Ashes, Ashes, They All Fall Dead

by LENA DIAZ,

  Chapter Fourteen

  * * *

  MATT COUGHED AND spit out a mouthful of dust. Damn Hargrove. The explosion he’d set off had collapsed the entrance and sealed them inside the mine. Matt coughed several more times, until he could breathe without choking. He shoved some rocks off of him. Part of the ceiling must have come down, but the main part of the tunnel was intact. He knew that because otherwise they’d already be dead.

  Oh, God. No. Tessa.

  “Tessa? Where are you? Tessa?”

  A weak cough sounded not far ahead of him. “Here.” She coughed again. “I’m okay.”

  He scrambled across the rocks toward the sound of her voice. When his fingers touched her leg, he sent up a silent prayer of thanks. He pulled himself through the rubble until he could sit up. Then he lifted her and placed her on his lap.

  “Matt, please, quit squeezing me so hard. I’m really okay.”

  “Sorry.” He loosened his hold, but only a little. “Nothing’s broken? You’re sure?”

  “I’m regretting not having a piece of strawberry pie right about now, but other than that, I’m wonderful.”

  He laughed and hugged her again. “You’ve still got your sense of humor, so that’s saying something.”

  He fumbled in the dark and pulled his computer tablet out of his pocket. He ran his hands across the screen and the light came on.

  Tessa looked up at him with a huge grin. “I knew those brains of yours would come in handy one day.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment, I think. But we can do better than the light from the screen.” He pressed some buttons on the side, activating the LED flashlight he’d once told her about, and turning off the screen to conserve power. He shone the light around them, confirming what he’d thought. The basic tunnel was still holding, but a good chunk of ceiling had rained down on them. If any of the larger rocks had hit either of them on the head . . . he shuddered and forced that thought away. They’d both been incredibly lucky.

  He set the computer against the wall, then gently lifted Tessa off his lap and set her on the ground.

  “How bad is your side?” he asked.

  “I’m not sure. I’m afraid to look.”

  “Don’t,” he said. “You’re just getting in my way craning your neck like that. Lie down.”

  She huffed impatiently and laid her head back against the ground.

  Matt pulled the bottom of her shirt out of her pants and slid it up her flat belly until he reached the spot of blood he’d seen earlier. He let out a deep breath of relief. “It went through and through. It just passed through the fat on your side.”

  She punched him in the arm. Hard. “I am not fat.”

  He rubbed his arm and frowned at her. “I didn’t say you were fat. Everyone has fat.”

  “You don’t,” she grumbled. “And I hate you for it.”

  “As sweet as ever, so you aren’t seriously hurt. But we should still bind the wound to keep it as clean as possible.”

  He pulled his shirt out of his pants and used a rock to punch a hole in the bottom. He tore a wide strip off and wrapped it around her waist. She winced as he pulled it tight.

  He pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay. I’m okay.”

  She pushed him back and he helped her sit up.

  “I don’t suppose that computer of yours can tell us how to get out of here?” she asked.

  He pressed the screen again. “Nope. No service in here. Looks like I can’t Google ‘how to get out of an abandoned coal mine with a demented killer outside.’”

  She laughed. “Only you could make a joke at a time like this.” She checked her phone. “Mine doesn’t have service either. But I imagine all we have to do is stay where we are. Those sirens were close. They have to have heard the shots, and the collapse. They’re probably outside right now, pulling the rocks away. We’ll be out of here in no time.”

  TWO HOURS LATER, Tessa wasn’t feeling anywhere near as enthusiastic about being rescued as she had been earlier. They didn’t hear noises to indicate any digging was going on. And the amount of dust in the air was making it more and more difficult to breathe. She and Matt had both taken off their suit jackets in spite of the chill in the tunnel so they could hold them against their mouths like respirators. They’d used the sleeves to tie the jackets across their noses and mouths to filter the air.

  Matt stood and stretched his legs for the dozenth time. Tessa would have liked to join him, but even though her paltry wound wasn’t that bad, it hurt like crazy every time she moved.

