The light shining through the crumpled roof section showed hundreds of people milling around wondering what really happened. They were trapped by the fallen roof but, they had not been flooded out and they had not found an escape route until the guardsmen shined the portable spotlights in their direction. They began pouring out of the crumpled area in which they thought they had been trapped and the national guard backed up to allow the heavy influx of survivors to reach the ramp and afterward the ladders to reclaim their freedom. The death toll began to decrease as soon as the sheriff realized that most of the people trapped in the sinkhole were actually alive and not dead as most people actually believed. There were repeated shouts of joy as the survivors made their way to freedom and the people on the surface recognized people, who were originally thought of as fallen victims, were actually alive. The sheriff wondered what happened to the two erratic gunmen but decided it wasn't his problem and finding so many survivors had made his day.
June 14, Saturday 3:34 p.m.
In the tunnel
The firemen and Kevin Backlin and Bill Forham waded through the knee-deep water into the back side of the lobby. They carefully crossed the makeshift ladder bridge and were searching for survivors in the murky gloom. The spotlights the firemen carried lit up large sections of the interior of the lobby and they began finding stragglers wandering around with no sense of direction because of the duration of time spent in almost total darkness. They guided the people over to the ladder bridge with its rope made hand rails and convinced them it was safe to cross. It was a terrifying look into the deep chasm under the ladder so, the firemen tried to focus their lights away from the hole. They told the people they helped cross not to look down and to hold tight to the ropes.
Most of the crossings were without mishaps but, several people including a twenty-five year old legal secretary had to be carried across because not only did she have a fear of heights but she also suffered from claustrophobia from being in such a contained area.
The two friends, Kevin and Bill, and the firemen heard the shouts of joy from the rescued people that had been trapped in the caved in roof section and they began seeing national guardsmen searching the same area they were in. Feeling their part of the job was finished now, the other entrance must have been cleared of gunmen due to the presence of the guardsmen, and the firemen and Kevin and Bill crossed back over the ladder and began walking back down the long tunnel.
The sight of the open sky brought smiles again to the faces of the two friends and they climbed back up the ladder for, they hoped the last time, back into the real world. The blue summer cloudless sky and the deep green wide expanse of grass with the still running waterfall in the distance made life somehow really worth it. Kevin Backlin and Bill Forham exchanged handshakes and eventually hugs from all the firemen and started walking back to the front driveway to reclaim their wives and kids. The smiles on their faces were almost etched into their features as the sight of their families safe and sound brought tears of joy to the tough masculine men.
June 14, Saturday 3:37 p.m.
In the lobby
Frankie Medford held the gun tightly against Steve Sidel's neck and told him that if he made a sound he would pull the trigger and splatter Steve all over the wall. They were in a makeshift enclosed area under the fallen section of the roof in the north side of the lobby. Several beams from the roof crisscrossed when they had fallen and were wedged against the back wall near the upraised band area. The roofing tiles and felt paper and plywood from the roof had fallen with the beams and made a simple tent like affair.
The moment Frankie heard the voices of the national guardsmen, he pushed Steve into the miniature shelter, and they hid until the guardsmen cleared the people out of the fallen roof area. The time passed very slowly for Steve even though it was less than ten minutes, because of the death threat pressing against his neck. Frankie no longer heard any noises from the fallen in area and he told Steve to stick his head around the corner of the debris and see if the coast was clear.
"I don't see anyone out there." Steve replied in a grim tone. "Why don't you let me go now?"
"Not so fast, computer boy. You are my ticket out of here."
They started walking out of the enclosed area with the gun still pressed tightly against Steve's neck.
"Let's see if we can walk our way past all these solder clowns."
They walked through the rubble of the fallen roof and exited through the opposite side that they had entered. The water level was now only ankle deep in the main part of the lobby and they could see lights across the room where the opening was torn in the roof. They walked along the back wall to avoid a confrontation until the last moment and walked past the door to the computer room.
