Misfits, Inc.

by Holly Copella

  “Amy--” Hailey gasped with alarm and darted into the dark tunnel.

  Skyler appeared alarmed, grabbed the flashlight from Vance, and hurried after her. “Hailey! Come back here!”

  “My God, she’s insane,” Logan gasped, still unable to catch his breath.

  The woman’s faint scream was heard again. Vance and Logan looked at each other in silent question. Logan shook his head with disgust and hurried into the tunnel after Skyler. Vance looked back at Mel. Her eyes widened in horror.

  “No way!” Mel cried out.

  Within the mineshaft, light from Skyler’s flashlight glistened off the dark tunnel walls. Hailey walked alongside him with Logan bringing up the rear. They heard movement from behind them. Logan turned and nearly collided with Vance.

  “Shit,” Logan cried out while clutching his chest. “Don’t do that!”

  “Mel went to get Marcus,” Vance informed them.

  The scream was louder now. It sounded like Penny. Skyler tore down thick webs from across the tunnel and shook them from his hand with disgust.

  “I hate spiders,” he grumbled.

  Logan looked toward the ceiling with concern. “I’m more worried about the bats,” he muttered.

  Skyler gasped and shined the light at the ceiling. Thankfully, there weren’t any bats. They continued along the tunnel for several feet when a strange sound caught their attention, causing all four to stop. It sounded like air leaking, but the sound was loud and almost deafening.

  “What is that?” Skyler asked slowly with fear in his voice.

  Everyone remained still and listened. Hailey felt a chill run down her spine as a thought occurred to her. She slowly pushed the flashlight in Skyler’s hand downward. Snakes slithered along the ground before them. Skyler screamed and jumped away from them. There was a cobra near Hailey’s leg. Hailey stared at the cobra and stood frozen. She wanted to scream and run, but she knew it would sink its teeth into her leg before she even flinched. It was almost like her dream!

  “Any suggestions?” she gasped softly.

  “Don’t move,” Logan announced excitedly and wiped the sweat from his bald head. “I’ll find a stick.”

  Logan quickly searched the area surrounding him. Another snake slithered up Hailey’s bare ankle. She was paralyzed from the sensation of the creature’s body wrapping around her leg and making its way upward. She knew she couldn’t move, but the urge to freak out was strong.

  “Guys, I could really use some help,” she whimpered while attempting to remain still.

  Skyler shined the light around the tunnel surrounding Hailey and beyond her. There were hundreds of snakes in the tunnel moving toward them.

  “I found a stick!” Logan announced with enthusiasm from several feet away and picked it up. He saw the snake he held in his hand, cried out, and cast it aside. “Shit! Wasn’t a stick!”

  Vance slowly approached Hailey and lowered himself near her legs. The cobra hissed and turned toward him. Vance held his hand up to the snake and stared at it in silence. The snake relaxed and slithered away. He casually removed the non-poisonous snake from Hailey’s leg. She exhaled with relief. The snakes slowly slithered away from them and disappeared deeper into the tunnel. All three stared at Vance as he released the snake he held. It slithered after its buddies. They all stared at him with disbelief.

  “What are you? Some sort of snake charmer?” Logan questioned with surprise.

  Skyler stared at Vance with wide eyes and gasped softly, “Charmer--”

  Hailey and Logan looked at Skyler to his realization. Vance took the flashlight from Skyler and slowly walked through the now-cleared tunnel.

  “I suppose you could say that,” Vance replied casually. “I’ve always had a way with animals.”

  Skyler nudged Hailey and raised his brows while feverishly pointing at Vance. If he gestured any faster, he’d almost certainly injure himself. Hailey rolled her eyes and ignored him. Vance walked along the tunnel with the others following directly on his heels in case more snakes appeared. Vance stopped and shined the light at the unusual carvings etched on the walls.

  “What do you make of this?” Vance asked.

  Skyler ran his hands along the strange carvings. They appeared to be human faces and bodies carved in the stone. They were amazingly detailed and lifelike.

  “Like ancient hieroglyphics, perhaps?” Skyler replied while shaking his head.

