Logan
Logan’s captor was taunting him with the cage of fire. Red-hot flames would die down to mere candle flickers, giving Logan hope for an escape. But time after time, when Logan would make a run for it, the flames would swell again as he reached the perimeter.
He sat down in the middle of the clearing, tired of losing the unwinnable battle.
“Logan! Are you out there?” Jenny’s voice echoed through the trees. It had been Jenny he heard when he was inside the house.
“Jenny, where are you?” he called back.
“We’re behind the house by the creek!” This was a different voice. A boy’s voice.
“Michael? Is that you?”
“Yeah! Tristan is here too!”
“Is everyone okay?”
Jenny spoke again. “Yeah, we’re fine, but we can’t leave this area. There is some kind of invisible barrier surrounding us. Where are you?”
“I’m in the front of the cabin. There’s a fire blocking my way out.”
“A fire?” Jenny called back.
Logan explained the fire’s insolence. How it seemed to know when he was trying to escape. How it did just enough to torment him without burning him.
“How are we gonna get outta here, Logan?” asked Tristan.
“I don’t know for sure, but we’ll figure something out. We have to keep talking to each other so we know we’re all right.”
Logan scanned the area again, trying to find an escape that he might have missed before. Then he remembered something Michael had said. They were behind the house by the creek. Where did the creek go? Did it flow to the front of the house where he was trapped?
“Michael!” called Logan.
“Yeah, I’m here.”
“Did you say there was a creek back there?”
“Yeah. It’s right outside of this invisible wall we’re trapped behind.”
“Can you see if there is water flowing in it, or is it iced over?”
“There is still some water flowing.” Jenny answered this time. “Why does that matter?”
“Umm, I’ll get back to you in a minute,” said Logan.
Logan walked to the edge of the clearing, the miniscule flames a few feet in front of him. Beyond the ring of fire, past the first line of birch trees, about fifteen yards from where he stood, ran a sloped ditch. He followed the ditch with his eyes. It ran toward the back of the house. That has to be the creek, he thought.
He backed up to the middle of the yard, placing himself in the center of the fire ring, the remaining snow crunching under his feet. He bent over, placing his hands on his knees. Inhaling a mixture of smoke and cool, fresh air, he stood tall again. “This is the only way out,” he reminded himself.
Logan felt the air fill up his lungs. Then he opened his eyes wide and ran as fast as he could. He was never as fast as Zach, but he could hold his own. He ran straight for the fire. And he was not going to stop.
It took only seconds, but it felt like a lifetime. When he reached the flames, they erupted high over his head as expected. But Logan kept running right through the scorching fire. As he passed through the flames, he ducked his head and closed his eyes tightly.
When he emerged he felt pain. His coat and pants were on fire. He could feel the sweltering heat burning through his clothes and on to his skin. He dropped to the ground and rolled, trying to extinguish the flames, but they were burning too fiercely. So he sprinted as fast as he could to the ditch, shedding his coat as he ran.
Logan slid down the slope of the ditch, his pants still burning. He submerged his body into the water. “Ahh!” he moaned in relief.
After the flames were extinguished and his body had cooled, Logan surfaced from the water and struggled out of the ditch.
The burning sensation turned icy-cold. The cool air chilled Logan to his core. His clothes were wet and his coat had burned to near ashes.
Logan sat on the snowy ground, his arms wrapped around his chest, shivering. His legs hurt. They had been burned the worst. His upper body had been somewhat protected by his thick winter coat that he had ripped off his body.
He looked to the front yard where the fire had been. No flames. No heat to warm him.
Logan struggled to his feet, his arms still cradling his body. He walked slowly along the side of the house, where he could clearly see the addition on the back of the building. He passed the kitchen window. Then a den. An upright piano stood in the corner. At the end of the addition was a dark room. It was a small chamber, about the same size as the kitchen. The natural light shined through the window. In the middle of the room was a table with a circle of rocks lying on top of it. Otherwise, the room was empty. Logan remembered the bowl of rocks in the living room of the cabin.
The pain shot through Logan’s legs, causing him to hunch over. He walked toward the backyard with his left hand on the house, bracing him.
“Jenny?” Logan’s voice trembled with the cold.
“We’re here Logan!” said Jenny.
Logan reached the back edge of the house. Jenny, Michael, and Tristan stood next to a large pine tree.
“Look!” Tristan called to Jenny and Michael.
Jenny and Michael turned to see Logan walking toward them.
“How did you escape?” asked Michael.
Logan didn’t respond. He kept walking. His lips were blue and his teeth chattered.
“Logan, are you okay?” Jenny asked. “Wait! Stop! The barrier is right in front of you. It burns if you run into it.”
Logan kept walking. He had heard Jenny’s warning, but the pain in his legs and the cold in his body was all he could think about.
He passed the barrier. It didn’t burn. It didn’t even stop him from joining his friends.
Jenny, Michael, and Tristan were speechless.
Logan walked a few more steps. At that moment he collapsed.
Jenny came running toward him. “Logan! What happened?” She got down on her knees and saw his blue lips and chattering teeth. “He’s freezing,” she said to Michael and Tristan, who were standing close behind her. She put her arms around him and rubbed her hands along his back, trying to keep him warm.
Tristan ran over to the perimeter of the backyard. He raised his hand and touched the invisible force field. A hot jolt ran through his hand. He quickly pulled it back and looked at Michael. “How did he get through the barrier?” he asked.
Before Michael had a chance to answer, Logan lifted his head. And with his shivering voice, he said, “You … can … come … in … but … you … can’t … get … out.”