No Escape by Julie Moffett
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Lexi Carmichael
The water brigade was currently using only five of the cans, which left nineteen cans for me to use.
“Vittoria, would you please help Juliette bring me all the remaining empty cans?” I asked. “Stack them up right at the edge of the pool. Then go back to help at the hot tub. Tito, when Vittoria and Juliette are back on duty at the hot tub, can you come out here and help me? I have an idea.”
The two women started bringing the empty cans to the edge of the pool deck, standing them side by side until all the cans were there. Juliette and Vittoria switched places with Tito, who came over to the edge of the pool, awaiting my orders.
“Bring me the empty cans,” I instructed. “Two at a time.”
He brought the first two cans, carefully walking along the glass walkway. I took one of the cans and filled it with pool water. I screwed on the cap, hefted it onto the edge and pushed it in the box, handle up. The water line rose slightly. Encouraged, I filled the second can to the brim.
Before I could push the second can into the box, Tito leaned over my shoulder. “I assume you’ve figured out how to get the cans back out of the box. Someone is going to have to go down there to get the disc, right?”
I paused, realizing I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I needed to slow down and think things through or we’d never win this challenge.
Before I could come up with a solution, Tito reached around me and picked the skimmer up off the walkway. He waggled it in the air. “How about the hook?”
I took the skimmer from him and slid the hook onto the loop handle of the can at my feet. It fit perfectly. “You’re the man. Thanks, Tito.”
I pushed the second can into the box as Tito watched. “I have to be careful not to dislodge the end of the siphon hose when I drop the can in, handle up, so we can better remove them later.”
The second can sank to the bottom, and we could see the water rise again and then fall as the siphon drained it away.
“Bring me the rest of the cans,” I said.
He brought the rest of the cans, and together we filled them, screwed on the caps, and carefully pushed them into the box. By the fourth can, the water level in the box had stabilized, with the siphon draining off the water about as fast as we could add new cans.
“It’s working!” I said, pumping a fist. “Stefan, how’s the level of water in the hot tub?”
“It’s about a knee-high from the bottom and about one and a half meters below the pool deck,” he replied.
I glanced at the clock—twenty-seven minutes left. “Good. Keep going and do not stop. We’ve got to get as much water out as we can working in tandem.”
This would work. It had to work.
“After ten more minutes, you guys can stop dumping water out of the hot tub,” I said. “Then as you empty each of the remaining cans, bring it to Tito for me to fill and drop into the box. We’re going to need every single one of those cans to make this work.”
“Understood,” Stefan said, not breaking his stride. Everyone was working so hard, even Vittoria, who hadn’t complained once. I was in awe of my family and friends. To say they were incredibly strong and intelligent would be an understatement.
In the meantime, I continued to monitor the water level. I never thought watching water drain could be so mesmerizing. I kept one eye on the clock, relieved the water level in the box had already dropped several feet below the surface of the pool. The siphon was continuing to drain, though it was slowing down. When the ten minutes were up, I eventually added the remaining five cans, pushing the siphon hose lower and lower into the water.
“I think the siphon has stopped,” Stefan said, wiping his brow and leaning against the side of the hot tub. “I’m not feeling any water coming out the hose anymore.”
“Me neither,” said Juliette, perching herself on the rim of the tub next to Oscar as Vittoria sank to the steps leading up to the hot tub.
I glanced up at the clock—fifteen minutes left. “Okay, it’s showtime. Let’s get those cans out of the box.” I pointed to Tito. “Bicep Man, you’re up.”
Tito flexed and then met me on the other side of the box. I pulled the hose out of the box and tossed it into the pool.
Tito knew what to do. He squatted and leaned over the box. Lowering the skimmer down into the box, he slid the hook beneath the handle of the can nearest the top and pulled. The can came up, and he set it on the walkway in front of me. I simply pushed the can into the pool and out of our way. The water level in the pool no longer mattered.
One by one, Tito effortlessly pulled the cans up and out of the water. Each easily weighed thirty-five pounds. I couldn’t help but admire the muscles in his back. He was working like a machine. I was sincerely grateful he was on our team.
Finally, Tito pulled the last can out of the water, revealing less than a foot of water above the float. Tito sat up, stretching his back. “That was fun,” he said. “Now what?”
“Well, one of us has to slide down into the box, grab the float, and pull it and the weight up and retrieve the disc. Then we have to figure out how to haul the person back up and hand the disc over to the gamemaster.”
Tito peered down into the box. “Sorry, Lexi, it won’t be me. I’m too big. Plus, you’re going to need me here to help lower down and haul up whoever goes in. I think there is only one person suitable for this job.”
