anymore.”
Dwight shrugged, still avoiding her eyes. “I guess.”
Elina probed further. “What do you do here? I mean besides overseeing the torture.”
“I do whatever he needs me to do.”
“So Mr. Vale… he’s the big boss man in town. Does everyone in Beckon do what he tells them to do?”
Dwight shook his head. “It’s not what you think. You don’t know what it’s like here. We have to do what he tells us or… or we’ll die.”
“Really,” Elina said. “He has that much power? He’s keeping you here against your will?”
“Well… not exactly.”
“So then you could leave if you wanted to?”
“Not exactly.”
Elina sighed. “Dwight, you’re not making any sense.”
“It’s complicated.”
Just then Miguel’s voice came from across the passage.
Dwight’s face puckered in a quizzical frown. “
“That’s what they all think,” Elina said. “Can you blame them? You kidnapped them. You brought them to your little town here and locked them up in your dungeon. You tell me what happens to them.”
Dwight shrugged. “Well, they get eaten, of course.”
“That’s what they just—”
“But not by
Elina backed away from the door. “What are you talking about?”
Dwight sighed. “Look, I wish I could help you. I really do. If it were up to me… you don’t belong here. You don’t deserve this.”
“What do you mean, ‘they get eaten’? What’s going on here?”
Dwight stared at the ground for a moment. He looked over his shoulder and then leaned close. “There’s something in the caves. Something… terrible.”
“What are you talking about?” Elina hadn’t been prepared for this. Whatever was going on in this place, she was more concerned now that this Dwight fellow was mentally unstable.
“Believe me, the less you know, the better.”
“Please, just let us out.”
“I can’t.” Dwight shook his head. “He’ll kill me.”
“
“I told you, I
Elina was losing her patience. “You’re a doctor! How can you be involved in this? If you don’t help us, then you’re a murderer, too—you know that, don’t you?”
“No,” Dwight said. “I… I haven’t killed anyone.”
“Yes, you have. You know what’s going on here—you’re a part of it. And you could let us go, but you’re choosing not to. You’re just as guilty as Vale in all of this. Whatever’s going on here,
“No!” Dwight backed away from the door. “You don’t know me. You don’t know anything about me.”
Elina stepped forward. “I think I do. You might’ve been a good person once. Before you came here.”
“Stop it.” Dwight moved farther away.
“So what happened to you? What turned you into a murderer?”
“I told you, I’m
“It’s your choice, Dwight. You don’t have to do this.”
“No, it’s not. I can’t help you….”
Elina moved closer still, feeling a certain boldness despite her circumstances. “Do you really think no one will ever find out about this place? You think you’ll get away with this forever?”
Dwight stammered, “I… I have to leave.” He turned and disappeared up the tunnel.
“Dwight!” Elina called after him. “You
Her voice echoed into the darkness, but Dwight didn’t return. The other captives were shouting after him as well. Some cursing. Others wailing.
Elina slumped against her door, fighting back tears. Praying desperately. A feeling of dread wrapped around her like the darkness of the prison. She felt utterly alone. Buried so deep that no one would ever find her. All she had left inside her was a faint sliver of hope, like a thread suspending her over a vast abyss.
She’d prayed for several minutes when she heard voices in the corridor. One of the prisoners was pleading for help. She lifted her head. Had the doctor returned?
She heard a male voice call out in English, “Where are you?”
Next she heard a woman’s voice. “Here, George. Help me open it.”
Elina stood and pressed her face against the bars of her door. She could hear someone rattling one of the door handles.
“They’re all locked,” the man said. “We have to try to find the key.”
They sounded close by.
“We’ll get you out…. Don’t be afraid,” came the woman again. “We’ll find the key.”
Elina called, “Who are you? What are you doing here?”
She could see the beam of a flashlight swinging back and forth in the corridor.
Elina reached her hand through the window. “Who are you?”
She heard footsteps as someone approached her cell. It was the woman. She stopped right outside the door and clutched Elina’s fingers.
“Oh my… don’t worry. We’re going to get help.”
“How did you get down here?” Elina said.
The man arrived, carrying the flashlight. “We were snooping around the lodge and found this tunnel in the basement. It’s hidden. We’re… we’re just guests there.”
He sounded kind… and Elina knew it could be a trap, but she could barely keep her hopes in check. She had to try, anyway.
“Guests? You know Thomas Vale?”
“Yes, he invited us here,” the woman said.
“Then listen to me. You’re in danger too. You need to get out and call the FBI. You can’t trust him. You can’t trust any of them. None of the people in this town.”
“Who are you? Why did they lock you up down here?”
“I’m a police officer—from Los Angeles. My name is Elina Gutierrez. I was investigating a kidnapping. I followed the van here and they captured me.” Elina spoke quickly. “You need to contact the FBI. They’re engaged in some kind of human trafficking here. There’s something horrible going on.”
The man with the flashlight was searching the corridor. “We can’t get these doors open. We have to go back and find the keys.”
“Please help us,” Elina pleaded. “You have to get help right away. Don’t trust them. Don’t trust any of them.”
The woman squeezed Elina’s fingers. “We’ll get you out of here. Don’t worry. We’ll get you out.”
Elina couldn’t control her emotions any longer, and tears flooded her eyes. “I was praying that someone would find us. I was praying He would send someone to save us.”
The woman leaned in and said softly, “He heard you.” She was crying too. “God heard you.”
“We need to go—now.” The man’s voice sounded urgent.
“Listen to me,” Elina said. “Be careful. There’s something in the caves. They said there’s something terrible down there.”
“Don’t worry,” the man said as they started back up the tunnel. “We’ll contact the FBI as soon as we can.”
