She rose and cautiously moved forward. The ground under one foot shifted. Something clicked, a sound so soft she might have missed it had she not been so aware that something was horribly wrong. She froze, her heart beating somewhere in her throat and goose bumps chasing down her spine. Nothing happened, yet that sensation of wrongness increased tenfold.
Swallowing to ease the dryness in her throat, she lifted her hand, running her fingers against the damp wall for guidance as she edged forward.
Again, her foot hit something. Again, there was a whisper-soft click.
Apprehension slithered through her. She scanned the inky tunnel, fingers clenched against the urge to release kinetic energy. At what, she had no idea. There was no threat to see or smell or hear. Yet every instinct suggested she was stepping deeper and deeper into danger.
Sweat trickled down her cheek. She swiped at it, then stopped, suddenly aware that it was beginning to get truly hot inside the tunnel. Just like the house…
Apprehension turned to fear. She swung around, knowing she had to get out while she still could, before whatever trap the soul sucker had set could snare her.
Deep darkness slammed down on her. Someone had shut the trapdoor. Cursing loudly, she bolted for the end of the tunnel.
The air around her began to vibrate with energy. The heat increased, until it felt as if her skin glowed with it.
Then everything exploded. She was knocked off her feet by a blast of red hot air and hammered into the tunnel wall. The darkness began to rain on her.
Janie's baby soft scent lingered, giving Ethan a trail to follow. The light of the torches was quickly left behind, but the veil of darkness didn't fully return, lifted by the beams of light filtering in up ahead. Slime hung in tendrils from the ceiling, waving gently in the breeze wafting down the tunnel. Water trickled past his paws, freezing his pads. He half thought about shifting shape, but he knew it was safer to remain as he was, cold paws notwithstanding. The Mara was less likely to be on the lookout for a wolf.
The path came to a junction. He stopped, looking both ways. To his left, warmth and light and the promise of an entrance to the outside world. But Janie and her captors had headed right, up the slope and deeper into the mountain.
Why? The cells in the cavern behind them had appeared secure enough, so what did moving the two girls gain?
Did they suspect he and Kat had found their hiding place?
Or did the move have nothing to do with that and everything to do with the fact that both girls were food for the soul sucker and its offspring?
Fear began to pound through his veins, and the sensation of time running out increased.
He followed the tunnel, his nails making little noise against the damp stone under his paws. The air grew colder, and the sensation of being very deep under the earth increased. Odd, when the path he followed seemed to be going up rather than down.
The smell of death sharpened the air. He slowed, knowing he had to be close.
Light shimmered up ahead. He stopped, not sure what he was seeing. Then he realized he was viewing the torch through a curtain of water, and the tension in his gut increased. The clothes of the kid they'd found torn apart in the warehouse had been damp. Now he knew why.
He edged closer to the water. The zombies were standing next to a stone table that reeked of blood. Not fresh blood, but old. As if the stone had spent years and years steeped in it.
He couldn't see the two girls, but the soul sucker stood in front of what looked like a second cave, placing small stones across the entrance. When she'd positioned the last one, she made a motion with her hand, and the air shimmered briefly. Another magic wall, obviously. Only this time, he was on the right side of it. With any luck, all he had to do was shift the placement of those stones, and the energy wall would dissipate.
The Mara walked past the old stone table to the other side of the cavern. She stood in front of it for several seconds, then made another motion with her hand. The curtain of darkness that shadowed the wall seemed to flow aside, revealing another tunnel. One that had a slightly phosphorescent glow. He had no doubt a sample would match the material under the second kid's fingers.
The soul sucker glanced at the zombies, and all but one followed her into the greenish passageway. He shifted his feet, itching to attack, knowing this was possibly his best chance. But Kat had said the Mara would know the minute one of the zombies died. Right now, he couldn't afford to do anything that would attract the soul sucker's attention. Not when he was alone and the Mara was so close.
Besides, he doubted if he could outrun the zombies, and he certainly couldn't fight when he was carrying both girls It left him with very little choice. He'd have to wait and see whether the Mara and the zombies intended to leave the girls here, then he'd have to go back and wait…
The thought died as a distant sensation of foul energy vibrated through the air. The hackles along his back stood on end, and he turned, sensing the main source of that power came from behind him.
The buzz increased until the air was thick and electric.
The rock under his feet quivered, and hot air blasted down the tunnel. Then energy died and silence fell once more.
He remembered the fissures he'd seen in the tunnel.
Remembered the zombies stopping. Knew Kat was due back any minute. Felt fear engulf him, a fear that was both his and hers.
His four legs had never moved so fast as he raced back to the tunnel.
Kat thrust upright and swiped at the wetness running down her face. The sound of the explosion still rang in her ears, but it didn't prevent her hearing the rush of water — water that was up to her knees and rapidly rising.
And the tunnel was no longer dark. Dust danced in the golden slithers of light that thrust into the gloom, and even from where she was standing she could see the gray of threatening clouds.
But those same sunbeams allowed her to see the water. It looked as if half the damn river was being diverted into her prison.
She rose and staggered forward. The water poured in through two fissures. They were large enough to thrust a couple of fingers through, large enough for the water to pour in with sufficient force to tug at her feet and threaten to topple her. But not large enough to allow a raven to escape, let alone a human.
Being caught in a tunnel was bad enough. Being caught in a tunnel rapidly filling with water was the stuff of nightmares…
She took a deep breath, trying to calm the rapid pounding of her heart and the fear threatening to lock her limbs.
The water was only at her knees. She had plenty of time to find a way out. She ducked under the water, gasping in shock at its icy touch. But she didn't go more than four steps before she hit a wall of rock. She looked up, studying the roof, noting at least half a dozen fissures that dripped water. Move one rock, and she might just bring not only the wall down but the rest of the river as well.
Getting to the trap door that lay beyond the wall was definitely out of the question.
She turned and went back through the water. The darkness weighed in on her as she moved away from the fissures and the sunlight. She tried to keep her breathing even, tried not to think about the weight of the river above her or the water that was creeping up to her thighs. Tried to think warm, calm thoughts as a chill crept across her skin and made her teeth chatter so hard her jaw ached.
She raised her hands, running one along the wet walls, holding the other out in front as she waded slowly through the swirling water. It wasn't long before she hit something solid — but it was a solid she didn't want to feel. Another wall of rock.