Page 443 of Coal Hearts

I begged that quiet, wiser part of my soul to take charge.

Images of us swimming and clawing at the ceiling as the ocean suffocated us played behind my closed eyes. Nightmares of us taking our last breath without ever seeing the sun again.

Focus.

I ordered every muscle to relax.

I went against every instinct and compelled my nervous system to choose calmness instead of adrenaline.

For a few moments, nothing happened.

The cave bounced Rachel and Mollie’s argument like a megaphone.

But slowly...thankfully...

My attention turned inward.

Light and sanctity, I found a pocket of peace.

I wasn’t this form.

This form could be cut, bled, raped, and drowned, but I was just the watcher within. Panic came from not accepting the situation. Suffering came from railing against certain fate.

But thanks to a lifetime of schooling my chaotic mind, I opened my eyes to a tranquil reality and smiled as the grounding cord of light that’d granted such salvation continued to glow up ahead.

Subtle.

Barely there.

But...

Wait.

I froze.

T-That’s not imaginary.

From this angle, I could see around the shadow of a stalagmite.

A shadow caused by the barest hint of deliverance.

“There’s another way out,” I whispered in shock, awe, disbelief.

Tugging Peter, I sloshed forward, sending water waking around our shins. The girls tripped with me.

“There’s light.” My arms shook with Peter’s weight. “The ground slopes up. It’s higher ground.”

Mollie and Rachel stopped fighting.

Rachel sniffed back tears. “W-What are you saying? I don’t see anything.”

A surge of energy filled me. I finally donned the mantel of leadership that Peter had always worn. “It’s faint. But trust me. It’s there. Come on.”

I expected Mollie to disagree. I tensed for Rachel to argue.

But...as I stepped into my role of guardian, they slipped into following.

Without a word, the two girls mirrored my steps.