“What’s she on about?” Ewan frowned and handed Matt another antiseptic wipe.
“Lou’s psychic,” Matt responded, giving Ewan a little smile. “Seriously. She’s better than an EMF detector.”
Ewan sighed and glanced briefly at Jay. “Oh, great. Now there’s two of you giving it the ghoulies and ghosties bullshit.”
“It’s not fucking bullshit, you hired thug!” Louise flared and balled her fists. “I can hear them calling out for help. Just because you can’t, doesn’t mean they’re not there.”
Ewan opened his mouth to give the woman a sharp retort when Adam laid a hand on his arm and hissed in his ear. “Let’s not upset the paying guests, shall we, Ewan? I insist.”
Ewan moved away from the “distraught, bloodied psychic and her doting husband” tableau. He felt vulnerable. Exposed. This mine was giving him the creeps. For the umpteenth time since his demob from the army six months earlier, he found his hand going to where his sidearm should’ve been. His fingers patted empty thigh and he balled a fist in frustration. He muttered quietly to himself. “Can’t hear a fucking thing.”
But he could. They all could. You didn’t need to be a psychic to hear the bone-chilling wail that floated down the tunnel.
“The fuck was that?” David snapped on his torch and shone it up the tunnel. “Jay, you sure there aren’t any other parties in here?”
“No. We’re the only ones.” Jay’s torch beam joined David’s and the light punched deep into the darkness.
“You did hear that, right?”
“Of course I did.” Jay’s fingers tightened around his torch and he edged forward. “Hello? Anyone out there? Hello?”
The group followed Jay’s slow and steady path along the old tracks. Up ahead they could see that the tunnel opened out into a larger space. The tunnel roof timbers creaked as they passed underneath, and little falls of dirt and dust rained down on them.
“I don’t like this.” Ewan scowled and turned to Adam. “Sir, this tunnel isn’t safe. I suggest we go back to the entrance.”
“You’re letting your imagination run away with you, Ewan. We wouldn’t have opened the mine up to parties if we didn’t think it was safe.”
A thunderous crack echoed down the tunnel and the rumble of large amounts of earth shifting roared through the mine. The shockwave nearly knocked the group off their feet.
Alex snapped his head around and saw a dust cloud billowing towards them. It moved with terrifying speed. Rocks bounced and rolled in front of the cloud, spinning in the air and crashing back down, sending shards of jagged shale through the air like black daggers.
“Cave in! RUN!” Ewan shoved Alex in the back. Matt, Louise, Jay and Adam were already sprinting towards the open area in front. Screw the bats; they’d rather face a bunch of black flapping mammals than tons of crushing rocks. The group dived into the open space as the last of the collapsed ceiling smashed into the floor where they’d been standing seconds earlier. The rumbling subsided until the only sound they could hear was the occasional pebble clattering down the rockfall.
The fine dust made them all cough and splutter, but, eventually, it subsided. The cavern fell quiet as the last pebble clunked and clinked its way down the wall of boulders and came to rest at Adam’s feet. In the heart of the pebble was a glint of metal.
His eyes widened. Gold.
Welsh gold.
He scooped up the stone and stuffed it in his pocket. Once they made it out of this hole in the ground then screw the ghost tours, they’d be firing up the mine again looking for more gold. Gold. His heart skipped a beat.
Fucking GOLD!
He barely heard Ewan speak, so focused was he on that hard lump of shale in his pocket. He refocused back as he heard Ewan say, “Where’s the other two?”
“What other two?”
Ewan pointed at Jay. “Your mates, fella. The potholer with the medi pack and the other guy.”
Jay felt panic rise in his throat. “David and Ifan. Shit. SHIT. They’re on the other side of that.” He pointed at the rock-fall. “DAVID! IFAN! Can you hear me? David, Ifan!” Jay scrambled up the rock-fall. There was a tiny gap at the very top. He slipped and slid back down again. “DAVID! IFAN!”
From the other side of the rock-fall came David’s voice, “We’re okay. You guys alright in there? Is anyone hurt?”
Jay looked around. Apart from being covered from head to foot in dust, the party seemed relatively intact. He returned his focus to the rock-fall. “Yeah, we’re okay. Can you get out?”
