Slipping on a latex glove, the detective lowered to her heels. “Is that blood?”
“Yes. My people have already taken a sample for analysis.”
Angela ran her hand over the fine grass to where the blades stuck together in the dried crimson, plucking free a blue piece of material. “She’s hurt,” she said, bringing the material to her nose. Faint traces of copper mingled with the forest scent.
“Considering the amount of blood, I would say she is badly wounded.”
“If you look at the indentation mark,” Angela said, indicating where the greenery lay crushed, “it’s thicker here. I think it’s her leg.”
“Which should slow her down considerably.”
The news worked wonders on the detective’s mood. For the first time since Ellyssa had escaped, things might actually get easier. Angela stood, her lips spreading into a chilling grin.
Ellyssa hobbled to the edge of the truss bridge. Sun-bleached planks were missing from the deck and beams hung precariously from the long rafters. Wooziness rotated in her midsection as she looked over the side of the cliff. Turbulent water leapt over the jagged rocks, reflecting the sun in dappled shards. Stomach lurching, Ellyssa leaned against the branch she’d been using as a makeshift crutch and sank to the ground, closing her lids and hoping the nausea would pass.
When the dizziness steadied, Ellyssa turned and looked down the old paved road, wondering if she’d made the right choice to move back to land. Roots and vegetation jutted between the cracks of the blackened asphalt, nature on a quest to take back what had once been hers. The terrain was rugged, but no more than the slippery rocks she’d already navigated. At least her feet were no longer numb, and the tremors that had shaken her body had settled to mild shivers.
There was no going back or second guessing herself now. Only one way—forward.
Ellyssa pulled out the water bottle and took a small sip, then poured some in her hand and wiped her face. It wasn’t as cool as the stream, but it was still refreshing.
Using the crutch, she pulled herself up and limped over to the edge where broken asphalt met wood, her leg singing a tune of pain.
Ellyssa slipped the crutch lengthwise through the flap of her bag and grabbed one of the few remaining beams crossing the triangulated latticework. She placed her left foot on the first plank of the bridge, testing it. It mumbled, but held. She pulled her right foot next to her left.
The next plank made a loud popping noise when Ellyssa tested it. Bypassing that board, she skimmed over to the next and stilled.
Nothing.
Pent-up breath whooshed from her lungs. She continued, moving slowly, skipping over the boards that groaned too loudly or dipped under the pressure of her weight.
Three-fourths of the way across, the muscles in Ellyssa’s arms and legs quivered from the exertion and careful precision of moving. Her heart slammed against her ribs, keeping time with the pounding in her head. Her chest heaved short gasps of air. Vertigo accompanied her rolling stomach.
Sweat dripping into Ellyssa’s eyes, she evaluated the remaining distance. Two, maybe three meters. Hard to tell with tunnel vision. She took another step. The rotted wood creaked and popped under her weight, as if infuriated that she might make it to the other side. Ellyssa skipped to the next and continued.
Safety mocking her a little over a meter away, dizziness spun Ellyssa’s head again. She stumbled forward, landing roughly on the board. It snapped, shooting her leg through like a piston. Time slowed as she fell; everything was detailed in lines and vivid colors.
Fire burst in Ellyssa’s lower extremities as her shin scraped along the wood and her knee smacked into the edge. The next thing she knew, her chest hit the plank in front of her, stopping her descent. Pain reverberated in her bones as she clutched desperately to the weathered plank that bowed with added stress.
Heart hammering, muscles twitching, Ellyssa pulled herself up and planted both feet as close to the girder as possible. She inhaled deeply, calming herself, as she calculated the remaining distance and hunkered down. Every part of her body screamed as she uncoiled and sprang.
Short of the intended goal, wood splintered and broke away as soon as she landed, replaying the mess she’d just escaped. Gravity reached up and claimed its prize. Arms flailing, her fingers stretched, desperate to find purchase, but they only clutched air. Splinters raked through her clothing and tender skin. She lurched forward, her chest catching onto the very last plank, forcing air from her lungs, and her fingers laid claim to the edge of the crumbling asphalt.
Her legs dangling, Ellyssa stilled, afraid to even breathe. A low moan grated across the rusted bolts holding the plank that served as her anchor. It popped and slipped. She kicked her feet, lunging forward up and over the weakening board and grabbing onto a tree root. With the last of her energy, she pulled herself onto the blacktop, and rolled over where the bridge remained ominously in her view.
Ellyssa’s brain slammed against the inside of her skull; her muscles seized into screaming knots as the dizziness spiraled through her once again. She dragged in breaths of air as she rested on her side; her eyes locked on the wooden demon.
Ellyssa wished she had a torch.
As the sun fell, Ellyssa looked into the sky. Pinpoints of light filtered through the midnight blue of twilight while impending clouds rolled across the other portion of the heavens. A subtle hint of ozone thickened the air.
Peaceful. Tranquil. Unlike the war raging inside her body.
Her father’s words echoed in Ellyssa’s head. She wondered what he’d think of her now: sick, broken, imperfect…disposable.
Needing to find refuge before it rained, Ellyssa adjusted the bag over her shoulder and crutched/lurched down what was becoming the never-ending road. It stretched in front of her and curved into darkness.
Resignation whispered to her fevered brain, to give up and sit down and wait for sweet death to take her last breath.
Ellyssa ignored the tempting mumbles and continued.
She went around the bend and halted. Buildings of varying shapes and sizes stood eerily silhouetted against the light of the full moon, whitewashed like ghosts. Relief siphoned away the misery. She knew the town lay empty; the people moved long ago. No comforts of civilization, just shelter.
On the outskirts, barely visible, a silvery reflection caught Ellyssa’s attention. She pushed away the overgrown vines. A faded sign claimed the town’s name in white paint—WELCOME TO DEEPWATER - POP 956.
Ellyssa’s mouth twitched upward into a partial smile. So surreal. The fever. She felt delusional.
Stepping within the town limits, Ellyssa followed the crumbling street past dilapidated houses and buildings sporting faded storefront signs and broken windows. Vines snaked along the bricks and wood, tearing at the decaying structures. Doors either hung loosely on rusted hinges or were gone. Subtle sounds of creaking glossed through the air, and the ticking of claws as the town’s only occupants scurried.
Beyond exhausted, Ellyssa’s feet dragged her forward. She sent her fatigued mind out, but beside the unreadable patterns of animals, there was nothing. No one lived here.
Clouds quickly tumbled, stifling the night’s light. A raindrop pelted Ellyssa’s head. More fell around her. The suddenly cool air sent chills spinning down her spine. She watched the churning clouds. They had swept over the night canvas, blotting out the stars and blanketing the moon.
A flash of blinding light was followed by a loud crack, and what started as a few drops increased in number, wetting her hair and clothing. The chills turned to shivers.
Ellyssa moved as quickly as her body permitted up a wobbly step onto a brick sidewalk in front of an old storefront. The picture-glass window was filthy. She wiped away the dirt and pressed her face against the window. Darkness smothered the store in black.
Stepping back, she turned around. From what she could tell, all the buildings were the same: dark, empty, and falling apart. The store was as good a place as any. She shuffled to the entrance, her footsteps echoing eerily
