The next morning an ashen sunrise crept slowly over the wind-torn river valley, and the morning sky was veiled in weird hues of yellow, brown, green, and gray. The force of the hurricane had begun to weaken around midnight. It had diminished through the early hours of the morning, and by dawn, the storm was over. When there was finally enough light to make out the familiar view, it was difficult to focus on what they saw. Nothing looked the same. As Alexis and Max rubbed their tired eyes, they couldn't believe what lay before them. The spectacle of destruction was beyond comprehension."The river," Max whispered in awe. "My God. Look at the river."
Never before had the Macal been able to be seen from Emoyeni; the valley was two hundred feet deep. Yet beyond simply rising and spilling its banks, the engorged waterway had spread to a width of more than half a mile, and dominated the entire landscape to the southwest, west, and northwest. No longer a mere river, it appeared to be nothing less than a silvery-brown inland sea of unimaginable proportion.
The property damage was beyond comprehension. The outhouse roof had been flung into the trees, well beyond the fenced yard, and its walls had totally collapsed over the wooden box that had served as the seat. The old chicken and goat house still stood, but half the thatching was gone and two of the walls were listing badly. The Nubians were unharmed, although they seemed highly indignant at having gotten thoroughly soaked. Some of the chickens were missing, and those that had not been blown away looked bedraggled in their sodden feathers. The custard apple tree was gone. Once towering over sixty feet, the enormous tree had born the sweetest anona fruit in the valley. Now it lay on the ground in tangled confusion. Toppled by the storm, it had fallen right on top of their largest lime tree, as well as a huge stretch of the new fencing. Everywhere they looked was awesome destruction. The high jungle was mangled and crushed, looking like it had been chewed up and spat out by dinosaurs. Much of the smaller bush was flattened. Branches and limbs, leaves and palm fronds trashed the entire hilltop area. Huge trees had snapped in half and lay on the ground beside white splintered trunks.
But somehow their house had survived. Upon closer inspection, one corner of the tin roof was curled upward; Max estimated that the sheet metal couldn't have held more than a few minutes more when the storm had started to subside. One wooden shutter and its glass window beneath had been broken by an enormous tree limb and many household items had gotten wet. But all in all, they were lucky. Nobody had been injured. Although shaken, they were all alive and well.
"I'm going down to the river," Max said.
"Please wait a little while. With all the rain in the mountains upstream, I'm sure the river hasn't finished rising yet. There could be flash floods."
"The water level must be awfully close to the pump house,” he stated. “I've got to get the machinery out of there before the water goes any higher. Besides, if the dory line got tangled in the bush as the river rose, then the boat's either on the bottom or washed somewhere downstream. I've got to check the line and free it if I can.""But Jordan's asleep,” protested Alexis. “I can't go with you. He’s so exhausted, it's not likely he'll wake up for at least four or five hours, but I don't want to leave him here alone."
"I'll go down and check things out. Then I'll come back and get you if I need to."
"Be careful. Take the machete with you. The path is probably blocked with bush, and there are bound to be snakes coming up the hill to get away from the flood."
Taking her suggestion, Max started down the path. Slipping and sliding, the mud mixed with the shale made a deadly combination. Four times he had to cut his way through fallen bush on what used to be a path. Then, only two-thirds of the way down the hill, the river was suddenly at his feet; he gasped in awe.
The pump house was nowhere in sight. The flood had consumed it. Max took a bearing on some large trees and tried to estimate where the pump house might be, if indeed, it still existed at all. Wading into the water, he took a deep breath and submerged himself. He repeated the process over and over, groping blindly among the submerged bushes in the filthy brown water, at last finding the corner of the roof. Ascertaining its whereabouts, he surfaced, and made his way slowly up the path again to the house.
