Chapter 4: The Scream, The Fall, and The River
The Misadventures of Leighton Fig
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When we last left Leighton and June, they stood on the canyon's edge at the Fig ranch's far end. Chased by the intruders at the old church ruin, Leighton and June had to make a choice:
We have no choice. Look—it’s wide and deep here. It’s not as far as it looks.”
“Leighton, I can’t.”
Leighton looked back into the woods. The golden glow was closing on them. He turned, looked at June, grabbed her around the waist, and threw himself and June over the edge.
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The Scream, The Fall, and The River
The moment of leaving the rocky edge of the canyon froze in June’s mind. The dark canyon engulfed her. The cold air whirled around her as if the North Wind herself rushed in a torrent, swarming her falling body.
The light of the starry night filled her wide eyes as the canyon tree line vanished from her sight. With one loose arm, she reached toward the stars; with the other, she clung to Leighton’s arm wrapped around her waist. Her scream filled her ears and the canyon, echoing on the canyon walls and fading as she fell.
The stars vanished beneath a cold, dark veil with a sudden shock. The crashing shock racked June’s body and knocked the wind out of her. She gasped and sunk into the dark waters of the fast-moving river. The watery veil silenced her scream, and the cold water froze her body. She felt a tug and pull, and with a jerk, she rose from the darkness, clinging to Leighton’s arm.
She coughed out river water and spat and gagged, still facing the stars. Leighton wrapped his right arm around her neck and chest as the cousins struggled in the swift river current. June struggled to breathe; she tried to talk but only gagged. The water moved faster and grew shallower. The two bobbed in the current, but June could not touch the bottom.
The dark echoed with the rushing of rapids. June heard the sound and choked on water and screams. The violent rapids threw the cousins against the canyon walls and boulders. June endured blow after blow to her ribs and legs. The numbing pain weakened her grip on Leighton’s arm.
Fighting the water was useless—the current's pull overwhelmed June, body and soul. Still, Leighton held her.
The water tore into the narrows. The canyon walls grew so steep that June lost sight of the stars; the sky was gone. As she finally summoned the strength to call out to Leighton, her head grazed the side of one of the boulders in the center of the river, and everything stopped. No river, no sound—and June drifted into unconsciousness.
The graze of the boulder spun the cousins, but June took the brunt of the hit. Leighton felt June go limp and, again, felt the current increase its flow. He swung June in front of him to hold her with both arms so he could see the oncoming boulders. The current pushed them back towards the right side of the river, where a large outcropping of boulders rose out of the water.
Leighton saw a dead tree wedged between several of the low boulders. He turned towards the tree, turning June behind him again, and reached out for the tree. But his grip slipped, and he and June spun around the tree. Just before June hit the boulders, Leighton spun her again, taking the brunt of the hit with his head and face.
Leighton cried out in pain, concussed and dizzy. Pain seared through his head. He felt something open inside of him. It was more than pain. It was a force.
The collision stopped them in a swirling eddy against the canyon wall and the boulders.
Fighting to keep from passing out, Leighton reached up and around two boulders, frantically searching for a grip. But his arm slipped on the watery rocks and fell between two boulders, wedged and stuck.
He held June with his left arm and screamed for help. He screamed until the rapids’ sounds faded into the night. He could see the water but not hear it, and he knew he was losing consciousness.
Soon, the water would take them, he thought. “I must stay awake. I … have … to …”
The force raged through his throbbing head as his vision vanished. In his weakened state, June held his focus. Part adrenaline, part family love—who can understand the hidden strength of the human body?—Leighton held June.
He could feel the pummeling pressure of the water against him, yet over and over in his swollen head, he heard his voice repeating the words, “Hold on, Leighton. Don’t let go.”
The force rose like a wave in his mind. A numbness set in. And as a shadow overtook him, memories flashed in his head—no, not memories. Something else. A bear in a river. A raven in a window. A girl frozen in time. A time not yet. But a time lived. Then the wave crashed, and all was dark.
June woke to the sound of a man calling her name.
“June. June! Hold on, baby girl. Hold on.”
Her body ached, and her Uncle Gibb held her close in the raging cold river. She threw her arms around his neck, crying and coughing. She tried to whisper Leighton’s name to him in his ear, but no words came out. She lifted her head from Uncle Gibb’s shoulder and saw white lights filling the canyon. She was suspended in the air, and something was pulling her and her uncle upward toward the lights.
She looked down at the river, the white lights exposing the rapids and canyon walls, and Leighton slumped over the boulders.
She tried to get turned around.
She tried to stop the line from pulling them upwards.
Finally, she screamed, “Leighton! Leighton!”
“He’s going to be alright, June. We’re getting him next.”
Thank You
Thank you for reading Chapter 4 of The Misadventures of Leighton Fig. I hope you enjoyed it. If you have friends or family you think might enjoy this novel, please share it with them. I welcome your thoughts and reactions in the comments below.
The Tempest and The Bloom
If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy my serialized novel, The Tempest and The Bloom. I’ll be posting the final chapters of this story this winter! Click here to read.
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