Maddy Lawrence's Big Adventure

by Linda Turner

  “All right,” she grumbled, glaring at him. “We’ll do this your way. But if anything happens to you because you’re trying to protect me, I’ll never forgive you!”

  Ace manfully struggled with a smile and nodded curtly. “I wouldn’t blame you, darlin’, if you never spoke to me again.” He would have given anything right then to kiss her, but that would have to wait until later. And there would be a later, he promised himself as his smile faded. He’d make sure of it.

  They floated down the stairs on silent feet, their movements so smooth that they barely disturbed the air itself, two shadows that blended from one patch of darkness to the next like ghosts avoiding the revealing light of day. Barely daring to breathe, every muscle tense with expectation and their eyes constantly moving, searching, they reached the second-floor landing without mishap.

  There was, however, no time to enjoy that simple victory.

  With only a quick glance behind him to make sure Maddy was still close, Ace started down the last flight and was two steps from the bottom when he heard someone at the frontdoor. The roar of his blood loud in his ears, there was no time to think, no time to do anything but grab Maddy’s hand and haul her with him into a closet to the right of the entranceway just as the front door opened.

  Darkness embraced them, hot and thick and all-encompassing. Just outside the closet door, they heard heavy footsteps in the front hall, then a quieter tread from the formal living room off to the right. It wasn’t until the two men spoke, discussing the security for the night, that they realized they’d just missed running head-on into Barrera and Bubba.

  Maddy didn’t utter so much as a peep of sound, but she was plastered up against Ace in the crowded closet, her breast pressed intimately to his chest, her face buried against his throat, and he could feel the fear clawing at her and the need to bolt. But there was nowhere to run, not now. And there was nothing he could do to reassure her except cradle her close and pray that no one opened the closet door.

  In the stifling darkness, it seemed as if they waited forever for the two men to conclude their business, but it was in actuality only a matter of minutes. They were the longest minutes of Maddy’s life. Clammy, the food she’d forced herself to eat at supper now forming a riot in her stomach, she felt hot, sick. The edges of her control threatening to unravel any second, she had this crazy desire to laugh, to fight her way out of Ace’s arms and run like a screaming madwoman for the concealing security of the jungle. God, she hated waiting! She just wanted this over with, one way or the other, so the suspense would quit tearing her apart.

  But Bubba and Barrera showed no signs of concluding their business and retiring for the night. And then when they really did appear to be wrapping things up, they moved from the living room to the hall and seemed to take up residence right on the other side of the closet door. Horrified, Maddy felt her heart stop in midbeat. Sucking in a sharp breath, she froze, the pounding of her heart so loud she was sure the two men had to hear it even through the closed door.

  If they did, however, they gave no sign of it. They continued to talk in Spanish as seconds stretched into minutes. Wanting to scream “Enough already!” Maddy barely managed to swallow the whimper that rose in her throat, threatening to choke her. The closet was too dark, too small, the air too thin. A cold shiver rippled down her spine. Out. She wanted out of there, needed out of there…now!

  Ace felt her distress as clearly as if it were his own and didn’t have to see her eyes to know that they were dark and dilated with rising panic. Tugging her tighter into his body, he wanted to reassure her that even if Barrera or his sidekick opened the door, he could take them both out before they had time to so much as blink, but he didn’t dare open his mouth.

  Then, just when he thought the two slimeballs would never shut up, Barrera gave Bubba an order to deliver to the guards outside. The front door opened and closed, then there was nothing but the sound of the drug lord’s measured tread on the steps as he started upstairs, presumably to go to bed. Praying that he wasn’t going to check on them to make sure they were still locked up tight, Ace had to tighten his arms to keep Maddy from bursting out of the closet then and there.

  “Wait!” he rasped in her ear. “Give him time to get upstairs.”

  She nodded jerkily, but he didn’t dare release her, not yet. Deliberately counting to twenty in his head, he cocked his head against the door and listened, but the silence that vibrated in his ear remained hushed and unbroken. “Now,” he quietly murmured. Releasing Maddy, he opened the door inch by inch, until the opening was wide enough for him to cautiously poke his head through.

