I didn’t know how long we had been walking, but at some point I noticed a small white dot at the bottom of my vision. I tried blinking it away, but it didn’t disappear. I tried swinging the shake light in its direction, and it dimmed, but it was still there. I wondered if I were imagining things. We’d been in the dank dark for so long, I wasn’t sure I hadn’t gone crazy.
I kept the white dot to myself at first. But, as we walked, it grew in size, from a pinpoint to a pebble, then edges defined themselves. It was flat on the bottom, notched in the middle, with a rounded top like a keyhole. When it grew to be the size of my fingertip, I stopped and turned.
Kyer ran right into me. His hands found my arms and he took a step back, but he kept his firm grip on me. “What is it?” he asked.
His w
