off.
“You’d better go and stop her before she drowns. I’ll be okay,” I assured Sammy.
“You sure?”
“Uh huh. Go. Hurry.”
“I think she’s drunk,” Sammy yelled back as she ran toward the beach.
I turned away from her, and in the gathering darkness, I entered the woods alone, on Skull Island.
Chapter Seven
I wandered far enough into the woods for no sounds from the beach to reach me. No people hooting and hollering, not even the loud music from the radio could be heard. I figured that way I would be far enough away for some privacy.
Except for the forest sounds, all else was silent.
So when a stick snapped beneath my foot, echoing eerily through the trees, I jumped—and so did my heart. The sharp caw of a lone crow that followed, somewhere above the tree tops, sent chills down my spine. I lifted my eyes, but could see nothing through the thick canopy of twisted branches but a few specks of darkening sky.
With a sense of urgency, I did what I had to do and headed back—at least, I thought I was headed back. It didn’t take me long to realize I’d been walking too long and should have been back already.
I was lost. Panic set in. I was on an island for crying out loud. Didn’t it have to end somewhere? I resisted the urge to yell out. If I could make it to the shore, I could find my way around and back to my friends. I would be embarrassed of course, and with being the new girl and trying to fit in, my image was fragile. I didn’t want to shatter what I’d spent a week building up.
It had been a good half-hour since I’d left the warmth of the camp fire behind. My cell phone was on the blanket back at the beach, and I hadn’t thought to ask someone for a flashlight.
The fear of being alone in the forest after dark quickened my pace, making me stumble over a tree root. I fell, ripping my new jeans and cutting my knee. I wanted to curl up and cry, but refused to allow myself that luxury—and also, I didn’t want my mascara to run. I picked myself up off of the moss-covered ground and continued onward.
“Okay, Brooke, this is ridiculous.”
I tried talking out loud to calm myself, but my voice in the quiet stillness of the dim forest sounded eerie to me, so I refrained from speaking again. There were no signs of wild life now; even the crow had left me.
I had a fleeting thought that maybe I should stay put; someone had to be looking for me by now. Anxiety won over my reasoning and I keep moving.
A new panic set in as the darkness gathered in around me. I hurried my pace, almost to a run, not watching where I walked. My foot landed on something soft—too soft. Before I could get my other foot in front of me, I was falling. I screamed as I fell. With a loud thud I hit bottom. Everything went silent, even my breathing.
Momentarily stunned, I sat in the new darkness, unmoving until pain in my ankle brought me back to reality. I must have twisted it when I hit bottom, but bottom of what?
“Ow.” My voice reverberated back to me, joining the sound of my accelerated heartbeat. I propped myself up on my hands and pulled my injured leg out from the awkward position it was in, straightening it out in front of me. Something sharp dug into the back of my other leg. I reached under and pulled out what felt like a stick and tossed it away from me. It made a hollow sound as it hit the ground. Where was I? I had stepped on something soft and had fallen. With wide eyes, I looked up and sucked in a sharp breath.
Oh no
! It wasn’t a bad dream. The undeniable pain in my ankle was a clear reminder of the fact that I was awake. I looked at the dim circle of light high above me. It was a long way up. No light found its way down here—in the dark—where I was—alone.
I found my voice and yelled for help. Over and over again I yelled out. Pride didn’t matter anymore. I yelled despite the ache in my dry throat. I yelled until my voice cracked, and then I sobbed.
“This can’t be happening.” My
“You’d better go and stop her before she drowns. I’ll be okay,” I assured Sammy.
“You sure?”
“Uh huh. Go. Hurry.”
“I think she’s drunk,” Sammy yelled back as she ran toward the beach.
I turned away from her, and in the gathering darkness, I entered the woods alone, on Skull Island.
Chapter Seven
I wandered far enough into the woods for no sounds from the beach to reach me. No people hooting and hollering, not even the loud music from the radio could be heard. I figured that way I would be far enough away for some privacy.
Except for the forest sounds, all else was silent.
So when a stick snapped beneath my foot, echoing eerily through the trees, I jumped—and so did my heart. The sharp caw of a lone crow that followed, somewhere above the tree tops, sent chills down my spine. I lifted my eyes, but could see nothing through the thick canopy of twisted branches but a few specks of darkening sky.
With a sense of urgency, I did what I had to do and headed back—at least, I thought I was headed back. It didn’t take me long to realize I’d been walking too long and should have been back already.
I was lost. Panic set in. I was on an island for crying out loud. Didn’t it have to end somewhere? I resisted the urge to yell out. If I could make it to the shore, I could find my way around and back to my friends. I would be embarrassed of course, and with being the new girl and trying to fit in, my image was fragile. I didn’t want to shatter what I’d spent a week building up.
It had been a good half-hour since I’d left the warmth of the camp fire behind. My cell phone was on the blanket back at the beach, and I hadn’t thought to ask someone for a flashlight.
The fear of being alone in the forest after dark quickened my pace, making me stumble over a tree root. I fell, ripping my new jeans and cutting my knee. I wanted to curl up and cry, but refused to allow myself that luxury—and also, I didn’t want my mascara to run. I picked myself up off of the moss-covered ground and continued onward.
“Okay, Brooke, this is ridiculous.”
I tried talking out loud to calm myself, but my voice in the quiet stillness of the dim forest sounded eerie to me, so I refrained from speaking again. There were no signs of wild life now; even the crow had left me.
I had a fleeting thought that maybe I should stay put; someone had to be looking for me by now. Anxiety won over my reasoning and I keep moving.
A new panic set in as the darkness gathered in around me. I hurried my pace, almost to a run, not watching where I walked. My foot landed on something soft—too soft. Before I could get my other foot in front of me, I was falling. I screamed as I fell. With a loud thud I hit bottom. Everything went silent, even my breathing.
Momentarily stunned, I sat in the new darkness, unmoving until pain in my ankle brought me back to reality. I must have twisted it when I hit bottom, but bottom of what?
“Ow.” My voice reverberated back to me, joining the sound of my accelerated heartbeat. I propped myself up on my hands and pulled my injured leg out from the awkward position it was in, straightening it out in front of me. Something sharp dug into the back of my other leg. I reached under and pulled out what felt like a stick and tossed it away from me. It made a hollow sound as it hit the ground. Where was I? I had stepped on something soft and had fallen. With wide eyes, I looked up and sucked in a sharp breath.
Oh no
! It wasn’t a bad dream. The undeniable pain in my ankle was a clear reminder of the fact that I was awake. I looked at the dim circle of light high above me. It was a long way up. No light found its way down here—in the dark—where I was—alone.
I found my voice and yelled for help. Over and over again I yelled out. Pride didn’t matter anymore. I yelled despite the ache in my dry throat. I yelled until my voice cracked, and then I sobbed.
“This can’t be happening.” My
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