Tunnels 02, Deeper

you want to save Cal? He needs you."
    Turning one way, then the other, gasping for breath like the cornered animal she was, Sarah's wide eyes stared at Joe Waites, blinking uncomprehendingly at the old man's unmistakable face under its tight-fitting skullcap, a lone tooth protruding from its top jaw.
    "Joe?" she whispered hoarsely at him, with the quiet resignation of someone who was ready to die.
    She twisted the blade deeper into her throat. Joe Waites flapped his arms frantically and cried out as the first drops of blood trickled down the paleness of her neck.
    "Sarah, please!" he screamed. "Don't! Don't! DON'T!"

     

12

    Will had volunteered to take first watch so the others could get some more rest. He tried to write in his journal but found it difficult to concentrate and, after a while, put it to one side. He paced around the table, listening to Chester's steady snoring, and then resolved to use the time to explore the house more thoroughly. Besides, he was dying to try out his new lantern. He proudly hooked it over his shirt pocket as his brother had shown him, and adjusted the intensity of the beam. With a last look at his sleeping comrades, he quietly left the library.
    His first stop was the room on the opposite side of the hall, which he and Cal had only investigated briefly on their earlier excursion. He tiptoed through the dust and, nudging the door open, he went in.
    It had the same dimensions as the library but was completely devoid of furniture or shelves. He walked around the edge of the room, peering down at the deep skirting where there were small strips of a lime-green paper, which had obviously once adorned the walls.
    He went over to the shuttered windows, fighting the impulse to open them, and instead strolled around the floor several more times, the spotlight beam slashing through the darkness before him. Seeing nothing of interest, he was just on his way out when something caught his eye. He hadn't noticed it before, when all he and Cal had were the luminescent orbs, but now, with his brighter light, it was difficult to miss.
    Scratched into the wall by the door, at about head height, were the following words:

    I STAKE THIS HOUSE AS MY FIND. SIGNED DR. ROGER BURROWS

    Then, following a day with a number next to it that meant nothing to Will, was:

    P.S. WARNING -- LEAD ON WALLS HIGH RADIOACTIVITY OUTSIDE?!

    In wonder, Will reached out and ran his hand over some of the words, which reflected his light as if they had been gouged into metal.
    "Dad! Dad's been here!" he began to shout. He was so elated that he forgot they had all been trying to be quiet. "My dad has been here!"
    Chester and Cal, both wakened by his shouting, came tearing into the hallway.
    "Will? What is it, Will?" Chester cried from the doorway, concerned for his friend.
    "Look at that! He's been here!" Will was babbling, overcome with excitement.
    They began to read the inscription, but Cal didn't seem to be impressed, almost immediately slouching against the wall. He yawned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
    "I wonder how long ago he did that," Will said.
    "Incredible!" Chester exclaimed as he finished reading the message. "That's just wild!" He grinned widely at Will, sharing his friend's euphoria. But then a suggestion of a frown wrinkled his brow. "So do you think they were his footprints in the library?"
    "Bet they were," Will said breathlessly. "But isn't it just too weird? Talk about a coincidence -- we chose exactly the same route as him."
    "Like father, like son." Chester gave Will a pat on the back.
    "But he's not his father," said a resentful voice from the shadows behind Chester. Cal was shaking his head. "Not his real father," he said disagreeably. "And he didn't even have the guts to tell you that, did he, Will?"
    Will didn't react, not allowing his brother to take away from the moment. "Well, we cant' hang around this area for long, if Dad's right about the radioactivity" -- he carefully emphasized the word without looking at Cal -- "and the walls are all coated with lead. I think he was right -- feel here." He touched the surface of the wall under the message, and Chester did likewise. "Must act as a shielding."
    "Yeah, feels cold, like lead, all right. So I suppose the rest of the house must be the same," Chester agreed, glancing around the room.
    "That's obvious. I told you the air's bad in the Deeps, you dolts," Cal said contemptuously and stamped his way back through the dust, leaving the two of them