Escaping the Rainbow - Complete (Escaping the Rainbow Short Stories) Read online

  Escaping the Rainbow - Complete

  Escaping the Rainbow Short Stories

  Leslie E Heath

  Published by Leslie E Heath, 2018.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  ESCAPING THE RAINBOW - COMPLETE

  First edition. June 27, 2018.

  Copyright © 2018 Leslie E Heath.

  Written by Leslie E Heath.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Escaping the Rainbow

  Escaping the Rainbow

  Neil grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the dark woods. Sure enough, the rainbow dropped into the forbidden forest. My steps faltered.

  “What could possibly be worth going in there? You know what happened to Martin, and he only went in to get a ball!”

  Planting my feet on the rocky ground, I shook my head. Martin had never come back, though Evan had found his shoe in the bushes a week later.

  “You know there’s gold at the end of the rainbow. It’s not that far in; we can get the gold and get out again without anything happening. Besides, Martin went in alone. We’ll have each other to keep watch.”

  Neil’s brown eyes pleaded and he pulled on my arm again. “Let’s go, Owen! We’re gonna miss it. What could possibly happen?”

  I could think of at least a dozen awful things that could happen – that had happened to people in our isolated little village. Every summer, someone stepped into those woods and vanished, but no one could explain what happened to them. Every time, someone found an item the person had been wearing when they disappeared, usually in the brush at the edge of the trees. It was as if the forest was gloating, showing off trophies gleaned from its victims.

  “Remember last week? My mom and two of her friends went into the woods after the wind carried off her bonnet. They came out all right. You just can’t go in alone.” He yanked on my arm, hard enough that I stumbled forward a few steps.

  “All right. I’ll go.”

  Dread clutched at my throat as we stepped toward the forest in the afternoon light. The rainbow lit the sky a brilliant orange, an ominous counterpoint to the black clouds over the hills beyond the forest.

  I held my breath and grabbed Neil’s arm as we stepped through the bushes and into the shadows of the woods. Squeezing my eyes closed, I waited. If something was going to happen, it would be now. My head spun with dizzy anticipation; I was holding my breath. I exhaled in a rush, then inhaled slowly and opened my eyes.

  It looked exactly as it always had from the tree-line, but now we were inside the forest. A dozen paces in front of us, a glimmering light emanated through the trees. Neil saw it at the same time I did.

  “There it is!” He tugged me forward, stumbling over a fallen branch in his haste. Releasing my arm, he darted through the trees.

  My heartbeat pounded in my ears as we ran through the darkening forest toward the orange light ahead. Branches and thorns grabbed at my clothes, ripping my shirt. Blood oozed from cuts and scratches along my face and arms, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. I had to keep up with Neil.

  Ragged breathing and the crunch of leaves underfoot filled my ears as I raced after my best friend. I almost didn’t notice when he stopped.

  I pulled up short and stumbled to a stop beside him, then froze.

  There, in a small clearing, the rainbow ended in a spectacular show of glittering light on the forest floor. No pot of gold glittered at its end, but something moved within the brilliant light. What was it?

  Without thinking, I stepped closer, then closer still. My breath caught in my throat and I fell to my knees before the wall of light. On the other side, at least twenty people stared back at me; one I recognized. My heart skipped a beat as Martin pounded on an invisible barrier, screaming soundlessly and pointing to the forest behind me.

  “Owen!”

  I jerked around in time to see a wall of branches sweeping toward me along the ground, Neil suspended high in a tree.

  “Run!”

  I searched for a way out, but we were surrounded. I backed toward the terrifying rainbow, disbelief and shock numbing my mind. Icy cold water ran down my hands as I moved into the glittering beam and my back pressed against something hard as steel. Brilliant light erupted around me as something grabbed my ankles, jerking me toward the sky. My head knocked against the solid barrier behind me. The world sank into darkness.

  WIND RUSHED PAST MY face, robbing me of breath. Before I could recover, something hard slammed into my back. I gasped for breath, my vision swimming into focus. Orange light surrounded Martin’s spiky hair as he knelt over me.

  “What happened? Where’s Neil?” I struggled into a sitting position, my back propped against the solid wall of the rainbow’s edge.

  “Well, the rainbow caught you. I don’t know what exactly that thing is out there, but now you’re trapped in here with the rest of us. So’s Neil.” Martin pressed his handkerchief to my forehead. “Did you hit your head? You’re bleeding.”

  “Ouch! That stings.” After taking the handkerchief, I stood, bracing myself on the wall of light until my knees stopped wobbling.

  Neil ran up and grabbed my arm. “Owen! Are you all right? I’m so sorry! This is my fault.”

  His head hung in shame, Neil refused to meet my eyes.

  I forced a smile. “I’m all right. Let’s figure out how to get out of this.” I turned to Martin. “I’m sure you’ve tried to escape. What do we know so far?”

  A drop of blood dribbled into my eye, blurring my vision. I pressed the handkerchief harder against my forehead and glanced around the circle of gathered prisoners. Their clothes were torn and dirty, but they looked well-fed, or at least to me. They didn’t have that gaunt, bony look I’d seen in my history books.

