Labyrinth (19 page)

He hoped she did.

Chapter 22

Annja didn’t like leaving Kessel. Cerebral edema wasn’t anything to screw around with and the fact that Kessel had managed to go for so long without collapsing amazed her.

But he’d pushed himself as far as he could.

She crouched and moved down the tunnel toward the light ahead. It came from a single lightbulb.

Annja moved from rock to rock, straining to hear anything that might indicate the presence of someone. Or maybe even Fairclough himself.

She smirked. The more she thought about it, the more she’d come to realize that Fairclough probably wasn’t dead.

That this whole thing was one big ruse to get Annja into the maze.

Yeah, well, it’s time to change things around, she thought.
I’m not going to be a lab rat for anyone.

She glanced over her shoulder at where Kessel lay. Stay alive, she thought. I’ll bring back help.

She hoped.

H
IS
VISION
WAS
fading.

He could feel the pain starting to take its toll on other parts of his body.

Or was he simply losing consciousness?

It was weird, he mused. The pain that enveloped him was like a constant darkening of his mind. He took a deep breath, but wasn’t sure if his brain registered any smell in the air.

He was thirsty, he realized. It had been hours since he’d had a drink. Same with Annja, he assumed. Sure, he’d gone without water before, but thirst might be another indicator of more physiological damage.

You’re in a bad way, Kessel.

I hope Annja finds something helpful up ahead.

Because I could really use some good news.

A
NNJA
WASN
’
T
SURE
what she was looking at.

She’d come up ahead and found her way into what looked like a room rough hewn from the rock. A single lightbulb cast its light across the rock face, but aside from a plastic chair and a bottle of water, there was nothing else.

She grabbed the water bottle. At least there’s this, she thought, quickly testing to make sure it was what it appeared to be. It might help comfort Kessel.

She turned and hurried back down the tunnel toward him.

Praying she’d been fast enough.

H
E
HEARD
SCUFFLING
.

Not another creature?

“Kessel.”

That voice. Annja.

He cracked his eyes open and the pain of the dimly lit cave stung them badly. “Can’t open my eyes.”

“I found some water. Drink.”

A moment later he felt a cool splash on his lips. The water flowed down his throat. He gulped and then retched slightly.

“Try to keep it down,” Annja said quietly.

Blindly, he took her hand, a monumental effort that left him gasping for breath. “You’ve got to do it, Annja.”

“It?”

“My head. Only you can relieve the pressure.” Kessel forced himself to open his eyes. “You’ve got to punch a hole in my skull.”

Annja blinked. “I don’t think I can do that.”

“You’ve got to. Or I’ll die.” Kessel’s face contorted as another wave of pain swept over him. “Truth is, Annja, I’m going down here. If this doesn’t happen soon, I’ll be dead and it won’t matter anymore.”

Annja bit her lip. “But I don’t have any tools and I’ve never done it before.”

“People have been performing this procedure since prehistoric times, Annja. The technique is simple….”

“Easy for you to say.”

“But it is. You only need to cut open the skin over the injury, punch the hole and the pressure should relieve itself very quickly. There will be a spout of blood from the hematoma, so be ready for it. But otherwise, once the pressure’s relieved, I’ll be a hell of a lot better than I am now.”

“You’ll still need a doctor.”

“If we could find one, I’d be grateful, but there’s no one around. Not even that quack Jonas up in Fairclough’s place.” He gripped her hand harder. “It has to be now.”

“But I don’t have a tool to cut with.”

Kessel fixed his eyes on Annja. “But you do, Annja. You’ll have to use the sword.”

A
NNJA
LOOKED
DOWN
at Kessel. “Are you absolutely sure about this?”

Kessel managed a brief nod and then grimaced. “Yes. You have to help me. And now.”

Annja’s stomach churned at the thought of what she was about to do. She concentrated and quickly materialized the sword. Its gray glow illuminated the tunnel. Kessel smiled.

“It looks sharp.”

