Chapter Nine Marie
1044 Words
How long have we been stuck in the mineshaft? It seemed like days but I was sure it had only been a few hours. Time was either dragging or seemed like it was going too fast. Why weren’t there people looking for us?
Why were we kidnapped in the first place? Sighing I leaned against the door to the mine and thought I heard people outside talking. At one point there was a bright light but mother said it was just a trick of the mind.
I stared at her form in the darkness and wondered why she was not worried about any of this. I wanted to explore our surroundings but mom also said to wait until daylight.
I just scoffed at her and wondered how she would know that it was daylight. There did not seem to be any light penetrating the darkness.
“Just trust me, Marie. This is not my first time being locked in a small dark space.” When I pressed her for more answers she just let out an exasperated groan and told me to shut up.
She never scolded me or became irritated with me, I just seemed to get on her nerves no matter what now. Maybe she was just stressed because of the situation.
I lay back against the cold stone and also tried to ignore the smell permeating from deep in the mine.
I must have dozed off but something squeaking woke me up and I was trying not to scream. I saw the mine was a little brighter, so it must be daylight outside. Mom was right about seeing better in the daytime.
I looked around and didn’t see her worry gnawing at my stomach and I stood up so quickly I banged my arm on a rocky outcropping. Hissing in pain I saw I had torn the sleeve of my shirt and I was bleeding.
I just hoped that whatever was in this mine did not like the smell of blood. I dug through the pack and found some bandages.
How kind of our kidnappers to include bandages. There were also some bottled water and MRE packages. My stomach growled reminding me that I have not eaten since our last meal at the restaurant.
“I don’t believe I am ready to eat an MRE though. I don’t know how long we will be in this stupid mine.” I also did not feel like eating rats or bats. Especially bats, of course, they could probably bite me and I would die of rabies.
“Ok, Marie think, if bats leave the mine, there has to be a way out of here.” If the way is big enough for me to escape then that will be even better and I can find help.
“I know that look, you are thinking there might be a way out of here. Let me tell you girl that there are more tunnels and twists in this mineshaft than I believed.” I saw mother covered in dirt and staring up at the top of the shaft.
I looked up and saw a few bats hanging overhead and cringed, they were waving and wiggling in irritation. That was going to be a huge nope from me.
“Do you think we should keep it quiet or maybe move to another chamber?” I honestly didn’t want to leave the entryway, what if there was a chance that someone would come to save us? They needed to know that we were here.
Then again if mother was not going to explore further we were going to have to depend on being rescued. We only had so much water and food that would last for however long. There was also the issue with air quality as well.
I read that we can get histoplasmosis from bat poop. Panic gripped my throat and I was imagining thousands of spores invading my lungs as we sat here.
“Will you please calm down Marie, you can’t panic.” Mom snapped at me and for once I was seeing the stress that was written all over her face.
It hit me, we might be in this situation because of her. I narrowed my eyes at her and glowered up at the bats again.
“What do you know about this situation mother? You seem to be calm about all this. What do you mean this is not your first time being stuck in a cramped dark place?” I watched as she sighed and dismissed me.
“You misheard me, I only meant I ended up getting locked in the supply closet at work.” Frowning, I knew she was lying to me again. I dug through the bag and found a couple of flashlights.
Tucking one under my arm I stalked past her trying not to breathe in any more toxic bat poop. I heard my mother following on my heels.
“You’re going to get lost, you stupid girl. You aren’t like your sister. You chose modeling instead of learning about nature.” I stopped and turned to her, she was never this mean. I took a long look at her and realized I didn’t know this woman after all.
“I don’t know why you are being cruel, I don’t even think I know you. I don’t know why we are in this situation. All I know is that I am not going to rot away in this damn mineshaft.” I came to the bottom of the mine and felt leathery wings brush the top of my head.
There were several tunnels leading off in various directions, two were too narrow and small for me to even attempt to crawl through. One was blocked partially and the other looked clear. I guess I was going to explore the only option.
Now I hope I didn’t die from a bat bite, fungus infection, or some other horrid way that I could perish in an abandoned mineshaft. I hoped someone would come for us soon.
I knew the truth though, I was not a princess and no prince or knight was going to come riding in on a horse to save me. I could only save myself.
- Writer
