The forest was silent.
Ken paled. “What the hell is—”
The sudden silence terrified him more than the screaming had.
“We’ve got to act now.” Levi turned to Maria. “Give me your keys. I need to get my things out of your car. Adam, will you carry that bag of salt, please?”
The two security men finally reached them, breathing hard, their faces red and covered with sweat. Ken couldn’t remember either of their names.
“We’re sorry, Mr. Ripple,” one exclaimed. “She drove right by us.”
“We called the police,” the other one said. “They’re on the way.”
“Good.” Ken grasped at Levi, spinning him around. “Hold up. You’re not going anywhere.”
Levi’s voice was like stone. “Unhand me now.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
There was a commotion near the ticket booth. Ken turned to see what was happening and saw Sammi Horton, the woman in charge of tickets, running toward them.
“Ken, Terry’s wife just called.”
“What now?”
“He never came home last night. She said at first she just assumed he was here, but when he didn’t call today, she began to get worried. She’s left him several messages but he hasn’t called her back. She says she’s been calling your cell phone, as well.”
Ken’s temples began to throb.
“Goddamn it. I should have checked earlier…”
“There’s something else,” Sammi said.
“What?”
“There’s a woman over at the booth. She says her grandchildren went in with the first group and they’re still not back yet. She’s getting a little worried. What should I tell her?”
“Tell her we are looking into it. And hold off on calling Terry’s wife back.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. And don’t sell any more tickets until I tell you to. We’re closed.”
Maria gave Levi her car keys. Adam and Levi retrieved the salt and Levi’s bag from the car. The security guards moved to stop them, but Ken waved them off and retrieved his flashlight.
“Keep an eye on that line,” he said. “Don’t let anybody else through.”
“So you suddenly believe me?” Maria’s tone was skeptical.
“No,” Ken told her. “What you’re saying is ridiculous. But I do think something’s happened. Hell, something’s been happening. I was just too stupid and fucking prideful to notice. And now my best friend is missing, along with a whole bunch of other people. I’m going in there. You and your crazy friends are staying here.”
“The hell we are.”
“I’m not gonna argue with you, Maria. Stay put until the police get here. If that really is Adam Senft, then you’ve got a lot of explaining to do.”
“Somebody mention my name?”
Adam and Levi had returned from the car. Levi clutched his bag and Adam had the sack of salt thrown over one shoulder. Ken glanced at it and snorted.
“I don’t think ice on the trail is a problem right now.”
Ignoring him, Levi nodded at Maria and Adam. “Come on. We’re running out of time. I can feel it getting stronger.”
“What part of ‘stay here’ don’t you people understand?” Ken shouted.
“Ken, please!” Maria shook her head in frustration. “Listen to us.”
“Screw this. I don’t have time to argue with you. You guys want to follow me, fine. But stay the hell out of my way.”
He wheeled around and marched toward the entrance. Levi, Adam, and Maria followed along behind him, walking side by side.
“Are you sure about this?” Adam asked Levi. “I mean, maybe we should get a couple shotguns or something. Maybe some chainsaws. They worked okay when me and my friends did this.”
“They’ll do us no good this time.”
“Okay.” Adam shrugged. “It’s your funeral.”
“No,” Levi whispered, “it isn’t.”
The four of them stepped onto the trail and plunged into the forest. Ken stopped before he’d taken a dozen steps. The others halted behind him.
“Jesus,” he wheezed. “Look how dark it is in there. I can’t see shit. The flashlight doesn’t even penetrate.”
“That’s because it isn’t a normal darkness,” Levi said, hunkering down on his haunches and staring at the path.
“It’s so quiet,” Maria whispered. “What do you think is happening, Levi?”
He didn’t respond. Instead, he examined the ground closely, running his hands across it. “What are these white lines?”
Frowning, Ken glanced back at him. “It’s lime. We use it to line the trail, so people don’t wander off. It’s supposed to glow in the dark, but for some reason, it’s not doing a very good job tonight.”
Levi fell backward, landing on his ass. He began to laugh. The sudden outburst surprised the others.
“Are you okay?” Maria asked, concerned.
“What’s so funny?” Ken demanded.
“Lime! Oh, this is perfect. Better than I could have ever hoped for. This, my friends, is a testimony to the power of prayer.”
Ken glanced at Maria. “What’s he going on about?”
She shook her head.
Levi gazed upward. “Thank you, Lord! Thank you for this boon.”
“LeHorn used lime,” Adam said. “I remember, from his journal. He used lime in one of the banishing spells, when he tried to cleanse the hollow.”
“That is correct.” Levi stood up and brushed the dirt from his pants. “He did indeed. Although lime is not as powerful as salt, it can be used as a substitute. All you have to do is charge it properly.”
While Levi examined the lime, Ken turned back to the trail and took another tentative step forward. He thought he sensed movement in the darkness, but he couldn’t see anything. He stared harder, trying to peer beyond the black curtain. There it was again—movement, a slight tremor. But from what?
Then his eyes widened.
It was the darkness itself.
As he watched, it crept toward them, slowly, excruciatingly, as if it were a rubber band stretched to its limit.
Noticing his reaction, Maria and Adam followed Ken’s gaze. Maria gasped and Adam screamed, dropping the bag of salt. It split open, spilling onto the ground.
“That’s it!” Adam shrieked. “He Who Shall Not Be Named! It waits at the heart of the Labyrinth like a big tumor, infecting the universe. And now it’s here!”
Maria grabbed Ken’s shoulder and tried to pull him backward, but he remained rooted to the spot, staring as the darkness crept closer.
“Ken,” she urged, “come on!”
“It’s moving slowly,” Levi said.
“Not slow enough for me,” Maria replied.
Adam ran to the edge of the forest.
“It’s sluggish,” Levi insisted. “Which means that it’s extended to its limits. It won’t be able to go much farther until the barriers are down. We still have time. Maria, Mr. Ripple—get behind me. Adam, come here. I need your help.”
“No thanks,” Adam called. “I’m fine right here. You go ahead. Work your voodoo.”
“Adam,” Levi insisted, “you promised that you’d help me. You agreed that you owed it to your loved ones. Now I need you to honor that promise—and to honor their memories.”
“I can’t. I’m…afraid.”
“We’re all afraid, Adam. But this is what we’ve been called to do. Now please, come here. You have to trust me.”
“Trust you?”
“Yes. I’ve helped you so far, haven’t I?”
Adam slowly approached him, while Maria tried to drag Ken away. Ken shrugged free of her and pointed at the darkness.
“Look!”
The night rippled. Ken glanced over his shoulder to verify that Maria had seen it, too—but she was gone. They were all gone. Maria, Levi, and Adam. The woods. The trail. All of it. He floated in a sea of black. There was only him, adrift in an ebony void, completely alone.
His greatest fear. Ever since Deena’s death, Ken was afraid of being alone.
The darkness pressed in on all sides, and Ken screamed.
Maria tried to pull him away, but before she could, two figures stepped out of the darkness.