Page 40 of Dark Shaman: Eternal Hope
"I didn't dare. I figured out where it was and then went to Hassan's office and examined the architectural plans. The spot is marked as a support column, but the dimensions don't match. It's definitely a concealed entrance."
She pressed closer, nuzzling his neck. "What stopped you from entering?"
His hand came up to stroke her hair, the gesture allowing him to speak directly into her ear. "I'm sure there is an alarm system. Pressure sensors, infrared, and who knows what else. If we trigger it, we're dead."
It wouldn't even be vindictive. Navuh wouldn't allow anyone with the knowledge of where his escape tunnel was to live.
"I need to find out what kind of security is on that door," Eluheed murmured. "And if there's an alarm, how to disable it, what triggers it."
Tamira pulled back slightly to look at his face, keeping her expression soft and adoring for any cameras that might be watching. "I'll get it out of Areana."
His eyes widened. "How? We can't allow her to suspect what we are planning."
"She won't." Tamira traced a finger along his jaw. "She feels guilty about keeping secrets from me. About Kalugal and my son. I know how to use that to my advantage."
"We'll find out what happened to Darien," Eluheed promised, cupping her face with his hand. "Once we're free, we'll search for him."
"First, we need to get free." The doubt crept into her voice despite her efforts to stay positive. "Even if I can get the information about the alarm from Areana, there's still the problem of the submarine. We don't know for sure that it exists, or how to operate it. According to your vision, it can only seat two or three people. I can't leave without the others." She grimaced. "And I don't count Areana among them. I know she would never leave Navuh."
"One problem at a time," he murmured, pressing his forehead against hers. "First, let's see if we can even get into the tunnel."
She nodded, then pulled back to study his face. Even whispering about escape felt dangerous.
"I need to figure out how to approach Areana about this," she said. "I can't just ask her about security systems."
"You're clever. You'll find a way." He stroked her cheek with his thumb. "Maybe express worry about her safety after the rebellion? Ask about emergency procedures?"
"Maybe." She considered the angles. "Or I could ask about the restoration work. Hassan has been everywhere fixing things. Surely he's been in their quarters. I could wonder aloud about privacy, about whether workers disturbed things or activated alarms."
"That could work. Make it seem like idle curiosity."
"Nothing's ever idle with Areana. She notices everything." Tamira felt a wave of frustration. "Five thousand years of playing these games. I'm so tired of it."
"I know." He pulled her closer, and this time it wasn't a pretense. She could feel his desire for her. "Soon. We'll find a way out."
"Do you really believe that?"
"I have to. The alternative is accepting this forever, and I can't do that. Not for me, and not for you."
The words warmed her despite her own doubts. She'd lived for millennia, but these past months with Eluheed had made her feel more alive than in centuries before them.
"I keep thinking about what Areana said during lunch about you," she whispered. "Navuh's impressed with your insights about the enhanced soldiers, and he hopes we'll have a child together."
Eluheed's expression darkened. "He thinks of us as livestock, breeding his superior specimens to produce brilliant generals for his army."
She smiled. "At least he thinks of us as superior. It's better than being generic livestock." Her smile wilted. "He wants another boy to steal from me and turn into a warrior."
"That won't happen," Eluheed said. "We'll be gone long before that. And if we are blessed with a child, we'll raise him free. I promise you that."
She wanted to believe him, but he was making promises he might not be able to deliver, and they both knew that.
Then again, Eluheed had special abilities, and there was a chance they could use them to escape.
"What did you see when you touched one of the enhanced soldiers?"
Eluheed was quiet for a moment. "It was overwhelming. All of their minds are trying to merge into something greater but failing. They're connected but chaotic, like instruments playing different songs simultaneously."
"Can they communicate with the others? Those who are off island?"
