Catalyst

by Ross Richdale

  ****

  CHAPTER 8

  When the earth shook, Renee gave an involuntary shudder and glanced up from the book she was reading. What began as a slight shaking of their overhead light was within seconds a rolling tremor. Seconds later the area jolted violently and was accompanied by a rumbling like thunder during a summer's storm.

  "What's wrong?" she asked.

  "Trouble!" Lem yelled.

  Courtney screamed when the light went out and the trio were plunged in darkness, a total blackout. This lasted mere seconds.

  "Oh, my God," Renee hissed.

  The whole area to their east lit up in a bright flash, so strong she had to shade her eyes.

  "Lightning," screamed Courtney. "But how, down here?"

  The whole cavern was lit by a pulsing red and yellow glow. The rumbling continued, accompanied by sudden movement of air. A gust that sucked towards the light turned to a gale, which buffeted Renee's face. Words were torn from her mouth, hair flung into her eyes and the book pages flapped.

  Choking dust twirled, stung her eyes and entered her nose. She could not breath. It was blocking everything. Where were her crutches? They'd been blown aside. Magazines, plastic bags and other light objects flew through the air and the tent flapped. Only heavy restraining pegs held it secure.

  She sputtered a rasping cough to clear her throat and sucked in dust-laden air, only to find herself choking again. Her eyes could barely function as tears tried to flush them clean. Her lungs protested. She heaved and gasped like an asthmatic. The more she tried to breathe, the worse it became.

  She forced her stinging eyes open. Everything was lit up, so every stalactite and stalagmite stood out like a monstrous Greek temple. Desperate, Renee attempted to stand but her broken ankle would not support her weight and she was pitched sideways onto the ground.

  Panic set in.

  But help was at hand. A muscular arm grabbed her and she was half carried and half dragged into the flapping tent. Lem shouted something in her ear.

  "Oxygen," he yelled. "Put on the mask."

  She felt his hand place a small plastic mask over her face. There was a faint hiss inside her head and cool fresh air entered her raw throat. She could breath!

  "Take it slowly." Lem's muffled voice punctured her senses. "The air is being sucked away."

  Renee opened her eyes, rubbed the stinging tears aside and glanced around. Orange canvas flapped above the dark blue floor. Courtney was coughing beside her but had managed to pull the tent door zipper down.

  Renee breathed that fresh, delicious oxygen into her lungs and squeezed Lem's hand. "Thank you."

  But there was no time to say more. Another gigantic rumble made her jump in terror and the world blacked out. Total blackness surrounded her as if someone had punched out her eyes but all other senses were on overdrive. She felt dust even inside the tent. The taste of grit filled her mouth, her eyes smarted and she could smell scorched milk.

  Scorched milk, how could that be? It wasn't, of course but there was a distinct aroma of burnt objects.

  A light came on, a local friendly light. Lem had turned on his helmet flashlight.

  "The tent!" Courtney screamed.

  Renee frowned before she understood. The flapping stopped. Everything became quiet but this was only momentary. When the flapping began again it was less powerful and only buffeted the canvas gently but while the air was still dust-laden, it felt different.

  Lem removed his mask and a pale smile came to his lips. "We have air. I think we can breathe without the masks."

  Renee removed her mask and took several tentative breaths. The air appeared fresh. The wind slowed to a breeze and finally nothing. Lem looked as if he'd grown a ginger-beard and Courtney was wide- eyed and open-mouthed.

  "What was it?" the youngster gasped.

  "An explosion followed by a cave-in, I think," Lem answered. "It sucked our air away and the following landslide collapsed the cave to our east and sealed us in."

  "But we can breathe," Courtney argued.

  "There must be an entrance somewhere in the direction where we fell in. Perhaps the earthquake made a hole."

  Renee replied, "New air from the upper cave rushed into the vacuum. That was the changed wind direction."

  "I'd say so," Lem concluded.

  Renee found Lem's arm around her and noticed he also held the shaking teenager. She began to speak but stopped. Another earthquake had arrived. The tent shook, some equipment outside clanged, the shake subsided and silence returned to their lonely prison.

