BOOM!
Sam landed with a thud, the air being knocked out of her lungs. She still felt the intense heat from the explosions as the scent of singed hair lingered in her nose.
It took her a moment to manage sitting up. Her heart was racing and she felt a haziness swamp her mind. She placed her head in-between her knees for a moment to try and recover, remembering something about doing that after feeling faint or something. It helped, but only for a moment.
She looked up and saw the once glorious Washington lodge engulfed in flames. Burning brightly, the sky colored in hues of pink, purple, and orange didn't even come close in compare to the flames that licked the air around the blackened structure of wood and glass. The roar of helicopter rotor blades could be heard in the distance.
Sam instantly stood, her mind racing. The sound of distorted screaming pierced her ears, and she could've sworn she saw what looked like some ghastly ball of flame emerge from the fire and shoot straight for her.
She stumbled a bit, afraid what she thought she saw, but was caught by the arm from someone beside her. She looked to her side and saw Mike. His face was a mask of mixed emotion that she couldn't read. He held firmly onto her arm as he pulled her back and away from the burning lodge. She pried her eyes away from him and back to what was left of the hell forsaken vacation home of the Washingtons.
"You need to listen to me."
Her voice was cold and steely.
"I don't care if you believe me or not. Doesn't matter. Because you will."
She looked as if she had been through hell and back.
"You need to go down to the mines."
She looked at nothing in particular except her own refection in the one-way mirror. She leaned back on the rough, brick wall behind her. She fidgeted a bit, unable to keep still. She knew she must've seemed crazy, but what other choice did she have?
There was a few seconds of silence before she heard the voice of the interviewer through an intercom.
"What's in the mines, Sam?"
A wry smile made it's way on her face. They were so naïve to everything she and her friends had been through and what lurked on that mountain.
"I've seen what's down there…"
She shook her head lightly as she felt her heart's pace speed up a little at the memories that tried to make their way back into her mind.
"…And I'd given anything to unsee it…"
Sam swallowed hard. She saw her reflection staring back at her and it looked tired and desperate. She was drained of color and her eyes were lackluster.
She was drained of all emotions.
The police had escorted her out of the interviewing block and to the private waiting room where her other friends who had already finish their interviews were supposedly waiting. When she had walking through the door, she had only taken a moment to look around the small room. Despite its size, her friends had all managed to separate themselves from each other around the room.
Chris and Ashley were the only ones sitting next to each other. They sat at a table together. Ashley had her head resting in her arms on the table with a pale colored blanket around her and Chris had one arm around her shoulders as he, too, rested his head on the table with his other arm. Sam would've thought they were asleep had it not been for them slightly adjusting to see who had enter the room.
Emily sat on top of counter along the right side of the room with a steaming foam cup in one of her hands. She had her legs crossed and was staring at Sam as soon as she entered, as if waiting. Her eyes were dark and fierce, as if a storm was brewing somewhere behind them.
Mike stood leaning against the wall across from Emily. He had his arms crossed and his foot tapped impatiently on the ground. He still looked pretty beat up, but he had couple of bandages here and there.
"Is there anything we can get for you? A blanket? Maybe some coffee?" One of the officers standing behind Sam asked.
Sam looked down at the floor and merely shook her head, turning down the offers.
The officer shrugged, "alright, then. We'll need you to call someone to come pick you up."
Sam was silent for a moment. She shook her head again slowly.
"We'll give you a couple of minutes, but you'll have to call someone eventually. All of your friends already have. We'll explain to your parents what happens after they arrive at the police station and have you all sign some forms," the office explained.
Sam gave a small nod, not saying a single word before turning and walking off to one corner of the room away from everybody else. She sat on the floor and rested her arms on top of her knees. She felt someone staring at her and saw that it was Chris and Ashley. They both looked worried and sad. Ashley opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it. Sam frowned and looked away. She buried her head in her arms.
About an hour and a half had passed when everybody started leaving. Sam never lifted her head up, but she heard when the officer would come in and announce whose parents had arrived and the shuffle of footsteps when one of her friends left.
Emily was the first to go.
She gave a loud sigh of relief.
"Finally!" she said exuberantly as she hopped off the counter and rushed over to the officers.
Ashley was next to go followed shortly afterwards by Chris.
After an officer had told Ashley that her mother had come for her, she had walked over to Sam and laid the blanket she had over her. She gave Sam's hand a light squeeze before leaving, though Sam had not responded back at all.
Chris had sat close beside Sam for a bit after Ashley had left. He hugged her small bundled up figure tightly, border lining painfully, before leaving when they had called for him after Ashley.
Mike was the last to go. His father had arrived for him. Sam was a bit surprised when he didn't leave as soon as they called for him.
He hesitated.
"Sam?" he spoke softly after a few seconds had passed.
Like with Ashley and Chris, Sam didn't respond in the least bit.
Mike sighed and after another few seconds, she heard the sound of his footsteps.
She was the only one left.
It didn't take long for the officer that had previously asked her to make a phone call to come back into the waiting room.
"You've denied making a phone to anyone every time. I'm gonna have to ask you to make a phone again otherwise we'll be forced to call you a cab," the officer said with a stern tone in his voice.
Sam looked up at him; it was the first time she had moved since she had entered the room. Her eyes were red and she looked exhausted.
" I don't have anyone to call," she croaked as she tried to wet her lips, but her mouth was dry.
"What about your parents? I'm sure they're worried sick about-"
" They're live on the other side of the country," she cut in before the officer could finish.
He gave her a perplexed look before continuing on, "Any other relatives in the area?"
Sam shook her head and looked to the ground again.
"Whom have you been staying with then?"
"I live on my own. I moved to Los Angeles to come to the university," Sam explained curtly.
The officer gave a brief sigh.
"Then, we'll have to call you a cab…" he concluded.
"I don't have any money on me. All the stuff I took with me on the mountain stayed in the lodge when it burnt down," Sam was the one to sigh this time," that includes my phone and wallet."
"I guess I'll have to be the one who takes you home. Come on, let's go fill out that paperwork," the officer shook his head.
She looked up at him again. He smiled to her trying to lighten the situation. He outstretched his hand toward her to help her up. Sam accepted it and he lifted her off the floor. Her legs and neck ached from sitting in the same position for so long. The blanket that Ashley had given her had slide off her back and onto the floor. She bent down to retrieve it and handed it over to the officer before heading toward the door. The officer walked beside her and patted her shoulder with his heavy hand.
"Don't worry, kid. Everything will be alright."