Chapter 10

Lara cursed as the room went pitch black.

"We're not alone," Terry hissed to Lara.

To her great surprise she felt Terry's hands on her waist then quickly slide down towards her hips.

"What the bloody h--" Lara sputtered.

"Your guns woman!" Terry cried. He was looking for her guns that she kept strapped to each of her legs.

Lara pushed him off. "Behave yourself," she said sternly. Nanoseconds later a flame brightened the room. Terry could see Lara from the small flame, he watched as she threw the match into a tall vase. In seconds the vase lit up with a roaring flame, then he could see another vase light up and another. He realized that the vessels were connected.

The room was now brightly lit and Terry wasted no time searching for the angry eyes he had seen a moment ago. As he focused in on the area where he thought he saw the eyes he felt his heart rate drop and his face flush from embarrassment.

The angry eyes belonged to the statue of a beast. A dragon to be exact. Terry stared in disbelief.

He could have sworn he saw actual living eyes looking at him. He wondered if he was crazy. Terry turned to Lara who had a huge smirk across her face.

"You still want a gun," she said with an eyebrow arched. Terry was too ashamed to respond.

"Not too worry," Lara continued. "I did say it was the non-living things that we should fear."

The man shook his head confused. "I don't know what happened, I could have sworn those eyes were looking at me…." He turned to look at the dragon again. All of a sudden he felt a rush of recognition, but he couldn't place it. Lara saw the expression on Terry's face and this time felt concern.

"Are you OK, Terry?" she asked.

"I don't know… it's just that the dragon it feels… familiar…" he felt another rush of energy over him. Terry couldn't help from taking a more detailed look at the rest of the room first noting its circular shape.

Towards the back wall of the chamber was the dragon - it's angry face looking straight ahead, one claw reaching up and wings outstretched. He hadn't noticed before, but the dragon framed a throne. Beside the throne were two torches. The rest of the room was barren except for columns along the walls of the room, and the only other piece of furniture in the room was a round table a few feet in front of the throne.

"Have I been here before," he asked Lara.

Lara shook her head. "If you have that would be rather humbling to me since I've never revealed this location to anybody."

"I don't know. I just have this vague feeling…."

Lara couldn't help but feel concerned. For all his masculinity, Terry's look of confusion made him look vulnerable. She realized the hardship he must be experiencing with his memory loss.

"Terry, do you remember that figure I showed you back in the manor," she asked hoping it would stop his negative mood. He nodded.

"I want to show you something over here," she motioned to the man and guided him towards a wall directly opposite the throne.

"Look there," she said while pointing at an icon on the wall that was also shaped like a portion of a figure eight except -- similar to the image Lara had shown to him earlier-- it looked to be missing a piece.

"It looks like the other half of the piece you showed me in your manor…" he said stepping closer to it. He reached up his arm as if to touch it. "Why do I know this…" He whispered to himself. Lara nodded in approval.

"Great we are getting closer and closer to solving this mystery then," she said. Terry didn't seem to hear her, but she continued.

"These icons have matching partners if you will…. in a sister temple. Now all we have to do is figure out the missing third image and once completed the entire image will help us locate our next destination."

Standing on tip-toe now Terry was able to reach up to touch the icon. His finger-tips brushed its surface. He took one more lunge poising himself to grab the icon off the wall.

"Terry you don't need to bring it down, I've taken a digital picture and --" Terry jumped and swiped the icon from the wall. He let out a sound triumph that was cut short by a loud metallic clink that rumbled on the other side of the wall.

"What did you do?" Lara said wide-eyed. Another - louder- metallic clink sounded.

Both of their instincts made them dash for the door, but a loud crack stopped them mid-track. "Son of a--" Lara cried as a huge boulder fell and blocked their only escape from the room.

Lara turned around wildly looking for any other possible escape. Another metallic sound banged and she felt the ground shake underneath them.

"What's happening," Terry yelled.

"The icon," Lara yelled back. "When you grabbed it you set off some trap!"

Lara stumbled as the floor very shakily started to move. She caught her breath as she realized what was happening.

"The floor is rising!" Terry shouted. He looked up at the chamber's ceiling and was greeted by several hundred jagged pointy rocks ready to skewer them.

"So this isn't unusual for you, right Croft?"

Lara was busy searching the walls for any counter device, any clue. "Shove it and start looking for an icon, anything that looks similar to the damn rock you bloody pulled," she said sternly.

Terry ran to the wall opposite her to search. He saw random Celtic looking designs but none of them looked like the one he held and further more they were all carved into the wall, the icon he had had protruded out.

Lara cursed as the floor rose higher and higher. She estimated that they had about five minutes. She began frantically to look to see if there were any other alternatives, anyway to stop the floor from rising, anyway to jam it or dodge it.

