Black Water

We didn't know the sea would come to swallow our town whole between its jaws. Our people sucked into the icy belly of Black Water. 

I felt the earth shake. I was baking cookies in my kitchen, standing on a stool to reach the mixing bowls on the top shelf, when the cabinets swung open and barfed out tupperware and canned beans. I lost my balance trying to protect myself from the projectile and fell hard onto the tile floor. My eyesight blurred in and out of focus for a few moments, and when I fully regained it, I was hit with the recognition of shooting pain in my tailbone.  

"Frankie!" I belted, so he'd hear me from upstairs. "I fell, I need help." I got no response, so I called out again louder. 

"The books have all fallen off the-" He didn't hear me but was rushing downstairs to inform me of our now disorganized library. "Etta, darling, what...are you alright?"

I shook my head vigorously, tears now pooling in my dainty eyes.

He grabbed my arm and placed it over one broad shoulder. Slowly we shuffled over to the living room sofa. 

"Do you need water?" Frankie asked, but before I even answered, he was rushing to the refrigerator.

I sipped the cold beverage and let it wash down my throat refreshingly. Frankie waited patiently, watching as I drank before he said anything else. 

"Earthquake?" I asked as I set my glass down. "It must have been, Frankie, turn the television on please." 

He did. Headlining on every channel were evacuation warnings. You felt it, folks, a minor earthquake, but worse is coming. An evacuation plan is being organized immediately, and further details will follow shortly. Prepare yourselves for more earthquakes.  

"Evacuation?" Frankie asked in a panicked voice. 

"Gosh, I think so… what do we do? I've heard you shouldn't leave your home during an earthquake, why would we have to evacuate."

Frankie must have seen the fear written plain on my wrinkled face. He reached gently for my bony, arthritic hand and gave it a light squeeze. "We'll be fine, we just have to stick together." 

The unexpected wave came an hour later. Frankie and I spent those precious minutes together creating a protective shield of tables and chairs. We thought, if more earthquakes were coming, we'd need the best possible protection from falling debris. The earth didn't shake again after the first time. 

We sat huddled under our fort, old bones aching, holding each other. I had one eye on my watch, hoping time would speed up, and this would all be over. 

35 silent minutes passed, I was fidgeting in my seat, trying to find the best position for my sore behind. 

Frankie noticed, "Darling, I'll get you some pillows, hang on." 

"No Frankie stay here, I'll be fine. What if it happens again while you're out." 

He didn't listen; he never listened when it came to my wellbeing. I love him for that, but it could get him in trouble one day. Maybe today was that day, I thought. 

He slid out of the fort, and I heard his heavy footsteps run upstairs; those heavy, slow-moving feet, age has not been kind to his knees. 

He came back, arms full: three pillows and our master bed duvet cover. "This is the best I can do, I'm worried to go back out there. I peeked out the window, I was curious, don't be mad, but hundreds of people were standing out there, just watching the horizon. I think they're expecting somethi-"

"What, what're they expecting." I interrupted.

"I have no idea, but let's stay here."

OK." 

54 minutes had gone by when we heard a frantic knock at the back door. I could hear muffled voices, a male and a female, outside and caught glimpses of the conversation. "-have to go now-" "-can't wait-" "-the Stetsons' are old-" "-have to leave-" "-warn them-." Another knock on the door, the male voice yelled desperately from outside.

"Frank, Etta, Get the hell out right now, it's coming, a wave, big as a skyscraper! GET OUT NOW!"   

Frankie grabbed my hands and pulled me out from underneath our protective fort. I felt naked and started shivering, perhaps from the cold air that now surrounded me or from absolute fear of death. We burst through the door where our neighbour Lorne was looking to the sky above us, sweating. 

"C'mon' let's go, get in the car, Marie's driving, she's good don't worry, we just have to leave. Now." Lorne was now ushering us into the back seat of his friend's black Jeep. 

Through the panic, I didn't once look at the wave that would soon be towering over, then destroying our home, but now driving away, I craned my neck to get a glimpse from the side view mirrors. The water, black as the night sky, was giving no mercy to our small island town. The wave was about a mile away, but it was moving fast. Marie had her foot pressed all the way down on the gas pedal, as did all the other frantic people trying to escape on the only highway that snaked through town. There was no traffic, everyone kept driving, no one wanted this to be the end. 

I could see the wave, that Black Water, starting to grow as it got closer. It didn't look like we'd get far enough to survive this. I reached for Frankie's hand and squeezed it hard. My eyes were shut, but I knew exactly where we were headed. Marie kept driving, sometimes on the road, but more often on the grass beside the road. We bounced around, occasionally bumping our heads on the ceiling but not even caring. Adrenaline was coursing through my body, making any pain in my body non-existent. My bruised tailbone wasn't bothering me at all despite the bumpy ride.  

Suddenly, I heard the sound of metal on metal behind us, two cars colliding, and I knew we'd be the next domino to fall. 

We all heard the sound, but no one spoke a word. We were all too focused on the possibility of death. 

Almost simultaneously, the water and the car behind smashed into the back of the Jeep. My head swung forward, and then my body followed. I crumpled to the floor of the car, the seat belt choking my neck as I fell. We lurched up off the highway, riding the wave, and started speeding forward, crashing into the car in front. Frankie pulled me back up onto the seat beside him and wrapped his arms around me tight. 

That's when the water started flooding through the windows. 

Frankie leaned towards me with a kiss saying, "I love you," as he pulled away. His mouth tasted like metal; his lips were bleeding through teeth sized holes. 

"I love you too." I said as the water covered rose to reach my legs. 

Then it stopped. The water didn't rise any higher. I looked out the window and realized we were back on solid ground. 

"Lorne, Marie, you alright?" I asked. 

"We're good, we're good," Answered Marie in a small, shy voice.

"Holy shit." was all Lorne had to say. 

We sat waiting, with all the other cars on the highway, for help to come. Marie and Lorne crawled into the back and sat on the floor; closeness and warmth were what we needed. There was a bleeding gash along Lorne's cheek, and Marie's nose looked broken. Neither seemed to notice their wounds. 

"Thank you," Frankie told them, "for coming to get us, we wouldn't be alive right now if it weren't for you two, thank you." 

I tried to give my thanks but started crying. Marie rubbed my back and reminded me that I was okay. 

"We were leaving our place and I saw your car still on the driveway, I-" he looked at Marie, "We thought it best to try and get you out before it was too late."

I smiled at him, he smiled back, acknowledging my thanks. I would make sure to say the right thing later. 

When the fire trucks and paramedics arrived, survivors were taken to a camp. We were given hot food and water, blankets and kind words. 

The four of us stayed together, eating silently. 

Lorne cleared his throat. I listened for what he would say. "I'm only 28, I'm grown, but I feel like, like, so vulnerable. I wish my parents were here, but… they're miles away, God, they're probably watching the news right now freaking the fu-, freaking out." He looked up at Frankie and me. "I'm just happy I have you guys right now."

"Consider us like your family, please, that's the least we can do for you." I said, tears welling in my eyes again. "Our kids don't live near here either. I hope we can contact them soon."

"We'll get through this." Marie said, reassuring Lorne, or maybe reassuring herself. 

She was right, though. We'd get through this. We'd already survived the Black Water.