Tommy smiled. This is why he loved Eevie.
Eevie helped Tommy through the window into what appeared to be the ranger’s office.
“What’s happening?” asked Drew, still plenty worried.
“I accidentally launched Eevie, but she’s fine.”
“I’m fine, Drew,” said Eevie. “We’re both inside.”
A single bare bulb illuminated what appeared to be a very sparsely furnished office. The creepiness factor was indeed a trend the ranger decided to embrace in all parts of his life. Starting with his furniture. Against the back wall, a battered desk supported an old computer system with a very loose fan that hummed continuously like a small prop plane. In an adjacent corner stood a tall, narrow bookshelf.
“Sheesh, this guy clearly isn’t a fan of home decorating shows. Is that a stuffed badger in his window?” asked Tommy. “That’s just creepy.”
“Drew, keep us updated,” said Eevie. “We’re gonna look for the secret passage.”
“OK, good luck. You have about fifteen minutes left.”
“There are a few more rooms, Drew. We’re gonna split up and see what we can find,” said Tommy.
“OK,” said Drew. “No sign of him yet, and people are still leaving.”
“Tommy, you take the back of the house,” said Eevie while walking toward the kitchen. “I’ll take the front.”
Tommy pulled out his flashlight. He didn’t want to turn on any lights in the house and alert the ranger to their presence. He walked through a small hallway. “Found his bedroom,” said Tommy. He turned slowly in a circle. Obviously this guy is a minimalist, he thought. There was a very simple bed that oddly looked like it hadn’t been slept in...ever...and a small closet. Tommy slowly opened the door to the closet. Inside were two green jackets adorned with Black Hallow Park emblems and a badge, two dark green shirts, and two pairs of khaki pants. A pair of boots lay on the floor at the foot of his bed.
Tommy quickly began checking for a hidden doorway. He slid the clothes aside and pushed and knocked on the walls. He pushed at the top of boards and at the bottom. Nothing. Next he pulled the ranger’s bed from the wall and rapped on the floorboards with his knuckles—nothing sounded unusual, nothing moved.
“Nothing back here,” said Tommy. “How about you, Eevie?”
“I checked the kitchen and the bathroom.”
“Did you push on the walls—and all the boards?” he asked.
“I pushed and pulled on everything. I even flushed his toilet...”
“That’s going beyond the call of duty,” snickered Tommy. “Get it...duty?”
“Tommy!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” he sputtered. “I talk when I’m nervous.”
“Guys, he’s pulling up to the gate!” Drew warned. “I see a few more people leaving, but you don’t have long!”
Eevie and Tommy crawled over to the window in front of the desk. They could see the ranger sitting on his ATV as the last groups of stragglers left the park. Eevie looked at Tommy. “We’ve got to hurry!”
Immediately they dropped to the floor, hitting each board with balled-up fists. Eevie eyed the ranger’s desk. “Tommy why would he have a rug under his desk?”
“To protect the floor from his chair. My dad has one under his chair.”
“Yeah, but not the whole desk.”
They raced over to the desk. Eevie slid the chair aside and lifted a corner of the rug.
“Darn it,” Eevie said, frowning. “Looks like the rest of the floor.”
Undeterred, Tommy slid the desk backwards and yanked the rug, sending it sliding across the floor. Eevie crawled forward and hit the flooring with her hand. She paused, then hit the floor once more.
Tommy pulled out his pocketknife and drove the blade between the floorboards. Did they just move? He stabbed his knife deep into the wooden plank and pulled. The skewered board came up easily. In the dim lighting they could just make out something beneath.
“Drew, we found something! Where’s the ranger?” asked Eevie.
“He’s still at the gate. The last couple is about to leave!”
Now that the plank was missing, it was easy to remove the rest of the boards. In a matter of seconds, a huge recessed circle was revealed. Tommy shone his flashlight on the circle to get a better look. It was made up of three concentric rings, and each ring was engraved with a series of cryptic symbols.
“It looks like a giant astrolabe!” said Eevie excitedly. “Except this one has different images.”