  He tugged his jacket down from his mouth. “Now do you agree we need to move deeper into the tunnel? The air is only getting worse.”

  She shook her head “no” and pulled her jacket down too. “No. If we do that, they may not find us. We could get lost. We need to stay where we are.”

  “If they were digging us out, we’d have heard something by now.”

  “I’m sure they’ve just called one of the local mining companies to send out an expert. They probably want to make sure they know how to move all that rock without compromising the integrity of the tunnel.”

  “I don’t think so. They’ve had plenty of time to get an expert up here by now. The active mines aren’t that far away.”

  “Then they’re looking for another old tunnel that leads into this mine. They’re going to find another entrance they can use to get us out.”

  He coughed. “Maybe.” He didn’t sound convinced.

  She coughed and waved at the dust in the air. “Okay, okay. You win. But we need to mark our path somehow so we can come back here if we need to. I don’t want to end up lost down in these tunnels. Unless you have another fancy app on that computer of yours that can keep track of where we are and create a map as we go.”

  He raised his brow. “Sounds like a great app. Remind me to work on that once we get out of here.”

  “I’m guessing that’s a no. Help me up. Please.” She held out her hand and he gently pulled her to her feet.

  She drew in a sharp breath when the movement tugged on her side.

  He steadied her and kept his hands on her shoulders until she was able to breathe normally again.

  “I’m okay now. Sort of. You can let go.”

  He didn’t seem to believe her. He let go of one of her shoulders but kept a hand on the other one until she took two steps away from him, forcing him to drop his hand.

  “I’m going to see if I can find some smaller, broken rocks we can use like chalk to mark the tunnels. I’ll be right back.” He covered his mouth and nose again, then headed back toward what used to be the mouth of the tunnel, taking his computer/flashlight with him.

  Tessa tried not to panic when the light faded around a curve in the tunnel and she could no longer see her hand in front of her face. She’d never been afraid of the dark, but the idea of being stuck underground, in the dark, by herself, was already starting to creep her out.

  After what seemed like an eternity had passed, the distant light from Matt’s computer bounced down the tunnel toward her. She relaxed against the wall and wiped a shaking hand across her brow. She smiled up at him.

  “It’s about time. I was beginning to think you’d found a way out and left me all alone.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about that. I’m not leaving you all alone.”

  She froze. The voice behind the light wasn’t Matt’s.

  It was Hargrove’s.

  MATT CONTORTED HIS body, desperately trying to work his handcuffed arms over his rear so he could pull his legs through and get his hands in front of him. This was one of the few times when having long legs was a curse. A few more tries that practically pulled his arms out of their sockets and he finally managed it. Next task, pulling the Taser darts out of his chest. They’d gone right through his shirt.

  He cursed as he pulled each dart free. Hargrove had fired the Taser before Matt could even react. Then he’d stood over Matt with the rifle, as if he wa
nted to make sure Matt saw him before he headed back down the tunnel to where Matt had left Tessa.

  The damn maniac could have fired the rifle instead of the Taser. The fact that he hadn’t had Matt’s blood running cold. Hargrove hadn’t fired that rifle so he wouldn’t alert Tessa. He was playing with them, enjoying the chase. He’d planned this all along. That’s why he wasn’t worried about the sirens; he had an escape route.

  Matt scrambled to his feet, wincing and pressing his chest where the darts had been. He was careful to keep facing the same direction in which he’d fallen, because he knew Hargrove had gone down a tunnel off to his right, based on how the light had bounced against the walls. Now, in the pitch black, Matt couldn’t risk getting turned around or he’d get hopelessly lost and wouldn’t be able to help Tessa.

  He ran his left hand along the wall to guide him and crept forward, while sending up a silent prayer that he would find Tessa before Hargrove did.

  A SOB ESCAPED Tessa’s clenched lips in spite of her best efforts to hold it back. Hargrove was playing some kind of sick game. He’d told her to run, and laughed when she took off in an unsteady gait, clutching her side.

