Through the Mountains

by Kelvin Teo

"Please stand outside the bathroom while I’m in here."

  "Absolutely," he said, taking up guard duty, right square in the doorway, with his back to the bathroom.

  He could hear her drop her pants and sit down on the toilet. Any other time he would have been wanting to watch, but this was not one of those times.

  After she finished relieving herself and flushed the toilet, he could feel her walk up behind and he turned around and leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

  "I’m not going to let anything happen to you."

  She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight.

  "I’m scared."

  "So am I, sweetie."

  "I don’t mean just for us. I mean, I think something really bad has happened to Ali and she might be …"

  She stopped short of saying it, but he knew what she was thinking.

  "Hey, we’re going to find her and anyone that had anything to do with this had better pray she’s okay."

  Lizzie looked up into his eyes and said, "That sounds like something Clark would say."

  "He should have been here. As big and tough as he acts, he might have been able to keep her safe."

  She shook her head and said, "Let’s not be blaming him. We don’t know what happened and even if he could have stopped it."

  After he gave her a hug, he pulled away and said, "My turn."

  He stepped into the bathroom and went to close the door. She put a hand out and held it open.

  "Please don’t close the door."

  "Liz, I’m just going to the bathroom."

  "I know. I just don’t want a closed door between us right now."

  "Okay, but you don’t need to stand right here at the door."

  She nodded meekly and walked back to the bed and sat down. He went ahead and finished what he needed and walked back into the room. Walking over to the door, he double checked the locks and then switched off the main light, leaving only the small one near the bed on.

  He crawled onto the bed and laid down and she laid down next to him, in his arms. Before he allowed himself to close his eyes, he set the alarm on his phone for a couple of hours later and then closed his eyes.

  He drifted off to sleep wishing the circumstances were a lot different, having Lizzie laying in his arms. But still, now was not the time.

  8

  "What the hell?"

  Lizzie jerked awake and looked to see what Danny was talking about. She gasped when she saw the light of day streaming in under the curtains.

  "How did we sleep this long?" she asked.

  He reached over to take a look at his phone, but his hand felt a whole lot of nothing. Jerking up in the bed, he looked and didn’t see his phone. The charger was there, but the phone was not connected to it.

  "Where the hell did it go?" he said as he was looking on the floor and behind the end table.

  Lizzie dropped down off the bed and looked under it and came up with nothing.

  "Now, I’m truly terrified, Danny."

  "You and me both."

  Jumping out of bed, he went to the door and checked the locks. Both were still set, one of which could not have been set from the outside. Walking into the bathroom, he went to the window to check it and found it was locked and tightly closed. He unlocked it and pushed the window open. Looking out, he saw some fresh footprints in the mud outside that he knew weren’t his or Lizzie’s.

  "How did they get in here? Didn’t you lock that window last night?"

  Danny turned and looked at Lizzie, standing in the doorway.

  "Yes, I made damn sure it was locked. He pushed the window open again and leaned out to take a look at the edges. He couldn’t see anything suspicious, but there had to be some way someone was able to get the window open.

  He turned around and said, "Get dressed. We’re getting the hell out of here, even if we have to walk the whole way."

  She hesitated for a second and then turned and began gathering some clean clothes from her bag and began changing clothes. She didn’t care one bit that Danny was right next to her doing the same thing.

  When she was finished, she took her small shoulder pack and started filling it with what few snacks and water bottles they had left. Danny had brought his things in two smaller backpacks, so he emptied one of them and began doing the same thing she was doing.

  She reached into the bottom of her bag and pulled out her phone and checked it. Plenty of charge, but no signal. Stuffing it into the bag, she said she was ready.

  Danny grabbed her bag and put it in the top of his pack and began closing it up.

  "Hey, I can carry that myself. You don’t need to carry everything."

  "Lizzie, I don’t want you carrying anything. If at any time it becomes necessary to run, I don’t want you to be weighed down."

  A cold shiver ran through her at the thought of having to run for her life, but being a cheerleader, she was in pretty good shape. She knew she could run if she had to.

  "Let’s go," he said as he pulled the door open.

  Stopping to check the situation outside, he didn’t see anyone around. They stepped out of the room and he pulled the door closed as quietly as he could. Setting off across the parking lot, toward the road, he winced every time they took a step, hearing the gravel crunch under their feet.

  As they rounded the corner of the office and headed up to the road, they heard the door of the office open behind them.

  "You two going for a hike or something?"

  They stopped and looked to see Peaches standing in the doorway.

  "Yeah, we’ve been cooped up in the room for a couple of days now and we just want to get out and get some air," said Danny.

  "Well, don’t plan on going too far. The storm washed out the bridge yesterday and it might be some time before we can get back down the mountain."

  "Washed it out completely?"

  "Yes it did. It’s a real mess. At least, that’s what Zeke told me."

  "Okay, we’ll be careful of that."

  Then they turned and headed up onto the road and started walking. Lizzie took his hand and he could tell how terrified she was by the amount of pressure she was using to crush his hand.