To her dismay she saw the dragon statue crumble as it hit the ceiling. If the stone dragon statue could crumble it meant that there was little that could jam the floor from rising.

"Over here," Terry cried. Lara quickly turned to the man. He pointed to the ground where very small patterns similar to the icon were carved on the ground. The patterns all led in one direction.

"I think we need to get under the table," Terry shouted. With the ceiling get closer and closer Lara had little time to think it through. She dove underneath with the fleeting thought that perhaps the table may shield them from the pointy rocks.

Terry crammed underneath with her - the table was only large enough to cover both of their bodies if they squeezed together very tightly.

Lara's hands shot up patting table down looking for anything. Then her hand felt something. It was an object that was attached underneath the table. "I think I found something," she cried. She twisted the object.

She cried in frustration as the floor continued to rise. The table began to shake as it approached the ceiling. She twisted again. Nothing. Lara turned her head and looked Terry in the eyes. The two knew it was close to the end. He instinctively placed his body over hers. The table continued to shudder. Terry closed his eyes.

Out of nowhere came a faint clink sound. Terry opened his eyes in disbelief, then another noise was made. "I think I heard something," he cried. Lara thought she did too.

Seconds later the floor stopped moving. Both of them held their breath a minute longer wanting to make sure the movement was stopped for good.

Finally Terry spoke, "I think you did it Croft." He said with a relieved sigh. He smiled in approval at her. She couldn't stop herself from laughing.

"Well, you did figure out to go underneath the table," she offered, staring at him directly with a radiant smile.

The man laughed and wrapped his arms around her. The two held each other in relief as the floor began to lower.

After a few moments Lara became very conscious of his body against hers. The close quarters of the table caused her legs to wrap around him, her chest pressed against his. Lifting her head up to look at his face she found his eyes gazing intensely at her, drooped in what could only be described as desire. She noticed his breathing getting huskier and hers getting excited.

Not knowing who initiated what the two found themselves embraced in a passionate kiss. Lara couldn't help her excitement as Terry's hands moved, searched and explored her body.

He kissed her with fervor and she returned it with the same intensity. A rage of emotions swept over her. She felt passion, comfort, heat, and raw sexual desire all at once. His hands continued to sweep over her body, cupping her bottom then crawling up and fondling her breast. Lara shuddered with pleasure.

"I don't remember anything..." Terry whispered between kisses. "But I know that I've wanted this a long time, woman. "He gently raised her face to look into his eyes. His steely gaze seemed to penetrate through her.

The look caused her to gasp. It was the same look he had given her after he had rescued her from Jonathan Reiss. She had kissed him then and he looked at her with that same… longing gaze… At that moment, after he had rescued her, she felt certain that she could trust him, maybe spend her life with him, but then seconds later that trust was shattered. He wanted to take Pandora's box and she couldn't let him do it. She had to pull the trigger…

The memory caused Lara to push out of his embrace. She hit her head hard underneath the table.

"Lara," Terry cried.

She placed a hand on her head thinking that she was grateful to have been literally shaken from his hold.

He tried to pull her back into his arms, but she refused.

"Terry, no," she said pushing him off. "We… I don't know what happened, but look…. WE don't do that," she said sternly. The hard look in her eyes made him drop his hands.

"What do you mean… WE just did," he said with raised voice. "I felt it, that was real!"

Lara didn't respond, she briskly crawled out from under the table.

"Lara, please, everything in my body it tells me that I know you and that my feelings for you have been there a long while ...and that you've returned those feelings too... My mind doesn't remember a thing, but my heart..."

She was moved by his words. Was it true that he still had those feelings... But why doesn't he remember those last moments... What if one day he realizes that she had betrayed him...

Terry was frustrated by her silence. "Look ... I know there is someone else," he said with a sneer.

If she was feeling any compassion it vanished. "What?" she said with disgust. "You're a headcase." Dusting herself off, Lara was happy to see that the boulder which had blocked the door was now gone.

She marched directly out of the room and back towards the entrance of the cave.

Terry followed angrily. "I know that you have a date tomorrow night, a fancy ball of sorts with some tosser."

She stopped in surprised then quickly made herself continue to the exit. How did he know about that, she thought. Well, no matter…

"Yes," she said not stopping her walk nor turning to see him. "I do."

"Of course, after all Lady Croft, you do belong with high society not with jocks like me who've lost their memory and don't have a penny to their name," he spat our vilely.

"That has nothing to do with it." Lara said crossly. "Lord Malory has something that I need."

She could almost feel the contempt rising from Terry's body when she said the title 'Lord.'

What she wasn't telling him was that Malory was the key to finding the last image of the icon, and that the reason she needed to find the icon was so she could find the Grail.

... And once that is accomplished I can get Terry out of my life for good, she thought. But part of her didn't believe the sincerity of her conviction.

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