The Jewels of Jezebel (The Reluctant Hero Series Book 2) Page 5

  Magena made a dive to try to grab hold of his leg or foot, as he let out a high-pitched screech, which threw her off. She closed her hand, just missing his pant leg. “Daniel!” she screamed, as her body hit the ground with her arm extended into the now visible hole where the leaves once were.

  She felt intense horror as his screams suddenly stopped. “Oh Daniel.”

  ***

  Daniel was in the hole.

  He felt his entire body ache, as he slowly pulled himself up from the large pile of sand that he found himself in. He landed face down into it and was spitting out sand, while wiping his face and checking his body to see if anything was broken. He seemed fine, but it was too dark to tell for sure.

  Looking up, he couldn’t see any light coming down from where he fell. He couldn’t even see the top. “Mags!” No answer. He waited, as he tilted his head to listen with one ear. He called out again, “Magena!” The hole was too deep, and he was too far down in the hole. He heard nothing, but his irregular, hard breathing. No other sounds of any kind.

  He felt around the wall, as to where he could stand to get out of the sand in case Magena decided to jump in after him.

  She didn’t.

  After a while, his eyes began to adjust. He could only see about a foot in all directions around him. It was darker than any room he had ever been in during his entire life. He needed to relax. He stepped a few steps to the right, and leaned against the wall and waited until his eyes got used to the darkness. He looked up again, but could see nothing above his head. “Light would be really good about now,” he said aloud.

  Almost as if on cue, several sconces on the wall lit up. They brightened, then settled down to a normal flame. He could now see where he was. He was in a cavern. It looked to be about as square as the hole appeared to be round—thirty feet square. He saw that the walls were polished so that they actually had a reflection to them. He knew it wasn’t ordinary rock or clay. It was precious stone. There was a huge door that looked different. It was completely bare of any writings or drawings that might have identified it. He did not trust the door and felt frightened. He looked around and realized that there weren’t any other ways out of the cavern except the door, so he approached it.

  Studying it, he estimated that it was at least twenty feet high. Was it for a giant?

  It looked like metal, but was scratchy like a plant material. It was rough with small splinters of wood protruding up from the surface. He couldn’t find a knob, because of the darkness. So he ran his fingers along every inch of the door that he could, searching for a knob. He did it lightly, so as not to trigger an undesirable effect, like possibly setting off an alarm. He had to pull his hand back several times, as he accumulated splinters. Pulling the splinters out, Daniel checked his wounds in his hands to make sure that the area was clear of infection or discoloration.

  He finally had a strong feeling that the door was the trap. Not finding a handle or doorknob, he pushed on the door with both hands. It didn’t budge. He groaned and swore.

  “Maybe you should try harder,” came a familiar voice from behind him.

  He jumped in surprise and quickly turned to see Magena standing by the back wall, with her arms crossed akimbo in front of her. Crossing his arms behind him, he guarded his painful hands. “How…? Did you jump from the top?” he mumbled.

  She laughed, as she shook her head. “No. I didn’t have to. There was a tree growing out from inside the other hole. I found an opening behind the tree. Do you want to go back out that way with me?”

  “No.” He showed her the door. “This door may lead to the jewels. If not, it is a hint of where we’ll find the jewels, so I’m going through it.” He smirked. “Since you seem to know your way around here, maybe you can take a crack at opening this door, and help me push.”

  ***

  Magena looked in amazement at the size and structure of the fragmented door. She first approached it with complete admiration of the craftsmanship. “I’m thinking Masons. I mean, they were the only ones in this time frame who were infatuated with creating things like this.”

  “I’ve heard of the Masons!” Daniel exclaimed. “They were big on creating really crazy puzzles and underground caverns. Maybe they assembled this underground enclosure. Do you think this will lead us to the jewels of Jezebel?”

  Magena stood back from the door with her hands on her hips. It was big. She had a feeling of discouragement. “I don’t know. We have two problems here. One is the fact that this has all been relatively easy getting to this point. The other is that this door doesn’t seem like it wants us to open it.”

  Daniel narrowed his eyes at the door. “Why do you say that? Do you see something I don’t?”

  “Probably,” she returned. She pointed around the edge of the door. “Look here. Do you see the rust? This door has been closed for so long that the rock frame is fused to it in some areas. It is almost as if the framework has fallen in on some parts due to the fact that it’s not made by a professional. If it was a skilled worker, the rocks would be stable.”

  “Interesting observation.”

  She opened the message once again. She had to be careful, since it was starting to fall apart. “Okay. I’m looking over this frustrating poem again. I think there are only a couple of things in here that might pertain to this door. Let’s not dismiss the possibility that some lines in the poem may pertain to more than one thing.” She looked up. “What do you think?”

  Daniel rolled his eyes as he ran his fingers along the edge of the door frame once again to see if he could find anything that indicated a way to open it. “I don’t think so.”

  “It is possible,” she said, and mumbled the poem so it was barely audible. “Fewer steps and fewer still. Hmm. Nope. Nothing. Peaceful triumph will not last. Triumph has to refer to someone winning something or accomplishing something. We haven’t done either of those things. The part about the trinkets is self-explanatory.”

