In the next seat, I saw a woman holding the bar with one arm and her child with her other arm. Oh, my, God! She isn’t going to last and there’s nothing we can do! I heard a horrifying scream from behind me and the sound of a THUD on the ground. In the background, I could hear yelling and screaming from the fair grounds.
I anxiously turned to see how the woman in front of us was doing. She was whimpering, “Please, someone help us. I can’t hold on for much longer. Please . . . please . . please.” It turned into a desperate whisper. Her little girl was crying hysterically. Suddenly, the woman holding her daughter just let go without saying a word. I heard a WHUMP when she hit the ground.
My arms were burning. I didn’t know how much longer I could hang on. Ian managed to pull himself up over the bar so that some of the weight was on his chest, then he inched over to me. “Tess, can you pull yourself up at all? If you can’t, then wrap your legs around my body. I can take a lot more weight than you. It will help take some of the weight off your arms.”
All of a sudden, I felt another jolt. CRAP. I’m losing my grip. The loudspeaker came on again, “Everyone, please stay calm. We are using a hand crank to mechanically wind the Ferris wheel down. We are moving as quickly as possible.”
“Ian, I’m having a hard time. My arms are on fire,” I cried urgently.
“Tess, can you shimmy up my legs with your legs to lift yourself up a little on the bar. I know you can do it,” Ian coaxed.
“I’ll try, but I’m afraid I’ll pull us down.” I wrapped my legs around his legs and I was able to crawl up an inch or so. It helped relieve the pressure on my arms a little.
Gradually, the Ferris wheel was circling down. We were closer to the ground, but still had some distance to go. “They’re taking forever,” I moaned.
The Ferris wheel moved down the length of two more seats. I was beginning to think we were going to make it. Suddenly, a quick stop and a hard JOLT. I was done for! I hung by one hand for a few seconds and wasn’t able to hold on any longer. Ian tried to grab me with one hand but I was going too fast by then. At least I knew to bend my knees and to try and relax my muscles. Next thing I knew, I hit the ground hard. I felt a searing pain from my toes, up my back and through my neck. As I hit bottom, I collapsed. Then I felt nothing.
I woke up in a fog, gradually becoming aware of my surroundings. I was vaguely conscious of the sounds of people screaming and feet running all around me. Wasn’t someone going to help me? Why was I just lying here?
Owww!! Something BIG stepped on my foot. What the heck?? I opened my eyes and tried to move my limbs. They felt like blocks of cement. Inch by inch, I was able to move my legs. Next, I pushed myself up and took in what was happening. I SAW TOTAL PANDEMONIUM! People were frantically trying to push their way out of the park, carrying children in their arms or on their shoulders. The side entrance nearest to me was completely jammed. Fortunately, I had landed in some hay that was stacked up against what must’ve been an animal tent. I could hear their frantic bleating inside. By then, I realized that I was very lucky. The hay must’ve cushioned my fall and I wasn’t in the direct line of foot traffic, otherwise I could’ve been trampled.
I managed to slowly pull myself up by a tent rope. I was feeling unsteady on my feet but I was able to start limping along. I headed against the traffic back into the fairgrounds because I had to find Annie and Eve. I also was thinking about Ian. What could’ve happened to him? By now, I realized that more was going on around here than just a malfunctioning Ferris wheel.
The stench of burning rubber permeated the air and above me were spirals of dark smoke. Oh . . . . my . . . . God . . . . What was THAT? I had glanced over to my right and saw a giant mess of cables and wires tangled with metal chairs, chains and big pieces of metal. I think it used to be that circular swing ride. What happened to it? I started to limp over there to get a better look when I realized what else was in the pile. BODIES! They were scattered in the debris. One girl was sitting up in a daze and holding out her arm. HER LEFT HAND WAS MISSING. She was crying, covered with blood and her face was all cut up. Someone was standing over her, trying to help so I continued to search for my cousins. Might Annie or Eve be in there?
