength to get her to safety. That’s all that matters.

  “Micah, look…” Her voice seemed to come from a long way off, and he struggled to open his eyes.

  “What am I looking at?”

  “There’s someone coming.”

  He followed her finger. Sure enough, in the ash and murky gloom several large shapes were moving. As they grew closer, he could make out a horse, cart, and about fifteen people walking beside it. He pushed to his feet, hobbling towards them. Perhaps they’d take Jael with them to the base.

  The horse stopped and the man leading him pulled off his hood. “We’re making for the clinic at Achor,” he said.

  Micah nodded. “So are we.”

  The man grinned. “Micah?”

  Micah looked closer. “Wilhelm?”

  Wilhelm nodded. “What happened?”

  “The plane crashed in the ash. Jael is also here and injured.”

  Jael appeared at his side. “I can walk, but if you have room for Micah on that cart. His leg is injured, never mind the burns on his back.”

  “You have broken ribs,” Micah countered.

  “Possible broken ribs. I can walk. You can’t.”

  Wilhelm glanced behind them. “Symon,” he called, “come and give me a hand here. With them both. I’m not having the lady walk in this.”

  Pain rocketed through Micah as the two men lifted him. He bit his lip, drawing blood, in an effort not to cry out. His eyes closed and everything swam. The cart swayed as it moved, every single bump in the road escalating the pain. Salt burned his eyes and he turned his face away, not willing to show weakness in front of the others. Jael’s voice came from somewhere to his left as she spoke with the other survivors.

  At least she hadn’t put up a fight about riding in the cart. That he was grateful for. Along with the fact he no longer had to walk. He wasn’t sure he could have gone any further. Fingers laced into his and he opened his eyes. Jael sat beside him. He held her gaze. “Hi.”

  “Just stay with me a little longer,” she whispered. “Soon we’ll be there and you can sleep a while.”

  He shook his head. “Not until you’re safe.”

  Something flickered in her gaze. He wasn’t sure if it was despair, frustration or annoyance. “OK. But you rest, all right?”

  “Sure, honey.” He allowed the flippant tone he’d used at first to come though, hoping to turn her cute, kissable lips upwards into a smile, even a slight smile, but it didn’t happen.

  Was he that badly injured? The thought shot through his mind that perhaps he might actually die. And the thought bothered him more than ever before.

  He didn’t want to die. Not yet. Not now Jael had come into his life.

  He wanted to explore the possibility of being with her, loving her, showing her all he and life had to offer. Maybe even have children with her and maybe none of that would ever happen.

  “Be honest with me, honey,” he said quietly. “How bad am I?”

  “If we can get you to a hospital soon…” Jael sucked in a deep breath, whimpering slightly. “That was a mistake. Note to self, take only short, shallow breaths, not big deep ones.”

  “You know that talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity, right?”

  She shook her head. “I do it all the time. That way I get the answer I want. I’m afraid your leg and back are going to get infected. The burns need treatment or the scarring will be worse.”

  “And if it gets infected? Will I die?” He squeezed her fingers. “And don’t sugar coat it with ‘I don’t know’ or any other of your medical platitudes.”

  Tears filled her eyes and his heart ached. He never should have asked. Her bottom lip trembled and she bit it.

  “Yeah…you could,” she managed.

  Micah slid an arm around her. “Then it’s a good job I’m stubborn,” he quipped. He kissed the top of her head and then looked over the side of the cart as the edge of town came upon them.

  Not that there was much left. Most of the buildings had been leveled, or had just one wall remaining. “Would you look at that?” he said, grateful for the change of subject.

  Jael raised her head. “There’s nothing left.”

  The cart rolled slowly through the remains of the town and onto the destroyed base. Only part of one building remained standing—three walls and part of the roof. All the planes had gone.

  Wilhelm came around to the side of the truck. “What now?”

  Micah thought quickly. “See if the men can find wood for a fire and some food from somewhere. There should be some in the store under where the kitchen was.” He pointed to the west side of the compound. “I need to find…”

  “I’ll go find medical supplies,” Jael said. “You need to sit still and rest, but not out here. We need to get everyone into shelter until we make contact with the authorities.”