  They walked without talking for the next half an hour. Lizzie never let go of Danny’s hand and he could tell she was just too terrified to even think. He knew the feeling well.

  It only took them about an hour to reach the bridge and they could see it was completely gone. Looking downstream, they could see remnants and pieces of the bridge scattered among the rocks and rapids.

  As they stood at the edge of where the bridge used to be, they could see there appeared to be no way across the raging river. Even though it had stopped raining at least twelve hours ago, the river was still high and showing no signs of going down soon.

  "What do we do, Danny?"

  He just looked at the water, the upstream and downstream. He couldn't see any way to get across the water from where they stood.

  "I don't know," he said. "I am certainly open for suggestions."

  They listened to the sound of the rushing water below and both of them began to feel their situation was becoming hopeless.

  "What if we walk along the river and see if we come to a place we can cross?" she asked.

  He looked upstream and could see that was out of the question.

  "We can't go that way because of the way the cliffs come right down to the water. We'll never make it past those cliffs."

  Looking downstream, he said, "We might be able to find a way down there. It looks like it's a bit flatter and will be easier to move along the river."

  "Let's go," she said, turning and pulling on his hand.

  He pulled back and stopped her.

  "What?"

  He was looking at the ground and then back up the road a little ways.

  "We need to backtrack a little, maybe a couple hundred yards," he said.

  "Okay, why?"

  "Because the ground right here is very wet. If they come
looking for us, the tracks we leave in this mud will be a dead giveaway. We need to go back just a little and look for a place we can slip off the road and not leave any tracks."

  She nodded.

  "Good plan."

  They started walking back up the road and within a couple of minutes, found a place where the ground was covered in a thick layer of pine needles.

  "Right here," he said. "Just make sure to pick up your feet and set them down flat. Try not to disturb any of the needles."

  He reached out a foot and pressed it down and lifted it back up. There was no evidence he had even set his foot there.

  "Okay," he said, "let's go, but be careful."

  He started down off the road, stepping as carefully as he could and she followed, placing her feet exactly behind his.

  After about five minutes, they were well out of sight of the road, when they heard the sound of the rattle-trap truck coming down the road. They ducked down behind some bushes and just watched. A few seconds later, they caught glimpses of the rusty, red truck driving toward the river. They could hear the driver lift off the gas and roll to a stop.

  They watched quietly from their vantage point and could barely see a bit of the truck, which was at least a hundred yards away. They caught sight of Zeke walking around the truck and could see him stop near the edge of the road.

  "Be very quiet and don't move," Danny said.

  "Shhhh," squeaked Lizzie.

  "It's okay," said Danny softly. "He won't be able to hear us over the sound of the rushing water. But, he might see us if we make even the slightest movement."

  They both watched as Zeke scanned the area and he didn't appear to be seeing them. Then they watched as he went to the other side of the road and looked upstream. After a minute, he came back to their side of the road and looked some more, before giving up and climbing back into his truck, turning around and heading back up the road.

  As he drove past the place that was even with where they were hiding, they could see his eyes still searching for them. He took his foot off the gas and the truck rolled slowly to a stop. Danny could feel Lizzie tensing up, like she was ready to bolt like a scared rabbit. He just squeezed her hand, trying to comfort her. After a few seconds, Zeke hit the gas and took off up the road and they could hear the truck driving away into the distance.

  "Let's get out of here," said Lizzie.

  "Just hold on," he said quietly.

  "What?"

  "I just want to make sure he really did leave. He knows we came this way and he knows he didn't pass us. The only possible explanation would be that we got off the road and are now heading downstream along the river."

  'How long should we wait?"

  "Let's give it about ten minutes. If we see no sign of him, we'll figure he's gone."

  Danny turned over on his back and rested his head on the backpack. Lizzie curled up next to him and he put his arm around her. He could feel her shaking and tried to rub her shoulders to keep her warm. Then he realized, she wasn't shaking because she was cold. She was shaking because she was scared.

  "We're getting out of here, Liz," he said softly. "Then we're coming back with the sheriff. We'll find Clark and Ali."

  "I hope so," she said quietly.

  They stayed there, behind the bushes for twenty minutes before Danny pulled away from her and rolled over to see if there was anything up by the road to be aware of. He scanned as much of it as he could see and there was nothing up there.

  "Okay, let's get out of here."

  They stood up as quietly as they could and she helped him get the backpack situated on his shoulders. Then they continued down the slope, weaving through the trees and looking for a way that would put them closer to the river.

  They could hear the waters just off to their left and could tell they were within twenty or thirty yards from the river's edge.

  For the next hour, they picked their way through the trees and Danny was hoping they would come across another road that would take them to the river and a bridge that had survived the storm. Having seen what the river did to the first bridge, he knew it might have wiped out all the bridges nearby.

  Lizzie stayed right behind him, being mesmerized by a zipper pull on the backpack, as it swung back and forth. Every now and then she had to shake her head to keep it clear and focused on their task.

