After the Fall

18: Taking Lead

I opened my eyes to blinding white light. I blinked until I could make out the dark, cylindrical barrel of the gun within it. Just a few days ago, I had wondered how often awe and fascination would be the emotion that rendered me speechless when staring down a gun muzzle. This proved to be the second time as I realized I had survived my fall. The same uncertainty and intrigue came over me as the black tunnel swamped my vision. Strangely, fear was nowhere in proximity.

"You tried to kill me." Ralph's voice emerged from behind the light. "I should put a hole in your face."

"Why would you do that?" Pain traveled my lower back and ribs, but I dismissed it to force my lips to curve into a grin. "I thought we had already called it even."

"Connor?" Tamara yelled from above, where another light was positioned on the underside of the lift. "Don't hurt him, you assholes."

"I don't know what the fuck is really going on." Ralph's gas mask muffled his words. "But as far as I know, you got away. Just don't do nothing stupid like firing on us when we leave."

"Sounds like a deal." I nodded, smiling so wide it hurt my cheeks. Leave it to Ralph to put his gas mask back on as if nothing I'd said had penetrated his thick skull. At least he knew better than to go back down to Randolph without it on.

"Now we're even." He backed up, keeping his light on me until he was behind the wall and no longer in sight.

I sat up and searched the cold floor with my hands until I found my handgun. I'd survived a gunshot, a fall, and the realization that everything I'd known to be true most of my life was nothing more than an enormous lie fabricated by Randolph himself. Like Tamara said, I definitely had a purpose. The desire to make all the pain we'd endured worth something came over me. Once on my feet, I placed the gun in the holster and a foot on the first rung.

A tickle in my ear stopped me in my tracks. The earbud was still snug within my canal, and the message coming through made my hair stand on end.

"This is Dr. Randolph. I need everyone clear of Ten. Just got word that the explosives have been successfully placed. For the safety of the residence, we have fifteen minutes to clear the area. I repeat. Stay clear of Ten. We're are going to detonate in fifteen minutes."

I peered behind me into the darkness, and beyond the hole in the wall to where the occasional red light glowed. A gloominess swamped me, replacing any pain or euphoric feeling of invincibility I had. I tried to recognize anything within or past the blackness to no avail, but for a second it crossed my mind that if Randolph was successful in his mission, I would forever sense the gloom that came from the darkness. Ironic how since impact darkness shaped me, and it would be the only constant in my life for the rest of my life, eternally, regardless of if Randolph succeeded.

Blindly, I climbed the wooden ladder, making my way up the rungs as fast as my hands and feet would allow. "Tamara?"

"Connor." The excitement in her voice lifted my worry, at least for a second, as I pushed forward and upward. "You're close. I can hear it. You're almost here."