Page 67 of Dangerous Secrets
In the fine dirt on the floor werefootprints, man sized and from the same pair of shoes, coming andgoing several times.
Gotcha, youfucker.
***
Delaney ran as fast as she dared, ahand on the dirt wall guiding her, afraid at any moment she’d tripover some unseen object and break a leg, but even more afraid ofJerod Fetterly pursuing her, wielding the pickax.She’d hurt him,she knew she had.He might be dead with the pickax stuck in histhroat, but he’d been moving when she’d swung, reeling to the side,and her momentum meant she couldn’t direct the pointy end of thataxe as well as she would’ve liked.
An indistinct noise echoed through thetunnel.She couldn’t identify it, much less where it came from, butit spurred her to move faster.Her outstretched hand following thedirt wall suddenly plunged into nothing and she skidded to a halt.Backtracking, she found the wall again and felt where it angledright.Was this the main tunnel leading to the entrance, or amineshaft heading deeper into the mine?
Another thud sounded behind her.Looking over her shoulder, her heart sank when she saw a faintglow.Fetterly was alive and he was coming after her.
She’d been unconscious when he’dbrought her into the mine, so she had no way of knowing how deepthey were or which direction to take.But either way was safer thanstaying where she was.
Moving across the open space, shebumped against the wall on the far side.Using her hand on the wallas a guide, she moved.Another fifty yards and she paused.Did theair smell fresher?Less damp?
Hope surged and she movedfaster.Then her foot caught on an unseen object and she stumbledto her knees, catching herself on her hands.She let out a startledshriek when something furry, somethingalive,skittered over anoutstretched hand.Oh god, there were rats in the mine.
She really was in a horrormovie.
She lurched to her feet, only to seestars when she bashed the side of her forehead solidly against whatshe could only guess was a low beam.
Leaning against the tunnel wall, shebreathed in slowly, trying to hear past her heartbeat thundering inher ears.She pressed a hand to where she’d hit her head and herfingers felt sticky.
She drew in another breath, toldherself she could do this, and started moving again.She’d taken nomore than a dozen steps when footfall sounded around a bend in thetunnel in front of her.A brilliant flash of light blinded her.Shereeled back against the tunnel wall as the figure holding the lightrushed toward her.
“Laney.”
Relief flooded through her so profoundshe felt dizzy, and her breath shuddered from her lungs in a shakysob.Walker’s strong hands grasped her shoulders and she was pulledagainst his solid chest.
“Oh god,Walker.”
“Shh, baby.I gotyou.”
Nothing had ever felt safer thanWalker wrapping her in his arms.
She wanted to burrow into him, tosurround herself in his strength and warmth, to never let go.Butthe danger wasn’t over.Lifting her face, she gripped his arms.“It’s Jerod Fetterly.He’s coming.We’ve got to get out ofhere.”
As if to confirm her statement, asteady scraping noise came from deeper in the mine.Walker set heraway from him.He ran the beam of the flashlight over her, utteringa quiet oath.He handed her his flashlight, the beam casting hisface in shadows, and pointed her in the direction from which he’dcome.
His voice was low and fast as he said,“Keep going.Forty feet and the tunnel bends to the right.You’llgo through a cave to the entrance.Keep moving as fast as you can.”He released her to thrust his cellphone in her other hand.“Onceoutside, keep to the trail.As soon as you get a signal, callSawyer.My passcode is your birth year.”
“I’m not leavingyou.”
“Laney.”His voice neversounded more urgent.“Promise me you’ll keep moving.If he somehowgets past me, I don’t want you anywhere he can findyou.”
“I’m not leavingyou.”
“Listen to me.”He gaveher a shake, intensity lacing his tone.“You’re getting out ofhere.No argument.Is he armed?”
“He has a gun.Probablyother weapons, too.I hit him with a pickax, but I don’t think itslowed him down much.”
“That’s my girl.Now go.I’ll do better if I’m not worried about you.”
“No.Two against one.Wetake him together.”
“No, I’m armed.Get—” Hebroke off when uneven, shuffling footsteps approached, accompaniedby the scraping sound.“Turn off the light,” he hissed.
She snapped it off, plunging them intodarkness, except for the glow growing steadily brighter from deeperin the mine.She heard Walker draw his gun from itsholster.
