‘‘Yes.’’ Her voice was barely a squeak.
‘‘I will come back with help for you and for Mike and Dick. Trust me. I will.’’
Diane took a space blanket from her pack and tucked it around Neva as best she could without going over the edge herself.
‘‘Okay, now let’s go.’’ LaSalle was insistent.
‘‘I’m going to see about Mike, and then we’ll go get your damn diamonds. I’ll even give you some extra from the museum if you’ll be a little patient. We have some fine gems.’’
‘‘Well, a woman who knows how to bargain. I like that. Look at him, then. After that, we go.’’
Diane rushed to Mike. He was conscious and pale. His skin was cool to the touch, but the cave was cool. She looked at his side. MacGregor started to lift his shirt from the wound.
‘‘No. Keep it there. If you move it, you’ll pull the clotted blood loose and start the bleeding again. It looks like it’s slowed.’’
Diane folded parts of the shirt over the area to soak up more blood. She put a hand on Mike’s back. He was bleeding from the exit wound. Damn. She fished out her first aid kit and tore open the gauze pads, stacked them up and pressed them against the wound. ‘‘Hold this,’’ she told MacGregor. ‘‘When I finish, I’ll look at your arm.’’
‘‘Dammit, this isn’t a hospital,’’ LaSalle said angrily.
‘‘You’re the one shooting people. Just one of our stones at the museum is worth ten thousand dollars and we have lots of them. That’s a lot of money when all you have to do is stand there and wait a minute or two.’’
Diane wrapped an Ace bandage tight around Mike’s midsection. He had been silent so far. Now he looked at her as if he were trying to telegraph thoughts.
‘‘He’s going to kill you,’’ he whispered so silently Diane had to read his lips, ‘‘and us.’’
‘‘No,’’ whispered Diane. ‘‘Trust me.’’
Mike’s stare had an urgency as he looked at her. ‘‘He won’t let you...’’
‘‘What are you two cooking up?’’
‘‘Nothing. I’m trying to comfort Mike. What could we possibly be cooking up? You have a gun, and three-quarters of us are incapacitated. I’m almost finished.’’
She looked deep into Mike’s eyes. ‘‘Trust me and trust my love of caves.’’ He looked at her, puzzled. ‘‘It’s your job to stay alive.’’
Diane looked at MacGregor’s wound. It wasn’t bad, she was relieved to see. She put a bandage on it. She took another space blanket and draped it over Mike and MacGregor.
‘‘Watch the others. I’ll come back with help. Don’t let Mike move. Talk to Neva occasionally. Tell some jokes. You have a captive audience.’’ He gave her a weak smile. ‘‘I’m counting on you,’’ she added.
Diane stood up. ‘‘I’m ready to go.’’
Chapter 45
‘‘Well, finally. We can get out of this damn place.’’ LaSalle worked his way around the rocks to Diane. ‘‘Move.’’ He waved his pistol in the general direction from which he had entered the chamber.
Diane had walked in front of him for several steps when two shots went off behind her. MacGregor began screaming. Diane whirled around, dread filling her chest. Mike was halfway up, leaning toward MacGregor, who was screaming and sobbing. Blood was flowing from both his boots.
‘‘You son of a bitch,’’ Diane yelled at LaSalle.
Diane rushed to MacGregor and kneeled down be side him, but LaSalle pulled her up and began drag ging her from the chamber. He dropped his flashlight and it clattered on the floor.
‘‘See what you made me do.’’ He shoved her to the ground.
Her hands stung as she broke her fall.
‘‘I ought to just shoot you and cut my losses. Pick that up and hand it to me.’’
Diane picked up the light and handed it to LaSalle.
‘‘Why did you have to shoot him? He was no threat to you.’’
‘‘The hell he wasn’t. He was just winged. After we left, what was to stop him from walking out and calling the police? He can wait and suffer with the rest of your group. Now, listen and understand this. I showed compassion by not putting a bullet in their heads. That’s my show of good faith. Now it’s your turn. We’re going to get out of this fucking cave and get my diamonds. No more delays, no more problems. You got that?’’
Diane turned to Mike and MacGregor. ‘‘Dick, don’t take your boots off. Put pressure on your wounds. Stay warm and still. Keep that space blanket around the two of you. Talk to Neva occasionally, but don’t strain yourself. I’ll come back with help.’’
‘‘Aren’t you just the sweet little mother.’’
For the first time, Diane got a good look at LaSalle. His good looks were ruined by a mean expression. He had dark hair, sharp, well-defined features, muscular build. She thought she understood what the story was with Ashlyn and Justin. Two arrogant kids caught smuggling contraband, probably caught by him—a cor rupt cop. He offered them a deal—working for him for a much bigger prize than cigarettes. Ashlyn proba bly fell for him.
Diane walked slowly out of the chamber and started up the passage. She remembered Everett’s last words about not trusting policemen. At the time, she thought he was talking about the policeman who shot him. He had meant LaSalle.
