Fountain of Secrets (The Relic Seekers) (13 page)

It was unusual to see so many ghosts at once, and from their clothing, she would guess that they had been here for a very long time. Either they had died here or they were here for another reason other than to merely show them the way out. The one who had poked Jake with his sword stood back. He didn’t look angry or violent. Just inquisitive. It might be best not to tell Jake and Nathan. She didn’t want to alarm them. They were already distracted enough with worry over her and the tiredness they were all feeling.

“I must have had a dream,” she said. The ghosts continued watching, but they backed off and stood near the opposite wall, heads bowed, as if in respect. Strange. “I think I know the way out.”

But dreams and ghosts weren’t always what they seemed. The opening in the wall wasn’t where it should have been and the marks weren’t glowing. They’d been walking for two hours with only Jake’s flashlight since Nathan’s and Kendall’s were both dead. All three of them had recovered somewhat from the overwhelming tiredness, but their moods were worse. Getting more irritable by the minute, they were hungry, and probably dehydrated. She was not drinking urine, no matter how thirsty she got.

“There’s no bloody end to this place. It feels like we’re walking in circles. I thought you said you knew caves,” Nathan said to Jake.

“You’re the one who said you could write a book on bat droppings. You find the damned exit. Can’t you
divine
something?” Jake asked Kendall.

“It doesn’t—”

“We know,” Jake said, frustrated. “I wish you’d figure out how the hell it does work.” Jake’s stomach rumbled. “I’m so hungry I could eat my socks.”

“If you don’t stop complaining, I’ll hit you over the head with a rock. Then Nathan and I will eat your flesh.”

“I’d give you indigestion and then haunt the hell out of you.”

Kendall stopped as one of the ghosts materialized in front of Nathan. This one was a knight. He moved close, studying Nathan’s face. His own features were transparent, but enough of his person remained that she could see surprise… and emotion. The ghost reached toward Nathan’s chest where his cross hung.

Nathan hadn’t felt the spirit’s presence. He was still searching the walls. The ghost lifted the cross, and Nathan grabbed his chest and looked at Jake, who stood next to him. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing.”

“You touched my chest.”

“No I didn’t.”

“Someone did. You’re the only one who could have,” Nathan said.

“I didn’t touch your chest. It must have been a rock. Hell, it was probably your cross hitting your chest.”

Kendall could tell from the tension in Nathan’s body that he didn’t believe Jake. Kendall felt reluctant to explain that they were being poked by ghosts. They were already on edge. A few minutes later the same ghost moved closer to Jake. He stood off to the side, his head inches from Jake’s, studying his face. The ghost reached for the chain holding Jake’s cross. He appeared to be trying to pull the cross into view.

Jake turned to Nathan. “What do you want?”

“I don’t want anything,” Nathan said.

“You touched my neck.”

“Not me.”

“Not funny,” Jake said. “You think this is payback.”

“I’m not trying to be funny. I’m trying to get the hell out of this cave,” Nathan said. He sounded irritated. “And I didn’t touch your neck.”

There was way too much testosterone for one cave. The men faced off for a moment before backing down, partly due to her cursing them both out. Nathan muttered to himself and kept examining one of the walls. Though how he could see without a light she didn’t know. Where the heck was that opening? Jake and Nathan still fussed at each other as they searched the walls. Nathan cursed. Kendall turned and saw him rubbing his ear.

“Don’t do that again,” he said.

“What are you talking about?” Jake asked.

“You just hit me.”

“No I didn’t,” Jake said. “I’m nowhere near you.”

“Then you threw a rock.”

Kendall saw the ghosts crowding around again. They were staring at all three of them, Kendall, Nathan, and Jake. They seemed more than curious, more than intrigued. Kendall turned and saw Nathan stalk toward Jake. She stepped between them just as Nathan shoved Jake. Nathan’s hands caught her shoulders and she flew against the wall.

She heard voices calling her name and slowly opened her eyes. It was dark. Her first thought was that she was blind. Then she saw Nathan and Jake leaning over her.

