“Nothing,” I muttered in disappointment. “A false lead.”
Double checking, John ran his hands along the surface of each wall as if he might feel a break in it. Meanwhile, Father Vincente took up a position in the middle of the tunnel, standing about the same distance from each wall. He pressed his lips to the cross he wore, pulled out a vial of holy water, and dabbed a bit on his forehead using his index finger. Next, he began turning around in a circle with slow, precise steps while holding the cross out before him.
I stepped next to Lucca and asked, “Now what’s he doing?”
“Looking, I suppose,” he answered as he leaned against the wall, positioning himself to keep an eye out either direction.
At the front wall, John paused then stepped back to watch the priest. The old man turned three times around, halted, mumbling something in Italian, although it could have been Latin. I couldn’t tell. Whichever, Vincente raised his eyes and turned a half step to the left before he pointed to that wall and shouted, “There.” A string of Italian followed that announcement.
“He says the entrance is hidden there,” Lucca translated as he straightened and strolled to the north wall. He said something to the priest who answered with an affirmative as he gestured at the rock face.
“There’s no entrance here,” I said as I peered closely at the seamless stone. “Nothing to indicate any kind of opening.”
Stepping beside me, John touched the amulet he wore around his neck with his left hand, then ran his other hand over the surface in a big circle. “There is something. It’s hidden behind an illusion.”
“What? How can you tell that?” I frowned and stared at the wall looking for anything that might indicate it was not real.
With a half-smile that reminded me of Gavin, John said, “I can feel it. The stone has a rough finish, while this section I am outlining with my hand, is smooth like a slab of polished marble.”
“How do we break the illusion?” I asked.
“Who said we need to?” John reached for it again, his hand disappearing and his arm twisting to the right as if he turned something.
I heard a clunk like a bolt moving, then John stepped forward, appearing to merge with into the wall.
“John?” I called, fearful he’d stepped through a hole into nothingness.
In response, his arm emerged out of the wall as he motioned for us to follow him.
Chapter 32
SWALLOWING NERVOUSLY, I put my hands in front of me, sure I would smack into the wall, and stepped forward where John’s arm waved. I heard his amused chuckle as his hand grasped mine and pulled me into the cavern beyond.
Blinking in surprise and to adjust to the low light that barely illuminated the immense space, I peered around for the for the source. I soon spotted hundreds of soft yellow stones or crystals that appeared to produce enough of a glow to provide dusk-level lighting.
“This is within the mesa?” I managed to ask.
“Maybe,” John said, “but I think it might be a dimension portal rather than one in our world.”
As I absorbed that, I stepped forward as first with the priest then Lucca following me through. Father Vincente scowled making him look like a dog with his hackles raised. Lucca said something to him and got a terse, agitated answer, then Lucca translated.
“He says this is the entry to an evil world. He does not like it. We should go back to the others then come back and seal the opening.”
As I considered this, I crossed my arms over my stomach and gazed around the cavern. The light only extended partway up the sides while the ceiling remained in blackness. I thought it went considerably higher than the height of the mesa, so I felt John’s assessment was correct. We were not in Utah anymore.
“I think this is an antechamber, not the actual entrance,” I replied. “Let’s go in a little further and see if we can find the real gateway.” I took a couple of steps forward to see if the floor remained stable. John grabbed my arm to hold me back.
“What?”
“Maybe we should tie to each other again in case the ground isn’t as solid as we think it is. If one slips, then the rest can pull that person back,” he said.
I considered his suggestion and agreed. If we were going to do this, we needed to take precautions. I only wanted to go part way to see what was ahead, but I didn’t want to risk anybody. “All right,” I replied. “Is everyone in agreement?”
Lucca hesitated, a frown on his face. “I don’t think it is a good idea to go in without more preparation. If there is an entry ahead, we need to be ready to seal it and also to fight off any defenders. We are only half of our party. I say we should go back.”
“I see, and I suppose Father Vincente agrees?”
Lucca spoke to him quickly, and the priest nodded vigorously saying, “Si, si.”
I ran a hand through my hair, pushing back a couple of stray strands that had escaped my ponytail, and studied the narrow trail leading away from the plateau of rock where we stood. It worked its way at a slight slope downward, but I couldn’t see very far ahead. Turning to look at Lucca, I said, “I understand. Why don’t you guys wait here for me? I’m going to explore just a little bit ahead to get an idea of what the path is like.”
Lucca looked uncomfortable with the idea, but John said, “I’ll go with you. We still need to take precautions, so rope up.”
He handed me the rope again, and I clipped on. Since I was lighter weight, it made sense for me to go first. If the ground gave way, then John had the strength to haul me back up. At least, that’s what I told myself.
I started walking, moving at a slow, steady pace and keeping my eyes on the surroundings. On one side, the secure plateau we’d started on dropped away where a rocky-sided chasm appeared encouraging me to stay closer to the other side where column after column of stalagmites rose from the surface. Some met with the downward hanging stone icicles of stalactites giving the impression of fanciful entries to a palace.
