Dark Descent (Dark #11)(5)
Author: Christine Feehan

"Hey! I can swim," Jubal objected. He ran his hand over the rocks, frowning as he did so. "Just because I don’t like to swim doesn’t mean I can’t. I wasn’t born with gills like the two of you. She’s found something, Gabrielle. This is a pattern, but it needs to be…" He trailed off, dug his fingers around several of the smaller rocks, and began to rearrange them.

"There’s a surprise," Gabrielle said and rose to her feet also. The cool mountain air fairly vibrated with excitement. "You could always come and research hot viruses with me," she invited, slinging her arm around her brother.

"Yeah, I’ll get right on that, Gabrielle, because I’m a crazy man and want to die a miserable, but noble, death," Jubal said, ruffling his sister’s dark hair. "I think I’ll stick to my stocks and bonds and let you do your wacko research all by yourself. There it goes. Wow, look at that." The crack widened when he placed the last rock in the sequence. "This is man-made, not natural. Damn it, Joie, don’t go in." He snagged his backpack and pulled out a logbook, carefully entering the time. "We’re just doing a cursory exploration, and it’s nearly sunset. No one knows where we are." Muttering, he hastily anchored the logbook near the crack where his sister had slipped inside.

Gabrielle shouldered her gear and followed. "It’s extremely tight, Jubal," she cautioned. "Pass me your gear; it’s the only way you’re going to get through."

Jubal took one last look at the sky, noting that the clouds that had been floating so lazily overhead were now spinning ominously, a gathering of a great force. His chest scraped as he maneuvered through the jagged crack and into the narrow hall. Behind him the wind rose in a sudden shriek, lashing at the mountain, while strange, haunting cries echoed off the peaks. Mist swirled around the mountaintop, a mini tornado that snatched the logbook and sent it skittering down the hillside to land in one of the many bogs, where it slowly sank beneath the dark waters.

Joie moved quickly through the narrow hall, well ahead of her brother and sister. The ceiling dropped with every foot, so she was forced to bend over, eventually crawling on all fours and then sliding on her stomach. She could feel the cool air coming from a subterranean chamber. Everything inside her demanded she keep going, even when she had to maneuver her body at odd angles to slither through the tunnel.

"Slow down, Joie," Jubal cautioned. "Stay within sight of us."

"I don’t like the way she’s acting," Gabrielle whispered. "I’ve never seen her like this. She always obeys the safety rules, you know that, Jubal. Something is really wrong." She felt sick, her stomach churning, her mind filled with dread. "Something terrible is going to happen if we don’t stop her."

Jubal waited, but Gabrielle didn’t move; she remained wedged in the narrow hall, blocking him from continuing. "Keep going, Gabrielle," he said. "We’ll catch up to her and talk sense to her. She’s been caving for years. She’s not going to forget everything she’s ever learned."

"Ever since she was hurt in Austria, she’s been different," Gabrielle pointed out. "Distracted. Driven."

"She’s always very focused when she’s going into a cave. And this is a big discovery, an unexplored cave. We have no idea what we’re going to find. Of course she’s excited."

"You know it isn’t just that; she’s been different this entire trip. Even before that. She’s quieter. Joie isn’t quiet. Now she seems to be somewhere else half the time. I feel like we’re losing her, Jubal – as if something is pulling her into another world where we can’t follow."

Jubal sighed loudly. "I wish I could say I don’t know what you mean, but that’s why I came on this trip. I’ve been worried about her too." He reached out and pushed at his sister. "Move it. I can’t even hear her now."

"I can’t move, Jubal." Gabrielle sounded scared. "I really can’t."

"Are you stuck?" Jubal was very calm, but inside a dark dread was stealing over him.

"No," Gabrielle whispered. "I just can’t move. Have you ever heard the term ‘paralyzed with fear’? I think I really am."

Joie pushed forward as the ceiling lifted, allowing her to walk once again. Eventually the hall opened into a large chamber. "Hey, you two, it’s much better in here. There’s a large gallery." She shone her light around the area, noting the fingerlike formations surrounding a large abyss that yawned in the middle of the chamber. She climbed into her rigging as she struggled to hold on to reality. "Gabrielle! Jubal! I’m going to begin my descent." Joie tested her harness and glanced back toward the hall. "Gabrielle! Jubal! Are you two okay?"

"Wait for us, Joie," Jubal ordered. "Gabrielle has a bad feeling about this and so do I. I’m thinking we should regroup for a few minutes and talk this over. This could be more trouble than we want."

Joie fought back laughter that bubbled up out of nowhere. "Talk it over? Nobody’s in more trouble than I am right now, Jubal. I can’t turn back. I have to make this descent or go live in a padded cell for the rest of my life. I am not kidding you."

Jubal caught at Gabrielle’s leg. "She isn’t joking; she sounds on the verge of hysteria. Move it, Gabrielle. Right now."

Jubal rarely used that tone with either of his independent sisters, but it had the desired effect. Gabrielle scooted forward, driven by the fact that her brother obviously shared her growing fears for Joie.

Joie sat on the edge of the precipice, staring down into the black abyss. She didn’t look up when her brother and sister joined her. Jubal rested his hands on her shoulders. Gabrielle sat cautiously beside her and took her hand. "So tell us. What’s going on, Joie? We always stick together. There’s no need to hide anything from us."

"Does insanity run in the family?" Joie continued to stare down into the well of darkness. "Because if it does, someone should have warned us."

"You think you’re insane?" Jubal struggled to understand. Joie was the one who laughed all the time, who found humor in everything. She lit up the world with her smile, and she certainly never seemed to suffer from depression. "I hear voices. Well…" she hedged, "a

voice. One voice. All the time. We have conversations. Long conversations. Sometimes very intense and sometimes humorous." She felt the color rise beneath her skin and was grateful it was dark in the gallery. "Sometimes sexy. I find myself staying up all night just to be able to hear his voice and spend time with him." She shrugged her shoulders. "He even has a name. Traian Trigovise. How could I think up a name like that? He has an accent. A European, very sexy accent."