Page 28 of Silent Grave (Sheila Stone #12)

Rachel Tolland had been watching Mine Entrance Four for hours straight, taking breaks only when other protesters could cover her shift. Sarah Riggs thought she was crazy for staying out here so long, especially after Michelle had disappeared.

But Rachel couldn't leave. Something about this entrance felt different.

Maybe it was the way the wind carried sounds from deep inside, despite MSHA's attempts to seal it. Or how the shadows seemed darker here, more absolute. Or maybe it was just that this entrance was farthest from the crowds, the cameras, the constant buzz of official activity.

The sun cast long shadows across the mountainside. Rachel checked her phone—no service, as usual. She'd have to hike back to the main road to update Sarah. But just as she stood to leave, a sound reached her from the mine.

A voice.

She froze, straining to hear. The wind played tricks up here, turned machinery groans into whispers, falling rocks into footsteps. But this had been distinct. Human.

Rachel moved closer to the entrance. MSHA had installed heavy steel barriers, but their work looked hasty, rushed. A gap remained near the ground where the barrier didn't quite meet the uneven stone—not big enough for an adult to squeeze through, but enough to let sound escape.

"Hello?" she called softly, then immediately regretted it. If the killer was down there...

But the voice came again, clearer this time. A woman's voice, weak but unmistakable: "Help."

Rachel's heart pounded. She should run back, get the police. That would be the smart thing, the safe thing. But if it really was Diana down there, barely alive after so many hours in the darkness...

She examined the gap more closely. If she pressed herself hard on the ground, she might be able to—

"Please," the voice called. "Anyone."

Rachel grabbed the edge of the barrier and pulled. Nothing. She tried again, bracing her feet against the stone wall. Something shifted, sending a shower of loose rock skittering into the darkness. The gap widened slightly.

This is exactly how people die in horror movies, she thought. But she kept pulling. The barrier groaned, then suddenly gave way with a sound like tearing metal. The gap was wider now—maybe wide enough to squeeze through.

She shone her flashlight into the opening. The beam caught rough stone walls, rotting support beams, and decades of debris. But no movement, no sign of the killer.

"I'm here," the voice said. Closer now. "Please."

Rachel typed out a quick text to Sarah— Found something Entrance 4. Get help. —but it wouldn't send. No signal. She would have to choose: go back for help, or go in alone.

Another sound from the darkness: coughing, wet and painful.

Rachel pulled off her backpack and took out her backup flashlight. Then, before she could talk herself out of it, she lay flat and wiggled through the gap.

The tunnel air was cold, heavy with mineral scents and decay. Her lights showed a passage leading deeper into the mountain, decades of graffiti marking the walls. Water dripped somewhere in the darkness, a steady rhythm like a broken metronome.

"Hello?" she whispered.

"Here." The voice came from a side tunnel, barely more than a crack in the wall. "I can see... your light."

Rachel approached carefully, both beams aimed ahead. The passage was narrow, forcing her to turn sideways to squeeze through. Her lights caught movement—a hand raised weakly.

"Oh my God." Rachel rushed forward, nearly stumbling on the uneven ground. "Diana?"

Diana Martinez lay crumpled against the tunnel wall, her clothes torn and filthy, her silver hair matted with blood and dirt. Her eyes were fever-bright.

"Careful," Diana whispered. "He's still... down here. Somewhere. He had me trapped, but I drove him off and got out of there. I'm not sure if I hit him."

"I'm getting you out." Rachel knelt beside her, trying to assess her condition in the harsh light. "Can you walk?"

"No." Diana's breath came in shallow gasps. "Fell. Running from him. Leg's broken... maybe worse." She gripped Rachel's arm with surprising strength. "Listen. The maps... in my pack. They prove..." A bout of coughing overtook her.

"Save your strength. Help is coming." But even as she said it, Diana's eyes closed.

"Diana?" she asked, gently shaking her. "Diana!"

But no answer came.