A Spiritual Mystery

A Secret passage - 2

As we walked deeper, Veronica suddenly halted, rummaging through her bag. She pulled out a compact powder box.

"Really? Why would you take that at a time like this?" I asked incredulously.

Without responding, she opened the box, applying the powder with a cotton pad, then blowing it into the darkness below. In that instant, a trap was triggered, and a massive boulder tumbled from the shadows above. She screamed for a fleeting moment, her voice echoing in the cavernous space.

"Shush," I whispered urgently, but Veronica only pressed her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with shock. I turned to follow her gaze and my breath hitched. Skulls littered the ground, a gruesome testament to the horrors that may have unfolded here. Tears welled in her eyes, mirroring the fear coursing through me. This was not the peaceful journey I had imagined; a chilling realization washed over me. I should have anticipated this, especially when delving into a murder case. In the depths of my mind, I had forgotten one crucial detail—I was a spirit. Death held no power over me, yet my heart ached for Veronica, a living soul with a future still unwritten.

"Veronica, I'll head out there first. You stay here," I instructed, trying to maintain my composure.

"No, wait," she protested, her voice shaky.

"I've lived more than you have. You have your whole life ahead of you," I asserted, trying to convey my urgency.

"What do you mean? I'm only a year younger than you," she retorted, confusion etched across her face.

She thought she understood, but the truth was more complex. Yes, I was only a year older, but I was already dead. I was no longer human; I had become something else entirely.

Suddenly, a voice echoed from nowhere, "Who are you?"

Both of us spun around, my heart racing. I could have sworn we were alone on this desolate mountain, yet here was someone—an apparition or reality? I felt a surge of adrenaline as I noticed the figure before us, a man clad in gleaming black boots, crunching over the sand. He stood illuminated by the sun, casting an almost ethereal glow as if he were dusted with magic.

His friendly smile radiated warmth. The orange hat he wore was almost blinding in the dappled light beneath the trees. I squinted, then crouched down to meet his gaze. He was young, with a pale face dotted with freckles—a jovial aura about him that suggested adventure.

Veronica waved her hand in front of me, snapping me back to reality. It must have been a hallucination, a side effect of exhaustion. We had settled down on the nearby land the night before, and now we awoke to a strange, unnatural mist enveloping our surroundings.

"The fog is pretty thick, isn't it?" she observed, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Seems like it," I replied, frowning as unease settled in.

As we moved cautiously through the thick mist, Veronica suddenly let out a short scream. Panic surged through me. I switched on my torch, only to discover she was missing. It seemed she had fallen into a pit. My torch flickered ominously, its battery waning as I peered into the darkness below.

"Are you okay?" I called out, anxiety lacing my words.

"Do I look like I am?" she snapped back.

"Nope," I admitted, trying to keep my tone light despite the gravity of the situation.

"Do you think you can get me out of here somehow?" she asked, her voice tinged with desperation.

"I'll see what I can do," I promised, scrambling for a solution.