A tarot reader aids a mysterious man who believes she is the only one who can help him return to his true home in the eerie Manaan caverns where they must fight the natural and supernatural to stay alive.
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Maxine Shepard is a tarot reader who h...
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Blamore crept through the darkness, leading the way swiftly through the narrow stone corridor. His spine lengthened making him appear taller than his six-foot-two stature. The way he crouched beneath low, jagged ceiling of the space possibly contributed to the illusion. It was how he maneuvered that made my eyes linger on him like a magnet.
His energy seemed ... different, but I couldn't pinpoint exactly why. Maybe the peculiar feeling was due to illusion too.
He traveled confidently through the darkened space which led us to a smaller room containing three separate pathways. Each pathway was just as narrow and obscure and the others, appearing to be nothing more than an oddly shaped crevice. If any of us had been claustrophobic, this would be the area to fear.
Blamore paused and we all looked at each other with puzzling stares, waiting for him to guide us down the proper path.
"So?" Samuel visually inspected one of the pathways. "Where to now?"
"I don't know." Blamore hesitated, uncertain. I was just as apprehensive, seeing our lights being enveloped by the haunting darkness towards the rear of the fissure.
"Well, isn't this your home?" Samuel shook his head. "Don't you know the way from here." The frightened look in Samuel's dark brown eyes made it apparent that he had hoped to be led through the cave and straight out the other side with little to no effort.
Blamore rubbed his chin. "Don't remember."
Cecil, who had been limping throughout our trek due to a sprain ankle from her unfortunate fall, shifted her weight onto her uninjured foot and anchored herself against Arturo. "Maybe me and Art should stay here. My ankle is killing me, and I will just slow you down." It was obvious she was just as frightened as the rest of us about what lie beyond the darkness. "Besides, the quicker you guys get out of here the quicker you can send back help."
I immediately shook my head at the idea. "I think we should stay together." Memories of her lying unconscious flashed before my eyes and knew I couldn't live with myself if something similar happened again.
Jace's head bobbed as he anxiously rubbed his hands together. "Yes, stick together. Isn't that the first rule when getting lost or trapped?"
"You do watch a lot of horror movies, huh?" Samuel huffed, retrieving a mini flashlight from his pack and handing it to Blamore. "How about this? Me, Brent and Blamore will each check out one of these routes. Whoever sees something promising will call out, okay?"
Brent looked down the middle opening, allowing his helmet light to brighten the close space. "What are we looking for exactly?"
"Something." Samuel squeezed Brent's arm gently, a comforting gesture. "Anything. Just call out. Alright?"
Brent and Blamore nodded and approached an entrance. Blamore chose the one nearest to me, examining the tight crevice.
They each entered at the same time, but before Blamore got too far I reached out and gently squeezed his forearm as Samuel had done to Brent. "Be careful, please."
