I want to thank everyone who left reviews, private messaged me, and continued to read this story and encourage me to continue it!...I was determined today to update, and here it is! Let me know what you think! Replies most welcome!
Chapter 21
They've managed to slip out of the main hall unnoticed, and Weld leads her through the halls to the Cartography room. Weld closes the door behind them, moving to the middle of the room tapping his foot on the floor until he finds a hollow spot. Crouching, he runs his hands along the old floorboards until he finds what he's looking for. Surprisingly, the floorboard lifts with little effort, and he glances over his shoulder at her.
"After you."
There's a glint in his eyes that compels her feet forward. Glancing into the tunnel, there's a makeshift staircase that doesn't look like it will hold much more than her own weight. With a tentative step, Cassie makes her way into the tunnel. Weld follows behind her, sure to replace the floorboard behind them.
They're plunged into darkness and all of her senses immediately heighten in the confined space. That same foreboding feeling washes over her, settling heavily in the pit of her stomach. Her nose burns and her head begins to swim and she reaches out for anything to hold on to.
Her hand falls squarely into his chest and his fingers wrap around her wrist tightly. "You're feeling it then?" He questions.
Cassie attempts to pull her arm free only his grip tightens. "What have you done?" ...
The music from the main hall drifts in and out of earshot as police offers come and go with new instructions from Derek every few minutes and it's hard to fathom what's going on, when there's a room full of people dancing and celebrating just down the hall.
The Salem PD have wasted little time and have set up a makeshift command centre in one of the offices and Sam stands there, hands on his hips, trying to listen to everything at once.
Derek looks over at him from where he's been pacing for the last few minutes on his phone. He hangs up, sighing. "My officers have swept Grey House; Cassie's not there."
Grace sinks further into the couch as Nick wraps an arm around her shoulders. "...that doesn't make sense..."
"What doesn't make sense?" Derek questions.
Grace snaps out of her thoughts, looking to her Aunt. "You feel it too, right?"
Sam looks between Grace and Abigail who seem to be sharing a silent conversation all their own. "You can feel her, can't you?"
Abigail bobs her head. "It's more like, intuition, then feeling...it's at its strongest when Cassie is at Grey House."
"But she's not at Grey House," Derek points out.
Folding her arms against her chest, Abigail chews on one of her perfectly manicured nails. "Which is why it doesn't make sense."
...
"What have I done?" Weld repeats. "I think what you're looking for is 'what have I been doing.'"
He releases her hand and Cassie takes a step back in the dark, her back hitting the hard rock. He's shifted to reach for something on the ground. He's unzipping something and then there's a flash of light. She squints, shielding her eyes as he points the flashlight at her. "...you've been terrorizing me and my family."
"Terrorizing?" Weld shakes his head. "No...I've been balancing the scales." He grabs her upper arm, pushing her forward. "Move."
She stumbles a bit and it has nothing to do with her heals and the rocky path he's leading her through. Her head is in a fog and her throat feels as if its tightening.
Weld is quiet behind her and his grip around her arm hasn't let up. She's not familiar with the Middleton tunnels, but if her sense of direction is still somewhat intact, they're headed towards Grey House.
"...what do you want with me?" She questions finally.
"I want what's mine. What's owed to my family."
There's a clearing up ahead and Weld's pace quickens. She struggles to keep up.
"Do you know that our families have a shared history?" He questions.
As they pass through the clearing, he removes his hold on her and it doesn't take any force on his part for her to fall to her knees. It feels as if she's drawing air into her lungs through a straw.
"Almost a hundred years ago, my family was forced out of Middleton."
They're suddenly plunged in light, and she looks over her shoulder to the generator and light.
He's planned this.
"Forced?" She questions.
He flips the photograph in his hand so that she can see it. "My great-grandfather, Henry, was engaged to your great-grandmother."
The man in the photo. "That's him, in the photo with her."
Weld nods. "And as the story goes, when Henry broke off the engagement, Laurel cursed him- cursed him for life and lineage. Henry lost his businesses, he lost his money...he left Middleton, angry and broke."
...
"But what if she is?" Nick questions slowly.
Brandon shakes his head. "We've combed Grey house top to bottom, I was there." "Did you check underneath?" Nick asks.
Martha gasps. "The tunnels!"
"The tunnels," Nick reiterates. "Middleton has a bunch of them...what if there's one directly underneath Grey House?"
Everyone looks to Derek who gives the idea merit. "I need a map of old Middleton." Grace jumps from her seat. "I'll get it! I know exactly where to look!"
"I'll go with you," Nick offers, the two of them taking off through the museum. Derek nods to his officer, and Brandon quickly follows after them.
...
Closing her eyes, Cassie concentrates on pulling air into her lungs. "The Merriwick's would never curse anyone," she counters.
"I don't believe in curses, but I do believe in treasure." She looks up to meet his gaze. "Treasure?"
