Page 93 of Ancient Obsession

“Babe,” Dave whispered. He checked over his shoulder. The mummy was in the outer doorway, growling and swiping at the others. “Oliver. Hey, come on. Can you wake up?”

He reached inside the coffin, the material of his jacket snagging on the edges. Touching Oliver’s face, Dave gave his cheek a quick stroke with his thumb, then gently shook his shoulder.

“Oliver, wake up. We have to go.”

He had no escape plan. All he wanted was to get Oliver out of the goddamn coffin.

With a flutter of eyelids, Oliver came around. He’d lost his glasses somewhere along the way, and he squinted to make out Dave’s features.

“Dave?”

“Hi, hey. God, it’s good to see you awake. Can you sit up?”

Dave glanced toward the window but didn’t see the mummy. Either it was pursuing the others down the hall or lurking in the room behind him. He spun to check the other side of the room and cried out in alarm.

It stood a few feet away, arms extended as it approached.

Before Dave could move, it shoved him. He tumbled sideways, shoulder banging against the concrete floor and a bolt of pain lancing up the back of his skull.

“No! Oliver!”

Clutching the edge of a work table, Dave pulled himself up. A hot line of pain ran from his shoulder up the back of his neck and around his skull. The room spun around him and he closed his eyes.

Oliver screamed.

Dave’s eyes flew open. Crowbars were lined up on the surface of the work table. Grabbing one, he turned. The mummy leaned over the coffin, hands inside, doing God knew what to Oliver.

“Leave him alone!”

Dave charged, the bar held high. The mummy turned and smacked him aside, sending him flying across the room. The crowbar clanged against the concrete floor, and Dave hit the far wall then dropped into a heap. He groaned, unable to stand.

Someone took his arm and he startled, trying to pull away.

“It’s me,” Demetrius said in a quiet voice.

“Oliver,” Dave said, holding a hand to his head and pointing with the other. “Get Oliver.”

“We’re working on it.”

“Hey, fuck face!”

Too unsteady to get to his feet, Dave could only sit with his back against the wall and watch as Jugs swung the bar at the back of the mummy’s skull. It connected, rocking the mummy’s head to one side. Dave heard the crack, saw how its head now canted slightly to the left.

It turned on Jugs. He backed away, swinging wildly. The mummy batted the bar aside, sending it skittering off into a corner. It took Jugs by the neck, lifted him off his feet, and shook him.

“No!”

Demetrius was up and moving. He retrieved the crowbar and circled the mummy, striking it again on the back of the skull. Another crack of bone, and the mummy’s head jerked once more to the side, hanging even lower toward its shoulder. It released Jugs who stumbled back, coughing and gasping, one hand at his throat. Agatha was there to support him as best she could, helping him retreat.

The mummy swung at Demetrius, but he danced back out of the way and smacked its arms down with the crowbar.

Dave pushed himself up the wall, pausing a moment to steady himself before shoving off. The room felt slanted, but he kept his eyes on the coffin, one arm extended as he moved. Oliver gripped the edge. Dave straightened his back and pushed himself a bit harder, reaching for the coffin.

When he got to it, Dave leaned against the side. He bent over the edge and helped Oliver to sit up.

“Come on, we’ve gotta go,” Dave said.

“Where the fuck am I?” Oliver’s expression was tight as he looked around. His eyes widened when he saw their friends all holding crowbars and taking turns swinging at the mummy. “Jesus.”