“Not all of them are different,” said Tommy. “Look at the second row. Those are the symbols for the constellations.”
Eevie reached out. “The circles turn,” she said. “I bet we have to align it correctly, like a giant combination lock.”
“Hurry!” said Drew. “Everyone’s gone!”
“Drew, there are some symbols and we have no idea what they are. Can you help?” asked Eevie frantically.
“Quick, send me a picture?” whispered Drew urgently.
Tommy pulled out his phone and took a picture of the circle and sent it to Drew.
Seconds later, Drew’s phone vibrated.
“Give me just a second,” said Drew, opening the image. “OK, the first circle is made up of the planets, the second circle is constellations, and the third circle has constellations as well.... There doesn’t seem to be any pattern. Are there any other markings I’m not seeing?”
“No,” said Eevie. “Not that we see.” Drew could hear the panic building in her voice.
“Wait!” said Drew excitedly. “They are all planets, except for one, the sun. The sun is a star.”
Eevie immediately turned the first circle, aligning the sun to the top. Nothing happened. Eevie touched the sun. The engraved section sank down, about a millimeter, making a soft mechanical click. The outermost wheel locked into place.
“It worked!” exclaimed Tommy excitedly.
Drew looked up from his hiding spot, about ten feet from the front gate. He could hear the metallic clanking of the chain as the ranger wrapped it around the post of the gate. He could see the smoke rising around his face with each breath.
“He’s putting the chain on the gate,” said Drew in hushed tones. “You’ve literally got about two minutes.”
“What about the second wheel?” asked Eevie, her voice filled with urgency. “Anything that doesn’t belong there?”
“Forget about that,” said Tommy. He began moving the wheel and pressing each image.
“He’s done locking the gate!” bellowed Drew. “I’m gonna distract him!”
“Distract him? What do you mean distract him?” asked Tommy, confused. “You’re gonna get yourself killed.”
“Just do what you gotta do,” said Drew. “I’ll try to buy you as much time as I can!”
Eevie ran over to the window. In the distance, she could see the ranger climbing onto his ATV. She rushed back over to Tommy, begging time to slow down.
Tommy spun the second circle, pausing only for a millisecond to press each constellation symbol. His hand froze as the serpent constellation pressed into place.
They could hear Drew’s breathing; it sounded like he was running. What they didn’t know was that Drew had been hurling rocks at the ranger, one of which finally hit its mark. It smacked the ranger in the back of the head just as he was turning toward his house.
They heard Drew’s voice through their earbuds. “Oh, sorry. Did I do that?” More bursts of heavy breathing.
Eevie’s hands were shaking. “The third circle doesn’t move and there’s nothing to press!”
Tommy stared at the circle, his mind racing at lightning speed. “Of course!” He jumped to his feet and tore into his backpack, pulling out the astrolabe. He placed it into the center circle; it fit perfectly.
Tommy turned the astrolabe slowly, aligning the three openings with the three star systems they had aligned earlier. “Gemini, Cancer, Canis
Minor,” whispered Tommy. This time there was a much louder metallic click, like the sound of a safe opening.
“You did it!” exclaimed Eevie.
Outside, the ranger climbed off his ATV and smiled at Drew. Rivulets of black blood ran down the side of his neck, staining his collar. Suddenly, inside Drew’s head, an evil voice filled his mind. I know why you’re here...and now, Drew, I’m going to kill your friends and then I’m going to kill you. Don’t fall asleep tonight...
Drew clutched the bars of the gate, shaking them and screaming, “I’m not afraid of you!” He watched in horror as the ranger turned and began quickly limping toward the house.
“Hey!” screamed Drew desperately, but he watched helplessly as the ranger continued toward the house. Drew fell against the gate, gagging. He turned and retched. He could barely whisper the words as his heart beat rapidly. “He’s coming...! He knows.”
Drew collapsed onto the ground in front of the gate. They are going to die—and it’s all my fault.
