Chapter 8

Day 26

0200 Hours

It was amazing. It was cold. It was devious.

It was freedom.

The thunder kept rolling, getting closer, louder. It was pouring out side, and the lightning illuminated the room at every strike. Kal crept out of the bed, quietly. Soundlessly. Mischievously. The moment Kal had been waiting for. The trust Aaron had with him, so strong, but weak. Kal made his way to the door. A creak in the wood floors made him halt. A flash of lighting struck and the thunder followed close by. With the light, Kal saw that his kidnapper was still sleeping.

The door opened soundlessly. Out of the bedroom door and swiftly though the living room. He looked out the window, past the thick rain. There was a forest in view, just in reach. It was a wild guess, but if Kal was correct, the town was closer through the woods, than through the road.

As quietly as possible, Kal unlatched the windows and the rain poured through, quickly wetting the window sill. When he jumped through the first thing he did was take a nice, deep breath. The air was cold, and fresh. He hadn't smelled fresh air since about a month ago. Stuffed in the house. Kal took a deep, good breath, then broke into a run. He ran as fast as he could, even thought he was weak and his legs were wobbly.

Kal ran, and ran, and ran. He wanted to get away far from that Hell. It was no longer a house, oh no. In a house, you feel safe. Secure, worry free. That wasn't a house. Kal tripped over a few stray tree roots, and stepped in some branches and ran into some bushes, but he knew it was worth it. Worth freedom.

When Kal was sure he was far enough from his kidnapper, he stopped to catch his breath. Kal spotted the river, and ran straight towards it. It'll be quicker over the river, he was sure of it. The faster he got home, the faster he could eat, and the quicker that man could be arrested.

There were lots of rugged rocks in the water, but it didn't seem to be going too fast. It also didn't look too deep, and Kal decided it was safe to swim across. However, the closer he got to the river, the dirtier it looked.

As soon as Kal's feet his the water, he was slowed immensely. He didn't realize how weak he had gotten over the month. Kal continued onwards anyways. Water was splashing everywhere, and eventually Kal was forced to walk. He became paranoid, afraid his kidnapper had found out and was looking for him, out in the rain. Right behind him.

The further Kal got, the deeper it got, and quickly too. The water seemed to be getting a little faster, and the rocks were actually very close together. Kal's heart beat faster the closer he got to the river. He was nervous, and panicking that he actually made a bad idea. Kal took a step, and suddenly the water was up to his waist.

A couple more steps down, and it was up to his nipples.

His neck.

Kal was walking very slowly now. He was breathing hard, heart racing, almost ready to have a panic attack. He now realized this was a bad idea, but a little late for that. He was already almost halfway across the river. "Gotta be careful. Gotta be careful." He mumbled to himself.

Kal slipped, and went under.

Water quickly filled his eyes, ears and mouth. He was dead centre in the river and not touching the ground. The water was moving faster than he wanted it to. Kal was drowning. He tried to go to the surface, but coupled with the downpour and a fast streaming river, he couldn't keep his eyes open long enough to see which way he was attempting to swim. He was fighting with the water, with life, with death. Kal encountered several close calls with the rocks, but none of them actually harmed them. Not yet a least.

It turned from a simple cross across the river, to a fight. Kal luck had run out.

Freedom at last.