Caught In Time

Chapter 23

"Everything." He smiled. Cassedee shook her head. 

"Very funny, James." 

James looked around hurriedly. "Maybe there's some closet or something we can go into. What's Nole doing?" 

Cassedee looked back--Nole was still knocked out cold. "He's still out."

James firmed his grip on her hand. "Good. Come on, let's see if we can find the others."

Cassedee looked at him wearily. "And what if there are no others?"

James considered this. "Then we'll have to just figure out a way out of here. You and me."

Cassedee's face flushed and James couldn't help but smile. 

He gripped her hand harder. 

"Come on, let's go. Before he wakes up."

They quietly made their way down the hallway, sneakily slinking against the wall. 

James felt with his hand in the darkness as they grew closer to the noise. 

"Do you hear that?"

Cassedee nodded. 

"Sounds like music--and...laughing."

James could hear the thumping of the bass line and the saxophone blaring through the walls.

He could see the light struggling to shine through the double doors to where the noise was coming from. 

James gave Cassedee one last look and shrugged. 

"Here goes nothing."

He slowly pushed open the double doors and peered into the room. 

It was nothing like they'd ever seen. 

There were three huge chandeliers in the middle of the ceiling. 

James looked up briefly. The ceiling tiles were carved into the wood paneling. A pale cream collar was painted throughout the tiles. 

James felt like he was in a Hollywood movie. 

They made their way through the crowd--swinging and dancing to the music. 

The crowd was smiling and--

James could tell there was something off about their eyes but he wasn't sure. 

He looked at Cassedee who had the same expression: amazement. 

They quickly moved about the crowd and tucked themselves away in the corner, behind a pillar. 

There were a couple white pillars going all the way up to the ceiling.

The band was all the way in the back, between two of the pillars. 

James made eye contact with one of them--their eyes turned a black color. 

James did a double take. 

Did he just see what he though he saw?

He elbowed Cassedee. 

"Cass, there's something wrong with their eyes. Look"

Cassedee squinted against the bright light and looked at one of them. 

Black eyes.

She tensed up and grabbed James's hand. Squeezing it.

"Why are they--what are they?"

James furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't know, but whatever they are...they aren't people."

Cassedee's eyes got wide.