In the Dark - Shepherd #1

Chapter 1 - Someplace, Somewhere

Hannah flicked her knife open. She observed the light bouncing off the blade and the handle, illuminating the carving of a snake in the wood.

Behind her, a tiny blond-haired girl had a nail in her hand. She scratched a line into the wall, followed by another line. Then another.

Her companion rolled her head backwards. She was lying on her back on the concrete floor, right in the middle so she could keep an eye on her cellmates. They were in a small room. A prison cell really. Hannah and the rest were here for weeks (months?) now. The only time the door opened was when...

She gripped the blade. Hannah lowered her head and tried to read the words Moira was scrawling on the wall.

"Light beyond lights...You are mine...I am yours...my dead hands meet your own."

To her left, her other cellmate was playing with the thermostat. She broke the thing apart earlier and was now tugging at the wires.

"Great." Hannah thought aloud. "Both of you are trying to kill us slowly."

Moira glared at Hannah, but said nothing. 

Hannah watched as a grid of squares flashed on the roof, first blue, then yellow, and red. She straightened herself and sat up. 

A loud bang. The door to their cell swung open. All three women froze. Moira let the nail drop out of her shivering fingers. Hannah edged up and put her hand softly on her head, trying to calm her down.

"It will be over soon. Just breathe."

Her other cellmate turned around and stood up. She walked to the door, and pulled it.

"Mishayla, what are you doing?" Hannah shrieked.

Mishayla ignored her, and peered down into the hallway. She looked at Hannah, and shrugged. Hannah glanced at the mess of wires hanging from the wall. 

"It was the locking mechanism...for the door." Shay said, smiling for the first time in weeks.

***

The hallway outside their cell was empty. A cool breeze came in. The three women stuck together, moving slowly. 

The floor was wet on one side; the water was lukewarm and full of leaves. Moira reacted with disgust as she stepped in the puddle. 

At the end of the hallway was a bend. As they came round the bend, they saw a half-open steel door, leading to a pitch-black room. 

They froze. 

Hannah looked at Shay and nodded. Shay went up to the door and opened it. It creaked open.

The moonlight beamed through heavy windows on the right, yet the left was in complete shadow. 

The women inched forward. Shay stepped onto the concrete floor, edging her feet forward until she kicked something. A steel pipe clattered in the darkness.

She felt a knot turn in her stomach. Chills went down her spine. Shay could feel the movement in the shadows.

They were not alone. 

A figure moved up behind her. Hannah scrambled across the floor and grabbed the steel pipe, standing ready.

"What did you see?" She whispered to her.