  Her lungs were burning from sucking in the dank air. And she’d run down a tunnel that was a dead end. In front of her was a mountain of rock that sealed off any hope of getting through. She knew the rock wall was there because she’d run right into it. She had a goose egg-sized bump on her forehead to prove it.

  She turned around. There was no help for it. She had to go back and hope there was another tunnel she could escape through that she hadn’t found on her way down this one. She’d been running her hand on the left wall of the tunnel. Now, as she headed back, she felt down the other side, praying an opening would appear so she could get away from Hargrove or Hoffman or whatever the hell he was calling himself.

  She certainly wasn’t going to think of him as her father.

  A few minutes later she almost fell as her hand met empty space. Another tunnel. And just in time, because the light from Matt’s stolen computer was bouncing around a corner. Hargrove was close, too close. What had he done to Matt to get that computer from him?

  Oh, Matt, please be alive. Please be alive.

  In another few seconds the light would reach her. She hurried down the narrow side tunnel, using her hands on both sides this time to feel her way along the wall.

  THE RUSH OF cool, clean air across Matt’s arms told him about the ventilation shaft before he saw the patch of lighter gray up ahead. He tugged the coat down from his face and gratefully sucked his first deep breath since the mouth of the tunnel had collapsed. He hurried forward, finally able to make out the sides of the tunnel as he got closer to the light source.

  When he reached the part of the tunnel directly underneath the ventilation shaft, he paused to look up the shaft to see if there was anyone above. A tiny sliver of blue sky ruthlessly teased him with the promise of a freedom that wasn’t within his grasp. He was tempted to call out, in case anyone was outside searching for them, but without knowing where Tessa and Hargrove were, he couldn’t risk making any noise. If she was somewhere nearby, hiding, and he called out, he’d bring the killer right to her.

  He pulled one of the small rocks out of his pocket that he’d been gathering when Hargrove used the Taser on him. He scored the sharp edge of the rock across the wall, christening it tunnel one, before hurrying down it. The light gave way to darkness again as he ran his hand along the wall to guide him.

  When he came to an opening on his right, he did his best to mark a two on the wall, but he couldn’t see to tell if it was legible. He paused, listening for any sounds, but nothing broke the silence. Since tunnel one was sloping down deeper into the mine, he decided to try tunnel two. He imagined if Tessa had passed this way she would have probably chosen the tunnel that sloped up, hoping it would lead to an exit.

  TESSA CROUCHED BEHIND the little railway bucket car she’d found by literally running into it a few moments earlier. She imagined her entire body would be full of bruises soon from all the walls and rocks she’d either slammed into or tripped over.

  She hadn’t seen the bouncing light since turning down that first side tunnel. Since then she’d made so many different turns she was hopelessly disoriented. But at least she wasn’t on the other end of a gun right now.

  The railcar was small and wooden, with a band of metal along the rim. She carefully felt along it in the dark and dipped her hands inside, hoping for something to use as a weapon. There were rocks inside, or perhaps coal, but nothing else. She hadn’t really expected to find anything. It wouldn’t have made sense for the company who owned the mine to have left valuable tools behind. But it sure would have been nice if just one lazy worker had left his hammer or pick.

  Light shone down the tunnel toward the car. Not the weaker light from Matt’s computer this time, a bright light, from a flashlight. As it passed down the tunnel it illuminated another side tunnel close by. She debated ducking down that tunnel, not sure if help was here: maybe Casey and some rescuers who would help her find Matt. But what if Hargrove was tricking her and had a flashlight instead of Matt’s computer light this time?

  She hesitated, not sure what to do. Could she even make it to that side tunnel before whoever was behind that light saw her?

  She ducked down behind the railcar until she could be sure who was behind the light. She wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

  Footsteps sounded sure and steady as they came closer, closer. Hargrove wouldn’t walk so loudly, not if he was trying to sneak up on her? And he wouldn’t use a light that bright, would he? Hope blossomed in her chest.

