“Sarah? Are you secure?” Fredy asked.
Sarah double-checked her knot and sucked in a deep breath. “Stand by, Fredy. I’ve got something here.” She looked back down at the lever. Girl, this is a bad idea. She positioned herself over the lever and squatted down, taking hold of it with both hands.
19
Not Alone
Wednesday, April 6 – God Stones Day 1
Petersburg, Illinois
The feeling of safety from finally having everyone inside the tunnel turned out to be fleeting. Three separate beams of light shone from deep inside the culvert.
Garrett waded forward, maneuvering around everyone. The water was already over his feet and moving fast down the tunnel. “Who’s there?”
“Who do you think? You lying coward!” Jack said, forced into a hunch as he sloshed forward.
Garrett’s stomach tightened.
“When you didn’t show up, I wasn’t surprised. I always knew you were afraid to fight me, Garrett!” Jack said, stopping directly in front of him, his flashlight pointing at his face. “You didn’t think I would figure it out, did you? The book led you here. I already know it’s a map, and whatever it leads to is mine. Right after we settle up and I kick your ass!”
“So what, Jack, you had to bring your big brother and his thugs with you?” Garrett asked, squinting past Jack’s light to find Danny holding his own flashlight in one hand and something else in the other. If anything, Danny was far more of a bully than Jack and probably twice his size. Garrett didn’t know who the other two guys were, but they were older than Jack, so it was safe to assume they must be friends of Danny. All and all, this was about the worst possible time for Jack to show up. They needed to get past this tunnel before the water rose and before Apep caught up to them.
Garrett drew in a breath. But he knew something else. He couldn’t run, and he was all out of excuses. This thing with Jack had to end, here and now. Garrett looked past Jack. “What’s up, Danny? Figured you were still in jail. You come to fight your baby brother’s battles?”
Jack’s lip curled up. “They’re here to make sure you fight me this time, chickenshit. So, let me tell you how this is going to go. First, I’m going to beat your ass,” he said, punching his fist into his palm. “Then your loser friends are going to give me that book and tell me everything they know about it, including how to open the entrance, or we’re” – he hooked a thumb over his shoulder – “going to give all them a beating too.”
The water was rising fast, almost to Garrett’s ankles now.
Paul stepped forward next to Garrett. “We need to move. If the water continues to rise at this rate we’re going be swept out. You want me to handle this?”
Garrett shook his head. “Thanks, but this is mine to deal with.”
Jack laughed. “You going to deal with me, are you?”
“Alright, Jack, let these guys through so they can get to work finding the entrance before the water rises so high no one finds it,” Garrett said, pointing past Jack.
Jack held out his arms. “Whatever, man. Just don’t try anything or I’ll have these guys start working everybody over.”
Paul rolled his eyes.
Everyone hugged the curved wall single file and made their way past Jack and his thugs, leaving only Garrett and Lenny in the mouth of the opening. Lenny leaned in close to Garrett, his brow wrinkled in concern. “I don’t like this, man. I’m not leaving you.”
“Lenny, you got to get down there and show them the bricks you found. They can’t get inside without you.”
“Garrett, listen, I love that you’re going to face this, but they’re not going to fight fair,” Lenny whispered, nodding at Jack.
Garrett smiled weakly. “My kung fu is better than these losers’ kung fu any day of the week.”
The worried crease on Lenny’s forehead only deepened. Even for Lenny, this was no time for jokes.
Garrett leaned in close and lowered his voice to a whisper, “I need to do this, Lenny. If I don’t… I’ll always be afraid. Just go, man, I will be right behind you.”
Lenny nodded reluctantly, making his way down the tunnel.
When Lenny tried to get past Jack, Jack made sure to shoulder Lenny hard, checking him into the concrete wall of the culvert. “Good job, Lenny – way to know your place.”
Lenny pushed himself off the wall. “I would kick your punk ass myself, but I don’t want to deprive my boy here of the fun he’s about to have with your face. God, I’m going to enjoy watching Garrett kick the crap out of you!”
Jack doubled up a fist and punched it into his hand. “Don’t worry. This won’t take long,” he said, pointing a finger in Lenny’s face. “Your turn next!”