Eevie scrambled to the window. She could see a figure limping toward the house—it was like a scene from a horror movie. Running to the kitchen, she grabbed a chair and forcefully wedged it underneath the doorknob. She reached into her backpack and pulled out a long coil of rope. She tied a loop around the doorknob and threaded the remainder around the refrigerator, in hopes of preventing the ranger from pulling the door open. She pulled the rope taut, tied another knot, and ran back to Tommy.
Tommy had opened the secret doorway, and stale, musty air rushed out at them, burning their nostrils.
“OK, Eevie,” said Tommy, turning to her. “We have two options. We go in, and we have no idea what will happen to us...” Tommy looked down into the blackness. “Or as soon as he starts coming in, we jump out the window.”
“No, Tommy,” said Eevie firmly. “He’ll know we found the portal. We won’t ever get another chance.”
“OK,” said Tommy, pausing and reaching out his hand, grabbing hers. “For your grandpa.”
Eevie stared deep into Tommy’s eyes. “For Grandpa.”
The sudden sound of the doorknob turning was deafening. They didn’t want to look, but their eyes betrayed them. Staring at them through the thin rectangular sliver of glass was the ranger. The door shook violently, straining against the frame, as he tried over and over to get in.
Tommy shone his flashlight into the opening, revealing a small, black, iron ladder. “Go! Eevie, go!” Tommy shouted. She slid her feet over the edge, inching closer as she kicked out, trying to find the first rung. She exhaled sharply as her feet finally made solid contact with the ladder. She paused for a second, getting her bearings, and then began quickly descending into the darkness below.
“Get the astrolabe!” yelled Eevie up to Tommy.
Tommy twisted and pulled, but the astrolabe would not come free. I bet I’d have to close the portal to remove the astrolabe. But then Eevie would be locked down there and...
Smash! Tommy looked up as the glass in the door shattered. He saw the ranger thrust his hand through the broken pane, pulling the chair away from beneath the door handle.
There was no way he could break the astrolabe free in time. Tommy rolled onto his stomach and slid his legs into the inky blackness. He quickly climbed down a couple rungs, reached up, and slammed the portal door closed.
“Eevie, are you OK?” His voice echoed off the walls of the tunnel. Tommy wrapped one arm around the ladder for support, then shone his flashlight below him.
“I’m good,” she called back, her voice trembling.
“Just concentrate on climbing down,” Tommy called back. “I’m right behind you. Drew knows we are here—we’ll be OK!”
Tommy placed his flashlight between his teeth and continued descending, being careful not to step on Eevie’s fingers. They continued downward in silence, the only sound being the soft metallic clangs that rose through the air with every step.
Eevie slowed her descent as she became aware of a pale yellow light.
“Tommy,” she called up softly.
“I see it,” he replied before she could finish. “Light!”
The ranger used a piece of broken glass to slash through the rope tied around the door handle, then burst into the house.
“Tommy, Eevie...where are you?” he demanded, his voice cutting and shrill like fingernails scraping down a chalkboard. He smiled a black, bloody smile as he limped into his office. They had found the secret passage, but they were trapped and there was no way out.
Coiled Again!
Eevie froze. Bones lay scattered across the dirt floor...human bones. Tilting her head back, she put her index finger to her lips. Tommy nodded silently. Cautiously, Eevie stepped onto the dirt floor. She watched as Tommy quickly but quietly made his way down.
“It looks like a dungeon,” she whispered.
Tommy simply nodded as he scanned the room.
The walls were muddy brown. Chunks of gray and brown stone jutted outward, making the walls look like giant chocolate chip cookies. Flames flickered in black oil lanterns dancing to their own music, casting a mosaic of shadows. Their eyes followed the row of candles to the end of the narrow cavern, where the wall was solid black. The surface was much different than the rest of the cave. It shimmered as if breathing.
Tommy knelt. Shallow furrows snaked along the dirt floor into the darkness—it looked like someone had rolled a large barrel in a series of connected S’s down the length of the cavern. His eyes traced the curious pattern. Tommy blinked. Did he see a flicker of red light?
“Eevie,” whispered Tommy, trying to calm himself, “something doesn’t feel right.”
“I know.” Eevie’s senses were on high alert. Every sound, every shadow drew her in. “Tommy, you try to find a way out. I think it’s best if I stand guard.”
