"In a pig's ass, you're my superior. Want to try proving it?" She glanced at her watch. "We've got a little over four minutes to go. That's plenty of time for you to die." She locked eyes with him for several seconds, until he looked away. "That's what I thought," she said. She raised her phone and scrolled through her directory, stopping at the number for one of the burner cellphones she had modified.
"Four minutes to show time. If you want to change your mind, just say the word," she said, staring at him.
"Is that the tunnel Shellie mentioned?" Dani asked. She was crouching, looking up over her shoulder every few seconds, eyeing the roof of the cavern. She'd bumped her head several times already.
"Yes," Rick said.
"Should we go back outside and wait for Gerald?" Dani asked.
"I don't see any point," Rick said. "It's all straight forward, from here. Traversing the cliff face is the tricky part, but we did okay with that. You were like a mountain goat on that ledge. I'm glad you were leading the way; I've got a thing about heights. Clearly, you don't."
"No, heights don't bother me. You don't think Gerald's coming?"
"Maybe he had something else to do. He's pretty flaky, you know? And if he shows up, he knows where to find us."
"Okay, I guess. If you're sure we don't need to wait for him."
"Nah," Rick said. "Nothing to it from here. Should we tie this rope to the boulder before we go through the tunnel?" Rick shined his flashlight on the three-foot rock embedded in the floor behind Dani.
"How far is it to the lip of the chimney from here, about?" she asked.
"You mean from the boulder?"
"Yes."
"You're worried about whether this rope's long enough?" Rick had the coiled line draped diagonally across his chest.
"Yes."
"I don't know. Maybe 40, 50 feet at the outside." He lifted the coil over his head, dropping it on the floor. "How long's this rope, anyway?"
"A hundred-fifty feet."
"Do we just tie the end around the rock and pull the rest of it behind us?" Rick asked.
"No, I think it would be better to leave the extra length out here, where it won't be in our way. Maybe you can tie the end to your belt and crawl through, and I'll feed the line out behind you, so it doesn't get tangled. Once you've got enough to dangle a few feet of it over the lip of the chimney, give me a yell and I'll tie it off to the rock."
"Good idea," Rick said. "But let's tie it around my ankle so it's out of the way of my knees and thighs. There's one pretty tight spot in there."
Dani worked her tongue around in her mouth, which had gone suddenly dry. "How t-tight?"
"You have to kind of slump down in one spot, and slither along on your belly, sort of like ducking under an archway. But it's only a foot or two, and then you're through." Rick had looped the line around his left ankle while he was talking. "Did you see me tie that bowline?" He grinned. "I was a Boy Scout."
Dani licked her lips and nodded. "Ready?"
"Sure," Rick said. "Here goes."
Dani watched as he positioned his flashlight on the floor of the tunnel, pushing it in as far as he could reach. He ducked his head and crawled into the opening, blocking the brief glimpse she'd had of what lay ahead. She worked up a mouthful of saliva and struggled to swallow.
"Hey!" Rick called, his voice muffled.
"What's … " Dani choked, her voice breaking. She swallowed again. "What's wrong?"
"Give me some slack, will you?"
"Oh! Sorry," Dani said, unclenching the fist that held the line. "Tangled. Should be okay, now."
She focused on paying out the line as he began moving again. She tried to ignore the sound of his clothes and shoes scraping along the rough rock of the tunnel. The images conjured by the sounds set her pulse racing.
"Dani?"
She realized Rick had shouted. "Yes," she yelled. "Can you hear me?"
"Yeah. Did you hear me? I said you could tie off the rope now and come on through."
"Okay. Sound must not carry well in here. Give me a minute, and I'll be right with you." She looped the line around the rock a couple of times and made it fast to itself, leaving the excess coiled at the base of the rock.
She turned back to the tunnel entrance and dropped to all fours, pushing her flashlight into the tunnel as Rick had done. Noticing the dank, musty odor in the tunnel, she began to breathe through her mouth. She could make out what she thought must be the other end.
