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The Night of Fire & Light (Part 7) |
| Written by Dave Bottoms | |
| Tuesday, 01 April 2008 | |
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Share it:      As Andy weighed his responsibility to provide immediate rescue against the logic of getting additional help, his thoughts wandered back to the summer of '59. It was late June when the Johnston's baby girl went missing from the front yard of their farm over by the Griffen County line. Andy had put together a huge search party and combed the entire region without success. He had sent out posters to the sheriff's offices all over the state, but no one had seen hide nor hair of her. For the rest of the summer the investigation continued unrewarded, as the town waited anxiously for his office to miraculously produce the child. Well, summer turned to Autumn without so much as a clue until Nelson Johnston stumbled upon an undiscovered abandoned well on his property. Sadly, the discovery was actually a relief for Andy seeing as he hadn't made an inch of progress in the previous four months of searching. The case was closed, and although Andy knew there was nothing he could have done, nothing anyone could have done, this knowledge did little to alleviate the guilt that plagued him. For months to come it would leave a hollow spot, twisted and cold, inside his gut. A hollow spot he could now remember with a clarity that was more than a little disturbing. No siree, he wasn't going to let anyone stay down there a moment longer than they had to, that was for sure. "I'm going down, Barn'. I think you should stay up here in case anything happens." "Now wait one darn minute," Barney said. "You can't just leave me here and go down into that hole by yourself, Andy. If anything happened I wouldn't be able to live with myself." "Look, Barney, there ain't no choice. If there's someone down there I aim to get them out and get them out now." "But, Andy, be reasonable!" "Remember the Johnston case back in '59," Andy asked in a whisper. Barney remembered all right. He remembered the torment Andy had put himself through during the four months the child had been missing, and after she'd been found; the church services every Sunday with Pastor McFallen often commenting on the missing girl during each sermon; and the concerned citizens of Mayberry badgering Andy for answers he just didn't have. Although it was long past him, Barney could see how this situation could play on Andy's emotions. "Yeah. I remember," was all he could think to say. "Good," Andy said. He looked again into the deep crater. "I guess it would be too much to hope that you thought to bring rope?" "Rope? You can see I got no rope. How was I to know you'd want rope? I can't be expected to think of everything, now can I," Barney said. "Barney, I'm only funnin' you. It doesn't matter. I'll manage without it." "Manage without it," Barney said mockingly. "You know, you beat all, let me tell you. Well, just don't fall and break your cotton-picking neck. That's all I got to say." With that, Andy lowered one leg over the ledge of the pit and started down into the darkness. Barney made a few more protests, but knew Andy well enough to know that once his mind was set, there was no changing it. He watched Andy slip and scrape down the steep wall of dirt until he disappeared from view. "Andy, you okay down there?" "Yeah. So far," came from the belly of the crater. Barney stood there a while, watching the hole, then watching the stars. Every so often he'd make a sweep with the lantern in a feeble attempt to keep the darkness at bay. He tried to whistle a tune, but his mouth was as dry as a beach. He looked down at his watch, it was almost 2:30am. He thought of his room at the boarding house, about his cozy single bed, and how much he wanted to be in it. Time passed slowly, and he wondered what Andy would find. Then he summoned up the courage to take a look over the edge. The orange glow had darkened to a deep red; it didn't look good. As he watched, it changed again, to a pastel green, then once more back to its original color. What the hell does that mean, Barney thought. He called down to Andy and waited, but got no answer; only the peculiar echo of off-notes drifting up like smoke. Again he tried, "Andy, this is no time for games, you hear me. No time at all!" But still he got no reply. Barney's mind raced, what should I do, what would Andy do? Get help, that's it. Run back to the cruiser and call for back up. He almost turned to go, but then thought, I can't leave him here like this, what if he's in danger? Barney rubbed his forehead furiously, he just didn't know what to do. The truth was, Barney was no hero, and everyone in town knew it. In the past he had let Andy down, and the town as well. Andy always acted as if he considered Barney a good deputy, but Barney was sure that deep down Andy wished there was a way to hire someone with more confidence and know-how. He thought of the time Andy and Helen had gotten trapped in the old mine-shaft up by Lake Kippiwana. He had rushed back to town and raised the alarm. The whole town had rallied to their rescue, but somehow Andy and Helen had found their own way out. It could have looked real bad, except Andy had covered for Barney, even made him out as a hero. But Barney knew the truth, and worse yet, so did Andy. The answer became clear to him: If he went back there without Andy, he'd never live it down. Nope. He had no choice, none what so ever. Copyright 2008 Dave Bottoms |
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