I looked at the rest of the team. Stefan and Oscar were also too large, and Vittoria was seven months pregnant. That left me and my mother-in-law. No matter how scared I was, I was not going to ask her to take my place. Plus, Tito was right. Physically, I was a good four inches taller than Juliette and, according to my calculations, height would be an important part of this challenge.
Unfortunately, I was also the absolute worst person for this part of the challenge because…can anyone say underwater glass coffin?
I swallowed the panic that rose in my throat. The team wanted me to drop down into a glass box surrounded by water and not hyperventilate and pass out? Just the thought of it terrified me.
But there was no time to wimp out. Inhaling a deep breath, I maneuvered myself into a sitting position on the side of the box, my feet dangling into the box. “Guess I win this lottery.”
Tito leaned forward and gave me a peck on the cheek. “I’ll lower you down as far as I can. Don’t worry, you can do it. We’ll be here to make sure you stay safe.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You’d better, or I’m going to tell Slash about that kiss.”
He laughed. “If he hadn’t already married you, I would have challenged him to a duel for you. And you can tell him that, because he already knows. Now, come on and let’s do this. We have only ten minutes left.”
“Okay, but how are you going to get me out?”
“You let me worry about that part. You focus on getting that disc.”
He stood over me, and I held up my hands. Bracing his feet against the side of the box, he grabbed each of my hands in a wrist lock. “Summon that courage, yah?” he said. “You can do this.”
“Yes, I can,” I said, my voice cracking as he began lowering me down, the water pressing in on every side of my mind. I closed my eyes and stretched out my legs until the motion stopped.
“That’s as far as I can reach,” Tito said. “I have to let go now. You ready?”
I wasn’t, but what could I do? “You can let go of me, Tito. Just don’t leave me.”
“Never.”
He let go, and I fell. I pressed my hands alongside the glass box to slow my descent. A couple of seconds later, my feet hit the float and my downward motion stopped. I froze, my heart pounding. Water began slowly oozing up the sides around the edges of the float.
“I made it,” I shouted up to Tito.
I swallowed my panic, reminding myself to trust science and my careful calculations. As the water rose to my ankles, up to my knees, and finally to my thighs, I recited the Pythagorean theorem until I realized it had stopped.
I exhaled a breath. My calculations were sound, and I was safe for the moment. Turning diagonally in the box, I carefully squatted, the water rising to my waist. I stretched out my fingers, feeling along the edge of the float to get a grip on it. To my dismay, the top was curved and nearly flush to the sides of the box.
“I can’t get underneath the float,” I called up. “It’s set flush against the side of the box, and I can’t get a grip.”
“Stand on one side of the float,” Vittoria yelled. “See if you can get it to rise on the other side.”
I tried, but the float still fit too tightly against the box. “It won’t tip more than an inch or so, and I can’t get my fingers under it.”
I continued feeling along all four sides, but the float didn’t give anywhere. Uncomfortable, I tried to adjust my position by pressing my elbow into the side of the box. I slipped and almost lost my balance when my right elbow slipped off the surface into an imperceptible indentation in the wall.
“Wait! I found something,” I shouted. “Stand by.”
I explored the indentation farther with my hands, discovering that there was a shallow opening on the opposite wall of the box about eighteen inches above the bottom. If I could maneuver the float at the same level as the opening, I should be able to get my hand under the float and then lift it.
Gritting my teeth, I put my back against the wall of the box above the indentation and tucked up my knees. The float rose until it was stopped by my butt. Carefully, I put my hands into the indentation and flipped the float, putting one of my feet on the bottom of the pool. The water reached to my upper chest.
No freaking pressure.
Standing on one leg, I reached under the float and grabbed the chain that held the weight. I pulled it closer and saw a metal object in the shape of a fish. Pretty, but it wasn’t the prize I sought.
“Lexi, we’re running out of time,” Tito called down. “What’s happening?”
“I’ve got the float and a fish weight in my hand. But I can’t see the disc yet. How are you going to get me out of here?”
“We already have taken care of that,” he said. “Just get that disc, and hurry.”
I examined the fish weight further but found no hidden compartment and no way to open it. Where the heck was that disc?
I gingerly lowered my other foot to the bottom of the pool. Standing on my tiptoes, I began feeling around with my feet. Suddenly I hit something with the side of my foot. I maneuvered my foot over the object, clenched my toes, and somehow managed to lift it high enough to grab it without putting my head underwater.
The golden disc.
“I’ve got it!” I shouted, relief flooding me. “I’ve got the freaking disc. Get me out of here.”
I slid the disc into the top of my bathing suit so I wouldn’t drop it.
