Can I take the light? I asked tremulously.
Another loud crash resounded from outside of the room. They were getting closer. Cade handed the light over, his black eyes warm and caring. I wondered if he would have left me behind if I had refused to do this. For some reason I didnt think he would have, but I wasnt going to ask.
Taking a deep breath, I dropped to my knees. Cade seized hold of my arm, I blinked as I tried to bring him into focus. His eyes blazed into mine for a long moment, I could feel the determination that he was trying to instill in me, feel his fierce desire for me to stay strong. His thumb stroked over my skin before he finally released me.
You can do this.
I shuddered as I tore my attention away from him, put my hands out, and began to squirm into the hole before I no longer could. I instantly wanted to start screaming, instantly balked against the horrendous sensation that immediately enshrouded me. There was about six inches above me as I squirmed, crawled, and slithered down the pipe but it felt as if it were crushing down on my back, squeezing the air from my lungs, trapping me forever in this world of slime and darkness.
The air within the pipe was cool and musty. The small light revealed a shiny layer of gunk, mold, and something that I didnt even want to think about that was coating the walls. I fought against screaming, fought against squirming my way backwards when I felt someone enter the pipe behind me. The crushing sensation of being buried alive suddenly enshrouded me; it was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe as panic hammered through me. I was going to die, not from being trapped in the pipe but because I felt as if my lungs were starting to shut down, starting to close.
I reached a turn, and after
a little bit of maneuvering, managed to twist my way into the curve. It did not feel as if the pipe was getting smaller, but I was certain it was. I couldnt let myself think about being trapped in here, couldnt let myself think that there might be no way out. I would become useless if I did, and everyone else would be trapped behind me.
Bethany?
Im fine, I managed to choke out to Abby though we both knew I was lying.
I continued forward another twenty feet when a rocking bang from above caused the entire pipe to shudder. A creaking, groaning noise echoed throughout the system. A soft whimper escaped me as I froze. If there had been enough room in the pipe I was pretty sure I would have curled into a ball and screamed like a baby.
Faster Bethy, faster.
Cade didnt have to say it twice. I was suddenly frantic to be free, frantic to escape this world of unending torture and madness within these crushing confines. I wasnt entirely against death as an option anymore, if it meant escaping this whole terrifying mess. I was beginning to think death would be better than this overwhelming panic, misery, and insanity that we had been forced into.
I was either going to find the end of this tunnel, or I was going to die in it, and I didnt care which one came first anymore. Using my elbows and feet, I squirmed my way forward like an earthworm at a more rapid, sure pace. The light bounced over the walls, flashing over the slime and sludge that had been there for far longer than I cared to think about. The stink of the refuse had been bad; this forgotten mix of hair, dead skin, waste, and gunk was almost as bad. It coated me, clung to me, and permeated everything as it pressed against my lips, and slid up my nose.
I wanted to vomit, but then I would also have to crawl through that. Though, at this point, it might be cleaner than the mess I was already struggling through.
The pipe suddenly dropped again, taking a sharp turn down. I used the light to peer into the dip. The dim glow bounced off of the slush infested network that twisted somewhere out of sight about fifteen feet down. Where the hell did the damn thing go, and would we be able to get through it? I shut the thought down; it would only lead to even darker and more frightening places in my mind, places that I knew I would not be able to handle right now.
Bethany! Abby hissed.
It drops again. I warned in a strangled voice that I hardly recognized and was more than a little ashamed of.
And then, I shoved myself into the disgusting darkness that dropped dangerously into nothing.
CHAPTER 14
There was light at the end of the tunnel. I had to turn off the flashlight to make sure, but there it was, a bright beacon against the darkness and panic enshrouding me. Hope surged through me, I moved forward at a more rapid pace, scurrying forward on my elbows as I used my toes to propel me onward. Tears flooded my eyes, clogged my throat. I needed to be out, needed to be free .
I didnt care what was at the end of this tunnel, didnt care if it dumped into raw sewage or a nest full of aliens. I didnt care if I was scooped up and eaten as soon as I reached the end. I only cared about escaping this cramped enclosure and breathing fresh air once again. I heard a gasp of surprise from Abby as I reached the end and plunged heedlessly out of the pipe.