V – Vehicle

This is a serialized story – be sure to read in order: from A (afterthought) to Z (zealous).

Courtney peeked out of the hatch. “Um, Nash?”

“Yeah?”

“Um, it’s changed. Again.”

“What do you see now?”

She continued climbing out of the hatch and called down. “You’ve got to see it to believe it.”

Nash snorted, “Like I believe anything I’ve seen so far.” Louder he added, “If you weren’t here, I’d think this was all a dream.”

Courtney sat back on her heels. “Are you saying I’m never in your dreams?” She thought a second. “Never mind. Don’t answer that.”

Nash stuck his head out and looked around. “You weren’t kidding. Let me get out of here and we can close this so we don’t fall into it.”

“You think this is how they, whoever they are, go in and out of the hatch?”

Nash closed the hatch and stood, pulling Courtney to her feet. “Could very well be, but I don’t expect anything to be as it seems.”

“Right. What’s on that table over there? Looks like a jigsaw puzzle. I love those.” She crossed the room, stopping in front of a folding table. “I used to be pretty good at these but I always used the photo on the box to help me. Do you see it anywhere?”

“Huh?” Nash had wandered to side wall and was studying a poster. He looked over his shoulder and replied, “Never was good at those. Keep at it. Might be a clue.” He turned back to the poster and muttered, “And this might be, too.”

The room looked like a cross between a dorm bedroom and a senior living apartment. Posters covered the wall behind a messy desk piled with books, while the other half featured a rocking chair draped with a knit afghan with a battered pair of slippers underneath. In the middle was the table with the puzzle.

After studying the first poster, Nash examined the others and gave up, shaking his head. “It’s all meaningless. How about the puzzle, Court? Any clues?”

She looked up with wide eyes. “I think this might be the vehicle for getting out of here…”

To be continued…