Suddenly Lee knew what to do: The cave. It was just out back. If they could withstand the wind, and not get hit by any flying debris, they would be safe there; that is if the rain hadn't already flooded it.
Lee pulled in as close as he could to everyone and shouted so hard he was afraid he'd torn something in his throat. “We've got to go!"
Maggie put her mouth to Lee's ear. “Where's Ted?"
He yelled again. “Dead! Dad's dead!"
This time, in seeing her eyes, Lee knew Maggie had heard.
Lee got up on his knees. He could barely keep his eyes open the rain stung so badly. He grabbed Phoebe's hand and pulled. She unfolded from her crouch, her hand clasping Patty's.
Maggie frantically grabbed Patty and pulled her back.
Lee shouted, but knew his voice was lost. He bent back down. “Maggie! We've got to get into the cave out back. It's the only safe place. The house isn't going to last."
To illustrate his point the entire front of the house from the hall forward began to fly apart, shards of curtains, furniture, pieces of framing and floor all whipped away piece by piece.
Maggie shook her head, clutching Patty to her. “No! We're staying right here!"
"You'll die!” Lee came back.
Lee could see her face in the glow of the flashlight. Her lips were drawn in that tight line. Maggie was determined.
Lee was determined, too. He wasn't about to let Patty die. Giving his hands to his sister, Patty put her arms out to him, wanting to go with her brother.
Maggie clutched Patty closer. And with the worst look of pure venom Lee had ever seen, she used her un-bandaged hand to slap Lee, drawing her nails violently and viciously across his cheek. She wasn't going to budge.
The wind seemed to be whipping in from all directions. And that roaring train whistle was coming back growing stronger and more shrill. In a flash, Lee remembered that was the sound people said came from an approaching tornado. But this was no tornado.
Lee let go of Patty's hand, taking a hopeful look at her little face. She was crying and pulling at Maggie to no avail, and whatever she was screaming and crying was lost in the noise.
Lee turned away, staying low. He followed along the base of the hutch crawling out from behind the table with Phoebe coming after.
The laundry room was pitch black. The glass in the back door was gone, but at least the door was still there. Lee turned the knob, and the door sucked out, tore off its hinges, and was gone. He shone the light outside but couldn't see anything except for the sheets of silvery rain knifing past.
"We'll keep low!” he yelled in Phoebe's ear. “Down on our stomachs. Follow me! Keep close!"
She looked in his eyes and squeezed his hand.
From behind them came a tremendous thump and once more a rending grind as something gave way under tremendous force.
"Hang on,” Lee didn't know if Phoebe had heard, but he had to go back and see. Keeping down on his knees, he inched back around the laundry room doorway and looked around to his left. The hutch had been spun around and had fallen over, crushing the table. Lee could see Maggie's bandaged hand caught between the splintered wood and the wall. He put the flashlight under his arm and using his feet shoved against the hutch moving it slightly away.
Grimly, he shone the flashlight inside. Patty was flat against the wall, the table pinned right up to her chest. Maggie had taken the full brunt of the impact and was crushed, her legs splayed out, with nothing visible from the chest up except blood.
Patty turned her terrified eyes to her brother. Maggie still had one dead hand gripping her little nightie. Lee reached in and pulled the fingers free, then took hold of Patty himself and drew her to him. She was so scared she was frozen, no longer even able to cry.
Keeping Patty with him now, Lee stayed as low as he could, sliding back to Phoebe on his stomach. Making sure that Phoebe understood to stay low and follow, he slid down the steps with the flashlight in one hand and Patty's little fist in the other.
The wind! It was horrendous. It hit him and kept on hitting, trying to get under and raise him free off the ground.
The rain! It stung, and there was no seeing at all. But he knew where the pond was; it wasn't that far. Still, every inch had to be fought for. Every second he expected to be pierced or crushed by something hurtling unseen through the maelstrom above. Or even worse, he kept himself down, his face in he mud as to suddenly let the air get under you would be to be instantly snatched away.