All of this was so shocking and disorienting. It was difficult to recognize where I was because there was so much chaos all around me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something large and brown running OVER the people that were lying on the ground. IT WAS A BULL! I looked around and saw other bulls running around, trampling anything in their path. They must’ve escaped from the rodeo tent. I turned toward what I thought was the center and walked by a tent that was on fire. I think it was the food tent where we had the hotdogs earlier.
I was feeling weak and my neck was hurting. I managed to hobble over to a large tree and sat down, leaning back. I could hear the sirens getting louder. Thank God! People desperately needed help. I wish I could find someone! Where’s Annie, Eve, Ian or Will or Rainy. She’s here too! I need to go to them but I think I’ll rest here, for just a second. Then I’ll be sure and get them.
Next thing I knew, someone was shaking me. “Tess, Tess, can you hear me?” I opened my eyes and tried to turn my head to see who it was. Ohhhh…. shooting pain around the back of my neck. Someone was crouched down peering at me. It was Will.
“Oh, Will, I have to find Annie and Eve, and Rainy too. I haven’t seen Ian around either,” I gasped. “We were both hanging from the Ferris wheel. It was horrible.” Will gently took my arm while I tried to push myself up. “Oh, God, it hurts,” I groaned, sitting back down.
Will crouched down and took my hands while he calmly explained what was going on. “Tess, it’s not safe to stay here. Rainy went to get Annie and Eve and then she’s bringing my car around to the back entrance. I’m afraid I haven’t seen Ian and I’ve been wondering around here for quite a while. I came back in to find you. We’ve got to get out of here as soon as possible. Something else could happen.”
“OK, help me get up,” I responded weakly. Will stood up and put his hands under my arms and started lifting. I scrambled up as best as I could while holding onto Will’s shoulders. He put his right arm around my waist and we limped toward the back entrance. We had to contend with people bumping into us from all directions. I gritted my teeth to avoid sounding like a wounded animal.
When we reached the back entrance, Will sat me on a bench. “Don’t move an inch from this spot. I want to find Rainy with my car. I’ll be right back.” He put his face up to mine and added, “You won’t move, right?”
“Nope,” I replied, shaking my head. After Will left, I closed my eyes, trying to shut all the noise and confusion out. I breathed deeply, calming myself and steadying my heartbeat. Suddenly I heard an odd crackling sound followed by screams. And it wasn’t the fun, dizzying, laughing screams you normally hear at an amusement park. It was the shocking, horrifying, afraid of dying screams that you never want to hear. I looked up toward the clamor and saw a roller coaster, full of people that had partially come off the tracks. The last two cars were hanging straight down, about 50 feet in the air. There were showers of sparks all along the tracks, some of them raining down on the people in the hanging cars. I couldn’t stand their awful shrieks so I blocked my ears, but it was no good. I wanted to block my eyes, but I felt compelled to watch. There was a loud creaking, followed by scraping metal, and an unexplained high pitched whine all the while accompanied by screaming, crying, and distant sirens. A third car started to slip which started the momentum for everything else to come. I saw it all, as the entire roller coaster slid off the tracks, and crashed onto the dusty ground and anything else in its path. It was so unreal, as if I was at the movies watching one of those catastrophe films. I blinked, thinking it would reverse itself. It would go away. Things like this don’t ever happen, except in the movies. I blinked and blinked, and continued to blink, waiting for it to go away.
26. Rescued
Will came back to get me. With tears streaming
down my face, I silently pointed out the roller coaster but Will simply gestured toward the fire trucks that were pulling onto the grounds. Then he put his arm around my waist and practically dragged me to his car. Rainy, Annie and Eve were all there settled in the back. At least they were sitting upright. I breathed a small sigh of relief. With everything going on at the fairgrounds, I felt sure that something would have happened to them. Annie was the only one that had sustained some injury. She was waiting in line for some fried dough when a large piece of metal hit the food tent. The metal went right into the hot oil, splattering it everywhere. Some of it splashed onto a hot grill which started the fire. Annie’s right hand and arm received some hot splatters.
