Over the Edge (28 page)

“I’m Cochise.” Seth picked a man known to be wild and dangerous. He rushed for the black hole in the ground that led to the best place in the world. He caught the free end of the rope and lowered it.

“I’m Kit Carson today.” Rafe grabbed at the rope, always wanting to check it over, but Seth was too fast for him.

“I’ll be Daniel Boone.” Ethan smiled and let Rafe and Seth race to go first.

They made a good team. Rafe had the caution, boring but not so bad as long as Seth didn’t have to do any worrying. Ethan made them laugh. Seth pushed them to take chances. All together it added up to being an adventure. The cavern was the perfect way to spend a day away from the sadness of home, with Pa gone trapping and Ma moping.

Seth flashed a smile that as good as dared Rafe to stop him from going down that uninspected rope, but Rafe just waved him on. Seth knew the rope was well made because Rafe had made it himself.

Seth skidded down. There were toeholds in the rope, and Seth could slide past them quick. He knew exactly where he wanted to go. And how he planned on spooking his brothers.

His feet hit the stone ledge, and then he hurried along it to the side with the best toeholds and climbed down to the cavern floor.

“Wait for the lantern, Seth.” Rafe’s voice echoed from above.

Snickering, Seth sprinted into the dark and paused at the first tunnel, covering his mouth to squelch a giggle as Rafe beat Ethan to go next, lowering himself down with a lantern hanging from his neck. Eth would come last. He never hurried. Seth knew Ethan wasn’t that thrilled with the cave, though he never admitted it.

His brothers were coming fast. With knotted loops for their hands and feet, they could scamper down and back up in a flash. Seth turned and rushed away from the dim light, toward the best tunnel. When he went in, he left all light behind. His hand ran along the wall guiding him through the pitch-dark. He passed two openings, then ducked down the third. This one went on for a long time. They usually went straight instead of turning off, because they all liked a big room down that way. Seth had never gotten to the end of this tunnel. But he would. Someday. Today maybe. For right now he was just picking a spot to lie in wait.

Footsteps echoed as Rafe and Ethan came toward him.

“Seth, get back here. We have to stay together.” Rafe, always bossy. But he couldn’t control Seth down here and Rafe knew it.

The smell of the lantern was nice in the cool cavern. Seth didn’t mind the light. There were beautiful things to see. Even so, he moved farther down the tunnel until he knew Rafe’s and Ethan’s lanterns wouldn’t reach him when they walked past. As Seth moved he bided his time. He’d make a sound that would lure Rafe and Ethan his way, then jump at them.

Liking the feel of the coarse stone on his fingertips, Seth enjoyed the solitude. He wanted to be a guide and lead people around in here when he was grown up. Maybe he could earn money being a guide like Kit Carson.

Next time he’d pick Kit Carson instead of Cochise.

Ethan’s voice echoed, “C’mon back, Seth. I wanna get to the room with all those huge pillars. We can eat lunch there.”

“I wish we had more lanterns so we could see the whole room,” Rafe said, his voice sounding closer.

“Where’d Seth get to?” Ethan asked.

“Seth, come back.” That was Rafe. Giving orders again. “We’re gonna eat without you and we won’t leave you nuthin’.”

Seth saw the light as Rafe and Ethan neared the tunnel he’d turned down.

“Seth, you little skunk, get back here!” Ethan’s holler echoed dozens of times.

There were torches all along the tunnel. Seth heard Rafe and Ethan pause to light them. He smelled the kerosene as each one of them ignited. Knowing they were close, Seth laughed, doing his best to sound like a ghost with a shimmery, wavering laugh.

“We need to teach that kid a lesson,” Ethan whispered, but Seth heard every word and loved listening in.

“We oughta go back, leave him in here in the dark. That’d teach him.” The sound of Rafe’s footsteps told Seth he was still moving forward. He’d missed the turn. “Maybe we can make him believe we left him.”

Ethan laughed.

“I wish we had more light. I’d sure like to see the whole place at once.” Now Rafe’s voice was fading just a bit with each word.

“Oh, I don’t know.” Ethan had moved past the entrance to the tunnel Seth was hiding in. “Not being able to see to the end is kind of fun. Using your imagination, wondering where all the side tunnels go.” Seth knew exactly what Ethan meant. Ethan added, “I’ll bet that little varmint’s gettin’ ready to jump at us.”

“Sounds like Seth.”

