Eximere (The River Book 4) (11 page)

“I think she somehow turned that around,” Steven said. “She
wants the draining to proceed, and she doesn’t want us to dig into it any
further.”

“All the more reason to keep trying,” Roy said. “That just
proves to me we’re on the right track.”

“And we can’t leave this thing to harm others,” Myrna said.
“Can you imagine how many others might be impacted if Percival performs this
trick over and over? We can’t allow that.”

“One thing our focus confirmed,” Eliza said, “it’s already
been used to harm hundreds before us.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t go that far,” Steven said. “What did
you learn about the door?”

“Nothing,” Eliza said. “It’s a blank. The door leads down,
but there’s something impenetrable about the foundation of the house.”

“What options do we have left?” Myrna asked. “We could risk
another focus, or perhaps trance on our own, see what more we can find out.”

“I’m for that,” Roy said, “after I scrounge in the fridge
downstairs.”

“Let’s split up and work on our own, just to be safe,” Steven
said. “When we meet in the dining room in the morning before we leave, we can
share with each other whatever we’ve found.”

The group nodded its consent and slowly broke apart. Steven
followed Roy downstairs to the kitchen, which had a large modern refrigerator.
It was stocked inside with all kinds of food, as Percival had said. Roy removed
some cheese and began looking through cabinets for crackers. He looked around
the room to make sure no one had followed them, then said to Steven, “Let’s
find Eliza when we get back up there. The three of us need to talk.” He put the
items he’d found on a plate, and Steven followed him as he left the kitchen and
carried the plate back to their bedrooms.

◊

“Which one?” Roy said. Steven and Eliza had joined Roy in his
bedroom, and he was chowing down on cheese. “Who’s the rat?”

“I can’t believe it was any of them,” Eliza said. “Myrna is
one of those ‘what you see is what you get’ people. Russell maybe, he’s a
little smarmy, but he seems naïve most of the time. Could be an act, I suppose.
I’ve known Jonathan for years, I can’t believe he’d do it. There must have been
some other way they knew we were coming.”

“I don’t see how,” Roy said. “That conversation was held in
our motel room, and just hours later the very door we talked about gets welded
shut.”

“Maybe the motel room was bugged?” Steven said. “After all,
there’s peepholes here. I would assume Percival isn’t above spying.”

“I suppose that’s a possibility,” Roy said.

“For all we know,” Eliza said, “this room is bugged, and
we’re being watched right now.”

“I suggest the rest of this conversation happen in the
River.” Roy said. “Steven, would you blindfold me?”

“You’re going to trance?” Steven asked.

“I just want to see how the land lies,” he said. He removed a
blindfold from his pocket and handed it to Steven, who stood behind him and
tied the blindfold over Roy’s eyes. It was Roy’s preferred way to trance, and
Steven had become accustomed to helping him do it. Steven stood by and watched
over Roy when he tranced, so Roy didn’t hurt himself by walking into something,
or tripping.

Eliza entered the flow and observed Roy’s trance from there.
Steven remained out of the River so he could keep an eye on Roy.

After a few minutes, Roy reached up and removed the
blindfold. “Steven,” he said, “why don’t you join Eliza and I in the River?”

Steven walked over to the bed and sat down, then jumped into
the flow.

Couldn’t see anything unusual in the trance,
Roy thought.
The others are in
their rooms. Myrna is trancing, Russell and Jonathan are not.

What about peepholes?
Eliza thought.
Anyone outside the rooms?

No, not even ghosts,
Roy thought.
The place is remarkably unoccupied and unhaunted.

Except for one big one
, Steven thought.

She’s nowhere in sight,
Roy thought.
Don’t know about bugs, can’t pick up
that kind of thing. So I think we’re safe to talk if we stay in the River.

What if Myrna tried to observe us?
Steven thought.
You said she was
in a trance.

Can’t stop her from that,
Roy thought.
But she won’t be able to hear us if
we’re in the River. She needs physical proximity for that, and I’ll know if she
comes close.

OK
,
Eliza thought.
What do we do?

Well, I didn’t want to discuss it in front of the others,
Roy thought,
since one of them is
in league with Percival. I don’t want what we try next to be sabotaged. Eliza,
I think it’s Jonathan. He put this thing together, and he always seems to vote
for moves that don’t try to solve the problem.

I can’t believe that,
Eliza thought.
I’ve known him for years.

How do you know him?
Steven asked, a little jealous.

Not the way you’re thinking
, Eliza thought.
I’ve helped him on a few things,
and he’s helped me. Completely professional.

I have to agree with Roy
, Steven thought.
I think it’s Jonathan too.

It could be one of the other two
, Eliza thought.
We should assume
it could be any of them.

All right
, Roy thought.
We’ll keep what we do quiet from the rest of them – all
of them.

What do we do next?
Eliza asked.

I want to talk to Roger again,
Steven thought.
He told me he had
lots of stories about the place. Maybe one of them will give us an alternative.

Any chance he was the one who tipped off Percival?
Eliza asked.

Hadn’t thought of that,
Steven thought.
You might be right. He might have
spoken to Percival after we talked. Maybe Percival is watching us, keeping an
eye on who we talk to. I’ll find out if he talked to him or not.

I’d like to trance a little tonight and explore every nook
and cranny of this place that I can get to,
Roy thought.

Mind if I join you?
Eliza thought.

Not at all,
Roy thought.