He kept hold of Patty, praying that Phoebe was right behind. Foot by foot, he braced his feet and dragged along, keeping the flashlight ahead and hoping to catch a glimpse of something he could recognize.
His hand, reaching forward, felt the edge, slick and mud drenched. He got the light to the front and was able to just make out the cleft he'd broken through in the stone. A torrential flow was pouring through. Still there was no where else to go.
Lee skidded down and turned around, allowing his feet to enter first, all the while keeping a death grip on his sister's hand. He took one moment to flash the light back and was tremendously relieved to see that Phoebe was still there pressing herself down low. Her dress had been blown up about her shoulders, and she was a mass of mud, her hair streaming about and flying wildly.
Lee let himself slide in, the water rushing down through the cleft and pouring in along his sides. He kept the one hand on the flashlight and never let go of Patty, pulling her right in after.
Already the water in the chamber was much deeper than he had expected, but at least they were out of the wind. Making sure that Patty was all right, he poked his head up and got the flashlight to bear, so he could help Phoebe in as well. She was right before the entrance down on her belly, face first. Lee handed the flashlight back to Patty and took Phoebe's arms, pulling her in and down. And once he had her, his feet slipped, and he lost balance, falling backwards into the water, going completely under.
Struggling, momentarily disoriented in the gritty water, Lee came up sputtering.
Patty was clinging to the wall. Phoebe was treading water, trying to find a cleft to grab on to as had Patty. Finally, she reached up to hold on at the same place with Patty. Then girls both instantly looked to Lee.
Outside, the noise was deafening, and inside, water continued to pour in through the opening, streaming down the walls like a small river.
Lee took the flashlight back from his sister. “Everybody follow me and stay close."
He kept hold of Patty's hand, with Phoebe holding onto the other and bringing up the rear. For a terrible moment Lee was afraid that he'd been wrong. As they moved forward through the passage the water became deeper and deeper, until he thought they were going to be forced to swim. The cavern's roof was only a few feet from his head, and he knew if they didn't get to higher ground they'd be trapped and would have to go back out into the storm or drown. Either way meant death, so he just kept moving and hoping, clinging to walls. It was so deep now, Patty was holding on from behind, her arms around his neck as he worked along until his toes touched down. And thankfully, the passage began to move up, and with each step, the high water was being left behind.
Lee first, then Patty and finally Phoebe, they squeezed through the hard turn to the right, entering the chamber of spiders. The spiders were still there, clinging and shaking on the wall, as in here, the water was no more than a foot deep. Lee, flashing the flashlight around over the walls and floor, moved forward confidently, the raging howl of the storm above beginning to be left behind.
"Eww, spiders!” Patty's voice echoed out. Now walking on her own she was holding her little hands up and clenching her fingers into fists.
"Daddy Long Legs,” Lee called back, his voice echoing, too. “They're harmless.” Suddenly it reminded him of the camping memory with his dad, and for the first time, he had enough time to feel the misery over the realization that his dad was dead.
A noise and a flash of white ahead startled him. Lee jumped, grabbing for th
e pistol.
It was Flapjack.
"Flapjack!” Patty yelled. “Look Phoebe!” She pointed. “It's Flapjack!"
The duck waddled forward, flapping and quacking, not even retreating when Patty went for his neck.
While Patty hugged the duck, Lee turned to Phoebe.
"We've got to find some way out of here. I imagine the water we passed through will fill up to the ceiling.” He shook his head grimly. “There's not going to be any going back."
Phoebe didn't respond at all how Lee had imagined. She looked him straight in the eye. “You're parents are dead, aren't they?"
Lee nodded, noticing that Patty was looking up at him.
"Look,” he said, resolutely, “We can't worry about it now. We've got to find a way out of here. If that water keeps coming in, we'll drown."
Phoebe squeezed his hand and shivered. “I'll go where you go."
