Chapter 10 - Regrouping
Groaning, Jonny struggled to filter out the roaring in his ears. He had been forced to the ground and nearly deafened from the explosion of their vehicle. Luckily he had managed to get a few feet away before the blast struck, but he could feel the heat of explosion across his back.
"Jonny!"
The ringing was going away now, and eventually he heard Hadji's frantic shouts filter through.
Groaning, he pushed himself up to a sitting position, only to wince as he felt a wave of pain shoot through his right arm. Glancing down, Jonny realized numbly that some shrapnel from the Jeep must have hit him, for he spotted a long gash starting from his shoulder and nearly reaching his elbow. It didn't seem to be too deep, but it was still oozing blood.
Seconds later, Jonny felt Hadji pulling at his other arm. With the leverage, he managed to make it to his feet. His head now clear, Jonny looked around at the flaming wreckage of the Jeep. "Well, there goes our ride - we need to see if there is anything salvageable from this mess."
"You are forgetting something," Hadji pointed out, "an explosion like this should have brought Jessie running."
Jonny realized what Hadji had meant - there was no sign of Jessie. Looking around on the ground, he saw that the pistol he had been carrying and decided against it, figuring the fire might have damaged it - or worse.
He took off running to the back of the building while calling over his shoulder. "See what you can recover, Hadji. I'll find Jessie."
--
Jessie Bannon wasn't sure what to expect when she had made her way around the back of the building. When the ground tremors hit, she was more than surprised when she lost her footing and fell against the building hard.
Dazed, she held her position. When the tremors finally subsided, Jessie pushed herself up into a sitting position, all the while trying to ignore the wave of dizziness that she was feeling. "Oww."
Whirling her head around, Jessie spotted Jonny standing beside her. "Wow, you look like hell. What happened?"
Jonny extended an arm to her. "Apparently this building has the power to transmit an earthquake of some sort. It blew up the Jeep. Hadji is trying to scavenge any supplies he can. The question now is, are you all right?"
"I'm fine," Jessie replied quickly. With Jonny's help, Jessie got to her feet and dusted herself off. When she leaned down to pick up the pistol she brought with her, another wave of dizziness passed through her.
Stumbling, she was brought up short by Jonny.
He shook his head and then leaned down to pick up the pistol that Jessie was going for. "Yeah, you look like you took a knock to the head. If you don't mind, I'll hold onto this. Lean on me if you need to and let's go find out what Hadji has found."
--
Despite the heat, Hadji managed to drag one singed pack away from the burning wreckage of the Jeep when he spotted Jonny leading Jessie back towards him.
He rushed over to them. "I managed to save the pack with some water and the first aid kit, and judging by the way you two look, it will be needed."
Jessie stopped for a moment and then looked over at Jonny. "I need a moment to clear my head, but we need to get Jonny's arm disinfected and wrapped up. Can't risk it getting infected out here, and it will probably need stitches when we get back to civilization."
Jonny had started to protest when Hadji grabbed his injured arm.
Pain radiated through Jonny's arm, and he fought not to pass out. "Owww! Okay, okay, you made your point. Hurry up and let's do this."
As Hadji set off to check the building out. Jonny used the side of the building to brace himself as Jessie tended to his arm. By the time she had finished, Jonny was shaking and pale.
"Are you sure that you are okay?" Jessie asked worriedly. "Maybe we should backtrack."
He shook his head firmly. "If you haven't noticed, our ride is gone. Even the good sheriff is no where in the area. We are closer to my dad. I say we find him and then get the hell out of here."
Moments later, Hadji approached them. "I have had a look around the building. There is a lot of transmitter equipment here, but no sign of life."
"Figures," Jonny muttered as he looked back towards the scanner watch he had on his wrist. It seemed to survive the attack, and was still reading the weak signal that was coming from his dad's watch. "Our supplies are nearly gone, our ride is gone, and someone just tried to kill us. What else could go wrong?"
--
Benton was getting tired. The ropes that bound his wrists were finally starting to give with his efforts of rubbing them against the upturned rock he found, but it was taking too much time. Despite the depth of the hole, he could feel heated air reaching him, and it only served to sap what little strength he had left.
He stopped for a moment to rest, and that was when he heard a voice coming from the top of the hole.
"Dr. Quest?"
He peered up through the gloom and spotted a man looking over at him. It took Benton a few minutes to recognize the face and voice that went along with it. "Sherriff Hallon?"
"Are you all right? Who put you down there?" the sheriff called out.
Groaning, Dr. Quest redoubled his efforts and managed to cut through his bonds before he called out again. "It's a long story. Is there any way you can get me out here?"
"I've got some rope in my truck. I'll be right back."
As the Sheriff's face disappeared from view, Dr. Quest made an attempt to get to his feet. His dormant joints and muscles ached in protest. Using the wall, he managed to pull himself into a standing position - and that was when he heard the sound of gunshots.