16
Chris knelt beside Adam and stretched out his stick. “Help me here, Alex, and we’ll tug him to shore.”
I grabbed the staff, as well, and Adam latched on to the other end. Together we pulled Adam over to hard ground and onto the path. He flopped like a limp fish onto solid earth and lay there, breathing hard and covered in muck.
Chris took up his staff and caught both our eyes. “Stay close to me and we’ll get everyone else out.”
Chris headed for Mary next. The frantic woman flailed her arms in our direction, futilely trying to reach us. Her efforts only made her sink further into the brown tar pit.
She noticed her worsening predicament and squirmed harder to free herself. “Help!”
Adam glared at her. “Hold still, you i***t!”
His command fell on deaf and frightened ears. “H