  Just after noon, they came to what appeared to be a path through the woods and it looked like it was heading right toward the river.

  "Let's see where this goes," he said.

  Pushing their way through the brush and undergrowth, they came to a sight that caused them a glimmer of hope. The trail ran right up to a bridge that spanned the river. It wasn't enough to give them hope they were getting out of their predicament, though.

  It was a rope bridge strung between two trees. The ropes were separated by about four feet and they swayed gently in the breeze.

  "I don't like that at all," said Lizzie.

  "I don't like it either, but right now, I think it's our best bet for getting out of here."

  Danny moved to the end of the bridge and looked it over. It looked solid enough, but it also looked like it had been out here in the elements for years. As he set his foot on the lower rope and bounced it up and down, he could feel it give a little, but it felt strong.

  "Okay," he said, looking at her. "You want to go first or second?"

  "Oh my god, I don't know if I can do it."

  "Sure you can, Liz. I've used this type of bridge before and it's really easy. Just side-step your way across the river. Go as slow or as fast as you like, but, never take a step without having both hands firmly on the top rope."

  She looked at the ropes and could feel the fear rising up in her throat.

  "You go first," she said. "If I see you get safely across, I'm sure it will help me to do it."

  "I don't know, Lizzie. I hate the thought of leaving you here on this side, alone."

  She hadn't thought of that and it caused her heart to skip a beat. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

  "Just hurry so I don't have to wait too long."

  Danny stepped to the bridge and put his foot on it and bounced it up and down a few times. They could hear the creaking of the old ropes and he began to have serious doubts about the strength of the bridge. There was no telling how old the bridge was and it could come collapsing down into the river fifty feet below.

  The water rushed over some boulders that were directly below the bridge and Danny could tell a fall from there would almost certainly be fatal.

  Looking back at Lizzie, he said, "I’m not sure about this. It seems strong enough, but what the hell do I know?"

  "If we don’t go across this bridge, then what do we do? We can’t go back to the motel."

  "Well, we could. For all they know, we went for a hike in the woods and just returned."

  "I really don’t want to go back there," she said.

  "Well, that makes two of us," he said as he stepped up onto the bottom rope, putting all his weight on it.

  The rope held and he bounced his full weight on it and it seemed to be strong enough.

  He looked back at her and said, "Okay, watch how I do this and then follow me across as soon as I get to the other side. Take your time."

  She nodded to him and he started across.

  The bridge was at least one hundred feet across and Danny figured it would take him about five minutes to make it over. Doing exactly what he told her to do, he slid his feet sideways along the rope, making sure to have both hands on the upper rope at all times.

  As he inched his way across, he kept looking down and dreaded the thought of falling onto the rocks below. If the fall didn’t kill him outright, he’d probably break his neck and then drown.

  He glanced back at Lizzie and she had her hands cupped together in front of her chin, looking terrified for him.

  He gave her a quick smile and then took the next step, not paying attention to what he was doing and his l
eft foot slipped off the rope and then the right. In an instant, he found himself hanging by his hands over the raging water below.

  Her scream was enough to scatter all the birds in the trees for hundreds of yards around.

  The ropes were still wet from all the rain that had fallen over the past few hours and he could feel his hands starting to slip. Carrying a backpack that weighed at least thirty pounds wasn’t helping matters.

  Well, this is another fine mess you’ve gotten us into.

  "Danny!"

  He looked over and could see the terror in her eyes and realized he couldn’t leave her out here alone. If he ended up in the river, she’d die out here and it would be his fault.

  Mustering every bit of strength he could, he lifted his left leg and got his foot back on the bottom rope. Then he followed suit with his right foot and pushed himself back up to a standing position.

  Wrapping his arms over the rope, letting it run under his armpits, he took a moment to calm himself and get ready to continue across.

  He looked at Lizzie and yelled, "Don’t be stupid like me. Pay attention to every single step you take on this bridge."

  Taking a couple of deep breaths, he wrapped his hands around the rope again and started inching his way along the bridge. A couple of minutes later he stepped off the bridge onto solid ground. Looking back at Lizzie, he raised his arms in victory and he thought he heard her laugh slightly.

  "Come on over, Lizzie! Take your time!"

  He shrugged off the pack and set it down by a tree and went back to the ropes. He wanted to put his weight on the ropes to help keep them steady when she started across.

  It took a couple of minutes for her to work up the courage, but she stepped up onto the rope and grabbed the upper one and began sliding her feet, one after the other, toward the other shore.

  As she got out over the river and looked at the rocks below, she felt a terror rising up in her chest like she hadn’t known in her entire life. Being the top girl in the cheerleader pyramid didn’t scare her nearly as much as staring at the rushing water below.

  Just before she reached the halfway point, Danny started to hear some creaking from the rope and noticed it was starting to sag more in the middle. He looked behind himself and the rope looked solid. He stepped away from the bridge so he could see past Lizzie and what he saw caused his heart to stop.