Page 59 of Elsie's Strong Shelter

Sadie approached the trees ahead of Dean and shoved aside a thick branch.

A gunshot rang out, the sound piercing against the stillness of the evening. A bullet slammed against Sadie’s chest, sending her flying backward.

“Shit! Sadie!” Dean lunged for her side and dropped to the forest floor. Moisture from the damp mud seeped into his pantlegs. He searched the woods for Justin. “Paul! Watch out!”

“I’m sorry,” Paul said, suddenly towering over him and Sadie. “You left me no choice.”

Exhaustion closedin on Elsie like the narrowing walls of the cave. The throbbing in her calf had intensified to the point that each step was like walking through fire. Dust-filled air coated her throat and squeezed her lungs. The excruciating pain in her head made every movement more difficult than the last.

“I have to stop.” Mila let out a shaky break and leaned against the jagged rock.

Elsie unhooked her arm from around Mila’s neck and dropped to the ground. Chills raced up and down her body despite the heat burning her up from the inside out. Dryness coated her mouth, her thirst so overwhelming she almost licked the moist wall of the cave.

“We should go back.” Mila wiped her hand across her brow then let her arm drop to cover her eyes. “There’s no fresh air.”

“We tried to climb up the shaft. It didn’t work. We have to find a different way out.” Elsie’s chest heaved with the effort it took to take another breath.

“What if there’s not? What if we’re moving further and further from the only way to be found?” Hysteria increased the pitch of Mila’s voice. “We’re going to die here. I’ll never see my sweet boy again. Never hold him in my arms or tell him I love him. Oh God, I can’t do this anymore. Everything hurts.” Her shoulders shook as sobs wracked her frail body.

The agonizing sound of her friend’s misery twisted her heart. Scooting closer, she flattened her palms on either side of Mila’s face, and alarm made her pulse race.

Mila’s head drooped forward. Her eyes closed.

“Mila, honey, open your eyes.”

Mila’s eyes fluttered open for a second before closing again. “Too tired. So thirsty. Need to rest.”

Terror grabbed hold of Elsie’s neck and squeezed. She hadn’t gone through hell to find Mila just to watch her die.

“Okay,” she said. “You stay here. I’ll move ahead a little and see what I find. I won’t be long.” She removed her hands from Mila’s face and gently rested her against the rock wall. “I’ll be right back.”

With a forearm braced against the cool wall, Elsie hopped forward. The jagged edges of the ceiling lowered and forced her to duck. Stale air stung her nostrils, the sulfurous scent activated her gag reflex.

Seconds ticked into minutes until she lost track of time. The ceiling got lower, the walls closer together. She dropped to her knees. Pain ricocheted throughout her body, but she kept moving. She’d find a way out. She had to. Failure wasn’t an option.

Crawling through the dirt, her palms stung like she’d been attacked by a hundred bees. Anxiety tightened her chest. Heat snaked up her body, leaving her dizzy and disoriented. She strained to see in the dark. Something skittered against her arm, and she fought the urge to scream.

The faint outline of wooden beams stood out against the rock at the top of the cave. Elsie hurried forward and brushed against a makeshift wall of packed dirt, preventing her from moving. Large rocks leaned against the makeshift wall.

Defeat crushed down on her as tears misted her eyes. She slammed her fists against the dirt over and over. Desperationstalled her breath and she clawed at the wall, willing it to come down. A scream built in the base of her throat. Opening her mouth wide, she unleashed all her pain and misery and hopelessness.

How could this be the end? How could she finally have her life exactly the way she wanted it only to be thrown into a literal pit of despair? Left to watch her best friend die before she took her own last breath. Leaving behind her family and the man she loved.

Oh God, she loved Dean, and she’d never get a chance to build a life with him. Never spend the night in his arms after making love. Hell, she’d never even tell him how she felt. Anger curled her hands tighter and she tore at the hard earth, striking the cold dirt again and again. Tears streamed over her face.

Exhausted, she fell to the ground. Her jacket snagged on a something sharp. She yanked at her arm, but the material wouldn’t break loose. She tore off her jacket and threw it on the floor. Something fell out of the pocket and bounced at her feet.

What the heck?

She plucked the red plastic off the ground.

Jimmy’s whistle!

A new wave of determination gritted her teeth, and she scooped the whistle off the ground. If she went back to the open shaft, she could blow the whistle and pray someone heard her. She ignored the intense ache in her leg and the beating against her skull and crawled. Dust and clay caked under her nails. Sweaty strands of hair fell in front of her face.

The tunnel widened and the ceiling rose inch by inch, but she stayed on her hands and knees. Clawing her way back to where she started. She stopped when she reached Mila, who was slumped over with her eyes closed and body lax.

“Mila!” She called out her friend’s name and scrambled to her side. She pressed her dirty fingers to Mila’s neck until shefound a weak pulse. Time was running out. “I’ll get you help. I promise.”

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