Authors: Jeff Gunhus
The squeeze hole was worse than Jack imagined. Much worse. Ten minutes to move less than twelve feet, his flesh crammed into any pocket of space available, his breathing made shallow as the rock coffin around him pressed hard on his ribs. Finally, he heard Lonetree’s voice urging him on, giving him instructions. Then a hand grabbed his boot and Lonetree pulled him through the last section.
He sensed that this new cavern was larger than anything they had yet seen. The acoustics were different. The air moved to its own current. Water dripped in the distance sending echoes bouncing off the rock walls. It was a hollow sound, as if time in this place was measured by its disjointed rhythm. It sounded far away but reached them clearly through the dead air. He strained to see into the void in front of him but their helmet lights did little to push back the dark. He tilted his head back until his light pointed straight up. Again, the light was too weak to show anything except the wall stretching up behind them out of sight.
“I can’t see anything” Jack said, not quite sure why he was whispering. “What is this place?” He started to take a step forward but was jerked back by a tug on his overalls.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Lonetree said. He pointed his light toward where Jack had been about to step. They were on a platform of some kind, a ledge on the side of a cliff that dropped straight off only feet from where they stood. One step forward and Jack would have tumbled down into the abyss. “Watch your eyes,” Lonetree warned, holding up what looked like a stick of dynamite.
With a twist, the end of the stick erupted into a brilliant white phosphorus light. Jack could feel the heat from the flare even though he stood several steps away from it. With a grunt Lonetree chucked the flare up into the black void in front of them. It sailed through the air, so bright that it created an eerie after-effect in their eyes, a long tail that tracked its trajectory, as if the light burned a hole in the air as it traveled.
Jack stared at the light tumbling end-over-end through the air. He thought his eyes must be playing tricks on him because at the peak of its arc, high above the platform where they stood, the flare slowed in mid-flight and slowly righted itself, a candle held upright in the air by an invisible hand.
The slight side-to-side sway of the light’s descent gave away the secret. The flare was attached to a parachute, designed to deploy at the peak of its arc. Jack tore his eyes away from the flare and surveyed the chamber now lit for them to see.
It was larger than he suspected. Even with the light of the flare, the far wall of the cavern remained hidden in shadows. What he could see was immense. The rock platform they were on was twenty or thirty feet above the floor of the chamber and the roof soared at least three times that distance above them. Gigantic stalactites hung from the top of the cavern like an inverted forest of dead trees, glistening from moisture still seeping through the rock. Some reached down to meet their stalagmite siblings, looking like giant redwoods, or like ornate columns holding up the roof. The bright light of the flare reflected off of crystal structures embedded in the rock walls and brought out the brilliant reds and browns of the formations.
After absorbing the dimensions of the chamber, Jack turned his attention to the floor of the cavern. The slow sway of the flare as it descended cast long moving shadows across the floor, making it hard to discern the structures spread out beneath him. As the flare closed the space between it and the floor, the light revealed more of what was beneath it. Then the air around the flare grew still and in that moment the cavern revealed its secret.
Jack took a step back, reaching behind him to find the rock wall. “My God. What is this place?” he muttered.
Lonetree didn’t hear him. It was his fourth time to the cave, but the scene still robbed him of his breath. Each time the terror of what he saw turned his blood cold. He lit another flare once the parachute hit the ground, this one less intense. He held it in front of him like a torch. “Follow me. And stay close.”
Jack forced himself to look away from the scene laid out below him. He turned to watch Lonetree disappear down the side on the ledge. At first inspection, it looked like the rock ledge dropped off at a ninety degree angle, straight down to the cluster of stalagmites below. Now that he stood looking down at the edge of the platform he saw that there was a slight slope. Lonetree was making good time down the rock face aided by the hand and foot holds carved into the smooth rock. Obviously, they weren’t the first to use this entrance.
Jack descended the rock ladder, testing each handhold before shifting his weight to it. The grooves carved into the rock were rough and uneven, as if hacked out by a pickax or a crude chisel.
