The salt-colored schnauzer squeezed beneath a curtain of vines. Pimienta followed, lifting her lantern as a cool breath whooshed from the cave. “Let’s see!”
Pebbles skittered under Pimienta’s boots. She stepped into the shadowy passage and tapped a shimmering rock. Ping! The cave answered, “Ping!”
The echo grew louder and pointed toward a winding tunnel. Pimienta leaned close, listening as the last Ping! rolled away.
The salt-colored schnauzer ducked under a low ceiling. Pimienta hopped across three damp stones, and one splash sprayed water over the schnauzer’s beard.
Pimienta giggled as underground pools sparkled ahead. The salt-colored schnauzer shook its dripping beard, sprinkling the stones with bright drops.
At a fork, both passages looked black. Pimienta followed glittering crystals, but their trail ended at a wall.
The salt-colored schnauzer sneezed. A hidden breeze flipped a curtain of moss aside, revealing a tiny opening behind it.
Pimienta crawled through the opening, then stood in a vast chamber. Glowing rocks surrounded a pool that mirrored the stars above. “Wow,” she whispered.
Tiny drops fell like silver bells. The salt-colored schnauzer gazed into the shining water while Pimienta watched the ripples touch the reflected stars.
Pimienta began the walk back. She touched each crystal as she passed, and every rock flashed like a tiny star.
Pools shimmered as the salt-colored schnauzer trotted ahead. Pimienta called, “Good-bye!” Each echo answered from the winding tunnels.
Sunlight poured through the vines. Pimienta stepped outside, and the salt-colored schnauzer shook the last cave drops from its beard.