Page 103 of Little Girls Sleeping
“I’m going to send a rope down to you. Are you strong enough to pull yourself up?”
“I think so…”
There was a rumbling sound beneath Chad’s feet, and the dirt on the ground shook and spilled inward. He froze, then looked back at the Jeep, with the engine idling and Cisco inside. It was shaking, moving from side to side.
No…
With nothing to do but wait, he remained in his position. The sound finally stopped, and didn’t appear to have caused any more damage to the hole.
“Katie?”
“I’m okay, please hurry.”
Chad jumped up and released the winch. The large spool began to unroll and he guided the cable with a hook on the end toward the mouth of the hole. He realized that he was holding his breath as he moved as quickly as possible. The ground turned spongy beneath his feet, so he dropped to his stomach and army-crawled toward the opening, before coming to an abrupt stop. The ground morphed and began to cave in. He couldn’t get any closer.
“Katie, you’ll have to climb up a little bit. Hurry.”
He guided the cable inside the hole, then retraced his path until he was at the Jeep once again.
“Say when!” he yelled.
Katie sat immobile, huddled, her body frozen and muscles severely cramped. Pure fear had gripped her chest and throat, making it difficult to breathe. She remembered her mantra,You’re not going to win, and repeated it out loud, over and over. She knew that Chad was out there, and that he must be scared and worried about her.
Fine dirt began to sift down the sides of her safe haven. It built a momentum of earth, cascading down and covering her in layers. Soon she was finding it almost impossible to breathe, but the dirt kept coming.
Out of fear of being buried alive, she clawed her way upward, though she wasn’t making any real headway. She heard the sound of an engine in the distance, as well as Cisco’s distinct bark. Pushing through her exhaustion, she scrabbled through mounds of dirt, searching for the rope that Chad was trying to get to her.
No lifeline came.
Her dwindling energy was being used up in keeping the dirt from completely immobilizing her. She was fighting an endless barrage of soil; there was no other way of escaping other than to keep pushing it away. It was in her mouth and nose, making her cough and choke.
Still no lifeline came.
Chad, you tried. For that I will always be grateful.
She sat back and waited her fate.
There was so much she was grateful for, and so many people who had made an impact on her life—she loved them all.
Just when she felt at her most bleak and hopeless, a metal hook connected to a cable appeared. It was like a beacon in the darkness. Taking a deep breath and remembering all the past challenges she had faced, Katie pushed her body upward and took hold of the hook.
Her bloody fingers and cold hands somehow held on tight as she yelled with every ounce of her strength, “Okay, pull!”
She wasn’t sure if Chad had heard her, but an invisible force began to pull her up and out of the shaft. As she reached the surface, the fading daylight was like heaven to her. The winch continued to pull her across the ground on her belly. She could barely feel her hands, but she gritted her teeth and clung on.
As Chad manned the winch, he watched the mouth of the hole, hoping that Katie could hang on long enough to get to safety. When he saw her emerging from the ground covered in dirt and wearing only panties and a bra, his heart broke for what she must’ve experienced. She was alone and vulnerable, but she had fought her way back to everything she loved.
She let go of the hook, and stood up, wavering, then started to run toward the Jeep. Cisco had squeezed out through the driver’s window and ran to her, knocking her down again. He gently took her wrist in his mouth and began to pull her; Chad met them, helping Katie to her feet and guiding her to the car.
“You okay?” he asked.
She could only nod her answer, but it was clear that she was weak and struggling to maintain control of her body.
“C’mon, Cisco. Get in the car,” he ordered. The dog obediently jumped into the back.
Holding Katie tight, Chad helped her into the passenger seat, then gunned the engine into reverse, moving as far away from the unstable area as he could. When he figured they were in a safe place, he stopped the car and got out, running around to the back to search for a sweatshirt and a blanket. He helped Katie put the sweatshirt on and wrapped the blanket around her. He had never felt anyone that cold before—even during rescues with the fire department. She was shivering uncontrollably and her skin was pale; she was obviously suffering from hypothermia.
She looked at Chad in silence, but her dark-green eyes conveyed more than mere words could ever do.
