"What are you talking about, Ned?" Max said impatiently. "Lara Croft? Here? You're joking."
Ned stepped in front of Lara and looked closely at her face. He glanced down and then turned to Max. "It's her, all right. I'd know her anywhere."
Max released Britches and pushed her toward the bed. "Go have a seat, kid." Then he turned to Lara. "All right, Miss Croft. You want to tell us what you're doing here? And who's the big lug with you?"
"I'm here as a guest this week," Lara replied. "This man is a member of the staff. Julie turned up missing and we came looking for her."
"Well, you stuck your nose in the wrong place, lady." He gestured at Spade. "Get up. Ned, search them for more weapons."
Ned quickly patted Spade down, then turned to Lara. Britches could see a gleem in his eyes. Lara stood still, her hands in the air and a cold expression on her face, while Ned methodically 'searched' her. It didn't take him long to find the spare magazines for her pistols. But when Ned put his hand in the wrong place, Britches' eyes bugged out when Lara slugged him with her fist. Taken by surprise, the gunman was knocked over backwards
"You put your hands on me again and you'll come back with a stump!" she yelled angrily.
Ned sprang to his feet with murder in his eyes, wiping the blood from his mouth. "You little wildcat!" he yelled. He brought up the Uzi and Britches held her breath, waiting for the gunfire that would kill her friend.
Spade moved to intervene, but Ned swung the gun toward him. "Freeze, mister. Or I'll blow you in half!"
Lara dropped into a karate stance. "You're pretty brave behind that gun, slimeball. Put it down and we'll see how tough you really are."
Ned would have done just exactly that, but Max grabbed him by the arm. "Enough! Ned, back off. Right now."
Ned took a deep breath and lowered the gun. "We ain't finished, lady. Not by a long shot."
Lara relaxed slightly and grimaced. "Anytime, tough guy."
Max gestured toward the bed with his gun. "The two of you join Miss Darwood while I think about this. Ned, pick up their guns."
"Max!" stammered Mansfield. "What are you going to do now. Surely you can't…"
"Shut up, Mansfield," snarled Max. "Just shut up, will ya? Lemme think."
Lara sat down on the bed and put her arm around her young friend's shoulders.
"Hi, Britches," she said with a smile. "What've you been up to?"
Britches ignored the question, her eyes wide. "You're Lara Croft? Really?"
Lara gave her a little hug and grinned. "Want my autograph?"
Spade joined them. "Hello, Miss Britches. I'm glad to see you're okay."
Britches glanced at Max. "I'm not sure about that part of it."
* * * * *
A few minutes later, Lara and Spade were forced to pick up the bloody mess that had once been Dugan and put it in the back of his truck. Spade unlocked the grate covering the entrance to the mineshaft and drove the truck about a hundred feet into the mine.
"That's far enough, mister," Max called. "Shut it off."
"This whole area's unstable, Max," Spade said, getting out of the truck. "It could collapse at any moment. That's why they closed it in the first place." He joined Lara, held at gunpoint under the watchful eye of Ned. Max had told Mansfield to wait in the chopper.
Max grinned. "Now that would be a real shame, wouldn't it. The mine collapses and buries all the evidence inside."
"What about these two, Mr. G?" asked Ned. "We can't just let 'em go."
"Right you are, Ned. Tie 'em up. Like I said, all the evidence will get buried."
Ned grinned wickedly. "My pleasure, Boss. Keep 'em covered. You two, on the ground." He jerked Lara over onto her stomach and yanked her hands behind her. He tied her hands and feet securely and then there was little she could do to stop him from doing as he wished.
"You maggot!" she hissed, trying to turn over. But this time he was expecting trouble. He shoved her shoulder back down, grabbed the back the back of her head and slammed her face into the dirt. Lara gasped at the sudden pain in her nose and her eyes watered. For a moment she lay there, the pain in her face making rational thought impossible.
When she opened her eyes, Ned was just finishing with Spade. The gunman glanced over and saw her watching.
"How'd you like that?" he taunted. "Just open your big mouth again, lady, and I'll really show you some pain."
"C'mon, Ned," chided Max impatiently. "Are you finished?"
"Yeah, I suppose so," said Ned, reluctantly getting to his feet.
