Surviving the storm, p.11
Surviving the Storm, page 11
Wow. Now he sounded like Reena. In this instance, he’d admit it wasn’t a bad way to imagine the valley below.
Carrying on the wind, ozone enhanced the rich aroma of the varied vegetation. It was overwhelming but pleasant.
“I’ve never been here before,” Vincent announced, standing between the other rock wall and Ashleigh.
“You know I haven’t.” Ashleigh wiped her face with her wet sleeve.
“Neither have I.” Reena flattened a hand over her eyebrows, the blackened sock standing out against the yellow coat. “It sure is amazing. I wish it wasn’t raining. I bet it’s stunning.”
“Uh.” Nathan slowly straightened, his stomach lowering at the same speed. “What now? You’ve never been here?” He swished his hand toward the valley. “You planned this weekend. How is that possible?”
Reena’s arm dropped and she frowned at Nathan. “Our hike didn’t include this section of the mountain.”
“So you have no clue what type of terrain exists or what we’re up against?” His stomach settled in his foot.
“No.” She faced him directly.
“But...” He grappled with the implications. “You’ve lived here your whole life, right?”
“These aren’t the local trails around Bell Edge. You remember driving an hour, right? Do you know how huge the Pocono Mountains are?” She pierced him with hazel irises starting to spark. “They stretch over four counties and are part of the Appalachian Mountain system. If you’re unfamiliar with how vast the Appalachians are, they range from southeast Canada to Alabama.” A socked finger poked her own chest. “I’ve explored quite a bit, but there is no way I could hike every trail.”
Moisture fled Nathan’s mouth and his stomach roiled. He had been counting on Reena’s expertise, her knowledge of the area. “Then how do you know about the trail splitting and where they’ll lead?”
“I studied maps when I planned the weekend.” She adjusted her hips, trying to hide a grimace, but he caught it. “I specifically planned a route that kept us on the benign side of the mountain. We were never supposed to cross the bridge, but it happened. We’re now forced to traverse the trails meant for advanced hikers.”
The words rang in his ears like ominous gongs.
“I don’t remember every single detail since I didn’t study this side that hard.” She continued firing at him. “But we’re heading toward where we can signal for help.”
Heat wrapped around his hand, startling him. He glanced over to find Ashleigh clasping his palm between hers. “I’m sorry, Uncle Nathan.”
Nathan closed his eyes. Way to go. He had just broadcast his fears and doubts, undermining his role as the all-knowing, unfazed protector. Kissing Ashleigh’s wet forehead, he murmured against her skin, “I know you are.” He had to get it together. Pulling back, he bluffed confidence. “Awesome. It’ll be refreshing to know I’m not the only one who has no clue what’s coming.”
“Way to find a silver lining.” Reena grinned, her eyes sparkling.
He had to admire the five-foot-three ball of eternal happiness, but he had to stop the gravity constantly pulling him toward her. Once they escaped the mountain, he had to focus on establishing the new hub of his company in Bell Edge and raising Ashleigh. Instilling his niece with common sense and the importance of weighing decisions carefully before acting became a number-one priority, and Reena’s adventurous spirit would sabotage those lessons. Whoa. He shouldn’t even be thinking about Reena having an influence on Ashleigh’s upbringing. A relationship with Reena...he couldn’t see it working. Yet, even as he protested, a part of him could. And that alarmed him.
Nathan shut down his thoughts and perused the landscape. The right side of the rock wall continued. Jagged edges covered in moss and vines rose even higher, forming a cliff face. The left wall ended with giant boulders lying in pieces, allowing enough space for a single line of people to pass by.
Reena took the lead and maneuvered around an oval boulder. Only then did Nathan notice large flattish stones in the ground acting like stairs. Dirt and undergrowth claimed the space between, making them treacherous to walk on. Waiting until Ashleigh and Vincent fell in line behind Reena, he took his first step on the uneven surface. His boots landed on the top stone with a thud and the wind hurled against him. Thankfully, the path didn’t lead straight down—that’d be leg-breaking for sure. It cut across the rocky meadow as it descended.
