Shafted [ONC 2022]

Getting Out

Rukiya woke up to a loud droning in her ear. She squeezed her eyes against the bright light and tried to turn over, but her head thumped against something warm that smelled of cedar and geranium. And that was when she remembered she wasn't in her bed, but trapped in a damn elevator.

"Rukiya. Hey." Kadin shook her. "Time to get up."

She groaned and rubbed her face. The world was foggy when she opened her eyes. Shades of gray and black swam in an amalgamation of color. She blinked a few times, and the silvery doors of the elevator snapped into focus.

"Good lord," Rukiya groaned. Pins and needles ran up and down her left leg and when she tried to sit up properly, her body listed to one side.

"Easy, easy." Kadin caught her by the shoulders. "The fire department's here. We're getting out."

That bit of news woke her up the rest of the way. "We're getting out?" She looked up, but saw nothing but the sealed hatch on the elevator's roof. Beyond it, the sounds of machinery droned, drowning out the buzz of the lights. It seemed sometime while she was asleep, the power had come back on. But not the heat. It was even colder than she remembered it being last night.

Kadin offered her a hand up. His bag sat on his shoulders, and their garbage was in his other arm. His hair was a little dishevelled and eyes baggy, and she imagined he hadn't slept at all. Heck, even though she'd gotten a few hours, it felt as though she'd been wrestling bears. Her neck was stiff, her butt sore, and her leg hadn't fully woken up.

"Thanks." She slipped her hand in Kadin's and he pulled her up to her feet. "How long have they been here?"

"A few minutes." He stuffed his hands in his coat pockets. They watched the hatch in silent anticipation. After a few minutes, the droning stopped and metal knocking against metal took its place. The sounds moved closer, echoing through the shaft, until the thump of boots on metal sounded as though it was right on top of them.

The hatch above their heads swung open, and a headlamp glared in. The firefighter it was attached too, looked more like a shadow stuffed into a uniform than a person. "You folks alright down there?" He lifted his helmet to reveal a rugged face and dark eyes framed by crow's feet.

"A little tired, but no worse for the wear," Kadin said.

"Alright. I'm officer Lansing. Captain Crawford is up on the next floor. We're gonna do our best to get you both out of here quick. I need you to scooch on back so I can lower this ladder."

They stepped back until their backs touched the wall of the elevator, and the firefighter lowered a metal ladder down the hatch. He gave it a few jiggles to ensure it was secure. It was just a regular aluminum ladder, but to Rukiya, it was the stairway to heaven.

Kadin nodded for her to go first.

Rukiya adjusted her bag and mounted the rungs. The metal was icy against her bare palms, but stable under her feet as she climbed. Dry, musty air met her out in the shaft, and the firefighter's headlamp illuminated metal tracks on the wall. Rust bloomed like little flowers on the steel. Over her head, light poured in from the opened doors of the floor above.

"No wonder this piece of junk got stuck," the firefighter said. He tapped the ladder leading to the floor above. "Just a little bit to go."

She climbed onto the second ladder, her boots clinking against the metal. Another firefighter—Captain Crawford, she presumed—awaited her at the top. He offered her a hand up when she reached the last rung on the ladder and pulled her into the hall of floor seventy.

"Are you alright ma'am?" he asked.

Rukiya rubbed her hands together to warm them. "Yeah. Just a little tired and cold. Thanks so much for your help."