The fall wasn’t catastrophic, but the fear was. Terah had slipped only a few inches as his foot found a more willing branch. Frozen a few moments with terror, he realized that the window would still be two feet beyond his reach, even if he could stand on the thin branches nearest it. If he gave in to his fears and scrambled down the tree he’d be no closer to gaining access to his pack. He’d walked nearly the entire footprint of the asylum and had seen no sign of access anywhere. Clutching this branch like a frightened kitten he was mere feet away from a feasible way in. Provided he could reach it, open it, and find a way in that didn’t lead to a straight drop on the other side.
While inside he’d not been able to make out any detail on the clerestory level. He’d climbed to the second floor, but the windows were up yet one more level than that and how far above the floor he simply couldn’t tell. His indecision would kill him.
Terah had supposed the life of the homeless wasn’t easy. Still, he’d never considered that without the help of the police you couldn’t recover your property if stolen by someone capable of locking you out. Nor had he considered that he’d be caught up a tree, facing his childhood phobia with nobody to help him. He’d certainly never considered ghosts.
Clenching the branches in bare, painful hands, Terah decided to climb back down when he heard a sound from above. The window had opened from the inside. His thoughts went immediately to Mich, but he’d been in such a rush when he’d stepped outside he hadn’t noticed if there’d been more than one set of tracks in the snow. He convinced himself it was just the wind. He couldn’t reach the window in any case. Still, now he’d have to try.
Branches tapered to twigs and he had to be careful where he planted his feet. He improved his angle. Stretching, he was maybe a foot and a half from the opening. No matter how he reached, it was a foot and a half he couldn’t span. There were other trees, of course, but a fallen branch stout enough to support him, if wedged into the current tree, would be too heavy to carry, if he could even find one. By now his hands were frozen and his injured palms meant he couldn’t rub them together. Besides, his grip on the tree, between heaven and earth, took all his effort. He stared at the window hopelessly. He remembered.
Not quite a young man, but not really an old one, he was making a living as an adjunct professor. It didn’t pay enough to support a person, and it didn’t have any benefits, but it was a source of income for a guy saddled with a Ph.D. in the humanities. He learned of a publisher right there in Piscataway, New Jersey. He called and they granted him an interview. The owner of the company himself wanted to meet Terah. He listened to his account.
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” the owner concluded. “You just need a leg up.”
Terah nodded.
The owner didn’t hire him. After recognizing his potential and his circumstances, and having the ability to give a “leg up,” he didn’t. That had started the spiral that led to this damned tree. He could sure use a leg up right now. He simply couldn’t leave without his pack.
Why had nature opened a window but refused access? Nature didn’t give legs up.
Terah couldn’t gauge how long he’d been outside, but the chill was now settling in deeply. He made his way back down the tree. Not knowing what else to do, he finished his circuit of the building. The one and only door stood open. He glanced back and saw a confusion of footprints in the snow. Had Mich gone? Had the interloper? Someone left the door open. Too cold to ponder this, he slipped inside. He couldn’t feel his fingers or toes. His only thought was the small fire Mich had lit in the basement. He’d need to follow the maze back. The red blazes. He’d need a light. Shivering, he glanced up. He could make out the opened clerestory window. He could use that in case he grew disoriented. He sure could use a flashlight, though.
Inside the concrete felt just as chilly as the outside air. Without his pack he would need to use the open clerestory window as his pole star. Careful to keep track around the pyramid, he headed toward the corridor opposite the entrance. He couldn’t see the red blaze, not without a light. He recalled Mich’s words, “You’d be surprised how not having one can put you in danger.” He had to go slow. He had to have warmth. His foot hit something, sending it clattering into the wall. Mich’s flashlight. The kid must’ve run out—he’d never’ve left this behind. Terah reached for it with numb fingers. Getting it to turn on took too long. The asylum was completely silent. He saw red.
Frantic with cold, he retraced his earlier steps behind Mich. The blazes showed up just where expected. He found his pack at the head of the unlit stairs. If Mich was gone Terah could stay as long as he wished. New snow would come to cover their tracks. If he could find the stash Mich mentioned, Terah would be able to make his own rules. No fire outside the boiler seemed a good one.
The fire had died to embers, but Terah noticed the stacks of kindling and fuel Mich had made from the wooden furniture left behind. Even some natural wood, well dried, from outside. Coaxing the embers to life, Terah sat close. Spying his gloves where he’d left them, he stuffed them into his pockets. He wouldn’t get caught unprepared again.
Sitting in that dark, industrial room with its orange glow, Terah’s thoughts returned to ghosts. Mich had clearly believed they were here. Someone had opened that clerestory window. With warmth returning, rationalization kicked in. Terah constructed a plausible scenario. Some other homeless person, or a kid seeking thrills, had come to the abandoned structure. Mich, afraid he’d get caught, had lit out—probably back home. The guy was awfully young to survive on his own. He’d obviously been here a while, but he had to miss his family. Meanwhile, the intruder heard Terah falling and running outside. Blocked the door for fun. Why’d he opened the window? Probably heard the tree crashing against the wall. He might’ve seen Terah in the branches. Decided he’d had enough fun, took off. It all added up.
Then Terah remembered he’d left the door wide open.
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