Jack jumped the last few feet and landed next to Lonetree. His light wobbled through the air until he steadied himself. But once he shone his light on the stalagmites rising from the ground in front of him, he wished he’d been a little more careful coming down the ladder. The limestone pillars were chiseled to a point, arrayed along the base of the ledge like an animal trap. Jack suddenly felt very unwelcome. They were the animals the sharpened stone spikes were meant to kill.
“Step where I step,” Lonetree said. “I’ve found some nasty traps down here, things you definitely want to avoid.”
Jack nodded.
In only a few steps, they cleared the line of stalagmites and came up to the first of the strange structures he’d seen from the platform. And the first pile of skeletons.
One of the nurses had called the police. Officers from the Midland police department were the first to arrive at the hospital. As soon as they were told the situation, Sarah’s description was broadcast over the radio net. Available officers were instructed to patrol the area and keep an eye out for the little girl. Sheriff Janney radioed ahead that he was coming down to personally organize the search.
Lauren sat in the nurse’s break room, her eyes red. Once again she picked up the phone and dialed Jack’s cell number. The phone rang five times and switched over to voicemail. Lauren slammed the phone back down. She’d already left messages.
Dr. Mansfield had stayed by her side the entire time, not saying much, just staying close for support. She appreciated his presence. He knew most everyone in the room by name and had been an advocate for her. Lauren tried to smile at him but couldn’t manage it. She couldn’t take her eyes off the object sitting in the middle of the table in front of her. Sarah’s pink rubber ball. Found on the third floor. And worse, they had found blood on the floor. Of course there was no way to be sure it was Sarah’s. That would come later as part of the forensics done on the case. But Lauren didn’t have to wait for a DNA test. She felt it in her bones. It was her baby’s blood on the floor. Someone had taken her. Someone had hurt her.
What if they’ve already killed her?
Lauren shook her head as if that alone could sweep the thought away. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. And that it happened in the hospital of all places. Too many things had worked in the kidnappers favor. Sarah had walked away from her sister. The nurse watching her hadn’t noticed she was gone. The nurse on the third floor had been in a patient’s room and hadn’t seen anything. The chances were astronomical that anyone could have carried it off. Still, someone had.
She blamed herself. How could she have come back to the hospital after what had happened at home? She should have just packed up the kids and taken them down to her friend’s house in Baltimore. Four hours there and four hours back. She could have returned the same day to help Jack sort things out.
But now her baby was gone. And it was her fault.
Sheriff Janney strode into the room followed by the Midland police chief, a balding, lanky man who didn’t do much to fill out a uniform. He looked relieved and Lauren felt a surge of hope. Janney pulled a chair up to the table and sat next to Lauren. She scanned both the sheriff and the police chief for any hints that they might know something new. It had been that way for the last hour. Every time someone walked in the room she was seized with terror that they had bad news.
We found your daughter, Mrs. Tremont. I’m sorry to inform you that
…
But Janney had nothing new to say. He just wanted to reassure her that everything that could be done was being done. That the officers and deputies involved were professionals and would find Sarah. Most importantly, the police chief had agreed that he, Janney, would be the head of the investigation and have jurisdiction over the case.
Lauren glanced over to the police chief and understood the reason for his relief. He was off the hook. Janney was running things now. The news surprised Lauren. She always thought of law enforcement as being eager to keep jurisdiction, not give it up. But looking at the Midland chief, she wasn’t shocked. The man looked as if busting a jaywalker might give him a panic attack, let alone dealing with a kidnapping. Lauren decided it was a good move. At least until the cavalry showed up.
“When does the FBI get involved?” she asked.
Janney shook his head. “I called them but they’re letting us take care of this for right now. Said most of these things resolve themselves. Usually it’s a misunderstanding or something.”
“What do you mean a misunderstanding? What’s to misunderstand? She’s gone. She’s--”
“Now before you get upset, let me just say I agree with them. I bet we’ll find her playing outside or hiding somewhere in the hospital. There’s nothing the FBI could do for us right now anyway, except get in the way.” Janney explained in a calm voice.
“I want to talk to someone at the FBI . She’s not just playing outside somewhere. There was blood up there. Someone took her, God damn it! This is a kidnapping not some misunderstanding.”
“Lauren,” Dr. Mansfield said, “I agree with the sheriff. You should let the professionals handle this. They know what they are doing.”
