RAIN

Chapter twelve

He kept his focus on the helicopter. He imagined it was a news crew who had come to survey the area and the incoming surge. Jet laughed. The prospect of getting out of this hell was liberating.

            He dashed out the door - the memory of the body in the bog sunk into the recesses of his mind for the moment. He had to find a way to flag them down.

"Rain, wake up!" He shook Rain from his sleep. "There's a helicopter out there. We have to flag them down. Come on, hurry up!" The excitement was thick in his voice.

The young man drifted out of his sleep, confusion masking his face. His sleep-filled eyes stared at Jet with a blank expression as he tried to understand what the excitement was.

"Get up, Rain. Help me get their attention." He grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet.

He stumbled from the altar as Jet pulled him. Jet ripped the wooden slab from the door, becoming reckless with the feverish need to escape. The idea of getting back to civilization was incredibly maddening. He tossed it aside, those deadlifts he did becoming useful.

"Wait!" Rain grabbed his arm to stop him. His eyes were wide with uncertainty and fear. "We can't go out there. Have you gone mad? Do you remember who is out there?"

"There's a helicopter. We need to get its attention. Those people can get us out of here."

"But what if my grandfather sees us and the helicopter doesn't? Then what?"

The question resounded in his head. Conflict arose in his head. A scuffle between escaping and safety. Rain had made a valid point, but the idea of being rescued before those people buried him in that water tasted too sweet to give up. He groaned, pained by the friction in his mind.

"I don't care. It's a chance we have to take. I'm not going to sit here and wait for those people to kill me," he said as he threw the door open.

The wind lashed at him, howling against his ears so loudly that it hurt. He stumbled a few steps back, and Rain caught him. His arm shot up, a hand blocking his face to shield his squinted eyes. He regrouped and then steadied his nerves. Like a madman, he sprinted outside, dauntlessly fighting the wind.

He hopped over the rubble and craned his neck to the sky. The villagers were the last thing on his mind. The helicopter's deafening whirling came closer, the sound of the massive rotors drowning out the storm's fury.

Jet felt his heart sink in his chest. It had taken a route that sent it close to the temple but not overhead, and with the thick trees and vines covering them, he knew the chances of them getting discovered were slim to none. Still, a lingering hope that refused to die prompted him to keep on fighting.

"HEY, DOWN HERE...DOWN HERE!" His voice pierced through the storm as he waved his arms, slicing the air with his hands, praying that the people in the helicopter would see him.

"They can't hear us. Let's go back inside. Please, Jet," Rain said as he grabbed his arm and attempted to drag him back inside the temple.

Jet snatched the lantern from Rain's hands and started waving again. The flame quivered as the wind entered through the small opening at the top.

"HEY, COME ON...DOWN HERE...WE'RE DOWN HERE. WE NEED HELP!"

"Jet..."

"HEY, LOOK DOWN. COME ON...HELP US!"

Rain froze, his eyes looking cautiously in the direction where he had heard movements. His breathing quickened, and his fingers gripped Jet's bicep. Jet was so focused on the helicopter that he didn't register Rain's fingernails digging into his flesh.