Itwas buried.
Their plan had worked! They’d caused a cave-in, and the rocks had tumbled into the mouth of the cave and sealed it more thoroughly than she could ever have dared to hope.
She thought she’d feel joy—but where was Mariana?
Claire pushed herself to her feet and swayed. Closing her eyes, she waited for the dizziness to pass. When it did, she looked again.
She spotted Mariana on the ground a few feet away.
“Mariana? Are you okay?” Stumbling to her, Claire knelt next to her. Mariana wasn’t moving. Claire touched her shoulder, and Mariana didn’t respond. “Mariana?” She heard the fear in her voice, felt it squeeze her throat.
And then she saw Mariana’s chest was rising and falling.
“She’s breathing.” She exhaled in relief, and her vision swam again.
Mariana was coated in dust and had a streak of black soot onher cheek. Worse, her eyes were still closed. “Mariana, wake up. Please.”
Reyva crawled over to join her.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” Claire asked Reyva.
“Peachy.”
“Can you stand?”
“Probably,” Reyva said. “Not in the mood to rush it.”
Claire glanced at the mound.It really worked, she thought. The explosion had caused a cave-in as they’d planned. Yay? She turned back to her friend.
Suddenly, Mariana coughed. She curled onto her side, coughing, and then moaned. “Ow. That was loud. And explode-y. Did we do it? Did it work?”
She’s alive, Claire thought.She’s okay! We’re all okay.
“Think so,” Reyva said.
“Are you hurt?” Claire asked Mariana.
“I’m okay. You?”
“Fine.” The ringing in her ears was beginning to fade. She got to her feet and helped Mariana and Reyva stand. The three of them shuffled toward what used to be the cave. It had collapsed in, with rocks and earth filling the hole.
The birds were singing.
“I think we did it,” Claire said tentatively.
Mariana wrapped her arms around both of them, careful of Reyva’s sling. “We did it!”
They stared at the rocks for several very long minutes, but nothing stirred. Claire began to breathe easier. She felt bruised, especially on her right hip and thigh—she must have landed hardon that side—but nothing broken and nothing unbearable. Both Mariana and Reyva seemed okay. Alive. Wonderfully alive.
“Now what?” Reyva asked.
“We need to make sure no one ever opens it again,” Claire said. Like their parents had, beginning all of this. Starting forward, she began gathering up the pieces of the engine. She winced as she moved. “If we can make it look like nothing ever happened here, maybe no one will guess there’s a cave.”
Mariana fetched the wheelbarrow, and they picked up all the pieces of boat engine they could find. After that, they wiped away as many of their footprints as they could. They worked slowly but methodically and didn’t stop until they were satisfied they’d done the best they could. It still looked like something had happened here—there was no way to erase the way everything looked torn up—but given time, the forest should swallow it.
With one last look at the cave, they trooped out of the forest and back to the Lake House. They deposited the wheelbarrow with the parts in one of the sheds, so it would look like it belonged with the house.
Claire considered the shed with the trapdoor. The rocks would keep the lid shut from the inside, but what if someone came across it and was curious? She voiced her worry out loud.
