Dr. Hawkes was quiet about his digging, because he was being careful. Danny glanced at him on occasion, wishing he could help since it would go a lot faster. The blockage could be broken through at any time, and when that happened they would be evacuated and denied any more time to remove the body. They could hear sounds now, muffled and distant, but growing in a gradual way. It was background noise Danny found comfort in, and clung to it, listening carefully to it to remind himself every second that this burial was not permanent.
Dr. Hawkes' own digging was methodical, in which he would push dirt away into a pile on the side, pausing to sift through the dirt that had been touching the body. He would look up occasionally over to where Dave was now pacing, slightly closer to the body than he had been moments before.
" What do you think he'll do if he tries anything?" Sheldon asked in a whisper.
Danny could only shake his head in reply. It would be dumb if he tried anything, but Danny still held to the belief that fear had a way of making people less than bright. Danny had his gun, but he did not want to use it. He did not want fear clogging his own judgement and causing something that he would later regret. He was not only tired and aching, now he was also exceedingly thirsty. There was also hunger, but hunger he could ignore like an afterthought. The thirst insisted on having a stronger presence, and it was turning the throb in his head into full-on cracking pain.
Danny moved his head around, stretching his neck until the vertebrae popped, momentarily dulling the pain in his head. He listened more carefully to the sounds beyond the blockage, picking out voices from the hum that must have been machinery, but he could not be certain. Neither did he care. He just wanted them to hurry and break down the wall to let the light spill through. He wanted to destroy that wall that separated them from fresh air and open skies. That wall was an enemy, a murderer. It needed to be destroyed.
Danny was suddenly overcome by the feeling that he was falling, and he snapped his head up, blinking in confusion. He realized that he had been nodding off, and the thoughts that had been going through his mind sounded suddenly ridiculous to him.
" Hey Danny," Dr. Hawkes said in a tone that carried excitement. Danny looked over at the doctor wearily.
" Yeah?"
" I think I can move the body now."
Hawkes continued to push more dirt aside, then paused and began pulling on the lower half of the corpse. The body moved, just a few inches. Hawkes removed more dirt and tried again. Soon, the body slipped free, inch by inch.
" I'll move this so it doesn't get smashed if rocks start falling."
Danny readied himself to stand. " I'll help."
Hawkes shook his head. " Better not. You might fall and be the one to crush it. I can handle it."
Dr. Hawkes remained crouched as he moved to the head of the corpse, taking it by the arms and dragging it slowly back toward the one remaining light of the cave.
Danny watched him for a moment, then remembered Dave. He looked over at the workman to see him standing still as stone, except for his eyes that followed Dr. Hawkes' procession.
Danny didn't like the look he was seeing on Dave's Face. It was dark, full of too much anger, and almost animal. It made Danny nervous, so he picked up his gun and using the wall as support hauled himself slowly to his feet. He stuck the gun in his pocket, then kept one hand on the wall as he slowly followed Hawkes down the tunnel.
" Danny," Hawkes said when he finally looked up. " I don't think you should be doing that."
Danny shook his head. " I'm fine, doc. I just don't want to be near all those rocks if they start coming down."
Danny looked over his shoulder. He saw Dave still watching them, and still wearing a dangerous visage. Stan noticed nothing going on, as he was busy talking on the radio, facing the blockage and walking aimlessly about.
Danny's head swam, and darkness passed in front of his vision again. He swayed, stumbling, but caught himself before he fell. He paused a moment to catch his breath and let his head clear.
" Danny!" Hawkes hissed. Danny looked over at Hawkes. The doctor had stopped moving and was now staring passed Danny. He jerked his chin toward him, so Danny turned to see Dave coming toward them, moving fast and purposeful.
Danny's fogged, weary brain could not comprehend the situation clearly, and fear was given freedom. Danny whipped out his gun, turning himself enough to train it on Dave. Dave stopped abruptly and slowly raised his hands, one of which was clutching his flashlight, though the light was not on.
