The Last Winter

Saturday: The Descent (13)

Wesley
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Once Della was released, we sprint outside, shaking with shock and terror. The wind has picked up, and snow is starting to fall.

"We gotta get out of here!" Della chokes out, doubled over. Eugena's blood is splattered all over her face and clothes. A sickening moment passes before she throws up onto the ground.

I think I'm going to be sick too. I can't get my sister's screams out of my head. The horrendous churning of the grinder. And the blood. So much blood...

I drape my arm around her and hold her close, looking around quickly. If anything moves--if anyone pops out and tries to kill us, then I wasn't so sure I'd be able to fend them off. Not without a weapon. The best course of action would be to put as much distance between us and this awful place as possible.

"W-We gotta get help. Gotta call the police," Della continues to mutter with wild eyes. She's trembling like a newborn infant fresh from a bath.

"Come on, let's just get out of here. We'll figure out what to do later," I assure her.

We stagger out into the snow just in time to hear a chilling call whistle through the wind:

"WEEESLEYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

I come to a halt, whipping my head in the direction of the distant cry.

"Did you hear--" I begin, but my sister cuts me off.

"That sounded like Dad," Della whispers.

"I think it came from somewhere over there," I tell her, nodding my head to a narrow path that leads around to the other side of the butcher shack.

"Where is he? Weren't you guys supposed to fix the generator?"

I grind my teeth. "Something bad happened," I confess. "I think he's in trouble. Let's go."

I steer her toward the path, eager to run by the building as quickly as possible. If we didn't find anything on the other side, then we'd just have to turn back around and find the path that leads back to the shed and the lodge and--

Nevermind. There's something here.

"Is it a cave?" Della asks apprehensively.

"No," I tell her.

This is man-made. It's some kind of small entrance to something underground. Pillars of rotten wood prevent the entrance from collapsing.

It's a mine.

Della grabs my arm. "Don't go in there."

I look at her sternly. "We have to go in! Dad's in trouble, Della! We gotta go."

She didn't look like she agreed, but she didn't argue with me either. Clenching her jaw, she follows close behind me.

"Do you have your iPod?" I ask. "My phone died."

We disappear just inside the entrance, ducking below the roof. The wind stops beating at us, but I can still hear it roaring outside.

I hear Della's clothing rustle as she checks her pockets.

"N-No. It must've fallen out somewhere," she tells me.

I bite my lower lip and squint into the darkness. Without a light, this is difficult. Maybe even dangerous. However, it seems like we are on level ground. This is just a tunnel, angling slightly downward. No steep drop-offs or cliffs in immediate sight.

"I don't like this," Della says, clearly afraid. She grabs my arm. "W-What if he's down here?"

She wasn't referring to Dad, but to the voice over the intercom. The kidnapper. The killer who murdererd Eugena.