  "Oh, Lem," Renee cried. "Is it over?"

  "I think so. Stay here and I'll slip out for a peek."

  He squeezed both their arms and walked away.

  "I was petrified," Courtney confessed. "When I couldn't breathe I thought that was it."

  Their conversation was interrupted when Lem returned. "It's a mess out there but the air is fresh. Even the hot stink has gone. However, the light doesn't go on and all contact with the surface is broken." He produced a flask. "Here, quench your throats. The food is all over the place." He sat and grinned. "There'll be no more earthquakes, though." Nobody said a word and his expectant look turned to disappointment. "Well, aren't you going to ask why?"

  "I know why," Renee whispered.

  "I don't. How?" Courtney shrieked in exasperation.

  Renee pulled back the tent flap. "The glowworms have lit up." She frowned. "I'd forgotten but just before it happened, I'm sure they switched off. I glanced up from my book and saw it. Seconds later the quake started."

  "So it must be a good sign," Lem added.

  "But how would a tiny insect know?" Courtney asked.

  "They knew," Lem replied. "And I reckon they know it's okay now."

  And so it was. No more tremors arrived, the air remained pure and a million glowworms covered their artificial sky like friends offering guidance and support. Ten minutes later the light came on but the microphone and speaker remained silent.

  "Well, back to being Robinson Crusoe," Lem said.

  "Yeah and two Girl Fridays," Courtney replied.

  ****

  The day passed slowly, an anticlimax fueled by the apprehension of not knowing what was happening outside. During the afternoon the light flickered in a distinct rhythm.

  Renee frowned and clicked her fingers. "Of course. Have we a pencil handy?"

  "I think so," Courtney replied. She rummaged through one of the containers, produced a note pad and pen and handed them to Renee.

  Meanwhile, the light flickered a steady pattern.

  "Someone is sending us Morse Code," Renee said. She wrote the short and long flickers down as dots and dashes.

  While the others watched, she continued for several moments before grinning. "One message is being repeated." She held up the note pad. "Now I have to work it out."

  "They've stopped." Lem nodded at the light that glowed without a flicker.

  But Renee wasn't listening. She wrote letters down, frowned, scratched a few out and replaced them, before she smiled and studied her effort. "Here it is. I learned it years ago as a girl scout. It fascinated me and I still know most codes. Daddy would have remembered that." She read the message. "Turn off light two times."

  It was Courtney who rushed over and pressed the tiny switch above the bulb. They were plunged into darkness. It returned when she pressed the switch again and repeated the maneuver.

  They waited but the bulb glowed without a blink.

  "Do it again," Lem said.

  After the third time they stared at the bulb and waited.

  "Shit!" Courtney whispered when it flickered on and off once more.

  Renee grabbed the pen and again jotted down the code. A few moments later she handed the note pad to Lem who read it.

  "Drilling new hole. Old pipe blocked...take time. Do not worry if ceiling shakes. Love, Daddy."

  ****

  Jack broke into a broad smile when, for a second time the amp gauge on the generator flicke
d back, stopped and resumed its original position.

  "They're alive," he hooted in excitement and placed a sloppy kiss on the woman next to him, then realized what he'd done and broke into profuse apologies.

  "Why apologize, Jack?" Amy was excited, too. "If we can't show our emotions at a time like this, when can we?"

  "Yes but..." Jack flushed and looked at Gary for support.

  The trooper grinned and shrugged. "Well, you'd better work out the next message old timer. I thought Morse code had gone out of fashion years ago."

  "Probably has," Jack replied, "but this just shows the newfangled things aren't always the best."

  He sat, wrote out his message, scratched out unnecessary words and assigned the code to it.

  From the messages that arrived from Renee, Jack and his companions found that the three were safe but curious about the cause of the explosion.

  "Tell them not to move away from their present site," Gary advised. "It'll take awhile for the new access hole to be drilled and we don't know how stable the cavern is."

