“Something’s wrong,” Nikolas said.
“Why do you say that? We haven’t seen any guards except for that one we took care of,” Lucky replied.
“No, I mean something’s wrong with my communications system. I haven’t heard anything in at least five or ten minutes,” Nikolas said, as his fingers jingled the ear piece further into his ear.
“Neither have I, but that doesn’t mean anything.”
“Come on, Lucky. We’ve been hearing everyone all along. There’s no reason for there to be silence. I think something is wrong. Besides, how do you hear me? Is my voice coming through your ear piece or through your ears?” Nikolas asked.
Lucky frowned. Come to think of it, Nikolas’ voice wasn’t coming through the ear piece. What if something was wrong with their communications system? Nah, that can’t be, Lucky thought. This was hi-tech stuff. Much too expensive to be defective.
“Well?” Nikolas asked, when Lucky neglected to answer his question.
“You’re not coming through, okay?”
“No, it’s not okay,” Nikolas said, quietly.
“What? Are you afraid of the dark? Don’t worry I’ll protect ya,” Lucky offered.
“Shut up, Lucky. Shut up and walk faster. The sooner we reach Tommy and Jason, the better off we’ll be. Right now, we’re isolated and from what Tommy and Gina have said about the guards, no matter how protective you think you are, you’re hardly a match against them,” Nikolas replied, moving past Lucky to take the lead.
“Aiy, Aiy sir!” Lucky said, his voice heavy with sarcasm.
Lucky moved to catch up with Nikolas and soon they were walking side by side again. Gina’s directions had been perfect. After they made the last corner, they found the passageway she indicated on the map.
“Tommy! Jason!” Lucky yelled.
Side-stepping the still body on the ground, Lucky and Nikolas ran up and down the passageway, searching every room. All of them were empty.
“This is the right one, isn’t it?” Nikolas asked.
“Yeah, this is it. I wonder where they are. What do you want to do?" Lucky asked.
Nikolas shrugged. They were alone without any means of communication. And, they had no idea where Tommy and Jason were. There was really only one smart thing they could do.
“We should go back,” Nikolas answered.
Lucky nodded. He led the way as they left the passageway. Both were sad that they weren’t able to help Tommy, but they were pleased at what they had accomplished so far. They’d found Gina and they had also caught the man who had tried to rape Dawn. Their first attempt at collaboration had turned out well.
“…ninety-seven, ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred. Okay, make a right here.”
Jason and Tommy followed Keesha’s instructions and turned right into another passageway.
“We’re almost there,” Keesha said.
“Are you sure about that? I don’t see anything down here, Keesha. This looks like a dead end. Maybe we missed a turn somewhere,” Jason said, scanning the rock-solid walls.
“It’s here.”
“What did it look like?” Tommy asked, trying to remain calm and patient. They had been following Keesha’s directions for several minutes and he was worried. She was leading them to a part of the tunnels where he had never been before. He wondered if she was leading them further any from his mother rather than to her.
“I don’t know-“
“What do you mean you don’t know? We’ve got to go back,” Tommy demanded, turning to go back the way they had come.
“Wait a minute, Tommy. I was blindfolded, but I know where we’re going. Just a few more feet and we’ll be there. Trust me.”
“Come on, Tommy. She’s the best chance we’ve got. Don’t turn back now. We’ve come too far to give up,” Jason said, quietly, carefully choosing the words that would have the best effect on Tommy.
“I’m not giving up,” Tommy muttered, impatiently. “How much further?”
“Ssh! Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty. Make a left here.”
“But we can’t make a left here! It’s a dead end!” Tommy said.
“No, it’s not! We made this turn here. I know we did. We paused for a second and then, we turned. If it looks like a dead end, it must be a trick,” Keesha said with fierce determination. She knew they had come this way. The air was different here than in any other part of the tunnels.
“Do you know what happened when you paused? Did you hear anything that was different?” Jason asked.
“Yeah! I heard a click and a swooshing sound. Like something slid away.”
“Something sliding?” Tommy repeated. “Maybe this wall isn’t really a wall!”
Tommy, Keesha and Jason began to touch and probe the rock-covered walls, searching for anything out of the ordinary. They searched for several minutes, but were unable to discover anything which would trigger the wall to open.
“Dammit!!” Tommy exclaimed. In frustration, he kicked the wall.
“Tommy, we will find her-“ Keesha began.
“Ssh! What was that? Was that a click?” Jason asked.
The trio became silent as the rock-covered wall began to make a swooshing sound. The wall rolled away to reveal another passageway. They went through the opening and found a setting that was very different from where they were before.
“This is it, isn’t it?” Keesha asked.
“Yeah. This may be it,” Jason replied.
“I can’t believe it. I never even knew this was here,” Tommy said incredulously.
“What’s here? What does it look like?” Keesha asked. Her eyes had adjusted to the complete darkness, but not enough for her to see the extravagance which was before her.
“It’s incredible, sweetheart. It’s like we went through the wardrobe** into another world. Expensive furnishings. Carpeted floor. This is nothing like where we were before,” Jason said, taking her hand to lead her around the room.
“Yeah, but where is my mother?” Tommy asked, as he moved around the room, searching for anything that might lead him to her.
I’m right here, baby.
The voices were muffled, but Simone was positive she recognized one as her son’s. Tommy was nearby. She knew it. She could feel him. She glanced at Tracy to see if she heard the voices, too. She didn’t want Tracy to do something that would endanger her child and whoever he had with him.
Simone worried needlessly. Tracy was oblivious to the sounds which came from the next room. Her mind was on coming up with an alternative plan as she paced back and forth in front of the bookcase. She had to come up with a way out in the off chance the guards failed to handle the intrusion.
After watching Tracy for several minutes, Simone knew that Tracy hadn’t heard the voices. Confident that Tracy was too wrapped up in her own thoughts, Simone began to test the ropes which bound her to the chair. She moved her wrist back and forth, loosening the ropes a little bit with each movement. The ropes cut into her flesh, but she ignored the pain. With her eyes on Tracy’s pacing form, Simone eased her hands from their constraints.
[**wardrobe = a reference to "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis. Excellent series. Aslan is da'bomb! - Dominiqua]