“Sun is setting. You need to go now.” Dagwood’s deep voice broke the silence.
“I told you, I’m not leaving.”
“This is your last chance. Go.”
I clenched my jaw. “I said no.”
The muscles in my arms were shot, frustrated, beyond tired. My clothes were dark with mud and moss, my nails filled with earth, but I wasn’t going to give up. I would dig this man from out of the tree, even if it was the last thing I did.
Sweat poured down my face, staining the ground where I was tirelessly digging to free the young man. He just needed enough wiggle room so I could pull him from under the tree.
“Look at the sun. You will not make it. You must go.”
I peered up through the broken crown of trees. The earthquake had opened up the roof and I could see the sky clearly now. The heavenly canvas was colo
