Page 26 of Silent Target

A smile tugs at my mouth before I can stop it.

I pull the shelving unit closed behind us.

Seconds later, the house collapses.

The thunder of it travels through the passage, shaking dust from the concrete ceiling. Smoke rolls toward us like fog.

Evie glances over her shoulder. “They’ll think we’re dead.”

“For a few minutes.”

“Then what?”

“They’ll search the debris.”

“And when they don’t find us?”

“They’ll find the tunnel.”

“So what happens now?”

I switch on a flashlight covered with a red filter. The narrow passage stretches nearly two hundred yards ahead.

“We disappear.”

She follows beside me. “You really do plan everything.”

“I try.”

“What happens when your plans fail?”

“They usually involve bullets.”

She becomes quiet.

Our footsteps echo through the passage.

My shoulder throbs with every movement, but I keep my pace steady. Evie has enough to worry about without wondering whether I can continue.

“How badly are you hurt?” she asks.

“I’m not.”

“That’s a lie.”

“It’s a bruise.”

“You’re holding your left arm differently.”

I glance at her.

Even in the low red light, I see the challenge in her expression.

She noticed.

I should be annoyed.

Instead, I’m impressed.