© 2012 Phylicia Joannis
The Complainer smiled a cheesy grin as he began his rueful tale.
“Ladies and gentleman, I stand before you a humbled and grateful man. Humbled because that John Doe could have been me. And I would have deserved it. It would have been ironic, a lawyer eaten by rats. Yes, I am deeply humbled and grateful. Grateful because, when they saw my departed companion, they didn’t give up. No! Directed by Mitchell Blume, this extraordinarily tenacious public servant we call our Mayor, they continued the search. And I was found. Pulled from the rubble I thought would certainly be my grave. And-”
“There’s been another sinkhole!” A breathless reporter burst into the press hall with the news, cutting off the Complainer’s bombastic speech in the process.
Sidney clicked off her recorder and motioned for Barry to follow her. “That’s my cue. We got all we need here, anyway. I don’t want to spend another minute here listening to this guy drivel about Saint Blume.”
Barry chuckled and turned off his camera. “Give me a few minutes, Sid.”
“Not a problem,” Sidney sauntered over to the breathless reporter. “I need to find out where that other sinkhole is.”
The Complainer stood at the podium with his head turned towards the Mayor. Mayor Blume motioned to his press secretary and waved a hand to the Complainer.
“Bill, take care of this, we need to regroup,” the Mayor hissed. His press secretary nodded and spoke into the microphone.
“Uh, ladies and gentleman, in light of the recent turn of events, this press conference has been suspended until the Mayor and his administration can investigate further. Thank you all for coming.”
The press secretary followed the Mayor and Complainer as they made their way out of the press hall.
“This is unbelievable!” Mayor Blume growled. “Another sinkhole?”
“Looks like you’ve got faulty construction everywhere,” the Complainer chuckled.
“Don’t even get me started with you,” Mayor Blume shot daggers at the Complainer. “You told me that you were alone down in that subway, and ten minutes before I go out there I get a report that a dead body was found underground?”
The Complainer shrugged. “I didn’t realize that dead people counted.”
“Real funny,” the Mayor fumed. “There’d better not be any more surprises, or I will hang you out to dry, you understand me?”
The Complainer smirked. “What else could possibly go wrong?”
***
“Are you ready?” the Old Woman gave me a look of encouragement, and I nodded.
“Remember what we discussed,” the Nurse gave me another overview. “Once you get out, get help, and tell them we have two critically injured people down here who need immediate medical assistance.”
I didn’t know what else to say so I nodded.
“Listen kid,” the Climber pulled me to the side. “If things get dicey up there, climb back down and I’ll do it.”
“I’ll be okay,” I managed to croak. “Do you think he’ll make it?” I ask the Nurse, pointing my head in the Congressman’s direction.
“Just hurry,” she replied.
I took a deep breath and found my footing on the first slab of concrete.
***
Chuck stepped up to the podium, heart throbbing in his ears, and gave the microphone a quick tap. Feedback screeched in his ear for a split second before subsiding, and he began.
“H-Hello, everyone. My name is Charles and I work for the transit system as a dispatcher. I need you all to know that everything the Mayor and this gentleman here just told you was a lie.”
Sidney stopped pumping the reporter for information and turned towards the podium, ears alert. Her cameraman, Barry, followed her as she made her way back to the front.
“Turn your camera back on, Barry,” Sidney instructed him.
“Already did,” he replied.
Mayor Blume stopped arguing with his press secretary and turned his head toward the press hall. “Stop, everyone! Quiet!” he hissed to the people on his right. “Do you hear that? Who is that?”
Chuck was bombarded with questions but, noting the guards making their way to him, he continued through the noise.
“I witnessed with my own eyes and heard with my own ears what happened today in those tunnels. There are at least six more people trapped down there. I don’t know who this guy is or how he escaped, but judging by his character, I’d say that he put those people in more danger to save his own skin.”
“Why should we believe you?” Sidney touted.
Chuck closed his eyes and considered his fate. He looked quickly to his right, where Penny was standing, rooting him on. Resolute, he spoke slowly and clearly into the microphone. “Because I have proof.”
Chuck pulled out the video recording he confiscated from the technician’s room and handed it to Sidney. “This is all the proof you need.”
Sidney whispered something to Barry, who quickly took the tape, inserted it into his camera, and hooked the camera up to a TV in the conference room.
The Congressman’s face popped on the screen and the group crowded in the press conference heard the whole conversation between him and the technician. Chuck’s voice was heard next, telling the Congressman that help was on the way.
“I never sent anyone to help them,” Chuck admitted after the tape was finished. “Those people are still down there, waiting to be rescued. Please, let’s help them.”