  Vance followed the wall with the flashlight. Skyler and Logan studied the strange carvings on the wall while following him. Hailey ran her hand over the human outline on the wall before her. She felt a strange chill running up and down her spine as if someone placed ice down her back. Torches on the walls suddenly erupted into flames and lit the entire tunnel, startling the three men. As they looked around with concern, Hailey continued to stare at the walls. She was almost oblivious to the torches lighting themselves. With the light from the torches, they could see the entire tunnel was covered with the human-like carvings. It was beyond chilling. Hailey studied one of the female carvings and ran her hand along a rose on the woman’s breast. Her hand trembled slightly while touching the familiar rose. As Hailey stared at the carving directly before her, she witnessed ghostly men and woman emerging from the wall. Vance, Skyler, and Logan continued to look around and appeared completely unaware of what Hailey was witnessing.

  “I’m feeling a lot of energy,” Skyler announced with concern as he looked around.

  “What lit the torches?” Vance asked.

  Hailey no longer heard their conversation. She stared at the ghosts stepping out of the human carvings, and it was suddenly obvious to her what the carvings represented. The ghostly men and women stared helplessly at her and reached out their hands for her help. She’d never seen ghosts before, but according to Skyler, they’ve been drawn to her from the moment she arrived on the island. The men’s conversation sounded almost distant to her as she witnessed the strangest event she’d ever seen.

  “Do you suppose this was some ancient burial site?” Skyler asked.

  “Impossible,” Logan replied. “People didn’t populate this island until the late eighteen hundreds.”

  “Maybe this is a lost civilization,” Vance suggested and added a sly grin.

  “Yeah, maybe some volcano destroyed their village and they were mummified to the walls from the lava,” Skyler remarked. “I’m getting a really strange feeling from these images.”

  Hailey continued to stare at the ghostly images before her. Amy’s frightened spirit stood before Hailey. As she stared into the woman’s eyes, she felt her entire body tremble. She knew now it had been Amy’s ghost she saw on the path. She was already long dead when she’d followed her into the woods, explaining her ability to disappear so fast. Skyler had foreseen her death.

  “It is a burial chamber, but these people didn’t die years ago,” Hailey softly informed them while attempting to contain her emotions.

  All three suddenly looked at her.

  “How do you know that?” Vance asked with surprise as he cast glances at her then looked back at the walls.

  “Because,” she gasped softly while staring into Amy’s ghostly eyes, “their ghosts are staring at me.”

  Skyler looked at Hailey for the first time, studied the area around her, and appeared surprised. “My God, I see specks of light surrounding you. There are too many to count.”

  “It was Amy’s ghost I saw in the woods,” she informed him softly. “They’ve been mummified into stone.”

  Amy’s spirit pointed down the tunnel. Hailey stared in the direction Amy’s ghost pointed.

  “Amy wants us to continue,” Hailey said softly.

  †

  The large, darkened room was dimly lit by candles surrounding the crude, stone altar upon which Penny lie. Her wrists and ankles were attached to the altar by old, metal shackles, which she fought in vain. Tears streaked her face as she held back her sobs. She was covered in scrapes and her dress was slightly tattered f
rom whatever had pulled her from the corridor. The snarling sound of unseen creatures within the darkness added to the fear of the unknown fate awaiting her. Someone or something could be heard moving around the dark corners of the room, indicating the room was fairly large. The snarling continued but didn’t appear to get any closer. The soft, faint groan of someone echoed through the darkened chamber. Penny held back her sobs and looked around while fighting her shackles.

  “Who’s there?” she cried out softly. “Please, help me!”

  There was no response. The groan came again, this time louder. It almost sounded pleased by her torment. Someone was heard moving closer toward the altar and the bound woman.

  †

  The four continued to examine the etchings in the wall of the mineshaft as they walked more slowly. Hailey stared helplessly at several ghosts surrounding her as she walked. Amy remained several feet ahead and was the only recognizable spirit Hailey could clearly make out. Penny’s sharp, shrill scream suddenly broke the silence, causing all four to stop with alarm. The scream stopped abruptly and unnaturally. All four ran along the tunnel in the direction of the scream and stopped when they reached a dead end.