  One of the adults sat in front of me, a stick in his hand, and drew a wide circle in the dirt. At the edge closest to me, he drew an X.

  “This is where we are. The circle never moves, never changes. We survive by killing rabbits and squirrels that wander in here with us, and cooking them over the fires we make with dried brush we find. As far as I can tell, we’re invisible to those outside except when the storms come and light up the rainbow.”

  “But what is that thing? And what does it want with us?” I shook my head and sat cross-legged in front of the circle. While I watched, the man drew a line through part of the circle, indicating the small stream to my right.

  The adult sighed. “I don’t know.”

  “Hey,” I said, realizing I didn’t know this person. “Who are you anyway? How long have you been in here? I’m Owen.”

  “I’m James, and I’ve been in here about a year, as best I can remember. How old are you, Owen?”

  “I’m eleven.” I drew myself up to my full height. “Almost twelve. But how are we going to get out of here? My mom needs me to help her at home.”

  It was true. She had hurt her back the summer before, and some days had a hard time getting out of her chair. I had to get home to her and my sisters.

  “Well, I don’t know the answer to that. If I did, I’d have been out of here months ago.”

  With an annoyed look, James erased the circle in the dirt and rose to his feet.

  “What have you tried so far?” I fought the despair rising in my stomach. There had to be a way out, there just had to be.

  As James walked away, I examined my surroundings. To my right, tree branches stuck into the circle of light. Maybe I could climb out and run out of the forest
before whatever-it-was realized I was free.

  “Neil! Martin!” I waited until they were close before I pointed out the branches and outlined my plan.

  Martin shook his head. “We’ve all tried that. We even tried climbing different trees to try to distract it, but it always knocks us down before we get six feet off the ground.”

  “Well, what else have you tried?” Neil sounded as anxious as I felt.

  “Nothing, really.” Martin sighed and sat, resting his back against the invisible wall. “Everyone tries running at the wall to try breaking through, but that never works. Besides that, we’re all out of ideas.”

  “Wait, you said rabbits and squirrels can get in, right? That means there has to be openings in this thing.” I knocked on the wall to emphasize my point.

  “Yeah, rabbit-sized holes. How does that help?” Martin threw a stick at the wall and watched as it bounced back at us.

  “Have you ever tried finding those openings? Maybe they’re bigger than you think.”

  A spark of hope kindled in my throat, but I forced it down. These people had been here for months or longer. Surely, they had tried everything.

  “Nah.” Martin shook his head, and a lock of dark hair fell across his eyes. “There’s no point chasing rabbit holes. We can’t fit through them.”

  “True,” I agreed, though a plan brewed in my mind. I leaned back against the wall and sank to the ground, waiting.

  The rainbow’s brilliant light faded as the sun set, plunging the circle into darkness. A short while later, I watched as the adults lit a fire and set snares for whatever creatures would venture into the circle.

  There. A rabbit wandered in through the wall across from me, and keeping my eyes on the exact spot, I walked to where it had entered. I couldn’t help glancing back; everyone had gathered around the fire where someone had already put the rabbit on a spit. Should I signal Neil somehow? It felt wrong to leave him there. But what if the holes closed or moved somehow? I couldn’t risk it.

  I felt along the wall until I found the opening. It wasn’t large, but I wasn’t, either. I shoved my arm through, brushing the tall grasses on the other side. The cold edge of the wall pressed against my elbow, nearly reaching my wrist. I moved my arm around, testing the sides of the invisible cage, but it stayed still and cold as glass.

  My breath came in shallow gasps as I faced the darkened forest, but I pushed the terror away. I had to try. I wiped my face and squirmed through the opening, careful not to make a sound.

  An owl hooted nearby as I eased myself out into the forest and stood. My heart pounded in my ears and fear froze my feet to the ground. The light behind me illuminated the clearing, revealing the menacing trees that hovered over the captives.

  Something moved in the bushes beside me and terror overtook me.

  I couldn’t do this alone. I had to go back for Neil and Martin. Now that I knew I could get out through the hole, I’d bring them with me.

  The brush moved again, spurring me to act. I dove back through the hole and sat, gasping for breath, my back pressed against the invisible wall. I couldn’t do it alone, I repeated silently. I’d have to find Neil and Martin. We could escape together. Shaking and wobbling, I stood, brushed the grass from my pants, and wandered towards the fire. I had made it halfway there when I realized I hadn’t marked that opening. One of my dad’s curse words flitted through my mind, but I didn’t say it. Instead, I continued on to the fire, my stomach rumbling with hunger as I smelled the cooking meat.

  Once I’d eaten my fill of the rabbit, I leaned back against the cold barrier. Neil and Martin dropped to the wet ground beside me, one on either side. I glanced across the round space to where the adults gathered around the fire.

  “I think we can get out of here,” I said, keeping my voice low enough that the adults wouldn’t hear.

  Martin shook his head. “I told you: we’ve tried everything already. We’re stuck here.”

  “No, really! I got out.” I grinned at my friends, who both looked confused. “I watched where the rabbit came in, and I went out through that hole. It’s big enough to crawl through.”