In her mind, it looked to be a hundred meters away, the walls of the tunnel tapering to a small spot of light in the distance. That must be from Rick's flashlight. She knew from paying out the line behind him that it was only a few meters through the tunnel, but it looked much farther to her.
Shaking her head, she took a deep breath. "I can do this," she whispered. She moved forward, only to be stopped by resistance in her shoulders. Fighting her rising panic, she realized she still wore her backpack. The climber's harness was in it, along with a couple of bottles of water, and the block and tackle. The pack had snagged on the edge of the opening to the tunnel.
She backed up and took off the backpack, sliding it into the tunnel with her flashlight. Ducking her head, she took a deep breath, noticing how much of the tunnel was blocked by her backpack. She closed her eyes and began to crawl, pushing the flashlight and the backpack ahead.
After a few feet, she felt her shoulder blades strike the roof of the tunnel. She remembered what Rick had said about having to slouch to get under a low spot. Maybe the tunnel would be more open after that. She gave the backpack and the flashlight a shove and bent her elbows, putting her face close to the floor. Inching forward, she could feel the rock scraping along the muscles in her back. She fought the urge to scream and pushed on.
Just as she thought she might squeeze through the tight spot, a phone rang in the tunnel behind her. She jumped, startled, and felt a sharp pain in her head, accompanied by a blinding flash of light. Then she embraced the darkness that enveloped her.
32
"What!" Dani barked, slapping Rick's hand away from her face as she squinted into the flashlight he pointed at her eyes. She shook her head and sat up. "What happened?"
"You hit your head in the tunnel and — "
"There was a phone ringing," she said.
"I am mos' sorry, Miss Dani."
"Gerald?" She turned her head, looking in the direction of his voice.
"Yes. I go in the hole behind you, mebbe not so far. The phone ring, and you jump. Hit the head."
"How did I get out here? This is the main cavern, right?"
"Gerald pulled your legs," Rick said, "and I guided your shoulders and protected your head. How are you feeling?"
"Okay. How long was I out?"
"Not long," Rick said. "Minute, maybe a minute and a half, tops. You started coming around before we got you out. We rolled you on your back, and I was about to check your pupils when you slapped at my hands and sat up."
"Where were you, Gerald?" Dani asked. "I didn't know you had come into the cave with us."
"Late. Sleep long. Watch people las' night. Tired."
"Watch people?"
"Yes. People come in cave las' night. I watch. They don' stay long, but they leave bag. And phones."
"Somebody left a bag in the cave?" Rick asked.
"An' phones," Gerald said, nodding.
"Where was it?" Dani asked.
Gerald pointed at the tunnel. "In the hole. Up in top."
"Did you move it?"
"I look in bag, take phones. Put bag back." He reached into the cloth pouch tied at his waist and took out a cellphone, extending it toward Dani.
She took it and glanced at it. She scowled, her eyes going wide. "What about these?" She tugged on two thin, insulated wires.
"I break," Gerald said. "Sorry."
He reached into his pouch again and handed her a one-inch-long cylinder covered in black duct tape. Two wires protruded from one end.
She stu
died it for a moment. "You said, 'phones.' More than one?"
He nodded and held up two fingers. Reaching into his bag again, he brought out the other phone, this one with a similar cylinder still attached by two wires.
Dani took the phone in one hand and jerked on the cylinder with the other, breaking the wires.
"What're you doing, Dani? What are those things?" Rick asked.
"Improvised detonators. Blasting caps. I'd say somebody just tried to blow up the cave, with us in it. Can you get that bag they left, please, Gerald?"
Gerald nodded and scooted into the tunnel on his back, head first. He was back in thirty seconds, a backpack balanced on his chest. He set it on the floor and wiped his hands on his ragged shorts. "Nasty," he said.
"There was only the one bag?" Dani asked.
"One," Gerald said. "Full wit' mess. Nasty," he said, again.
Dani unzipped the bag and Rick shined his flashlight into it. All three of them peered at the grainy, glistening mixture inside.
Dani touched a finger to the surface and brought it to her nose.
"What is that?" Rick asked.
