Evelyn tried to stay buoyant in the water, but it was very deep and her feet could not touch the bottom. She tried to grip the side of the canal and pull herself out, but the moss was too slippery to get a firm grip. She looked to Mary Lou for help, but saw her running away, disappearing down a tunnel.
I might as well float with the current, she thought, and let go of the side of the canal. The canal was deep, well below the reach of her feet, but with her new body, she found it surprisingly easy to swim. She tried to swim upstream towards the voices, but the current was too strong, so she decided to float with the current until she could find some kind of ladder she could use to climb out.
She swam lazily with th current, lost in her thoughts. Why did Mary Lou betray me, she thought. And what did she inject me with? Maybe she really did turn her into an alligator girl, and this was the antidote? As time passed, Evelyn's body began to hurt a little bit. The swimming was not difficult, and she did not really feel tired, but her body felt sore. It was a little like the pain she felt when she hurt her knee, and required constructive surgery. A deep pain in the bone. But the water was soothing, so she didn't give it much though.
AS she continued to drift, she felt her toes begin to brush the bottom on the canal. It was still too deep to stand, but it appeared that the water was getting shallower. Not much longer, she thought. And a good thing, too. I am so hungry. I don't think I've ever been this hungry. I hope Adam brought some food. Maybe a sandwich, or a hamburger, or even better a juicy rare steak. Evelyn's mouth began to water as she drifted, and it became more difficult to get thoughts of food off her mind.
Just relax, she thought. Relax. Food soon, but for now just relax in the water. With that thought, she drifted off to sleep.
Evelyn woke with a start. Her body floated in the water, nestled against a small drain that filtered water but not her large body. I must have fallen asleep, she thought, as she yawned lazily. Her body was incredibly sore now, and she could feel her hunger slowly waking up too. The tunnel seemed much smaller to her. Her body almost stretched completely from one edge of the canal to the other, and the ceiling seemed almost low enough for her to reach up and touch. Experimentally, she moved her feet, and easily reached the bottom of the canal. She tried to stand, but her knees were stiff, and the tunnel was much too small for her to stand at her full height. Crawling on her hands and feet, she made her way onto the ledge by the canal and began to move upstream down the tunnel.
Evelyn was surprised at how easily she crawled. It was also a little surprising how long the small tunnel ran. The small tunnel seemed to remain small as far as she could see. As she continued to move through the tunnel, she was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic. And the hunger was returning with a vengeance.
Finally, she reached the intersection she had been crawling towards for so long. When she reached to the intersection, she was disappointed to see that the three other tunnels branching from her tunnel were equally small. She looked to the wall hoping to find some kind of marking, anything that might help direct her out of this tiny tunnel.
The only thing written on the wall was the height marker, marking 20 feet, that she and Mary Lou had first seen when they entered the tunnel.
Wait, Evelyn thought with horror, if that height mark is the same, that means the tunnels are the same size. That means the tunnel didn't get smaller, I got bigger.
Evelyn looked at the 20ft mark, almost eye level with her now. Much bigger, she thought sadly. But why? Is Mary Lou still growing, too?
Mary Lou! she thought angrily. She must have done this with the chemical she injected into me. She tried to scream Mary Lou's name, but all that came out was a deep hoarse bellow. Evelyn tried to reach her throat, but her arms - although massive - were too short and stubby to reach her face. Likewise, her legs were too stubby to stretch and stand.
Oh no, thought Evelyn. The chemical didn't just make me larger, it made me into a large alligator. That was Mary Lou's plan all along. The zoo staff will find me, and thinking I am Mary Lou, will stop looking for the real Mary Lou.
She tried to scream, but all that came was a deep bellow.