  “What are you mumbling about over there?” Daniel asked, as he continued to run his fingers around the door frame. “I could use some help here, you know.”

  Magena looked up, as if he was a distraction. “What? Oh. Yeah. I’m trying to help by deciphering this poem.”

  “I’ve got to tell you, Mags,” he replied. “For someone so intelligent, sometimes you miss the obvious when it is right in front of your nose.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Don’t you get it? We won’t know what applies to our situation from the poem until that situation actually pops up in front of us. Since nothing is popping up here…”

  She had a look of realization. “Then the poem doesn’t apply to this situation. Gotcha. Boy, do I feel stupid now. Nice catch, Daniel.”

  He laughed. “Of course. Now can you help me?”

  She grinned. Nodding, she carefully put the poem away. Another small piece fell off as she folded it. She grimaced and hoped that she wouldn’t have to bring it out too many more times.

  There was a landslide behind her and the entrance by the tree closed. It felt like someone slugged her in the stomach.

  Magena joined Daniel at the door. He took the left side and Magena took the right. Neither could reach the top of the door, so they focused on what they could reach.

  After what felt like several hours of examining the door, Magena stopped. She had pressed her fingertips into the ridge around the doorway too many times, and her fingers were bleeding.

  Daniel took his first aid kit out of his backpack and carefully treated her fingers with antiseptic, while she looked at their obstacle as if it were an enemy who impeded their progress. She glared at the door and felt defeated. “What are we doing, Daniel?”

  He glanced up at her, while he tended her wounds. “Well, I’m putting peroxide and Band-Aids on you, while you’re giving the door stank eye.”

  “I mean this whole thing,” she replied with disgust in her voice. “How did we get sucked into this whole mess and what can we do to get out of
it?”

  Daniel finishes bandaging her fingers, let out a sigh, and looked at the door. “It’s kind of symbolic. Don’t you think? Ever since we’ve been brought together, our lives have been like that door. One impossible mission after another. I try not to think about it in detail, because I know I’ll go nuts if I do. We don’t have a choice, Mags. If we don’t do this, we could get killed. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to die.”

  Magena tried unsuccessfully to hold her tears back. “Doesn’t all of this get to you? I mean really frustrate you?”

  “Yeah,” he said, quietly. “Yeah, it does. I always used to be the one who clowned around and never took responsibility seriously. I took advantage of the fact that I was a spoiled brat. Yeah, I said it! Now I know, that’s not how the world works. You can’t be oblivious to life for too long or it will bite you on your you-know-what.”

  She managed a smile. “I bet you regret meeting me now. I mean, I probably represent bad luck to you.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Nope. If I hadn’t met you and gotten involved in this insanity. I never would have started to grow up… a little. Despite the fear of getting whacked, it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

  Her eyes sparkled. “Are you saying I’m the best thing that ever happened to you?”

  He smiled. “You don’t listen too good, but okay. We’ll go that way.”

  Daniel looked up at the area where Magena was searching on the door. “No way! Do you see it?”

  She shook her head. “See what?”

  He rushed over to the doorway and examined the spot where she was running her fingers. “Mags! The rock has been eaten away or something! Right where you were looking!”

  She practically ran over to him and examined the area herself. “I don’t understand it. What could have…?” She then knew. Looking down at her hands, she grimaced. “Ewww!”

  “Well, that’s a girl thing to say,” he said, with surprise. He then looked at her hands and looked at the area that had been eaten away on the door frame. “Wow. It looks like this whole scenario just got weirder and that’s saying a lot.”

  He walked up to the door and looked closer at the door frame. “Yep. For some strange reason, you found the way through this door.”

  “You’re crazy!” she yelled. “I am not going through this! We’re not in a horror movie!”

  He shrugged. “Maybe not, but either way… it looks like your blood can open this door.”

  Suddenly, she felt surrounded. She had had this feeling before. Someone was nearby. Someone who was watching their every move. She thought she heard an eerie laughter. She shook it off and refused to get spooked.

  Chapter Ten

  “That is so cool!”

  Daniel had cut his finger on one of the sharp rocks he found. He used the droplets of his blood and spread them around the doorway. He only did that, after Magena protested about using her blood to open a door that led to who-knew-where.

  He could touch the doorway everywhere except the top of the door. It was out of reach for him. Once he rubbed his blood on every inch of the doorway that he could, he stood back and used the first aid kit on his own hands.

  “I couldn’t reach the top, but if we get most of the doorway cleared out, we should be able to take care of the top ourselves.”

  Magena puffed out her cheeks and placed her hand over her mouth. “I’m seriously going to be sick. That’s the most disgusting thing I think I’ve ever seen.”

  “Think of it like we’re in a movie,” Daniel replied, with excitement. “Go with the flow, but keep your eyes open all the time. This is amazing!”

  Magena preferred to close her eyes, while Daniel basked in the experience. He watched patiently and was well rewarded for his patience. The area where he had smeared his blood, started to crumble and crack. Pieces of ancient rock fell to the earth. There was about a quarter of an inch separating the door from the door frame, when all was done.

