Underworld (Dark Passage) (15 page)

An uneasy flicker passes across my face and I clench
my fists. It seems like a good idea to go over but
somehow I know it is not the thing to do today.
Being the strong willed girl that I have always been, I
decide to go against my better judgment, and pull the
door open. The swirling light seems to invite me
inside and I step lightly into the tunnel. Once my foot
is on solid ground, the door closes, and I am unable to
go back.

Old trees spiral up into the gray sky and heavy moss
hangs from their branches like shrouds. There were
bogs of water scattered everywhere that emit the most
horrid smell. It looks like everything is rotting from
the inside out and all is dead.

There is a light mist above the water holes and as I
walk along the path I make it a point not to look
inside. I remembered Elizabeth saying to shake off
any thoughts of evil or the things I am most afraid of
will take physical form.

My mind is racing and I can’
t stop the fear from
surfacing. I look carefully on the narrow path I am
walking upon and carefully avoid looking anywhere
else. Shivers run up and down my spine and it dawns
on me why I was told never to travel alone. I have
not learned to conceal my fear and my imagination is
running away from me.

Looking around I try to determine which direction I
should go. I need to get back to the school but I don’t
know how to find a door outside. Several miles away
there appears to be a town. I can just make out the
shapes of buildings and a church tower rising above
the skyline. I turn in that direction and carefully
make my way between the pools of murky water.
The mist that hovers above the pools are making it
difficult to see where I am going and I have to look
carefully to figure out where to step.

I catch a glimpse of something in one of the pools and
try and avert my eyes. I can’t stop myself from
looking and then I see something. At first it looks
like a fish swimming. I study it more carefully to be
sure and noticethat it’s a long fish with a large head.
The fish is swimming from the depths of the murky
water and then rests just below the surface of the
stinking water. I will myself to move but my legs
betray me.

The creature below the water is not a fish at all but
some type of snake. The body is long and looks like
a snake but the head is similar to a human. It has
scales all over it and the ears are set flat against the
head. There is a diamond pattern on the skin and the
eyes are a combination of both man and snake. Tiny
pinpricks of fear race up the back of my neck.

My chest becomes tight and I struggled to control my
breathing. The creature lifts its head and body about
3 feet out of the water. Massive coils float in the
murky water and there is no guessing how large this
thing is. I contemplate my safety but even if I were to
run there is no place to go. The eyes of the creature
are hypnotic and the forked tongue flickers. Its head
and body sway from side to side as the eyes observed
me.

Fear ripples through me as the emerald eyes sparkle
in the reflection emitted by the water. I realize that I
am in grave danger. What if I can’t find my way
back to the school?

I wait for the inevitable to happen. The scent of the
stinking water sickens me and I imagine what it
would be like to die in the dark depths. I have always
thought that drowning would be the worst way to end
life. The feeling of suffocation as water filled my
lungs would be terrifying. The watery view of the
creature would be the last thing I would see as the
coils wound around me and crushed my bones. More
than dying I regretted that Iwouldn’t even make it to
13 years old. I would never say goodbye to my
friends or be able to complete any goal. Funny, now
that I am facing my mortality, goals somehow matter
to me. I want to do something with my life. I want to
do something that counts.

My eyes close and I can hear the breathing of the
snake. I can almost feel its glittering eyes boring into
me. Warmth touches my face and a gentle breeze
lifts my hair. The fear that has been eating at me
vanishes and I am ready for whatever is going to
happen. My eyes open slowly and the creature is just
below the surface of the water. Its eyes are closed
and it seems to be asleep. I take a step backwards and
then another, never taking my eyes off the creature.
Several more steps backward and then I turn away
from it. I listen for the sound of splashing water but
there is only silence. I cross the swamp one step at a
time and fix my eyes to the West.

The sky is a drab gray and there is no sunshine to be
seen. I can’t help but wonder what had happened
back there. I was so certain I would be dragged
underwater by that creature and eaten alive. I push
the image of the creature out of my mind and focus
on the sound of my rubber shoes on wet grass.

Thoughts of the swamp soon leave my mind as the
tops of high towers and building dot the skyline. I
crest a large hill and can see the outlines of houses
and other buildings. It’s a few miles to the city and
below me are narrow twisting roads that rise up to
meet the dusty countryside. The placedoesn’t remind
me of anything I have ever seen and has a sense of
foreboding about it. It seems alien and part of an era
that has long passed away.

My stomach is aching with hunger and I wish I had
brought my backpack. There is a snickers bar in it
and a soda I had borrowed from the teacher’s lounge
earlier today. It would have tasted good washing
down the snickers bar. Right now, I would even
settle for the chicken strips that the cafeteria serves. I
walk with my head down and before I know it I am
on the outskirts of an old town.

There is a house to the left made of white stones with
brown flecks in them. A faded white fence circles the
property and a couple of barren flower beds are on
either side of a rickety gate. I am thinking of going
up to the house and knocking on the front door when
I notice some movement on the porch. An old porch
swing hangs from rusted chains and moves slightly as
though someone had bumped into it. I walk through
the gate and notice a cat curled up on the swing.

The swing begins to move slowly back and forth and
the chains that hold it up groan as though someone
heavy had sat down. I watch the tabby cat to see if it
will jump down but it remains asleep. That seems
curious to me and I take a few steps closer to call to
the animal. I then notice blood dripping from its
mouth and the legs have been removed.

I hold my breath and back slowly away from the
porch. When I reached the gate I can see the curtains
shift slightly inside the window. I can’t take my eyes
away from the window and stand there glued to the
ground. My calm is about to snap and that is the
worst possible thing that could happen at this
moment.