“You just don’t get it, do you, Jack? It’s like the lights are on but it’s just a big dimly lit space up there.”
Jack frowned, clearly confused. He turned back toward Garrett, raising his fists.
Garrett didn’t understand why, but he felt a strange sense of calm wash over him. Maybe it was because he had just accepted that this was inevitable and had inwardly come to terms with it, releasing him of his fear. Or, maybe after all he had witnessed and learned that evening, his emotions were just depleted. Whatever it was, he felt oddly relaxed in this looming moment.
Paul started forward with ill intentions toward Danny and his two thugs, but Lenny grabbed his arm. “No, Paul. Don’t.”
Every muscle in Paul’s body flexed, but he stopped. “Why?” he asked incredulously.
“Let Garrett deal with him,” Lenny said.
“Yeah, I agree, this has been a long time coming,” Pete said.
“A long, long time.” David nodded.
“They’re not going to fight him one-on-one, Lenny,” Breanne said pleadingly.
“I know,” he said, maintaining his grip on Paul’s arm.
“So, what then? We’re just supposed to look for this secret passage, and what? Hope he doesn’t get beaten to death?” Paul asked, through gritted teeth, clearly ready to throw down.
“Hell, no!” Lenny responded with a smile. “Rising water or not, I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Besides, if these dicks decide to get froggy and jump… we jump.” Lenny said, letting go of Paul’s arm.
Paul nodded reluctantly, “Well, let’s get close as we can then.” The group worked their way closer and positioned themselves right behind Danny and his thugs, everyone vying for a space to see in the circular culvert.
Garrett’s heart beat against his chest. No more running, no more standing by and letting it happen – letting Jack happen. Win or lose, this was going to end now. “Jack?” he said in a low voice, barely audible above the roar of water.
“You say something, chickenshit?”
“I truly hope you can swim these currents in the dark.”
Jack turned to his brother and laughed.
Danny and his crew started laughing.
Those with flashlights shined them toward the two boys as they squared off. He really wished Bre and Lenny weren’t watching, but it hardly mattered now. His back was to the river, and his only way forward was through Jack.
The corner of Jack’s lip curled as he sloshed forward and threw his famous roundhouse punch.
Garrett watched the sweeping roundhouse coming at his jawline with a strange detachment. Almost like the punch was not coming at his face but at someone else’s, and he was just an onlooker like everyone else. Then, suddenly his focus changed, and the trail appeared, blocking out his vision as an intense pressure began to slowly build from somewhere deep in his head. The world slowed around him as time passed at a different pace in his mind.
Just like with the three concrete blocks during his test. It was as if he had all the time in the world and a fist weren’t on a bone-cracking collision course with his face. Garrett found himself in a slowed moment of time, contemplating the many ways he could counter the punch.
Everyone watching wouldn’t understand why Jack was throwing a slow
-motion punch, nor why Garrett was just standing there.
As the punch closed in, two things occurred to Garrett. The first was that he had somehow found the focus again and slowed time around him, at least slowed Jack.
The second thing that occurred to Garrett was that he didn’t want to beat Jack with the magic stuff from the God Stones. He wanted to do this on his own, with his own abilities. He shook his head no and mouthed the words, “Not like this, Lenny.”
Then he heard Breanne’s voice, full of panic, but it was slowed too. Not as slow as Jack’s fist but slower than normal. “What’s he saying, Lenny?!”
“He’s not going to use it! He’s not going to use the focus!” Lenny answered.
“What? What do you mean?” she asked, but Lenny didn’t answer – he just stared. They all just stared.
Garrett listened to the voices distort as they reached him, and he wondered why their voices were not slowing down as much as Jack’s fist. Then he realized the speed of sound was obviously much faster than the speed of Jack. So, wouldn’t it make sense if time slowed differently depending on how fast the thing being slowed was moving? I should probably contemplate this later.
“What is happening?” Danny shouted to Jack. “What’s wrong with you?!” Having seen enough, Danny lunged forward toward Garrett.
Garrett felt a movement rush toward him from behind the beam of a flashlight but as Danny drew closer, he too began to slow, and when he was within three feet, he slowed to a near stop.