A few feet behind me, John followed my lead, keeping the rope between us a bit slack. I paused a few times as big, ugly-looking insects scurried across the path. They resembled a cockroach, but with additional antennae and another set of legs. Not a fan of that particular bug, I didn’t want to get any more acquainted. A spider the size of a dinner plate darted over a web hung between two of the stalactites that shivered with the struggles of a captured giant moth, but the arachnid was more interested in his potential food than us.
Nonetheless, I felt jittery as I pressed on another hundred or so feet, then I halted and gaped at the view ahead. John closed the distance between us and stopped right behind me to peer over my shoulder.
Ahead, the path turned onto a stone bridge—a narrow column of rock across a fissure that split the sides in two. I couldn’t see further down than about thirty feet on either side. More of the glowing yellow crystals lined both sides of the bridge across, but nothing provided a handrail or anything else that we could grab. Judging it about fifty-feet across, I could see the over-sized carved archway on the other side that appeared to lead to a silver-colored portal.
“That’s the entry,” I said in a low voice to avoid an echo that might alert any yiaiwa of our presence. To be honest, I’d expected to encounter at least a couple of them long before now.
“I believe you’re right,” John spoke as softly as I had. “Do you want to press on?”
Taking a deep breath, I gazed at the stone bridge again. Although it appeared somewhat solid, it looked to be consistently around two feet wide all the way across. The crystals gave off enough light to show the path but not illuminate much else. I placed a tentative foot on it, slowly lowering my weight. It felt solid, but could it be an illusion? A trap set by Belphegor?
I stepped back and turned to face John. “No, I think we need more preparation before attempting to cross. We should go back to the group now and plan.”
“Good call,” he agreed. We began our gradual climb back to where Lucca and Father Vincent
e waited for us.
As we passed by the web, I noted the huge inhabitant looked content in the corner and still unconcerned with us. A short ways further, I noticed a trail of sorts that cut off toward the far end of the cavern. It looked overgrown and much narrower than the one John and I followed. Probably an old path that wasn’t used much, I decided and gave it no more thought.
We’d been in that cavern longer than I thought. The crevice allowing light inside became much dimmer as we made our way back out to find a dusky evening awaiting us. A few clouds streaked the sky with reflected red and gold shades that turned the valley golden as the sun dipped into the horizon. Shadows and shading transformed the colors of the variegated red stones to a multitude of tints.
I stood at the edge of the crevice and drank in the exquisite beauty of this wonderland. Turning to John, I said, “Your people lived amongst this beauty?”
His face softened in the glow as his mouth turned up into a gentle smile. “We did in a time long ago.”
John had reset the clamp on the door to our dimension as we came out so no one could tell we’d entered. That might be a problem for me unless I could find the door without him.
As we headed back to the camp, I walked alongside John and his horse with the priest and Lucca following a few yards behind us. I noticed Lucca had pulled out his phone to call his partner, but he’d waved it around a bit, evidently seeking a signal, then gave up and shut it. I pulled mine out and checked for any bars, but nothing came up. Dead zone.
I wondered about John’s connection to Gavin. How they’d become friends and where they might have met. Was he an archeologist also or maybe just an expert on Ute lore? Could I trust him?
I kept glancing at him as the questions spun in my mind. He’d said very little since we’d connected with him, yet he must be curious. How much had Gavin told him?
“You’re thinking too much,” John said as he caught me gazing at him again. “Say what’s on your mind, little hawk.”
“Hawk? What makes you say that?” I smiled in surprise at the comparison.
“You’re hunting something. That much is clear. So tell me about it.”
“How much did Gavin tell you?” I stepped a little closer to him so our voices didn’t carry back to the two behind us.
“Not very much,” he admitted. “Just that you would be coming here to seal a portal between our world and an underworld. He said you were chosen for it. Is that true?”
I snorted. “I guess you could say chosen, but it feels more like conscripted into the task.” I kicked at a stone along the path that bounced into the soil alongside it. John shot a disapproving look at me. “Oh yeah, the delicate environment. What happens when a sandstorm comes along?”
“Nature does her thing,” he said with a shrug.
“How close are you and Gavin?”
“Blood brothers,” he replied without hesitation.
“Really?”
“From many years ago. We went to college together and became close friends. Then he discovered I could work spells and spirit walk. He wanted to know more so we eventually ended up doing the blood ceremony.”
That stunned me a bit, but I could see Gavin doing it. He had such a thirst for knowledge that he probably considered his unnatural coma a learning experience.
“So, can I trust you to keep a secret?” I asked with a touch of hesitation.
Glancing at me, he raised an eyebrow and nodded.
“The others think we’ve only come here to seal the portal. But I have something I need to do first. Will I be able to find the door and the release on that connecting gate?”
How much did I need to tell him to get his cooperation?
“No, my spell deteriorates within a few hours,” he answered. “It wasn’t intended to be long term. I’ll open it again tomorrow.”
“Oh. I need to get back in before the others,” I said, my disappointment clear in my tone.
“Why?”
“It’s personal. I just need a head start in the morning.” I shifted my gaze to the canyon walls on the right where I could just get a glimpse of the river reflecting the sunset in it.
“Fair enough,” he replied. “I can get there early and cast it, I suppose. But I fear you may be about to do something dangerous.”
