Free The Secret Of The Unicorn Queen -The Dark Gods by Josepha Sherman Page B

she really didn't want to do that again. 
        But Sheila couldn't stop herself from thinking. And a horrid thought kept running through her mind. The imp was so much smaller than the humans. How could he be sure they would fit? What if they couldn't make it? What if they were stuck in this loathsome drain forever? 
        Sheila was just about to panic when suddenly their foul journey was over. Sheila, then Dian, and finally Pelu climbed up out of the drain into a vast, dark corridor. 
        "The walls are so smooth and fine," whispered Pelu, touching one carefully. "This isn't just a tunnel. We must be somewhere within the palace itself." 
        "But where?" added Dian, trying to brush the worst of the filth off her clothes. 
        Sheila looked around for the imp and located him by his glinting green eyes. 
        Nervous eyes. Do we really have to stay here? they seemed to ask. 
        "Ah, imp, do you know where-" 
        Sheila's whisper was cut short by a sudden crashing sound that echoed up and down the passageway. The imp's eyes widened in fear. 
        "Hey, wait!" Sheila whispered. "I know what that was: a gong, that's all. Don't-" 
        Too late. The imp was too scared to listen. Before Sheila could stop him, he gave a wild little chitter of alarm, dived back into the drain, and disappeared. 
        Sheila, Pelu, and Dian were left alone in darkness. 

11

An Old Enemy Returns

        Standing there in the middle of who knew what, Sheila had no idea which way to turn or what to do. For a long, terrified moment she couldn't even think. The darkness seemed to press in about her, tighter, tighter . 
        No! That was silly. She had never been scared of the dark before, and she wasn't about to start being scared now! 
        "Okay," she said softly, "which way do you think we should go?" 
        What if no one answered? What if Pelu and Dian had somehow disappeared? What if-"The passage leads off to our left and right." Pelu's voice was as calm as ever. "The sound of the gong came from the right, I think." 
        "Then we should go left," Dian said decisively. 
        "I'm not sure about that." The healer hesitated. 
        "They'd only be sounding a gong somewhere within the main halls of the palace. That means if we go to the left, we'll be going away from the heart of the building. We'd probably wind up somewhere near the outer walls." 
        "Yes, but-" 
        "Dian, Illyria is a precious prisoner to Kumuru. He's not going to keep her in some isolated corner." 
        "I know that. I just think it would be safer to get a better view of the whole palace before we start wandering around in here." 
        ''I don't think we have time for that 'safer,' '' Sheila cut in. "We don't know how long we have till morning. Once the sun comes up, the whole palace will be up and about. Then we'll never be able to get to Illyria." 
        "I still think we should go left." 
        "I think we should go right," argued Pelu. "What about you, Sheila?" 
        Which way? Which way .... 
        Sheila straightened. "Hey, I know what! In my world we have a sort of magical chant we use when we can't make a decision. It goes like this: 
        "Eenie, meenie, minie, moe . 
        The three warriors, drawn swords in their hands, made their way down the passage way— to the right. 
        Sheila still wasn't too happy about the choice. Sure, there hadn't been any better way to decide, but even so... 
        What if they were going the wrong way after all? When would they even find out? The passageway continued straight and true and level. The walls remained smooth and unmarked, slightly cool to the touch. 
        What if it's leading us straight into another trap? Sheila worried. 
        Hadn't things gone just a little too easily so far? Kumuru was a sorcerer, after all, even if all his power did seem to come only from that strange red amulet of his.