  She risked a quick peek around the corner, hoping to see a miner or a fireman. Her hopes plummeted. Hargrove was standing there, his flashlight pointing at the ground now, his rifle aimed directly at her.

  She gasped and dove to the side just as the rifle boomed through the tunnel. The wooden side of the car closest to her exploded, raining rotten kindling down onto the ground and on her.

  He swung the rifle in her direction.

  She screamed and ducked down the side tunnel she’d seen earlier, just as the rifle boomed again.

  MATT FROZE AT the sound of gunfire. He listened intently, trying to figure out which direction it had come from. A scream erupted from somewhere up ahead and to his left. He started running as fast as he could in the dark, trailing his hands along the tunnel walls to guide him.

  TESSA SLAMMED INTO another wall and slid to the ground. She clapped her hand over her mouth against the urge to cry out and rocked back and forth, holding the throbbing foot she’d hit against the unforgiving rock.

  Footsteps sounded down the tunnel she’d just left.

  Light bounced against the walls.

  No, no, no! She wasn’t ready.

  But she couldn’t sit here and wait for Hargrove to shoot her. She had to get moving again.

  She gritted her teeth and pushed herself to her feet. She felt along the wall with her hands like a blind person, desperately trying to find another exit. Her hands met empty air and she crashed down onto the ground again.

  A rifle cracked. The nearest wall exploded, sending hundreds of pieces of rock flying at her, pricking her skin like tiny knives.

  A scream echoed through the tunnels, but Tessa wasn’t the one who’d screamed.

  She looked behind her, but the light from the gunman’s flashlight blinded her. She didn’t wait to see what he’d do. She lunged forward, away from him, and away from the scream.

  THE SECOND SCREAM sounded much closer than the first. It was off to Matt’s right somewhere. He felt along the wall until he reached another opening. When he turned, he saw light up ahead from another ventilation shaft. He quickened his pace, no longer having to feel along the walls to keep from running into them.

  When he reached the shaft, he stopped and listened. There, up ahead, he heard . . . crying? Horrible images of what might have happened to Tessa—and what Hargrove
might be doing to her right now—spurred him forward in a full-out sprint.

  There was more light up ahead, coming from just around the next curve in the tunnel. He forced himself to slow down and then stopped, even though the crying was tugging him forward. He wouldn’t do Tessa any good if he barreled in and got shot. He waited, listening for other sounds, but all he heard were the sniffles and sobs. He leaned around the edge of the wall and froze in shock.

  The first thing he saw was a key hanging from a peg in the wall. Past the key, in the last ten feet of the tunnel, was a room: a prison with a wall of bars built into the sides of the rock. A ventilation shaft was positioned overhead a few feet outside the cell, shedding just enough light so he could see the woman inside, huddled on a cot, her eyes wide with terror.

  Tonya Garrett.

  TESSA LIMPED DOWN the tunnel. Her side burned. Her foot was throbbing. She suspected she’d broken something, but she couldn’t stop and risk Hargrove finding her again. She’d had too many close calls already. If he shot at her again, she doubted she’d be as lucky as she’d already been. He’d missed her, what, three, four times now? What were the odds of that in such a confined space?

  The odds were probably just about . . . zero.

  She stopped and leaned back against the nearest wall. Was Hargrove purposely missing her? Why would he do that? There were several possible answers to that question—all of them bad.

  He’d been a miner in this region, possibly in this very mine. Had he planned this all along, to get her and Matt in the tunnels? If so, he probably knew the tunnels well. He had that advantage, and a flashlight, so it should have been much easier for him to follow her, find her, and kill her.

  So why hadn’t he?

  Was he herding her like cattle? Was he driving her to a specific place in the mine so he could then take his time doing . . . whatever it was he did to his victims before killing them?

  She shivered and swallowed against the bile rising in her throat. How could this man possibly be her biological father? How could she have lived with him, have grown up for seven years around him, and not remembered him? What kind of life had she lived? She shivered again, afraid the answer to that was probably why she’d blocked so many memories. Her past was far too frightening to face, and she certainly didn’t want to resurrect any memories right then.