Now trapped in the darkness, Rylan pressed one hand against the freezing concrete and whispered, “I have to move. I have to try.” Saying the words out loud helped steady him.
He knew nobody else was coming. His father was away on a research ship somewhere in the Atlantic and would not return for another week. Corinne always waited for those absences.
Rylan looked toward the far side of the basement where he remembered an old ash chute near the wall. If it is still connected outside, there might be a chance to escape. A very small one.
But Pippa would not survive another night down there.
That truth burned inside him stronger than the pain in his shattered leg.
He carefully lowered Pippa onto the floor before beginning to crawl.
Every movement sent sharp pain tearing through his side. His palms scraped across the rough concrete, yet he kept dragging himself forward.
As he moved through the darkness, he whispered, “Please hold on. Just a little longer.” He did not know whether he was speaking to Pippa or to himself.
The house above suddenly creaked with the sound of a floorboard. Rylan froze in place. Footsteps crossed overhead, then slowly faded away.
A door opened.
Silence followed.
