Serial Novel: Falling in Public, Ch. 51
This serial novel is posted in draft form every Friday.
Ch.1|Ch. 2|Ch. 3|Ch. 4|Ch. 5|Ch. 6|Ch. 7|Ch. 8|Ch. 9|Ch. 10|Ch. 11|Ch. 12|Ch.13|Ch. 14|Ch. 15| Ch. 16| Ch. 17|Ch. 18| Ch. 19 | Ch. 20 | Ch. 21 | Ch. 22 | Ch. 23 | Ch. 24 | Ch. 25 | Ch. 26 | Ch. 27 | Ch. 28 | Ch. 29 | Ch. 30 | Ch. 31 | Ch. 32 | Ch. 33 | Ch. 34 | Ch. 35 | Ch. 36 | Ch. 37 | Ch. 38 | Ch. 39 | Ch. 40 | Ch. 41 | Ch. 42 | Ch. 43 | Ch. 44 | Ch. 45 | Ch. 46 | Ch. 47 | Ch. 48 | Ch. 49 | Ch. 50 |
Falling in Public
Chapter 51
Eddie followed the highway until he saw the blanket bundle he'd abandoned earlier. Turning onto the dirt road, he stopped long enough to retrieve his supplies and then continued into the corn field, the dim headlights illuminating only a few feet in front of him at a time. He knew he needed to turn off into the field soon, but the truck was old, and he wasn't confident that it would be able to navigate the soft topsoil while mowing down six foot stalks. At least he'd be driving with the rows, instead of across them.
Moving as slow as he dared, he watched the right shoulder for a shallow pitch into the field. When he found it, he turned the wheel sharply and guided the truck into the corn, hitting the gas hard enough to give it a push, but not so much it would dig the rear tires in. Still, his forward momentum slowed to nearly nothing, and he fought the urge to gun the engine, switching into a lower gear instead.
Slowly the vehicle inched forward, and he carefully gave it a little more gas, letting the tires shift until they found a path. Finally they settled between the rows where the dirt was slightly more compact, and he put his foot down, mowing down a two-row path through the corn.
The headlights were nearly useless, blocked by the crops, but a beam of light shining taller than the field caught his eye as it moved slowly back and forth. It had to be coming from the plane - it was too close to be another farm, and too low to be an aircraft in flight. But why would Holly be drawing attention to herself?
He pushed the truck as hard as he dared, watching as the light stopped moving briefly, and then plummeted to the ground.
"No," he whispered, pushing harder on the gas. "It couldn't have been her. She just dropped the light, is all. It wasn't her." He gripped the steering wheel tighter, all of his muscles contracting as he tried to convince himself that everything was okay.
But why had she been holding the light in the first place?
The trip felt like hours, though he knew it wasn't. When he finally saw the slide lit up in front of him and hanging limp directly below the hatch, he thought his heart would stop.
Leaving the engine running, he got out of the truck.
"Holly!" He ran to the slide, checking every side and covering as much ground as he could. "Holly? Holly, answer me! Where are you?"
He couldn't find her, but there was no answer from overhead either, and his pulse pounded with fear. Widening his circle, he peered as far as he could in the dark down each corn row, scanning the ground for footprints or anything that might give him a clue for where she was. Surely if she'd fallen, she'd be near the plane...it was a small piece of hope, but a motivating one.
On the tail side of the plane, he found scuff marks and smaller footprints in the soil, and he ran back toward the truck, positive they had to be hers. She couldn't have gone too far with her leg, but if she was moving across the rows rather than with them, it would make everything much harder.
He frowned as he got closer to the truck, thinking he must be more tired than he'd originally thought. It seemed like the headlights were moving toward him, but that couldn't be...or could it?
Thinking back, he remembered getting out of the truck, but leaving it running for the light. A quick pat of his pockets told him he didn't have the keys.
The engine revved, leaving no room for doubt. But if Holly had gone the other way...who was behind the wheel?
The truck was coming fast, and Eddie dove to the side, scrambling around the back-side of the slide just in time. Gaining his feet again, he sprinted toward the tail end of the plane and the rows where he'd seen Holly's footprints. He had to get to her before whoever was in that truck did.