  Nothing moved. Since they’d gone upstairs after dinner, the lights in the living room and dining room had been turned down low, and Barrera himself must have switched out the one in the entrance hall. It was bathed in dark shadows, making it impossible for anyone outside to see them through the glass panels that bracketed either side of the massive wooden door. A door that was, Ace noted with interest, fitted with a dead bolt that wasn’t currently engaged. Stepping out of the closet, he reached over and shot it home with a quiet click, locking Barrera’s men out.

  “That takes care of Bubba and the gang,” he said softly, flashing Maddy a devilish grin. “Now all you have to watch for is Barrera and the house staff.”

  The entrance to the dining room was just steps away. Pale faced, Maddy took up a position across from it so that she could see both the stairs and the hallway that led to the kitchen area. When Ace pressed the gun into her hands she stiffened, startled, then closed her fingers convulsively around it. “Hurry,” she whispered.

  More aware than she of the passage of time and the fact that their chances of being discovered increased considerably with every tick of the clock, Ace nodded grimly and slipped into the dining room, his gaze immediately shooting to the sideboard where Barrera had set the jewelry box after dinner. It was still there.

  A weight he hadn’t even realized was sitting on his shoulders lifted at the sight of it. If one of the most famous rings in history had been in his possession, he would have had the thing under lock and key. But not Barrera. Oh, no. The arrogant bastard thought he was above that kind of thing.

  Which made the taking of the ring all the sweeter, Ace thought with a smug smile as he flipped open the jewelry box. From the bed of rich red satin that it rested on, the ancient, priceless diamonds and rubies of Cleopatra’s bellybutton ring winked teasingly up at him. Every instinct he had urged him to hurry, but it would be just like Barrera to replace the original ring with a worthless imitation after he’d shown them to their room. Quickly examining it, Ace found the identifying marks almost immediately. In the time it took to blink, he pocketed the ring and set the jewelry box back where he found it.

  “Got it,” he told Maddy as he silently joined her and took the gun from her. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  Shaking with nerves, Maddy didn’t have to be told twice. Sprinting up the stairs in her socks, she found herself smiling and suddenly knew why Ace risked life and limb to do what he did. They’d done it. They’d snitched the ring right out from under Barrera’s nose and by the time he discovered it was gone, they’d be far beyond his reach. Just thinking about how furious he would be then made her want to laugh.

  They reached the second-floor landing, where they were forced to stop and check the hallway, but it was all clear. One more floor, she thought, excitement sparkling in her eyes, then the only thing that stood between them and freedom was the dark flight of stairs that led to the roof. The way she felt now, she could fly right up them without touching a single step.

  Delighted with the image, she pushed harder up the next flight, not caring that she was getting winded. Five steps above her, then four, the third-floor landing and all its dark shadows waited. She started to grin. They were almost there.

  “What the hell! Stop!”

  Barrera’s roar of outrage came from below them, startling them both. Her heart shooting straight
to her throat, Maddy stumbled and almost fell. “Oh, God, no! No!”

  “Run!” Ace growled, grabbing her and pushing her the rest of the way up the stairs. Glancing over his shoulder, he took aim and fired without ever releasing her. “Go on!” he yelled over the deafening explosion of the 9mm. “I’m right behind you.”

  Sobbing, her breath tearing through her lungs and her ears ringing, she burst onto the third-floor landing like the devil himself was after her, which he was. Dodging the furniture in the hallway like a halfback running for the goal line, she ran toward the roof stairwell at the far end of the hall. It wasn’t until she reached it that she realized that Ace wasn’t with her.

  Throwing himself behind the banister of the main stairway where it curved around onto the third floor, Ace fired down at Barrera again and had the satisfaction of seeing the bastard dive for cover. He was unarmed and screaming for his men in Spanish, and for the moment, Ace had him right where he wanted him. His mercenaries, however, were another matter. Far down below, he could hear them at the front door, shouting and beating on it. Any second now, they’d break it down and come running to their boss’s aid with a full arsenal of weapons.

