So here's the last part – hope you like it!
"Lucy, what are you doing? What if that goes off in your hand?" whispered Rufus furiously, pointing at the bomb Lucy held in the folds of her skirt as he caught up to her.
"Well I can hardly let all those innocent people be blown up can I?" she retorted – equally angry at the situation they had found themselves in.
Rufus sighed, then said "OK – maybe we can take it out of town somewhere and let it detonate there."
"Not too keen on this bumping along on a horse – any idea how stable these things are?" Lucy questioned, glancing at the bomb. "And we still need to rescue Wyatt" she continued, walking towards the centre of town.
"Coder – not bomb disposal remember? I have no idea if it would blow up if we banged it around" Rufus began, following her "and I think I don't want to find out. So, we're back to the question – what are we going to do about it?"
"I think I have a plan." Lucy replied.
"What's the plan?" Rufus queried, watching the bomb-carrying Lucy, her brow furrowed in thought.
"Well, we need a couple of horses for a quick getaway, and you need to get to the Lifeboat and have it ready to go; I think we're going to need a speedy exit!" said Lucy, thinking through her plan as she spoke.
"OK," Rufus said slowly, "and the bomb?" he queried
"Yeah, I've got that covered!" Lucy smiled back at him.
Rufus shook his head "I've got a bad feeling about this" he muttered quietly under his breath. Luckily, Lucy was marching ahead with a purpose now and didn't hear him.
Wyatt was hot. Hot, bothered and angry at his current predicament. He was supposed to be protecting Lucy and Rufus. Instead he was locked in an airless jail, the sheriff a few metres away at his desk, with zero opportunity for escape. He had spotted Emma's bomb strapped to the podium at the railway station but had been unable to diffuse it before the sheriff and deputy had arrested him. So Lucy and Rufus were out there with an unexploded bomb to deal with – that was assuming they'd noticed him motioning to the stage and had even found it. Wyatt sighed, hanging his head, his arms resting through the bars of the cell.
Moments later, Wyatt's head snapped up as he heard the sound of Lucy's voice. What the hell was she doing here? Didn't she know that she could be arrested too? Who knew what other lies Emma had told the sheriff? All these thoughts raced through Wyatt's mind as Lucy approached the sheriff.
But Wyatt's worries were unfounded as Lucy proceeded to charm the sheriff with words and coy smiles (as she had already done with his deputy), and got him to agree to her speaking to her 'husband' for a few minutes. Wyatt stared in admiration as Lucy flounced over to him, turning once to shyly smile at the sheriff and thank him once more. Realising she had an audience, Lucy played her role admirably, kissing Wyatt briefly on the lips and then seeming to both chastise him and show her distress at the situation.
"Lucy, what are you doing here?" Wyatt hissed angrily "It's not safe – you could be arrested or worse"
"Don't worry, I have a plan" replied Lucy, glancing over her shoulder quickly to check the sheriff wasn't paying too much attention to what she was saying. "In 10 minutes make sure you're as far away from the back wall of the cell as you can – use that mattress to cover yourself" Lucy answered, pointing to the thin mattress covering the bed in the corner of the cell.
"Lucy, what are you planning?" Wyatt asked worriedly.
"The bomb – I'm going to blow a hole at the back of the cell" she whispered back "just make sure you're ready to run after the explosion" and with that she was off, as Wyatt desperately tried to reach her through the bars calling her name.
Once outside, Lucy rounded the corner to make her way behind the jail. Hoping fervently that no one would see her, she carefully placed the bomb at the back of what she guessed was Wyatt's cell. She checked the timer once more – 10 minutes left – just as she had planned. Looking around, she spotted an old bucket and placed it on top of the bomb so it was hidden from view. Breathing in a deep breath, she walked away praying this would all work out as she hoped. Lucy walked quickly to the end of the alley, and down the adjoining street, trying to get far enough away to be clear of the bomb blast whilst still close enough to call to Wyatt so they could get away together.
The ten minutes felt like ten years to Lucy, and during this time all the worst scenarios played out in her head. Just as she was imagining a seriously injured Wyatt for the umpteenth time, there was a huge bang; buildings around her shook from the blast and smoke and debris from the jail fell all around her. Lucy covered her head with her arms at the same time as running to the end of the alley.
"Wyatt! Wyatt!" she screamed, coughing from the dust still swirling in the air. Heart pounding, Lucy waited – nothing. Then, as she made her way further into the alley a grey shape approached her, weaving on unsteady feet, covered in dust and coughing.
"Wyatt?" she queried, moving towards the figure.
"Let's go Lucy" Wyatt croaked, taking her arm.
Relief washed through Lucy as she realised Wyatt seemed OK. Taking his hand in hers, the two began to run down the alley, away from the jail. Emerging onto the main road, they paused, but most of the townsfolk were staring at the partially destroyed jail, and no one was looking their way. Lucy did notice the sheriff and his deputy, dusty and dirty but otherwise unhurt, stumbling out of the wrecked building and being helped by the onlookers. Lucy was thankful they had made it – she hadn't wanted to hurt either man; after all they had simply been doing their jobs.
Pointing to the left, Lucy dragged Wyatt away from the shelter of the alley.
"I've got horses this way" she said, tugging on Wyatt's hand. He nodded, still suffering with the after-effects of the smoke and dust and not able to reply.
They made their way swiftly to the horses and mounted up. Just as they set off, they heard angry shouts from behind them. Wyatt glanced back as they raced away, seeing some men running to their own horses to mount a pursuit. Luckily, their pursuers wasted valuable minutes calming their mounts which had been close to the explosion and were now understandably skittish.
Lucy clung to her horse hoping she wouldn't fall as her and Wyatt galloped out of the town towards the Lifeboat. Wyatt seemed to have shaken off some of the effects of the blast, as he gave her a smirk when Lucy looked over at him. She grinned back, holding on tight, hoping their luck would hold.
Finally, they came to the spot where the Lifeboat was hidden, in a dip behind some boulders. Wyatt jumped from his horse, Lucy virtually falling off hers in her desire to get to the Lifeboat. As Lucy clambered over the boulders, Wyatt checked the pursuit, but the figures in the distance were too far away to be a problem. Sighing in relief, he shooed the horses away and then followed Lucy.
Rufus welcomed them as they clambered aboard the Lifeboat and began strapping in.
"Let's go Rufus, we've got company on the way" Lucy said nervously.
"A few seconds and we'll be off" he replied, making his final checks for their return trip. "Well done Lucy, wasn't sure you were going to pull it off!" Rufus said, chuckling.
"Yeah, thanks for nearly blowing me up Lucy!" Wyatt added, coughing again for effect.
"Hey, I still saved you, and dealt with the bomb!" Lucy replied smugly. "I love it when a plan comes together!" she added.
"Was that an A-Team reference?" asked Rufus incredulously. "Did she just make an A-Team reference?"
Wyatt laughed which turned into a coughing fit, so all he could do was nod as Rufus shook his head in disbelief and took them home.