Free 1 Death by Chocolate by Carol Lee

didn’t happen.  I swiped my phone and picked the flashlight app to size up the window.  It looked like there was an old lock on the top –the kind that slid to the side to unlock. I could slip my baby finger into the gap, but couldn’t quite reach the lock.  Lizzie tried with her long piano playing fingers and couldn’t do it either.  I took the butter knife and slid it into the gap.  It reached, but moving the lever proved harder than expected. After several tries it moved ever so slightly.  Encouraged, I attacked it with renewed energy and finally it shifted aside.  I handed my phone to Lizzie while I shimmied through the narrow window. My feet dangled into the darkness as I lowered myself into the basement.  I dropped down onto something solid, but it wobbled and I fell hard onto the floor.
     
    “Are you okay?” hissed Lizzie and she shined the phone light back and forth.
     
    “I think so,” I said trying to figure out which way was up in the inky blackness.
     
    I finally got up and felt my way back to the wall to reach up to the window.  Lizzie reached in with my phone and the light. 
     
    “I’ll make my way upstairs and let you in the back.”  I told Lizzie. The light only worked for a short distance, but at least it helped me avoid boxes and other obstacles except the low beam near the top of the step.  I clunked my head really hard and muffled my shout.  Luckily, the door to the upstairs wasn’t locked and I stepped into the kitchen area.  The place had an eerie feeling and for a second I considered taking my chance in court.  Then I saw Lizzie peering through the window next to the door and got back on track.  After all, if my best friend risked getting arrested to help me clear my name, then I needed to step up.  I went to the back door and unlocked it.  She carefully maneuvered around the crime scene tape marking the door.
     
    “So, we’re actually doing this, huh?”  Lizzie said.
     
    “Yeah, but if you want to bail, I’ll understand.”
     
    “What and let you have all the fun in this creepy, dark bakery, not a chance, MB.”
     
    “Okay, let’s get started,” I said and with that a car pulled up outside.  Lizzie eased the door closed. I crouched behind some boxes and Lizzie slid into a space beside the door.  Thudding from my heart filled my ears and I took a deep breath and silently prayed that no one was actually coming.  Then a spotlight shone in the window and played over the walls, scanning. 
     
    “Did someone see us, MB?”
     
    “I don’t know.  It might be the Police.”
     
    The light went off, but the car engine didn’t change.  They weren’t gone. My feet started to fall asleep from my crouching position.  Neither of us moved or talked.  Just as I considered moving, the light snapped on again. 
     
    “Lock the door,” I whispered to Lizzie and she moved a tentative hand to turn the deadbolt.  It slid into place, but clicked. The click seemed to echo as if cymbals crashed. She froze.  The light didn’t come back.  Then I saw her hand dart back to the door.  She turned the handset lock and had just withdrawn her hand as the knob jiggled.  I wobbled and tried to lean back more into the shadows.  I heard a small “eek” noise from Lizzie.   I hoped Lizzie pushed the window closed in the basement after I went inside.  Finally, after what seemed like hours, a car door closed and the car drove off.  I had been in that squatting position for long enough that I wasn’t exactly sure if I could move again.
     
    “You think its okay?”
     
    I stretched my leg out and moved my foot.  “I hope so.”  All the waiting had made me feel a little calmer, but I wanted to get out of there.
     
    We crept out of our hiding spaces and carefully began to look around.  The lights on our phones cast a much dimmer light than the spot.   I went to the front window and peered out.  Nothing moved and there were no cars on the road.  We split up.