“There’s a lot of debris, but we should be able to get to the entrance. You guys stay there; we’ll go and get help.” Ifan’s voice floated through the hole in the rock-fall. “Don’t worry, we’ll get you all out, I promise. Just stay put.”
“Hurry up, boyo. This roof looks about as solid as a piece of day-old lava bread.” Jay studied the ceiling of the chamber. The timbers looked more robust than those in the tunnel, but they were still ancient and crumbling. Another rock-fall like that and the whole lot could come down on top of them.
David yelled through the rock-fall. “We won’t be long, Jay. Just hold on, okay? Just hold...what was that?”
Jay could hear the two men on the other side. Just a few feet away from him.
“What IS that?”
“Hello? Is there someone there? Hello...oh JESUS!”
“Christ! What the...get it off me, GET IT OFF ME!”
Then the screaming started.
Jay and Ewan frantically tore at the rock-fall, calling out to the two men on the other side. They didn’t answer back. They were too busy screaming and pleading for mercy. Snarling and snuffling noises mixed in with the sobbing and wailing, until gradually the cries sounded bubbly and weaker—and then stopped completely.
Silence filled the chasm. Jay stared at the gap at the top of the rock-fall. Tears streamed down his face. He could only imagine what had happened to his two friends. A shred of denial whispered through his mind—maybe they got away. Yeah. Maybe. They got away, right? They did get away from whatever that was.
A small boulder dislodged itself from the rock-fall and bounced to the bottom of the pile, skirting Jay’s shoulder and landing at Ewan’s feet. Jay glanced down at the big man, who nodded.
“Start digging, fella. Looks like the rocks at the top are loose.” Ewan started shifting rocks, glanced over to the rest of the group, and snarled. “A little help here, people? This is our way out.”
The group moved towards the rock-fall and started shifting debris. Jay, trying to ignore the stinging tears that still tumbled down his filthy cheeks, was tearing at the rocks, ignoring the yelps and “Hey! Watch it, kid... ” comments from the rest of the group beneath him.
He reached through the gap at the top. And then yelled at the top of his lungs.
Something cold, hard and slimy grabbed his wrist and pulled. Hard. He could feel his shoulder popping out of its socket. He yelled again. “Something’s got me!” He heaved backwards, struggling against the tightening grip. “Help me! Jesus Christ, help me!” He felt a massive pair of arms circle his waist and haul him backwards.
Ewan and Jay fell off the rock-fall, tumbling and bouncing down the slope. Ewan let go of Jay and they both looked up to the gap at the top of the heap. “What the fuck?” Jay pointed to the gap.
Sticking though was a skeletal hand. The fingers grasped and snatched at the air, waving around, trying to find their quarry. Skin hung from the bones, flapping like bunting fluttering in a breeze. The hand was covered in blood. Fresh blood. Blood that dripped from the dagger-like fingertips and ran down the rock-fall in rivulets. Ifan’s blood. David’s blood.
And now it wanted more.
It wanted them.
The hand scrabbled at the rocks, making the gap wider. The hand was followed by the bones of a forearm, also covered in tattered ribbons of torn, rotting flesh. The elbow joint wiggled its way through. Then the bones of the upper arm. The whole thing started to pivot and
a shoulder joint appeared.
“If whatever that thing is gets its head through, I’m guessing we’re all royally fucked.” Ewan picked up a rock and leapt up the rock-fall. He let out a snarl and smashed the rock against the hand and arm. There was a screech like nails being dragged down a blackboard from the other side and the arm snatched and grasped at the air like a lobster claw, snapping and trying to rake its puss-covered nails across Ewan’s face. He ducked and weaved, hammering the rock again and again against the arm. A bone splintered, and the arm’s owner let out a wail, followed by a furious screech. The arm vanished back through the hole.
Ewan knelt, poised with the rock raised over his head, ready to start bashing again if the arm reappeared.
From below, Louise piped up. “Is it gone?”
A chorus of screeches and howls from the other side of the rock-fall echoed through the mine. Other, more distant yelps and shrieks responded.
Ewan glanced down. “Nope. And I think it’s got friends.” He dropped the rock and slid backwards down the slope. He stood and looked at Jay. “Fella, is there another way out of here?”