  Neil frowned. “If you got out, why are you still here?”

  “I... something big was moving around in the bushes.” My cheeks burned. “I got scared and came back. Besides, I couldn’t leave you guys here.”

  “This might work,” Martin said, rubbing his chin the way his father always did. “We never tried to follow the animal trails.”

  Neil shifted his position until he sat in front of Martin and I, his back to the adults. He leaned close. “We need a plan.”

  “I’ve thought about it nonstop since I found that hole. Martin, when have you tried escaping? During storms? On sunny days? What about at night?” My heart pounded in my chest while I tried to solve the puzzle. It felt just like the thrill of trying to solve the mystery in my favorite books.

  “Well...” Martin began, “we didn’t try very many times. Once was right after breakfast, once around noon, and I think once in the afternoon sometime. We never tried at night or during a storm. I don’t think any of us wanted to be out there then.” He gestured toward the dark forest.

  I sighed, disappointed. “Okay, well, when is it most likely to dump new people in here?”

  Martin went pale. “Usually after other people disappear,” he whispered.

  I tried to figure out what he meant, but it was getting late and my head had started throbbing again. I shook my head. “What do you mean? Who disappears? How does that happen? Do they get away?”

  “No. It... it takes them. We don’t know where or why, but the people it takes don’t ever come back.”

  A chill ran through me and my stomach lurched. “So, we’re basically in some sort of holding cell, then. The question is – what’s it holding us for?”

  “I think the adults know, or at least have an idea, but they won’t say anything if I’m close enough to overhear.” Martin kept his head down, staring at the handfuls of grass he’d yanked out of the ground. “All the times we tried to escape were right after people disappeared.”

  I didn’t know what else to say. I leaned back against the cold, hard wall and stared up into the darkness. Some of the clouds had cleared away, and patches of stars winked down at me. I couldn’t help wondering how my mother had reacted when I didn’t come home. Tears burned my eyes, but I squeezed them shut. Crying wouldn’t help anything. My head ached and throbbed, and I almost couldn’t fight the urge to lay down.

  “What do you do for sleep?” I asked, prying my eyes open. “I’m beat. I’ll be able to think better in the morning.”

  Martin sighed and pointed. “We usually just stay close to the fire, since we don’t have any blankets or anything. The grown ups take turns staying up and keeping the fire going.”

  “Let’s get some sleep,” Neil said. His voice sounded choked, like he was fighting tears, too. “We’ll plan some more tomorrow.”

  I pushed myself up, away from the glass. The world spun around me and I stopped, bracing a hand against the wall.

  “Are you all right?” Neil asked. “I wish we could take you to a doctor.”

  “I’m fine,” I insisted. “I just stood up too fast, that’s all.”

  The others stared hard at me for a few seconds, and Neil grabbed my arm and tugged me over to the fire. We laid in a row in front of the fire, our heads level with one another.

  When the spinning stopped, I fell asleep and dreamed of my mom and sisters. The bright light of dawn woke me far too soon.

  As the sun climbed the sky, Evan, Neil, and Martin collected sharp sticks and small rocks they thought they could use as weapons for their escape. They spent the day planning how they would leave through the rabbit hole, and how they would survive in the forest when darkness fell. Owen tried not to think of whatever had been rustling in the bushes the night before, but his stomach quivered in fear at the thought of being out in the forest at night.

  They waited until a
fter supper, when the grown-ups gathered around the fire to tell jokes and laugh at silly stories.

  When the sky tinted orange with the beginnings of sunset, Evan led the way out through the rabbit hole. He moved as quickly as he could, and Neil and Martin followed close behind. They followed a narrow game trail half-hidden in the underbrush. They crouched low, keeping to the bushes, unsure whether the trees could see them. After a half an hour or so of following the trail, Owen spotted a small cave in the ground.

  "Maybe we could hide in there for the night," Owen said.

  "I don't know," Martin said, shaking his head. "We don't know what else might live in there."

  "I think it's worth investigating while we still have some light." Neil took off toward the cave without waiting for an answer.

  Owen rushed after him, careful not to step in any holes. It would be just his kind of luck to get out of the clear prison and break an ankle in the escape.

  "Hey, look at this!" Neil held up a backpack. He opened the top flap and pulled out a handful of jerky.

  "Who do you think this belongs to?" Neal asked dumping the bag out on the rocky ground.

  "I don't know," Owen said crouching by the pile of meat and nuts. "But I bet whoever it is won’t like that you dumped out their food."

  "You're not wrong," a gravelly voice said from deep within the cave.

  Owen fought the urge to run, but when Martin and Neil stood straight and tall, prepared to face the new person, and Owen tried to copy their stances.

  "Who are you," Martin demanded.

  "I think I should be the one asking questions, seeing as how you just dumped out my food stores."

  Owen peered into the darkness of the cave, but couldn't make out where the voices coming from.

  "We didn't mean to spoil your food, we just need some place to spend the night," Neal said scooping up the cleaner jerky and putting it back into the pack.

  "And what makes you think I want you staying here with me?"