Page 84 of A Boy Called Lovesong

“Begone now!” she shrieked.

“Begone! Begone.Begonebegonebegonebegonebegonebegone!”

From the scowl on Hettie’s face and the fiery look in her eyes, I knew we’d well and truly worn out our welcome. Swiftly I grabbed Lovesong by the hand and pulled him out of the cabin.

With Hettie’s shrill voice echoing through the swamp, I led Lovesong hurriedly along the rickety boardwalk, fleeing the bayou as fast as we could in the dying light.

Through the trees, the red glow of the sinking sun was fading by the second.

I slipped on a mossy plank and regained my footing.

“Slow down,” Lovesong said.

But I only tightened my grip on his hand and pulled him along faster. “We can’t. The sun’s almost gone. Soon neither of us will be able to see our way out of here.”

The boards creaked and bowed as we hurried over the black waters, startling the small swamp creatures while the larger ones watched our reckless flight eagerly. In the last light, the eyes of alligators appeared on the surface, moving stealthily toward us.

Up ahead I saw the end of the boardwalk. “We’re almost there.”

I glanced ahead at the forty feet or so of water left to cross.

I looked back to make sure Lovesong was okay. “Step further. Short jump. Then a long one. Then—”

I was so busy focusing on Lovesong’s steps that I wasn’t concentrating on what was ahead.

I stepped on a plank that was almost rotten through.

It snapped under my weight.

I plunged into the water, breaking another half dozen boards on the way down.

I still had Lovesong in my grip and I dragged him down into the bayou with me.

The water wasn’t deep, but we both tumbled in over our heads before finding our footing and coming up splashing, gasping and coughing up swamp water.

Quickly I looked around and saw several ripples, tell-tale signs that we were in big trouble.

The water level was just above our waists.

The edge of the swamp was only thirty feet away.

I grabbed Lovesong’s hand. “Run! As fast as you can!”

Pushing through the water felt like wading through molasses.

I glanced over my shoulder and something large was coming up fast.

The water level dropped to below our waists.

I shoved Lovesong ahead of me, pushing him blindly forward.

We splashed up to our thighs, our knees, and sprinted up to the edge of the bayou, bolting onto land just as an enormous alligator emerged from the swamp, opening its jaws and clamping them shut, missing my heels by mere inches.

With an angry growl, it spun about and disappeared back into the bayou.

I didn’t stop running, pushing Lovesong along in front of me until I looked back and could no longer see the dark waters of the bayou behind us.

There I pulled him to a halt, nudging him safely backward against a tree where we both stood, puffing and panting.

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