Mystery at Red Marsh Lake by Nathanael Reed

Author:Nathanael Reed
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish International

Nine

Caleb and Isaac set the canoe back on the ground and stood staring at the wreckage.

“He knows we’re here,” Caleb finally said.

“And he’ll be coming for us.”

“So what do we do?”

“We’ve got to get back to our boat as fast as we can.”

Caleb looked around them to the waters of the lake only a few feet away. “How do we do that without a canoe?”

“There’s only one thing we can do,” Isaac replied. “Go back through the bush. Kibo will be here any minute. No telling what he’ll do if he catches us alone in the middle of nowhere.”

Caleb looked helplessly at his friend. “Do you even know how to get to the boat?”

“We’ll follow the shoreline back to the creek where we left it. It won’t be easy, but if we keep the lake in sight we shouldn’t get lost.”

“Then let’s go.”

With a quick nod Isaac turned and plowed through the dense underbrush in the opposite direction of the cabin, with Caleb right at his heels.

The shoreline turned out to be an obstacle course the likes of which Caleb had never seen. Wall after wall of thick undergrowth entangled his every step, scratching his arms and face and tearing at his clothing.

To make matters worse, much of the ground near the lake was oozing with wet, black muck.

Whatever the terrain, though, Isaac kept a feverish pace, oblivious to all of the obstacles nature threw at them, always keeping the lake close by. At any moment Caleb expected to hear the crash of footsteps behind them, or to see Kibo’s canoe silently keeping pace out on the water. But as the moments passed, all remained quiet, except for the sound of their panicked flight through the forest.

Several times they were forced through shallow creeks, and once over a high craggy rock face, yet on they ran. At times, Caleb thought that his lungs would burst, or that he would collapse in a heap from exhaustion. Never had his legs and lungs ached as they did now.

Only twice did Isaac briefly pause in their mad dash, and then only for the shortest of rests … just time enough to catch their breath and listen fearfully for the sound of pursuit.

Finally just when Caleb was sure that he could run no further, Isaac brought them to a shuddering stop. Together they sank to the forest floor gasping for air, heads woozy from exhaustion. When Caleb was finally able to breathe normally, he looked around and realized he was no longer looking out over the waters of Red Marsh Lake.

“How long have we been following the river?” Caleb asked.

“For awhile now.”

“Where’s our boat then?”

Isaac climbed wearily to his feet. “Right over there,” he said, pointing to the opposite shore. “It’s on the other side of the river. Are you ready to get wet?”

Caleb looked out over the river. It didn’t seem all that wide, maybe a hundred yards or so, but the water was dark and the current appeared dangerously fast.

“I took a few swimming lessons,” Caleb said.

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