The First Step

Chapter 12.

Cold, worn metal met my hands, and I shivered as damp, chilly air hit my arms. For the hundredth time in this adventure, I was wishing I'd brought a jacket, or a blanket, or a teleport-me-the-hell-out-of-this place device. I'd take any of those right now over the room opening up beneath my feet and Odette's head.

It was a lot brighter than I expected after climbing what must've been at least fifty feet down, all intense white lights and concrete floor. I was squinting by the time we reached the bottom, with Odette hopping off the last rung with a light tap. Then we were both on the ground, looking down a long hallway.

"Oh my gods," Odette whispered next to me, and as I glanced around, I wasn't far from repeating it. After the dirty, outside door and bunker setup, I'd been fully prepared to find walls with chipping paint, grated metal flooring and patches holding up a leaky, mildew-filled ceiling, but this...

"It's like a hospital."

"Yeah," I agreed, staring at the perfectly white surroundings, the hallway decorated with waiting room chairs, water coolers, every few steps perfectly lit by fluorescent bulbs overhead. Confused, I went to turn around, looking for Dustin, but behind us was just a solid wall, the very last thing in the room being the ladder. "You still think he's here?"

Instead of answering, she pulled out her pendulum, slipping the chain between the sides of her fingers again. She closed her eyes, standing perfectly straight and still, and I knew from her explanation before that she was trying her best to imagine Dustin: his face, his clothes, memories of hanging out, really anything that connected her to him, and in moments, the pink crystal started swinging back and forth, aimed through the same wall behind us.

"He has to be," she muttered, eventually opening her eyes. "Just... on the other side of that wall."

"Any indication that he's..." my voice trailed off, almost afraid to say it.

"No clue. It doesn't work like that," she said, and she put the stone back in her pocket. "We just have to keep looking."

"Right."

With that, I stepped further into the hallway. There were doors on either side, all metal painted a rich blue, and most of them closed. Gingerly, I crept up to on, peeking through the slatted window.

All that met me was a dark office room though, lights all off and chairs pushed in, and again, I got the unnerving feeling that I was in more of a facility than I was in any kidnapper's hovel. An uneasy frown settled on my face, and I pulled myself away from the window. At least it seems to be abandoned.

"Hey," said a fierce whisper behind me, and I turned around to find Odette waving me over, her back flat against the wall and knees crouched like this was some sort of spy movie. Next to her was an open door further down, with lights on and– now that I was listening– voices inside.

I tried not to groan. So much for the abandonment.

That made everything so much worse, and each minute tap of my black sneakers against the hard floor sent my nerves into a frenzy. By the time I pressed up next to Odette, I could barely breathe, but at least now it was easier to make out the voices, one a man, the other a woman.

"So... how does Friday night sound?"

"Mmm, I'm not sure. I'd need to get someone to watch Abby and the dog." There was the sound of acrylic nails rapping a desk. "I could do Monday while she's in daycare?"

"Ah. I uh, take care of my mother on Mondays."

"Oh."

Taking a deep breath, I glanced back at Odette to give her a this-is-a-waste-of time-to-eavesdrop look. She only shrugged though, mouthing the rest of her sentence at me.