As if reading my thoughts, Annie remarked, “My burns are nothing. The people working in the tent got the hot oil splattered all over their hands and faces. It was horrible! I did help to pull some of them out when the tent burst into flames. Tessie, we were so worried about you. Edger said he saw you stuck on the top of the Ferris wheel when it started going crazy with the seats spinning.”
I turned my head slightly. “I’m OK, especially compared to others that were there. Some people fell straight from the top. God, it was really horrible. I took a fall but it could have been so much worse. I think I just pulled a muscle in my neck. By the way, have any of you seen Ian? I was with him when I fell. I don’t know what happened to him.” I was trying to keep my voice from quivering.
Rainy answered in a quiet voice, “No Tess, we haven’t seen Ian since all the trouble started. The last time we saw you and Ian was at the band shell.”
Will said grimly, “It’s a good thing we got out of there when we did. Emergency personnel were telling people to leave the fairgrounds in an orderly fashion to avoid any further casualties. They also needed to clear up the entryways for the ambulances and fire trucks.” He shook his head. “I couldn’t believe what just happened to the roller coaster. It’s still a very unstable situation.”
Eve demanded, “What happened?”
Will glanced over at me. “We can talk about that later. By the way, I’m taking Annie and Tess to the hospital in Covington. The local one will be swamped with emergency cases. Rainy, you can go home if you like. We’re going right by your house.”
Rainy insisted, “Thanks, Will, but there’s no way I’m going home now. I want to see how Annie and Tess are. I can go home with you and Eve later.” I had forgotten that Rainy was in the car. You know things are serious when Rainy is shocked into silence.
We finally arrived at Westlake Memorial. Eve had called Aunt Amy so her and my grandma eventually showed up. I called Ian’s house, but no one answered. It seemed like we waited at the hospital forever because a number of people with really serious injuries were arriving all night long. Annie was finally treated with a prescription balm for her burns. I had an MRI which showed I had sprained some muscles in my neck. The medics put it in a brace, gave me some painkillers and sent me home.
As soon as I arrived home I tried Ian’s number again and no one answered, then I called Will. I had to tell him something. He picked up on the first ring.
“Hi, Will,” I said softly.
“Oh, hi, Tess. How’re you feeling?”
“I’m OK, Will. Look, I’m sorry it’s so late but I had to call you. I never thanked you.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I never thanked you for saving me, Will. I can’t even think about what would’ve happened to me if you hadn’t come in and found me.”
“Oh, I….” He was silent. He almost sounded embarrassed.
“You don’t have to answer. I’m just grateful, that’s all.”
“I could never have left you in there, Tess.”
“Well, you took a big risk.”
“Don’t even think about that. By the way, are you OK after seeing that roller coaster fall? That was rough. Try and put it out of your mind for now. Can you do that?”
“I’m not OK after seeing that but the doctors gave me something to help me sleep. I’ll be all right tonight.”
“Good. I’ll call you tomorrow to see you you’re doing. OK?”
“Yeah, that’s fine. Talk to you later, Will”
After getting into bed, just before I fell asleep I started thinking about what could have caused all that chaos. Could it have been an earthquake? That doesn’t make sense. The ground would’ve been shaking. Was there some kind of strange power surge caused by problems in the power grid? That didn’t quite make sense either. Whatever it was, I planned on finding out.
27. Loose Ends
When I woke up the next day, I was as stiff as a board and achy all over. Even though I felt awful, my stomach was growling so I dragged myself out of bed and went downstairs to get some breakfast. The first thing I saw was a note addressed to me that was written in Grandma’s scrawl. It said: Tess - Mercy called. She said to call her back immediately. Oh my God! I wonder if Mercy was there. In all the confusion I didn’t think about her.
I gulped down some orange juice and went to make the call. The phone rang the moment I put my hand on the receiver. That was weird. I paused a second before answering, “Hello”.
“Oh, my God! Is that you, Tess?”
“Yeah, it’s me. What about you, Mercy? Were you there?” I asked anxiously.
“Hey, I’m OK. I survived. What happened to you?” Mercy cried.