“I’m sorry, Kendall.” Nathan brushed back her hair, checking her head. “Did you hit your head?”

“No. I just lost my breath.” She climbed to her feet. “But if you two don’t stop bickering, I’m going to ditch both of you.”

“I thought he shoved me,” Nathan said. “I know it’s no excuse—”

“It wasn’t Jake. It was the ghosts.”

“I think she’s hallucinating,” Nathan said.

“She probably has a damned concussion.”

“I hit my backside, not my head. There are ghosts here, lots of them. That’s why it’s so cold. They were poking at you.”

Jake and Nathan both turned, staring into the darkness of the cave. “Where are they?” Nathan asked.

“They’re gone now,” Kendall said.

“That’s the shadow we saw?” Jake asked.

“No, that was different,” Kendall said. “I think the shadow made them uneasy. They didn’t want him here. That’s why we felt the hostility.”

“I think Nathan and I ran into the ghosts earlier,” Jake said. “We thought it was bat shit or rocks falling from the ceiling. Must have been them poking at us.”

“They’re just curious about us now, I think. They seemed particularly interested in our crosses.”

“That’s strange,” Nathan said. “So who are the ghosts? Why would they be interested in our crosses?”

“They seem to be warriors or knights. I think they’ve been here for a long time. They probably want to know what we’re doing here.”

“We’re trying to leave,” Jake said. “Tell them to show us the damned way out.”

“They’re the ones who showed me in the dream, but things don’t look the same.”

Nathan touched her shoulder, his eyes worried. “I’m sorry, Kendall. I don’t know what to say.”

“I’m fine. Let’s just find the way out of here.”

“You two go on,” Nathan said. “I’ll follow later. It’s not safe for you to be with me—”

“It was my fault,” Kendall said. “I got in the way. And your flashlight is dead. You can’t stay here alone.”

“I would rather you go with Jake. It’s safer.”

“He might be right,” Jake said.

Kendall clenched her teeth and her fists. “I don’t care what either of you want. We’re all getting out of this cave and we’re going together.”

They looked at each other, but neither said a word. Using Jake’s light, they continued searching the markings for the one she’d seen in her dream. A few minutes later, she saw two circles joined. “I think that’s it.” There was a ridge along the edge of the mark. She pushed it, and the sound of rocks scraping echoed in the cave as an opening appeared in the wall.

Jake put his arm in front of Kendall. “I don’t trust these ghosts who showed you the exit. There’s probably a rock slide waiting with our names on it.”

Nathan sniffed. “I smell fresh air.”

The opening in the wall didn’t lead to a rock slide. It led to another wall with another mark. When they pushed on it, a door swung open, and they stepped into fresh air and trees.

“We were inside a mountain,” Nathan said.

“Clever,” Kendall said. The stone door was covered by grass, disguising it from sight. She looked down the hill at the lights from a nearby town. “I don’t remember there being a town near the castle.”

Jake was already looking toward the town. “There isn’t.”

“How bloody far did we walk?” Nathan asked.

“Farther than we thought.” Jake looked up the hill. “There’s something up there.”

“Looks like a tower,” Nathan said.

“I don’t remember that either,” Kendall said. Nothing about this place looked right. “I don’t think we’re near the castle. We would have seen a tower that high.”

Jake looked up at the night sky. “Castle? Hell, this doesn’t even look like Italy.”

W
E MUST BE
in Italy,” Kendall said. “Where else could we be?”

“Let’s go higher so we can get a better view.” Jake led the way up the steep incline. His flashlight died before they reached the top of the hill. He cursed and banged on it, but it was dead. When they reached the tower, they discovered that it was a lot taller than it had looked from below, but in the dark it was impossible to tell much more about it.

“Touch it,” Jake said. “See if you can figure out where we are.”

Kendall put her hands on one wall and closed her eyes, letting the sensations flow from the structure into her hands. Power, voices—chanting, prayers, battle cries—a fortress and ships.