‘‘Did Everett find you out and think you were in volved in his sister’s death?’’ she said.
‘‘Yeah, you figured that out, huh? I tried to explain to him all that happened before I met the little twits, but he wouldn’t listen. Caught me off guard one night with this electric cattle prod. Damn thing hurt like hell. Before I could recover, he had me tied up like a pig and I was riding in a truck from New York to Georgia with those three sniffling kids. All of them tied tight like me. Cried and moaned the whole way. The worst thing was, he stole our diamonds. Stuffed three of them down the kids’ throats before he hung them. He cut off their fingers while they were alive. God, he was a maniac.’’
He was a maniac, thought Diane. You’re doing a good impression of one. She listened to him talking and kept walking and checking her compass.
‘‘Can’t you speed up?’’
‘‘This is a cave. As you witnessed, caves are danger ous. You walk at a slow pace in a cave. Why didn’t you just wait for us to come out?’’
‘‘I got the stupid idea that I could deal with all of you and not have any witnesses. I didn’t know this place was a hazard waiting for an accident. Why would anyone in their right mind come to a place like this?’’
‘‘It’s fun,’’ said Diane.
‘‘You like it dangerous, huh? I can give you dangerous.’’
‘‘Why did you rape Kacie?’’
‘‘Why? She had my stone. She belonged to me. That prick of a boyfriend of hers ruined my diamond.’’
‘‘You’re some piece of work.’’
‘‘Just get us out of this cave. I’ll show you what kind of piece of work I am.’’
‘‘He didn’t ruin your diamond, you know. I was told by an expert that it was a superb cut.’’
‘‘He took it to an amateur.’’
‘‘A very gifted amateur.’’
‘‘Well, pardon me.’’
Diane had a plan, and it seemed like a good one, but it was looking less feasible now that she was alone with him. If she could just play for time. Keep him talking. Slow the pace.
‘‘How did you escape from Everett?’’
‘‘Being the last in line for the hanging. Wait a min ute. I’m not recognizing any landmarks.’’
Diane pulled the map from her pocket. ‘‘Would you like to lead?’’
‘‘No. Just don’t shit with me or I’ll just cut my losses and shoot you.’’ He grabbed her hair. ‘‘I might fuck you first right here in the cave before I kill you, and I won’t make it fun for you.’’
‘‘I’m trying to get us out of here as quickly and safely as I can. Remember, I have friends I’m trying to save too.
’’
‘‘You just remember that.’’
‘‘I will. Tell me the rest of your story.’’
‘‘Why? You like to hear me talk?’’
‘‘I just want to know what happened. Will it kill you to satisfy my curiosity?’’
What Diane desperately wanted was to distract him. So far, he proved to be a talker, but it wouldn’t last forever.
‘‘Everett Littleton was Judge Roy Bean with a Rube Goldberg device. When we got to Georgia he zapped us, drugged us until we were practically zombies, and stuffed us like sardines in the backseat of his truck. He unhitched the trailer, drove the truck into the woods. First thing he did was tie all the nooses around different tree limbs. Shit, the guy was crazy—all those ropes. He seemed to get some kind of satisfaction out of tying knots. He had this routine he did.’’
They came to the There Be Dragons Here passage and Diane turned down it and looked at her compass.
‘‘What are you doing?’’ He pulled at the compass cord on her neck.
‘‘I’m checking the compass reading. You want to get out of here, don’t you? I’ve been doing this the whole time we’ve been walking.’’
He let go of the cord. ‘‘Why the hell you think this kind of thing is fun is beyond me.’’
LaSalle continued talking and hadn’t noticed the change of route. She didn’t think he would. All the passages probably looked alike to him. She guessed he had followed their voices and lights to locate them—and he obviously got his hands on a map that had the route marked on it. LaSalle struck her as resourceful.
‘‘Everett pulled the first kid out and told her why she was being executed,’’ LaSalle continued. ‘‘Then he cut off her fingers and hauled her up with a winch, her screaming like a wild animal. While she was dan gling in the air, kicking and screaming, he climbed on top of the cab and put the noose around her neck, took off the rope from around her chest that he pulled her up by, and let her swing by the neck. Sick bastard said a prayer. He did the other two kids, one at a time. Each one of them having to watch what he did to the ones before them. By the time he got to me, I’d sobered up and managed to cut my rope on a file he had in the back of the truck. While he was doing the last kid, I got out of the truck and ran for the woods. He looked for me for a long time, but I found the road and got the hell as far away from there as I could. I jacked a car from somebody’s front yard and got back to town. I got even with the son of a bitch, though. I got to slice his throat.’’
Diane was looking for a place that would put her at an advantage. She would have no more than one chance, and it had to work. She had to surprise him. If she didn’t do it right, he’d kill her and the others. She wasn’t under any delusions that he would let her go. He’d get the diamonds, kill her and come back and kill them. But she needed just the right place.
