rustled under their feet. Tree branches scraped slowly across the tin roof of the maze house, making them both cringe.
“Man, that’s a horrible sound,” Terry said. “Like nails on a chalkboard.”
Tom tugged on Terry’s arm.
“What’s up?” Terry asked.
“Just had a thought. What if they’re inside the maze? Maybe Cecil had some kind of spell, got disoriented and is stuck in there?”
“Shit. I hadn’t considered that.” Terry raised his head and called out. “Cecil? Russ? Tina? It’s Terry and Tom! You guys in there?”
Again, the darkness seemed to muffle his echoes. Then they heard a new sound.
“
“Jesus Christ!” Tom dropped his flashlight. It rolled away across the forest floor.
“That sounded like Tina,” Terry said. “But where is she? Tina! Tina, are you there? Sound off, hon!”
“
Tom retrieved his flashlight and made sure the lens wasn’t cracked. “Sounds like it’s far away.”
“It’s coming from that direction.” Terry shined his light into the woods. “Come on.”
Dispensing with caution, they charged deeper into the forest. Branches tugged at their clothing and whipped their faces. In the darkness, the foliage twisted into sinister, menacing shapes. Tree limbs became outstretched, grasping arms. Late-season ferns became claws thrusting up from the dirt. Roots became serpents. Terry’s flashlight beam glanced across a blurred, moving shape. White teeth flashed amidst the black.
“The fuck was that?”
“Just an animal,” Tom panted. “A coyote or a fox, probably.”
“I didn’t see any eyes,” Terry said. “The light should have reflected off its eyes.”
Pausing, he shined the beam around the area, but the creature was gone. The woods grew colder.
“Could be rabid,” Tom said.
Terry frowned. “Rabies makes their eyes nonreflective? What kind of bullshit is that, Tom?”
“It could. You don’t know. You weren’t a veterinarian last time I checked.”
“
“We’re coming!” Terry shouted.
They started running again, following Tina’s frantic cries. The strange sound-dampening effect cleared. Her wails became clearer as they got closer. Several times, they heard branches snapping behind them, but neither man turned around. Instead, they just ran faster.
“It’s just a fox,” Tom repeated. “Probably as scared of us as we were of it.”
“If it is,” Terry gasped, “then it’s the first one we’ve had around here. That and the whip-poor-will.”
Pressing on, they smelled a faint hint of burned wood. Soon, the terrain sloped downward and the vegetation cleared. The towering, looming trees turned into splintered, broken stumps. In the darkness, they looked like broken stone pillars. The ground beneath their feet grew softer, like they were jogging on baby powder. Terry coughed, tasting ashes in the back of his throat. The darkness deepened, becoming almost palatable.
“Terry?”
“What?”
“You know where we are, don’t you?”
“Yeah.”
Tina’s voice rose out of the darkness, very close by. She sounded weak and tired. “Terry? Tom?”
“We’re here,” Terry yelled. “Where are you?”
“I’m here. Just a little farther. Please hurry.”
“Are you okay? Are Russ and Cecil with you?”
“Yes, we’re all here.”
“Hurry up,” Cecil called. He also sounded like he was in bad shape.
They shined their flashlights ahead of them, sweeping the darkness, but saw nothing. The beams did nothing to dispel the gloom. It was as if the night had become a solid wall, and the beams of light were bouncing off it.
“Terry,” Tom whispered, stepping closer, “I don’t like this. My butt is puckering.”
“I don’t like it either. Something’s not right here. I can’t see shit.”
“Then what the hell are we doing? Let’s get out of here.”
“Where are you?” Tina called.
“Coming,” Terry shouted. “Just give us a minute. It’s hard to see.”
“Yes.” This time it was Russ who spoke. “There is no light.”