  “Ace! My God, what are you doing?”

  At Maddy’s frightened cry, he whirled to find her hovering uncertainly at the door to the roof stairs with her arms clutched around their boots. “Go on!” he yelled. “Check the copter to make sure it’s not tied down, then get in and strap yourself in. I’ll be right there.”

  Down below, there was a loud crash as the guards broke through the massive front door. He’d just run out of time. Not checking to see if Maddy had followed his orders, he fired two quick shots at Barrera, then vaulted over the discarded furniture, throwing it into the path behind him as he sprinted for the roof stairs. Maddy was gone, and he could only pray that she’d followed his orders. Because if she hadn’t, they were fried.’

  She’d left the door to the stairwell open for him, and he hit the open doorway at a dead run. Behind him, he heard the thunder of feet rushing up the main stairs, Barrera’s impatient shouts as he reached the third floor and found his way blocked by an army of antiques. Then a shot rang out, shattering the wooden doorframe just inches from Ace’s head. Swearing, he slammed the door behind him and lost precious seconds fumbling for a lock in the all-consuming darkness. When he found the simple catch, he knew it wasn’t going to stop anyone for long, but all he needed was ten seconds to hot-wire the helicopter. Just ten damn seconds.

  When he reached the roof, however, Maddy was waiting for him just outside the rooftop entrance. “Dammit, Maddy, I told you—”

  “Everything’s ready,” she cut in breathlessly. “I found a piece of wood. It’s not much, but I can wedge it under the doorhandle while you try to get the helicopter started.” Not giving him time to argue, she jammed the wood in place as he ran for the copter.

  “C’mon, c’mon,” he said through his clenched teeth, fumbling around in the dark for the starter. Tension tightening the muscles of his shoulders and neck, he knew the second Maddy vaulted into the seat next to him and quickly buckled up, but he couldn’t take his eyes from his task. “The gun’s at your feet,” he said tersely as he finally located the starter and jerked the wires from it. “Shoot the first man who breaks through that door.”

  Putting the ends of the two wires together, he grinned as the motor roared to life. “All right! Here we go, sweetheart. Hang on!”

  Slowly, the huge rotors overhead started to spin, then pick up speed. His hand on the throttle, Ace waited impatiently for enough power to take off. “Almost there,” he muttered to himself. “Come on, baby, you can do it.”

  The blades whirled faster, but not fast enough. Suddenly, before they were ready, they ran out of time. The door to the stairwell burst open and Barrera’s men spilled out, their automatic weapons spitting bullets.

  Chapter 11

  Maddy screamed and ducked just as Ace hit the throttle that sent the helicopter leaping into the air like a black cat. “Shoot ‘em, dammit!” he roared. “I don’t care if you hit anything, just fire the damn gun!”

  There was no time to think, no time to worry if she was really capable of killing another human being. Both shaking hands wrapped around the 9mm, she turned it down toward the men on the roof below, squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the trigger. The resulting blast nearly deafened her, but it was the kick of the gun in her hand that had her gasping in surprise. The force of it rippled up her arms like an earthquake.

  “Again!” Ace yelled. “Keep it up until we’re out of range.”

  Unable to manage a word for the lump of fear lodged in her throat, Maddy braced for the gun’s kick this time and peppered the roof. Scattering, Barrera and his men scrambled for cover, firing all the while.

  And they were good shots. Maddy felt the heat of a bullet as it flew right by her cheek, and Ace instinctively ducked and swore as one hit the windshield. Barrera, however, must have had the helicopter fitted with bulletproof glass because the bullet only ricocheted harmlessly off it. With a jerk of the control stick back and forth, Ace sent the copter swinging first one way, then another, dodging bullets in a deadly ballet in the sky.

  They almost got away without a scratch. Then a slug slammed into the tail, and the jolt nearly sent them tumbling back down to the ground.