  He positioned his face against the door so that he could see with one eye into the newly exposed crack. He felt a cool rush of air hitting his face from the other side, which was pitch black. “Mags. I’m getting hit with fresh air from the other side. What does that mean?”

  She took time out of her disgust, to open her eyes and rush to his side. Placing her hand over a different part of the crack, she could feel it as well. “You’re right! That means there’s a way out of here through that door!”

  He nodded, as he stepped back and looked up at the elusive top of the door again. He then sighed. “Mags.”

  She was used to him calling her that and had no problem answering to it this time. “Yes?”

  He pointed to the top of the door. “We’re not done yet. We have to work together to get the top part. You know what that means. Right?”

  With no expression, she looked at the top of the door, then at Daniel. Then at the top of the door again. “No! No way! I am not using my blood to get that top part taken care of!”

  “Where’s your sense of adventure?” he added. “You can sit on my shoulders. That should be high enough to…!”

  “What part of no do you not understand?” she replied, with anger and frustration. “I am sick of this… stuff!” Her lower lip quivered. “I can’t do it anymore, Daniel.”

  He saw the pleading in her eyes and calmed down. “Alright. Yeah. Okay. You’re right. There’s probably some more weirdness on the other side of that door anyhow. We definitely don’t want to face that.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Thank you. I’m glad you understand.”

  “Sure,” he continued. “We can live comfortably the rest of our lives right here in front of this slivered metal door. We don’t need to get out. That will sure fool everyone! Hah! We’ll just sit here until we starve or die of dehydration. Maybe an animal or six will eat us.”

  He let out a huff. She knew what he was doing, but she didn’t want to admit that he was right. She was scared and completely out of her element. Daniel seemed to fit right in to what they were going through. In spite of her gut instincts, she knew that she had to let Daniel take the lead under these circumstances.

  “Jerk,” she said, as she motioned him to go to her with both hands.

  He lowered her gently back down to the dandy ground, as she wiped the excess blood off of her hand.

  Once on terra firma, she looked up at her handiwork. Daniel also stood in silence, as they waited for the same thing to happen to the top of the frame that happened with the sides.

  Each took a deep breath and held it, as the sound of rocks grinding together became apparent. The sound became louder. Sand and pieces of rock fell from the top of the doorway, but the door didn’t budge.

  After several minutes, Magena looked disappointed. “Great.”

  “Wait a minute Mags!” Daniel said, with a smile. “You’re supposed to be the positive one. Your attitude is not very attractive right now.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “Do I have to go over this again? I’m sorry, but I don’t know how much longer I can…”

  Before she could finish her sentence, the sound of metal scraping against rock echoed throughout the area. Both Daniel and Magena put their hands over their ears to try and damper the sound.

  He pulled the stunned Magena back by gently tugging on her arms. She was in shock that their plan actually worked. She didn’t know whether to be more surprised or disgusted at the use of blood.

  Her mind tried to comprehend being thrown into some kind of Indiana Jones adventure. She had faith in things she could not see, but her situation was pushing the boundaries of believability. Everything she was ever taught was being torn apart right before her eyes.

  As soon as the metal door cleared the doorway, it started to fall forward. Daniel had no choice but to push Magena out of the way. He dove after her, just missing the top of the door from hitting his leg. The door landed with a thunderous thud, while pushing out sand and small rocks with the force of l
anding. After the dust settled, Daniel looked up with his eyes narrowed. Magena quickly got off of the ground and brushed the sand off of her clothing as best she could. While she was preoccupied with getting herself cleaned off, Daniel was more interested with what was behind the door.

  He inched his way to the entrance of some kind of underground cavern. There were rock stairs that led down from the entrance. The stairwell was narrow and only about 3 feet wide. He saw a faint flickering light on the lower level.

  “Mags,” he whispered, so quietly that she almost didn’t hear him. He repeated it when she didn’t respond. “Mags.”

  She looked up and saw him in front of the entrance. Her breathing became erratic, as she stood frozen with fear.

  He turned and saw her fear, so he walked back to her and put his hands on her shoulders. “We have to do this. You know that. Right?”

  She quickly nodded and checked her pack. Pulling out her flashlight, she responded, “I’m… okay. I can do this. We need to find the Jewels of Jezebel and even the Shroud. Hopefully they’ll both be in a nice little bundle inside that… whatever it is.”

  Daniel thought about his final research of the Shroud, and assumed it was true. But he said nothing.

  “There’s a stairwell about 3 feet wide,” he replied. “We can make it. I’ll only do it if you’re sure.” He couldn’t contain his own trepidation about entering the cavern. He was hoping she would back out and then they could find another way out.

  Daniel retrieved his flashlight as well and smiled. “I’ll go first. That way you can see that everything’s fine. We’re going to be alright. I promise.”

  She sighed. Despite the way he had been treating her since they met, his words seemed to comfort her now. She needed comfort. He needed to give her something to let her know that she wasn’t going crazy. He stopped and smiled. She nodded with a smile of her own, which relieved him. He looked back at the doorway and took in a deep breath. Letting it out slowly, he started forward, turning on his flashlight once again.