“Never needs sharpening,” Annja said. “But it’s somewhat unwieldy for such a delicate operation.”

Kessel brought her hand to the spot on his head. “Shave this area first using the blade. Once that is done, you’ll need to cut the skin there.”

“But how should I drill through the bone?”

Kessel took a breath. “That’s the sticky part of this. You’ll have to drive the point into the bone.”

“Uh…”

Kessel nodded ever so slightly. “I know what you’re thinking, Annja. You’ll puncture it too hard and pierce my brain. I know the risks. But I’m certain to die unless you do this. So, as far as I’m concerned, the risk is worth it.”

She hesitated before saying, “Okay.”

Kessel smiled with his eyes shut. “Are you ready?”

“No. But I’ll do it, anyway.”

“Good. Because I’m going to pass out now. I’ll see you on the other side.”

“No, wait—”

But Kessel was already unconscious. It was hard to imagine how much pain he’d dealt with just so he could tell her what to do.

Now she had to deliver.

Annja took a breath to steady herself and then brought the sword up to Kessel’s head. Using the edge of the blade, she worked it along his hairline as if it was a razor. It was tricky since the blade itself was long and unwieldy for such fine motor movement.

But she grew more confident with each swipe.

Finally, the scalp was exposed. Annja could see the discoloration of the injury. Kessel’s skin was grayish blue, the result of bleeding. Annja repositioned the sword blade and made her first cut.

Blood pooled immediately, but it was mostly from the capillaries that fed his scalp. She hadn’t yet relieved the pressure.

Speaking of pressure, she thought, this is about as weird a thing I’ve ever had to do with this sword.

She frowned. “Just get it done already.”

Annja carefully folded the flap of scalp back to expose the skull bone underneath. It was tinged red from the surface bleeding, but Annja could see the indented part of the bone from where Kessel had impacted the wall. She grimaced as she peered closer. The injury was about the size of a half-dollar coin. And it was pressing into the surface of Kessel’s brain itself.

Annja took another breath to steady her nerves. Her heartbeat thundered as if she was getting ready to go into combat.

I need to calm down, she thought. If I screw this up, he dies.

She closed her eyes and imagined herself feeling calm and in control. As if she had just accomplished something and was already basking in the glow of success.

In her mind’s eye, Annja went through the procedure Kessel had outlined. She visualized positioning the sword over his head and tapping it just enough to pierce the bone but not the brain matter beyond. She pictured just the right amount of force that would be needed.

Then she opened her eyes.

Steeled herself.

Okay, she thought. Here we go.

Standing over Kessel, Annja brought the sword up and turned its point so that it rested on Kessel’s skull close to the injured area, but not on the indentation itself.

Annja took a final breath, held the sword with one hand and then positioned her other hand right over the pommel.

One hit, she thought. That should do it.

She exhaled, took another breath and then tapped the pommel with her hand.

The combined weight of the blade and the force of her hit made an audible crack.

She lifted the sword and saw the small hole she’d just made already pooling with blood. But it wasn’t the great spurt Kessel had told her about.

I’ve got to remove that indented piece of bone, she thought with grim finality.

It’s the only way.

She repositioned the sword and then began a series of delicate tapping all around the injured area. Annja was breathing fast and sweating by the time she was ready to tap the final hole.

With luck, this will be enough. There’d been a fair amount of blood already, and she felt sure that the pressure would be subsiding, but the only way to be sure was to get rid of the indented bone.

One more time.

Annja placed the sword over Kessel’s head and prepared to make the final punch into his skull.

She took another breath.

Tapped the pommel of the sword again.

And heard a slight popping sound.

The indented piece of bone had come off and the blood that had been building up beneath it dispensed at last.

It was done.

Annja nearly collapsed from the stress of what she’d just done.

I’ll need to bandage that, she thought. She used the sword to cut a swath from Kessel’s shirt. Then she gingerly closed the flap of scalp and wrapped his head. He’d need to have something artificial implanted to protect his brain from any hits, but for the time being, Annja had done what she could.