Keys to one of the golf carts dangled in her fingers as Molly made her way down the stairs of the hotel and out the door. It was a gloomy day. Gray, fat bellied clouds pressed down from the sky. It looked like it was going to rain. She wasn’t too awful worried about that though because in the mountains, rain never usually lasted that long. Still it was a chilly day and she rubbed her arms, wishing she had a jacket. She was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, a t-shirt and a pair of converse.
Lucian was across the parking lot standing near his bike. He was talking to someone on the phone. At the sight of him, her stomach made an involuntary flutter. She let out a low whistle, appreciating the view. He definitely had it going on, there was no doubt about that. However, even though he made her heart go berserk just about every time she saw him, she couldn’t help the little nagging feeling she also got when she saw him. She didn’t even know if he liked her, really. Sure, they had hooked up while they were both drunk but he hadn’t tried anything while they were in bed together or this morning. And now she was starting to wonder if it was because he just didn’t like her in that way or if he was just being respectful. Now that, was the million-dollar question.
Lucian spotted Molly and quickly got off the phone. “There you are,” he said cheerily, walking towards her with a smile.
“Here I am.” Molly held out the keys to the golf cart.
Lucian took them. “I take it we’re using another golf cart.”
“Yeah, I thought it would be easier to carry all our jewels.”
Lucian gave her an odd look. Not because of what she said but because he could swear he saw someone else standing behind her, and that someone was the girl he had seen in the picture at the mine, the one named, Rebecca. A trick of light, or perhaps another guest had stepped into his periphery, which would have made sense, but he also thought he saw her last night, in the room, with Molly, while he was lying awake in bed. He had chalked that sighting up to the residual effects of too much whiskey. But what was his excuse now? he had to wonder. He shook his head to clear his vision and once again, she disappeared.
Molly couldn’t help but notice the play of emotions crossing his face. “You still want to go to the mine?”
“Of course.” He rubbed his forehead as an uneasy feeling gathered in the pit of his stomach.
“Is something wrong?”
“No. Nothing.” He dropped his hand and stared blankly over her shoulder.
“Lucian…” Worry creased between her brows. “Are you ready?”
His eyes stayed focused on something over her shoulder.
Molly turned to see what Lucian was looking at but nothing was there.
The ride to the mine was nothing like the day before. Yesterday while riding with Lucian in the cart, Molly had felt a mixture of shyness and exhilaration. Now though, she was feeling more dread than anything else and couldn’t quite figure out why.
Lucian turned the cart into the mine and pulled up in front of the gray clapboard building just like he did the day before. This time the chairs weren’t rocking out of time with one another but remained still. Almost too still, he thought, considering the way the wind was whipping. Trying to ignore the trepidation he was feeling, he got out of the cart and followed Molly up the stairs.
“The mine isn’t open today?” Lucian asked as Molly pulled keys out of her pocket to unlock the door.
“No. Not today.”
“How’d you get the keys?”
“I know the owner,” she evaded and averted her eyes to the task at hand. Once she unlocked the door, she held it open for Lucian to walk inside.
Just like the day before, Lucian immediately noticed how dim it was inside and the musty closed up smell of the place. There were still tracks in the dust on the floor leading to the door to the mine, which somehow added credence to the strange eerie vibe he was feeling.
Molly shut the door and it clicked softly in place. “What would you like to do first?”
“Can we go to the museum?” Lucian didn’t know why but he felt a pull to go there.
“Um, sure.” Molly frowned and headed towards the double doors leading to the mine. She was thankful she had on jeans this time since the place was pretty dusty, even more so then she remembered from yesterday.
It almost looked like someone had spilled talcum powder or chalk on the floor. She couldn’t figure out why that would be but chalked it up figuratively and literally to the guests who walked in here before and after the wedding yesterday. It was weird though, there were no footprints on the floor this time. She could have sworn they were there yesterday. She made a mental note to tell her father to get a cleaning crew in here before the mine opened to the tourists again in the spring and then grabbed the handle to the door. She immediately ripped her hand away—it was freezing.
Lucian noticed the over-abundance of a chalk like substance as well that covered the floor, but he was feeling so queasy at this point, he didn’t mention it. His need to see the museum was increasing and he just couldn’t seem to figure out why. He took three steps and stopped. His eyes widened as he saw the girl named Rebecca, standing on the other side of the doors. Her ghostly image reflected in the glass. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth and his breath came out in ragged gasps as Rebecca’s image passed through the doors. He felt like he was suffocating from within.
Molly screamed.