"Excellent," replied Max and turned to Lara and Spade. "Now if the two of you will excuse us, I have to see a man about five million dollars." He grasped Britches by the arm. "C'mon, Miss Darwood. We don't want to keep your daddy waiting, do we?"
"Lara!" Britches cried, struggling to get away from Max. She might have done it, too. But Ned grabbed her other arm and between the two of them they managed to keep her under control.
"It's all right, Britches," Lara called. "We'll come after you, no matter where they take you."
Max glanced back over his shoulder. "Oh, I think not, Miss Croft. You see, Ned has an explosive device with him. It's not very big, but it should be enough to seal the entrance. He'll set it for, hmmm, shall say five…no, let's make it ten minutes. That way you'll have plenty of time to sweat." He chuckled. "Too bad no one will ever know. It would make a great headline. 'Lara Croft killed in mine cave-in.'"
"The lady's not dead just yet, Max," said Spade. "And neither I am."
"Brave talk," Max jeered. "Enjoy it while you can."
"Lara!" screamed Britches, but they dragged her toward the mouth of the tunnel.
"You better hope I don't escape," Lara yelled after them.
"Lara, shut up," whispered Spade. "You want him to kill you?"
His warning was a few seconds too late. Ned let go of Britches' arm and came back toward them.
"What did you say?" he asked, standing over top of her, a look of pure hatred on his face.
She looked up calmly. "I said, 'you better hope I don't escape.'"
He nodded. "That's what I thought you said." And then he kicked her in the stomach. The blow was hard enough to lift her off the ground. Lara doubled up and a small cry escaped from her lips. Had the blow been higher, it was surely broken her ribs. Even so, it was awful.
"Any other smart remarks?" Ned taunted.
He watched for ten seconds, but she said nothing further and lay quietly, tears of pain streaming down her face. Finally he turned away and headed back up the tunnel. He took the lantern with him and soon Lara and Spare were in total darkness.
For a moment, neither said anything.
"Well," she asked finally. "Aren't you going to say anything."
"What's there to say?" he replied quietly. "I never figured you for a fool, Lara Croft. Did you want him to kill you?"
"Nobody puts his hands on me like that!" she yelled fiercely.
"Confound it, shut up and listen! So he put his hands on you, so what? You gotta stay alive to fight back. You're no good to Britches dead! How the heck are we supposed to rescue her if you're lying on the floor with a dozen bullets in you!"
"Yeah, and I suppose you've got some big plan to get us out of here?" she retorted angrily.
"Of course I do," he yelled, but then he voice softened. "But you have to be alive for us to pull it off."
For a moment she was silent. Then: "So tell me about this so-called escape plan."
"See if you can roll over against me."
"I suppose you want to kiss me before we die, is that it?"
"Oh. Well, the kiss part sounds all right, Lara. But I wasn't plannin' on dyin' just yet. It turns out that I have a knife in my boot." She heard a low chuckle. "Ned was…ah…so anxious to search you, he didn't do a very good job on me. If you can reach the knife, we might just get out of this."
She tried to turn over and gasped in pain. "I'm sorry, Spade, I don't think I can."
"Come on, Tiger," he said gently. "We'll get out of this, but I need you to help me."
She took a deep breath and tried again, ignoring the pain in her stomach. With her hands tied behind her it was difficult to roll over. The bulk of the empty holsters tied to her legs made it even more difficult. But she finally managed it and a few seconds later she crashed into him.
"Ooof!"
"Sorry," she replied, acutely aware of being pressed tightly against him.
"Good job. Since I can't see you, I'll wait a little while for my kiss. Now see if you can wriggle your way down to my feet. The knife is in my right boot."
If rolling over was hard, this was worse. Spade helped by going the other way. Soon she was next to his feet.
"I'm here, Spade. Hold still."
"Mind the knife, Lara. The thing's very sharp."
Working in total darkness and entirely by touch, Lara felt for his boot.
"No, that's the left one," he replied. "It's in the right boot. Let me roll a little.'
She felt the movement and a few seconds later her hand closed around the hilt of the knife. She pulled it slowly from his boot scabbard. "Okay, Spade, I've got it."
"Roll away so you don't stick me," he directed her. "I'm going to wriggle back down to where you can reach my hands."
He worked his way down her side and soon was in position. She leaned back against him and felt his hands.
"Good, girl. Now get the blade between my hands. Like I said, the knife's sharp, it shouldn't take too long."