Even though they knew, Seth bet he’d still manage to make them leap out of their skins.

“Do you ever think that maybe monsters live down here?” Ethan knew spooking each other was part of the fun, so he was helping.

“Or maybe outlaws hid a buried treasure in here. We could find it and get rich.”

“Maybe the outlaws are still here, watching us.”

“Or maybe we could strike gold.”

“Or maybe one of these tunnels goes clear and away to the center of the earth where the devil lives.”

A chill of pure ice raced up Seth’s spine.

There was a scuffling sound, Rafe tussling with Ethan. Seth wished he was out there with his brothers, wrestling and talking about danger and treasure. Ethan laughed.

“Let’s get on with letting Seth scare us.” Rafe led the way. “We can light the rest of the torches later.”

The torches were just sticks wrapped with oil-soaked rags, but there were many of them and they cast a much better light than the one lantern. Rafe had made them all. He’d wrap them real tight so they’d burn a long time. Rafe was always planning ahead.

Seth moved down the tunnel away from his brothers, planning to laugh again, draw them this way.

A cracking sound was his only warning.

Seth’s foot broke through what he’d thought was solid rock. He shouted in surprise. Then the rock seemed to bite into his leg. All the spooky things they’d talked about seemed to be coming true. He was being swallowed up, sinking right down to where the devil lived.

“Seth!” Rafe and Ethan both had heard him.

He fought to drag his foot loose, but it was like there were teeth sunk into his ankle. “Rafe, help!”

Grabbing his leg, he pulled up. The stone under his other foot snapped. He fell through to his backside.

“Ethan!” Clawing at stone for something to hold on to, Seth lay flat on his belly and tried to escape whatever was eating him alive.

Two sets of running feet pounded down the tunnel.

The rock gave again and he dropped through to his chest. Now only his arms held him up. Seth cried out. The ground kept crumbling around him as he fought to escape the jaws of death.

“We’re coming, Seth!” Rafe would save him.

“Rafe! Ethan!” Then with a loud crack he went straight through, falling into a dark pit.

Screaming, he landed with a sickening thud. He
hadn’t
fallen forever. He was on solid ground again. Gasping, the breath knocked out of him, Seth looked up, and a faint light caught his attention from overhead.

“Be careful!” he shouted. “There’s a hole!” Trying to warn his brothers.

Seth’s warning came just he saw Ethan skid right to the brink of the hole. With a short cry of fear Ethan stopped, teetered on the edge for a second, then got his balance and dropped to his knees. “Seth!”

“Back up!” Seth looked at the lantern Ethan carried as if it held the answer to life and death. As if God himself had come to light Seth’s way to safety. “The ground won’t hold.”

“Won’t hold . . . ?” Ethan reached out his lantern. The light trembled and Seth knew it was going to be okay. He hadn’t fallen forever. His brothers were here.

Rafe leaned forward while Ethan lowered the lantern past the edge of the pit. Seth scrambled to his feet, and from below he saw Rafe and Ethan kneeling on stone as thin as an eggshell. “The ground won’t hold,” he repeated.

“Back up, Ethan,” Rafe ordered as he quickly scuttled backward. Then he shouted, “Hang on, Seth! We’ll get you out.”

Ethan started back just as the stone under his hand cracked and his whole arm fell through the floor. Seth watched in horror as Ethan landed hard on his face and belly. An ugly crack sounded when his chest hit. Ethan yelled in fear. He scooted back farther, lying flat now.

“Get your weight off this layer of rock!” Rafe said from behind Ethan.

Ethan shoved himself backward and the stone broke again and again, showering stones down into the pit. Seth flung his arms over his face to protect his eyes, but he couldn’t look away. The collapsing ground followed Ethan. Was hungry for him. Then it all shattered and Ethan plunged forward—and stopped.

Rafe clung to Ethan’s waistband.

Ethan’s collision jerked his lantern loose. It fell and cracked. Flames shot up as the kerosene splashed and ignited, rushing straight for Seth. Seth whirled away as the kerosene splattered his back and burst into flames.

“Rafe, help me! Ethan! I’m burning!” Frantically Seth tried to slap at his back and arms, twisting and fighting the fire. Coughing, choking on the smell of his flesh burning.

“Get your shirt off, Seth!” Rafe yelled. “Get it off, throw it away!”

Seth caught the front of his shirt with both hands and tore it off his body, throwing it aside. He felt his head burning and slapped at his hair. The high-pitched shrieking was a sound he’d never heard come from his own throat. “Rafe! Ethan! It hurts!”

