Chapter 10 - Bomb Shelter
They crashed through the dense vegetation, branches whipping, leaves brushing, twigs snapping.
Daniel had no idea where Edward was leading him, but he hoped that the delivery guy wouldn't have a chance to follow. Edward seemed to running randomly, dodging bushes and trees without even bothering to look behind.
The gloom descended on them suddenly, as if someone had flicked a switch. The sun failed to penetrate the forest canopy, except for a few stubborn streams of sunlight that gave anything under the forest canopy a spooky green look.
His breath coming in sharp gasps, he stopped, but forced himself on. His mouth was dry, saliva sticky, and his throat felt as if he'd swallowed sand.
"Where... are we... going?" Daniel puffed.
Edward pointed in front of him and was about to reply when he heard a bang. He stopped immediately, and Daniel almost crashed into him. The forest when silent at once.
The forest is never silent. It's always noisy. Monkeys chattering, insects chirping, leaves rustling in the breeze, and even the wind itself whispering.
It was funny how when Daniel was running for his life he could remember things from a "survival guide" he'd read months ago. He thought of all the times during tests when he could never remember that vital piece of information he needed, like the formula for calculating surface area of a cylinder, or that the chemical formula for sodium chloride was "NaCl". The human mind was certainly strange.
Both boys could hear faint voices in the distance. Time was running out. But where were they going to hide?
Edward bent down and tugged at something. A neat square of grass popped out, and it took Daniel a moment or two to realise that it was actually a trapdoor. Edward motioned for Daniel to get in first, pointing to a vertical row of iron rings set into a rocky wall. Daniel hesitated just for a fraction of a second. He glanced down into the hole and saw nothing but darkness. He clutched the iron rings tightly and began his descent. Edward followed, pulling the trapdoor shut above him, leaving the twosome in total darkness.
A minute and ten steps later, Daniel felt his feet touch solid ground and breathed a sigh of relief. A beam of light appeared be side him; it was Edward, carrying a torch.
"What is this place?"
Edward grinned, although he knew Daniel couldn't see it. "It used to be a bomb shelter, back in the 1940s." Edward flashed the torch around, revealing a dirt floor and three solid stone walls. The fourth stone wall was taken up by four narrow shelves. The topmost one held nothing but dust, the second held three rolled up rubber mats, the third occupied by various types of food and the fourth a small plastic box.
"I found this place years back, when I was playing in the forest. I use this place whenever I need some peace and quiet, or when my parents go for business trips, I spend the night here. It's really fun."
Daniel arched an eyebrow. "But you didn't have people chasing after you the last time you came here, did you?"
"Yeah, I had three men in full commando gear chasing after me with guns."
Laughter.
Then... Voices. Footsteps.
YOU ARE READING
One Last Chance
Adventure"A normal life. That's all I ever wanted..." When Daniel goes on the run, his life turns upside down. He's seen strange men following him, been chased across town by gangsters, made friends with a homeless girl and saved his enemy's life. Then he fi...
