Chapter 35

John watched in silence as she moved forward blindly, hands outstretched. He trusted his sister’s instincts and if he told the truth, her visions. If Sam said the moon was made of cheese, he’d believe her. Past experience had also taught him that Samantha had an innate understanding of her gift, even though she would deny it if asked. They would not be here now if she didn’t believe the truth of her dream.

She stumbled in the sand but quickly recovered. The wind swirled around her as if she were standing in a vortex. Sand swirled around her ankles and at times, stung her legs. The hem of her skirt was damp and slapped gently against her shins with each step. Somewhere, straight ahead was the darkness of her dream where someone stood in the shadows, waiting.

When she felt her hands brush the leaves of the vines that hung from above, she stopped. Behind her she heard John move in her direction, his feet making a shushing sound in the sand. She raised a hand to signal him to wait and the sound stopped. It was difficult to resist the urge to open her eyes but the need to keep the connection to her dream was stronger. All around her, she felt the air swirling, but this time it was different. It was cool and it wasn’t blowing from the ocean behind her. This breeze blew gently against her face, brushing back the loose tendrils of hair at her temples. It was blowing from the face of the cliffs. She smiled and opened her eyes. Now, she thought, I know. Without hesitation, she reached out to the vines that hung down in front of her, drew them aside and stepped into the mouth of the cave. Behind her, she heard John gasp as she simply disappeared into the face of the cliff.

“SAM!” he cried out and rushed forward. “SAM!” As he reached out and pushed the vines back his fear became shock. Before him was an opening to a cave. It was more a cleft because the rock on one side stood farther out and extended across half the opening. This would make it appear as if there was just a dark narrow crack in the wall when in fact, there was an actual opening.

Samantha stood about 15 feet away, looking around her. He moved to join her.
From where they stood, the cave extended on all sides, forming an auditorium like area. The opening they had found gave some filtered light but high up, probably near the top of the cliffs, a large crack allowed the sunlight to stream in and illuminate the central area. That light revealed a lake in the center of the cavern; it’s water still and dark.

“I knew there was something.” Sam’s whisper echoed softly through the cavern.
John remained silent. He wondered, How could I have not known about this cave? He had come he as a teenager and explored the beach and the cliffs. Friends of his had actually scaled the cliffs in places, just as a lark. He hadn’t been that stupid. Never, in all his life, had anyone ever mentioned a cave at White Beach. Surely, some of the teens who frequently come here know about this, he thought.

Samantha moved farther into the cave, toward the edge of the lake. A pebble dislodged and rattled across the floor and plopped into the water, sending ripples glittering across the surface. She could only see to about the middle of the lake where darkness seemed to swallow it up. The opposite shore was blackness so thick she could almost feel it. She wasn’t even sure there was an opposite side. The lake could very well be the beginning of a river into the bowels of the earth. Along the back of the cave there seemed to be a path, strewn with boulders and hugging the walls. She had no desire to see where it led. There was a chill from the darkness that had nothing to do with the breeze that drifted toward her.

After a few minutes, she turned back and studied the wall near the entrance. It was dark because the light from above fell between them. She moved, into and past the shaft of light. There was darkness here, too, but the texture seemed different.

“John,” she turned and said, “Do we have something we can use as a light?”
He though a moment, then, raised his finger and darted outside. He returned with two lanterns. “I keep these stowed onboard for when the boys and I go night fishing.”

She smiled. “I figured you’d be prepared for any contingency.”

He lit both lanterns and handed one to Sam. She turned to the area she has been studying. Raising the lantern high, she moved forward. John followed, holding his light even higher. They both came to a stop about six feet from the wall.

“I’ll be darned.” John muttered. “What is that thing?”

Sam felt the knot that had been in her stomach since she had stepped onto the beach, tighten. “It, my dear brother, is a curtain.”
He reached out and touched the wall. It moved and he snatched his hand back as if he had been burned.

Sam stepped forward and clutched the rough fabric. It was a strange fabric, woven with an odd material into a web that in turn, was threaded with loose pieces of a muddy colored fabric. It blended well in the dim light of the cavern but not well enough if there was a light source. She couldn’t make out how it was hung but it was at least ten or twelve feet high and probably that many wide. She walked along until she found the edge and then pulled it back. Holding her light in front of her, she stepped in, past the curtain. John followed.

The combined light revealed another room, this one with a slightly lower ceiling but the walls extended away from the door into darkness. She had no idea of the dimensions but if felt large. The air swirled here and smelled damp.

John moved forward but for no reason she could fathom, Sam felt a sudden urge and grabbed his arm to stop him. He gave her a quizzical look but moved back to stand beside her.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t really know. This room feels strange. It feels . . .big.” She frowned and strained to see beyond the circle of light. Even the floor was black. She squatted down and held the light forward. Slowly she inched forward. Something was wrong with the floor. There was a slight rise and then . . . nothing. She couldn’t see anything but blackness. It was as if the floor . . . she gasped and skittered back to the wall.

“My God! There’s no floor!”

“What?” John said, raising his lantern and inching forward.

Sam grabbed his pant leg and yanked him back. “NO! It’s a pit.”

Never in her life has she heard John swear. Their parents had never stood for bad language. He uttered one word now and she couldn’t help but giggle.

“Daddy would beat you for that,” she said, stifling her laughter.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Accepted. But I felt pretty much the same thing.”

They both laughed and the sound echoed madly around the room. John looked around him until he found a loose rock. He hefted it and then, tossed it into the dark. They both waited for the sound of it striking the ground. After what seemed like a long time, they hear a heavy splash.

“Sam, why do you suppose they put up a curtain to conceal the entrance to this cave?”

“Maybe to keep anyone from falling into that pit?”

He thought a bit and then shook his head, “I don’t think so. I think they are hiding something here.”

She scanned the darkness that surrounded them. It really was quiet thick. The cavern they had first entered had sunlight as a light source and was only dark at the far side of the lake where the cavern deepened. This cavern had no light source and their small lanterns were no match for that kind of darkness. Outside the circle of their lanterns it was pitch dark.

“How would anyone hide something here? It is the entrance to hell!”

John chuckled. “Yes, well, I’ve been saved now so I think I’ll take a look around.”

He got up, lifted his lantern and peered into the darkness. After a moment, he moved along the wall, past the curtained entrance. He moved slowly, raising and lowering his lantern. Sam held her breath and watched as his shadow flickered on the rock wall. Gradually, he circled around the room until the yellow glow that encircled him grew small. Then he stopped, almost directly opposite where she sat. For several minutes the light remained stationary. Without warning, the light disappeared.

Sam screamed. “JOHN!”