Pounding sounded on the front door now instead of the window, along with more muffled shouts from her brother.
A single tear coursed down her cheek. “Maybe I should—”
Bam! Bam!
Bullets pinged off the log walls of the cabin.
Her brother’s bellow of rage sounded from outside. The shooting immediately stopped.
Sierra’s face turned so pale it was as if her beautiful dark Spanish skin—no, Cuban skin—had turned white. “He stopped them,” she whispered, defending her brother. “He stopped them from shooting again.”
Beau sighed heavily. “He stopped them, yes, but only after they shot at us. Like before. Until he can consistently control them, we still need to go.”
“Right. Yes. But, where, how—”
“Remember I told you I had a few tricks up my sleeve if we needed to leave in a hurry?”
“I remember.”
He took her hand in his and led her into the small pantry that was barely a walk-in. He pulled a fake shelf support down and to the side. A loud click sounded, and the back wall pulled toward them, leaving a narrow opening.
“What is it?” she said. “One of those safe rooms where people hide from burglars?”
“Even better. It’s essentially a bolt-hole, like they had centuries ago so people could escape unseen when a castle was besieged.”
“Oh, we have something like that at my father’s mansion. It goes out into the woods behind the house. But Daddy said it’s in case there’s a fire.”
Beau chuckled. “I’ll bet that’s what it’s for. Not so he can get away if law enforcement ever manages to close in on him.”
“Be nice.”
He sighed. “Anyway, like I was saying. A ladder is attached at the edge of the tunnel opening. Solar-powered lights will come on as soon as we reach the bottom.”
“No flashlight this time? Like the one from your backpack in the earlier tunnel?”
He smiled at the memory of her swearing at the low light from the flashlight he’d used before. “This little cabin has all the modern upgrades.”
“Except internet.”
He laughed, amazed he could do so in spite of what was going on.
A much louder thumping sounded behind them, repeating over and over. The floor shook, ever so slightly, but enough to dislodge a box of cereal from one of the shelves. Beau managed to catch it before it could fall on Sierra’s head.
Her eyes widened. “What are they doing now?”
“Sounds like they’re trying to break down the door.” He tossed the box on one of the lower shelves. “I wouldn’t thinkit’s possible without heavy equipment. But it sounds like they’re using a log or something really heavy. We have to go. Now. Hurry, Sierra.”
As soon as she safely reached the bottom of the ladder and the tunnel’s lights came on, Beau closed the outer pantry door. Then he stood on the ladder and closed the second door, the one that led down into the tunnel. He secured three iron bars across the door, resting the ends in thick hooks bolted into the framing on the wall. Then he jumped down the last few steps, grabbed Sierra’s hand and started running.
Chapter Thirteen
A patch of light up ahead had Sierra wondering if they were literally, finally, reaching the light at the end of the tunnel or whether it was yet another cruel trick of her mind. Since they’d entered the tunnel beneath the cabin, she’d thought they were nearing an exit many times only to discover it was yet another ventilation shaft. The small square of sunlight had fooled her so many times that she couldn’t even get excited about this next one up ahead, even though it seemed much larger.
“Almost there,” Beau told her as he kept his strides shorter for her benefit, sticking to her side like glue.
He’d encouraged her every time she’d faltered. Kept encouraging her to drink to stay hydrated, even in the coolness of the mine shaft. He’d warned her that the mind can play tricks down here, like making her think she wasn’t thirsty because of the temperature. But not staying hydrated with all the walking and jogging they were doing could make her muscles cramp up. Of course, pushing her to drink had its drawbacks too. She’d had to stop earlier around a corner to relieve her bladder. It grossed her out not having bathroom tissue and having to pee on the dirt. She felt dirty and disgusting while Beau never seemed to break a sweat or get tired.
She kind of hated him for that.