"Wait a minute." Frankie whispered harshly in Steve's ear. "I want to check that room out."
He backed Steve up until they were even with the door way and he told Steve to shine his flashlight into the dark room. The room was now void of most of the computer equipment due to the tremendous water pressure that had funneled into the small area. They could see by the light of the flashlight that the door was missing and that a large hole was beyond it. The firemen had removed their ladder bridge and rope railings and the hole looked largely impassable. Frankie pushed Steve over to the edge of the hole and had Steve shine the light down into the dark pit. It looked bottomless from their point of view and Frankie told Steve to shine his light around the small room again. Frankie paid close attention to where the beam of light landed and told Steve to hold the light steady when it was focused on the computer desk.
"Hand me the light and don't try anything funny when you do it." He scowled at Steve. "Now walk over to that desk and see how tight it is fastened to the wall."
Steve walked over to the desk and tightly grabbed the desk top and gave it a hard jerk upward. It came free with a loud screeching noise as the screws pulled loose and Steve looked blankly back at Frankie.
"Don't be a dummy. Go place it over that big hole. That's our way out of here."
Steve carried the desktop carefully over to the chasm and set the bottom end on the ground near his feet. The water was a mere one half inch deep by this point and it didn't interfere with the desk top. Steve let the top end go and it fell with a small thump when it hit the rock bottom of the tunnel on the other side of the hole. It cleared the opening by less than two inches on either side and a wide smile came to Frankie Medford's face.
"I knew it would work." He boasted to Steve. "I'm a genius."
He looked directly into Steve's eyes and said. "Well, I may be a genius but, I'm not stupid. You're going across first to see if it'll hold your weight. If it breaks and you fall into that nasty pit, no big loss. I'll just find another way out and I won't have to worry about you pulling a fast one when my back is turned. Go ahead. Get your butt across there but, remember don't try anything funny. This gun will reach across that hole quite well. The minute you get across, if you do, don't try to run because I'll blow your ass to bits. Understand?"
Steve nodded his head in agreement and tentatively stepped on the desktop. He put his full weight on his right foot and it seemed to hold all right. He placed his left foot down and then proceeded to slowly cross the makeshift bridge. The desktop bowed a lot in the middle but it held his weight and he finally made it to the other side. When he was again on solid ground, he breathed a large sigh of relief and turned backed toward Frankie and waited for him to cross.
Frankie had gotten his left foot started on the bridge when Steve saw movement behind Frankie in the open doorway of the computer room. A national guardsman uniform was standing in the doorway and peering intently into the light caused by the flashlight Frankie was holding. Steve felt a feeling of total euphonium when he saw the man start to enter the room. The Calvary had finally arrived, he thought to himself and he saw Frankie staring at him with a look of puzzlement on his face. Frankie turned around and t
ook his aim off Steve and pointed in the direction of the doorway.
"Howdy folks." Came a too familiar voice out of the darkness. "I was wondering where you guys had gotten to."
Steve's wonderful feeling vanished quickly when he recognized Stretch's voice coming from the national guardsman's uniform.
"Where in the hell did you get that Stretch? I thought for a moment you were the enemy."
"It's a long story Frankie but, I can condense it into a smaller version for you. Someone gave the guardsmen a description of us. I think it was that girlfriend of my brother and also the desk clerk even though she hadn't seen me. Anyway the guardsmen found me hiding in that fallen down section, right near the bar and they started questioning me pretty extensively. One of them went back to ask the sergeant what to do and when the other one was alone, I caught him off guard and planted a kitchen knife I had tucked into the back of my waistband deeply into his ribs. He fell without a sound and I was almost finished changing into his uniform when the other one came back. He thought at first that the guy on the ground was me and I caught him totally off guard and gave him the same treatment as his buddy. Unfortunately for them, these two were helping the people get out of the fallen-in area and they had left their rifles at the base of the ramp. I would like to have a rifle or two but what the heck. I can probably sneak right past them with this uniform on and I don't really need one."
