Chapter 1 (continued 2)

The room buzzed with excitement. The chatter was noisy, the background music loud enough to cover the excited conversations. It was about to happen, the party was about to begin.

Ronald Humphrys stood, the music faded. The people sat around crowded tables hushed into silence, apart from one person whose loud voice continued for a few seconds until he stopped talking abruptly, embarrassed and turning red.

After the glaring at the noisy culprit had reached it peak, Ronald began to speak.

"We are gathered here today to celebrate the achievements of this company. The developments we have made over the last ten years have been impressive, and no competitors can match our impressive array of products. It is thanks to you, the hardworking people of Delagio Corporation Ltd..." At this point a raucous cheer rose from the crowd. "That we are here today, the largest company of our kind in Europe, with contracts in countries around the globe. Let this night be a party to remember!"

The cheers began again, the music was turned up, the lights dimmed and food was laid on tables down both sides of the room. The feast began.

Chapter 1 continued

The screams continued and as he ran they became louder, more incessant and even more filled with pain. Again, he picked up the pace, running this time, sprinting through the darkness, often smacking his head on the unseen ceiling, and blood began to pour down his face but he was so desperate to get to her; and time was so critical.

Suddenly the screaming, which had been echoing round the cave, stopped and the silence was interrupted by a chuckle, which grew into conspicuous laughter and soon into hysterics. Steve slowed to a walk, realising he must be close if he could hear laughter, even in these caves which seemed to amplify the sound.

'You bastard!' he heard her voice filled with venom. Relief washed over him; she could still speak; and venom sounded so much better than terror.

'You're a complete bastard. Steve! STEVE!'

Confused by her yelling his name Steve stopped completely.

His first mistake. Utter darkness swept him onto the floor.

Chapter 1

The opening in the cliff face looked slightly ominous, and Steve was feeling slightly reluctant about the need to enter. Was this really necessary? Why did this kind of thing happen to him? Well, he supposed, he had to for her sake. No one else was going to. He had researched the tide times and he knew he had three hours before high tide. He zipped up his jacket and went in to the darkened cave, grateful that he’d remembered to bring a torch.

As he walked slowly into the face of the cliff he went through many twists and turns, the cave sometimes becoming so low he had to crawl on his belly, and at other times becoming so thin it would dig into his stomach, chest and back, he was sure leaving bruises and scratches behind. It was after one such thin corridor that he first heard it. Her scream, echoing down the silent cave, reaching his ears like a whisper yet still chilling for the terror in that whispered scream was starkly and horribly clear. Still, the terror created an urgency in him and though he knew he had no idea where he was, or how much further there was to go he picked up his speed considerably, jogging when space allowed it.

Introduction

The idea of this blog is to write a story using ideas from everybody. So, I have written the beginning of a story, but I have not planned this story and so it can go in any direction it chooses. The idea is that the readers of the blog suggest ideas in comments about what could happen next. If they choose to they could write a whole section and send it to me so that I can include it.