  “It doesn’t go any further,” Vance remarked and pounded on the wall.

  “Maybe a concealed lever,” Hailey suggested.

  They could hear something large moving within the tunnel. The sound was closing in behind them. All four looked around and came to the same conclusion to what they were hearing.

  “We need to get the hell out of here,” Vance quickly announced.

  “What about the woman?” Skyler suddenly asked.

  “Wake up, man,” Logan cried out with conviction. “She’s dead!”

  “He’s right, Skyler,” Hailey informed him and clutched his arm. “We have to go--now.”

  They turned and hurried along the torch lit tunnel, revealing tunnels branching off in many directions. They could hear snarling and movement from all around them. All four ran in the direction of the opening. As Hailey looked behind them, she saw a beast running for them. It was going to reach them before they found the exit. The beast suddenly stopped and slowly backed away while snarling. Marcus appeared in the tunnel near the entrance, startling them. All four cried out then stared at the head of security. He stared back at them with surprise and possible anger.

  “You shouldn’t be in here,” Marcus informed them. “The mineshafts are dangerous.”

  Skyler cast looks from Logan to Hailey. She saw Skyler raise his brows in suggestion to Marcus’ sudden appearance just when they needed him. Hailey avoided looking at Skyler. She no longer wanted to entertain his fantasies; she just wanted to get as far away from the mineshaft and whatever caused the woman to scream.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Hailey and Skyler sat on the sofa in the living room of her suite with drinks in their hands. Logan leaned against the portable bar and refilled his own glass. There was an unusual silence among the three as they watched Vance pace before the balcony door. He repeatedly shook his head and looked at them as if they were crazy. Hailey wondered how long it would be until he actually spoke after Skyler told his nearly unbelievable retelling of Logan’s fairy tale.

  “Do you know how insane you sound?” Vance demanded, finally breaking the silence. “I can’t believe I’m still standing here listening to the three of you.”

  “I walked on a rope one hundred yards above a ravine,” Logan announced, astonished by his own words. “No, scratch that. I ran across a rope above the ravine.”

  “So you have good balance,” Vance replied and cocked his head while grinning mockingly. “That doesn’t make you a mystical warrior.”

  “You may not be willing to accept the fact that you’re a part of this team,” Logan informed him, “but you have to admit, what happened today was some pretty serious shit. You can’t explain it, so you don’t want to believe it.”

  “I don’t want to believe it, because I’m not insane,” Vance launched back. He indicated Hailey without looking at her and raised a brow. “Your magical princess isn’t saying much. She thinks you’re insane too.”

  Hailey knew she’d been unusually silent throughout the entire Vance initiation. The events of the day had her very confused. She wasn’t ruling out the entire thing being just another one of her nightmares.

  “I don’t know what to think,” Hailey replied softly. “Two women are dead, and I’m convinced we may have heard the fate of another. I’m just overwhelmed by all this.”

  “We need to talk to Marcus,” Logan firmly informed the others. “He’s vital to our mission.”

  “Our mission?” Hailey suddenly demanded. “Do we even have a mission?”

  “See,” Vance scoffed. “I told you she didn’t believe you either.”

  Skyler looked at Logan while completely ignoring Hailey and Vance. “Yeah, and say what?” he demanded while flapping his arms around wildly and nearly spilling his drink. He then tilted his head and widened his eyes dramatically. “By the way, Marcus, you’re the chosen Guardian of a magical princess.”

  “Well,” Vance snorted with a humored look, “at least you know how you sound to me.”

  “So we’ll just have to prove it,” Logan replied and ignored Vance’s comment.

  “News flash, piano man; unless you’ve got some cute parlor tricks, I’m not buying it either,” Vance launched back. “Are either of you even listening to yourselves? She’s not a magical princess, you’re not the Jolly Green Giant, although, you do look a little like Mr. Clean.” He then looked at Skyler and waved him off. “And you’re just a freak.”

