The doorway was still several feet away; I’d never be quick enough. I yelled, the answering echoes like an army around me. I refused to die here. My discovery needed to be shared with the world.
With the last of my strength, I pitched myself forward toward the narrow gap ahead and hit the stone floor hard. As I pulled my body, scraping across the ground, a puff of dust clouded around me, and my lungs burned with each breath.
It was a miracle I hadn’t been crushed to death, but something was putting pressure on my foot.
My heart pounded at the loose bootlace trapped beneath the stone door. I retrieved my knife and cut through the lace, a panic still in my chest as I stood, as if my body hadn’t caught up with my mind that I’d escaped.
Uncurling my stiff fingers, I stared at the item in my hand. Slowly, I unwrapped the soft, threadbare fabric and beheld the slender key that had nearly cost me my life.
The artifact appeared to have been gold at some point but was darkened in spots with age. It was simple, not unlike any skeleton key used in locks and doors of ages past. A chain was threaded through the end and coiled beneath it.
Lifting the key from the aged cloth, I found the golden chain just long enough to be worn like a necklace. Curiosity got the better of me, as it always did, and I looped the chain over my head.
As the key lay onto my chest, the same strange sense of familiarity settled over me that had come when I’d fallen into this hidden place. My breath caught, and suddenly, my knees were shaking, limbs trembling before my muscles turned to water. The room spun around me, and my vision went dark even before I squeezed my eyes shut against the whirling walls.
Voices came, hundreds of them, thousands. A cacophony of whispers and screams rushed through my head. My hands pressed to my ears, trying to drown out the sound, but it was coming from inside. A cold breeze ran across my skin, and I shivered as icy fingers dragged me farther into the dark.
Somewhere in my shadowed mind, I found a wisp of clarity. I pulled myself closer to them, used them like an anchor to keep from drowning in the darkness. In and out. One beat. Two. Three. After a few minutes, I opened my eyes.
The walls were the same, as was the dusty stone floor beneath me. No whispers or screams echoed around me. No cold breeze brushed across my skin. There was only silence, myself, and the key around my neck.
I took it off, eyed it warily, then folded the cloth carefully back around it. Leaning my head back against rough stone, I drew in another steadying breath. I’d never wanted a big bottle of ice cold water as much as I did right then.
That had to be the problem. I was dehydrated. First, the trek through the hot and humid jungle, then making my way down into the ruin, and, finally, the difficulty getting back out with the key. All of it must have taken its toll of me. I had passed out from thirst and exertion. There was no other explanation. An urgency to return to the dig site drew me shakily to my feet.
I glanced around—I had one of two options. I could either try to go back the way I had come, though getting through the false floor with my unsteady muscles could prove difficult. Or I could go up the path on my left, the one that had sunlight glowing near the top like a welcoming beacon.
Tucking the key into a deep pocket of my pants, I headed toward the light.
The path was steep, though thankfully not as steep as the way to the key had been. I used the left-hand wall to steady myself as I made my way up. The stones on the wall grew warmer as I stepped farther into the light. Blue sky opened up ahead of me, and I quickened my pace. When I reached the top, I pulled myself out and blinked in confusion.
I got to my feet on the ground and stepped into a small circle. The ancient ruin still stood around me, but I didn’t recognize the area. I must have been on the opposite side.
A massive wall rose up sharply behind me, and another wall descended steeply down into the waiting arms of the tangled jungle, leaving me standing on a platform. Climbing up would be impossible and getting down would be dangerous.
“Seems I don’t really have a choice,” I muttered with a shrug. Perhaps when I reached the bottom, I could make my way around the base of the ruin back to where I started.
A sense of hesitancy held my foot as I went to place it on the edge. It was as if a line was tied to my ankle, not letting me move forward. I wanted to go on, to get away from this place and back to the dig site, but at the same time, I wanted to turn around and walk back into the ruin.
I clenched my hands, shook my head, and squatted down to start my descent. Dehydration and strain was definitely messing with my head.
I braced my feet in front of me as I scooted carefully down. If I started to gain momentum too quickly, there would be no stopping me.
I was nearly halfway down, the dappled shade of the canopy falling over me, when the hair rose on the back of my neck. Behind me, a deep, throaty roar echoed through the air. It was an urgent, angry sort of sound.
The jaguar.
With a glance back over my shoulder, I thought I could spot the creature climbing down from the top of the ruin.
Keeping my footing on the steep, ancient wall was difficult as I hurriedly slid my way toward the jungle floor. Sure, jaguars were territorial, but this was insane. The quicker I got back to the others, the better.
My feet finally hit the soft ground, and my gaze swung to the right, certain that was the way that would lead me back to my starting point. I could find my way to the dig site from there. But as I started to head that way, the growl of the jaguar carried from that direction.