"Well buddy." Exclaimed Frankie. "Let's get out of here over this bridge that your stupid brother is standing on the other side of."
"Not so fast, Frankie. I have something I have to discuss with you first. I want my share of the loot you and Carrie got out of that vault. I don't know where he is at and at this point I don't really care. Once we get on the surface you could split with mine and Carrie's share and I'd would probably never see you again. I want the money up front."
He walked up to Frankie and held his hand out. Frankie stepped back off the desktop and held out both hands, one containing the flashlight and one containing the gun.
"Come on Stretch. You know I wouldn't screw you over. We have been friends too long. Besides, I gave the money to Carrie to hold because I had my hands full with holding people hostage."
"You know Frankie. You're a fucking liar. You would never have trusted Carrie to hold the money." He quickly reached out with the butcher knife and slit Frankie's throat from ear to ear. He watched as Frankie slowly crumbled to the ground and he reached into the fallen man's shirt and pulled out a folded canvas bag. He picked up the flashlight that had rolled across the floor when Frankie had dropped it and the gun and peered into the bag. "Just as I thought." He said to Steve over the chasm. "It's full of money and jewels from the safe. I knew he was lying to me. Stay right where you are. I'm crossing over."
He picked up the revolver from the pile of mud it landed in, barrel first and pointed it at his brother.
"We need to make tracks. I don't like the idea of all these guardsmen running around when I am still wearing their uniform."
They started walking down the tunnel toward the light with the gun again placed against Steve's neck.
June 14, Saturday 3:55 p.m.
In the tunnel
Kathy Santos paced back and forth in front of the hole leading down into the lobby. She was worried about Steve. Why hadn't he come back yet, she wondered? He has been gone way too long. Kevin Backlin and Bill Forham returned from the newly found exit on the other side of the resort and were rejoicing with their families. She decided to walk over and ask them if they had seen Steve before they climbed out of the sunken lobby. She approached the two men with a worried look on her face and the two friends looked at her and asked what was wrong.
"Have either of you seen Steve? He stayed down in the hole to look for his brother and I haven't seen him come back. He wasn't wandering around where you were was he?"
"No Kathy." Bill volunteered. "We saw quite a few people but, we haven't seen him since we separated the first time. We thought he was back on the surface with you."
"Well, I'm really worried. He should have been back by now. I think I'll walk over to where you two climbed out and see if he might come out over there."
"We'll go with you if you want Kathy and try to help you locate him." Kevin said.
"No, it's all right. You two stay with your families. They're happy to have you back."
"I'll go with you." Paula Howard suggested. She was standing a few feet away with Tyrone Washington while, a paramedic was bandaging his arm. She heard the conversation and she wanted Kathy to find Steve. She had seen the look between them and knew she had witnessed one of those miracle "love at first sight" scenarios. "You'll be all right won't you?" She directed the question at Tyrone.
"I'll be fine honey." He replied. "You two go find Steve. I'm sure he will be happy to see you."
The two women walked around the collapsed lobby and headed for the other hole across the green courtyard. They both looked back and saw the scattered hundreds of people walking around enjoying their freedom from their near death experience.
Stretch Sidel kept nudging his brother in the back while they walked along the rock floor of the tunnel.
"Why don't you put that gun away? You know I'm not going to try to take it away from you."
"Shut up Steve. I'm sick of you always telling me what to do. You've done it all my life and I don't have to deal with it anymore. You always thought you were better than me and bossed me around because of it. Well I'm the boss now and you're going to do exactly what I say. Got it?"
"Okay Sam. Settle down. I didn't try to boss you around. I just tried to help you. I wanted you to get your life straightened out. Get a job. Raise a family. I didn't want you to have to go back to prison again for making stupid mistakes. You could have turned your life around if you had let me help you."
