The Maze The Lost Labyrinth - By Jason Brannon Page 0,43

the world around me shimmered in and out of focus like the view in a distorted mirror.

My life leaked out of me in a hundred different places, puddling on the floor beneath me. The déjà vu was so strong. I flashed back to the way I’d felt after getting shot in the head at close range by that man with the Angel Face. I remembered seeing this maze reflected in the pool of blood, and now as I glanced into this new puddle of scarlet, I was able to see the world I’d left behind.

I caught a glimpse of Amy sitting on her mother’s couch, sobbing uncontrollably. Judith had her arms around her daughter, trying to comfort her. Peter stood there, watching them both, confused, not understanding why his mother was crying so much, wondering where I was.

“Da Da.”

His call for me prompted a fresh bout of tears from Amy. Frightened and realizing that something was very wrong, my son began to cry with his mother and grandmother. A tear slipped from my eye too, but I was too hurt to wipe it away. Given all I had done to cause this pain, I didn’t deserve any reprieve. I deserved to hurt like they were hurting.

The sight of their lives falling apart was the last thing I remembered before an unbelievably heavy weight pulled my eyelids closed, blacking out the world.

Chapter 21

Peter had spent the past hour crying and saying ’Da Da’ over and over again. It was obvious that he missed Jamie. Amy did too, for that matter. She hadn’t heard from Jamie since she told him not to come home. That was two days ago.

She wanted to believe that Jamie hadn’t betrayed her, but the evidence against him was overwhelming. It was also just a little bit too convenient. Someone was out to get her husband. She had no doubt about that. She just didn’t know why.

Her mother, thankfully, had been there throughout this whole mess to put things in perspective. Judith touched Amy lightly to remind her that she was there.

“Jamie’s a good man,” Judith reminded her. “I believe that. And until I see a picture of the two of them beneath the sheets, I’m going to assume he’s innocent.”

Amy sighed. It felt good hearing someone else’s opinion, especially when it was in defense of her husband. It made it a little easier for her to believe him.

Still, there were the pictures and the note. But even those were starting to lose their effectiveness. At first, they had stolen the breath from Amy’s lungs and knocked her feet out from underneath her. She’d had some time to think since then and seen the incongruities for what they really were.

Everything just didn’t add up here. If anything, the evidence of Jamie’s supposed infidelity was too persuasive without actually showing him in a compromised position. If Jamie truly was cheating and someone was following his every action with a telephoto lens, it only stood to reason that a picture of him in the act of adultery would surface at some point or another. And none had.

Amy wanted to get to the bottom of this, one way or another, and see what was true and what was not. If Jamie was womanizing behind her back, she wanted to know that. If he wasn’t, she desperately needed to know that too. The fate of her family depended on the answer to that question.

“Do you have anything going on tonight? I want to do a little surveillance.”

Judith gave her a wry smile. “I’m sure I can squeeze in a little extra time to learn more about our friendly neighborhood peeping tom if that‘s what you mean.”

“Great! “I’ll ask one of the girls from church to watch Peter for a little while. I’ll also pick up a camera and some dark clothes.”

“This sounds like fun.” Judith smiled. “I’ll bring the tasers.”

“Fun might not be the word I would use to describe this. But I can live with fun as long as everything we learn backs up Jamie’s story.”

“I’ll be at your house at seven-thirty,” Judith said. “And don’t worry. We’ll sort all this out.”

“I love you, Mom.” Amy hugged Judith tightly.

“I love you, Amy.” Judith kissed Amy on top of the head. “Now go and get ready. We’ve got some work to do tonight.”

Chapter 22

Crows squawked a shrill song, only to be quickly silenced by the waving of a clawed hand. The birds tumbled out of the sky, spiraling to earth like falling