Chapter 7

The sound was drowned out by a jingle that was coming from deep down in the forest.   

Francis followed behind me. I hadn’t realized I had walked ahead of him. “Bonnie? Did you hear me?”

I ignored him and trudged faster down the trail.

What is that beautiful sound?

It was a composition I had never heard before. It was like every instrument I had ever known had melted into one. It was alluring. I had to find it. I lightly tugged on Francis’s arm and started leading him down the trail with me.

“What are you doing?” Francis laughed. He stopped questioning and walked with me.

We hiked deeper down the path before I stopped and asked, “Can you hear that?” I didn’t want to take a breath afraid of masking the sound.

“The water?” He asked through shining teeth. “Yeah. The bridge isn’t far.” I almost shushed him before I completely forgot him.

I have to find that music.

I started off by myself and dropped his sleeve. Francis was behind me, but I couldn’t have told you that. I couldn’t have told anyone, anything. My feet started carrying me in the direction of the wordless song. My eyes were peeled, prepared to see something beautiful. We were on the channel now.

“Bonnie, wait!” Francis ran to me and seized my hand uncharacteristically. Normally I would have been very aware of the casual manner in which we were holding hands but right now that wasn’t important.

We were halfway down the bridge before a patch of the wood built into the link fell through, diving to the river.

Francis enthused, “Whoa! Did you see that? The railing should have caught that…” His voice trailed off and I kept walking. Two more stepping stones fell around us. “Bonnie, I think we should turn around.”

Another fell through. Then two more. Then four.

They kept tumbling until there was a circle of missing stones around us trapping us in the center of the bridge. I didn’t speak but felt that stupid grin play across my face again.

Francis was squeezing my hand and screamed, “How is this happening!?”

I felt a vibration and heard a loud CLAP. I looked up the noise and saw the sky open up to a light show of different colors. Another CLAP happened and I watched fuchsia lightning bolts slap the clouds. My hair starting whipping around my face and I perceived the whistle of a train. The wind was drawing at us as well as the blocks of wood and railing. The bridge broke apart in a matter of seconds and I watched the debris of it twirl around us.

The whirlwind blocked our view of the outside. Francis heaved me into his arms and my new view was of his chest. I turned my eyes back to see the sporadic incandescent lights flashing in the air. The world blinked white and I felt the pulsation with the color shift.

A new voice inside me whispered, “Escala.”

Francis guarded my head as the cyclone took us up.