The Dream Stalker

18) "Greta's Worst Fear Is This Old Guy?"

Our descent down the ladder seemed to last an eternity. The only sound accompanying us was the clang of the ladder. Cling. Clang. Cling. Every time we climbed down, yet another rung could be heard.

I had no idea what we were going to find at the bottom of the ladder. We had to be close to finding Greta, right? Both of my previous ventures into McKenzie and Boone's Nightmares hadn't been that long of journeys, but it would blow incredibly if it turned out that I had only been exceedingly lucky on the first two tries, and that Nightmares were usually a labyrinth of increasing dangers, like what Greta's seemed to be.

I was still climbing when felt a jolt through my body. As if I had just passed some transparent barrier where the entire world around me seemed to turn on its head. The sensation was unbelievably strange.

The disorientation hit me like a freight train, and, once again, I almost fainted. I lost my grip on the ladder and began to fall backwards before gaining the presence of mind to clasp myself on the ladder for dear life.

I closed my eyes, counting to ten in my head in order to regain my composure.

When I opened my eyes, I realized I had somehow been transported back to the top of the ladder; I could see light streaming through the hatch only a few feet above my head—which was odd in itself, because the tunnel above us had been completely dark—and Boone, who had been above me on the ladder, was now below me.

At that point I didn't know what to think; maybe the world had been turned on its head.

Shaking away the doubts and worry that were clouding my mind, I climbed the last few rungs of the ladder and pushed the hatch open. As I expected, it did not lead back into the tunnel, but rather into a circular, cavern-like area.

Pulling myself up, I saw that there was an opening in the roof of the cave that allowed the sun to shine through, something I was eternally grateful for. I could also hear waves crashing against rocks and seagulls in the distance, making me assume this cavern was on, or at least near, an ocean.

Boone joined me top-side, and he took in our surroundings as stoically as usual. I still had no idea if he was just that calm of a person or if he was just really good at masking his feelings. Whatever the case, in that moment, I wished I could project the same image of tranquility that Boone held.

"Did McKenzie say anything about Greta fearing caves or the beach?" I finally asked.

Boone simply shrugged. Yep, another classic, stimulating response from Boone Dixon. "That box looks weird," he offered quietly.

I looked to see what he was referring to, and noticed a large metal box about the size of an oven in the distance near a cavern wall. "Good eyes," I commented.

Not seeing anything else of note in the empty cavern, I decided it was the best place to continue our investigation. We carefully made our way around and over the various pointy, sharp rocks that were scattered around the cavern, while simultaneously sidestepping several small crevices that opened in front of us.

As we drew closer to the box, I realized it wasn't a box, but a safe. Upon actually reaching it, I could make out the sounds of someone whimpering quietly. I tried to turn the safe's handle but it wouldn't budge an inch. Pressing my ear to the side of the safe, I confirmed my assumption that the cries were coming from inside. As I was listening, the cries abruptly stopped, only to quickly be replaced by sniffles.

Boone then decided it would be a good idea to tap his knuckles against the safe while I was still listening, causing a loud clanking sound that almost deafened my ears. I immediately pulled back, hands going instinctively to my ears as I shot Boone a furious glare. I expected that kind of reckless abandon from McKenzie, not him. But before I could snarl out a reply to his action, a female voice from inside the safe began to shout.