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| As she listened closely, she discovered that the voice was a male's, and determined that the words that were being spoken were in Latin. It was Ramon who was doing the talking! Was he praying? She felt somewhat guilty now, because she thought that she had discovered him in yet another one of his secret places of worship, and that he should be able to have at least some private moments to himself without invasion. Oh when am I ever going to learn to give the poor man his peace, and just leave him alone! she chastised herself accusingly. But just as she was about to leave, realizing that she may have been there too long, the door swung open and trapped her against the dirt wall behind her, where the tunnel ended. She could hear Ramon's hand fumbling above the doorway, and the sound of what seemed like a very large key being taken from the top of the doorframe. Next, he slammed the door, locked it, then replaced the key, but turned to leave so quickly that he didn't notice her in the dark. And as he nonchalantly walked away and turned the corner in the tunnel to go up the stairs, her heart was in her mouth. Even though she could hear him ascend the steep passage, she still couldn't bring herself to call out to him. But while she wrestled with the thought, she finally heard him slam the iron door shut at the top of the landing. The sound had such a final ring to it, that she let out a small cry, but apparently it had not been heard. Her first instinct was to just rush up the steps and try to stop him--but how embarrassing it would be! If he was ever going to feel comfortable enough to confide in her in the future, this foolish action would erase all chances of that ever happening. So, she decided against it. But, what would she do now? Was it possible that she could be stuck down in the darkness of the cave all night, maybe 'til the next day? Yet, it might not have to come to that, after all. She was pretty good with locks, since she had learned quite a lot about the art of locksmith'ery from her former boyfriend, Billy (who had a questionable reputation), so she thought it also might be possible to be able to free herself without any help. There just had to be a way. After all, there was the key above the doorway, and who knew what could lie beyond the door? She might be able to find something inside that she could use to try to make a device which could be improvised to make her escape with, later. If not, then perhaps her hairpin or the cross that she was wearing might prove to be useful enough service in themselves, and the key above the door might be able to fit the upstaris door, as well. For surely, she wasn't going to give herself away until she had no other choice; so she tried to tell herself that everything would be all right. Undoubtedly, someone would come to search for her eventually, if she couldn't find a way to get out of this mess herself. At least Adrian would probably guess where she was, if it was found that she was missing, and would come to look for her in the daytime, if the worst came to the worst. Having taken so long with making the decision, it was too late for her to change her mind, anyway, so the next best course of action was to try the key. She took the key from above the doorway, and then she made her way up the steps with her flashlight, and began to examine the old iron-grated door. After fumbling around with the key for a while, she discovered it wouldn't work, so she tried to use one of her hairpins, but it was of no use against the inner-workings of the heavy mechanisms in the lock. She, then, thought of trying to use her cross to defeat the stubborn thing with, but before taking the chance of ruining that precious item, she wanted to see if she could find something else on the other side of the door downstairs, which might be able to be used to accomplish her task with. Besides, she had the key to unlock that door, at least. So, she went back down.... Since her eyes had adjusted to the dark some, and there was light enough from the keyhole to find it, she turned off the flashlight to conserve its power, and stuck the key in its proper place. Although the key was very old and covered with rust, it caught in the lock and turned it easily. At least that's one thing that went right! she thought, sighing with relief. Then, with great care and a little apprehension, she slowly opened the door to see what was on the other side. A single candle burned on top of a mound of former ones, in a carved out section of the wall to her right, illuminating the large room, partly allowing her to see the crude masonry of mud and good-sized rocks which formed the inside of the structure. To the far left of the room was a stone platform that extended from the wall, with its base resting on the floor. It seemed to resemble a bench or a pallet of some sort, but in the half-light she was unable to see it very clearly. However, then she noticed something else. Just what was that large heap of white fluff lying on the top of it? It could have been an animal--maybe the creature she was seeking! But she couldn't think of any animal so white in color that would be harmful in this part of the world, so she disregarded the fear. Was it possible that the platform could be used to store wool on, which might have been left over from the previous summer, to keep it off the dampness of the floor for the winter? She had been told that wool was one of the major industries of people of Catalonia, so it would make sense since they had livestock on the propery. With this explanation in mind, she cautiously approached the area to investigate further, wondering why anybody would want to keep such storage under lock and key so far away from town. Perhaps the ground's "help" wasn't as trustworthy as thought, so something might have to be done about it. But could nothing be found in this dim area to pick the lock with, other than all the fluffy stuff on the platform? There just had to be some kind of tool, even a nail embedded in the stones somewhere.... But where? |
| Sample Excerpt of Wrath of Angels: Robin in the Snow by Elizabeth I. Warner (part of Chapter 12) |