  “Dammit to hell!” Swearing, Ace quickly recovered, but the sudden pungent scent of gasoline in the air told him that one of Barrera’s sharpshooters had gotten lucky. He’d nicked a fuel line and it was only by the grace of God that they weren’t a fireball right now.

  His gut clenching, Ace knew their chances of flying all the way back to Caracas just took a nosedive. They were losing fuel at a steady rate. Another bullet anywhere near that gasoline, and they’d go up in flames. If by some quirk of fate they managed to avoid that, they’d be lucky if they managed to go fifty miles before he had to set down somewhere in the jungle. That wasn’t nearly far enough. With all the high-tech computer gadgets Barrera had in his compound, it wouldn’t take him any time at all to locate the downed copter.

  “Ace? That smells like gas—”

  “I know, sweetheart.” He heard the shakiness in her voice, the apprehension she couldn’t quite conceal even as she fired the 9mm like a seasoned veteran as they drew farther and farther away from Barrera’s compound. “They got one of the fuel lines.”

  “Are we going to crash?”

  “Not if I can help it,” he said grimly. “It seems to be a slow leak, and that’s in our favor. I’ll keep her up in the air as long as I can, but you might as well know now we’re going to have to set her down somewhere in the jungle, probably within the next hour.”

  “Barrera will come after us.”

  It wasn’t a question but a flat statement of fact and he didn’t insult her intelligence by trying to he to her. “Yeah. But we’re out of range now, and from what I can tell, he didn’t have another helicopter in the compound. He’ll have to follow us cross-country on the ground, and even with a Jeep, he’s not going to do that with any speed in the middle of the night. We’ll have at least an hour on him, maybe more.”

  Put that way, their chances sounded excellent, but Maddy wasn’t buying it. Making up an hour was nothing to a man like Barrera. They’d tweaked his nose in his own house, and he wasn’t the type who would forgive that. Or forget. Even if they somehow managed to evade him now and made it back to the States, he’d find a way to come after them.

  Shoving the gun into the waistband of her skirt, she reached behind the seat to where she’d stashed their boots. “Then we’d better get our shoes on so we can hit the ground running,” she said practically.

  Grinning approvingly, Ace held out his foot.

  Barely skimming the treetops, they flew in silence after that, tension thickening in the air with every beat of the huge rotors overhead. There would, Maddy knew, be no clearing in which to land the helicopter when the fuel gave out. In other parts of South America th
e rain forests had already been stripped to bare earth, totally destroying the delicate ecosystem, but not here. Barrera had too much power to allow that to happen in his neck of the woods, and the forest was still as thick and untamed as it must have been for centuries. So when they suddenly found themselves in desperate need of a spot to land, they would have no choice but to go in among the trees…and hope they survived the crash in good enough shape to escape into the undergrowth before Barrera and his men arrived.

  “This is it!” Ace suddenly shouted over the noise of the rotor, startling her from her thoughts. “Put your face in your lap and cover your head with your arms.”

  Her heart stopping in midbeat, Maddy stared at him in confusion. “What do you mean this is it?” she yelled back, unable to detect any difference in the sounds of the motor. “The rotors are still—”

  A sudden sputter, then a cough was all the warning they had. A split second later, the engine died and so did the rotors and they started to fall from the sky like a giant bird that had suddenly forgotten how to fly.

  There was no time to scream, no time to even draw a bracing breath. Slamming her face down into her lap, Maddy covered her head with her arms, heard Ace curse and then all hell broke lose. They hit the trees—hard. Suddenly the windshield shattered, raining glass down on them. Branches flew at them from all directions. The helicopter jolted sideways, snagged on some more trees, and then they were pitching toward the ground. Before either of them was ready for it, they hurled into it with a bone-jarring crash.

  The rear of the fuselage, where gasoline had been seeping for almost an hour, immediately broke apart, spilling gasoline everywhere. Swearing, Ace tore off his seat belt and Maddy’s and hauled her clear of the wreckage. A split second later, the whole thing went up in flames, the force of the explosion sending them hurtling into the trees.