our
way. The crumbled debris from the buildings on both sides blocked the entire
area. With the newly formed abyss in front of us and the out-of-control inferno
behind us closing in fast, we were trapped.
“We’re going to have to
climb over. Can you make it?” Max yelled.
“I think so.” I nodded,
not sure he could hear me because I couldn’t hear myself—the noise around us
drowned out my extremely hoarse voice.
“Okay, follow me. Try
to step where I step. Some of this stuff doesn’t look too sturdy and might
collapse under us.”
Max stepped up onto the
pile where it formed a three-foot ledge, and stretched out his hand to me. Grabbing
hold, he hoisted me up onto the block. After he released my hand, he continued
to climb, slowly and gently tapping his foot and testing each piece of concrete
before putting all of his weight onto it. Careful to place my foot exactly
where his had been, I followed close behind until we reached the top.
Max stopped suddenly, almost
losing his balance and falling forward.
“Oh God,” he sighed,
bending over, clutching his knees.
I’d seen a similar
expression of defeat in Max once or twice on the soccer field after missing a
goal, but this was much worse.
“What? What’s wrong?” I
placed my foot next to his at the top of the ledge and stared down as I realized
what made Max recoil—a forty-foot drop about fifteen feet wide.
Max crouched down, looked
at me, and shook his head. “There’s nowhere to go.”
Chapter
6
~~
Courtland ~~
I finally let go of
Shiloh, not wanting to leave her there on the ground, but what could I do? I
willed my legs to straighten and stared at the rubble around me. So much
damage. Cries and whimpers reverberated through the air from all directions. I
glanced around, searching for anybody who needed help. From what I could make
out, most of the whimpering came from kids standing around, looking dazed and
confused as though they were extras in a D-rated zombie movie. I choked on fragments
of dust clouds and stepped over fallen walls, searching for signs of anybody
trapped. How could any of this be real?
I headed toward the
library. When I left it earlier, a few girls had been hanging out in there
giving Mrs. Snow a hard time about not carrying their favorite paranormal book.
With all those unsecured shelves full of heavy hardcover books, I thought it
might be a good idea to check to make sure she was okay. Almost every bookshelf
had tumbled over. Books lay scattered around the room. One of the books on
earthquake preparedness I almost checked out before I decided on another lay
open on the floor. I picked it up and shoved the small paperback in my jacket
pocket. To my right I noticed a hand moving underneath one of the piles of
books. I hurried to it, shoving the mess away to discover Mrs. Snow. Reddish
bruises marked her arms and face, her eyes glistened with fear.
“Are you okay?” I
asked.
Her entire body shook
but she nodded. “You?”
I helped her up and
away from the debris. “I’m okay.” My voice trembled in my throat and I thought
for sure I’d lose that burnt chocolate Pop Tart I wolfed down at breakfast. My
dad wasn’t big on supplying the house with nutritious food. I supposed I should
have been grateful for the fact that we even had Pop Tarts in the cupboard. Too
bad the toaster had been set on high now the burnt edges of the pastry threatened
to reappear. Squelching the thoughts of breakfast, my mind flashed on my dad
and I hoped he was okay.
Mrs. Snow and I
stumbled out of what was left of the school library. The entire area looked
like a bomb had gone off. Crumbled walls and ceilings, a ton of glass and brick
lay all over the place. I helped her to settle down on the steps of the school
entrance. They seemed to be the only thing left that escaped the wrath of the
earthquake.
A faint voice caught my
attention and I stopped, realizing it was the sound of muffled shouts.
“Please, help!
Somebody, please help
way. The crumbled debris from the buildings on both sides blocked the entire
area. With the newly formed abyss in front of us and the out-of-control inferno
behind us closing in fast, we were trapped.
“We’re going to have to
climb over. Can you make it?” Max yelled.
“I think so.” I nodded,
not sure he could hear me because I couldn’t hear myself—the noise around us
drowned out my extremely hoarse voice.
“Okay, follow me. Try
to step where I step. Some of this stuff doesn’t look too sturdy and might
collapse under us.”
Max stepped up onto the
pile where it formed a three-foot ledge, and stretched out his hand to me. Grabbing
hold, he hoisted me up onto the block. After he released my hand, he continued
to climb, slowly and gently tapping his foot and testing each piece of concrete
before putting all of his weight onto it. Careful to place my foot exactly
where his had been, I followed close behind until we reached the top.
Max stopped suddenly, almost
losing his balance and falling forward.
“Oh God,” he sighed,
bending over, clutching his knees.
I’d seen a similar
expression of defeat in Max once or twice on the soccer field after missing a
goal, but this was much worse.
“What? What’s wrong?” I
placed my foot next to his at the top of the ledge and stared down as I realized
what made Max recoil—a forty-foot drop about fifteen feet wide.
Max crouched down, looked
at me, and shook his head. “There’s nowhere to go.”
Chapter
6
~~
Courtland ~~
I finally let go of
Shiloh, not wanting to leave her there on the ground, but what could I do? I
willed my legs to straighten and stared at the rubble around me. So much
damage. Cries and whimpers reverberated through the air from all directions. I
glanced around, searching for anybody who needed help. From what I could make
out, most of the whimpering came from kids standing around, looking dazed and
confused as though they were extras in a D-rated zombie movie. I choked on fragments
of dust clouds and stepped over fallen walls, searching for signs of anybody
trapped. How could any of this be real?
I headed toward the
library. When I left it earlier, a few girls had been hanging out in there
giving Mrs. Snow a hard time about not carrying their favorite paranormal book.
With all those unsecured shelves full of heavy hardcover books, I thought it
might be a good idea to check to make sure she was okay. Almost every bookshelf
had tumbled over. Books lay scattered around the room. One of the books on
earthquake preparedness I almost checked out before I decided on another lay
open on the floor. I picked it up and shoved the small paperback in my jacket
pocket. To my right I noticed a hand moving underneath one of the piles of
books. I hurried to it, shoving the mess away to discover Mrs. Snow. Reddish
bruises marked her arms and face, her eyes glistened with fear.
“Are you okay?” I
asked.
Her entire body shook
but she nodded. “You?”
I helped her up and
away from the debris. “I’m okay.” My voice trembled in my throat and I thought
for sure I’d lose that burnt chocolate Pop Tart I wolfed down at breakfast. My
dad wasn’t big on supplying the house with nutritious food. I supposed I should
have been grateful for the fact that we even had Pop Tarts in the cupboard. Too
bad the toaster had been set on high now the burnt edges of the pastry threatened
to reappear. Squelching the thoughts of breakfast, my mind flashed on my dad
and I hoped he was okay.
Mrs. Snow and I
stumbled out of what was left of the school library. The entire area looked
like a bomb had gone off. Crumbled walls and ceilings, a ton of glass and brick
lay all over the place. I helped her to settle down on the steps of the school
entrance. They seemed to be the only thing left that escaped the wrath of the
earthquake.
A faint voice caught my
attention and I stopped, realizing it was the sound of muffled shouts.
“Please, help!
Somebody, please help
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