“Getting anything?” Nathan asked.

“This structure is old. Many people have passed through here. Praying, fighting. And I saw ships.”

“There’s no ocean near the castle,” Jake said. “You think this is one of those visions like when you touched Raphael?”

“I don’t think so,” she said.

“We can’t figure it out tonight,” Nathan said. “It’s too dangerous to explore in the dark.”

Jake agreed. “If this place is near the castle, we might end up impaled on spikes at the bottom of a pit.”

“This is a good place to rest until morning,” Nathan said. “We didn’t sleep much in the cave, and we probably have a long hike ahead of us.”

They found a stone ledge built against the wall, and Kendall sat. She didn’t feel as weak now, but she still felt tired and chilled. It wasn’t as cold out here as it was in the cave, but it wasn’t warm, and she was dressed for bed, not camping. She shivered.

“Are you cold?” Nathan asked.

“Chilly.”

He sat next to her, scooting close so that his shoulder touched hers. Jake sat on the other side, and immediately she felt warmth surrounding her. She stared at the stars and the lights of the mysterious town below as she listened to Nathan and Jake speculating about where they might be and arguing over logic and impossibilities. She closed her eyes and listened to their voices, searching for a hint of Adam. In spite of the situation, she felt a sense of contentment as she fell asleep.

Something hit Nathan on the arm, waking him. He squinted against the daylight, which was surprising after hours in a dark cave. He’d planned to start exploring at dawn, but underneath the tower, it was still shaded from the sun. Jake and Kendall were still sleeping too. Kendall’s hand was clasped in Nathan’s. He felt like gloating until he saw her head was on Jake’s shoulder.

Nathan didn’t feel as rested as he’d hoped. He had discovered that extra sleep helped him ward off the change. Ward off.
Made it sound like he was turning into a bloody werewolf. Hell, maybe he was.

A rock hit Jake on the head and fell near his feet. “Damned ghosts,” he muttered, waking up. “They must have followed us out of the cave.” He looked around and frowned. “We overslept.”

Nathan heard a chuckle. He turned and saw a chubby little boy standing several feet away. He had red hair and a face full of freckles, and he wore medieval clothing. Maybe the question wasn’t where they were, but when.

“I can see this one,” Jake said. “He’s been eating too much.”

The boy’s face screwed up. He opened his mouth and yelled, “Mother, he called me fat.”

A woman appeared at the back opening of the tower. She had the same red hair and freckles and wore a flowing gown. “Some people just don’t have manners. Really. Come along, Art. The garden will be opening soon.” She took the boy’s arm and pulled him away. He turned back and stuck out his tongue.

“That wasn’t a ghost, was it?” Jake said.

“No,” Kendall said.

“That’s good news,” Jake said. “At least we’re still alive.”

“You thought we were dead?” Kendall asked.

“I wondered,” he said.

“If it weren’t for the New England accents, I would wonder if we’re in the right time,” Kendall said. “When you fell through the maze, did you feel… weird, as if your body had come apart?”

“Pretty much,” Nathan said.

“I think we found some kind of…” She shrugged. “I don’t know what to call it.”

“Are you trying to say we fell through a portal?” Jake asked.

“There aren’t any towns near the castle,” she said. “And this place obviously isn’t Italy.”

Jake scratched his head. “Portals are
Star Trek
shit, and that’s impossible.”

“You thought ghosts didn’t exist a few days ago,” Nathan said. “And centuries-old guardians from a secret order, and stone statues that once breathed. I think we’re still in modern times.”

A man walked past the tower. He too wore some kind of ancient robe.

“Excuse me, where we are?” Nathan asked him.

“What year is this?” Jake added.

The man’s bushy brows rose in alarm and he hurried away.

Kendall turned and looked at the wall behind the ledge where they had slept. “Oh my.”

“What’s wrong?” Jake turned to look.

She pointed to the sign on a plaque above them:
SAINT MICHAEL
’
S TOWER
.