Episode 4

It was almost lunchtime by the time Ben, following Connor in his car, drove up to an old, abandoned building complex. With the rain still pouring down, he drove around to the back lot and parked in a space next to an inconspicuous exit door.

“It used to be an aquarium,” Ben said as he helped her out of the car. Miah let out her pent-up breath as she kept close behind him.

Connor produced a key to unlock the unlabeled door and quickly entered, while Ben held it open for her. Miah smiled and nodded her thanks. Once they were inside, Connor opened a panel on the wall and flipped a few switches, which flicked on a light in the hall. Low whines echoed down the hall as the rest of the lights clinked on. Ben closed the door after a quick look outside, and he and Miah followed Connor down the hallway. Soon, after following through another locked door, a larger room opened up before them. Bluish lights in empty aquariums lined the walls, casting eerie shadows by the plants and rocks within. The floor was dusty, Miah noticed, and worried that they would be easily tracked by their footprints. With a sinking feeling, she followed as they walked down a dark, narrow stairway into a pitch-black space. Miah froze, fighting panic. “I—I can’t see.”

She blinked as Connor clicked on a flashlight and shone it at the floor. He wore an annoyed smirk, his face lit from below like a ghost-story teller. Miah let go of Ben’s arm, which she hadn’t even realized she’d grabbed onto, and looked away. With a nod down the hall, Connor turned to lead them further, and Miah crossed her arms as she followed. She hoped she wouldn’t have to put up with this guy for too much longer. He was getting on her nerves.

They made their way down the hallway to a section with numerous doors, all closed, leading to rooms on both sides. Connor looked down both sides of the hallway before walking up to one and opening it without too much difficulty, though the door stuck a bit.

With a sigh, Connor handed the flashlight to Ben, who walked into the room. Brushing his brown hair from his face, he shone the flashlight at a line of lockers, full height ones that looked like they probably held night guard uniforms or work suits. Opening one with a combination he had memorized, he reached inside and pressed on the back panel of the locker, where the wall should have been, and stepped inside the locker. Miah’s eyes opened wide as she hurried forward, toward the light that still shone through from Ben’s flashlight. There was a tunnel inside the locker!