Patty looked so pitiful and waif-like in her ruined and sodden nightgown. “Can we bring Flapjack?"
"He can come if he wants,” Lee answered. “He'll probably be the only one to survive this anyway."
Even here the intensity of the storm above was evident. Water was coming in all over; little rivulets and trickles were pouring in through cracks in the ceiling and cascading down the walls.
Lee resolutely pointed the flashlight ahead and began working forward. They moved along silently, Patty clinging to one of Lee's hands, and Phoebe taking Patty's other from behind. The sound of the storm above was all but gone. But the constant echoes of water dripping and sound of running water was of definite immediate concern.
Judging from the angle they had maintained since they had come into the corridor, Lee figured they were heading east. That was good, as the Ballard house was to the east, and Cherry Heights sat upon the highest section of land, this side of the river.
The corridor ambled wildly and at times there were branches and other dark passages. For some reason, Lee felt if best to just continue as straight as possible, though he was smart enough to stop and scratch marks on the wall at every junction.
"Why are you doing that?” Patty asked, as Lee made a gouge in the shape of an arrow into the limestone.
He dropped the rock he'd been using, letting it clatter to the floor. “This way, if we have to come back, we'll know which way we've been. We may have to try other corridors."
Patty looked up to Phoebe, proudly. “My brother's smart."
"I know,” Phoebe replied.
At times they had to climb over boulders and squeeze between narrow clefts to keep going forward. It was cold, too. Even Lee was shivering. Still, there was nothing to do but keep moving.
At first he thought his eyes were playing tricks, but there seemed to be a crease of light in the distance. Eagerly, he now moved ahead more quickly, risking stumbling or tripping, as the floor was irregular and broken, not flat or smooth at all like the caves in the movies. And above all he had to be careful to not drop his dad's new flashlight. If they lost that, they'd be done for.
He flashed the light ahead and occasionally behind to help Patty and Phoebe get over something or to avoid stepping into a crevice. Once again, trying to gauge the distance, he thought and measured in his mind and figured they'd probably gone at least two or three hundred yards, maybe more.
Suddenly he knew it wasn't an illusion; there was a light ahead. It was just a streak, dim and yellow. But it was a light.
"Come on,” Lee called out, urging them ahead. “It's got to be a way out."
After the hall of spiders, the walls had been mostly smooth and chalky. Now though, the rock was stained and slimy, smelling thick and green, and the entire corridor was slippery. And despite his excitement, Lee had to go more slowly here, being extra careful to pick his way over the slippery limestone.
At one point, about fifty yards from the source of he light, looking back and holding out with his free hand while Patty held the flashlight, Lee helped Phoebe over a large angled slab which had fallen out of the wall. Once she was through, Patty gave him the light back, and Lee took another step. His painfully swollen ankle gave way, doubling under. Lee hit the corridor's slimy floor and slid on his back down a slight angle, turning around and slamming into the wall with his shoulder. The pistol had fallen from his pocket and he thought he'd heard it clatter as it hit just next to him.
"Are you alright?” Phoebe called out.
"Lee! Lee!” Patty was frantic.
When the girls got to him he was rummaging around in the rocky skree holding the flashlight under one arm and using both hands.
Phoebe knelt down. “What's the matter?"
"I lost the gun,” Lee replied miserably.
"We don't need it,” Phoebe came back. “Just be thankful it wasn't the flashlight."
Patty was standing just behind, Flapjack at her side.
"But it's got to be here,” Lee's voice echoed on the walls. “I mean, I was just right here. It's like it disappeared."
Phoebe stood up. “Just leave it."
Lee twisted and shone the light back at her. Her pretty blue dress was a torn and muddy mess. She had scrapes on her legs and arms, and her hair was frazzled and knotted by the wind. Poor Patty's wasn't much better. Her sodden little nightie clung to her body, and her face was scratched and bruised. Of them all, Flapjack alone appeared unscathed.
