Chapter 21

Julian stared at the dark wall looking for a sign. The wall did not look promising. It did not resemble a door or a passageway. There was nothing out of place. An innocent person would never suspect

that there could be more. It was the perfect candidate for a hidden entryway. The trick was to find it.

Trembling hands felt the cold wood but he could not find anything. To give up was not his nature so he continued in vain for nearly twenty minutes. Finally, frustration overwhelmed him and he kicked the

wall. Still, nothing happened. He collapsed on the floor, landing hard enough to hear the sound resonate down the hallway. Panic was beginning to well up in his chest but he tried to remember to take

deep breaths. A professional would not become angry just because the answers were not obvious.

Tilting his head back against the opposite wall he stared up at the ceiling. He needed a distraction. The chances of him single-handedly finding Chrissie were not good. He hadn't seen her recently and

could only wonder what she looked like. She was probably taller, he figured. He fantasized for a moment what she looked like. It was then it occurred to him that Chrissie might not want to see him. She

certainly wouldn't like him imagining her but she might have moved on. Suddenly it dawned on him that perhaps the reason she had stopped writing was that she had found someone else. The painful

thoughts made the ground feel colder and his hunger pain grow stronger. He couldn't afford to lose hope now.

He stared upwards at the ceiling. It was a low ceiling, probably only seven feet tall but it was to dark to tell for sure. At the end of the long hallway a small window allowed only a few dim grey rays in.

Staring absent minded at the wall he began to laugh. What an interesting predicament he had before him. To think after searching for leads for such a long time to have another dead end. Maybe the police

had searched this end of the opera house already. Closing his eyes he let the colors fade away. Blinking rapidly he let the colors flash between dark and light. Then something caught his attention. The

colors were not right. A small square at the very top of the wall was darker than the area around it. It was such a small difference it would not be apparent unless it was being searched for.

He couldn't get off the ground fast enough. Afraid his eyes were playing tricks on him he reached up and touched the square. The wood was softer. Pressing on it he pushed one of the boards up.

Carefully he slipped his hand upwards. He felt the space and found a small lever. Quickly he flipped it not quite sure what it was. A low rumble startled him and he lost his grip on the lever and staggered

backwards a few steps. Swearing under his breath he gazed with awe as the wall opened. He scratched his head wondering how he could have missed the cracks in the wall before sighing and climbing

excitedly through the opening. He couldn't see what was ahead so he trustingly launched his body forward, anticipating and impact. His feet dropped onto a stone floor a couple of feet down. The stones

were slick and he reached out for the nearest wall to keep from falling over. Almost magically the wall closed behind him leaving behind only darkness. His breath froze for a moment as he let the events

sink in. Angrily he knocked his head on the wall, agonizing over his lack of wisdom. He had not brought a candle.

He was honestly unsure of what to do. After a long stretch of silence and darkness he finally decided he had no choice but to move forward into the darkness. Carefully he took a small step forward.

Nothing happened. Muttering, he began to slowly make his way forward still clutching the wall for balance. Every few steps he would lose his balance and have to steady his self with the wall. Slowly his

eyes adjusted to the dark and he began to be able to make out shapes. His confidence grew: if his eyes could adjust to the darkness there must be a light source not too far off in the distance. The silence

was beginning to make him uneasy. He could not even hear a rat. Then he saw it. Just around the corner was light. He could see the shadows of a flame.

Racing around the corner he stopped short. A horrific sight awaited him. A man stood holding a torch, waiting for him. The man did not resemble a human but a demon dressed in black. His face was

covered except for his eyes and lips. The expression of the man frightened Julian. It was not fitting to describe it as a frown. The demon's displeasure was obvious. He was perfectly poised and looked

positively deadly. Julian's heart began to beat rapidly. It did not take much time for him to decide he did not want to fight with this man. He looked like he had stepped out of a nightmare and stood

waiting to escort him to hell. Was he dreaming?

The nightmare stepped forward. "She is not here."

Julian closed the distance between them. "I don't mean any harm. I just want to know if she's all right."

The man spat. "She's fine. You shouldn't have come."

He swallowed. "Where is she? I just want to be with her."

"That can be arranged." He stepped back suddenly and hit the wall. The ground beneath Julian disappeared and suddenly he felt himself falling. A second later he hit the ground engulfed once again in darkness.

A light flickered in front of him. Jumping to his feet he raced towards it. It disappeared. Behind him a low rumble exploded into a roar. Water rushed in and swept him off his feet. Coughing and sputtering

he tried to get to his feet but another wave of freezing water pulled him under again.

A determination to not be defeated warmed his freezing legs and feet as adrenaline filled his body. Instead of trying to stand he kicked his legs as he swam forward, surfacing for air. The water wasn't

deep enough to support him after a moment and dumped him on the ground. Shivering he stood up and began running, terrified of what awaited him. He had to find Chrissie. His arms blocked the force of

walls as he ran into edges but when he tripped over his feet the stone cut his face. Sticky blood oozed out of his forehead. Ignoring the lightheaded feeling and aching pain of his head he kept forward. He

reached a staircase. After a moment of figuring out what it was in the dark he managed to crawl up it. A door sat at the top of the stairs. Reaching for the doorknob he found it wasn't closed and pushed it

open. He stepped through slowly seeing candle light. Something hard hit him in the back of the head and the room began to spin. The dull pain spread over his head and he dropped to his knees before

laying his injured head on the floor and passing out cold.