Garrett pressed his lips together in tight determination. He’d made his decision. Nodding reassuringly toward his friends, he let go of the focus.
Time for Jack and Danny returned to normal.
Garrett reached up and caught Jack’s fist in his left hand.
Jack’s eyes stretched open like a doe about to be struck by a car.
Garrett squeezed the boy’s fist hard, pressing his middle finger deep into a pressure point in the back of Jack’s hand, eliciting a surprised cry.
“Ahhh!”
Garrett kept the hand, pivoted his foot, and pulled the bully in close, placing Jack between himself and Danny. In the same motion, Garrett drew his head back then thrust it forward with a sudden jerk and headbutted Jack in the mouth, forcing Jack’s bottom teeth through his lower lip.
Jack reeled backward, stumbling into Danny with a stunned cry. Involuntarily, Jack turned his wounded face away from Garrett, exposing his right ear, which Garrett graciously accepted as his next target.
Stepping forward with a short, right-hand punch, Garrett connected with Jack’s exposed ear, generating another pained screech from Jack.
Jack seethed. “I’m going to hurt you! You hear me, Garrett? I’m going to make you pay!” Jack ran forward in a crouch, almost falling in the rising water. He swung another bar-room punch at Garrett’s face.
Seriously, the same punch? Garrett thought as he easily ducked the encroaching fist. Confidence surged in him. Suddenly he knew, really knew, he could do this. Still in a squatted position from slipping the punch, he couldn’t keep the grin off his face as he countered with a knuckle punch to Jack’s nut sack.
A sharp squeak barely audible over the rushing water escaped from Jack as he folded forward. Somehow, he managed to stay standing as he bent over, holding his testicles, face distorted in pain.
“Yes!” Lenny shouted, releasing a hearty belly laugh that reverberated down the tunnel. Garrett started to stand when Danny rushed forward, grabbing Garrett from behind by the back of the collar, and yanked.
Paul shouted a war cry and ran forward but before he could reach Garrett, Lenny shouted, “Wait, man, just watch this.”
“But—”
Garrett flew back, his feet coming out from under him with the force of Danny’s pull. He landed hard on his back in the water. Danny grabbed fistfuls of Garrett’s collar with both hands and tugged, intent on dragging him further into the tunnel where the two other thugs were waiting.
Rather than try and break free, Garrett allowed Danny to drag him as he reached back over his head with both hands and locked on to Danny’s wrist with a tight grasp. Using Danny’s wrist as leverage, he fired four hard kicks over his own head, and into Danny’s face.
By the third kick, Danny was screeching in agony as teeth broke and something fractured in the older boy’s face, probably his nose. It wasn’t until the fourth kick that Danny was finally able to break free of Garrett’s grasp.
Still lying on his back, Garrett spun himself around to face Danny. Water rushed over Garrett as he began to slide toward the mouth of the tunnel.
Danny threw both hands over his wrecked face and shouted in a tone that could only be produced by a unique combination of pain and rage, “Arrrgh!” Pulling his bloody hands away revealed a disfigured face that was distorted as much by pure anger as it was by the crooked nose and busted lips. Squinting through his watering eyes, Danny found the cause of all his anger and agony. Garrett was mere feet away, lying on his back as the rushing water swept him helplessly toward the opening. A determined expression fixed on Danny’s face.
Garrett could almost read his thoughts. Danny wasn’t going to let the river have him – not yet.
Danny seized the opportunity and rushed the defenseless boy. When he was within reach, he leapt, launching himself toward Garrett.
As Danny flew toward him, Garrett smiled. Danny had seen exactly what Garrett wanted him to see.
“Here we go!” Lenny shouted.
It was too late for Danny to change his mind when he noticed Garrett pulling his knee to his chest. Danny’s eyes went wide in helpless anticipation as he landed on top of Garrett’s cocked leg. With his foot centered perfectly on Danny’s gut, he grabbed him by the collar with both hands and rolled backward, his own face disappearing briefly underwater. But Garrett didn’t need to see as he kicked out his cocked leg with all his might.