They got to the end of the tunnel and saw the ladder that was still leaning against the dirt wall of the hole. Sam(Stretch)Sidel told his brother to turn around and he pointed the gun at his head.
"You know Steve. I hate for it to end this way but, I can't afford to let you live in order to testify against me for killing those guardsmen and Frankie. I'm sorry Steve."
Kathy Santos and Paula Howard had just reached the edge of the hole and looked down
when they saw Stretch pointing the gun at Steve's head.
"Don't do it. Oh my God, no." Kathy screamed.
Stretched pulled the trigger and the blast echoed in the enclosed area. Kathy Santos fainted as the reality of what happened sunk in.
June 14, Saturday 4:45 p.m.
In the main driveway
"This is Wendy Wikowski, reporting live from the massive sinkhole that has struck central Florida. In our earlier report we stated that hundreds of people, perhaps a thousand were still trapped below the surface of the ground. We are happy to announce at this time that the Florida National Guard has now taken control of the situation and with their extensive disaster training and large equipment allocation they found a large group of people thought originally drowned when the lake poured into the sinkhole. The death toll is much lower than earlier forecast and hundreds of jubilant people are milling around, thankful they are no longer trapped in this water filled pit of horror."
"On our earlier report we stated the two traveling companions of internationally famous movie stars Tiffany Royal and Brandon Miles were missing and presumed dead. They have both been located safe and sound and were saved from near disaster by clinging precariously to a large floral display stand deep within the bowels of the earth. The quick and efficient work by the National Guard saved those two peoples lives and we have been told the movie stars were ecstatic upon their rescue. On a lighter note we have also been informed that Tiffany Royal and Brandon Miles have announced their engagement and they both plan to completely retire at the end of Tiffany's latest TV series."
"The deputy wounded in the earlier
kidnapping attempt has been airlifted to Lakeland and at this point is in stable condition. We also have some very sad news to report. A body tentatively identified as multi-billionaire and creator of this once lavish resort, Hiruto Tankinato has been found, face completely disfigured by a falling gutter system. The once proud man has died still wearing the colors of his world famous resort."
"We have to pause for a commercial announcement but we will return in sixty seconds." Wendy Wikowski looked at her cameraman and gave him the thumbs up signal. She brushed the hair back off of her forehead and continued reporting as soon as she saw the red light mounted on top of the camera flash back on.
"We have returned once more to this, one of Florida's largest disasters, and will continue reporting live as the reports pour in. The computer expert Steve Sidel has not been found at this point but, we were assured he is still alive and kicking deep in the bottom of the sinkhole. Kathy Santos, the sole heir to the Santos fortune, has been located and is reported to be doing quite well but is deeply concerned for the safety of Steve Sidel."
"The apparent hostage situation has completely evaporated with the arrival of the National Guard and the fate of the gunmen are still unknown. Ecologists Kevin Backlin and Bill Forham have been credited with saving many lives by finding a back exit out of the sunken lobby and leading fireman back through the dangerous area at the risk of their own lives in order to save more than a score of people. At this time, we have been told the two men are reunited with their families. An earlier report we received but, had not broadcast were, the sons of the famous ecologists had fallen into another sinkhole somewhere in the surrounding woods and the quick thinking of cosmetic heiress Kathy Santos saved their lives. Another earlier report not broadcast was the marina captain Otis Sherman had been trapped in his own collapsed marina office and the heroic efforts of Paul Zangallio, a resort lifeguard, with the use of CPR saved his life. Paul Zangallio, was the local sports hero we originally broadcast as saving our own reporter, Marcia Meadows, from an assault from a local businessman gone berserk. Way to go Paul. We hope you get a medal from the president for your outstanding contributions to Mankind. We will continue broadcasting live from central Florida with each breaking news report. One more report before we brake for commercials. The prestigious manager of this resort, Dilford Bailey, has been also found dead in the sunken lobby. I guess the captain in this case, went down with his ship. This is Wendy Wikowski live from central Florida."