"Hurry, Laurie, take Mom and go!" Rick yelled, then pushed the wheezing Oscar ahead of him as they ran down the corridor.
Behind him Rick could hear a roar of smoke and rocks as the walls of the cavern fell mere steps behind him. Suddenly there was fresh air in his face, then he saw the night sky through the open door ahead of him. Seeing his mother and wife make it through the opening, he nearly fell as Oscar stumbled and collapsed.
"Come on, Dad….." Rick hauled him up by his arm, then he saw A.J. turn around, then run back to him.
"A.J.! Help me with Dad!" he coughed. At once his brother picked his way amongst the debris littering the cavern floor, and put an arm around the older man.
"Right behind you …keep going…" Rick ordered, then heard the click of a gun behind him.
"No!" he shouted, then whirled around and dived at Gregson, who was aiming a gun at A.J. and Oscar's retreating figures.
Catching the former OSI agent around the legs, Rick drove him to the ground, then slugged him senseless. All at once another shower of rocks fell, and yanking the convicted killer up by the collar, Rick started toward the cave opening.
Outside, Laurie had helped Cecilia to a waiting Ron, who supported her to an ambulance standing by. A.J. soon joined her with a worn Oscar. Hugging both of her "parents", Laurie suddenly realized Rick hadn't come out yet, and pulled away.
"A.J., where's Rick…I thought he was behind you?"
Panic crossed the younger Simon's face as he turned and saw smoke bellowing out of the caverns.
"Rick!" He called out, then grabbed futilely at Laurie as she ran past him, screaming "Rick! Riiiiick!"
She was almost to the cave entrance when an explosion shook the ground, and billows of smoke erupted from the cavern. The concussion sent Laurie crashing to the ground, and for a few minutes the whole area was covered in dust and flying rock. can't see her…where is she?" A.J. called frantically, coughing and trying to peer through the smoke-filled air.
"I…cough, don't know, son." Rudy replied, wheezing, then a strong wind swept the area, and when the air cleared, the three men squinted in the direction of the caves.
"There she is…and there's Rick!" A.J. shouted.
Trying to catch his breath, Rick had managed to crawl into a gap in the cavern wall, then the blast of gas and rocks had caused him to take shelter in the narrow gap between the main caves. He had been forced to let go of Gregson when the rain of debris had started, now he involuntarily cringed as he watched the convicted traitor buried underneath the crumbled ceiling. Once the air had cleared, he staggered out of the new opening that had been created by the force of the blast, then heard Laurie's voice….."Rick….Rick.."
"Laurie?" he choked, searching for her, then he saw his wife staring up at him as she lay prone on the ground a few yards away.
"Rick!" At once she scrambled to her feet, then unsteadily ran into his arms.
"Darlin….sweet girl…." Rick clung to her, kissing and holding her tightly in his embrace.
"Rick, love…I knew I'd find you….." She cried joyfully, then covered his face with kisses.
"I love you….never ever going to let you go." He told her, his heart full of gratitude when he looked over her shoulder and saw his brother and Rob and Rudy running to them.
"Sweetheart, look who's here."
Laurie glanced up, then released one arm from Rick to encircle first A.J., then her friend and Rudy.
"Are you all right, Rick…let me see." Rudy started fussing over them, then insisted on both husband and wife being helped over to the waiting rescue truck. Too relieved to protest, Rick and Laurie submitted to being checked out, then having their cuts and bruises cleaned and bandaged.
"You two are going to be very sore for a couple of days….but I don't see why you can't go home tonight." Rudy told them, then held up a hand as Rick started to get up.
"Only if you two go right to bed….promise?"
"I promise, and if I have to go to bed…..I'll make sure Rick does too." Laurie giggled, earning a groan from Rob and an extra kiss and cuddle from her husband.
The humorous exchange was short-lived, as grim-faced agents carried the covered body of Craig Gregson past them.
"That monster…I'm glad he's dead."
Involuntarily Rick turned at the vitriol of his mother's words, then saw the fear still in her eyes as she sat on a gurney, her hand in Oscar's.
"It's okay, Mom….you did good." He tried to comfort her, then was shocked at the fury that erupted from her lips.
"No…I did not do good. Oscar, for the love of God, why did you try to get me to leave when that agent pulled his gun. I am not going to run off like the proverbial "little woman"…."
Her emotional statement startled both Rick and Laurie, then Oscar held up a hand.
"I'm not going to apologize, Cecilia, for wanting to keep you safe from harm. Too many times I told myself something like this would happen to anyone I loved….but I took a chance this time." He told her in a halting voice. "Now I see…I was right. My job, the life I've led, will always keep me from having a normal life. I accept that now. "
Before any of them could reply, Oscar turned and walked away.
"What the….wait a minute." Rick started to go after him, then his mother put a restraining hand on his arm. "Forget it, son. He's got a lot of nerve saying he loved me, then running like that. I'm worth the effort and the danger…so when he realizes that….I'll be here. Now I need you to take me home, Rick."
Seeing the stubborn look in her eyes, Rick put an arm around her. "Okay, Mom." He looked at Laurie, who sighed. "Remind me who's the adult and who's the child here?"