“OK, good idea,” he said. “This place creeps me out.”
Eevie watched and listened intently as Tommy began slowly moving down the wall. His hands moved methodically—up and down the walls, pushing and pulling each rock, looking for a way out.
Eevie shook her head. Had one of the lanterns gone out? She stared intently. Probably ran out of oil, she thought in an attempt to reassure herself. Wait, it’s lit again...now the one in front of it is out.... Then she saw it.
Eevie’s scream pierced Tommy’s spine like a thousand shards of glass.
He stumbled backwards, smacking his head against a low-hanging rock. Through a flash of stars, he could just make out a huge, black silhouette of a snake filling the hallway. The shadow moved closer. Now he knew what had made those grooves on the dirt floor.
The snake’s black and silver head was the size of a small car. Curved, razor-sharp fangs dripped with poison as if the snake was salivating—thinking of its next meal. The light from the lanterns made its blood-red eyes look like they were made of liquid fire. A massive forked tongue flicked out, toward Eevie, tasting the air as its eyes narrowed in on her.
“Eevie!” screamed Tommy as the snake struck out with incredible speed. Eevie dropped flat to the ground. Pieces of rock and wall exploded into the air as the snake’s fangs drove deep into the wall just above her head.
Tommy yelled, jumping up and down, waving his arms, trying to give Eevie a chance to get to her feet. Eevie scrambled, running toward Tommy, but she didn’t make it. The impact from the second attack was so brutal that Eevie nearly lost consciousness. The snake used its head like a fist, pounding her into the ground.
Tommy ripped his knife from his belt and charged the snake. He stabbed furiously into its body, but its scales were impenetrable. Every strike sent a painful shock up Tommy’s arm.
Switching tactics, Tommy wrapped his arms around the snake’s powerful body, trying in vain to distract it and keep it from attacking Eevie again as she crawled on hands and feet to the back of the cavern.
The snake tore through Tommy’s grip and struck again, its fangs driving into Eevie’s ba
ck. She screamed, her arms and legs flailing as she felt hot liquid course down her back and legs.
“Tommy,” she whispered as tears filled her eyes. The snake whipped her like a rag doll, and then she was still.
Tommy raced to the ladder, bounding up the steps. He grabbed an oil lantern, ripping and pulling with superhuman strength. He pried it from the wall—and then, without a second of hesitation, he jumped from the ladder onto the serpent’s back.
The snake whipped its body back and forth, trying to dislodge him. Tommy gripped the lantern between his teeth, and hand over hand he hauled himself up the snake’s body to his head.
“Eevie!” shouted Tommy desperately. His voice echoed back at him, as if mocking him.
Holding his body flush against the snake’s head, he pulled out his knife and, using the butt, shattered the oil lamp’s glass globe. Hot oil spat from the lamp onto his hand, instantly burning and blistering them.
The snake slammed its head sideways against the wall, and Tommy took the full force of the blow on his shoulder. He heard and felt a loud crunch, as pain shot through his body. Tommy’s arm hung useless across his chest, as he clenched his teeth, breathing through the pain. Eevie’s body hung limp, impaled by the serpent’s fangs. Venom ran down her arms and dripped from her fingertips.
As the snake coiled back to lash out again, Tommy flattened his body against it. This time the snake thrust its head upward, trying to crush him against a jagged outcrop of rocks. Rolling to the side of the snake’s head, he narrowly avoided being crushed into oblivion.
Tommy’s jaws and lips were bloody and torn, and hot oil had splashed onto his face and neck. Squeezing and driving upward with his legs, he lunged forward and drove his knife into the snake’s eye. The snake hissed and growled in pain, as Tommy tipped the oil lantern over and poured hot, fiery oil into the hollow of the snake’s eye.
Writhing in pain, the snake shook its head and slammed itself from side to side. Explosions of rock fragment and dirt filled the cave. Tommy leapt from the snake’s back and landed hard, with pain burning up his shoulder into his skull.
Quest Chasers: The Screaming Mummy (A Magic Fantasy Adventure Book Series) Page 8
