Page 46 of Stealing Mercury
“I can’t fit. This small channel is between two layers of rock.” He twisted his body, reaching out a hand. Mercury quickly switched from his ankle to his hand. “It’s too narrow for my shoulders.”
And if it were too narrow for Lo, Mercury certainly wouldn’t fit. “We’ll find another way.”
Lo nodded. And crawled closer until they lay so close they could feel each other’s breath. “Release me then.” The whispered words had to be for Samantha’s benefit. Lo could probably hear her moving around above. Mercury could hear little above the pounding of his pulse in his ears.
“Does it feel stable beneath you?”
“Stable enough. Release me.”
Mercury forced open his grip and watched his brother scramble away.
“What are you doing?” Samantha’s strained voice drifted down from above.
Mercury turned to release his ankle from the grip of the cord. He could see her on her belly above, looking over the edge. He wanted to shout or snap at her, but he wouldn’t risk startling her. “It’s more stable down here now, but the edge is dangerous. Back away.”
Her face disappeared, but he’d bet she didn’t go far.
He scrambled on his belly again, this time following Lo’s path.
“He’s below here,” said Lo. “Do we risk collapsing this area over him?” Lo’s dark eyes telegraphed his trust and willingness to follow.
Nothing in the arena had prepared them for this. “It didn’t collapse when I dug there before, but we can move to the side a bit. We have no choice but to dig.”
Carefully, they scooped the dirt away, hoping the weight of the dirt being moved wouldn’t cause the very collapse they hoped to avoid. Mercury could hear Carn now. His breath was ragged and strained.
They dug and dug. The dirt had been loosened and moved easily, but there was a lot of it and every time the dirt shifted, more would tumble in to fill up the hole. They worked in silence as the sun overhead marched steadily down the sky.
He couldn’t be sure how long they’d been digging when they heard Carn moan. His breath turned into a pant of panic.
“We’re here, Carn. We’re going to get you out.” Mercury spoke loudly but avoided shouting. The area around them had become less and less stable as they’d shifted the dirt around.
Carn calmed below, but he didn’t answer. They dug faster... until they heard a shower of earth fall free below them. The surface where they lay didn’t shift, but they heard Carn sputter and spit.
Mercury tried for calm as he called out to his buried brother. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.” The strained word drifted up alone at first. “The dirt above fell. Can you work faster?”
“If we do, more dirt might fall. Can you move to the side?”
“No.” Again the one word set heavily in the air for a moment. “Leave me.”
Mercury had no intention of leaving him, so he ignored Carn’s command and continued to work.
“I won’t be able to walk,” Carn shouted up. “I’m safe where I am. Let me stay here and heal.” A cough interrupted his speech.
Mercury wanted to tell him to save his breath, but he knew Carn was no longer thinking clearly.
“Go and shut down the noise,” Carn continued. “I know you can both hear it now. When I’m stronger, I’ll climb out.”
Mercury gritted his teeth against the slow boil of frustration. “This is taking too long.”
Lo tilted his head, ears flicking. “He sounds weaker.”
“Fuck.”
“He could be bleeding out.” Lo’s raspy whisper faded into nothing.
“Hey, guys?” Samantha’s voice drifted down again as it had several times as they dug. The concern in her voice had changed to something more urgent. “Do you think you’re going to break through anytime soon?”
