The Cracks in the Labyrinth

Prologue (Part 3)

Evelia held her breath, unsure of what to expect. Like her, Chuo and Adam remained frozen in place, staring at the balcony door, waiting for their friends to come back.

As the longest seconds of her life ticked away, the image of the gargantuan hole in the sky rose up before her again. It's your imagination. You'll see! She tried to shake off the icy grasp of fear. You're stressed out about being late.

"All solutions to the Drake equation are uncertain," Chuo said, making himself speak calmly. "The probability of alien life is negligible."

Then the air filled with the cries of awe and shock of her friends.

Adam took Evi's hand between his and kissed it. "Fuck probabilities! I'm with you ... no matter what. You hear me?"

She replied to his promise with a faint smile.

"Adam, I want to—"

The balcony door opened. Ernest was the first to get back. His face was screwed up in confusion. Without saying a word, he went straight to the emergency exit. Claudia strode behind him, astonished.

"Wh-what happened?" Chuo asked.

"We are going to the roof, Santiago replied, taking a moment to hold Vera's hair, so she could lean forward and puke. "Better?"

Vera raised her thumb and took a deep breath. Before crossing through the same red door as her friends, she turned to Chuo. "Get the camcorder!"

Chuo's eyes widened as he stuttered a refusal.

"Chop-chop," said Santiago, his head peeking out around the doorframe.

This put a harried expression on Chuo's face, but Evelia didn't intervene. She would never go in his stead or let Adam do it either. No way! If Chuo wished to remain behind with them, well, good. What she wanted more than anything was for her friends to stay the hell away from the roof. She also knew she couldn't dissuade them. Their stubbornness was part of what drew them together.

"Jesús!" Vera shouted, snapping Chuo out of his absent-mindedness.

He obeyed her reluctantly and plodded to the doorway. As the door closed behind him, his terrified eyes pleaded Evi for help one last time.

A wave of relief washed over Evelia when Adam said, "We are leaving."

She grabbed her boyfriend's hand and hurried him to the staircase. When they were about to reach the opposite side of the corridor, a strange buzzing made them stop.

"What's that?"

"Vera's stereo?" Evelia asked. "But there's no power."

The revolting noise grew louder, making each office window vibrate. And it wasn't just the stereo; all the speakers from all the computers were blaring the same maddening din.

"Fire alarm?" Adam grimaced in pain.

That was no alarm. It was unlike any sound from this world. She could feel it reverberating inside her skull, and it made her retch.

Adam mouthed something inaudible and pointed his finger to the red door.

"No!" Evelia shouted. "We—"

For a moment, Evi feared she had gone deaf. A high-pitched ringing pierced her eardrums, and then... Nothing. Soon, she found out, in the worst possible way, that her hearing remained intact: a shriek coming from the party hall shattered the silence.

Evelia's breath stopped in a shocked gasp. Another scream came from below. She moved away from the stair rail as if it were red hot. By the time she had walked back to Adam, a fresh volley of screams had broken downstairs.