"Before my father died, he told me there is a key hidden at Grey House, given to your relative by one of my relatives for safekeeping. It belongs to a safety deposit box at Middleton National Bank. There is a lot of family jewelry from that time not accounted for-"
"-you're doing all of this over a curse that never happened for some jewelry that most likely doesn't exist?" He crouches in front of her and she pulls away, pressing into the stone wall.
"I want what's mine. What belongs to my family." His tone is even, still. "I don't have any key."
He holds her gaze for more than a beat, before rising to his feet. "I thought you might say that. Which is why you're finding it increasingly harder to breath."
She leans over, planting her hands on the ground beneath her. The panic is creeping up on her and it isn't going to help her already laboured breathing. "What have you done to me?"
"Give me the key and I'll tell you."
Closing her eyes, she attempts to calm herself, think logically. "If there was a key, it wouldn't be down here."
"Where is it?" "Grey House."
...
Sam helps Derek spread the old maps across an empty table. Grace and Nick place random objects in the corners to keep them from curling up again.
As he glances over the map, he attempts to make sense of it.
"Here." Nick points to a blue line that's threaded throughout the map. "That's them, the tunnels."
Sam watches his finger trace along it until he finds Grey House, and the single blue line that crosses right through it.
"There is a tunnel," Martha gasps.
Grace leans over the map. "And look where it connects." Her finger traces the blue line from
Grey House to the Middleton Museum. Sam looks up at Derek. "Well?"
There are a handful of officers waiting for their captains instructions. "Search the museum; there has to be an entrance here somewhere."
...
He's moving around the clearing, testing the rock above them for what she can only assume is another trap door. The rock crumbles and dust falls as he maneuvers the hatch open. There isn't any staircase, and Weld drags the generator over below the opening.
"Ladies first."
It takes every ounce of strength she still has to get to her feet and climb on top of the generator. She's only made it through up to her waist and as she tests her arms on the floor around her, she's not sure she has the strength to pull herself up.
Just then, his arms wrap around her legs hoisting her up and through the whole. She crawls out of the way just as he hoists himself up through.
They're in the basement of Grey house and the familiarity of it gives her comfort. She only has a split second to think and she slips the ring from her fingers leaving it on the floor. Pulling herself to her feet is a challenge and the room sways and tilts. Weld grabs her upper arm to steady her and he's pulling her to the stairs up to the main floor.
Her feet are uncoordinated on the stairs and she looses her heels in the process. When they finally reach the kitchen Weld is all but dragging her.
"...I can't...breathe..." she manages to choke out. "Where is the key?" He demands.
Her legs give way under her and he holds on to her for a minute before releasing her to the floor. Pain floods her wrist and knees as she crumbles to the floor.
She can't breathe.
His feet come into her view and he crouches in front of her. "Where. Is. The. Key."
"...Please..." She chokes out.
Weld grabs her buy the hair and she yelps as he forces her gaze to his. "I'll turn this place upside down if I have too. I'll stalk your daughter until her guard is down and I'll take her, keep her until I get what's mine!"
She chokes out the first thing that comes to her mind. "...Jewel...ry...b...ox..."
He releases his hold on her roughly and his footsteps heading upstairs are the last thing she registers before everything goes black.
...
Sam sprints through the parking lot to his car. His mind is racing a mile a minute, threatening to unravel him at any moment. He presses his remote starter to unlock his doors and as he reaches for the handle on the backseat door, his hand trembles.
Taking a minute, he plants his hands on the window, closing his eyes.
Breathe, Radford.
Keep it together.
Stay calm.
His throat tightens and he shakes his head, pushing his fear down. Opening the car door, he reaches for his medical bag that he always keeps on the floor in the backseat.
Locking his car, he sprints back to the museum. He's not wearing the proper shoes and his pants and shirt are more than restricting but the short burst of activity does wonders to calm him. As he sprints past the main hall, the guests are still oblivious to what's going on as they dance and celebrate the new exhibit.
"SAM!"
He had been heading back to the makeshift command centre and halts abruptly when Brandon hollers to him from upstairs. "You found it?"
Brandon nods. "It's in the cartography room!"
He quickly takes the stairs two at a time, following Brandon down the hall. Everyone is waiting in the hallway and he takes a quick minute to give Grace a one armed hug before he follows Brandon into the Cartography room.
Derek and several officers are leaning over the whole in the floor and there's a buzz of urgency as the paramedics unpack equipment and officers hand out kevlar vests.
"What's the plan?" Sam asks anxiously.
Derek removes his jacket, pulling a vest over his head. "We only have the maps as a guide...we're going in blind here, which is risky."
He looks around the room at the officers and paramedics. "I'm going with you."
He's immediately met with protests but he's already made up his mind. "You can't tell me that those paramedics have better trauma response training than me, Derek," he argues. "You don't know what you're walking into and it could be a split second decision that could cost Cassie her life."
Derek sighs, opening his mouth to respond only nothing comes out. He hesitates a minute before going to the door, closing it before anyone overhears. "Sam, you're a civilian-"
"-and better qualified," he cuts him off. "While we're standing here arguing Cassie's life is in danger! I know the risks, and I'm the best chance she's got!"