Jay opened and shut his mouth a couple of times, gulped, and then nodded. “Uh, yeah. The mine has another entrance point that way.” He pointed down one of the tunnels that spurred off the main chamber. “Or...is it that one?” He pointed to another tunnel.
Ewan gritted his teeth. “Jay?”
Jay made a decision. “Nope, definitely this one.”
“You’re sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“You’re sure sure? Because those motherfuckers are gonna come through that wall pretty damn soon, and honestly? I don’t want to be anywhere near this place when that happens.” Ewan studied the young man.
“It’s this way. I promise you.” Jay stabbed a finger at the entrance to the first tunnel. “I know that because last time we were in here we...”
Knock, knock...
Jay stopped mid-sentence. The group stared at the rock-fall.
Knock, knock...
A boulder dislodged and bounced down the slope.
Knock, knock...
Another. And another. And another. The rocks started to shift.
Ewan looked at Jay. “This is the bit where we run, fella.” He scooped up a torch from the floor and shoved it into Jay’s hand. “As in NOW!”
The rocks clattered downwards. The group didn’t wait around to see any more. Jay led the way as they sprinted down the tunnel and deeper into the mine.
BEHIND THE FLEEING group, the rock-fall shifted and slowly crumbled. The gap at the top got larger by the minute. Eventually another skeletal arm popped through, snatching at the rocks and shoving them out of the way. The hole grew quickly, and the shining top of a skull appeared. The Coblynau pushed its head through the hole and looked into the chamber. It stared down the tunnel and let out a screech. Venom dribbled from its needle-sharp teeth, running down its chin and dripping onto the rock, where it hissed and frothed. The creature wriggled and writhed its way through the hole, ignoring the rock edges that tore the ribbons of flesh from its bones. Finally, with one last heave, the creature popped out of the hole and rolled down the slope. It landed on all fours, threw its head back, and let out a screech that sent cascades of dust tumbling down from the ceiling. It skittered across the floor and up the wall like a gecko, scuttling along the rock face and onto the ceiling where it sat upside down. It let out a series of chitters and another screech.
That was the signal.
Through the hole poured the Coblynau. They dropped into the chamber, sniffing and screeching, scuttling and snapping at each other.
Eventually, they got organized. The leader, its arm still sporting the splintered arm bone inflicted by Ewan, let out a series of sharp barks. They set off down the tunnel after the group.
“WE’VE GOT ABOUT ten minutes before those things end up on top of us.” Ewan skidded to a halt and grabbed Jay by the shoulder. “Ideas?”
“We keep going. The way out is down here.”
“Down?” Adam shook his head. “No. We can’t go down. That way was blocked after the cave-in of 1890.”
Jay stared at the man. “How do you know that?”
Adam looked nervous. “I...um...well, I guess we’ve all got our connections to this pit of ghosts, haven’t we? My great great grandfather was in charge of this section when it blew.” He ran his hand through his dirty hair. “I never knew much about it. The family didn’t mention it. Ya know.” He shrugged. “A lot of people died that day.”
“And David Hughes told the blasters where to set the charges.” Ewan stood over Adam. “Eighty-nine people dead. Including my great great grandfather.” He got closer to Adam until their faces almost touched. There was a dark cast in Ewan’s eyes. “With his last breath he cursed ten generations of your family, so it’s said. The mine will take you all, one by one.” Ewan let out a little laugh. “Ironic, isn’t it?”
“What?” Adam met Ewan’s gaze.
“That I’d be the one protecting your arse.”
“Do you believe in curses?” scoffed Adam.
“Do you?” Ewan snarled back.
“Guys, as much as I get your whole ‘the sins of my fathers’ therapy session, we got bigger issues to deal with here, don’t ya think?” Alex pointed back towards the way they’d come. He turned to Jay. “Okay, buddy. Me and the two Ghostbusters wanna get the hell outta here. You gonna make that happen?”
Jay nodded. “There’s another way through.” He stood up. “We need to get moving.”
Louise and Matt hauled their bags up and stood next to Alex. “And we’re not Ghostbusters, mate,” Matt growled. “We’re paranormal investigators.”
“Yeah, whatever, neckbeard. You want my advice?”
