“In other words, if you don’t know where you’re going, you can’t get there using a flute, is that it?” Alice said.

“Something like that,” Drake said.

“This one was tuned to the cove,” Karen said. “This morning when I escaped I was able to follow the frequencies.”

“Will it work in reverse?” Alice asked. “Can we use it to find this ruin you’re talking about?”

“No,” Karen said. “Not any longer.” She looked at the flute, despair in her eyes. “I barely made it out of the Preserve. The psi levels are too high inside the fence now. They interfered with the tuning. I made it as far as the fence, but the flute gave out entirely when I went through the barrier. Now it’s gone flat. Listen.”

She blew gently on the crystal flute. There were a few faint jarringly discordant notes and then nothing at all.

Drake stopped and took the flute from her. He turned it in his hand, examining it carefully. “Chief Attridge’s wife, Charlotte, might be able to retune it. There’s another man on the island who has a talent for tuning, as well. Calvin Dillard. We may have some options.” He put the flute in his shirt pocket and started walking again. “Tell me about the research project that Tucker is running.”

“All I know is that Dr. Tucker is excavating an underground Alien ruin right here on Rainshadow,” Karen said. “There’s this big crystal pyramid down there. Lot of energy inside, at least there is now.”

Drake pushed through some low-hanging branches. “What’s going on down there?”

“When Dr. Tucker found the Chamber, it was shut down. There was energy inside but it was locked in the crystals that form the walls of the pyramid. Dr. Tucker used two other crystals she called the Keys to release the power.”

Alice glanced at Drake. “Sounds like the two missing crystals.”

“Got to be those damn stones.” Drake led the way through a tumble of boulders. “She stuck the two crystals inside the ruin to kick-start it, and now she’s got a slow-rolling chain reaction going, one that is so strong it’s affecting the entire island. Idiot. How do people like that get PhDs?”

Alice cleared her throat. “I suppose one might ask how people like that get past human resources departments, pass background checks, and manage to obtain security clearances at companies like Sebastian, Inc.”

Drake shot her an annoyed look. At least she assumed he was annoyed. The wraparound glasses made it impossible to read his eyes.

Karen was oblivious to the byplay. She continued with her tale.

“A chain reaction is exactly how Dr. Tucker described the situation,” Karen said. “She’s getting panicky, I think. She says the only way to shut down the Chamber is to remove the two crystals.”

“So?” Alice said. “Why doesn’t she do that?”

“She can’t,” Karen said. “No one can go into the Chamber for more than a minute or two at most now. She’s been sending Pete and me into that light furnace every day for the past couple of weeks. She puts a rope around us and pushes us through the gate. But it’s so dark in there you can’t see anything, and the energy is a full-blown storm. We can only take it for about a minute and then we go unconscious. The bitch drags us out, gives us a few hours’ rest, and sends us in again.”

“I’m surprised she didn’t leave the island while it was still possible to get off,” Alice said.

“She waited too long,” Drake said. He led the way through some scrubby bushes. “She was so obsessed with her revenge that she couldn’t bring herself to cut her losses. Now she’s trapped here on Rainshadow.”

“Just like us,” Alice observed.

“Don’t forget Pete,” Karen added anxiously. “I promised him that if I got out, I’d try to get help.”

Drake automatically glanced at his watch. He appeared irritated again when he realized it was still stopped. He looked up at the sky. Alice did the same. The cloud cover was heavier and darker than ever.

“We need to move faster,” Drake said. “We have to make it to Shadow Bay by sundown.”

No one argued.

Chapter 16

FEAR OF BEING CAUGHT OUT IN THE OPEN AFTER DARK proved to be an excellent motivator. They made good time, walking into the tiny community of Shadow Bay shortly before sunset. Relief flashed through Alice when she saw the first buildings and other trappings of civilization.

It had been an arduous trek. Drake had not allowed many rest breaks. Alice was exhausted and she knew that Karen was, also. But the realization that they would not be spending another night outdoors made the physical effort more than worthwhile.

Her initial elation faded quickly. At first glance, Shadow Bay appeared deserted.

“They all left,” she whispered, her spirits plunging.

“Oh, no,” Karen wailed.

There were no passengers waiting at the ferry dock. A small sign announced that the run to Thursday Harbor had been cancelled until further notice. The shops on the short main street were closed and, for the most part, dark. One nearby shop window was illuminated, but the glow came from the unique light of an old-fashioned amber lantern. After a moment, Alice realized that more amber lanterns lit the tavern and a couple of rooms in the small motel above the row of marina shops. Aside from the handful of lamps, however, the town looked empty. It was as if the last person to leave had forgotten to de-rez a few lights.

She reached up to touch Houdini, who was perched on her shoulder. “Does this place remind anyone of that horror movie Ghost Cove?”

Karen looked around with growing panic. “Yes, it does.”

“Never saw that one,” Drake said. He stopped in the middle of the street and surveyed the ominously quiet surroundings. “Did it end well?”

“No,” Alice said. “Probably better not to go into the details. What happened here? Do you think your brother managed to evacuate the entire island and then decided to leave, as well? I have to tell you, the thought of being the only people remaining on Rainshadow besides Zara Tucker and her security guard is a little scary.”

“And Pete,” Karen said anxiously.

“And Pete,” Alice added.

“Take it easy,” Drake said. “There are people here. But the power is off. That’s probably why the shops are closed and the street is empty. Well, that and the incoming fog.”

“Where is everyone?” Karen whispered.

As if on cue, a man with long, unkempt hair, a scraggly beard, and fierce eyes appeared from the shadowed space between two weather-beaten buildings. He was dressed in flowing green robes bound at the waist by a leather belt. The belt buckle was set with an amber stone. The leather boots on his feet looked well worn, as if they had seen a great deal of hard wear.

He held a large, hand-lettered sign attached to a narrow wooden post. The sign read, PREPARE FOR THE GLORIOUS DAWN. ARE YOU READY FOR THE RETURN OF THE ANCIENT ONES?

He strode rapidly toward Alice, Drake, and Karen, a man on a mission.

“Welcome, travelers,” he intoned. “Do you bring news of the Aliens? Have they returned?”

“Haven’t seen any Aliens,” Drake said.

“Good.” The bearded man nodded solemnly. “You still have time to prepare. You must seek the third level of psychic enlightenment before it is too late. Only those who arrive at the third level will be able to accept the Glorious Dawn that is coming.”

“Who are you?” Alice asked.

“My name is Egan. I was sent here with the others to warn the people of Rainshadow that the Glorious Dawn will arrive here first. Many fled. But those who remain will not listen to me. If we are not prepared, the Aliens will take back this world and destroy us in the process. There is very little time left.”

“Do you have a plan to reach the third level?” Drake asked.

“The answer lies in dreams,” Egan said. He swept out a hand to indicate the dark fog hanging at the edge of the harbor. “Those who cannot or will not achieve the third level will meet their doom in the nightmare fog.”