Chapter 3: The bar fight

Indy saw Nick sitting on the hood of the truck he'd brought. He was grinning and swinging his legs. Clearly he knew what had just happened in there.

'She knows what her father did,' Indy stated.

Nick's grin fell. 'Yes, she does.'

'Did you tell her?'

'No. I didn't need to. She's never even met me, but she has seen me.'

Indy scrutinised him. 'She flinched in there, twice. Why?'

'She didn't flinch, Indy.' Nick shook his head and jumped off the hood. 'Flinching implies the whole body. It was just her eyes.'

'What was it?' Indy asked.

'Are you telling me you haven't worked it out?' Nick asked. 'Think about it, Indy. It isn't rocket science – which hasn't even been invented yet. I'd tell you if I could, but no immortal is allowed to say anything or…well, you know the rules.' He looked past Indy. 'And I think you might want to take care of those Nazis.'

XXX

Marion looked up as the Nazis came in. The Nazis had come. Honestly, though, it was only one Nazi and paid thugs. Some people would do anything for money.

'Good evening, Fraulein.'

'Bar's closed,' Marion told them.

'We are…not thirsty,' the Nazi said.

'What do you want?' Marion asked, pulling out a cigarette.

She already knew what they wanted. She just needed to stall for a while. Her Indy had seen them come in and he would come back for her.

'The same thing your friend, Dr. Jones, wanted,' the Nazi answered. 'Surely he told you there were other interested parties?'

'Must've slipped his mind,' Marion remarked, lighting the cigarette, mostly for theatrical effect.

'The man is nefarious,' the Nazi remarked, getting in her face and injecting a threat into his next words. 'I hope, for your sake, he has not already acquired it.'

'Why?' she asked. 'Are you willing to offer more?'

'Oh, almost certainly,' the Nazi agreed. 'Do you still have it?'

She took the cigarette out of her mouth and blew smoke into his face. He coughed lightly. She waited until he stopped.

'No,' she said. Then she turned and walked around the bar. 'But I know where it is. Hey, how about a drink for you and your men?'

They all walked around, blocking her exits as the Nazi went over to the fire.

'Your fire is dying here,' the Nazi told her. 'Tell me where it is.'

'Listen, Herr Mac. I don't know what kind of people you're used to dealing with,' – Actually, I exactly what kind of people you're used to dealing with and I hope Penny kills you for it, very slowly, because you don't deserve any mercy. – 'but nobody tells me what to do in my place.'

'Fraulein Ravenwood,' the Nazi said, 'let me show you what I am used to.'

He barked out an order in German. Marion tried to duck out of the way, but the thug behind her was too fast, especially for such a big guy. She felt herself hoisted up and thrown across the bar. Then she was grabbed again.

'Take your hands off me!' she yelled. 'Take your lousy hands off!'

Then she saw the fire poker coming at her. Despite knowing that Indy would be there to save her, Marion was terrified. She tried to get away.

'Wait.' She hated the weakness in her own voice. 'Wait a minute. I can be reasonable.'

'That time is past,' the Nazi hissed with a smile.

'You don't need that,' she tried again. 'I'll tell you everything.'

'Yes,' he hissed. 'I know you will.'

It got uncomfortably close before Marion heard the crack of the whip and it was removed. She was twisted around. Indy was standing there, gun and whip out, with a look on his face that she'd never seen in any of her visions. It was more intense than any look he'd ever gotten when someone went and pissed him off.

'Let her go,' he ordered.

Nobody moved. Suddenly another one came in the side door and Indy turned his attention and shot at him, startling the Nazi holding her to let go. She dived away from him and behind the bar. The sound of gunshots rang in her ears and she had to look to make sure Indy wasn't shot. The visions were little comfort to her.

He was fine, for the time being. Only pulling back to reload his gun. Reload. These guys would have more ammo than him. They had to be taken out before he ran out of bullets. Indy seemed to have realised this and shot out the fireplace, igniting the table that one of the thugs was using as a cover along with the thug. The idiot jumped up and Indy shot a bullet through his head.

Marion yelped. She'd never seen a man shot through the head before, even in her visions, so it was shocking to see it. She quickly registered, though, that Indy would need help. She grabbed a log, pausing to catch some of the alcohol dripping down in her mouth, and then darted behind the guy that was using the counter for a cover. She smashed the log over his head and he conked out.

She heard a bang and Indy cried out in pain. She froze as some other thug hauled him over and slammed him onto the bar. The Nazi lit it from the other end and a line of fire started making its way to Indy. She looked up at him.

'Whiskey?' he asked.

She looked behind her. There was a bottle of whiskey right there. Marion grabbed it and handed it to him. He took it in his free hand and then swung it back and smashed it over the head of the guy holding him down. The guy recoiled and Indy escaped right before he became a Jones Flambé. Marion tried to catch her breath as she listened to the fight. If she'd been the type to pray, she would've done that. Suddenly she heard a rifle cock.

'Shoot them,' the Nazi said. 'Shoot them both.'

A gun went off and she shot over, looking over the bar. No. Indy was all right. He'd shot the gun. She looked over. Another guy was lining up a shot to kill Indy. She looked around. The guy she'd knocked out before was still unconscious and his gun was there for the taking. She grabbed it and slipped around behind the other guy.

Only problem was now she couldn't see Indy. Nethertheless, when the last thug raised the gun to shoot Indy, she shot the thug first. He dropped dead and, when he saw what she'd done, Indy laughed.

He suddenly seemed to remember that the place was on fire and ran forward. He pulled her to her feet and dragged her out of the tavern. She went more than willingly enough. She would've gone with him even if she didn't have precognition and didn't know what'd happened. They stopped outside the place and looked up at it. For a long minute she stared at the liberating flames, then she felt Indy's hand slide behind her neck.

'You look happy that it's up in flames,' he observed.

'Do I?' she asked softly. 'Guess I've gotta work on my poker face, then.'

'Maybe,' he murmured.

She looked at him. He was staring at her speculatively so she grinned and drew out the medallion. She enjoyed watching Indy's eyes bug. Then he smiled widely at her.

'Or not,' he corrected himself. 'Very few people could be hounded for what they're wearing around their neck and not give the slightest clue that they even have it.'

'If you're good, Jones,' she said, sliding close and pressing a finger to his lips, 'I'll give it to you.'

She made sure he heard a double meaning. Although, she couldn't decide whether she was injecting one or not. He seemed to get it, though, and exhaled heavily through his nose.

'Baby,' he told her in a low, intimate voice, 'define "good".'