  Skyler sneered at him and appeared offended. “I don’t like that term,” he muttered.

  “Explain what happened,” Logan fired back at Vance. “Explain those creatures.”

  “Hey,” Vance snapped defensively, “I didn’t see any creatures. I only heard something in the shadows. For all I know, it could have been a dog. And as far as what happened--nothing happened!” He wildly gestured with his drink. “We may or may not have heard a woman being killed.” Vance stared at Logan with a serious look and pointed accusingly. “That’s what happened.”

  Hailey groaned softly, stood, and approached Logan at the bar. She set her glass down and allowed him to refill it. He glanced at her several times, as if waiting for her to respond. When she didn’t, his disappointment showed.

  “Come on, Hailey,” Logan announced firmly. “You have to believe this is real. You saw the creatures. You saw actual ghosts. Talk some sense into him.”

  “I’m not the one who thinks he’s some mystic warrior,” Vance snapped back at Logan.

  Logan frowned and stared at Hailey with a demanding look. “Talk some sense into your Charmer before I charm my foot up his ass.”

  Hailey wished she knew what to believe. She finally glanced at Vance, still uncertain what she should say regarding what had happened over the last two days. Vance immediately looked away and continued pacing the room. She was suddenly curious. She studied him for a long moment and watched as he cast glances at her but never really looked at her. His behavior had struck her as odd from the beginning, but she had just assumed it was because he had no interest in her. The playing field had changed and any romantic illusions were thrown by the wayside. Why did he still refuse to look at her? She set down her drink and approached him with a curious look on her face. He cast a look, saw her approach, and turned away from her. His actions seemed so natural, yet so unnatural. What was hiding in his eyes that he didn’t want her to see?

  “Vance, look me in the eyes,” she said simply.

  “Why?” he scoffed while remaining turned. “What’s that going to prove?”

  Logan’s expression dropped as he stared at them. He suddenly turned arrogant, leaned on the bar, and tilted his head. “What’s the big deal, man? Just look at her.”

  Skyler slowly sat forward and watched intently as if finally understanding. Vance groaned with disgust then turned to face Hail
ey and attempted to look into her eyes. She saw something strange in his eyes, as if his world shattered. He immediately looked away and ran his trembling fingers vigorously through his hair. All three stared at him with the same look of astonishment.

  “Why can’t you look me in the eyes?” Hailey asked, clearly surprised by the reaction.

  Vance immediately fidgeted and cast a glance back at her. “I don’t know. I get this really messed up feeling.” He turned oddly defensive. “Not in a sexual sort of way.” He shifted uncomfortably and again ran his fingers through his hair, nearly pulling some out. “It’s a strange feeling like in that dream I had.”

  “Dream? What sort of dream?” Skyler suddenly gasped and jumped from his seat.

  Vance appeared reluctant to respond and continued his pacing. Skyler crossed the room, joining them near the balcony. Vance was unusually silent a moment then exhaled softly.

  “Nine years ago, I was supposed to marry an heiress. I was going to have everything I’d ever wanted, and all I had to do was say ‘I do’. I didn’t love her, but I wanted to be someone.” He hesitated and avoided looking at any of them. “You know; someone important.”

  Skyler nodded with complete understanding but didn’t interrupt him.

  “I felt trapped in my own private hell that I’d created,” Vance announced. “A few days before the wedding, I had this dream that I had beautiful women crawling all over me. It was the most erotic dream I’d ever had. Then I saw a woman with a brilliant light surrounding her. The light was so bright; I couldn’t even look at her. She told me if I went with her, I’d have everything I ever wanted.” His voice trailed off with his thoughts. “She pulled me into the light with her--”

  There was an odd silence as Vance drifted off into another world. Logan and Skyler stared at him with lusty anticipation to the rest of the story.

  “Well?” Logan finally bellowed out breaking the silence. “What happened?”

  Vance shrugged. “I woke up.”

  Logan and Skyler groaned with disappointment. Hailey hid her smile and shook her head at their reactions. She found their boyish fascination humorous.