Without hesitating, Ana pulled on the handle and lifted. The hatch lid was heavy steel, but it moved a crack. She heaved harder, coughing incessantly. Finally, the lid was open enough for her to flip it over. It fell back, revealing a black hole with a clang.
“Alex!” Ana shouted. But the words were barely audible. She broke into a spasm of coughing. “Alex!” What was wrong with her voice? It was croaky, weak.
She turned to find him. But the smoke had thickened into an impenetrable blanket. She tried to wave it away, scrabbling to her feet. Her legs felt strange, limp. There just wasn’t enough air.
She had to get Alex now.
“Al…” she gasped.
A figure was moving towards her, barely visible in the ashen air.
“Here!” She waved at him desperately. “Alex…over here…” Coughing violently, she dropped to her knees. Everything was starting to spin.
The figure was closer. Tall. Too tall. Its face masked with fabric wrapped around it. Something in its hand. Something metal.
It was Ellis.
He moved towards her, one arm reaching up, a metal crowbar raised high over his head. He wasn’t coming to talk. He was ending this.
Ana raised her hand to block him, but her arm didn’t move right. It fell limply as she slumped backwards. There was nothing she could do. She gasped desperately for air. Nothing left. Her vision was closing in on her, narrowing, pulling her towards blissful unconsciousness.
Ellis was just feet away and moving in for the kill. This was it. Game over.
Suddenly she felt something grab her from behind. Strong hands lifted her and dragged her backwards. She felt herself falling into the hatch.
A cool, welcome darkness overwhelmed her, closing in on her as she slipped away, her mind shutting down until there was nothing left but silence.
34
Alex
11:19
Alex was lying face down in the red dust, the burning shed several feet behind him. He watched sideways as smoke billowed out and was quickly taken by the desert wind.
Where was Ana? Had she made it out?
His head hurt where Ellis had smacked him hard with something. He could feel gravel burns on his legs and arms from being dragged. Everything was blurry—inside and out, all the pieces missing, jumbled up in his head.
Wriggling awkwardly onto his side, he tried to sit up. His hands were roughly tied behind his back with a lamp cord. The old lamp was still attached and banged against him when he moved.
Slowly, awkwardly, he maneuvered himself into a sitting position. He must have been lying there a while; the fire was burning itself out. Wind sucked ash out of the building, sweeping it skywards, momentarily giving him a clear view of the hole where the door had been.
He stared into the darkness, searching for movement, willing Ana to come out.
Where was she? Was she okay? Had Ellis got to her? Where was Ellis?
“An…” He spluttered into a round of violent coughing. His chest hurt—he’d breathed in so much smoke, it felt like someone had put their hands around his neck and tried to choke the life out of him.
It took minutes for the coughing to subside. He sunk back onto the ground, lightheaded, everything spinning. It was all he could do to lie there and try to hold on. A wave of nausea followed the dizziness.
Just sit it out. Hold on.
It was hard to know how long he stayed like that. Time was passing in waves. Tentatively he opened his eyes, red and smarting from the fire.
A pair of disconcertingly clean sneakers were inches from his face. One reached forward and nudged him hard in the shoulder.
“You awake?” Ellis said, his voice clear and untouched by the smoke.