Ch.1|Ch. 2|Ch. 3|Ch. 4|Ch. 5|Ch. 6|Ch. 7|Ch. 8|Ch. 9|Ch. 10|Ch. 11|Ch. 12|Ch.13|Ch. 14|Ch. 15| Ch. 16| Ch. 17|Ch. 18| Ch. 19 | Ch. 20 | Ch. 21 | Ch. 22 | Ch. 23 | Ch. 24 | Ch. 25 | Ch. 26 | Ch. 27 | Ch. 28 | Ch. 29 | Ch. 30 | Ch. 31 | Ch. 32 | Ch. 33 | Ch. 34 | Ch. 35 | Ch. 36 | Ch. 37 | Ch. 38 | Ch. 39 | Ch. 40 | Ch. 41 | Ch. 42 | Ch. 43 | Ch. 44 | Ch. 45 | Ch. 46 | Ch. 47 | Ch. 48 | Ch. 49 | Ch. 50 |
Falling in Public
Chapter 51
Eddie followed the highway until he saw the blanket bundle he'd abandoned earlier. Turning onto the dirt road, he stopped long enough to retrieve his supplies and then continued into the corn field, the dim headlights illuminating only a few feet in front of him at a time. He knew he needed to turn off into the field soon, but the truck was old, and he wasn't confident that it would be able to navigate the soft topsoil while mowing down six foot stalks. At least he'd be driving with the rows, instead of across them.
Moving as slow as he dared, he watched the right shoulder for a shallow pitch into the field. When he found it, he turned the wheel sharply and guided the truck into the corn, hitting the gas hard enough to give it a push, but not so much it would dig the rear tires in. Still, his forward momentum slowed to nearly nothing, and he fought the urge to gun the engine, switching into a lower gear instead.
Slowly the vehicle inched forward, and he carefully gave it a little more gas, letting the tires shift until they found a path. Finally they settled between the rows where the dirt was slightly more compact, and he put his foot down, mowing down a two-row path through the corn.
The headlights were nearly useless, blocked by the crops, but a beam of light shining taller than the field caught his eye as it moved slowly back and forth. It had to be coming from the plane - it was too close to be another farm, and too low to be an aircraft in flight. But why would Holly be drawing attention to herself?
He pushed the truck as hard as he dared, watching as the light stopped moving briefly, and then plummeted to the ground.
"No," he whispered, pushing harder on the gas. "It couldn't have been her. She just dropped the light, is all. It wasn't her." He gripped the steering wheel tighter, all of his muscles contracting as he tried to convince himself that everything was okay.
But why had she been holding the light in the first place?
The trip felt like hours, though he knew it wasn't. When he finally saw the slide lit up in front of him and hanging limp directly below the hatch, he thought his heart would stop.
Leaving the engine running, he got out of the truck.
"Holly!" He ran to the slide, checking every side and covering as much ground as he could. "Holly? Holly, answer me! Where are you?"
He couldn't find her, but there was no answer from overhead either, and his pulse pounded with fear. Widening his circle, he peered as far as he could in the dark down each corn row, scanning the ground for footprints or anything that might give him a clue for where she was. Surely if she'd fallen, she'd be near the plane...it was a small piece of hope, but a motivating one.
On the tail side of the plane, he found scuff marks and smaller footprints in the soil, and he ran back toward the truck, positive they had to be hers. She couldn't have gone too far with her leg, but if she was moving across the rows rather than with them, it would make everything much harder.
He frowned as he got closer to the truck, thinking he must be more tired than he'd originally thought. It seemed like the headlights were moving toward him, but that couldn't be...or could it?
Thinking back, he remembered getting out of the truck, but leaving it running for the light. A quick pat of his pockets told him he didn't have the keys.
The engine revved, leaving no room for doubt. But if Holly had gone the other way...who was behind the wheel?
The truck was coming fast, and Eddie dove to the side, scrambling around the back-side of the slide just in time. Gaining his feet again, he sprinted toward the tail end of the plane and the rows where he'd seen Holly's footprints. He had to get to her before whoever was in that truck did.
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