Deadly Passion, an Epiphany Read Online Free PDF

releasing him. A panel slid open to reveal a corridor. He walked down it.
    “Please enter Medicine Man’s office.”
    Mark saw another panel open and faced a room with what looked like a lot of medical equipment, but unlike anything he’d ever seen in a hospital or doctor’s office. In its center stood a gurney. There was no one in the room. He waited impatiently, his head consistently doing a drum roll.
    “Please lie down,” a soft female voice told him. Mark glanced around, but he was still alone. He lay on the gurney. No sooner had he done so than a machine slid toward him, a robotic arm appearing from it. The arm placed what looked like some kind of translucent helmet on his head. A warmth emanated from it and he heard a faint buzzing. Some kind of x-ray contraption?
    “You had a skull fracture. It is now healed, as is the laceration on your head. Your hair will grow in time. You may leave now and join your crew.”
    The arm took the helmet off and retracted into the machine, which in turn slid silently into a wall.
    Mark gingerly felt his head. Bald, a completely smooth skull, but he felt no injuries and the hammer had disappeared. He felt normal. Well, normal? Is anything about this normal ?
    A partition opened and he stood in a corridor. Not knowing what else to do and since there were no further instructions, he decided to follow the arrows on the wall. So Medicine Man is a machine. Interesting. Space age medicine and robotic machinery that provides instant healing. How come I’ve never heard about any of this stuff? And where the hell am I, anyway? It looks like some really old mine. How did I get here?
    He came to the end of the corridor and faced what looked like just a blank white wall. He was just about to turn around when the wall slid open to reveal a cruddy old wooden door. Mark grasped the rusty handle, pushed, and after walking through it, saw he was back in the mine, but not in the same location as before. A narrow rail track ran down the tunnel. Mark waited, not knowing what to do, until a rumble sounded and an ore car approached. A miner stood on it and motioned Mark to join him. There wasn’t much room on the metal ledge. He held on to the edge of the car tight as it proceeded down the tunnel. Here and there they passed miners at work wearing a dim light strapped to their heads. Mark shook his head, trying to make sense out of it all. He’d stepped from an ancient mine into some kind of futuristic miracle hospital, to leave it again and find himself back in the mine.
    The tunnel ended and they entered a large cavern. The car continued on across what looked like a rickety old bridge and Mark held his breath, expecting it to collapse any second. He breathed again when they reached the other side. The car stopped.
    “There’s shaft fourteen. Report to Bob,” the miner told him.
    Mark stepped off the cart and approached the square entrance supported by old wooden posts. It was dark in the tunnel. Here and there a dim light glowed from oil lamps and some torches that flickered and sent eerie shadows over the walls and ceiling. He headed for the nearest light and saw several men standing in a group, talking. “Is there someone here called Bob?” he asked loud enough so they could hear.
    “I’m Bob. I gather you’re the new arrival.”
    “So I was told. I’d like some answers. Where is this place? How did I get here?”
    “Same way we all came to the Gehenna Goldmine. Looking to get rich.”
    “Who is this Director everyone keeps mentioning?”
    Soft laughter from the men. “Do your work and hope you’ll never have to come face to face with him.”
    “Let me out of this fucking nightmare. Go away. None of this is real.”
    Bob laughed sarcastically.
    “Leave the man alone,” a female voice said loudly.
    Mark looked at the newcomer who’d joined the men. Long, flaming red hair was pulled back into a ponytail, keen blue eyes, and she looked to be in her mid twenties.
    “Come with