CHAPTER#64

"Well, many hands make light work." Beth stood up, appraising the pile of rubble. "I think the easiest way may be to climb up top and move some of the heavier ones down. What do you think?"

"I'm not in a position to offer any advice." The woman blinked. "My name is Abella by the way. I'm a gargoyle, in case you were wondering."

"I'm Beth. Just a human, I'm afraid." Beth stood up, looking at the rocky pile. "Otherwise this would probably be easier."

"How are you going to get the blocks off of me?" Abella asked her.

"The number one weapon of attorneys everywhere," Beth said. "Leverage." Kneeling down, she picked up a stone the size of her fist, then began climbing the pile. Some of the stones shifted drastically beneath her weight, but she needed to be up top. Choosing her footing carefully, she picked one of the stones that had a gap beneath it and stuck in the spear. Satisfied that it would fit, she wedged her stone beneath the spear, trying to push it as close to the gap as possible. Using it as a fulcrum, she pushed down on the stick, and the stone shifted to one side.

"I didn't feel anything," Abella informed her.

"I'm not a miracle worker." Beth removed the stick and changed positions, repeating the process. After a couple of attempts the stone circle slid far enough off the pile that it tumbled down the side. The rock shifted beneath her, and Beth stuck her arms out for balance. Satisfied that the pile had settled, she found another stone to start working on.

"So how did you get caught in this?" Beth asked.

"Shortly after we walked into the Labyrinth, we got lost. We had maps, but someone has been changing the hallways. The original plan was to set up a trap to ambush the minotaur and demand he return Tink's goggles. Sofia thought that he may have a treasure chamber in one of the dead spaces on the map too. When we couldn't find the minotaur, we tried to find a dead space. It didn't work out, so we wandered until we found this chamber. Sofia decided that this was a good place to set a trap, but nobody counted on the minotaur showing up early. We got into a fight, and when this pillar collapsed, I pushed Tink out of the way to save her." Abella grunted when Beth used her spear to tilt another chunk of stone off of the pile. "Sofia and Tink ran away, and I got stuck here."

Beth chewed impatiently at her lip, trying to move one of the bigger stones. Her fulcrum rock wasn't cutting it for this one, and her spear was bending far enough that she was worried it would break. "This sounds like an awful lot of trouble to go through for a pair of goggles."

"Tink needs them so that she can show Mike how to activate the House's defense mechanism. The mechanism runs on a timer, so it has to be reactivated once a day, but only the Caretaker can do it."

"And Mike is the Caretaker?" Beth shoved a stone out from beneath the larger one. The pile tilted, and Beth scurried off the pile as several hundred pounds of stone rolled free, sliding off to one side. They crashed against the hard stone floor, the sound of breaking rock echoing off the ceiling high above. "I thought he was the owner."

"It's... complicated."

"Sounds like it." Beth knelt down by the hole. "I just moved a ton of rock off of you. Do you think you can move?"

"Let me see." Abella's face disappeared. Gazing into the gap, Beth saw her put both hands on the ground and push. The pile shifted slightly, but the gargoyle wasn't strong enough. Her face reappeared. "No, not yet."

"I've got time." Beth's stomach growled, and she put her hand against it. How long had it been since she ate. "I don't suppose you have food?"

Abella shook her head. "We didn't plan on being in here this long."

"Fuck." Beth rubbed her stomach. Now that she was aware of it, she was ravenous. Scowling, she climbed on the pile of stones again. "I guess I'll just keep on keeping on."

"Beth!" The pile shifted beneath Beth's feet. "Run!"

"Run? From what?" Turning to face in the only direction Abella could see, she saw him standing behind one of the pillars. Clutching a giant axe in his hands, the minotaur snorted, taking a step toward Beth.

"Oh. Fuck." Beth lifted her spear. She had nowhere to run.

-

In the darkness, she could hear the ocean crashing against the sand, gentle pulses that threatened to lull her back to sleep. If not for the sudden sound of the heavy glass door sliding in its track behind her, she would have let the ocean carry her mind away, just another cloud of thought drifting over the horizon.

"Hey there Sparks." She heard the can of beer touch down on the glass end table, followed by the stretching of canvas when Alex sprawled out on the lounge chair next to her. From her seat, she could smell Alex's skin, a combination of sunscreen, seawater, and the grilled burgers they had eaten earlier.

"Mmh." Dana reached over, quickly finding Alex's fingers with her owns.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Alex asked.

"I'm afraid to open my eyes." Dana said. "I'm afraid that if I open my eyes, this will all go away."

"And why would it go away?"

"Because you... you..." Dana felt the oxygen leave her lungs, the sudden inability to speak bringing back a flood of memories of the crash, the memorial service, and everything else. Taking a deep breath, she let her mind drift amongst the waves for a moment. "You're dead."

"I don't feel dead." Dana could hear the smile in Alex's voice. "How did I die?"

"Motorcycle crash. Road was wet, and another car last control, hitting you head on."

"Wow. Sounds awful."