"Ammonium nitrate fertilizer and some kind of oil," Dani said. "Enough to blow that tunnel shut, at the least. Probably fill both caverns with rubble, in the bargain."
"Fertilizer?" Rick asked.
"It's a common explosive," Dani said. "Used for everything from blowing stumps on farms to terrorist attacks."
"Is it powerful?"
"About 40 percent as powerful as TNT, pound for pound." She picked up one of the improvised detonators. "Was this inside the bag? Down in the 'mess?'"
"Yes," Gerald said. "Both in mess."
"We're lucky you found it, Gerald," she said. "We'd be dead otherwise."
Gerald's bleary eyes held her gaze, but he didn't say anything.
"Whoever set this is wondering why it hasn't blown up," Dani said. "I'm surprised — "
The second phone began ringing. They stared at it until it stopped.
"Why'd they call again?" Rick asked.
"Because there was no blast. The second phone was for backup."
"What should we do?" Rick asked. "Call the cops?"
"That would be a waste," Dani said. "By the time we got through explaining, it would be too late for them to help us."
"I don't understand," Rick said.
"Whoever did this is out there watching. I'm not sure why they waited as long as they did before they called the backup phone, but now they're going to come after us."
"Come after us? Why?"
"To finish the job. They obviously want us dead."
"Why?" Rick asked. "Who are they?"
"I don't know why," Dani said, "but it's almost sure to be the people on Aquila." She glanced at her watch. "If they're watching from the base of the cliff, I'd say they'll show up in 15 or 20 minutes. Maybe sooner, if they're already on the ledge."
"Shouldn't we get out of here?" Rick asked.
"No. There's only one way out. There's nowhere for us to go. I don't want to be exposed on the cliff face so they can pick us off at their leisure. Do you?"
"No, but what can we do?"
"We'll arrange a couple of little surprises for them. While they're distracted, we'll jump them."
"I don't understand," Rick said.
"That's okay. You and Gerald retrieve that line that we ran through the tunnel. See if you can find a way to tie it across the entrance, maybe six inches above the floor, where they'll trip over it. I've got work to do."
She took her multi-tool out of the pouch at her belt and began to strip the broken wires coming from the phones and the blasting caps. Before she reconnected them, she checked the phones and set them to vibrate instead of ringing. Then she entered their numbers into her own smartphone.
She took one of the rewired phones and crawled to the entrance of the cavern. Staying low, she reached out and ran her hand over the surface of the ledge they used for access. She found a gap in the rock at the juncture of the ledge and the cliff face and slipped one of the phones with its attached detonator into it. Lying on her stomach, she was able to crane her neck enough to see that the phone was hidden from view, at least for someone standing on the ledge.
She wedged the other phone into a crack between the wall and the floor of the cavern, a few feet to the right of the entrance from the ledge.
As she finished, Rick and Gerald began stringing the rope.
"Not many good places to tie it off," Rick said.
"Just do the best you can. Any distraction will help, even if they just get tangled in it. We've only got a few minutes before they get here, so listen up."
"Okay," Rick said.
"Once you're done with the rope, you and Gerald hide in the tunnel. Take my phone, and when I yell, 'One,' you hit the speed dial button labeled 'one' on the screen." She held the phone so that he could see where she was pointing on the screen. "Same thing when I yell 'two,' Okay?"
"Yeah, but what are you going to be doing?" He took the phone from her.
"Taking out my frustration on whoever comes through the entrance."
"Don't you want help?"
"No, it'll be better if I'm alone."
"Why? That's crazy."
"You ever been in a knife fight in the dark?" Dani asked.
"No, but you'll be outnumbered."
"Exactly. That gives me the advantage."
"How can that be?"
"Because I can cut anyone I touch without worrying about hurting somebody who's on my side. They'll have to be careful not to hurt one another. Now, get in the tunnel, both of you. There may be shooting, so get in there and stay until I tell you it's over. I think I hear them coming." Dani nodded and snapped open her rigging knife as she backed up against the wall on the side of the entrance opposite where she'd hidden the second phone.