Thunder resounded, echoing louder than before.
Reena flinched, slapping her palm against the rock wall and ducking her head.
Nathan didn’t blame her. Having the cover of trees had given him a false sense of security. Even though Reena had been the victim of lightning striking a tree, out here there was nothing between him and the clouds. If lightning struck, one of them could be its target. Maybe they should have made a shelter out of the downed evergreen instead of scaling it. He wanted to get Ashleigh home, no doubt, but was it smart to keep going?
Small streams of water cut across the stones and rushed to burrow into the wild landscape. The undergrowth bobbed in its force and the dirt had long since become slippery mud.
The weight of his backpack cut into his shoulders and he longed for a break. He wasn’t used to hefting something on his back for this long, let alone fighting it against the elements. The pack shifted off-center, throwing his weight toward the open, plunging slope.
A strange silence swamped the area then a chilling crack boomed. The ground shook violently and Nathan flung his arms up as his boot slid off the stone.
“MUDSL—”
The earth dropped out from beneath Nathan and he plummeted downward.
Chapter Twenty
“Mudslide!” Reena screamed, desperately clinging to the rock wall, the ground shaking like an earthquake. “Run!”
Ashleigh and Vincent took off, running so fast they almost hit her. Reena flattened as small as she could and yelled, “Go around me!”
The teens listened and bolted.
Reena’s heart pounded so hard, she couldn’t breathe. They had to clear the area. Mudslides were unpredictable. They could flow a few feet wide to encompassing a whole side of a mountain. The summer version of an avalanche.
The only saving grace they had right now was the stone-laden path cut alongside the cliff face instead of carving straight down into the ravine.
Hips screaming and muscles locking, Reena clamored as fast as she could.
“Uncle! Nathan!”
Ashleigh’s wail froze the blood in Reena’s veins. She whirled and found...nothing. No sign of Nathan.
A sob tore Reena’s throat and she howled, “Nathan!” Wildly searching, her gaze barely comprehended anything. “Nathan!”
A river of mud whooshed down the slope, the force growing more powerful every second. Clutching the rock wall, she scanned the flow and spied touches of skin poking among the mud.
Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh. No.
The roar of the landslide muted everything.
“Nathan!” she bellowed. He probably couldn’t hear her, but she couldn’t stop calling his name.
“He’s in the mudslide,” Ashleigh screamed, fighting against Vincent’s hold. “Let me go!”
Reena found the teens a quarter mile down the stone trail, clear of the immediate danger. The mudslide hadn’t expanded wider.
Terror clogged her thoughts and she couldn’t decide what to do. Keep the teens safe here or go after Nathan. Before she knew she had made a decision, her boots were stomping down the path. Ignoring her injured hips and body, she ran. Recklessly. Stupidly. She kept charging. Lopsided surfaces snagged her tread, pushing her off-balance, but she wouldn’t stop.
Vincent clamped Ashleigh tight around her arms and chest, wrestling her against the wall. Reena turned sideways and stuttered past, Ashleigh stilling only when Reena was beside them.
“Put me down!” Ashleigh demanded.
Reena didn’t slow or bother looking. Vincent would either do what the girl said or not. They were safe. Nathan was...her heart exploded with fear.
The stone and dirt path continued its angled descent, but in one direction. No switchback. Nathan was the other way. By the time she reached the bottom, who knew how far away she’d end up? But did she dare cross the meadow? The vegetation was so tall, it hid a lot more obstacles than the boulders she could see—
“No!” Vincent barked. “Ash, stop!”
Reena slowed her frantic pace in time to see Ashleigh jump off a path into the tall grass. The blades covered most her legs, showing only the tops of her thighs and up.
The teen’s impulsive decision made Reena’s easier. Surging off the stone, she dropped into greenery. The furious roar of the mudslide drilled into her skull, egging her on. Lightning flashed, sticks spanning the sky, and she ducked, the response automatic. Nothing protected her from its vengeance in the open. Adrenaline choked her and she gagged against so much terror coursing through her.
