by Brian Harmon
“Are you here to save me?”
He felt dizzy. Darkness swirled around him, swallowing him, and even as his heart broke for Olivia Shadey, he felt something like an orgasm erupt somewhere deep within him.
Then there was only darkness.
Chapter 20
The north gate was identical to the south gate, a stone archway covered in carvings of human body parts tangled together in a strange orgy of existence. Albert stood staring at this gate, his girlfriend on his right, his best friend on his left, unable to stop wondering what terrors may await them.
“Are we ready?” he asked.
“Have we been ready for anything we’ve been through tonight?” Brandy asked him. Her aching feet made the sight of the long tunnel ahead of them almost unbearable.
“Do you think Wayne will be all right?” Nicole asked.
“I hope so,” Albert replied. “It’s up to him now.” He stared into the darkness ahead, anxious about the challenges that must await them. Had he been alone, he might not have had the courage to continue. But he was not alone. He had Brandy and he had Nicole. And he had the Sentinel Queen, as well, it seemed. And if she was telling them the truth back there, he also had something else, a special advantage.
Did he really possess some sort of psychic ability? Did he really have within his mind a natural sense with which he could read the psychic vibrations within the Temple of the Blind? He remembered the first time he came here, and how he had been convinced that there must be something more to the hate room. That paranoid feeling ultimately saved Brandy from falling into the horrible trap that would later claim Beverly Bridger. Was that his psychic connection? Or was that the Sentinel Queen nudging him in the right direction?
“What do you think is up here?” asked Brandy as she pulled another clump of dried mud from her hair. The stench of that sludge still lingered on her skin.
Albert shook his head. He had no idea. There were still so many unanswered questions. He reached out and took Brandy’s hand. Nicole took his other, wrapping his whole hand in her small fingers so that he could still hold his flashlight.
Together, they stepped through the archway and left the City of the Blind behind them.
###
About the Author:
Brian Harmon is an author of horror, suspense and dark adventure. He grew up in rural Missouri and currently lives in Southern Wisconsin with his wife, Guinevere, and their two children.
For more, visit Brian Harmon online at www.HarmonUniverse.com