This tunnel was looking very different from the ones they had passed through. It was larger, with more breakdown littering the floor. The hydrology that had created it was different, and the shape of the tunnel was different. Would he notice? Diane searched for more conversation.
‘‘What happened to Steven Mayberry?’’
‘‘Bastard almost got away—still trying to steal my diamonds. He’ll be found by hunters one of these days.’’
‘‘How did you know about Chris Edwards and Ste ven Mayberry?’’
‘‘I got lucky. I saw them being interviewed on televi sion. I knew that Everett threw the pouch with the rest of the diamonds into the woods. I went back there to look for it, and it was gone. I figured maybe these guys found it. I discussed the possibility with them.’’
LaSalle stopped suddenly and looked around the tunnel, shining his flashlight on the walls and floor.
‘‘Are you trying to distract me? I don’t recognize this place. None of the tunnels were this big. Damn you, bitch, I told you not to shit with me.’’
He slapped her in the jaw with the side of the flash light. Instead of recoiling, Diane lunged into him with her shoulder. Off balance, he stumbled over a rock, fell and hit his head on the floor. The gun and the flashlight went flying. The cave had done for her what she was searching for a way to do.
Stunned, he rose to his knees, shaking his head. She switched off her headlamp. He scrambled in the dark for the thing that was most important to him, the thing he thought he couldn’t live without—his gun. Diane scrambled for the thing he needed most in a cave— his flashlight. She got to her prize first and switched it off. They were plunged into absolute darkness. Diane silently picked a path several feet away to a large rock near the entrance to the passage, crouched behind it, and listened. She could hear him feeling for his gun.
‘‘Okay. You’ve had your little laugh. Get the fuck over here with the flashlight.’’
Diane said nothing.
‘‘Are you listening to me, bitch! Turn on the goddamn fucking light.’’
She was silent.
‘‘If I have to find you, you won’t like it.’’
Diane concentrated on breathing softly, hoping he couldn’t hear her, hoping she wouldn’t have to cough or sneeze. She waited, trying not to think of the others.
‘‘Okay. You win. I’ll help pull your friend out of the hole she’s in. You know how to make deals. How’s that for a deal?’’
He was silent for several moments, as if he was waiting for Diane to ponder his offer.
‘‘Look, you stupid bitch, you have to get out of here too. Did you think that far ahead?’’
Yes, thought Diane. I did.
‘‘You can’t move. If I hear you I’ll shoot, you have to know that. I’m a pretty good shot. I can aim by sound.’’
Diane heard him fumbling in the dark. He’d started walking, bumping against the rocks. She picked up a stone and threw it. He didn’t fire.
‘‘You didn’t expect me to fall for that old trick, did you?’’
Diane said nothing. She picked up another stone and threw it. Again, he didn’t fire. This time she rose and slowly slipped out of the passage, and this time he fired—toward her.
The bullet pinged off the wall and echoed through out the chamber. The cave was cold but she felt sweat trickling down her back and between her breasts. She started to shiver.
She heard him moving and fumbling through the breakdown. He cursed and yelled at her. In the dark, her plan seemed to have vanished with the light.
Focus on the task. You’re a cave creature, she re minded herself.
Diane stuffed the flashlight in her pocket and felt along the walls, felt the scallops carved by water— steep slope of the scallop upstream. She focused on remembering the cave, the paces, the directions. She moved as quickly as she dared, feeling the wall along the way. The breakdown debris was the hardest. It slowed her passage as she felt for a firm footing with each step.
She came to a passage and stopped. She fished her small knife out of her jeans pocket and worked on prying the cover off her compass. She fumbled, search ing for a place to put the point of her knife, trying not to slip and stab herself. It was stuck fast.
She stopped, took a deep breath and tried again. It moved. She stuck the knife in the widening crack, rais ing the cover. She broke it the rest of the way open and felt the compass inside with her fingers.
‘‘I’m going to catch you, and when I do, you’ll wish you’d never crossed me. You won’t die quickly.’’
Diane let her compass rest level for a moment be fore she put her fingertips on it, feeling for the tiny raised arrow painted on one of the hands. She had succeeded in separating LaSalle and herself from her friends for the moment, but what if he found his way back to Mike and the others? There would be lights there. They and she would all be worse off than when they started. She’d promised them they’d be safe.
Off in the distance she occasionally heard a muffled cry. MacGregor, or Neva maybe. If LaSalle heard it he could home in on it—maybe, or maybe not, but she couldn’t take the chance. If he found the right passag
e, he might eventually see the glow from their lights, unless they thought to turn them off. Mike might think of it, if he weren’t so injured . . . if he weren’t dead.
No! she shouted inside her head. You are going to get everyone out of this mess.
She wondered if she dared turn on the flashlight for just a moment to check her bearings. She leaned against the wall and listened. She heard him in the distance, stumbling over the rocks, cursing under his breath. He was not in this passage. Maybe he would pass it by—more likely he’d take each passage he came to. That plan would eventually lead him into bad trouble.
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