"Nice," Liz said, looking over at the sketch that Shellie was finishing. They had both been sketching the town of Soufrière since Dani and Rick had left an hour earlier. "I like the way you captured the change in the light since that last one you did."
"Thanks. I still don't have quite what I wanted, but I don't want to overwork this one. Better to try again with a fresh start."
"I understand how frustrating that can be, but go easy on yourself, Shellie. That one's great. Nobody but you will ever know it's not what you intended."
"Hey, Vengeance." A woman's voice seemed to come from the water behind where they were sitting.
Liz put an elbow on the cockpit coaming and rose a few inches, twisting to see where the woman was. She found herself staring down the barrel of a pistol. Glancing up, she recognized one of the women from Aquila. She was kneeling on a yellow plastic kayak, the kind that was available for rent to tourists everywhere in the islands. There was a man sitting in the front, holding on to Vengeance with both hands, steadying the kayak.
"Hi, Liz," the woman said. "Stay quiet and calm, and I won't have to shoot you or Shellie."
Shellie turned at that, her face going pale when she saw the gun swing toward her.
"Behave, Shellie. Nobody has to get hurt."
"What do you want?" Liz asked. "Who are you?"
"We'll get to that in due time," the woman said. "We're coming aboard to enjoy your company. I'm Ashley, and my friend is Bert. Now, when I tell you, and not before, I want you to move over and sit on the other cockpit seat, facing me. One at a time, Liz first. Keep your hands where I can see them. No sudden movements, okay?"
Liz and Shellie both nodded.
"Okay, Liz, move now."
When Liz was seated again, Ashley said, "Your turn, Shellie. Careful of your ankle."
"How did you know I — "
"Uh-uh," Ashley said, chuckling. "Not now. I told you, all in due time. Bert, when I tell you, I want you to go aboard and step toward the bow a couple of feet, out of my line of fire. Make sure you have a clear shot at both of them. I want you to cover them while I come aboard. If either of them moves, shoot to wound,
not to kill. But shoot them both, okay?"
"Yeah, I got it," Bert said.
"Go," Ashley said.
When Bert was in position, Ashley tucked her pistol in the waistband of her shorts and climbed aboard. She bent and tied the kayak to a cleat on the starboard quarter. Turning around, she stepped into the cockpit and drew her pistol. She sat, facing her two captives, the pistol held low, out of sight of anyone passing in another boat.
"Okay, Bert. Put your weapon away and join us, please."
Bert came into the cockpit and sat next to Ashley.
"Now, as I said, I'm Ashley, and my friend here is Bert. We're going to keep you company while the other members of our team meet up with Dani and Rick. Once everybody's properly introduced, we'll probably go for a nice little sail. How's that sound?"
"Just delightful," Liz said. "How is it that you know our names, Ashley?"
Ashley smiled. "Oh, we know quite a lot about you. We know all the details of Rick's little archaeological project with the Saudis, too."
"Are you from a rival organization?" Liz asked.
"You might say that, yes," Ashley said. "We're here to make sure that what Rick has found will never be seen. Life will be better for everyone if those things in the cave disappear forever."
"Whatever you say," Liz said.
"Good for you, Liz," Ashley said. "Bert, I could use a cup of coffee while we wait. How does that sound?"
"Great," Bert said.
Liz said. "I'll go — "
"No, I don't think so, Liz. It was my idea; you needn't go to any trouble. Bert?"
"Yeah?"
"Would you go below and check the boat for weapons? While you're down there, make some coffee for us. Liz can tell you where everything is, I'm sure."
"Most of what you'll need is still on the galley counter from breakfast," Liz said. "But just ask if you don't see what you want."
Bert got up and went below.
"Don't forget to check for weapons," Ashley said. "We don't need any surprises."
Dani heard scraping sounds from outside the cave. She tilted her head away from the wall far enough to see a person silhouetted in the entrance. Pressing herself back against the wall, she watched from the corner of her eye as the shadowy figure came into the dark cavern, right hand extended as if holding a pistol. She heard more scraping from outside.
Bluewater Quest Page 22
