Shot in the Park Affair Chapter 7 threecee

Napoleon and Illya got as close to Toni's limp body as their chains allowed to try to see how badly she was hurt. Her face was badly bruised, with one eye swollen shut and a split lip, but none of the facial bones looked broken. After a couple minutes, Toni moaned and stirred. Her eyes opened and she asked weakly, "Where am I?'" before her eyes fluttered shut again. In another few seconds, her eyes opened again and she tried to sit up. She stopped partway with a groan, clutching her middle.

"Toni! Toni, are you all right?" Napoleon's voice was anxious.

In response to Napoleon's question, Toni responded tearfully, "They hurt me so badly! No one ever punched me before and they kept hitting and hitting!" She broke down into heaving sobs.
Napoleon and Illya exchanged glances. No ribs broken if she could pull in enough air to sob so loudly and she sat up too quickly for someone who had never dealt with the pian of a beating before. Definitely, a fake beating to gain their trust and sympathy.

Napoleon begins making soothing noises, sympathizing with her pain and fear. There was a convincing amount of guilt in his tone, although Illya could hear the buried anger underlying Napoleon's performance.
Napoleon coaxed Toni to come and lean against him on the floor, lightly kissing her bruised face and muttering more reassurances that he would get her out somehow. "Just give them what they want and then they will let us all go! It isn't worth dying for!" Toni begged repeatedly.

The Snowman and his henchmen entered the cell again. "Are you ready to give me the item now, or do I have to let Slay and Belz really enjoy themselves? If you don't hand it over, I will let them kill the girl this time and her death won't be pretty."

"No! No! Please Napoleon! You said you would protect me! Illya, don't let them kill me, just give them what they want! I'm afraid!"

Napoleon, bit his lip, looking anguished, then took a deep breath. "It is in the park; I found it on Brown and hid it while Illya was chasing the killer. I can show you where it is, but you have to let us go after I give it to you."

"Napoleon, no!" Illya interjected.

"Just tell us where it is, Mr. Solo. If you are telling the truth I will come back and release you."

"No, you take us with you and once you have it, you let us go. You'll never find it without me. I buried it near a tree, but it was dark and I was in a hurry. I'll have to go by small landmarks to find it."
"Napoleon, you can't do this! You are betraying UNCLE. They will kill us anyway, you know that."

"Illya, I have to try to save Toni. It's my fault she is in this mess. Snowman, swear that you will at least let Toni go unharmed if I give you what you want."

"That I can promise Mr. Solo. I'll even take her with us, so you can see I've kept my bargain. Mr. Kuryakin will stay here though as a guarantee that you will not try to escape."

"People are going to die, Napoleon! Not just one girl, but a lot of innocent men, women, and children. Don't do this!"

"Illya, I have to. This is Toni's only chance and maybe ours as well. If this item is so powerful, he can let us go because we won't be able to stop him."

Snowman ordered Slay to cover them with his gun while Belz removed the collars that chained them to the wall, but left their handcuffs in place.

First, they returned to what Illya thought of as the Circus Room. The two white tigers were dozing by the throne-like chair, but woke and stood up as the group entered the room. "Hungry, aren't you, my lovelies? They haven't been fed today and tigers have very large appetites, Mr. Kuryakin, as you will learn if Mr. Solo betrays me."

Snowman pressed a button and a steel cage with four sides and a top, but no bottom, slowly descended from the ceiling on a metal cable. Belz grabbed Illya and thrust him under the cage before it reached the floor. Then the two goons and their prisoners left the room and the clown-faced man retreated to the doorway.

"This is how this works. I am going to release Blixen and Vixen into the room. They can't get into the cage, but if I have not returned in one hour, the cage will automatically be withdrawn into the ceiling. Then the tigers, who are very hungry and enjoy human flesh, will be able to reach you. You won't die quickly or prettily, but you will surely die. You had best hope your friend isn't planning to betray me because he will abandon you to an ugly death."

After the Thrush left, closing the substantial door behind him, Illya began to evaluate his situation. The cage is about four feet high and four feet square. Enough to maneuver, but not to stand up. The two white tigers are circling the cage, sniffing, growling, and occasionally pawing at it.

"Nice kitties," Illya tries in his most soothing voice. "You don't want to eat me, I'm tough and skinny. Not worth your while. If you let me go, I'll bring you a nice juicy side of beef. Maybe a couple plump turkeys too. Good tigers." His blandishments have no effect other than eliciting a few more snarls.

Finally, the tigers wander off to explore the rest of the room and inspect their empty food bowls on the other side of the room. Illya takes the opportunity to pull his legs up and bring the handcuffs to the front of his body. He can then reach the lock picks hidden in the secret compartment inside his belt and it takes only a minute to remove the handcuffs. Now to get out of the cage and the room without getting eaten. Looking up, Illya notices the large opening the cage descended from. The tigers have gotten bored and are washing each other's ears on the other side of the room. Taking his chance. Illya crawls under the cage as quietly as possible and onto the top of the cage.

The tigers hear him and charge across the room just as Illya managed to leap high enough to catch the edge of the opening. Vixen's jaws close on his foot, but only succeed in pulling off his shoe. He pulls himself up toward the opening.

Struggling to breathe with broken ribs, it takes longer than planned. One hand, wet with sweat from the exertion, slips and he almost falls. This time it is Blixen whose claws rake his leg, tearing a deep gash before Illya can pull himself into the opening. The smell of blood makes the starving tigers desperate. They climb on the cage and leap up at Illya. Illya scrambles backwards into what seems to be a duct or large tube. As two huge paws catch onto the side of the opening, Illya realizes he has no way to go except down the duct and hope it comes out somewhere useful. Fortunately, the tigers can't get their bodies into the opening, although they keep leaping and getting their paws and sometimes heads in.

Meanwhile, Napoleon, is leading Toni, Snowman, Slay, and Belz around the park, stalling for time. They reach the spot where Brown was shot. Napoleon fakes puzzlement, saying, "It is around here somewhere, but it looks different in the daylight." Finally, Snowman puts a gun to Toni's head and threatens to shoot her if Napoleon doesn't stop wasting time. Toni pathetically begs Napoleon to give them what they want.