Jot 1.4

Laurel continued to sob quietly in her small tomb, her own personal mausoleum. But perhaps it wasn't her own. How many others had been spending the night in the Bed and Breakfast? How many more were stuck under the rubble? How many were no longer panicking as Laurel was, but as calm as the rubble now still and silent above her? How could this have happened? The Bed and Breakfast had looked sturdy and well kept as she climbed up the whitewashed steps. She had seen no flaws in the foundation, no cracks up the wall or holes in the roof. It was an old building, yes, but not one to tumble in on itself without cause or notice. There had been no tremor of the earth or gust of wind. One second Laurel was climbing into bed and the next her world was crumbling around her. One second she had been whole and the next, she was broken. What was the--suddenly, Laurel froze. Her eyes shot open and she stared at the glowing rock above her. Light? But not good light, not life-saving light. Laurel knew this, for it was not alone. A smell, a very distinct smell accompanied the glimmer, drifting in through the wreckage. Smoke. Burning. Death. Fire? The building was on fire? No! No! Now there was no hope at all! No chance of survival or rescue! Laurel screamed and wriggled beneath the weight of the stone slab on her legs. She had to get out! She had to free herself and crawl from the rubble, legless if she must. She could not die this way! "Help! Someone please help me!" But no one answered. Of course, no one could hear her. Who knows how much lay over her, how high the flames were, how loud their roar? "Please! Please help me! I--"

"Hello?"

Laurel froze. No. "Hello! Hello! Please help me!"

"Hello? Is there someone in here?"

"Yes! Yes! Please! I'm here! I'm here!"

"Keep yelling! I hear you!" It was a man's voice, calling to her through the mist. It echoed off the stone, making it impossible to pinpoint where it was coming from. But it was coming for her, and that's all Laurel cared about. She continued to yell, trying to stretch her cracking voice over the sound of the flames and over the occasional rock that clattered through the rubble. Soon, a shadow weaved between wood and stone as her rescuer drew nearer to her. A man rose from the dust. He crawled towards her on hands and knees. He had a long gash across his square jaw and his blonde hair looked gray from the coat of dust covering it. 

"Help me! Help me, please!" Laurel pleaded as he reached her. 

He placed his hand on her arm. "I will. Don't worry." He ran his eyes over her, assessing the situation. Laurel did not like the darkening of his expression as his study reached her legs smashed under the rock. 

"Is there...is there hope for me?" she asked. 

"I...I am sure there is. We just need to...need to get you out of there." 

Laurel bit her quivering lip. There was no hope for her and they both knew it. "Leave."

"What?" he stared at her questioningly. 

"It's...it's on fire. You need to get yourself out."

"I can't just leave you here."

"Yes, you---"

"No." He cut her off. The man climbed down the slab over her legs and pushed on it. It didn't move. He pushed harder, jamming his shoulder into the stone. It stayed still.

"Please, just go!" Laurel screamed. The man ignored her. Quickly, he grabbed a three foot beam laying a few feet away and jammed it under the stone. Putting all his weight on the end, the stone lifted a few inches.

"Can you move?" he grunted, his teeth grinding under the strain. Laurel tried to slide away. She moved a few inches, but it was not enough to free her.

"A little more!" The man pushed harder, groaning. Laurel pushed hard on the dirt with her palms, trying to drag her body out from under the rock. She could feel the underside of it scraping against her skin as she slid out, surprising her. She did not think she still had feeling left. Laurel ignored the pain and kept pushing. Finally, her feet appeared from under the rock and it fell with a boom as the man released it. 

"Are you all right?"

Laurel shook her head. She refused to look at her legs.

"Come on." He wrapped his arm around her back. "We need to get out of here."