As long as Roy will share the food
, Steven thought,
I’ll watch over
you two while you explore.

◊

In the morning they all slowly gathered at the dining room
table. A pot of coffee had been made, drained, and refilled before they all
arrived. It was just before sunrise.

“Anyone learn anything new?” Jonathan asked. “I didn’t.”

Steven shot Eliza a glance. She looked back at him, then
glanced away.

“Nothing for me,” Roy said.

“I went through every part of the house I could,” Myrna said.
“Didn’t see anything. The place is clean.”

“Anyone run into the dark woman?” Steven asked.

“Her name is Anita,” Myrna said. “James’ mother. I didn’t.”

“Steven,” Eliza said. “We caught her going up the stairs
yesterday around this time.”

“That’s right!” Steven said, rising from his chair and
hurrying down the velvet paper hallway. Eliza was following him.

“Maybe I can get her to tell me more,” Steven said.

“Just be careful,” Eliza called from behind him. She could
hear some of the others following behind her.

Steven rounded the bend in the hallway and emerged into the
room that held the base of the stairwell. The dark woman was a couple of steps
up, beginning her ascent.

Both Steven and Eliza slipped into the River. Anita’s details
came into view. She seemed unaware of them. Steven hurried up the stairs ahead
of her, to stand in her way. He turned to confront her. He saw her eyes connect
with his. She stopped, looking at him.

Well?
she thought.
Are you going to get out of my way?

I did as you asked,
Steven thought.
They didn’t focus again.

Good
, she thought, moving to go around him.
Now leave.

Steven could see Eliza at the base of the stairs, watching.

You want us to leave?
Steven asked her.
I thought you wanted us to stay, to be
drained by your son’s device.

You’re a damned nuisance, the lot of you,
she thought, passing him on the
left. Steven turned and followed her up the stairs. He felt frustrated he
wasn’t getting any more answers.

I can’t promise they won’t focus now, though
, Steven prodded.
They told me
they were going to.

She kept sliding up the stairs, apparently unmoved by what he
was saying.

We’re close to finding the device, you know
, Steven tried.
We’ve found the
door. We’ll get inside soon.

She stopped.
Maybe I hit a nerve
, Steven thought to
himself. He saw her turn a couple of steps above him. She looked at him.
You’re
a liar,
she thought.

We found the secret passageway, and the door,
Steven said.
By the end of the
day, we’ll have figured out how to go through it.

The dark woman looked from side to side, and brought her
hands up, wringing them.

You weren’t supposed to do that
, she thought, her voice trembling.
The
door is hidden. You can’t possibly have found it. What you’re saying isn’t
true. You’re a dirty, disloyal liar.
She looked down at Steven, her eyes
flaring.

Steven took a step back, felt his heart skip a beat. Her gaze
was chilling. Her vision seemed to magnify any space inside him, making him
feel as though he was floating in a huge expanse, stranded, with no chance of
rescue. Wave after wave of desperation washed over him, each one pounding him
down. He wanted the feeling to be gone, but it didn’t stop. Within moments he
wished he could die, just to stop the horrible emptiness he was feeling. He
took another step back.

Steven, what’s wrong?
he heard Eliza think.

The dark woman shifted her gaze from Steven and looked at
Eliza. Steven instantly felt better.

Avoid her eyes,
Steven thought to Eliza.

He says you’ve found the door,
the dark woman thought.
Have you?
Don’t lie to me, I can always tell disloyalty!

Eliza glanced down at the dark woman’s dress, watching it
shift and move as she hovered on the stairs.
Yes
, Eliza thought,
he’s
right. We’ve found it, and we’re going to destroy your son’s device.

Roy rounded the corner from the hallway with the others, just
in time to see Steven and Eliza collapse on the stairs. He glanced up and saw
the figure of the dark woman, drifting towards the top of the staircase. Within
a second, she had turned and was out of sight. Steven had fallen to the base of
the stairs, and was lying crumpled on the floor next to Eliza.

◊

Steven opened his eyes, seeing Roy’s face. A look of relief
washed over Roy’s features, and Steven realized whatever had happened, it had
scared Roy badly. He felt incredibly cold, and his body began to shiver.

“How do you feel?” Roy asked. As Steven got his bearings, he
saw the others behind Roy, staring down at him.

“Eliza?” Steven asked.

“She’s here,” Roy said. “She’s still out.”

“I’m cold,” Steven said.

“Do you think you can stand?” Roy asked.

Steven rolled to his side, pressing down on the marble floor
with his hands.
The marble is ice cold
, he thought.
Is that why I’m
shivering?

He pushed himself up, Roy helping. “Let’s get you into bed,”
Roy said. “You can warm up and rest. Do you think you can make it up the
stairs?”

Steven took a step, feeling frozen but functional. “Yes,” he
said, “if you help me, I can make it.”

Steven turned and saw Eliza on the floor. Her whole body was
shaking. It looked like a seizure, but Steven knew it was severe shivering. Her
eyes opened, and Jonathan was talking to her. “She’s going to be alright,” Roy
said. “Let’s get you upstairs.”

Steven slowly marched up the stairs with Roy on one arm,
guiding him. Soon he was in the bedroom, and Roy was helping him wrap up in the
bed covers.

“So fucking cold,” Steven said, feeling his teeth clatter
against each other as his jaws involuntarily clanged together. Roy left the
room and returned with more bed covers, wrapping Steven.