Lanark_ a life in 4 books - Alasdair Gray [191]
She stopped and stared.
“It’s easy, downhill.”
“We’re going uphill.”
“You’re mad.”
Each stared at the other’s face for a sign that they were joking until Rima backed away saying fearfully, “Keep off! You’re mad!”
He stepped after her and felt acutely dizzy. At the same time something shoved him sideways. He staggered but kept his feet and stood swaying a little. He said weakly, “Rima. The road slopes downhill on this side of the line and uphill on the other.”
“That’s impossible!”
“I know. But it does. Try it.”
She came near, put a foot hesitantly across, then withdrew it saying, “All right, I believe you.”
“But why not test it? Hold my hand.”
“Since we’re both on the downhill side we may as well keep to it. We’ll travel faster.”
She began walking and he followed.
He now had sensations of descending steeply. Each stride covered more and more ground until he shouted, “Rima! Stop! Stop!”
“I’ll fall if I try to stop!”
“We’ll fall if we don’t. It’s getting too steep. Give me your hand.”
They grabbed hands, dug heels in, slithered to a standstill and stood precariously swaying. He said, “We’ll have to take this slowly and carefully. I’ll go first.”
He released her hand, stepped slowly and carefully forward, his feet slid from under him, he grabbed her for support and pulled her heavily down. They rolled over each other then he was tumbling sideways with a rhythmical bumping each time the rucksack passed under his body. When he came to rest and managed to stand up the ground seemed level and he was alone in the mist. Not even the yellow line was visible. He yelled “Rima! Rima! Rima!” and listened, and heard the distant sea. For a moment he felt utterly lost. He took the torch from his rucksack, switched it on and found the yellow line a yard away from him; then he remembered that if Rima had fallen over the line she would have rolled the opposite way. This was a cheering thought for it made events seem logical. He turned and climbed the hill, torch in hand, and after a lot of effort reached a summit where he heard a sound of weeping. Ten steps farther he found her squatting on the far side of the line, her hands covering her face. He sat down and put an arm round her shoulders.
After a while she looked up and said, “I’m glad it’s you.” “Who else could it have been?”
“I don’t know.”
Her knuckles were bleeding. He brought out the first-aid kit, cleaned the grazes and put on sticking plaster. Then they sat side by side, tired out and waiting for the other to suggest a move. At last Rima said, “What if we walked on different sides of the line but held hands across it? Then when one of us went downhill we’d be steadied by the one going up.”
Lanark stared at her and cried, “What a clever idea!”
She smiled and stood up. “Let’s try it. Which way do we go?” “To the left.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. You slid over the line without noticing.”
The new way of walking was a strain on the linking arm but worked very well. Eventually the road grew level on both sides and part of a huge rocky wall could be seen through the mists ahead. The yellow line ran up to an iron door painted with these words:
EMERGENCY EXIT 3124
NO ADMITTANCE
Lanark kicked the door moodily. It was like kicking rock. He said “It was me who slid over the yellow line, not you.” They turned round and set off again.
They had not gone far when they heard a strange wavering sound, a sound Lanark seemed to recognize. Rima said, “Someone’s crying.”
He took the torch from his pocket and shone it ahead and Rima drew a sudden breath. A tall blond girl,