Page 83 of Tashama
“There is a narrow passage over there,” the prince said.
“But no more ride, I’m afraid.”
After jumping out of the cart, Aleron lifted Tashama out.
Then he hurried to a lantern hanging from a wall. Tashama rubbed her arms as she stared at the dark passage. He hurried to her side. Terror filled her eyes, and he pulled her close and embraced her warmly. “Come, Tashama.” He took her arm and led her through the single-file passageway.
“Oh,” she whispered, “if I could only close my eyes now.”
“The floor is too uneven.” He started down slippery steps, dropping several feet below. He stopped at a narrow landing. The cave walls had given way to a black emptiness, and he grabbed Tashama’s hand as he examined a place in the rock where there was a low, narrow opening with only enough room for an average-sized man to crawl on his belly.
“I cannot.” Tashama balked.
“I won’t leave you behind, Tashama.” He lifted her chin. Her eyes moistened with tears. Her lips quavered, and he pressed his mouth to hers and kissed her hard. Squeezing the breath from her chest, he wrapped his arms around her. “Come, I’ll go first, but you must follow close behind.”
She nodded as a tear cascaded down her cheek. He kissed her hand, then knelt before the opening. Then he shoved the lantern in front of him and began the arduous crawl through the low passageway. After he had made it some distance, he called to her, “Are you all right?”
“My gowns.” She choked on the words.
The fear in her voice disheartened him as he longed to comfort her, but his only hope was in getting through to the other side, where they would be able to stand together. “Your gowns?” he asked.
“I can barely maneuver in them.”
He’d never considered the trek Tashama would have had to make dressed as she was. “Can you pull them up a bit?”
“There’s not enough room for me to twist even one of my arms back to do anything with them. My shoes keep hanging up on the hem of my skirts as I try to push forward.”
“Can you go back?”
“No!” The anguish in her voice indicated she was ready to break.
“Tashama,” Aleron coaxed, “we’ll continue as slowly as it takes us. I won’t leave you behind.” She lay her head on her arms as she sobbed aloud. “Tashama.” Her sobs drowned out his voice, and he waited until her sobs had quieted.
“Tashama, let us try some more.”
“I cannot,” she whispered.
“Reach out and touch my foot.” The tips of her fingers touched his felt boot. His heart was warmed by the feel of her hand clutching his foot. “Listen. I will crawl a little farther, then you’ll do the same. I want you to touch my foot when you have reached me, then when you’re ready, we’ll begin again. “Tashama?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
He moved several inches down the path and took a deep breath as he felt her hand slip from his boot. When he felt he had gone far enough, he said, “All right, Tashama.”
Her skirts rustled as she tried to follow him, and then after several minutes had passed, she touched his foot.
“We’re doing just fine, Tashama.” He waited while she caught her breath. Her slender fingers touched the softness of the top of his suede shoes, and he hated to pull away from her, knowing she drew comfort from making contact with him in the tomblike passage.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
He inched his way farther.
For over an hour, they crawled in this manner, and then she sniffled. He tensed. “It shouldn’t be much longer.”
“I cannot go much farther. I cannot. What if it dead ends? We cannot crawl backwards. Oh, Aleron, I cannot do it.”
“It won’t dead-end. There’s fresh air ahead. My flame flickered.”
