I dug.
Making my hands into scoops, I clawed at the dirt, pushing and scraping until I touched the wood. As soon as I felt where I'd created a split in the box, I tugged on it. I pulled it as hard as I could, snapping off small pieces.
My lungs ached in desperation for air and I had to keep twisting my neck to get the dirt off of my face. I was only able to get small gasps at a time. It was in my mouth. I could taste the dirt and feel it in my teeth. I was out of time.
I punched and pulled at the wood, ignoring the searing pain in my fingers. When the hole felt a bit bigger, I pushed more of the dirt down towards my legs. I needed to go hands and head first and that required as much dirt out of the way as possible.
This was it. Taking one last gulp of air, I sat up and shoved my hands into the hole.
There was no space. As my head and shoulders followed, I felt like I was caught by a boa constrictor. There was no way to move in any direction. I could hear my heartbeat in my ears as full-blown panic took over.
I ripped at the dirt, reaching upward as much as I could. Thrashing side to side, I made the rest of my body follow. The pressure from the dirt above threatened to crush me. All I could do was keep clawing my way up.
At some point, I was vertical. I'd been horizontal for thirteen days and the sensation of being upright was foreign. With the heavy weight of the dirt on my shoulders, I had no idea how it was possible for me to keep going, but I did.
I could feel my lungs begging for air. The pain was excruciating. My lungs burned and within seconds, the pain was all I could think about. It took all of my willpower to stop myself from trying to inhale.
My pointer finger was the first part of me to breach the surface. Soon, my other fingers followed, then my hands. I tugged at the grass, tearing it up as I shoved dirt out of my way. The top of my head was free when my lungs couldn't take anymore.
I gasped.
Instead of air, I inhaled dirt. I was choking on it. My body kept trying to suck in air, making me strangle on it.
I clawed more frantically than ever before. The moment my head was free, I burst into a violent coughing fit. I gagged, vomiting up brown muck. It dribbled down my chin and I could feel hot tears making streaks of their own.
My throat was raw by the time my coughing fit slowly subsided. My chest ached and my head pounded something fierce. I was gasping air in, filling up my starved lungs.
I slowly opened my eyes, blinking up at the night sky. The stars were brighter than I'd ever seen them. The world was too blinding and I quickly shut my eyes again, only allowing myself to squint at the ground.
With shaky hands, I kept moving. I clawed at the grass covered ground and bit by bit pulled myself out. It was a horrifically slow process, but nothing would stop me.
I had managed to free my waist when footsteps approached me from behind. A mix of fear and rage filled me as I lifted up my head to great the shadowy figure.
Uncle Josiah smiled down at me.
"Welcome home, Elizabeth."