  "Right," Jack replied, his eyes aglow.

  ****

  Afternoon turned to evening and the pair were still by the generator when Stephanie arrived.

  "The drill hit an unexpected piece of hard strata and has had to slow down. The foreman reckons they won't be through before morning." She smiled at Jack. "Why don't you two go back to the campground?"

  "But what if messages come through?" Jack protested.

  "We had a copy of the code sent to us," the officer continued. "I'm here all night and if a message comes through I'll work it out." She placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "It'll take a little longer but I'm sure we can decode any message."

  "Come on, Jack," Amy persuaded. "Exhausting yourself won't help anything."

  "No, I guess not." Jack smiled when Amy handed him his walking stick but he hesitated and turned. "Can I ask one favor?"

  "Sure."

  "Could you drive the Chevy back to camp? When I'm tired my bad side shakes and I find it difficult to drive."

  "Of course but on one condition."

  Jack frowned.

  "Oh, Jack," Amy said and squeezed his arm. "I was going to invite you for dinner at the trailer I rented. It has a full kitchen unit." She hesitated before continuing in a quiet voice. "Like you, I hate waiting around. Cooking is my way of occupying my mind but to do it just for myself..."

  "You know, I love cooking, too," Jack replied. "It's one way I help Renee. When she gets home from work late and she's tired, I have a meal waiting."

  "So you'll come?"

  "Yes, love to," Jack replied. "I get sick of those diner meals all the time. There's nothing like home cooking, I say."

  ****

  It was a wonder Renee's and Courtney's ears didn't burn, for all evening Jack and Amy discussed their offspring with pride.

  "We're wrapped up in our kids, aren't we Jack?" Amy said. "I've missed Courtney over the last few months."

  "Renee has always been there for me."

  "So, what else do you do, Jack?"

  "Well, the farm became a burden so except for a couple home fields, it's leased out. I potter around."

  Amy listened as Jack talked and she told a little of her own life. She had been a widow for three years and had only one daughter. She smiled. "Thanks for listening to me ramble on."

  Jack returned the smile. "I enjoyed it."

  And he had. When he drove the short distance to his cabin an hour later his thoughts were on the pleasant evening. Amy was different than his late wife in many ways but in others she was the same. He sighed. It was stupid to compare the living with the dead. She was a pleasant woman who shared the same near tragedy. Once Renee and Amy's granddaughter came to the surface he'd probably never see her again. He chuckled. It was a great evening, though.

  ****

  CHAPTER 9

  "Watch the birdie," Courtney yelled when Renee woke up.

  The waking woman's senses were on full alert but there was no danger this time. Instead she saw an impulsive grin and Courtney with a digital camera in her hand.

  "Where did you get that?"

  "It came down through the new hole they drilled. If you weren't such a sleepy head, you and old Lem here wouldn't have missed the fun."

  Renee turned; noticed Lem was still asleep and returned to her young friend. "Okay, what fun?"

  "I've been talking to everyone," Courtney said with a smirk. "Grandma, your dad, Gary and Stephanie. Everyone. You never told me your father has a real twinkle in his eye."

  "Courtney." Renee sounded exasperated. "What are you babbling on about?"

  "Okay but I couldn't help having fun. Here, hold the camera." Still perplexed, Renee took the instrument while Courtney disappeared only to reappear seconds later with a laptop in her hand. She plunked it on a backpack at the end of Renee's sleeping bag and turned it so the screen could be seen.

  "Hi, Sweetheart," said a familiar face from the screen.

  Renee gasped. "Daddy?"

  "Courtney was right." Her father chuckled. "You certainly know how to sleep. I can't see much now, though. Only the inside of the tent."

  Renee grabbed the camera and aimed it at the girl. "This is public nuisance number one, Dad," she said in a somber voice. "I guess you've already met her."

  "Oh, yes," Jack answered. "She's told me everything."

  "I hope not," Renee whispered with her hand over the microphone part of the camera and switched her eyes to her companion. "You didn't..."