Derek curses, running his hand through his hair. "Get him a vest."
Sam exhales, quickly removing his jacket as Brandon helps him into a vest.
"Cassie's going to berate us both when she finds out, you know that right?" Brandon comments.
He holds Brandon's gaze for a second, realizing the gravity of the situation. "Let's make sure we're both here then for her to do that, alright?"
Brandon nods.
The door opens behind them and Abigail lets herself in. She takes one look at Sam and Brandon, and shakes head. "This isn't happening. Derek, send someone else in!"
The others peak around the door and Nick steps into the doorway. "Dad, what are you doing?!"
"We don't have time for this," Derek comments, tightening his own vest. "I'll go in first, Brandon, you cover me...Sam, give us a few minutes, then follow us."
There's immediate protests as Grace, George and Martha spill into the room too. The other officers attempt to hold them back, gesturing them back into the hallway. Derek lowers himself into the tunnel, Brandon on his heals.
It's chaotic and he can't think.
"Stop!" He shouts. "Just...stop!"
Everyone falls silent.
"Derek's right: we don't have time to argue over this-"
"-It doesn't have to be you!" Abigail argues. "There are two perfectly capable paramedics that can handle this, Sam!"
If time hadn't been ticking, Sam would take a minute to tease Abigail about her sudden concern for him. "As capable as I'm sure they are, they're not the top trauma surgeon in the state of New York."
Abigail rolls her eyes, folding her arms against her chest, falling silent.
"It will be fine. I'll be fine," he reassures, grabbing his bag. His gaze connects with Nick's, and his tear stained face breaks him. "I'll be fine," he reassures. "Promise."
Nick nods, wiping his face.
The other officers usher them into the hallway, and he lowers himself into the tunnel. It's dark and he grabs the flashlight that's laying on in the dirt at his feet. He can't hear Derek or Brandon, and he hurries through the tunnel until he makes out the clearing up ahead.
Derek gestures for him to be silent, and he turns off his flashlight. He can just make out the lights and generator that has been moved to directly under the whole. He hangs back as Derek climbs on top of the generator, slowly rising into the floor above. He spins quickly, scoping out the floor above the best he can before ducking back into the tunnel. "No sign of them. It looks like the basement of Grey House...I'll go first."
Brandon nods, standing under the whole as his captain hoists himself up. It's a few, slit moments before Derek gives the ok.
"Clear."
Brandon hoists himself up, reaching back for his medical bag. Sam tosses it up to him before hoisting himself up through the whole. It's dark and a bit dusty. There doesn't look to be any signs of struggle.
Derek reaches for the mic on his shoulder. "Copy dispatch."
"Copy Captain."
"Confirming backup outside of Grey House?"
"Confirmed Captain; officers and paramedics are on stand by."
Sam scans the floor for signs of blood and relaxes a fraction when he doesn't immediately find any. Out of the corner of his eye he catches a glint of something by the stairs, and moves to investigate. On the floor by his foot is Cassie's ring.
"She's here," he announces, looking over his shoulder at Brandon and Derek. "Don't touch anything," Brandon directs. "We're in a crime scene."
His chest tightens, nodding.
Derek moves to the stairs and Brandon flanks him as they slowly make their way upstairs. He hangs back until they've let themselves onto the main floor. Brandon quickly gestures for him to follow, and he takes the stairs as quietly as he can, almost tripping over her shoes.
Derek and Brandon are on alert as they make their way down the hall to the kitchen and his heart is in his throat, the blood pumping in his ears as he follows quietly behind.
He spots her, lying on the kitchen floor and he rushes between them to get to her. Her lips are blue and the colour has drained from her face.
She's not breathing.
Dropping to his knees he opens her mouth ready to check for an obstruction or start CPR when he notices her tongue has swelled.
"Is she alright?" Brandon questions, his eyes still scanning the room. "She's not breathing," he answers, thinking fast.
Swollen tongue.
Blue lips.
Rash.
Light headedness.
Nausea.
Rooting through his bag he searches for an epi-pen. Popping the top off he shoves it directly into her thigh while simultaneously rooting for another one in his bag.
"Come on Cassie," he murmurs. "Breathe for me, honey."
His focus is zeroed in, everything else blocked out. He finds another pen and he's pulling the top off with his teeth, shoving it into her thigh as well.
"Breathe, breathe, breathe," he chants.
It feels like an eternity, waiting, but then her chest rises and she inhales a strangled, laboured breath.
"I don't have enough-" he starts, only be to be cut o
"-Don't move," Derek immediately takes in his surroundings, looking up.
Weld is standing in the threshold of the kitchen, hands in the air. "Not you Sam," Brandon clarifies. "What do you need?"
Derek orders Weld to the ground and he advances, wrestling his hands from his head behind his back.
"She's in anaphylaxis; I need more epinephrin."
Brandon radios to the paramedics and in seconds, the kitchen is a flurry.
Tbc