I clenched my teeth and plunged into the undergrowth, the vines and water-slick plants trying to hold me back. If I got out of the large cat’s territory, it would quit pursuing me. Getting lost seemed a better option at the moment than winding up as jaguar food.
The angry roars of the jaguar soon faded, and I took a chance to halt, bracing my hands on my knees as I pulled in breaths. Sweat trickled down from my forehead and dripped off my jaw. I swallowed, the moisture trickling down the greenery from above reminding me just how thirsty I was.
Straightening my body and rotating slightly to the right, I attempted to find my bearings. As far as I knew, I had run a straight shot from the ruin. I angled my way farther toward the west. If I headed in that direction, I should cross the path I had made getting to the ruin in the first place. Hopefully. It was nearly impossible to tell, especially with the way my head still felt woozy.
Voices reached me on the cusp of my decision. I squinted, looking behind me. These were no voices in my head. These were voices calling out through the rainforest, and they seemed to be coming from the ruins.
It was completely possible, I supposed, that I had been followed, either by my own team or another. It was difficult from this distance to make out any words from the voices, but I assumed they were hollering for me.
I cupped my hands around my mouth and called out, “Hello?” I started to head back toward the ruin, then hesitated. The last thing I wanted to do was to run into the jaguar again. “I’m out here!”
The voices fell silent, and I furrowed my brow.
I called out again, and this time, the voices came from the opposite direction. Whirling around, I listened. These voices had more substance, and I could almost make out the words. But whose voices had been calling out behind me?
Echoes, perhaps?
Things echoed strangely in the rainforest.
I shifted my pack, my shoulder aching from its weight, and headed quickly in the direction of the voices. The green-tinted light that managed to reach the undergrowth from above was turning dimmer and the day was growing late. Getting stranded in the rainforest at night was definitely not on the list of things I wanted to do.
The volume of the voices increased, and a breath of relief whispered up my throat as I caught wider patches of sunlight in the distance. The dig site. I opened my mouth to holler again, but my words lodged in my throat.
Not one, but two jaguars pushed through the dense undergrowth. I recognized the one on the right as the one who had tried to attack me atop the ruin, if only by his unusually large size. The other one was much smaller.
My hand wrapped around my knife handle as I pulled it out. I barely had time to blink as the larger jaguar lunged forward, ears back and jaw wide. He swiped at me with a sharply clawed paw and, as I stumbled back, my arm swung out.
A painful noise came from the animal as he lurched to the side, holding his paw off the ground. Blood dripped to the leaves below him. The other hurried forward, and my grip tightened on the knife handle. A gunshot cracked through the air like the snap of a whip. Then a second. The smaller jaguar fell at the third shot, body twitching pitifully before growing still.
My eyes shifted to the larger jaguar. He hadn’t moved, and his golden stare fixated on me. It was just an animal, but I could have sworn he was trying to tell me something with that steady gaze.
Words and people started to tumble through the trees, and the jaguar finally broke away, dashing into the jungle as gunshots followed him.
“Olivia, are you all right?”
I blinked, tearing my stare from the retreating jaguar. I managed to jerk a nod, then I caught sight of Sarah’s canteen at her hip. In two strides, I was in front of her, snatching the small canister of water. My eyes closed as I swallowed large gulps of the lukewarm liquid.
“Damn, Perez, what happened to you?”
After wiping water from my lips, I gave Sarah back her canteen and glanced around at the others. Kelby was there, along with the guides, rifles in their hands, and Dave Williams. He was staring at me with his arms crossed, curiosity more than concern on his face.
I opened my mouth, on the verge of telling him what I had found: not only the ruins, but the key, as well. It was an amazing discovery, one that could be a stellar breakthrough in my career.
The words didn’t come, though. As much as I wanted to show him that I had managed to win this round, I couldn’t bring myself to do it.
“I got lost.”
Dave’s answering scoff confirmation that my excuse was pathetic. Anyone in this field of work knew better than to wander off into the dense rainforest and get lost.
Dave shook his head and turned around to head back to the dig site. Even the guides seemed mildly annoyed.
“You look like you need to lie down,” Kelby said.
I shook my head. “Perhaps, but I’ll settle for more water.”
Sarah handed me her canteen again, and I gave her a grateful smile before we started back toward the dig site.
I should tell my team about my find. Logically, I knew I should. But with each step, the urge to protect the artifact like a secret grew stronger.
I would remain silent about the ruins and what I had found there. The key, a weight in my pocket, was a heavy secret I would keep to myself. At least for now.
At the slight itch between my shoulder blades, I rolled my shoulders . I couldn’t help but feel there were eyes watching me, as if the trees and rocks and ruins knew what I had stolen. As if the rainforest wanted it back.
For the first time in my life, I was eager to leave a dig behind.