"But what if I cut you?" she asked anxiously.
"No choice, Lara," he replied. "You gotta do it. Hurry. We don't have much time."
She positioned the knife as best she could and made a tentative cut.
"Ouch!" he yelled.
"Oh, Spade," she cried. "I'm sorry."
"I'll live. Try again." The next cut was better. And so was the next. A moment later she felt his hands separate.
"All right, let me have the knife." Lara felt his hands against hers and allowed him to take the knife from her.
"What are you doing?" she asked, hearing noises nearby.
"Freeing my feet," he replied. "If I can get to the truck, we can get some light in here."
Lara thought the truck was only fifteen feet or so away. But in which direction? She couldn't remember.
"Be careful, Spade. You go falling down a hole or something and I'll never forgive you."
She heard the low laugh, followed by a thump.
"I found it," he said. "Or more accurately, it found me. Just a second….ah…okay…I'm at the passenger door. Nuts. It's locked. I'll try the other side….I'm at the front bumper….almost there."
Lara heard the door being opened and suddenly the dome light inside the truck cab came on. The truck's headlights followed immediately, and Lara blinked at the sudden illumination. A minute later he had her untied.
Spade had to help her to her feet and at first it was difficult to stand. When they faced each other there was a moment of awkward silence.
"Spade, if you ever talk to me like that again," she declared, pointing her finger at him. "I'll…"
But instead of getting mad, he grinned. "You know, something Lara Croft, you are really beautiful when you're angry. Just like in the magazine pictures."
His attempt at humor finally broke through her anger. She took a deep breath. "Can we go rescue Britches now?"
"There was mention of a kiss, I believe?"
"A kiss?" she retorted. "What makes you think I'd ever kiss you, you big ruffian." Kiss Spade? He was good looking, right enough. But if he thought she'd just fall into his arms, he had another think coming.
He shrugged. "Well, you know, comrades in arms, a kiss for luck, that sort of thing."
"For luck?" she said sarcastically, an eyebrow raised at the suggestion.
"There's still a small matter of us getting out of here," he replied. "And I seem to remember talk of an explosive device on a ten minute timer."
She nodded. He had a point. "Right then, a kiss for luck." She leaned in quickly and brushed his lips with her own.
The quick movement startled Spade; it was almost as if he was surprised that she'd actually done it. His hand went to his mouth and he smiled. "You don't give much, do you?"
"I don't give anything, sir," she retorted. "Now, you've had your kiss. I'd like to know your escape plan."
"My escape plan? Well, uh…."
She could see him thinking about it. "Yes?"
He brightened. "We get in the truck and drive out." Then he grinned. "Simple, huh?"
"Brilliant," she agreed. "And the matter of the explosive device?"
"One thing at a time," he replied. "Get in."
A minute later Spade stopped the truck fifty feet from the grate covering the mine entrance. It had been impossible to turn the truck in the narrow passageway, so Spade had backed the whole way. Fortunately, it was not far.
"How much time do you think we have?" she asked.
"Enough. I think." he replied and turned to her. "I want you to get down on the floor. I'm going to ram the grate. If I hit it hard enough we should be able to punch through it."
"But…"
"Confound it, woman, get down on the blasted floor! Only one of us has to see where we're going. And right now it's me. You can carry your share of the load another time."
The angry retort was on the tip of her tongue when she paused. He was right, of course.
* * * * *
"All right, Reggie," Max said into the cell phone. "Just hurry it up, will ya?" He snapped the phone closed and turned to the man next to him. "All right, tell me again why it wouldn't start."
"How should I know, Max?" Ned replied disgustedly.
"Well, you're supposed to know these things, aren't you?"
"Look, I'm a pilot, not a mechanic. If the thing breaks, I call somebody to fix it."
They were on the road, about halfway down the hill from the mine. Ned had been unable to start up the helicopter. Something wrong with the fuel feed, he had guessed. So now they were on foot.
"Surely you're not planning to walk out of here, Max," grumbled Mansfield. "We're in the middle of nowhere."
"No, just to that ghost town. It's about two miles. Reggie and the others will meet us there."
A thunderous explosion somewhere behind them filled the night. The sound echoed from the nearby ridgeline and for almost ten seconds the night was filled with the noise.
"Well, that takes care of that," Max said to no one in particular. "One more open account, now closed."
Go to Chapter Twelve