" Woe, hey man…" Dave said, fear filling his eyes. " I was just… I just wanted to see where you were taking it. You know, so I don't find it on accident or anything?" he said with a nervous, weak attempt at a laugh.
Danny's hand was shaking as he held the gun, and he doubted he could hold it up for long.
Stan finally looked over at what was happening and nearly dropped his radio.
" Hey! What the crap! What's going on?"
" Danny?" Hawkes said. Danny did not dare look away to look at him. " You all right man?"
Danny knew how this must look. Pale, weak, shaking, barely able to stand; they probably thought he was being delirious, acting out in panic. But he knew what he was doing. He knew exactly. Slowly, without taking his eyes off Dave, he lowered the gun. He then lowered himself to the floor when the darkness passed before his eyes again. He turned his back to the wall, but kept his gaze glued to Dave and his gun in his hand.
" Let me ask you something, Dave," Danny said, not bothering to raise his arms above heart-level. " Why didn't you just leave the body where it was?"
Dave's brow creased in confusion. " What?" he asked with another nervous, weak laugh.
" You're lady friend, Dave. Why didn't you just leave her where you put her? Why'd you bring her down here? Why didn't you just toss her in a river or dump her to be buried in a trash heap? Why'd you have to bring her to the very place you work? Because of the explosives? Thought it'd be easier just to blow her up and bury her under rock? Well guess what Dave. You're the one who got buried."
Dave laughed again, looking from Danny, to Hawkes, then Stan, as though silently asking the two men what Danny was talking about. He looked back at Danny, shaking his head.
" You're nuts, man. All that blood loss must be making you lose it or something."
Danny lowered his head to stretch the muscles of his neck, then rubbed the back of his neck with the now dry bandages scratching his skin.
Danny knew what he was doing, what he was saying. For the first time since the ceiling collapsed he was actually thinking with a straight mind, with all his focus, because he suddenly knew what it was Dave was so afraid of.
" Tell you what, Dave. You answer me this one question, and I'll let her be buried. I'll get her out of your sights, away from you, just like you wanted."
A muscle twitched in Dave's clamped jaw. His eyes were no longer on Danny but on the half-decayed corpse. He stared at it without expression, his eyes wide and empty.
" Just tell me why she had to die?" Danny asked again. " Then you won't have to see her any more."
Dave said nothing for the longest time. He appeared unable to look away from the body Hawkes was crouched over. Then, Dave's features began to twist. Anger blaze in his eyes, full of hate and disgust.
" Because she wouldn't love me," he spat between clenched teeth. Dave clenched his fists so tight that his knuckles went pure white. Danny gripped his gun at the ready. Dave took three furious steps toward the corpse, and Danny raised his gun.
" Back off Dave."
Dave whirled around to face Danny, jabbing a finger at the body. " You said I could bury her!" He practically shrieked. " I want her gone! I want her out of my sights! She's a lying whore! She loved everyone – everyone! – except me. I loved her like no one would, and she turned her back on me, accused me of hurting her. But I would never hurt her! Never!"
Danny let out a weary sigh. Crime of passion, as he had guessed. The one thing he always despised most about these kinds of deaths was the denial the killer always spouted. It was always the same speech about love, devotion, and how they would never hurt the one they loved.
Danny lifted his other hand to point at the body. " What the hell do you call that then?"
Dave, shaking with rage, averted his gaze to the floor. Danny switched his gun into his other hand, then set it on the floor and slid it to Hawkes.
" Keep him away from the body," Danny said, looking over at Hawkes. The doctor picked up the gun and pointed it at Dave, nodding. Danny then hauled himself back to his feet and made his slow way to his kit. He carefully knelt to the floor, then reached inside and pulled out a pair of cuffs.
" Hey Stan, put these on him," he said, then tossed the cuffs to Stan as he approached.
Dave looked over at Danny. Had he the chance, he probably would have killed Danny. But Stan pulled Dave's hands behind his back and placed the cuffs on with a resounding click.
" Shouldn't you be reading me my rights?" Dave asked. Danny draped his arms over his knees and shook his head.