Scowling at the loss of the gun, Lee got back to his feet and shone the light around the floor one more time. But again he came up empty.
The next twenty or thirty yards were the roughest going of all. There really was no floor. It was all just a jumble of rocks and skree. But tantalizingly, Lee was beginning to be able to make out the source of the light. Ahead, there was a wall of what had to be thick boards covering the passage, with the light coming from behind.
When he reached it, he ran his fingers across the rough wood. Putting his eye to a crack he peered between the planks.
Phoebe pressed up close, but there was only room for one. “What do you see?"
Lee pulled his head back. “There's a room. I can't tell much else. It's dark. The light must be coming from a corner or somewhere else."
"Let's yell,” Phoebe recommended. “Maybe someone will hear us."
Lee, thinking of the direction they'd come, and remembering the sounds he'd heard come from out of this hole, thought that might not be such a good idea.
"Sssh,” he held his finger to his lips, though Phoebe probably couldn't see. “I think we should be quiet."
"Well, what'll we do?” Phoebe whispered. “We can't stay here."
The boards were black and thick, but to his touch, Lee could tell they were terribly old. He pushed against one with his palm, and it bent in slightly.
"I think the wood's rotten,” he offered. “Here, Patty, you hold the flashlight while Phoebe and I push."
He handed the light back to his sister and had her step back to hold the beam on the wall.
Lee sat down and put his feet against a lower board. “Get down and use your feet,” he said to Phoebe.
She squeezed in next to him and got her sandals on the wood next to his. Her short dress fell back to the tops of her thighs. “Not very ladylike, am I?"
"That's okay,” he replied. “I'm not looking, right now anyway."
She gave him her soft, limp-wristed shove.
"Okay, on three.” Lee counted down, “One, two, three!"
They shoved out with their legs, bracing their arms behind. Lee's ankle exploded in pain, but the board groaned, then gave way pushing out away from the others.
"Next one,” Lee ordered, ignoring his ankle and putting his feet on the next one up.
This one gave way even more easily.
After one more, Lee was sure they had room to squeeze through. Pushing and wiggling as Phoebe helped press the boards out, and Patty held the flashlight, he wormed his way through and tumbled out onto the floor below.
"Can you see anything?” Phoebe called through.
Lee look
ed around. He turned in a circle, looking from ceiling to floor.
"Oh, God,” he hushed. “Oh, God."
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: IN THE PIT
"What?” Phoebe had her arms in, and was working her head and shoulders through the space pried open between the boards.
Lee would have stopped her and gone back, had there been anywhere to go.
He was in a pit, bones and pieces of filth were strewn about. It smelled exactly as he remembered from the reek in the caboose, only this was more real, more wet and filthy. On the wall to the left was a desiccated skeleton, still bound to a crumbly rack of wood. The thing had no eyes, but it still had hair, long and black clinging to a scaly, gray skull. On a hat rack next to a writing desk was a moldy, but still blue, coat of a Civil War Union officer. In the very center of the room was a dark pit. And something told Lee he definitely didn't want to look inside.
The light, which had drawn them was coming from a short passage maybe only four or five feet, dug through the earth. The edge of a door, slightly ajar could be seen towards the back of the hole.
Lee grabbed Phoebe's arms and helped pull her through. Then he reached in and helped Patty, who had a little trouble as her soggy nightie clung to her legs and wrapped up tightly around her knees. Flapjack stuck his head through, but he must have not liked the smell as he quickly drew back.
"Eww, it stinks,” Patty said immediately after having come through.
Phoebe, who'd tugged her dress back down was turning this way and that. “What is this place?"
"I think we're in Osia's pit.” Lee swallowed dryly. “The Indians burned the lodge above to the ground after they killed him, but it appears the pit remained. See that coat.” He pointed to the rack. “I think that belonged to Captain Limpkins. He must have used this place too."
Evil Heights, Book IV: In the Pit Page 23