  The phone rang. Micah pulled it from the pack. “Micah Norris speaking.”

  “This is the Red Cross. Kyle Stevens requested we contact his sister as a matter of urgency on this number.”

  He held out the phone. “It’s the Red Cross, for you.”

  Jael took the handset. “This is Jael Stevens.” She listened for a moment. “Yes, a full-blown eruption. The base and town are destroyed. There are about twenty-two survivors we’ve found. A mix of burns, broken limbs, women, children. We need evacuating immediately.” She listened. “Not until then?”

  Micah frowned. “What’s up?”

  She held up a hand. “OK. Yes, I’ll be on this number. Bye.” She sighed as she put the phone back in the pack. “They can’t get here until tomorrow. No planes can fly until the ash clears and the danger from the volcano subsides. Apparently the volume of ash is too great and the seismometers indicate there may be more explosions. Or something. Anyway, there is a UK navy vessel about a hundred miles away. They’re coming ASAP and want us to wait on Kerang Laut Bay beach for them, but may not be here until tomorrow morning.”

  “Then, I guess we sleep on the beach.” He waved to Wilhelm to come over to them.

  “Is it safe?” She glanced at the volcano.

  “We don’t have a choice. If that’s where they want us, then that’s where we go.”

  “But...”

  “Jael, the people of Pompeii died in their houses.”

  She scowled. “And those in Herculaneum died on the beaches. There is no shelter there, Micah. If Gunung Berapi blows again…”

  “We’ll die wherever we are, honey.” He beckoned Wilhelm over and rapidly filled him in.

  “How far away is this beach?” Jael asked.

  “On a good day about twenty minutes by truck.” Micah winked. “But this isn’t exactly a good day, is it?”

  “I’ve had better days,” Jael quipped. “But I’m still changing dressings.”

  “We should eat first and then go,” Wilhelm added. “We all need the food and a short rest. And we found a truck. That will make the journey faster.”

  Micah nodded. “Agreed.” He looked at Jael. “And don’t you dare argue, honey. You can patch up the injured before we eat.”

  ****

  Once they’d eaten, Jael sat next to Micah in the truck bed as they slowly made their way to the shore. The eruption was showing no signs of slowing and the constant tremors were beginning to grow in intensity again. The ash cloud rose high into the sky, and lightning intermingled with the smoke.

  Every little jolt of the truck caused her
intense pain, but that was nothing compared to the burns she’d treated while Micah and the men had organized dinner.

  A massive explosion jerked her head upright. The sides of the erupting column began to collapse as they had before. Her heart stopped then pounded in terror. “Micah…”

  He held her tightly against him. “It’s going the other way. Look.”

  Jael pulled out her phone and recorded the surge sweeping down the other side of the mountain. “I just hope there is no one in its path.”

  The truck jolted over another bump in the road, and Jael hissed in agony, trying to hide just how much pain she was in.

  Micah frowned. “Honey? Take the pain meds.”

  She shook her head. “There are too many others that need them, and what little I have has to last until the navy arrives.”

  “Rot.” He tilted her face towards his and looked at her. She’d never seen his eyes glint that way, or heard severity in his tone like that. “You are the only medic here. These people need you until outside help arrives. If you can’t think or function because of the pain you are in, then you’ll be no good to them.”

  “OK.” She had to admit, if only to herself, that he was right. Telling him that, however, wouldn’t be a good idea. The bloke was arrogant enough as it was, but she also had to admit that she loved that about him. But she did as he requested and took something for the pain.

  It took about two hours to reach the shore. Lava flows meant detours and fallen trees weren’t helping much either. Jael climbed down from the truck and helped Micah down. She shivered as she stood on the exposed beach. In front of them, the rolling sea. Behind them a wall, open fields, and the volcano.

  He glanced around. “I suggest we sit on the beach and use the wall for shelter.”

  Wilhelm nodded. “Sounds like a good idea.”

  Micah wrapped an arm around Jael and limped down onto the sand. He slowly lowered himself to the sand and closed his eyes.

  “You OK?” she asked. Concern filled her. He really didn’t look at all well now. His pallor was as grey as the murk surrounding them.

  “Sore,” he said quietly.

  “Then let me give you something stronger than the ibuprofen.”