“No!”
“Getting it anyway. Lose the bags. They’ll just slow you down.”
Louise snapped back at the American. “Lose the bags? Do you have any idea how much this kit is worth?”
“Is it worth your lives?” Ewan strolled to the front of the group, leaving his boss sitting on a rock. “The Yank’s right. That stuff will just slow you down. You can always come back for it or, oh, I dunno, sue the tour company for the value of it?” He glanced back at Adam and smirked. “They’ve got plenty of money burning a hole in their pockets, haven’t they, Adam?”
Without thinking, Adam put his hand in his pocket and closed his fingers around the lump of stone. He felt the cold vein of gold running through the shale. Adam smiled in the gloom. More money than you’ll ever have, motherfucker! He stood up and stared at the ex-soldier. “We’ll make sure everyone has their ticket prices reimbursed and a complimentary tour once the mine has been made safe again.” He smiled a PR smile. “You have my word on that.”
“Safe? From creatures that tear you to pieces? Safe?” Louise’s voice was shrill. “Are you kidding me?”
Jay interrupted them. “If we want to get out of here alive, then I really suggest we leave the compensation claims until we get to the surface, don’t you?” He started walking down a tunnel. Screw waiting around for the rest of them. He wanted out of this pit of ghosts right fucking now.
A flapping and chittering stopped him in his tracks. Behind him, a worried Matt peered over his shoulder. “More bats?”
A white, ghostly form flickered out of the darkness, chirruping and tweeting. Behind it, a flurry of fluttering sent swirling vortexes through the dust-filled air.
“I don’t think these are bats.” Jay’s eyes widened in horror as a tiny skeletal bird fluttered in front of him. Empty eye sockets stared back at him as the canary buzzed and darted in front of his face. It opened its beak and let out a trill of notes so loud, so brittle and so penetrating that they were physically painful. Jay instantly felt blood gush from his nose. He yelled, “COVER YOUR EARS!”
The group covered their ears and dropped to the ground, trying to stay as low as possible.
A second later, the flock burst from the dar
kness and poured onto the crouching group like a swarm of angry bees. They seemed to target Louise, pecking and tangling in her red hair. The shrill chittering and cheeping reached a crescendo. Louise screamed, flailing at the birds and trying to get away from their pin-sharp little beaks. Each peck drew more blood.
Her handbag dropped from her shoulder and fell open. A bottle of perfume rolled out and came to rest next to Ewan’s feet. He scooped up the bottle, flicking off the lid with his finger. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lighter. Positioning the lighter immediately in front of the perfume bottle’s nozzle, he pressed down on the spray and ignited the lighter at the same time.
A jet of flame shot out and towards the canaries. Two caught in the first blast, immediately combusted, and crashed backwards into the main flock. The birds began to fall to the floor, flapping and thrashing, screeching all the while. Ewan, still sending out jets of perfumed flames into the flock, stamped on the skeletal birds, grinding their fragile bones into dust underneath his heel.
The rest of the flock circled upwards and, with one last chorus, fluttered back into the darkness.
“Holy fuck.” Alex uncovered his ears and slowly stood. “This place is the worst fucking theme park ever.” He turned to Ewan. “Nice work with the improvised flamethrower there, MacGyver.”
In the corner, a battered and bleeding Louise sobbed loudly. “Why do they keep going after me? Why?”
“You’ve got red hair. It’s thought to be seriously unlucky in a mine to have red hair,” Jay answered matter-of-factly and shrugged. “Perhaps put a hat on?”
“Fuck you!” Louise snapped back. “You’re the guide, aren’t you supposed to be getting us out of here?”
“Then get up, pull your panties up and let’s go.” Jay’s voice was sharper than he meant it to be, and he held a hand up. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. I’m as scared as you are. The only thing we can do is keep going, okay?”
“The kid’s right.” Alex stood next to Jay.
“Thanks for the moral support, but I’m twenty-five, buddy. Not a kid. Shall we get our arses moving?” Jay turned to Adam. “Oh, by the way, dickhead, once we’re out of here, I quit, okay?” Jay flicked the finger at Adam, turned back to the tunnel, and stepped forward.
Hellhole Page 15
