Tom and Sara went off to the right, back in the direction Eric had come from. A few minutes later the man who had been sitting on the ground in some kind of pain stood up to stretch and walk around a bit before he and the other big guy headed off to the left, through the trees, and out of sight. That left two women watching Abby – the two they had already faced and beaten.
It was time to make a move. Eric thought about rushing in to take care of the two women and free Abby, but he could not reconcile the thought of hurting a woman, even if they might deserve it. He also doubted that he could do it quietly. There would be screaming, then the men would come running back from wherever they were. He figured Tom and Sara were in all likelihood going off to look for him at the beach. He wondered if maybe he should follow them.
No, he decided to follow the two men first and see where they were going. If he could catch them by surprise and somehow incapacitate them, that would be best. Then he could circle back and free Abby. If he could not take care of the men first, he would have to come up with a new plan.
Eric quietly started off in the direction the men had gone a few moments ago. It was silent until he stepped on a dead branch that let out a snap that sounded more like a gunshot. He froze and could not help but look back toward Abby, who started yelling at one of the women. The other one, the redhead, stared into the trees directly where Eric was standing frozen in position. Does she see me?
She stood and looked toward the woods, the other woman was completely occupied with Abby. Eric swallowed and crouched low, making himself as small as he could. Taking a couple of steps toward the tree line, she stood scanning the woods from a few feet beyond the fire. Her eyes stopped right on the spot where Eric crouched motionless. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and he blinked tightly to clear it from his eyes. The seconds felt like hours. She took another step toward the trees and stared for another moment. The other woman turned and shouted something at her and the redhead turned around and walked back toward the fire.
Eric stayed motionless for another moment before continuing on, being extra careful to watch exactly where he was stepping. He could hear what sounded like digging and decided to follow that. He figured it must be the two men, unless there were more people out here than he had originally thought. A few minutes later he reached the edge of a very large, moonlit clearing in the trees, and he saw that it was exactly what it sounded like: digging. The two men were digging holes side by side near the edge of the clearing. He watched for a few minutes, trying to figure out what they were doing.
The men stopped and argued a bit about the size of the holes. At least that is what Eric gathered from the few words he picked up. They waived their arms, and one emphatically stuck his shovel in the ground, took the other man’s shovel, and stuck it in the ground about six feet from the other one. This is how big it should be. At least in his mind that is what Eric imagined the context was. The other man seemed to agree and they both started digging again. They worked quickly, and within five minutes had a shallow hole dug, about six feet long and maybe three feet wide. A grave.
Instantly, he knew whom the graves were for. From his back pocket he pulled out a sharpened stick that he had found in another hole in the ground, much larger than these, while he had been searching for Abby. There had been about a half dozen of them stuck into the side of that hole. It looked like someone had used them to climb out of there. At the time, he had figured it could be a weapon, if needed. He was glad now that he had grabbed it. He would not fail to protect her this time. If he had anything to say about it, these two unsuspecting men were digging
It was time to make a move. Eric thought about rushing in to take care of the two women and free Abby, but he could not reconcile the thought of hurting a woman, even if they might deserve it. He also doubted that he could do it quietly. There would be screaming, then the men would come running back from wherever they were. He figured Tom and Sara were in all likelihood going off to look for him at the beach. He wondered if maybe he should follow them.
No, he decided to follow the two men first and see where they were going. If he could catch them by surprise and somehow incapacitate them, that would be best. Then he could circle back and free Abby. If he could not take care of the men first, he would have to come up with a new plan.
Eric quietly started off in the direction the men had gone a few moments ago. It was silent until he stepped on a dead branch that let out a snap that sounded more like a gunshot. He froze and could not help but look back toward Abby, who started yelling at one of the women. The other one, the redhead, stared into the trees directly where Eric was standing frozen in position. Does she see me?
She stood and looked toward the woods, the other woman was completely occupied with Abby. Eric swallowed and crouched low, making himself as small as he could. Taking a couple of steps toward the tree line, she stood scanning the woods from a few feet beyond the fire. Her eyes stopped right on the spot where Eric crouched motionless. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and he blinked tightly to clear it from his eyes. The seconds felt like hours. She took another step toward the trees and stared for another moment. The other woman turned and shouted something at her and the redhead turned around and walked back toward the fire.
Eric stayed motionless for another moment before continuing on, being extra careful to watch exactly where he was stepping. He could hear what sounded like digging and decided to follow that. He figured it must be the two men, unless there were more people out here than he had originally thought. A few minutes later he reached the edge of a very large, moonlit clearing in the trees, and he saw that it was exactly what it sounded like: digging. The two men were digging holes side by side near the edge of the clearing. He watched for a few minutes, trying to figure out what they were doing.
The men stopped and argued a bit about the size of the holes. At least that is what Eric gathered from the few words he picked up. They waived their arms, and one emphatically stuck his shovel in the ground, took the other man’s shovel, and stuck it in the ground about six feet from the other one. This is how big it should be. At least in his mind that is what Eric imagined the context was. The other man seemed to agree and they both started digging again. They worked quickly, and within five minutes had a shallow hole dug, about six feet long and maybe three feet wide. A grave.
Instantly, he knew whom the graves were for. From his back pocket he pulled out a sharpened stick that he had found in another hole in the ground, much larger than these, while he had been searching for Abby. There had been about a half dozen of them stuck into the side of that hole. It looked like someone had used them to climb out of there. At the time, he had figured it could be a weapon, if needed. He was glad now that he had grabbed it. He would not fail to protect her this time. If he had anything to say about it, these two unsuspecting men were digging
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