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“I have no idea what the hell that is.” I try to shift Miri behind me, but she just scoffs and stands by my side. We take a step closer, realizing that a section of brick has pulled away from the wall, forming a rough door.
“Is this where you lead me into a dark, spooky corridor and shut the door on me. Is your entire business model about getting unsuspecting victims into your dungeon?” Miri laughs, the sound low and sultry, but narrows her eyes in feigned assessment.
“Why do you keep thinking I’m going to kill or kidnap you?”
“It’s a legitimate concern. Have you ever seen your glare and furrowed brow?” Archer tries to elbow his way in front of me, but I shove him back.
“Piss off.”
“Maybe be flattered that I’m still here and not running away.” Miri makes her own attempt to peer at the door.
“I’m going to go check it out. Stay here if you’re scared; I’m going to drop you in a hole with lotion.”
Miri chokes on a laugh. “I know that’s a Silence of the Lambs reference but that just sounded super sexual.”
Kill me. I already had a semi from all the back-and-forth banter with Miri, but now I’ve got a full-blown hard-on. I weigh the chances of kicking Archer out and getting Miri to agree to let me bend her over that piece of shit table and fuck her until she screams my name. Not that I should. I should stay as far away from her as possible, but that’s not what my dick thinks. Still, the secret passageway is interesting enough to keep my mind away from those thoughts. For now.
Miri sets her coffee down on the table and gets out her phone, turning on the flashlight. My own coffee gets abandoned on a shelf and I get to the door first, though. I don’t know what’s down there. I’m not going to let Miri take the lead into a nest of vipers or some shit.
I raise a brow at Archer. He’s wearing a gray suit with shoes that probably cost more than all the clothes on my body. “You sure you want to go down into the tunnels dressed like that? You might get dusty.”
“This is my least favorite suit. I’m good.”
I pull out my phone with a shake of my head and flip on the flashlight, shining it down into the dark space. There’s a small landing just on the other side of the door, but then steps lead down into the blackness.
“Here goes nothing,” I mumble and head on it. Miri is next, with Archer trailing her.
“Ah, coming in the rear, just like I like it.”
“Oh my God.” Miri snorts, and I curse him under my breath.
The tunnel is brick at the top but as we descend underground, it gives way to stone walls, like someone carved straight into rock to create this tunnel. The walls are wet with condensation and the ground is slick. We are on an island, so going underground means that we’re below sea level. Not that the ocean is likely to come flooding in here, but everything is still damp. There’s an earthy smell, and the air is close, but that could just be that I don’t particularly care for enclosed spaces.
The tunnel is barely tall enough for me to walk without scraping my head across the ceiling. There’s nothing to indicate what these tunnels are for. Is it just a passageway that old shopkeepers set up once upon a time to get from one spot to another outside the prying eyes of their neighbors? Who knows?
So far there’s only been the main path. I haven’t seen any offshoots to take us in a different direction. Almost as soon as I think that I see an arched opening to the left and stop, causing Miri to run into me.
She steadies herself with her hands on my back, and I swear I can feel their heat through the layer of my shirt. I’m glad I left my coat upstairs because the confined space combined with Miri’s touch is making me sweat.
“Everything okay?” Miri whispers.
“Yeah, there’s an opening ahead.” I shine my light toward the door and make my way over there. Miri moves to my side, so our shoulders press together as we look into the room. Archer looms over the top of Miri, looking over her head. There’s a stone archway with symbols carved into it, the same motif from the building above of the sun, moon, leaf and flower.
Archer holds up his phone and clicks a few pictures. “This is insane. How did we not know this was here?” He’s mainly talking to himself, but Miri turns her head to look up at me.
“You swear you didn’t know about this?” Miri asks, but I doubt she’s really concerned because she’s leaning into my side like I’ll protect her from bad things.
“Absolutely did not know about this.” I’m not sure I want to go into the room because Miri will follow, and I don’t want her in there. It’s not large, maybe ten by ten. There’s a stone slab in the center of the room and little shelves carved into the rock that are littered with candles and a lot of other creepy shit. Jars of things floating in liquid, bird feathers, melted wax, chicken feet, and that’s just what I can see from a quick scan.
“What is this place?” Miri’s tight to my side and I grab her hand without conscious thought, linking my fingers with hers. A breathy sigh steals from her lips and I want to capture it. The sound, the breath, even in this dank place.
“It’s a casting room.” Archer replies and I lick my lips, my mouth so dry I could guzzle down a gallon of water. How long has someone been using our property to do magic? These tunnels look old, but the materials in here are fresh. How the hell did we not know about these tunnels?
“What’s a casting room?”
“It’s nothing good. Let’s get out of here. I don’t think it’s a good idea to be down here. Archer and I can check out the rest of the tunnel another time. Figure out where the other entrance is and block it off.”
For a second, I think Miri’s going to argue, but she shoots a worried look at the room and nods, turning to head back to the shop.
Walking back into the shop is like coming into a different planet. It’s warm and bright up here, and there’s nothing but darkness and bad shit down in that tunnel.
“I think I should show you those other properties.” I toss an unsettled look at Archer. His mouth is set in a tight line. He doesn’t like this fun surprise any more than I do.
“What? No. I love this place. If you and Archer close up this and any other entrances then there shouldn’t be anything to worry about, right?” Her eyes are wide as she looks at the store. I can tell she’s already imagining where she’ll be placing all her things.
“Am I being an idiot?” Miri murmurs mostly to herself, and my lips quirk up.
“Yes,” I say.
Miri glares at me and Archer barks out a laugh, despite just finding a secret room where someone’s been doing some dark magic. I’m surrounded by idiots.
