“I don’t know. ” She stood abruptly and put a hand to her belly. It churned to think how someone was out there right now, waiting to do her harm.
“Are you sick?” he asked, sounding focused.
“No, I just…” She froze, watching his face. He had such a strange look on his face—at first, she’d thought it was just his shock, but saw now how he was breathing through his mouth. “Are you sick?”
“I feel kinda strange all of a sudden. I thought maybe you felt funny, too. ” He raked his hand through his hair, giving his head a shake. “What’d you put in that water bottle?” His laugh sounded only half joking. His skin was peaked, his face drawn. It was unlike him—Damien was usually a powerhouse of fitness. “Oh shit. ” He lurched up and stumbled to the railing, leaning over the edge. “I think I’m gonna be sick. ”
She bolted over to him, rubbing his back. “Can you make it outside?” Trying for some comic relief, she added, “I don’t know if the bats would like you puking in their territory. ”
He laughed weakly. “Gross, Bail. You know I can hold my water better than that. ” He tried to give her a smile, but his face grew slack. “I think I need some fresh air,” he said, and the words came out sounding garbled.
When he tried to stand upright, he stumbled into her, and she leaned into the railing for support. He smelled like chocolate.
It set off an alarm in her mind. “Are you allergic to anything? Maybe there was a weird ingredient in the cookies. ” She grabbed his arms, trying to shuffle him away from the edge of the shaft. He needed to get fresh air, and she needed to call an ambulance.
“Sshhi—” He blinked his eyes open and shut, really slurring now.
“Can you breathe?” Her mind raced. Damien’s cell would be in his pocket, but she couldn’t grab it while he leaned on her like this. “Look, we need to call an ambulance. ”
He shook his head. “Ressep…resss…”
No cell reception. “Got it. Let’s get you outside. Can you walk?”
He nodded, swallowing convulsively. She wondered if he might not get sick after all. The prospect spurred her to action.
“Ready? On three. One, two—” She pressed her back into the railing, trying to heave him off her chest so they might be able to shuffle out side by side.
Damien stumbled backward and fell on his bottom. There was a sharp crack, and Sorrow fell back, too. But all she met was open air.
Time suspended as she fell. But then she landed with a crash, and reality exploded to life. A horrific snap. Her arm. The sound was so hideous, she knew she’d never get it out of her head. She cradled it close, breathing through her teeth.
And then the strangest thing happened. Rather than panic, the oddest, calmest clarity overtook her. She assessed her situation. Her whole body reverberated with pain, but nothing else seemed broken. It registered that Damien was shouting down to her.
“I’m okay,” she shouted back. She looked around, praying she didn’t see any of those bats he’d told her about. The floor was wider than she’d have guessed, with metal tracks leading away into the blackness. It was the eeriest thing she’d ever seen. She forced her voice to be steady. “I’m on some sort of a platform. ”
“Don’t move,” he said, and despite the slurring, she could hear how his voice had snapped taut with panic.
“The ladder. ” Using her good hand, she inched herself forward, reaching for it, but the wood crumbled in her fingers. Tears burned her eyes. “Rotted. ”
“Told you…don’t move. ” He was speaking slowly, but she was grateful to hear his words were less slurred. “I’ll…get help. ”
She yelled up at him, “No! You can’t drive in your condition. I’ll be okay. ” She heard him shuffling around up above, and shouted again, “Don’t you dare leave, Damien Simmons!”
“It’s…no good, Sorrow. I’m…been…coward…enough. ”
She heard his scuffling footsteps, and then nothing. Just the echo of her breath in a cavern twenty feet underground.
Forty-two
Billy stormed the tavern. He’d gotten a thirdhand message, delivered via police band. Dispatch calling with news from the EMT. An accident.
Just like Keri. All over again.
Not Keri, he assured himself. Sorrow hadn’t been on the scene. But she was in danger all the same. And he had to find her.
The tavern door hit the wall, he’d opened it so hard. Everyone turned to stare.
Bear spun on his stool. “What the hell’s gotten into you? Coming in here like a bat outta—”