Shadow Cave (39 page)

Little by little my muscles began to come to life
,
and I sat up straight in my seat and turned to face Mark.

“
I think the venom is gone now.
”

He checked the clock on the dashboard and gave a brief nod.
“
That
’
s about right.
What happened back there?
”

“
I was waiting to return our skates and one of those…things…just appeared out of nowhere.
It circled several times and then it must have stung me.
Before I knew what was happening, I was pretty much incapacitated.
”

“
What happened to Phil?
”

“
Phil?
”

“
The track manager.
”

“
Oh.
He was safe the
last
time I saw him.
He tried to warn me, but it was too late.
He ran into the house.
”

“
That sounds like Phil, alright
,
”
Mark replied tensely.

“
There was nothing that he could have done.
”

“
Maybe not.
”

“
Definitely not.
He was at the top of the stairs and I was on the edge of the track surrounded by that time.
”

“
Why didn
’
t you run or yell for me, Annabelle?
You could have died.
”

“
I didn
’
t know what it was at first.
I didn
’
t feel it sting me either.
Not the first time anyway.
The second one hurt.
”

“
The venom makes your skin more sensitive in large doses.
You were probably stung a lot more than two times
...more
like twenty times.
”

“
Twenty?
Are you sure?
”

“
There were a lot of them.
”

“
What were those things?
”

“
You really don
’
t know?
”
He frowned.

“
No.
”

“
Scavengers
,
”
he
finally said.
“
Kahn
’
s scavengers.
It
’
s highly unusual to see that many of them in one place
,
though.
”

“
Why is that?
Don
’
t scavengers usually travel in packs?
”

“
Not these guys.
They are not very intelligent animals.
They
’
re not known for being well organized, either.
Typically, they prey on animals, not people.
”

“
That is strange
,
”
I replied absently.
A terrifying idea was beginning to take shape.

“
Their venom only last
s
a few minutes
—
maybe ten minutes tops.
They weaken their victims for the retrievers.
”

Retrievers?
I was not sure if I even wanted to know what the retrievers were.
But I was sure that
Mark
was going to tell me, so I remained silent and stared straight ahead
.

“
Do you know what the retrievers are?
”

“
No.
”
More silence.

“
Do you want to know what the retrievers are?
”
he
asked slowly.

“
Not really, no.
”

“
Well, they are not as bad as the Naule.
”

“
Humph.
”
I shifted in my seat and pressed my lips into a thin line.
I
’
d had enough for one day.
At that moment I did not want to hear another word about Kahn, the Naule, the scavengers, or any other beast.
I was covered in scrapes and bruises and had gravel in places better left unsaid.
I just wanted to go home and take a hot shower.

We were half way through the forest when the first howl sounded in the distance.
I jerked forward in the seat.

“
What was that?
”
I demanded.

“
Shit.
Hang on.
”
Mark hit the gas and the car shot forward through the trees.
I dared to glance at the speedometer.
We were at ninety miles per hour and the needle continued to climb.
I took a deep breath and fixed my gaze on the center console.
Anything was better than watching the trees fly past in a green blur.
I was careful not to look at the speedometer again
,
too.
I added
‘
how fast we are going
’
to my mental list of things that I did not want to know.
Two more mournful howls sounded in
th
e approaching night
,
and I glanced worriedly at Mark.

“
What is that?
”
I shouted over the noise of the engine.

“
The retrievers.
”

“
Wolves?
”

“
No.
”

“
Dogs.
”

“
Not exactly
,
”
he
hedged.

“
Oh man.
”
I was fast learning that when the people of
Terlain
did not quite know how to describe something
,
it was bad.

The small dog in the middle of the road took us both by surprise.
It was a golden furred animal with round dark eyes in an even more rounded face.
It was actually very cute.

“
Don
’
t hit it!
”
I cried out.

Marks swerved around the animal and nearly lost control of the car in the process.
We missed a large oak tree by a matter of inches.
I was thrown roughly against the dash as he struggled to regain control of the vehicle.

“
Ouch!
”
I rubbed my bruised wrist for a second before resuming my death grip on the door handle.
“
Hell with it
...
hit it next time!
”

“
That is a very bad idea!
”
he
yelled back.
He glanced at the rearview mirror and went pale all of a sudden.

“
Mark?
What is it?
What
’
s wrong?
”
I craned my neck to see what had spooked him so bad.
“
What is the matter?
It
’
s just the dog.
He is trying to follow us.
He must be lost.
I think that we can slow down now.
”
Before you kill us both
, I silently added.

“
That
’
s no dog, Annabelle.
It
’
s a retriever.
”

I turned back to get a better look at the animal.
I noticed that it looked remarkably similar to the golden retriever breed of puppy that was so popular in my world.
Of course it was much smaller and more round in the face than a true golden retriever.

“
That tiny thing?
You have got to be…
.
”
I
trailed
off and gripped the back of the seat as the dog began to take on an entirely new and sinister shape.
The
tiny
muscles along its back began to bulge and shift.
Its soulful howl became a bone
-
chilling snarl as it transformed before my eyes.
The animals head elongated and its eyes became black slits in its lean face.

“
Oh, my God
!
”

“
Don
’
t look at it.
Just hang on.
”

“
I
t
’
s half the size of the car, Mark!
”
It was also fast and gaining on us by the second.
I dropped back into my seat and gripped the armrest until my knuckles turned white.

“
Plan?
”
I croaked.

“
We just have to get to the fence.
”

A break in the trees ahead revealed a telltale shimmer.

“
How far?
”
I swallowed.

“
A hundred yards that way, give or take.
”

“
We are never going to make it.
Slow down.
”

“
Have you lost your mind?
”

“
I am serious.
Slow down to sixty
-
five or seventy and get off of the road.
It will have a harder time following us if we put trees between us.
”

Mark glanced in the mirror again and nodded.
“
You
’
re right.
”
He eased his foot off of the gas pedal and the car began to slow.
“
There should be a spot up ahead where the trees break off.
”

“
Hurry Mark!
”

“
Right there!
”
He steered the car towards the empty space to the left.

The be
a
st appeared seemingly out of thin air in front of us.
Its massive paws thudded against the ground in front of the car, effectively blocking our path.
The beast that had been chasing us stopped behind the car and began to casually lick its paw.
There was nothing else for
Mark
to do but hit the brakes.
Swerving in either direction would have meant crashing into a tree at fifty
-
five miles an hour.
Mark
’
s hands gripped the steering wheel while I still clutched the dashboard.

“
What now?
”
I whispered without taking my eyes from the be
a
st in front of us.

Before Mark could answer me, the retriever at the front of the car bared its teeth and lashed out with one paw.

I screamed as the entire front bumper gave way.

“
Get out of the car!
”
Mark ordered.
“
Get out now!
”

I reached for the door handle without a second thought and had one foot on the ground when I felt
Mark
pull me back.
The retriever lunged at the car again and the next thing I knew, we were air borne.

“
Get down!
”
He wedged me into the driver
’
s seat next to him.
We hit the ground with enough force to knock us into the back seat. Blood rushed to my head and I was disoriented for a minute before reality set it.
The car was upside down.

“
Mark!
Are you ok
ay
?
”

“
Are you?
”

“
I think so.
”
But not for long
, I thought in horror as I watched the retrievers approach.