An image of the snake in my mind awakens lingering
fear and I wonder if it will show up again. I began to
tremble violently at the hazy memory. It dawns on
me that this monstrous place harbors tortured souls
and this shabby house is just one of many things
hiding secrets.

The gray light of the afternoon casts long shadows
and I force myself to move from the gate. I stop for a
moment and wonder if I would be better off going the
other direction. I stand here unsure of what to do and
finally turn and walk toward the city. At least I may
be able to find a place to h ide in the town. Why
didn’t I listen to Thomas? Why oh why do I always
refuse to listen? If only I would have listened.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath trying to
recover my wits. As I walk toward the city I began to
feel foolish and embarrassed as I replay Thomas’s
words in my mind.
Don’t try and cross over by
yourself.
Okay, so he was right and I made a mistake.
Wishing I had done things differently will not change
anything now.

The temperature has dropped and I wish I had
brought a jacket to school today. My thin T-shirt
does nothing to shelter me from the cold and the
prospect of walking for hours is a very real
possibility. As I walk I contemplate what had
happened. I had been able to create a portal but not
direct the energy where I wanted to go. I had
believed when the door appeared that it would take
me to my friends. Wrong. Who was I kidding?
Thinking I could get where I wanted to go. What an
epically stupid idea.

I walk in silence with my hands shoved in my
pockets. Brick sidewalks run on both sides of the
town’s main street and decayed trees line the street.
The buildings give me the impression that whoever
lived here left the place in a hurry. An old bank with
filthy windows has a broken sign that hangs down at
an odd angle. There is a mom and pop grocery across
the street with the words
welcome
on the front door.
A barely readable sign is painted above the entry:
Smith Brothers Mercantile.
I try and look into the
windows. There is a thick layer of dust and grime
that make it nearly impossible to see anything. I
cross the street to take a peek inside. Maybe there is
a jacket or even a few supplies.

As I stand outside the window I hear a throaty
caw
. I
hear bird wings close by and turn around to see a
black raven landing on top of the bank. There is a
sickening feeling in my stomach and I pause to
wonder what else is here. I quickly pull open the
door and the hinges groan as I slip inside. The
shelves are still stocked with goods and the cash
register sits on the counter as though the place was
open for business when everyone vanished.

feel a sudden wordless terror that someone is in the
store with me. The dank air in here is making me feel
nauseous. I slowly turn my head in the direction of
the sound and attempt to focus in the dim light. A
black shadow lengthened on the far wall. Unsure of
what to do I decide to make my way to the front door
and let myself back outside. Once outside I move off
the sidewalk to the center of the street. The shock of
seeing a shadow figure makes me want to exit the
town and get as far away as possible.

I hurry down the road and soon am o the the edge of
town. There is a post with two signs on it that point in
different directions. The one that says
Greenfield
points back to town and another says
Greenfield hotel
and points in the opposite direction. From the left of
town I can see fields of brown grass and further
beyond are miles of barren land.

The vastness of the lonely country is a nice contrast to
the confines of the eerie town. I feel curiously
relieved to be heading in that direction. I walk
briskly for the next hour and the anxiety I have felt
since I arrived is fading. There is no point in
indulging my fears. I need to direct my energy into
finding a way out of here.

The barren countryside has a slight incline that leads
to a large hill. As I crest the hill I can see an expanse
of green fields below me that encircle a tiny town. I
stop for a moment and consider my options. The
buildings below consist of a few houses, a church and
a large, multi-floor building that is set away from the
others. Half-curious, half-unsure whether I should
go there at all, I decide to take my chances.
The road I am on leads to a stone bridge that crosses
over a creek. The sound of the gurgling water relaxes
me and I decideto see if it’s safe to drink. I kneel by
the side of the bridge and cup some water in my
hands. I take a sip, and once satisfied it is safe, I
drink for several minutes. After I have had enough to
drink I splash water on my face and wash the sweat
and grime off. I feel a surge of energy course through
my body and my senses are heightened. I stand here
for a moment and then make my way around the
bridge and cross over it.

It’s the first time I have seen an
ything alive here. I
feel optimistic as I approach the stone buildings that
make up the town. In the center of the town there are
tall columns with beams that crisscross back and
forth. Green vines grow up and over the beams and
purple flowers are sprinkled across the green foliage.
Beneath the vine covered beams are two benches
placed back to back. They are made of the same
ornate metal that can be found in city parks. The
place has a charm all its own and a certain ethereal
feel about it.

Part of me wants to turn around and leave but another
part of me wants to see what is here. I hoover near
the flowers for a moment before deciding what to do.
I have a sense of dread that always comes to me when
I may be confronted with the unknown and it is
keeping me from moving any closer to the buildings.
My heart is pounding and the logical me is screaming
for me to run. There is a cold shiver on my neck and
then my decision is made.

I follow a path that leads from the courtyard and pass
modest cottages on either side. They are made of
stone with red planter boxes below the windows. I
stop and listen, feeling my heart beat faster. Not a
sound to be heard. I continue on the path and pass an
old church and at the end of the path there is a large
home. It stands 2 stories high with large windows
and planter boxes like the ones on the cottages. There
is a statue of a little girl standing in a bed of flowers.
There is movement in my peripheral vision. I pretend
like I don’t notice and watch out of the corner of my
eye. The curtains of the upstairs window are moving.
There is a glimmer of light in the window and then a
face emerges. I am too petrified to respond and stand
there like a dumb thing. Then the window flicks up
and a woman pops her head out.