Page 28 of The Lone Cyborg
“I have no idea, but if he found the way in, maybe he can find the way back out.”
“Maybe. Or maybe he came through the main entrance and no one noticed him. Or maybe there’s no one there at all.”
“Thenmaybewe should find out,” she said firmly.
She was probably being unduly optimistic but now that he’d returned and Sylvester was with them, she was certain that everything was going to work out. Jeb didn’t look convinced but he nodded reluctantly.
“I suppose it makes sense to investigate. I don’t suppose you want to wait here?”
“No. Sylvester and I are coming with you.”
He didn’t argue. He swallowed a few handfuls of water and then they set off again. He had his light so low she could barely see, but he kept his arm around her, guiding her through the darkness. Sylvester perched on her shoulders, unusually silent.
A darker patch to one side indicated a branch and she gave it a curious look.
“Did you try that one?”
“Yes, and the ones that branched off of it. I thought it made sense to start close to the cavern but maybe I should have tried further up.”
“Let’s see how far we get this way.”
They climbed steadily higher and then he suddenly froze, pulling her against the wall as he switched off the light completely. A moment later she heard voices and saw the distant glow of a lantern from around a bend in the tunnel.
“I don’t like these fucking tunnels,” a man complained.
“Neither do I. I don’t care what Bob says, I think we should wait—they have to come back up sooner or later.”
“Hell, yes. I say we give it another twenty-four hours before we follow these tracks any deeper.”
Tracks?
Jeb tensed as she shot him an inquiring look.
“I don’t see why it matters anyway,” the first man whined. “He’s probably going to die. And if we left now we’d be long gone if he did survive.”
“Don’t you want some cash out of this shit show? It’s not like there was anything here worth stealing.”
This time she tensed, glaring into the darkness.
“Bob says he knows someone who’s paying good money for mining claims, with a bonus if it holds what they’re looking for. All we need to do is force the woman to sign over the claim.”
“What if she doesn’t want to sign?”
“I hope she doesn’t. I could use a little fun.”
The laughter that followed made her shiver, and Jeb made an abortive movement before his hand tightened around hers.
“With our luck she’s already dead. There’s a lot of blood.”
“If she’s dead then the claim is free for the taking—although we have to have some proof. But there’s no rush and I’m tired of stumbling around in the dark. Come on. Might as well wait until tomorrow. We can always try again if they haven’t come out by then.”
The voices and the light disappeared but they remained against the wall until Jeb finally relaxed.
“They’re gone,” he said softly. “I can’t believe it never occurred to me that they could follow the trail of my blood straight to us. Thank God, they’re lazy bastards.”
She nodded a fervent agreement, shuddering to think what might have happened if they’d found her before Jeb returned.
“What do you think we should do?”
