The Lady's Guide to Escaping Cannibals by Emmanuelle de Maupassant

Author:Emmanuelle de Maupassant [de Maupassant, Emmanuelle]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Hot Historical Romance
Published: 2020-08-23T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Extracting the lamp and tinder from his pack, Jorge held the lantern high, letting it illuminate the immediate walls of the cave’s interior. The entranceway was narrow but the passageway soon opened into a larger cavern, rising too far to be lit by the feeble flame.

There appeared no source of natural light from above, the upper reaches of the cave disappearing into blackness. Nor was there any noise to indicate the space opening outwards. Their own shuffling steps and the squeak of the lamp’s handle were the only sounds in the hushed space. The darkness ate not only light, but the small noises of their own movement. Only his own breathing seemed magnified, and that of Senhora Asquith.

She was shivering, he couldn’t help but notice—and not just from the cooler temperature within the rock, he was sure. Something here frightened her and, being honest with himself, he harboured a similar unease.

He could only hope that the map, concealed deep within the interior pocket of his breeches, was to be relied upon. “Stay close, and watch your footing. It may be slippery.”

She gave a brief nod, hugging her arms across her chest as she followed.

Within thirty steps, the floor beneath them rose and the ceiling dropped, so that he had to bend. The walls narrowed again, and he was obliged to move the cutlass to his other side, lest she brush against him.

As they continued, there were no obstacles to their progress. “Not bad so far, hmmm?” He held the lamp that she might see his face and he hers.

The clench of her jaw told him she remained anxious. That, and the fact that she’d said not a word since they’d entered the subterranean space. Another twenty paces and the way closed in considerably. Soon, the passage would be no more than a crevice and his shoulders would be too wide to allow him through.

He cast his mind back to the sketches upon the paper. Had he missed something? An opening in the wall somewhere behind them? In the strangely suffocated lantern light, his eyes might have played tricks. Where was the fork?

In his distraction, the lantern clacked against a jutting edge and he grazed his knuckle, cursing.

His pause brought her bumping into him. Uttering a slight gasp, she fastened her hands upon his arm, then drew them back.

“What is it?” Her voice was hoarse.

“Just a little narrow, but we’ll manage. You’re alright, yes?” He slipped the bag from his shoulders, moving it to his chest.

She nodded in reply, her eyes wide, shining a deeper gold in the lantern’s glow.

If it widens…

He’d push through as far as he could. If they had to turn back, it wouldn’t be his fault. And what was this for anyway? It was a fool’s errand, wasn’t it? In his heart, he knew. They wouldn’t find her brother at the end of this passageway, nor anywhere else.

Why then did he have the compulsion to continue? He might easily tell her he’d been mistaken and there was no way forward.

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