Debra Webb - Tremors

Something bumped against the glass behind her. She couldn’t turn around.

“It’s me,” he said, only this time his voice came through the glass instead of over her cell phone.

She wanted to turn around…to see him one last time and tell him how sorry she was that things hadn’t worked out between them…but she couldn’t move.

“Can you slide down just a little? Get beneath the glass.”

The urgency in his voice prodded at her. It was too late. Why didn’t he just go? Why risk his life, as well? Because that’s what he did, she answered herself. That’s who he was.

Joe Ripani was a real hero. He liked the part, no matter the risk. It was who he was.

“I’ll try.” She slid downward, forcing her body against the damaged metal and tattered headliner that had once been the roof of her SUV. Sharp edges snagged her blouse, scraping at her skin, but she kept squirming to do as Joe asked.

“Close your eyes and protect your face if you can.”

She released her cell phone and shielded her face with the one hand she could move.

He pried at the window…she could hear him grunting with the effort.

The glass shattered.

Suddenly his hands were pulling at her.

With the glass gone, she squeezed out through the opening as he tucked the crowbar he’d been using into his gear belt.

And then she was in his arms.

The tears flowed like a river. She couldn’t have stopped them if she’d bothered trying.

He was okay.

He was really okay.

His arms felt so strong around her.

“We have to get out of here,” he murmured softly against her ear. “The whole place is going to cave in.”

She nodded and reluctantly drew back from his embrace.

Damn, he looked good.

She wanted to stare at him, to take in every last detail of that handsome face. But they had to move.

He clambered over and around the heaps of rubble, dragging her behind him.

Barely recognizable parts of vehicles pierced through the mounds of fallen concrete and steel but Lisa kept her gaze steady on Joe. If she stopped to look—to think—she’d lose it. She had to keep moving. For both their sakes.

Another rumble…another vibration.

“Aftershocks?” she asked.

“Probably the underlying structure…it’s going to give way completely,” he said.

She remembered thinking that only moments ago. Her heart hammered viciously. What if they couldn’t get out after all?

Joe swore. The heat of it seared through her.

They were trapped.

The path they’d followed was now fully blocked by the collapse of the level above.

“We’ll have to try another egress route,” he suggested as he started in a different direction.

Joe spoke quietly via his communications link to his team, who were standing by to assist in any way possible. But there was nothing they could do.

It was all up to him now.

An odd kind of calm settled over Lisa. Joe knew what he was doing. If anyone could get them out of here, he could.

He pulled her after him, weaving over and between slabs of concrete. The place looked like a war zone. The destruction was unbelievable…overwhelming. She prayed again that no one had died in what must be dozens of crushed automobiles.

“Things are going to get a little tricky here,” he said as he came to a stop.

Lisa tried to focus, but her cognitive processes were pretty much on automatic now.

“We’ve got to snake our way through here to get to the other side.”

She considered the mountain of broken construction material before them. No way over it or around it. That much was true. Then she stared at the narrow, tunnel-like hole he indicated.

This void went down…under the debris.

That could be a death sentence.

“I can’t…” She shook her head to emphasize her words. No way could she crawl into that hole.

He took her by the shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. “It’s the only way, babe. It might be nothing but a dead end, but we can’t just stand here and wait for the inevitable. I’ll go first.”

For three beats she could only stare into those dark eyes. His face was dusty and grimy, as were his clothes. He looked nothing like the spit-and-polish, suave guy who had a reputation with the ladies. She had a sudden, nearly overwhelming urge to laugh. Hysteria. She knew the symptoms. As funny and out of character as he looked, he was dead serious.

She forced her head in an up-and-down motion. “Okay.”

He knew what he was doing. This wasn’t her area of expertise. If he thought they needed to crawl under the rocks, then by God, she’d follow him into that hole.

He was, after all, that kind of hero.

Again, she had to stifle the urge to laugh. Hysteria had taken root. Focus, she ordered her dizzy brain. She had to do just what he told her…she had to keep it together. Had to listen carefully to his instructions.

JOE SQUEEZED through the opening to the tunnel, tilting his shoulders at odd angles to manage the feat. Lisa stayed right behind him. She was scared. The fear in those blue eyes had been palpable. He’d wanted to hold her and tell her everything would be all right, but there was no time for that. Every second they stayed in this garage pushed them closer to the edge of no return.

If this passage turned out to be a dead end…well, he’d just deal with it.

He stalled at the next turn. Damn, the pathway narrowed here. Maybe he should have let Lisa go first. She was tiny enough to slip through without much effort. He still couldn’t be sure that this would take them where they needed to go. But he was banking on the light. The tunnel would be pitch-dark if the other end was closed.

The dim light gave him hope. He prayed it would be enough.

Grunting with the brutal effort it took, Joe twisted sideways and forced his big body through the passage-way. Thankfully, the end of the tunnel seemed just beyond this turn. The light was much brighter there. Good sign.

They’d almost made it.

Thank God.

He almost shouted with relief when he reached the narrow exit. A short scramble over the rocks and they’d be out of this hole.

“Give me your hand.” He reached for Lisa, and the two of them climbed up and out of the makeshift passage. “You okay?”

She nodded stiffly. Her clothes were covered in dust, but he saw no sign of injury. No blood.

They were close now.

The location of the stairwell and elevator shaft was only a few feet away. They wouldn’t be able to use either of those routes, of course, but he’d figure out something. The knots of tension in his gut tightened, ratcheting up his anxiety. They had to get out of here. Right now. Every instinct was screaming a warning at him.

Joe zigzagged his way through the fallen rubble until he reached the far half wall on the outside of the garage. Relief surged through him as he stared down into a narrow opening next to where the stairwell had once stood. He could actually see all the way to the ground below.

He reached over his shoulder and retrieved his rappelling line. “Spike, O’Shea, you still with me?”

O’Shea’s relieved voice came across the communications link. He quickly related their approximate location and the intended egress. The team would assemble on the ground below in case he needed assistance. Getting Lisa out of here was top priority.

He eased back from the wall and turned to her. She looked terrified. “I’m going to lower you down to Shannon.” Maybe it would comfort Lisa to know her friend waited below. He glanced back outside and saw that O’Shea, along with four others, were ready and waiting to assist.

“What about you?”

The uncertainty that glittered in her eyes almost undid him. Why did she care? He knew he’d hurt her when he’d backed off their…relationship. And yet she still cared what happened to him.