Footsteps in the Dark - Chapter One

Footsteps in the Dark

Chapter One

by Hayden Tunnicliffe

She looked up as the guard's footsteps rang out once more. Through the iron bars of her cell she could see the glow of a lantern drawing near, the tang of burnt oil in the air making her tiny prison that much more claustrophobic. The guard held his light up to the window in the door, confirming his charge still lay in the room, the light seared her eyes as it shone through the small window.

He said something, not knowing any German, she could only assume he was tormenting her from the tone in his voice and the laugh that came from his companion. She spat at the window, a small measure of the hatred she felt for her captors. Soon enough the guards moved on, the sounds of their boots echoing off the stone walls, as if a hundred men marched through the small prison. Again she was left in the dark, not knowing if the next time they came would be the last.

She was awoken from her daze as the door creaked open. As she got to her feet, moving instinctively to the back of the room, she noticed that there was no light.

'Shh! Keep quiet' came a voice out of the darkness. 'I am here to help' Suddenly the floor in front of her leapt into vision as the stranger opened the cover on his lantern, shining but a sliver of light into the room.

'Who - who are you?' she whispered as the man beckoned for her to follow him out of the cell.

'We haven't the time for that now. We must leave before the guards return' The man said, moving along the wall and peering around the corner. 'Quickly now. I will explain everything when there is time'

Anything was better than being locked in that damned cell any longer she thought as she followed the man, being as quiet as she could possibly be. It seemed like an eternity that they stalked through that dark maze, occasionally ducking behind whatever cover they could find as the guards passed.

'We must hurry. It is only a matter of time before they begin their route again and find you gone. And if we aren't out of here by the time that happens then we are done for'

She only nodded as she struggled to keep up with him, afraid she might alert someone. A soft breeze and the shine of light told her that their flight in the dark was nearly over. They paused closer to the exit as her rescuer leaned over to extinguish their light. 'Here. Do you know how to use one of these?' the man asked as he pushed a pistol into her hand. 'Yes, but wouldn't the gunfire attract attention?' she asked as she checked the chamber.

'Only use it if there is no other choice' the man said as he readied his own weapon before moving out of the tunnel. She followed him, the light blinding her as she hastily ran from the tunnel. It took a minute for her vision to adjust to the shock, the sun beared down from above them, as she looked out across the fields that lay below them.

'It will be suicide to cross the open fields' the man said as he drew her attention to a hedge on the far left of them. 'We must use that to get across the fields and into that copse of trees, where we will wait for the extraction, keep low and follow me' he said, dashing off before she could reply.

She followed him, glancing back to make sure they weren't followed. The cool country air burned in her lungs at the same time as it invigorated her body, every nerve was set on end as she pushed forward through the brush. Finally they reached the bottom of the hillside and before them lay acres upon acres of open fields, the only cover to be found were the hedges between them and the odd hay bale. The man dashed across the small open space towards the closest hedge before pausing to survey the situation. He motioned for her to follow and she raced towards him as fast as her weakened body would allow.

'Here. Drink some, you will need your strength' he pushed a canteen into her hands. The water was almost gone before she realised they might not have any more and quickly screwed the top back on.

'I'm ready.'

They started towards the trees, she made it to be a good mile from where they were, she only hoped that they would make it before exhaustion took her.

Halfway across the field she heard an alarm sound from behind them, evidently the guards had discovered that she was missing. She cautioned a glance behind her but could not see any pursuers, all the same they doubled their pace. She hoped they would not be seen at this distance, but kept her head as low as their speed would allow just the same.

She could hear the bark of dogs and the shouts of men behind them as they came ever nearer the tree line, and safety. Another look back told her that they still hadn't found their trail. She hoped they never would, death was preferable to the rest of her life in that prison.

At last they reached the tree line, giving up stealth completely they sprinted into it, stumbling across roots and fallen branches she followed her surefooted saviour, falling twice before they reached their destination. She fell to the ground in exhaustion, her legs burning and chest heaving as she drained the last of the water in the canteen.

'I hope you have more' she almost pleaded as the man sat next to her.

'You think I would come unprepared to a rescue mission' he laughed as he put another canteen into her lap. 'Here, but don't drink it too fast, there is only one more where that came from and our transport won't be here for another 3 hours'

'Who are you?' she asked between sips of the canteen, 'And why would anybody rescue me? I'm just a civilian'

'They call me Alcott, but you can call me Robert. I was sent to extract you because HQ think you could be useful to the war effort. But mostly I am here because I couldn't leave a gorgeous lady like yourself to rot in a damned jerry jail cell'

'I don't know how much help I can be, but thanks all the same Robert. I am Carol, but I am sure you already knew that'