The Devil's Box Part 3

Invidia

She thought the little raven haired beauty fit perfectly on her shelf. It wasn’t often she found the perfect girl, it had taken years, and now she had her. She was wearing a perfect little violet dress and even had the perfect name. Hannah. How wonderful, she thought, now I have a Hannah in my collection. Not collection – family. Hannah would be the sweet one, so quiet and unassuming, so trusting.

She couldn’t be more proud of her family. There they sat in a row on a sturdy shelf in their own bedroom. There were toys and puzzles for them to play with when they were bored, a rocking horse for the adventurous girls, a closet full of dresses and shoes and a vanity covered in brushes and bows and tiny ribbons. There were red dresses and matching bows for the blondes, a wardrobe in shades of blues for the brunettes and she even had a red haired angel who shone in yellow. Everything they could ever need or want was there and when she would come home from work they were there ready to play, ready for her attention. She knew every one of their names, their favorite colors, favorite foods, and especially the games they enjoyed playing. She marveled at their perfection – at how she ever lived without them.

Her husband had left years ago. She knew it was because she couldn’t conceive. He had gone after greener, more fertile pastures leaving her in a barren and painfully quiet home. What could she do but fill it with perfect children? She always wanted a girl and now she has seven glorious angels. The next would be a boy. She already had her sights set on him, a fair haired, blue eyed, mischievous boy, and she was eager to get her hands on him.

“Alright my little angels, mommy has to go get dinner started. You sit here and be nice to each other and mommy will be by before bedtime to brush your hair.”

She ran her fingers through Hannah’s hair and the frigid cold was already getting to her. Rubbing the goose bumps from her arms she turned for one last look at her girls and saw the weak puff of air leaving Hannah’s little body. She smiled. Soon she will be mine completely. She closed the door and let the cold darkness swallow them whole. 

Gula

They sat there only capable of staring at the open tomb at first. Mark saw the glittering jewels, gold tablets, the shiny beautiful wonders he could hold in his hands. They glittered and beckoned pulling him deeper into the cavern. There were pottery shards and bones covering the uneven floor, strange writings covering the damp walls and so many scrolls littered in dark corners. Mark couldn’t wait to delve in to the treasures and Bridget followed close behind. She had her eye on the markings on the wall the instant her flashlight found them. It didn’t look like the writing style of the people living in the nearby villages. She thought it could be possible that this tomb was much older, maybe even from a lost tribe. Her heart raced with the excitement of it all.

The cavern was damp and cool and all of the trappings had been well preserved. Bridget found clothing that had been tossed across a stone altar. The clothing didn’t appear ancient but it was hard to tell since it had been shredded and was covered in dark stains. Worried someone could have beaten them to their find she searched the floor looking for more and found modern shoes, pants, and different electronic devices. It seemed the farther into the darkness they went the more she found.

“Mark, I think –”

“Can you believe this? Who would have thought that this tomb goes this far into the cave? It is incredible.”

She shook her head unable to keep her eyes from the strange writings behind Mark. “We will have to notify the university first thing tomorrow if we want to keep our funding going.” More like to make sure this is our find and not someone else’s she thought.

“Of course, of course,” he spat. “Can’t you think of anything else? Think of how famous we will be after this find makes headlines. This is possibly the oldest tomb in the country. The writing and the jewelry are like nothing I have ever encountered here or at any other site. We have something here and you are in a rush to hand it over to the pompous fat cats at the university? To lose control over our precious find?”

“I’m not eager for that but we have no more money. And they aren’t going to keep us from the excavation, I have Dr. Abrams word.”

“Dr. Abrams word,” he mocked.

“How grown up of you.” She shined her flashlight in Mark’s face then moved it to the nearest wall where long streaks of red ran horizontally. “Did you see these? They almost look like finger marks.” Her flashlight followed them to a pile of bones and as she passed it she felt a chill run up her spine. The deeper she followed Mark into the cave the more uneasy she felt. Something had happened here, something bad, and it looked like it had been recent. A strange tinny scent was coming from the back of the cave and though Bridget couldn’t explain it she felt afraid.

“It could be paint, a decoration of some sort, forget about it. Look at this!”

Bridget turned quickly and it took her a moment to register what she was seeing. There was a large black opening on a far back wall. From where she was standing it looked like a great looming shadow floating against the dark rock. It shocked her even more when Mark turned and carelessly shoved his arm into it.

“It’s a portal, I can’t think of what else to call it and it’s colder in there, considerably colder than here. Those wackos with the theories of aliens helping ancient civilizations may have actually been on to something!” Mark was laughing making his arm disappear and reappear and he turned back to Bridget with a smile she hadn’t seen on him in years. “I’m going to stick my head in. I’ll let you know what I see.”

“I don’t think you should. Haven’t you noticed the bones?”

Something slithered from the portal looking like a shadow itself. A tentacle found Mark and slid down his side. Bridget ran, never to return, leaving Mark’s screams and the darkness behind her.