There was silence, and then Tito appeared at the top of the box, tossing something down to me. It hit me on the shoulder, and I grabbed it. A towel rope. The team had knotted several of the towels together and formed a loop at the bottom.
“Step into the loop and we’ll pull you up,” Tito called down.
I didn’t know exactly who “we” was, but I stepped into the loop and pulled it tight, wrapping the upper part of the rope around my wrist. When I was ready, I gave the rope a hard tug. “Pull,” I shouted.
As they began to pull me up, I realized at some point, they’d have to reposition themselves to avoid falling off the walkways.
“When you need to reposition, I’ll wedge myself against the sides of the box,” I shouted out. “Just be careful.”
A minute later, they changed positions, so I wedged myself in. I’d lost all track of time since I’d descended into the box. I had no idea how much time we had left.
When I was about halfway to the top, Tito instructed me to wedge myself into the side of the box one more time. “I think that is far enough. If you can hold yourself there, I can reach you.”
“Okay, but you’d better not drop me.”
His face appeared above me in the box opening. “Oh, sure. Drop you and have Gio forever on my case for ruining his honeymoon or drowning his sister-in-law. Nein, meine liebe frau, I will not drop you.”
He thrust his hands down, and I grasped his forearms. In seconds he lifted me out of the box and onto the walkway next to Stefan.
“You did it,” he said, giving me a hug.
“We did it,” I corrected him. “And careful, don’t push me in the pool by accident.”
I glanced at the clock, surprised to see we still had four minutes to go. It felt like I’d been down there for hours. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Yes, and everyone be extra careful. You do not want to fall off after all we’ve been through,” Juliette warned. I held on to Stefan’s shoulder as we shuffled toward the side. I was pretty sure I heard a collective sigh when I stepped onto the deck.
I dropped to my knees, beyond relieved to be on solid ground again. I pulled the disc out of my swimsuit, holding it above my head. Everyone swarmed me, cheering and laughing.
“We did it!” Everyone shouted and congratulated each other.
I had to admit it was a great feeling. I also knew there was a certain fable and aphorism I would never, ever forget.
After a moment, I walked over to Juliette and handed her the disc. “This win belongs to you. Slash was right. You really are an amazing woman. I know we’ve just met, but I’m already glad that of all the mothers-in-law in the world, I get you.”
Juliette threw her arms around me. “And I know exactly why my Romeo fell in love with you. You, my dearest Lexi, are truly a rare gem. Nonna was right about you. You’re absolutely perfect for him.”
A loud buzz sounded, causing me to jump. I glanced up at the clock, noting our time had run out. The gamemaster walked through the door at that precise moment. For a moment, we stared at each other, and then Juliette held out the disc.
“We did it,” she said simply. “Here’s the golden disc.”
I noted he wasn’t surprised, so I figured he’d been watching us from a hidden camera or two, monitoring our progress. Still, his eyes swept over the wreckage in the pool room—the cans, chairs, skimmer and hose, and the long towel rope. Then his gaze landed and stayed on me.
“I’m beyond impressed,” he said. “Are you sure you’re just a family gathered together for a wedding? I feel like there is a lot more to you people than meets the eye.”
“Oh, there’s definitely a lot more,” Juliette said, putting an arm around my shoulders and pulling me to her side. She snagged her husband with her other arm until the three of us were joined together. Oscar put his arm around Stefan, and Stefan pulled Vittoria to his side. I motioned to Tito, and he stood beside me, sliding an arm around my waist. We stood linked like that, facing Brando.
“We’re a tight-knit family,” Juliette said quietly. “Together we’re strong, stubborn, loving, and…” she glanced sideways at me, smiling “…awfully smart.”
A lump formed in my throat. I’d had no real idea what it would be like to have in-laws, but from most of the literature I’d read, I’d expected it to be more of an ordeal rather than a blessing. How wrong I’d been.
Brando clapped, the sound echoing through the pool room. “I do believe Mr. Zachetti will be most surprised. He might even have to make this challenge harder now.”
“Oh, no!” we said, practically in unison. “It was plenty hard.”
We laughed, and even Brando chuckled as he led us out of the pool room and into the hallway. As instructed, we hung our caps on the hooks and took fresh towels from the other side. We wiped ourselves down and wound them around our waists, still laughing and chatting.
I’m pretty sure I was the only one who noticed the gamemaster had fallen quiet on the way back to our rooms. If Slash’s team had also succeeded, we’d be four for four.
That meant if we continued our winning streak, Brando would have to tell Mr. Zachetti he was on the hook for a substantial payout to the pope. It made me happy we were inching toward securing the money for the orphanage, but I had a feeling that things would only get harder after this.
Slash and I would have to up our game even more.