  Courtney shook her head but continued to smile mercilessly. "What's it worth to shut up?" she sniggered.

  Renee tried to remain tight-lipped but failed miserably. She broke into a broad smile and grabbed the girl in a sudden headlock.

  "Renee," Courtney screamed. "Stop it. You're hurting."

  ****

  Lem sprung up in alarm as pandemonium broke out. The two females were just about knocking the tent over, the younger one screaming, kicking and flinging her arms, while the other lay sedately with her broken ankle sticking out from the edge of the sleeping bag. She had her arms around the bundle of energy trying to break free. It was his turn to be confused.

  "So that was it," a disheveled Courtney explained a few moments later. "The new hole they drilled is wider than the original, fifteen inches they told me." Her eyes caught the monitor and she lost her train of thought. "Oh, my God." She gasped.

  "Hi there, honey," Amy said from the screen. "You're looking well."

  Courtney stared at the camera. "Hi, Grandma," she replied in a humble voice. "You look no different."

  "You do too, Honey. You've grown into a beautiful young woman, I see. I like your hairstyle. Longer hair suits you."

  "Oh, Grandma." The girl seemed pleased at the attention given to her.

  ****

  Once the levity was over, Gary came on screen with a report on their situation. "The whole eastern sector of Misty Depths Catacombs exploded and caused a spontaneous collapse. There's now a gigantic crater where the caves were."

  "What happens now?" Lem asked.

  "We've decided to bring tunneling equipment. We'll dig through the section where you fell in. It could take two or three days, I'm afraid."

  The trio gazed at one another with mixed emotions before Lem said; "I guess we can hold out but what about Renee's ankle? She's comfortable with the clamps but the bone beneath hasn't been set."

  "I know," the sergeant replied. "I'm sorry but there's little else we can do."

  "At least we're alive and in good health," Renee said. "I am curious about something, sergeant."

  "What is that, Renee?"

  "The gas that exploded. Did you know it was there?"

  "You were sitting right above a grotto of compressed gas. It could have blown your cavern up at any time."

  "You knew?" Lem retorted.

  Despite his professional manner, the sergeant looked uncomfortable. "We never told you earlier because your morale would have
plummeted. Engineers here assure me the risk of another explosion is minimal."

  Amy appeared on the monitor. "We were told of the risk and it was our decision to keep it from you. That's because we love you."

  Courtney bit her bottom lip. "All those people are there to help us," she said after the laptop was switched off. "I never realized Grandma cared." She shrugged. "I never thought about her over the last few months. Even earlier, she was someone who visited, said nice things, always gave me a present, and then disappeared on an airplane. I got on with my life and took her for granted, I guess."

  "It's times like this when we need a family," Renee replied.

  Lem nodded and rubbed the girl's hair. "And what else came down the new hole, my girl?"

  "Food, clothes and more newspapers," she replied. "I almost forgot. There's a hot breakfast waiting. Come and get it before everything turns cold."

  She turned and disappeared outside.

  Renee turned and grinned at Lem. "Is it my imagination or is Courtney becoming quite a character?"

  "I think she always was but the tough times she went through suppressed it."

  "And yourself?"

  "What do you mean?"

  "Your wife didn't turn up," she whispered.

  "Good. I don't need her."

  "So who do you need?"

  "You."

  Renee looked up and saw serious, wide eyes gazing into hers. "You aren't joking are you, Lem?"

  "No. Am I being an old fool caught up in this artificial situation?"

  "Lem," Renee's voice was intense. She manipulated herself up and flung her arms around his neck. Her tongue ran across the top of her lips, she gave Lem a bruising kiss on the lips and wriggled in close. They kissed with passion before Renee pulled back. "Does that answer any doubts you have?" she whispered, kissed him again and ducked out of the tent.

  ****

  It was late evening and Jack was about to change and crawl into bed when he heard a knock. His immediate thoughts were that something must have gone wrong. What other reason would there be for someone to call at this hour? He rushed to the door and flung it open.

  Amy stood there.

  "What happened?" Jack asked.