“Probably,” I answered. “But it’s necessary. I plan to leave for the mesa before daybreak. Before the others are up.”
He said nothing else until we came to a trail a short distance from the camp, then he stopped and turned to me. “I will be waiting inside the mesa for you. Be careful.” He pulled his horse toward the trail.
“You’re not staying at the camp?” I asked.
“No, my horse prefers it by the river.” He waved, then mounted, and the two of them rode to the north.
I resumed following the path as I thought what a curious man John Walker seemed to be. Within a few minutes, Lucca and Father Vincente caught up with me, and I explained John wanted to go by the river.
Lucca had questions about what we saw further in the cavern, but I held him off so I could tell everyone at the same time.
Straggling into camp as the sun dropped behind the peaks, I headed straight to the water supply to grab a drink. My canteen had run out before we’d made it half-way back. I took the time now to refill it as I watched Orielle cooking something at our kitchen set up. Likely hamburgers, the easiest thing to reheat from our supplies.
Lucca and Vincente joined up with Ferko to compare notes. I waved at Bob, who looked a little left out. Smiling, he came over. “How’d it go?” I asked.
“Not so well,” he answered with a half-shrug of a shoulder. “We didn’t find anything that looked like it could be a gateway or even a crawl space that might lead somewhere other than two feet into a rabbit’s home. How about you?”
I grinned. “We might have had some luck. I’ll tell everyone about it over dinner. Now, I’d better go give Orielle a hand getting it done.”
Before I did that, I paced a circle around our campsite burning incense and repeating a warding spell to protect us during the night. Confident the portal would take us to Belphegor, I wanted to be sure we weren’t attacked by yiaiwas or worse as we slept.
Then I joined Orielle, getting out the needed condiments and dishes for our meal. Instead of fries, we had crispy potato sticks and a fresh apple for dessert. Our hungry group gathered around a fire Lucca had started in a circle of rocks, and we sat on our sleeping bags.
With the sun going down, it was already beginning to grow chilly, and I hoped it wouldn’t get too cold during the night. As we chewed on our burgers, I pointed to the east where the mesa was barely visible. “We think that’s our best bet. There is one fissure in particular that we found, thanks to Father Vincente’s ability to divine evil.” Then, I told them what we’d found.
I mentioned John joining us and noted the puzzled look on Orielle’s face. When I asked her about it later, she shook it off, just saying that Gavin had never mentioned him to her. I said he hadn’t said anything to me either, but if he trusted John Walker to help us, then we could use the assist.
We talked a while longer about the stone bridge across to the portal and what we might need to cross it safely. Orielle questioned whether we couldn’t just seal the entry in the crevice wall and that would be enough.
“Maybe,” I replied. “But the second portal may be the real one, and it might be a mistake to overlook it.”
We discussed it a little longer, then turned in for the night. Before going to sleep, I gathered my jacket, my boots, and the supplies I thought I would need in the morning. That included my Muddy Girl gun and as much ammunition as I could carry. I may not be able to shoot the yiaiwa, but I could stop some of the other wildlife that might populate the lower dimension.
Snuggling down in my bag, I tucked my head in to keep warm and tried to sleep. I’d set the alarm on my phone, turned it down low, and placed it by my head so that I wouldn’t miss it in the morning.
> I needn’t have bothered.
I slept poorly. Between the chill and worrying about getting across the stone bridge, let alone what was on the other side, my rest was fitful at best.
I woke before the alarm, turned it off, then slid out of my bag as silently as I could. Using my phone for light, I checked my boots to make sure nothing had claimed one of them during the night, then pulled them on. As I tugged my jacket around me, I slipped out of the camp and started back toward the mesa.
Beneath the fading canopy of the universe, I reflected on my place in the cosmos. A tiny speck on a planet in the spiral of a galaxy. Talk about feeling insignificant. Yet, somehow I was selected for this battle on the basis of my voice. I couldn’t consider it unique. It hadn’t landed me a career, so what was special about it? The tone? The vibration?
I felt alone. An insignificant person on an impossible mission that would either liberate the soul of the one person I’d loved unconditionally for as long as I’d known her, or it would be the destruction of me. If I’d lost Janna’s soul, then mine might as well perish in the effort. I would never be able to live with the consequences.
A glow of light grew slowly over the eastern peaks as the sun began to rise. Ahead, the mesa filled my vision. I would be there in another fifteen minutes or so. I picked up my pace a little, eager to get started up the climb. As soon as day broke, the rest of the camp would be rising. I needed to be through that portal before they could reach this point. I realized Orielle would be angry as much as I knew she would deduce what I was doing.
“Gillian, wait!”
I heard the shout behind me and glanced over my shoulder. Lucca was hurrying to catch up. He must have seen me creep out of camp. I didn’t stop or slow. I didn’t need a confrontation with the Italian charmer.
He caught up with me by the time I reached the base.
“What are you doing?” he questioned. “Why didn’t you wait?”
I turned. “Go back to the others, Lucca. I have something I have to do that doesn’t involve the rest of you.”
A Song of Redemption Page 35