The Orange Cat and Other Cainsville Tales (Cainsville 3.5)

She nodded. "What exactly did he lose her to?"

"The fire?"

She shook her head, and she said something, but her words oddly cut out, like a bad phone connection. Swallowed by the bells and the echo and the lapping of the water, he decided, and he said, "What was that?"

"--holes, right?"

He shook his head sharply, like trying to knock water from his ears. That's what it seemed like now, not the sounds of the cavern smothering her words, but something muffling them.

Muffled. Shrouded.

Shrouds . . .

His brain snagged on the word. Why?

Liv was still talking, "That's what"--muffled--"said they are. Like Glooscap's"--muffled--"holes."

Get her out.

Get her out now.

"Good idea," he said quickly. "We'll discuss it as soon as we're--"

Liv disappeared.

Nine - Ricky

Ricky lunged, shouting, "No!" his voice echoing through the cave, his brain imagining the shadows overtaking Liv, consuming her. But it only took a split second to realize that wasn't what he'd seen at all. She'd just vanished. There one second, gone the next.

Swallowed by a vision.

Don't panic. Stay where you are. She's still here. This has happened before, and the only person who stumbled into danger because of it was you.

Ricky squeezed his eyes shut, forcing back Arawn's panic.

Not my panic. Yours.

Either way, not helpful. Ricky gulped deep breaths. Liv was still here. Right here. Shrouded in a vision.

Shroud . . .

That word. That damned word.

Ricky started forward, his hands sweeping over the rocky floor.

Don't go far.

Ah, being helpful now. Awesome.

A noise had him jumping, "Liv?" on his lips. But when he turned, he saw only the shadows oozing along the walls. Then the sound came again.

A whisper. A voice.

"Liv?"

It wasn't her. In his gut, he knew it wasn't. When he focused, he could hear the whispers. Coming from the shadows.

He took one careful crawling step toward them, straining for Arawn to warn him back.