Danny launched airborne backward over Garrett’s head in a classic hapkido throw.
“Oh ho! Atta a boy!” Lenny cried out. “What did I tell you!” he said, punching Paul in the shoulder.
Danny landed too close to the edge of the culvert’s opening to stop himself from falling over the side. As both members of his crew ran forward, stomping past Garrett in a desperate attempt try and grab him, it was gravity that won out. Danny let out a short cry that was stifled abruptly by a loud splash.
The two big brutes and now Jack, who had finally managed to stand upright, stood near the edge of the culvert, and it was Garrett who stood with his back to his friends. “I’m going to give you another chance Jack. You can turn around right now and follow your brother, or I can put you in a whole lot more pain and send you after him myself.”
Jack winced, one hand still holding his testicles. “You bastard! That’s my brother!” He waded forward again, but this time he slowed, realization dawning on his face as he apparently decided it wouldn’t be wise to throw his signature punch for the third time. He paused, motioning at the other two. “Let’s get him!”
Garrett noticed the one on his left was holding a bat while the guy on his right brandished a black bar of some kind. A crowbar maybe? It was hard to tell in the low light.
Jack smiled a bloody grin and pulled a knife.
The water was rushing midway up Garrett’s shins now and just standing in the culvert was becoming dangerous in itself. They were running out of time.
“I’m helping him – this is ridiculous,” Paul said, wading forward.
Lenny nodded. “Let’s go!”
The guy with the bat wasted no time and swung at Garrett’s face.
Garrett spun into the swing and grabbed the man’s wrist with his left hand, then with a hard, right-hand chop he broke the man’s forearm. The bat fell into the rushing water, vanishing over the edge of the culvert.
The man screamed in white-hot agony as Jack, ready to take advantage of an opportunity to get the drop on Garrett, rushed forward, thrusting his knife at the distracted boy’s sid
e.
“Garrett!” Breanne shouted over the rushing water.
Garrett yanked on the man’s broken arm as he stepped back to avoid Jack’s attack.
The man’s scream pierced the night as he lurched awkwardly sideways, occupying the space between Garrett and Jack, perfectly positioned to receive the thrust from Jack’s knife. Jack’s blade sank deep into the screaming man’s shoulder.
Jack let go of the knife as his mouth fell slack with the awfulness of what he had done.
Garrett gave the screaming man a final shove toward the opening.
The man staggered backward, his arm dangling, and fell out into the night. There was no more screaming, only a splash.
The big guy with the crowbar cautiously approached, his weapon cocked back for a swing. But before he could reach Garrett, Paul placed a hand on Garrett’s shoulder, stepping around him.
The big guy paused in the glow of flashlights.
Paul smiled and advanced. “Come here, big fella.”
The big guy shuffled backward through the water toward the opening. He looked back at Paul, then back at the opening. The chances of surviving the raging Sangamon – in a storm, in the dark, and above the broken dam – would be slim, but the big guy must have liked his chances better than facing Paul. He dropped the bar, turned, and jumped out the opening, vanishing over the edge.
Paul’s face dropped in utter disappointment.
It was only Jack and Garrett now.
“Don’t touch him. This has to be me and Jack. No one else!” Garrett closed the distance in three steps.
Jack dove forward, driving his shoulder into Garrett’s stomach. Both boys fell back into the water. Jack managed to get both hands around Garrett’s throat. “I’m going to kill you, Garrett!” He shoved Garrett’s head underwater.
Garrett was blind under the freezing water. His head was pressed hard against the concrete of the culvert with all the weight of the boy on top of him, pinning him immovably below the rushing torrent, squeezing his throat with all he had. As Garrett lay there, a thought flashed through his mind. Lenny and Breanne were watching Jack kill him. In a moment, Lenny, or maybe Paul, would come to his rescue and save him. They would probably toss Jack out into the river and, just like that, the threat of Jack would be washed away. The shame of having to be rescued, however, would never be washed away. He would have to carry it with him forever, unable to look his friends in the eye. And worse, if they saved him now, he would never know if he could have won. No. He had to do something.
The Keepers Of The Light (God Stone Book 2) Page 14
