Something About Harry(105)

His eyes grazed something—something plastic—caught up in the formation of rocks. His eyes focused on it, rounding in horror.

He yanked it from between the rocks, examining it. It was just like the straw from the juice boxes the kids were always trying to convince him that Donna had let them have.

He’d have never seen them without his new eyesight. Not in a million years. And in that second, he was grateful—so grateful.

He couldn’t stop the mere second or two of horror—at the mental instability it took to do something like this, but when it passed, he began screaming, his voice hoarse and raw, the cold wind biting and unforgiving. “Here! They’re here!”





CHAPTER

20





All at once, five pairs of hands began digging; dirt flew in frozen clumps, tearing at Mara’s knuckles, ripping her flesh. Shards of rock broke and scattered, and she had to remind herself to slow down. If this caved in . . .

“Slowly!” she screamed, remembering the intricate way Leah had designed Carl’s trap. If this was anything like that, Leah would have designed it to fall on the kids and Jeff. “We have to be careful not to jar it or it will cave!”

Oh, God. Please, please don’t let it fall.

Marty was bleeding, too, tears streaming down her face, flecks of dirt in her blond hair, as she dug right alongside Wanda.

Wanda’s nylons were shredded, her shoes lost, her prim driving gloves falling away from her fingers with each drive of her hand into the wall of rocks.

Harry began screaming Mimi’s and Fletcher’s names while Nina anchored Leah with her knee in her chest. She yelled into the face of the crumbling tower, “Auntie Nina’s coming, kiddos! Hang tough, Jeff!”

As they widened the hole around the straw, Mara caught her first peek of Mimi’s purple hat. Joy welled up inside her, the most unbearable joy she’d ever experienced. “Here! Mimi’s here!”

“Fletch!” Nina called out next. “I found Fletcher!” she hollered above the screeching wind.

“Jeff!” Wanda and Marty screamed simultaneously, digging faster.

Leah’s head lifted suddenly, howling her rage. “They’re all dead! Dead, dead, deader than doornails!” she keened.

“Shut up, you crazy nutbag!” Guido screamed before the final shot of the night rang out, scoring Leah’s skull. He fell back on the ground with a grunt, the gun falling to the frozen ground.

Tears stung Mara’s eyes, but she looked straight ahead, steeling herself, willing herself to dig until her hands touched flesh. Mimi’s flesh.

She tore at the dirt around Mimi, reaching for her body, hauling her out of the clump of heavy rocks, unsettling the ground with the force of her pull. She dragged Mimi to her and began tearing at the duct tape over her mouth, ripping it from her hands and feet while Harry did the same with Fletcher.

Mara frantically put her fingers to Mimi’s throat, feeling for a pulse. Her skin was ice cold, her lips almost blue, and then she was yanking off her prison garb, removing Mimi’s sodden clothes with swift hands. “We need to warm them!” she yelled above the howling wind.

Skin-to-skin contact, wasn’t it? Mara began to rock, whispering into Mimi’s ear. “C’mon, princess. Please, please wake up for me,” she sobbed. “Coconut needs you. Uncle Harry needs you. I need you. We’ll have hot chocolate and marshmallows with Carl, if you’ll just wake up!”

Nothing. Mimi remained lifeless, her bare arms icy cold. God only knew how long they’d been down there. Fear ripped through Mara, bringing hot tears to her eyes while the freezing air tore at her exposed flesh.

No, no, no. This would not happen. She hugged her tighter, curling Mimi’s small body into her own as she rocked. “C’mon, sweetie. Time to wake up now. We have so much to do. I need you to help me pick out the color purple for your room. There are so many shades. We want the right shade, don’t we? And we can’t let Uncle Harry pick it. Look what he did to your room the last time.”

Still nothing but Mimi’s thready pulse ringing in her ears. Panic began to take over. She had to force herself to keep it together. “Wake up, Mimi!” she whispered fiercely, leaning back into Nina who’d come to sit behind her, throwing her hoodie over Mara’s shoulders and pulling her flush to her chest.

Nina began to rock, too, reaching around Mara and squeezing Mimi’s limp hands. “C’mon, pretty girl. Auntie Nina misses you. You haven’t even met Charlie yet. She told me just the other day she needed a new friend. I need you to be her friend. You love Dora the Explorer, right? If you don’t wake up, I’m gonna have to watch it with her. I don’t like Dora. Help a mommy out, huh? So wake up, Mimi! Wake up!”