“Other than feeling like every muscle is screaming at me, I’m managing. So, what happened to you? Were you there the whole time?” I asked her.
“Enough to go through some pretty terrible stuff. My mom has a thing about roller coasters. Any time we are near a roller coaster, she has to go on it. Anyway, we were on the last…..”
I immediately screamed, “Mercy! You were on the last roller coaster ride last night? I saw what happened. Is your mom doing OK? And how about you? Did anything happen to you?”
Mercy sighed and answered, “We’re doing all right, but I was scared to death. Did you see it?”
“Yeah, it was awful. I was right there when the entire roller coaster came right off the tracks. I’m amazed nothing happened to you. Where were you guys sitting?” I asked.
“We were in the last car. It’s weird. When we first got on, mom insisted that we sit in the front car for some reason. She said she had a funny feeling about going on the ride and that the front was usually safer. I told her she was crazy. We always sit in the last car cause that’s where you get the best ride. Anyway, she ended up following me to the back and we buckled in. The ride started up and we were really whipping around when suddenly it came to a stop, BANG. It was so quick that I hit my head and my mom wacked her knees. When that happened, we just knew something was very wrong. We decided to get out of there fast.”
“In fact, a guy on the ground was shouting up that everything was OK, that it was just a mechanical problem. He told us NOT to climb down. He even said we could get into trouble if we did. We thought he was full of crap. We told the people around us to come down with us, but they wouldn’t listen.” Mercy paused, her voice on the edge of tears. “Why wouldn’t they listen to us?”
“I don’t know, Mercy. Some people are just afraid to go against the rules. It’s not your fault.”
“Yeah, that’s what my mom has been telling me. Anyway, we got out of the car and crawled along the rail to a repair ladder that was on the trestle. Then we climbed down. I have to say, I was scared out of my mind. Even though I like roller coasters, I’m not crazy about heights.” Mercy’s voice was getting higher and higher as she was talking.
“Where were you when the roller coaster crashed to the ground?”
“We didn’t even see it. By the time we got down we practically ran out of the fair grounds. We just knew something was up. What happened there, Tess, it wasn’t natural.”
“What do you mean?” I immediately asked.
“That was no accident. It was done on purpose,” Mercy asserted.
“What’re you talki
ng about? How can that be?”
“My mom and I, we both had the same feeling. That’s all I know.”
“By the way, Mercy, have you heard anything about Ian Miller? I went with him and we got separated during all the commotion. We were stuck on the Ferris wheel and I ended up falling off. That was the last I saw of him.” I was trying to keep my voice from sounding too emotional.
“No, I didn’t see him there. But if you’re OK, he can’t be doing too badly. Just keep on trying to call him.”
I sighed, “Do you know what else happened there?”
“Mostly stuff I heard on the news. We got out of there so fast that we didn’t really see much. I heard about your episode on the Ferris wheel. Your Grandma mentioned to me that you got pretty banged up.”
“I’ll live, which is more than I can say for some of the others.”
“Tess, one reason I called you is because I’ve been thinking that we should pay a visit to your friend, Miss Cassie,” Mercy remarked.
“Really? Why now?” I asked. Miss Cassie was the last thing on my mind at this moment.
“From what you were telling me about Miss Cassie, I think she could shed some light on things here in town. I also think she may be able to tell us something about what happened at the fair,” Mercy answered.
“You think she might actually know something about that? I don’t know…” I hesitated.
Mercy exclaimed, “Tess, you have to admit that what happened was totally weird. I mean, it couldn’t have been from an earthquake or a lightning strike or anything that makes sense. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to go talk to her. Can you get out for a while?”
I had aches and pains all over and I was wearing this stupid brace. I was supposed to be recuperating in my room, but really, sitting here at home all day long would be awful. I knew I’d go crazy, especially since I couldn’t put the horrible events of the fair out of my mind. Auntie and Grandma were on a buying trip for the greenhouse today and Annie was at work. I’d just have to sneak past Eve.
A Girl Beyond (War of the Witches Book 2) Page 13
