Thank you to everyone who has reviewed my fic you've all been wonderful encouragement, I really appreciate it.
OK this is where the underground part comes in.
Enjoy.
Chapter 4
Max woke slowly, her surroundings were unfamiliar but she knew she was in trouble. Her hands were still fastened behind her back but that wasn't her immediate problem. Judging by the pain in her shoulder it was dislocated, she couldn't move it.
There wasn't much light but luckily she had excellent night-vision. She heard a noise and moved to look in that direction.
White was on his feet and looking round. She saw him toss the remnants of his cell-phone away disgustedly, it obviously had fared even worse than she had in the fall.
White was now trying his ear-piece.
'This is Agent White to all teams respond.' He commanded.
He was answered with static.
'I repeat this is White. Otto respond.'
Still nothing.
'Shit!' He yanked out the equipment and threw it as far as he could.
'Ever consider a change of career? Baseball maybe?' Max inquired casually as she rolled up onto her knees.
White just looked at her in disgust. Of all the people to be trapped with it had to be HER!
Max tried to move her shoulder but the pain was too intense. She busied her mind by cataloguing all available weapons. Plenty of rocks, she could club him to death if she got out of these cuffs but somehow she didn't think 'pretty please' would cut it.
She had no weapons; she couldn't break the cuffs with a dislocated shoulder. She couldn't normally anyway but just maybe if they'd taken as bad a beating as she had on the way down they were weakened.
She tried to stand up.
'Stay where you are.' Ames ordered.
'My shoulder's dislocated.' She explained through gritted teeth. She was in pain and she didn't like revealing weaknesses to this ass-hole.
'Good, maybe you won't be as much trouble.' Ames responded.
She hadn't really hoped for any help from him, in truth she didn't want any but if she didn't get this shoulder put right she wasn't going to get out of this one.
She got up anyway.
White watched her warily, not trusting her. He was well aware that even injured 452 was dangerous.
She stumbled over to what was remaining of one of the walls. She had seen a scene in a pre-pulse movie where this guy had knock a dislocated shoulder back in place by slamming it hard against a wall. It was her best shot right now.
She slammed into the wall as hard as she could. The pain was incredible. She sank down to the floor in agony, it hadn't worked. Maybe she had the angle wrong; no matter she didn't want to try that again.
'Amateur.' Ames hissed shaking his head disgustedly.
'You could always help.' Max spat.
As much as Ames enjoyed seeing her in pain, he would enjoy it more if he was the one causing it.
He smiled nastily, 'sure why not?'
He walked over to her, Max instinctively flinched away from him.
He grabbed her and hauled her to her feet. Then with as much force as he could he threw her into the wall.
Max quite literally bounced off she hit it so hard. She was nearly knocked unconscious again but she was rewarded with a crunching sound in her shoulder as it snapped back into place. It was still very painful but it was an improvement none the less.
'Thanks.' She hissed.
'You're welcome.' He grinned.
She tested her shoulder, there was more strength in it now but the cuffs weren't about to budge. So much for that notion.
She tossed her head to shake her hair out of her face. She never appreciated her hands until she couldn't use them anymore.
This time she stayed sitting, she wasn't sure how much strength she had in her legs right now anyway. The last thing she wanted was to fall on her ass in front of White.
She watched him closely as he looked around, if she wasn't mistaken he was favouring one leg slightly. He didn't seem to be in pain, but then of course he wouldn't would he. It obviously wasn't broken but he couldn't seem to put his full weight on it. Maybe he didn't trust it to take his full weight, and like Max didn't want to fall on his ass. Like they both hadn't done that already!
While he wasn't paying as close attention to her as he had been previously, she did a little looking around of her own, without moving of course but from where she was sitting now she had a better view of the place than before.
There didn't seem to be any way out, they were surrounded by rubble. It was clearly too far to jump. She couldn't climb with a weak shoulder. White also obviously couldn't climb or he would have been out of here by now. That meant that they were stuck down here with only each other for company. Max almost wished she hadn't survived the fall.
As she looked round something shimmering caught her eye, she couldn't quite see what it was from here, her enhanced vision didn't work as well in the dark as it did in the light, but if she wasn't mistaken it was metal of some kind, something small in amongst the rubble that had come down with them.
She stood slowly and carefully not wanting to attract White's attention. She managed to stand without making any noise. White was obviously deep in thought or he would have heard her.
She started moving forward carefully, she wanted to make as little noise as possible.
'What the hell do you think you're doing?' Ames demanded.
Busted!
'Thought I'd go for pizza.' She shrugged sardonically.
'Shut up and sit down.' He sighed. He was tired of this already, if he had to spend every second trying to keep her in one place he was never going to get out of here.
She had to get over to that metal fragment, it may be useful. She kept walking as she talked to him.
'Look we're not going to get out of here unless work together.' The words tasted bad in her mouth, but she was nearly there. 'Besides my eyes are better than yours.' She smiled sweetly.
That was it. Ames stormed over to her and swiped her legs out from under her. She landed heavily with no hands to steady her, right on top of the metal she was trying to get to.
'Next time you move or speak will be your last.' Ames warned her.
Max tried to look meek, not a look she was used to but it satisfied White, he went back to whatever he had been doing.
She shifted round a bit feeling underneath her for the metal while watching White to make sure he didn't see what she was doing.
Her fingers brushed against something metallic and cold. It was small.
She rolled it round in her fingers but there was no mistaking it was a key. A small key. Handcuff keys perhaps.
She tried it in the lock. It worked. Now she had to decide what to do. If she rushed White from this distance he would be ready for her by the time she got to him.
She loosened both cuffs enough that she could slip them off when she wanted to then she tucked the key inside her jeans pocket.
Ames could feel her watching him the way a mouse watches a cat. He was both surprised and suspicious that she was doing what he'd told her to. He was under no illusions that she was afraid of him. She was up to something he knew it.
He would keep an eye on her even when she thought his attention was elsewhere, that would be when she'd make her move, and he'd be ready for her. If she thought that she could outsmart him she'd be greatly mistaken. It would cost her dearly he'd see to that but she wouldn't die until she'd told him about his son.
Ames had explored pretty much all there was to explore, there were of couple of possibilities. A tunnel that seemed to go on forever and one with a bend he couldn't see round. Neither of which he could explore while keeping an eye on 452. He couldn't leave her here, tied or not she would find a way out, he couldn't let that happen even if it stranded him down here with her. Surely Otto would get his ass in gear soon and find them.
He went back to where she was sitting. She seemed even more tense than she had before, like she was ready for something. Well whatever she had in mind he was ready for her.
