A long, sexy chapter for you today! I tend to get inspired at 1am. I was also inspired by all the new story alerts and reviews. Thank you all so much, I really appreciate the support! I imagine the next chapter will be the last one. I'm hoping I'll come up with a decent, not cliched ending for Ben and Lorna.

Enjoy!

We all edged forward, taking flaming torches from the walls, and I could hardly move, my breath catching in my throat and my heart beating double time. I let Ben go first, and I pulled Riley with me, supporting his weight. The makeshift bandage I had tied around his wound was soaked now, and his skin was even more pale- I knew once we had seen this room, the first thing I would look for were stairs. We needed an ambulance. I tightened my grip on Riley, as if for emotional support, and followed Ben down the dark tunnel.

The room we came out into smelt musty and old and vaguely metallic. It was cluttered and crowded, but I felt far from claustrophobic. The priceless artifacts and statues that surrounded us were all as beautiful as the next, and even though they had been standing in that one place for hundreds of years, I could still see them sparkle and shine beneath my eyes. I couldn't move from my place in the door frame, and neither could Ben. Riley, had he been able to do so without such difficulty, didn't move either. We were all so taken aback, so amazed, that it didn't even program within our minds that this was the treasure, the thing we had been looking for. For a brief moment, I forgot about Ian and Abigail waiting for us somewhere upstairs, or making their way down…I forgot about Riley's wound, and I forgot how tired and ill I felt. All I could see was the treasure that surrounded me, the proof that not selling Ben out to the FBI, that staying with them all this time, that losing my job, getting kidnapped, aiding various crimes, getting arrested and witnessing a new and close friend get shot were worth it. They were all worth it entirely.

I snapped out of it when Ben finally moved into the jungle of items, and even Riley pulled away from me, using the various statues and chests as support. I watched them both move, mildly bemused, and then decided it was time I did some investigating of my own.

I wandered through the room like a ghost, boggled by the Egyptian artifacts and scrolls I noticed as I walked by. A huge, round necklace set against a dusty plinth caught my eye and I took it in hand, wiping the dust away with my thumb and ogling the image of the pyramid and the all seeing eye.

"Wow…" Was all I could whisper, and I brought a hand to myself, as if somehow holding in the joy and awe which I felt. I looked over at where Ben had gone, hoping to catch his eye and give him a triumphant grin, but he was too far into the room, and as I placed the necklace back down, I frowned slightly as an orange light erupted ahead, silhouetting Ben. Riley appeared at my side and we looked at each other curiously. I took his hand and we walked over to stand either side of Ben, and stare out at what he had seemingly created with a flick of his torch.

The room was easily five times the size I had originally thought. It spanned for what seemed like miles, lighting up gradually as the trench of gunpowder lit from Ben's torch. It was a breathtaking sight as thousands of priceless artifacts were brought to light before our very eyes, and I couldn't help but gasp slightly and lean my head on Ben's shoulder, so pleased I was seeing all of this thanks to him. Ben squeezed my arm, and I looked up at him to see the grin I had so desperately wanted to witness. I grinned back and we both laughed, reveling in the moment.

"Look," Riley chimed in, and we both looked at him to see tears in his eyes, "stairs."

The stairs. Of course. I snapped back to reality. We had to get out. Ian and Abigail were on the loose, and Riley was badly wounded. The treasure could wait…For now.

Ben shared the same view.

"C'mon." He said, his gaze flickering briefly to Riley's wound. "We can navigate our way to the stairs from here."
"But-" Riley protested as Ben and I took an arm each and draped them over our shoulders. "But I wanted to look at-"

"Don't be stupid." I said with a slight chuckle. "You're injured."

And we all headed further into the room, towards our freedom.

Ben had called an ambulance and Agent Sadusky on the cell phone of a terrified caretaker, and the three of us waited on the church pews with Riley, who had begun sweating profusely and breathing heavily. The dust and the germs which would have remained in the treasure room had surely got to the wound, and made matters worse for the kid, who had already lost a lot of blood.

"You're going to be okay, Riley." Ben assured him, keeping fierce eyes on the door. "You're going to be fine."
"What he said." I chimed in, not wanting to repeat unnecessary information. Riley would be okay because he had to be okay. He had to.

And then, suddenly, as if someone, somewhere was keen to ruin my day-

"So the treasure was beneath Trinity Church all along."

We all whirled. Ian was standing behind us, just near the exit from the treasure room. Abigail stood by him, and they both were breathless. They hadn't been far behind us.

Ben stood up abruptly and so did I.

"Ah ah ah…" Ian held a gun at the ready. Ben and I flinched. "You both know I'm not afraid to shoot. And what use are you both to me now that the treasure has been found? I could slaughter you on the spot-"
"Why would you do that?" Demanded Ben. "What would that achieve?"

All the while my eyes were darting to the door, waiting for that moment…

"You've made a fool out of me for the last time, Ben." And Ian loaded the gun.

"No!" I yelled, and just on queue, the doors to the church opened, with armed agents stomping through, medics amongst them, looking for Riley.

Ian let off the gun in alarm as the agents entered, but Ben and I ducked. The bullet rebounded off the ceiling and was embedded in the stone floor. Ian was seized by two agents, as was Abigail, and even Ben and I were hauled to our feet.

"Go easy." I murmured, as Sadusky waltzed over to us, looking smug. "I've been held at gunpoint several times today."

He smiled slightly and nodded to the agents, who gingerly let us go.
"So you weren't lying about the treasure." He said, eyeing Ben, who shook his head.

"No. And I wasn't lying about the Declaration." He regarded Ian casually, who was struggling against his captors as his other goons were dragged in from the passageway. "There's Ian." He raised his eyebrows at Sadusky, who was taking the whole thing quite well.

"Your friend Mr Poole is in a bad way." He regarded Riley with a jerk of his head. "I understand you wouldn't do that."

Ben and I nodded, and Sadusky put his hand on Ben's arm for a moment.

"Come along. Let's talk bargaining chips."

I hope you liked. I know the Ian thing was a bit random, but I had to establish where the guy had gone. I thought him following them through the treasure room was a fun idea, because in the room Ian never got to see it.

ANYWAY. Review please? You know how I love them :)