" I just don't want you trying anything. You have the right to pace all you want, though."
As though to spite Danny's words, he moved to the other side of the tunnel, turned his back to the wall, and sat roughly down.
" You said you would bury her," he muttered.
" Yeah, but I didn't say when," Danny replied.
Danny wanted to laugh; though he did not know why. Dave's anger seemed comical to him. The whole situation seemed suddenly something to laugh about; the murderer buried with the victim, investigators stuck with the suspect, and everything revealing itself in a moment. It was as though the universe had had its fun, and decided to give Danny a little something for the trouble.
Danny lowered his head to hide his smile, and allowed himself a small, quiet chuckle. He knew he shouldn't since it was not really humorous, but he could not help himself now. It was all too strange to do other wise.
Danny did not hear Dr. Hawkes approach, but felt when he tapped him once on the shoulder with the back of his hand.
" Hey, man," Hawkes said, sitting beside Danny. Danny looked over at Hawkes, no longer laughing but still grinning.
Hawkes looked him over curiously. " I'm not even going to ask if you're all right. What I will ask is how you figured it out. How did you know Dave over there was our guy?"
Danny wanted to laugh again, but this time he knew the reason for it. " I didn't. I guessed."
Hawkes widened his eyes. " Guessed?"
" Yeah, guessed. He was acting a little too interested in our vic, and I thought what the hell, I'll give it a shot. Not much harm in trying, and it gave me something to do."
Hawkes shook his head in disbelief. " Man, if we don't get out of here soon, you'll probably have us all confessing to something."
" You already confessed about being afraid of clowns."
Now it was Hawkes who was laughing. " I have to hand it to you Danny, you do a good job, even when you seem messed up in the head."
Light
Danny must have fallen asleep, because when he next felt Dr. Hawkes tapping him on the shoulder, he woke up with a start to be nearly blinded by lights brighter than Hawkes' flashlight and helmet.
" Hey Danny. Danny! You better not have fallen asleep," Hawkes said laughingly. Danny lifted his bloody and bandaged hand against the glaring light stabbing into his eyes.
" Little late for that," he groaned. Hawkes laughed again.
" Come on, man, get up. Time to get out of here."
Everything around Danny was hazed and dreamlike. Hawkes helped him to his feet then guided him up the tunnel toward where the blockage had been. The blinding lights were spilling out from the other side through a gaping hole at the top. People were gathered around the hole silhouetted against the lights behind them. Someone stepped through and assisted Hawkes in helping Danny to get through the debris and out the other side.
The change in the air, and the sight of the tunnel opening into a starry sky, struck Danny with such sudden relief that his legs nearly gave out. It was like when he awoke from the nightmare the first time and seeing it wasn't real. This, however, was far better, because it meant that it was over.
He looked back over his shoulder to see Dave stepping out, followed by Stan.
" What about the body?" Danny asked.
" It'll come," Hawkes said. " I already told them. A stretcher and a bag's going to be sent down."
They went onto the elevator, and slowly rose up to the top. Danny looked down to watch the tunnel slowly shrink away, then looked up to see the sky open up wider and wider the closer they got. Then he looked ahead as they rose passed the edge of the entrance. The first thing he noticed was Mac, Stella, and Aiden clustered nearby in tense wait. When the elevator came into sight, they hurried over, but slowed when they saw Danny in full stepping from the elevator.
" What happened?" Mac asked, looking Danny over.
Danny smiled, abashed. " Don't ask."
Mac looked to Hawkes for an answer, then past Hawkes at the man in the handcuffs being handed over to an officer by Stan. When Mac looked back at the two men they started laughing, Danny quietly and Hawkes more openly. Hawkes clasped Danny's shoulder.
" Never – ever – get stuck in a cave with this guy."
Mac, Stella, and Aiden exchanged bewildered looks, then Mac went around to Danny's other side, and he and Hawkes helped him to an awaiting ambulance. Mac kept looking at Danny uncertainly.
" You doing all right, Danny?"
Danny smirked. " Never better."