Tears flowed down her cheeks but she didn’t brush them away. She didn’t know what to do. Over and over, she saw Sarah’s face and fought down the thought of never seeing her again. It was overwhelming. “Just find her. Please find her.”
“We’ll do our best,” Janney said.
A nurse cleared her throat behind them. Dr. Mansfield twisted in his chair, saw who it was, then turned back to face Lauren. “That patient I told you about earlier, the one on the phone? She’s just come and--”
“Go see her. I’ll be all right.”
“I could cancel. Reschedule for later.”
“No, I’ll be fine. Really. Go take care of her.”
Dr. Mansfield patted her hand. “I won’t be long. Have them find me if anything happens. ”
Janney shifted his weight uncomfortably in the chair as the doctor left the room. The sheriff turned to Lauren. “Look, I understand this is a hard time, but trust the pros on this one. Usually these things are not what they seem. Usually they are something else entirely.”
Lauren caught the insinuating tone in his voice and noticed him wringing his hands. “Do you have a theory, Sheriff?” she asked.
He cleared his throat and placed the palms of his hands delicately on the table. “Mrs. Tremont--”
“Dr. Tremont,” the police chief corrected him.
Janney gave the man a thin smile, barely hiding his irritation at the intrusion. “Yes, I’m sorry, Dr. Tremont. Like I said, I think we’ll find Sarah in no time at all. This whole thing will be old news by tomorrow morning.” Lauren waited for the sheriff to come to the point. “But, I want to think through every possibility here. Make sure we’re not missing anything. I’m not sure if you know this but many children go missing every year, almost 10,000 just last year.”
Lauren sat stiff in her chair. “I’m aware of that.”
“Well, the number one reason for child disappearances, especially in this age group, is that they’re taken by a parent or family member.” He paused to allow her to say something but Lauren sat stone-like, her eyes fixed on him. He continued. “Now I know that your husband has been having some troubles recently. Some emotional troubles.” He tapped the side of his head as if to make sure he wasn’t being too subtle. “Do you think there’s any chance that he…” Janney’s voice trailed off, leaving the accusation to hang in the air. Unsaid but delivered.
Lauren felt every eye in the room focus on her. Where seconds before there had been a buzz in the room from the two dozen or so officers, deputies and hospital staff hanging around, there was suddenly silence. All conversation ceased as if on a secret cue. She knew that given the size of the community and how fast good gossip traveled, it was likely that every person there knew the events of the past few days as thoroughly as she did, probably with some interesting exaggeration thrown in for good measure. Only in the silence did she finally understand that everyone in the room thought her husband had abducted their daughter. Janney waited for a response, but Lauren offered none.
Slowly the focus of the awkward silence turned back to Janney. He withered under Lauren’s intense stare. “I mean, have you heard from him? Been in contact with him since you found out she was missing?”
“No, I haven’t,” she said. She almost added that Jack thought she and the girls were down in Baltimore visiting a friend but she stopped herself. She didn’t like Janney’s smug attitude and she wasn’t going to make it easy on him. Even the slightest insinuation that Jack would do something like that made her angry. How could all these people think that? What did they know about their situation? True, Jack was going through a tough time with the accident, things were strained right now, but he would never do something like this.
Then again, she never thought he would show up beside their bed with a baseball bat either. What if it were possible? Could he have come and stolen her out of the hospital under some kind of delusion that he was saving her. Could he have had another hallucination like last night? It would explain why no one heard Sarah scream when she was taken.
Lauren stopped the thoughts flooding her mind and refocused herself. When she looked over at Janney she saw the trace of a smile on his lips, now there, then gone. She knew he had caught the play of emotions across her face. He had seen the doubt and for some reason he liked what he saw. Lauren broke eye contact with him and looked around the room. Conversations immediately started back up as if they had never stopped. Not a single set of eyes in the room made contact with hers. She felt the cold sting of isolation and it unnerved her.
They all think Jack took her.
Janney stood. “Let me know when you hear from him, all right? And don’t worry, we’ll find Sarah for you.” Without giving Lauren a chance to comment, he walked out of the room followed by the police chief. Lauren was left alone at the table. For how she felt, she might as well have been alone in the world.