The closest rat was only about five yards away now, its nose a mere inch or two from the ground. Carmen noticed something bizarre — the animal had no eyes. Cave dwellers. Possessing no vision, they likely hunted by hearing and smell.
What now? She was way beyond the two minutes Zane had given her, but right now, that was the least of her concerns. Shooting one of the rats should be enough to send them all scurrying back into the hole, but the sound of the shot might draw the order’s attention if any of them were close by. Still, she might have no other choice. She was extremely fit, but the massive rodents might swarm her if she tried to sprint through.
Carmen stood slowly, balancing herself on the ledge. She pulled her pistol from her waistband. She would take out two or three of the animals then hope the others would flee back into the crevice. That was the plan, anyway.
She raised the pistol with two hands. As she adjusted her position, the nearest rat swiveled its head in her direction. Had it felt her move? She trained her gun on its head. As she did, a loose rock on the ledge fell to the floor. The rat, hearing the noise, moved toward her. Its sudden move made Carmen flinch. She tried to hold her balance, but soon, inertia took over, and she tumbled forward into the room. Her body hit hard, sending her pistol spinning across the floor.
She turned with her fists in balls, ready to punch the rats that would surely converge on her. Instead, they scurried toward the pistol. They circled it cautiously, gnashing their teeth and snarling. They’d probably never smelled metal or polymer before. Finally, one moved in and bit the barrel, thrashing it around. That seemed to encourage the others, who attacked the gun en masse. She could only imagine what that would feel like if it were her leg.
Although her body ached, Carmen knew she had to take advantage of the distraction. She had to get up and sprint for the stairs. Wincing, she rolled onto her side. It was a risky — but necessary — move. She needed to push off on one arm in order to get up.
One of the rats turned in her direction, sensing something had moved. It sniffed the air, trying to determine what was there.
Carmen couldn’t afford to wait any longer. She rose up on one elbow, careful to move as slowly as possible. The rat’s nose twitched excitedly. Carmen froze again. The animal’s head was turned toward her now. Like it had radar, it had locked in on her position. It knew she was there.
Carmen slid one foot into position, readying herself to push up. Feeling the movement, the rat let out a long hiss. Before she could get off the ground, it charged.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
Its teeth bared with lust, the rat bore down on Carmen with shocking speed. The other rats, drawn by the movement, ran just behind. In seconds, they would swarm over her soft flesh. Carmen wanted to retrieve her pistol, but at this point, she knew her only option was to get back to the ledge and hope the rats couldn’t climb. She pushed off the ground as they closed in. Turning, she took two steps and leaped. The minute she left the ground, she realized she was too far away. Her lead foot hit the wall right under the ledge, and she slid to the floor.
Forced to climb, she grabbed the ledge and pulled herself up. Just when she thought she was going to make it unscathed, teeth sank into her lower leg. She cried out in pain as she pulled her legs up. The rat snarled and bit harder, shaking its head back and forth. Carmen grabbed the cold, hairless neck with one hand, while pounding its head with the other. At first, the rat held on, but finally released her to defend itself from the blows. The minute it let go, Carmen flung it away. It dropped into the swarm of rats below, who were in such a frenzy they momentarily thrashed their comrade. Seeing the frenzy of oily gray skin turned her stomach.
Finally, the rats realized their mistake and shifted their attention back to the wall, trying to climb on top of each other to reach their prey. To be safe, Carmen brought her legs up onto the ledge. As they hissed and snarled below her, she pulled out her flashlight and directed her beam into the next building. It might be her only way out. As she’d feared, the entire structure had been gutted, including what looked like a partially exposed basement. It was at least a thirty-foot drop, something she’d only attempt if it were her only option.
The sound of claws scurrying across the floor drew her attention back to the room. The rodents moved back toward the crevice in the rear wall. Strangely, they were silent. No more snarling and snapping. Something was either drawing them out of the room, or something had scared them off.
Carmen looked around. Nothing moved, but there was a change in the atmosphere. Maybe it was the chilled feeling at having her leg gnawed on by a hairless rat. Dropping off the ledge, she retrieved her pistol. If they came back, at least she’d be able to fill a few of them full of lead.
She was about to start for the stairs when she felt the air grow cold. The eyes had returned, and this time, they were in the same room. Turning slowly, she looked back toward the front window. There, in a dark corner to the left, something moved. She took a step back.
A figure stepped out of the shadows. Carmen flinched in surprise. It was a child — a young boy, no more than five or six years old. Strangely, he wore a suit. Even stranger, it looked like the ones worn by people in the nineteenth century.
What was a child doing this far beneath the earth? Did people still live here? Carmen knew there were large groups of people living in abandoned tunnels beneath Paris and other places around the world, but she doubted anyone could survive here. What would they eat?
The boy took a step closer. The cold preceded him.
Carmen remained in place but gripped her pistol more tightly. “Who are you?”
The boy remained silent.
“What’s your name?”
“May I come over there?” He spoke with an awkward cadence, like someone who wasn’t used to speaking. Something seemed odd about the boy. The strange voice, and his face twitched.
“Not until you tell me who you are.”
The boy ignored her question and took two more steps. “Is it time to eat?”
Carmen frowned. “Are you hungry?”
“Yes, I’m hungry. May I come closer?”
Carmen’s inner voice told her not to give him permission. The boy remained in place, as though hindered by some invisible wall. She stepped toward him for a better look. As she studied his features, she recoiled. The child’s eyes were black. Pitch black. Opaque lifeless pits, devoid of emotion. Carmen took a step back. She didn’t know what it was, but she knew it was no boy.
“May I come closer? I’m hungry.” His voice was like a recording stuck on an endless loop.
Carmen wanted to turn and run, but the same inner voice that had spoken before told her not to turn her back. Instead, she backed up a few steps.
Without warning, the boy’s head swiveled sharply toward the stairs. The movement was surprisingly quick, as though his previous lethargy had been a ruse. It was obvious he could be fast if he needed to be. Carmen was tempted to look back to see what he was staring at but was afraid of taking her eyes off of him.
A sound came from the ground floor. Something or someone had entered the building. Was it another child? If so, she was going to be pinned. Footsteps came up the stairs. Someone was on the way up. Carmen debated her next move. On the one hand, she didn’t want to take her eye off the boy. On the other, she didn’t want to be attacked from behind. She struck a compromise, shifting in such a way that would allow her to see both the stairwell and the boy.
A dark figure appeared at the top of the stairs. This one seemed to be moving faster than the other. Her instincts kicking in, Carmen aimed her pistol and slid her finger over the trigger.