Angela Darling tried to scream, but the shock of what James had just done and the air rushing into her lungs made the action impossible. They landed on what appeared to be a huge, mechanical bird, which, to her horror, carried them down further into an expansive cavern. She took stilted breaths as she glanced wildly around her, trying to make sense of this underground space. She caught sight of the moon, then immediately felt nauseous because it couldn't be the moon, not this far under the city. There were stars as well, but their light was uncharacteristically bright and they were organized in unfamiliar constellations.
As her eyes adjusted, she noticed odd trees, sand dunes, and majestic waterfalls. She saw metallic mountains rising dramatically into the air and a glistening lagoon. She shook her head, wondering if she was hallucinating. The doctor had warned her that could be a side effect of her coma, but that had been several weeks ago.
They descended lower into the mysterious world, and her fear mixed with her growing awe heightened her senses. She became aware of James' arms around her, and she would have thrown them off if she wasn't so afraid of falling.
"Welcome to Neverland, Angela Darling," James whispered in her ear.
The word stirred a memory in her mind, but before she could dwell on it, the bird lurched forward and began to vibrate. Angela yelped and grasped for something solid to hold on to as the contraption pitched from side to side. They hurled towards the ground at an alarming speed, then suddenly the bird slowed and leveled just 10 meters above the trees. They stayed suspended in the air for a few seconds, then the bird let out a loud screech, the moon and stars disappeared, and they crashed to the ground. Angela was thrown from the bird on impact and rolled several meters until she hit something that felt like a tree trunk.
She stayed still on the ground, unable to see anything in the complete darkness. She hoped that all this was just a nightmare and she would soon wake up, but everything felt so real.
"Angela? Angela, are you alright?"
She heard James' voice coming from a few meters to her right. She didn't know whether she should answer him or just try to crawl away. But to where? It was impossible to navigate anything in the dark, and even if there was light, would she even be able to find a way to escape?
She began to shake in anger as the situation became clear. James had brought her to this pit to do heaven knows what with her, and she had agreed to it! Well, sort of. But what had she been thinking? She had been caught up in the excitement and the romance of it all. She thought maybe he would take her to a secret building or hidden graveyard tucked away in London. She never could have imagined that this place would be the answer to her curiosity. She was a grown woman with a daughter and responsibilities. Why had she acted like an impulsive teenager?
All at once the darkness was punctuated by several flashlights and she heard voices. She wasn't sure if the presence of others there filled her more with hope or fear. The beams of light traveled towards her and she tried to decipher how many people there were. Before she could decide on a course of action, a bright light shone in her eyes.
"Who is this lovely specimen?" A man drawled. A flashlight from elsewhere illuminated the man's face and Angela winced. His hair and beard were matted and greasy, he was missing several teeth, and his eyes held a crazed hunger that sent a ripple of dread through her. Whatever James Hook might be, she was fairly certain she preferred him to the drooling ruffian standing above her.
"James!" Angela yelled, startling the man staring at her. There was a rustling of trees and then James appeared.
"Noodler! Back away! You're scaring her!"
"But I found her first, so... Captain! You're back!"
"The Captain's back!" Another voice exclaimed. A short man ran over and hugged James, followed by two other scruffy looking men.
"Smee, let me go!" James growled. "You're embarrassing me."
Angela's head swam. Captain? Captain of what? And who were these men?
"Where have you been, Captain? We thought you'd left for good."
"And who is this lady you've brought us?"
Angela scrambled back at that question, shaking with terror. Was this what James Hook did? Lured women underground for the satisfaction and entertainment of this group of reclusive men?
Just then dim lights came on from above, accompanied by a low humming sound. Angela looked up and saw the lights were coming from a series of panels on the dome above, although quite a few seemed to be missing. She glanced around and saw the oddest trees and foliage she had ever encountered. It looked like a hurricane had come through, but there was still something fantastical about it all.
"Hey! What's going on?"
Angela slowly stood up as she saw a group of kids approaching. She was somewhat comforted that there was a girl among them, until she heard the stream of expletives coming from her mouth.
"Do you have any idea how long it's going to fix all this?" The petite girl shouted in James' face, straightening her glasses. "Did you have any idea how fragile our system is? What were you thinking?"
"I'm sorry, Miss Tink," James replied with a small bow, "I needed to get down here quickly, and the Neverbird seemed like the safest option."
"You killed our network! Now all we've got is limited electricity! We can barely function! Not to mention, there's not going to be any way to get your floozy back out of here!"
At this point, Angela found her voice. "I beg your pardon?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "Come on, lady. Hook has only been gone for a week, so you couldn't have known him longer than that. What kind of woman agrees to jump into a hole with a man she hardly knows?"
Angela bit her lip. The pint sized teenager had a point. But what did she mean that James had only been gone for a week?
The girl turned back to James and folded her arms across her chest. "I hope you have a plan for fixing all this."
James sucked in a breath and then let it out slowly. He glanced around at everyone and last of all he looked at Angela and winced. He looked as if he were trapped.
"Yes, I do have a plan," he said finally. "But first I need to have a private conference with this dear lady."
Angela narrowed her eyes as James came towards her and guided her a few paces away from the group. Part of her wanted to scream at him, but the other part of her was curious about what he had to say.
"Angela," he began, "I am excessively sorry to have brought you here, especially under these current circumstances."
"James, what is this place?"
"It's Neverland," he responded with a shrug, as if that was supposed to explain everything.
"Do you live here?"
James looked pained. "I have lived here, yes, for the better part of ten years."
Angela's eyes widened in shock and wonder.
"I thought I would be able to return to London," he continued, "but I have recently discovered that luxury to be impossible."
Angela shook her head, trying to make sense of his words.
"I will do everything in my power to return you to your home, but please know that it might take a while."
"How long?"
"A few days, perhaps. A month at the most."
"What?" Angela yelled, unable to control her panic. She couldn't spend a month down here, what about her work? What about Wendy? She looked all around her, trying to see a way back up to the manhole they had come through.
"Angela," James said earnestly, bringing her focus back to him, "there's one more thing I must tell you." He paused and looked down at his hands. "I am what some people would consider a criminal."
Before Angela could respond, the petite girl spoke again.
"Are you finished yet? Could you please enlighten us with your plan?" She was leaning against a muscular young man and rubbing her temples, as if all of the fight had gone out of her.
James looked regretfully at Angela, then turned and walked back to the others. "There is a way to finance the reconstruction of Neverland, but I will need everyone's help. It involves recovering some treasure that was so generously... donated by the Liverwood Bank."
Angela gasped as everything fell into place. She was trapped in some unknown world with the James Hook, escaped criminal. How could she have been so stupid? She remembered the stories, the headlines, the shock of his mysterious disappearance, but it had all been so long ago. Her fear and her anger overwhelmed her. She took two steps back and fainted.