Her hips keened at her jostling and seized.
Nathan. Dear Lord, please, please, please, she prayed, unable to articulate her need. Crying out at the agony, she stumbled. Go, Reena. She did. Running in the meadow was an act of faith and constant prayer. Her boots kept tangling with the vines and limbs wrapping around her feet and ankles. To her left, a red rain-coated streak caught up to the blue-and-black-clad figure struggling to climb over a giant rock. Reena didn’t have the luxury of someone watching over her. Her self-appointed watchdog...another sob caught in her throat. Nathan needed her to help him this time and she couldn’t let him down.
Forcing her boot forward, she ripped the patch of wintercreeper vines out of the ground. The torrential rain had made the landscape so slippery, twice she almost body-surfed down the slope. If she knew what lay at the bottom, she’d go for it, but the land dipped out of sight, hiding the lower half. She only knew a river existed, not what type of terrain lined the banks. Could be tall boulders or it could be soft foliage.
Her stomach roiled. Nathan. What had Nathan landed on or against?
The mudslide ceased pouring from the top of the mountain. The last of the frenzied water carried branches and small rocks with it as it continued its destructive path. Behind, it left a swath of uprooted plants and mud with only the craggy boulders and fresh deadfall standing strong.
Every cell in her body cried in anguish. She couldn’t keep up this pace. She couldn’t stop, either.
“I have to find him,” Ashleigh wailed, her voice carrying on the unforgiving wind. “I can’t lose him, too.”
Tears poured out of Reena’s eyes, mixing with the rain on her face. Dear Lord, help her. What the fifteen-year-old must be going through.
“I did this, Vincent,” Ashleigh continued, her babbling morphing into a confession. “It’s all my fault.”
“He’s okay, Ash.” Vincent balanced her hand while she scrabbled over an oblong rock, his eyes full of worry.
“You don’t know that.”
No, they didn’t. Reena could only hope Vincent’s words proved true.
“Look.” Ashleigh pointed at the destruction left behind. “He was in that.”
“I know.” He yelped and disappeared.
“Vincent?” Reena shouted, stumbling on moldering branch limb.
“I’m fine.” He popped up. “Hole.” He pointed down. “Watch out.”
Reena castigated herself for running headlong into the meadow. Vincent could’ve broken a leg just then. Not to mention tangled with whatever animal dug that hole for its home.
“Why did I insist on swimming?” Ashleigh’s pace picked up. She no longer heeded the danger, she flat out ran. “Uncle Nathan!”
It reminded Reena of how Nathan acted when he dashed after Ashleigh. The Porters were consistent.
“Ashleigh!” Vincent tore after her.
Reena chased after them both. She could not let anything happen to either of them. Yet, finding Nathan drove her the hardest.
Wild shrubs, once beautiful, turned into hurdles. She couldn’t jump over their height, so she barreled through them. And they fought back. Smacking into anything they could reach, she bore scratches and cuts.
Uh! Her body lunged forward in her run but her left foot remained behind. Unable to stop the momentum, she slammed into the ground, the greenery cushioning her fall only so much. Two inches to the right, she spied a spiky stone that would’ve smashed her face. This was insanity. She had to slow down.
She had to help Nathan.
Tearing at the wintercreeper vine wrapped around her ankle, she tugged hard. Facing the top of the mountain, she wrenched her leg to the side at the same time she heaved. The vine snapped free, swinging her leg uncontrollably. Dragging her with it, she toppled over, then couldn’t stop. The steep angle took over and rolled her sideways. She frantically threw her arms out, clutching at anything to stop her descent. Images of impaling her body on a sharp rock consumed her.
No. No. No. Blades of grass whipped through her sock-covered hands and varied shrubs tore at the roots. Her speed increased, tossing her off-balance, rolling her over her shoulder. Scrabbling with everything she had, she kept clawing—
And snagged a honeysuckle vine.