His voice broke as hot tears filled his eyes. He blinked them back and saw the fire that separated him from his brothers. This is what it would be like, a lake of fire, if he didn’t get into heaven. In horror he thought he’d already failed.

“Seth, the fire’s off your body now.” Rafe’s voice, steady and strong. “We’re here. We’ll get you.”

But the pain was unbearable. Seth couldn’t think beyond it—beyond pain and being in a lake of fire. “I’m all burnt. It hurts bad, and . . . and you can’t get me.”

Of course it would be like that. There was no way out. Seth fought the tears, but they escaped anyway. He’d never felt pain like this. He watched stones burn, haunted by the sight.

“Hang on, we’re going to be down there in a minute!” Rafe said it, but Seth didn’t believe him. The fire never went out in Hades. Seth knew it; he knew where he was. He hadn’t been a good boy. He deserved this.

“It’s pitch-dark. I’ve got to get another lantern.” Rafe making decisions, taking charge. It almost penetrated the pain of his back and arm, the terror of knowing he’d spend eternity trapped down here.

“Eth, talk to Seth, make sure he knows we haven’t left him.”

Seth realized he was crying. It hurt too bad, and the certain knowledge that he’d died and gone to hell was too terrifying. He couldn’t quit his sobbing.

“Talk to him!” Rafe said again. “I’ll be right back.”

“No, don’t leave us!” Ethan shouted.

Rafe was leaving them?
“Rafe, help!”
Seth screamed.

Seth heard pounding feet. He was alone.

“Rafe’ll be right back.” Ethan hadn’t left! “We’re going to get you out of here.”

“How . . . ?” Seth couldn’t lift his eyes from the demonic flames cutting him off from Ethan.

“You’re going to be all right, Seth.” Seth forced his head up until he could make out Ethan’s shape. On the other side.

Just then Rafe came running back with a burning torch, handing it to Ethan. “I’ll be back! You just hang on, ya hear?”

“No, Rafe, wait!” But Seth’s cry was for nothing. Rafe was already gone.

Ethan held the torch up so Seth could better see him. “Hey, little brother, I’m right here. Can you stop crying and talk to me?” Ethan being his usual self.

The pain made it impossible for Seth to think. He wanted out. Every move hurt so bad. He tried to force himself to ignore the burns. How long would Rafe be gone? Had Rafe gone for help or just run away? Seth wouldn’t blame him. Ethan should run, too.

“You know what’d be great?”

Seth didn’t want Ethan to leave, so he forced himself to answer, “Wh-what?”

“You oughta try and climb out of there. I mean you haven’t really tried, have you? The fire isn’t burning everywhere, so go around it. Then find some handholds. I’ll bet you could do it, if you weren’t so busy
crying
.”

The taunt reminded Seth of how reckless he always was. How fearless. Suddenly the fear faded. Not the pain, but in the twinkling of an eye he no longer feared hell. He no longer feared the devil. He gritted his teeth and saw a way around the fire. One step and the skin on his back seemed to split apart. He took another step, looking between the jagged stones underfoot, the fire, and Ethan. He felt the wildness that was always in his blood turn into something worse, something devilish.

“Maybe I oughta come down there and help the little crying baby.”

That brought Seth’s eyes up and gave him a backbone.

“’Course if I fell, then we’d both be stuck in the hole. Then Rafe’d have to pull us both out.”

“No, I-I’ll try and climb up!” Seth felt the cavern flow into him, become part of him, or maybe he became part of it. He felt . . . something, some part of himself, which longed to stay in the pit.

“Go around the fire this time, baby brother. Not through it.”

In the light of the fire Seth saw handholds. He reached for one with his right hand and pain tore at every muscle in his back. Then he reached with his left and saw blackened skin on his arm, bleeding red in the flickering fire.

It didn’t stop him. He left behind the weakest part of himself and now he only had strength. The pain was almost welcome because it matched his rising sense of power, his complete fearlessness. Seth climbed, one step at a time, out of the pit until he stood beside Ethan. Two inches shorter than his brother, but inside Seth felt like a giant. Dangerous. Crazed.

He looked straight into Ethan’s eyes, and Ethan stepped back. Afraid now of his little brother.

Seth smiled and took one look back down into the pit. The fire was dying although Seth knew he’d be carrying it on his back, and in his soul, forever.