Mommy

Chapter 44: Orbs

I immediately stepped away from what was ahead of me, shivering in horror and fear.

I looked in the darkness before me, gasping in confusion when I began to see small, yellow, orb-resembling things floating up from the bottom of the trench of what seemed to be water.

Underneath those nearing orbs was what I saw to be nothing but pitch darkness, as though the pool didn't have a bottom.

I swallowed, my feet tingling.

Jen and Aki caught up with us, and by the miniscule light that the orbs provided, I could see that their curiosity was equal to ours.

"What are those things?" Jen asked, shifting uncomfortably and stumbling back as one of the orbs popped through the surface. I didn't think any of us knew what they were.

I was previously distracted, but quickly reminded of our threat when I heard the Babysitter squeaking in her wheelchair towards us from behind. I looked towards Carson in shock, swallowing down the urge to speed off without him.

"We need to move," Carson huffed, rather uncomfortably. He seemed nervous, and he gripped his hand tightly.

We all stepped into the water, watching as the orbs shifted and moved away at our movement. At the moment, we weren't trying to beat each other. We weren't trying to move fast.

All of us were filled with a possibly dangerous and life-threatening curiosity.

Maybe this wasn't a trap. Maybe it was just something to distract us and slow us down.

And if it was, it was working.

I finally snapped out of it as I saw Jen and Aki speed up from the corner of my eye. I shook off the wonder and paddled ahead as fast as I could, spitting mouthfuls of water out of my mouth.

I couldn't swim very well, but I could at least manage to doggy-paddle my way through this—kicking my legs and arms though the chilling water. This didn't seem to be too hard.

I swam forward in the freezing cold water, smiling as Jen and Aki seemed to slow down because of the arctic temperature of the water. But I couldn't let that slow me down.

I had to remember, this was a matter of life or death—for Anna. I couldn't let them get ahead, no matter what.

The water made my hands and feet go numb, causing my nose to ache with a freezing hum. It only took a moment to realize that Carson wasn't beside me.

Or even in the water at all.

I turned around with a splash in the water to see that Carson was still on the edge of the bubbling liquid, perhaps not even dampening his toes in the pool yet. He seemed awfully scared.

Carson saw that I was looking at him in confusion, and he stuttered, looking fearfully into the water. I swallowed and before to feel anxious. Something was wrong—why wasn't he following me?

"Uh-um..." Carson stuttered, his eyes going wide as our competitors swam ahead.

I froze in fear at the realization...Carson couldn't swim—that's why he was acting so weird. That's why he wouldn't get into the water.

That's why he was acting so...afraid.

My heart dropped in my chest.

I suddenly realized that the Babysitter was nearing by the squeak once again—and I realized Carson had to get in the water. Fast.

Carson had to come in the water with us or he would be caught—or it would be too late. He had to swim—he had to try.

Carson looked around nervously, perhaps looking for another path around this pool of water. I shook my head, splashing around as I realized we were getting far behind. Jen and Aki were disappearing into the darkness ahead of us.