Ice. Cold. Fresh. Tea. Her body slammed to a halt, pain sliced through her shoulder socket.
Dropping her forehead to the ground, she panted and whimpered. Pooling rain sprayed up her nose and she sneezed, adjusting her head to lay on her still straight arm.
Thank you, Lord. Closing her eyes, she forced herself to just breathe. Too much agony competed for her attention and she wasn’t sure if her legs could support her right now.
“Reena!” Vincent shouted, making her wince.
Rest time was over. Grabbing her temple with her free hand, she yelled, “I’m okay.” Ugggghhh. Her head pounded. Twisting her wrist back and forth, she worked free of the vine. Her skin covered in red whelps, she pulled the top of the sock down as far as it would go to hide them.
Standing was a testament to willpower. She could not let Nathan down.
Turning to search for the teens, she froze. Five more feet and she would have sailed over the edge of a small cliff.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Uncle Nathan!” Ashleigh screamed.
Reena focused on what lay below the twenty-foot drop. As she predicted, a river cut through the landscape, raging in the storm. Its banks swelled fat with water, devouring rocks and plants equally.
“I need to get down there,” Ashleigh demanded. “I have to find him.”
“We will.” Reena scanned the cliff top. There had to be a way down. Below, the ground took on a rockier terrain with intermittent tufts of grass, sloping gently toward the river. Honeysuckle vines dominated the rock wall and top, their elongated white flowers waving in the wind and rain, leaving only a two-foot-wide path to the water. The sweet, citrusy fragrance clouded the air, overpowering the fresh smell of rain and the river.
“There.” Vincent pointed to his right.
Reena ran to the small space carved into the vegetation, meeting the teens at the same time. Cut into the cliff was a makeshift staircase made of scarred, thick branch sections. She didn’t hesitate. Her foot almost flew off the round log, its surface slimy and wet, but she latched on to the honeysuckles to stay upright. The steps descended almost straight down like a ladder. She should have faced the other way before she’d started, but she couldn’t do anything about it now. Her body hurt too much to twist into a new position.
Scrabbling directly behind her told her the teens hadn’t waited for her to clear.
Sinking into the mud, Reena shuffled to the side, over the small rocks and pebbles. “Nathan!”
Nothing. Her blood pressure skyrocketed and she clamped a hand over her heart in an attempt to keep the organ from leaping out of her chest.
The mudslide’s destructive path laid waste to a massive swath of the landscape, easy to see from their position below. She didn’t care. Frantically searching for any sign of Nathan on their level commanded her attention.
“Uncle Nathan!” Ashleigh started running toward the remains of the mudslide. It still oozed, spreading thinner as it sank into the river and found no resistance to claim the banks.
Reena caught up to the girl and grabbed her sleeve. “Slow down.” Panting, she blinked against the black spots crowding her vision. “You don’t want to get sucked in.”
“But he’s in there.” Ashleigh yanked hard, ripping her coat from Reena’s hold. “What if he’s drowning?”
“We have to stay positive.” Reena choked on the words. They tasted like ash and hopeful dreams. “He’s fine.” He had to be.
In two determined strides, Reena reached the river and glared at the jutting large sections of tree trunks, dead limbs, and mud seeping among its depths. Tears fell freely, half for Nathan and half for herself. Her body couldn’t take much more, but she wouldn’t stop until she found him. Hopping onto a boulder closest to the mudflow, she wobbled, her caked boots finding no traction on the wet surface. Like Pride Rock in The Lion King, the stone angled upward and she carefully moved to the end jutting over the water, then knelt and gripped the rough edge. “Come on, Nathan,” she whispered, the socks on her hands another reminder of him. “Where are you?”
On the other side of the river, along a copse of virile shrubs, a large blob of mud wavered, a bubble forming. The murky dome rose high and thick. Reena sucked in a breath. Was that him? The mud shifted again, popping the bubble with a splat. The spark of hope fizzled.
