Chapter 5: Out of Reach

Sara had been stunned when Greg had let go. The river hadn't taken him away, he just, let go. She watched as he went under, disappearing from sight. For a minute, she made move, only clung onto the branch tightly, her jaw quivering as the water lapped at her chin. Then she called out his name, but could barely hear herself say it.

Finally the time came that she knew she had to do something. She was becoming colder by the minute, and staying here would only result in death. No one was looking for them, and even if they were, no one would be able to find them. It was just too much too ask.

Reaching up with one hand, the other wrapped tightly around the branch to secure herself, she felt around, digging her fingers into the softening bark. It was hard, her hands no longer had any feeling, they didn't want to hold, didn't want to respond to the demands she was placing on them. Though, slowly, little by little, she began to pull herself up.

In what seemed like hours later, she was laying on her stomach, now on top of the branch, after being able to swing her leg across one side. From there, she had hauled herself out of the water, and for the first, she let out a sigh, closing her eyes as she rested. Her legs and arms still dangled in the river, the force behind it still as strong as it had been when it had first taken her away.

What had she been thinking? She knew that it was unsafe to enter the car, it was why they hadn't gone in before, and she knew the dangers of these storms, had been through many herself, had seen, in person, what they could do. She should have listened to Catherine, to Greg. And what of Greg? Where would his fate lie? Was he destined to die here, among these waters because of her?

Choking out a cry, Sara slowly pushed herself into a sitting position, ignoring the tingling sensation in her arms as she did so. The branch swayed from her movements as she half crawled and half pulled herself to the ledge that the tree hung off of. She was nearly there when a sharp crack filled the air, and the branch under her was pulled down by the current, dropping Sara back into the water.

She clung onto the branch, knowing that it would help keep her afloat if they were to be taken downstream again. But the break had not been complete, and it still held fast to the tree. But she could hear the wood breaking ever so slowly and Sara knew that she didn't have very much time.

Hand over hand she pulled herself closer, she was an arm's lengths away now, only a bit closer and she could grab onto the main part of the tree, and then the ledge. The branch shifted again, breaking even more under the rush of water.

Reaching out, Sara could touch the leave tips of another branch, and she grabbed a hold. Frustration filled her that her only accomplishment was a handful of leaves. Dropping the fistful of foliage, they floated quickly away, some becoming entangled in her hair as she reached for another try.

Nearly there, she let out a gasp as the branch broke again, pulling her further away from her intended target. It wouldn't last much longer, this she knew. Taking a deep breath, as the branch finally snapped in two, she threw her body forward, both hands grasping in the air for something, for anything. But came up with nothing as she was pulled underwater, then came to a stop as her hands dug into the side, catching a rock.

Breaking the surface she let out a loud gasp, somewhat in surprise. She was close enough now, reaching up she wrapped her arm around the tree, legs kicking out, using the rock for support as she both pushed and pulled herself up.

Breathing heavily, she stretched herself out, lying on her stomach, supported only by her forearms as she stared at the ground that was almost as dark as the sky. It was then Sara realized that it was no longer raining. Glancing at the sky, then back to the river just a few feet away, Sara wanted nothing more than to sleep. But the river was still rising, though not as quickly as before, but still, it was a threat. And she needed to find Greg.

This thought directed her attention to the cliff face in front of her; she surveyed it carefully, knowing that not climbing it wasn't an option. And she knew that the sooner she got moving, the better. Letting out a groaning sigh, she pushed herself to her feet, stumbling towards the cliff slowly.


Catherine's eyes snapped up, focusing on the clock. She shook her head, sighing bitterly as she began to pack her stuff up. She was overtime again, something she had too much of lately. Ecklie had been on her case already, and he certainly wouldn't be happy to find her here still, on overtime after a double shift.

Her phone clattered nosily on the table, it had been to set to vibrate earlier that day, during a meeting. Reaching over Catherine snapped it up in one fluent motion, flipping it open.

"Willows," she said quickly, still picking up the documents she had been working on with one hand.

"Catherine, it's Brass, I'm down here checking out that abandoned vehicle call we received."

"Yeah," She responded, "you figure anything out?"

"Well," Brass started, it was in that tone of voice that said things were not right, "it's one of ours, and it's Sara's and Greg's."

Catherine didn't say anything, only stared at the papers in her hands, not really seeing them. She wasn't sure that she was hearing things right, mainly because they didn't make sense. "Are you sure?" she finally managed after Brass had asked if she was still there.

"Positive, their belongings inside the vehicle. I've tried there cells, neither are answering."

Catherine nodded, dropping the papers on the table. Ecklie could kill her later for all she cared, "I'm on my way."

TBC