never forget that sound. He had often imagined the world blowing up, and for a moment he thought it might be happening. It sounded like a huge thumb had been jammed inside a really enormous mouth and then come rocketing out with a colossal pop.
A fraction of a second after the explosion, the boulder Brian was standing on shifted, and he came crashing down. He screeched as he fell and then slammed into the earth flat on his back.
After that it seemed very, very quiet. Brian couldnât even hear himself breathe.
Because he wasnât.
Roniâs face rose in front of him like a big full moon. She stared down at him. âAre you okay?â
Brian tried to say something, but couldnât. The fall had knocked the wind out of him. He felt as if his lungs had been squeezed flat and glued together. Roniâs face grew larger.
âBrian?â Roniâs voice rose to a panicky screech.
âHeek, heeek,â Brian managed to sayâand then Roni was grabbing him, trying to help him sit up. She looks scared, Brian thought as he fought to breathe.
âBrian?â Roniâs voice rose another octave.
Brian closed his eyes, and suddenly the bands around his chest loosened and he drew a shuddering breath.
âI . . . Iâm okay,â he said, even though he wasnât sure it was true. For a few seconds Brian just sat there enjoying the sensation of air flowing in and out of his lungs.
âAre you sure youâre okay?â Roni asked.
Brian moved his arms and legs. All in working order. âIâm fine. I think.â
âYou sure?â
Brian climbed to his feet. He was shaky, but nothing hurt. âYes . . . except . . .â He reached into the side pocket of his cargo pants and came out with his dadâs five-hundred-dollar digital cameraâor what was left of it.
âThis doesnât look good,â Brian said.
âYou have to break a few eggs if you want to make lemonade,â Roni said. âWhat was that big bang, anyway?â
Brian remembered what he had seen as the explosion had rocked him from his perch: a fountain of dust and rock erupting from the face of the bluff. âIâve got a bad feeling about this.â
19
red shirt
Roni followed Brian down the steep coulee as he picked his way around trees and scrambled over boulders.
âDo you think it was our fault? Because we were standing on top of the cave?â Roni asked.
âNo way,â Brian said. Roni could tell by his tone of voice that Brian thought her concern was stupid. âThat was some kind of explosion.â
Ten minutes later the coulee spilled out onto a weedy field. They turned right and soon found themselves looking up at the bluff.
âIt looks different,â Roni said.
âIâm going up,â said Brian. He started climbing. Roni stayed behind and watched him make his way up the face of the bluff. It took him only a few minutes to reach the ledge that led to the cave. She waited for him to disappear into the concealed cave entrance, but he just stood there for a few seconds, then came back down the bluff.
âItâs gone,â he said.
âGone?â
âNo cave. Caveless.â
âThe cave caved in?â Roni was glad they had not been inside when it happened.
âMore like it blew up,â Brian said. âLike somebody dynamited the cave entrance.â
âWhy would someone do that?â
âObviously to keep anybody from finding out whatâs inside.â
âSo now what?â Roni asked, feeling defeated.
âWell, we could get some picks and shovels and start digging . . .â
âOr we could go to the police,â said Roni, who did not like the idea of digging her way into a cave full of bats and old bones.
âAnd tell them what?â Brian said. âIs it illegal to dynamite a cave?â
âI think itâs illegal to blow up anything. The land belongs to the college. I bet theyâd
Zoe Sharp
Back in the Saddle (v5.0)
Sloan Parker
Morgan Bell
Dave Pelzer
Leandra Wild
Truman Capote
Unknown
Tina Wainscott
Melissa Silvey