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placing the shells in his pocket. He handed the weapon back to me.
    We continued further, deeper into the mine. After a couple of minutes I was completely disorientated and the feeling of claustrophobia intensified.
    At that point I sort of forgot why we were down there. I was just hoping we weren’t lost. I really wanted to get the hell out as soon as possible. I did not want one of the tunnels to collapse. The walls were solid rock. We’d be crushed with no hope of survival.
    Gordon held up his hand, motioning for us to stop.
    The blood trail ended.
    "What is it?" one of the rescuers asked from behind.
    "Blood trail ends here," Gordon answered as he shone his torch at the dusty ground.
    The other rescue guy said something about how maybe whoever had been bleeding had bandaged up their wounds. Apparently mines like this have first aid kits located throughout the tunnels.
    I was about to ask him if that was the case then where the hell was the first aid kit? But then I thought I heard something coming from further down the tunnel.
    A scream.
    I held my breath and strained my ears. Did I just imagine it? Was the scream real? But then I noticed everyone was silent.
    We had all heard it.
    "Ah, was that a scream?" I asked.
    No one answered me.
    A few seconds later we could hear moaning. Someone was in pain. Someone was trapped down here, probably bleeding to death.
    We continued forward, hunched over, moving as fast as we could in the confined area. We turned down another bend but then Gordon came to an abrupt stop. I actually ran up the back of him.
    The mine broke off into a fork but they were both collapsed in. It was a dead end.
    We quickly searched the collapsed pile of rocks for any gaps but there were none.
    The rescuers lowered their heads. This was bad news. There was no hope for the miners.
    I’m not sure what had happened. Why was the revolver fired? Who was doing the shooting? What were they shooting at? Why was the shotgun dropped, fully loaded? Why would you bring a shotgun down into a confined mine like this?
    Or any weapon for that matter.
    And what the hell happened to the damn horse?
    We sat there in the fork of the tunnel for awhile. We listened for any noises. Any cries for help. But there were no sounds at all.
    The rescuers had some equipment, heat sensors to pick up human body heat. And sound equipment that could pick up and faint noises, like cries for help or breathing. But they found nothing. There was no sign of life.
    After a couple of hours we gave up hope. All we knew was that something bad had happened.
    A struggle.
    Maybe an argument over the opal find?
    I don’t know.
    But something bad had gone down. And then the tunnel had collapsed, probably crushing both the father and the son.
    It was tragic. But there was nothing we could do.
    And now I’m hoping, praying for more days of boredom.
    January 21st – Outbreak.
    Things are starting to get weird. Yesterday it was the incident in the mine. And now today. Wow. I mean, I really have no idea what the hell happened today. I’ve tried to think it through logically but I can’t.
    Everything that happened keeps playing over and over in my head. I have to be up in three hours, but I can’t sleep. It’s just so messed up. Even more messed up then that damn mutilated horse carcass we saw yesterday.
    We were on patrol in the town center. We were the closest team to the incident so we were ordered to go and investigate.
    Apparently there was a robbery at the local doctor surgery. Command suspected it was probably someone trying to rob the joint for pain meds.
    When we got there the receptionist was crying. She was hysterical. She was pointing at the back room. It was the room they used for minor procedures, like giving shots and removing stitches and stuff like that.
    Apparently there was a patient in there who had an abscess. Apparently that patient had gone bat crap insane.
    "He was about to have it lanced," she said.
    "Lanced?" Franco