Labyrinth by Alex Archer Page B

Annja took another breath and plunged straight down toward the tunnel, pulling herself through it as she kicked harder than she thought possible.
The darkness seemed to stretch before her, yawning like some great black maw. Annja drove the sword out ahead of her, willing it to carry her forward, to lend her its strength.
Her legs ached from kicking. And she kept bumping her head against the tunnel itself, which was only about six feet in diameter.
I’ve got to keep going, she thought. Come on, Annja, keep swimming!
Annja didn’t dare stop and look back. She had a gut feeling that she’d already passed the point of no return.
Her lungs started to crave oxygen more than they ever had before.
Keep going.
Annja closed her eyes and imagined the sword in her mind’s eye. A new wave of strength surged through her body and it felt as if her muscles had more oxygen now. Annja’s lungs still hurt from holding her breath, but she kept her eyes shut and kept plowing forward.
Just a little bit more.
The tunnel couldn’t go on forever. At some point, Fairclough would have to end it and bring the person into another room so the fun could continue.
Right?
She prayed she was right.
Her legs ached now and Annja knew that this was the final energy she could pull from the sword. Eventually, it would need to be put back into the otherwhere. Annja didn’t think it had an inexhaustible supply of energy to give her.
Nothing did.
I’m almost there, Annja told herself. A few seconds more.
And then she had the sensation of light ahead. Annja opened her eyes and saw that the tunnel had already started to open up. She could see the lighter water in front of her. The tunnel must have opened into a different room.
She kicked with every last ounce of strength she possessed and was rewarded by finally clearing the tunnel.
Air.
Annja shot for the surface.
Broke it.
And sucked deep lungfuls of air.
Finally.
Water dripped off her and her entire body felt cold. She needed to get out of the water and find a way to warm herself. Otherwise, she was done for.
She turned in the water and saw a sandy beach ahead.
Annja swam for the shore.
Grateful to be through the tunnel.
And still alive.

Chapter 9
     
Annja waded out of the water and fell face-first into the sugar-soft sand. Her teeth chattered and her entire body felt chilled to the core. Annja briefly managed to put the sword back and then exhaustion washed over her. She closed her eyes and just wanted to fall asleep.
But she knew she couldn’t. The watch on her wrist already showed her that one hour had passed since Greene had delivered his ultimatum to find the book or Fairclough would die.
Annja groaned and hauled herself into a sitting position. The sand was mercifully warm and her clothes already seemed to be drying, as if they’d been exposed to a fire. Annja lay back down on the sand and let the warmth, which seemed to be radiating up from under it, bleed into her and restore her core temperature.
Fairclough had planned for this, she guessed. After that swim, people would need to be able to warm themselves. Somewhere beneath her, there was no doubt an industrial heater.
Annja frowned. The heater probably wasn’t left on twenty-four hours a day… Had it been activated when she reached the sand? In that case, there would have to be sensors embedded somewhere in the walls that would track her progress. Either that or cameras, with people watching her. If she could figure out a way to get to some sort of control room, there might be a way to bypass the maze itself and head right to the book.
Of course, in order to do that, Annja would need a more intimate knowledge of the maze. And that was something she didn’t have.
She sighed and sat back up.
Kessel was still nowhere to be seen. Annja wondered if he’d fallen into some other pool somewhere else in the maze and if he’d had his own run-in with a shark.
Maybe he hadn’t made it.
Annja smiled. She doubted it. Kessel was very strong…and smarter