Written in the Scars(78)

My heart lodges in my throat as I flip on my headlamp and aim it at the sound of the drill.

In one hard bolt of energy, the end of the metal tool pierces the ceiling where we had been camped.

We jump back as chunks of the ceiling give way and a steady stream of water flows down the wall. Before I can process this, I hear voices.

Springing to our feet, we amble to the trickle of light from above. Chills break out over my dingy skin as we shout up, angling our bodies under the light.

“This is Fred Jaspar,” we hear from the top. “How many of you are down there?”

“This is Tyler Whitt,” I shout. “With me are Jiggs Watson and Cord McCurry.”

“So there are three of you?”

“Yes.”

I look at Jiggs, his eyes glowing. He pats me on the shoulder in relief.

“Tyler, do you have the location of Grunt Salis or Shane Pettis?”

“No, sir,” I yell up, the light starting to blind my eyes. “I think Pettis was killed in the cave-in, but we don’t know about Grunt.”

“How are you holding up? Are any of you injured?”

“No,” I yell up, shielding my eyes with my hand. “How are our families?”

“Your families have been notified. They’re safe and waiting on an update.”

“Can we talk to them?” Jiggs shouts over me.

“Right now, we want to focus on getting you out of there,” Fred replies. “We will let your families know we are in contact.”

I turn my back on my friends and look into the darkness. My nose itches, my throat blocked by a lump the size of a chunk of coal.

“Can you . . .” I say, sniffling, turning back around. “Can you tell them we love them? Tell Elin I love her, okay?”

My voice breaks and Cord’s right arm falls around my shoulder. I can’t do it anymore; I can’t be the strength for the group. Whether that makes me weak or not, it doesn’t matter. I just need to hear her voice. I need to tell her I love her. Not through an intermediary, not through someone that’s never met me.

“There’s no way we can talk to them?” Jiggs asks, either reading my mind or feeling the same way.

“I’m sorry, that’s against protocol right now,” Fred says.

“You know what?” Cord barks back. “Fuck your protocol. Your f*cking protocol got us stuck down here, so the least you can do is let these guys talk to their wives.”

“We’re going to need you to stay calm,” Fred says, his voice so calm, so nonchalant we could be talking about the weather. “Let’s get a plan together and get you out of there and then you can talk to them face-to-face, all right?”

“I . . .” I say, but Cord shakes his head at me.

“What’s the plan?” Jiggs asks. “How you getting us out of here?”

“We’re going to try to bore a shaft big enough to get you up, but we need to get our ducks in a row first.”

I watch as the water continues to flow down the side of the wall. “You know we might have a water problem down here, right?”

“We’re aware.” Fred’s voice is tight and I read exactly what he’s saying.

“Shit,” I mumble.

“We’ll send some food and water down. Some extra lights. I need you guys to hang tight and don’t disturb anything, okay? Someone will be up here every minute if you guys have any questions. Just holler up.”

“All right,” Jiggs says. “Hurry the f*ck up, though, will ya?”

“We’re doing everything we can.”

I imagine Elin’s face. “Fred?”

“Yeah?”

“Do more than you can. We need out of here.”





ELIN


The knock is quick and I turn on my heel from my pacing spot in the back of the room. My hand goes to my throat, probably because I stop breathing every time someone knocks.

“We have news,” Vernon says as he enters. He, too, looks like he’s aged years over the past twenty hours. Bags are piled under his eyes, his clothing now wrinkled and stained with what looks like spilled coffee.

Lindsay walks across the room and holds my hand. Our entwined knuckles shake as we search his features for some indication of good or bad.

“We’ve made contact with your husbands. They’re alive,” he says.

“Thank God,” I say, my entire body shaking with the force of my emotions. I bend, my knees starting to go limp. “Are they okay? Are they hurt? Did you hear about Cord?”

“Cord is with them. It’s just the three of them in a hole that was formed in the cave-in.”

“Thank you, thank you,” Lindsay repeats, releasing my hand and clasping hers in front of her face.

“We’ve sent food and water down and they are aware of our plans to get them out.”

“Can we talk to them?” I ask, my heart pounding in my chest. “Please?”

“I’m afraid not,” Vernon says, wincing.

“Why not?” Lindsay asks. “We’re their wives. Jiggs is her brother too! That’s bullshit!”

“I know you feel that way,” Vernon apologizes. “This is standard protocol. We have to focus on the operation at hand and you aren’t permitted out there. I’m sorry.”