She carefully cupped the side of Colby's face and caressed his cheek with her thumb. She was gentle and loving. She removed her hand from Colby's face and stood up, fetching a cup of water. She handed it to Colby. He wasn't sure whether or not he should drink it.
" Don't worry, my love," she said. " I promise it will not poison you."
Colby reluctantly took a drink, the fresh water soothing his aching and dried throat. The woman then took a wet cloth in her hand and began to clean Colby's wounds. She smiled lovingly at him while she gently dabbed the cloth across his head. Now that Colby had seen her up close, she didn't look super scary, mostly just dirty, and her dress was torn and ripped in many spots. She looked young, maybe mid-to-late twenties. Her long brown hair was messy, and her pale face was covered in dirt, as if she had been hidden away in the cave a long time. She had bright brown eyes, which Colby noticed right away. Colby couldn't help but wonder how she had managed to stay alive down in these caves for so many years. She looked thin, but Colby could tell that she had definitely been eating some things down here, and Colby shuttered to think of what it could be.
"Does that feel better, my love?" she asked.
Colby wasn't sure how to respond. " Uhhh, yeah," he said hesitantly.
" I'm not going to hurt you, you know," she reassured him. " I want you to be happy."
" Umm, okay," said Colby. "Is...is your name Jane?"
" You know," she said. " I didn't think anyone remembered me. For years I've been trapped down here, waiting for my love to come back to me, he never did, but that's alright, I've found a new love, I can be happy again."
Colby quickly realized what she meant. For years, the people of this town had believed Widow Jane to be a ghost, but she wasn't. She was a living woman, who had simply been missing for years. Hiding out in this cave and lying in wait for the perfect person to be hers, and to replace her lost love. It all made sense now.
" I'm sorry," said Colby. " I can't stay here. You have to let me go, Jane."
" NOOO!" she shouted.
Colby flinched as Jane looked furiously at him. She then calmed herself and smiled.
" You are to stay here with me, my love," she said. " You'll stay here, and we'll be happy again. Together, forever!"
Colby was speechless, all he could do was stare at her in disbelief.
Sam, Josh and Seth made their way through the tunnels. They had immediately found a safer way to the level below and were hoping that Colby was somewhere down there. Sam was a couple feet in front of Josh and Seth, frantically searching all over for any sign of his best friend. He suddenly stopped in his tracks as his light hit the ground of the cave. Josh and Seth stopped behind him, moving their gaze to the spot on the floor where Sam was looking as tears filled his eyes. The trail of blood on the floor led further into the cave.
" Sam..." said Seth, as he placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. Sam brushed it off.
" We should keep going," said Sam, subtly wiping away his tears.
Josh and Seth knew better than to say anything. They instead followed quietly behind Sam as they made their way deeper into the tunnels.
Jane had since sat down in front of Colby. She grabbed his hands and smiled at him.
" What is your name?" she asked.
" It's Colby," he replied.
"Colby," she repeated. " Beautiful, indeed!"
Colby gave her a small smile. More so to not piss her off than for her compliment.
Lost Love
Start from the beginning
