Chapter 24

SPOV

I panicked when I felt us being hit and ended up spinning, probably screaming with what was happening. When a second smash came that had the car tipping over, I hung onto the seatbelt by my shoulder and closed my eyes. I was aware of airbags suddenly hitting my arm and face and to be honest after that was a bit of a haze. My ears were buzzing giving a surreal quietness around me and it was only as someone wrapped me in their arms and lifted me that I opened my eyes. I felt myself being sat down on the sidewalk, but I couldn't sit there, I had to make sure that Ranger was okay.

"Estefania be still. Are you hurt?"

Looking up I saw Hector squatted down in front of me, he'd know what had happened.

"Ranger, where's Ranger?"

I know I was probably being dramatic, but I needed to know.

"He's okay, but we need to get you to Rangeman"

I just allowed Hector to help me to my feet and as he guided me to the backdoor of an SUV. It was as we were driving away that I realized who was with us, sat in the front with Hector. Thankfully it was quiet as we sped away from the accident. I looked back to see the lights from the police and ambulances and felt as though I'd deserted Ranger. I was about to shout at Hector to turn around and go back when we suddenly took a right turn at speed making me look up ahead.

"We've got a tail"

Came from Hector as he continued to weave around the other cars on the road. Did someone cause that accident, did they mean to kill us? Was all that I could think of and my heart missed a beat as I thought about Ranger who was still in that wreckage. But who were responsible for that happening and who was following us now? Could it be Ramos and the mob who were still after information or the other group that wanted the information to disappear? Whilst there had been no sign of Ramos and his cronies, they would want me alive. That was a sobering thought that came to my mind as Hector continued to drive.

"The van, it's at the mall. Drop me off there and then we'll meet up and I can take Stephanie to the safe house. They don't know the van and I can deactivate the trackers on it"

I wasn't too keen on that idea, but it seemed that no one was going to be asking for my opinion. All too soon we were speeding along the highway toward Quaker Bridge Mall and taking the road down toward the place. The parking lot for the mall looked busy as we entered the area but as we slowed down the front door suddenly opened, and Tali was rolling away from the car toward the parked cars. The last I saw of her was as she rolled underneath a large minivan. I watched behind us as Hector aimed the car toward the back of the mall, having no idea what he was planning to do.

I wasn't aware of an exit in this direction but as I saw where he seemed to be driving to, I had sudden visions of being run off the road by a large truck bringing deliveries to the mall. He timed it just right so as a large truck turned from the road, he took the car through the small gap between the truck and the fence and we soon speeding up along the narrow road. Horns and lights greeted us as a second truck turned into the road but fortunately the truck had slowed down to make the turning giving us just enough time to exit onto a larger road. I turned to look back to see the truck start its journey, hoping that whoever was following us would come across a very annoyed truck driver.

"Are we going to Rangeman Hector?"

Hoping now that we seemed to have lost the tail that's where we would be heading for.

"No. That's what they would expect. Tali will take you to their safe house"

Damn, I so did not want to be going there with Tali. As I looked up, I saw Hector looking at me in the rear view mirror. He must have guessed from my expression how disappointed I was with what he was saying.

"Estefania, you'll be safe there and I'm sure as soon as Ranger is able to then he'll come fetch you"

That had the worries about Ranger coming back and if he was injured. If that was the case, then I'd just have to go with what Hector had planned. I didn't want Ranger worrying about me if he was hurt. Looking around me I realized that Hector was pulling into a parking space between a beat up van and a minivan. Ahead of us was a grassed area with a pond in the distance. Children were playing on the grass and there were people walking their dogs. It seemed we were meeting Tali here, which I suppose was as good a place as anywhere, there wouldn't be any cameras watching over the park as there would be on the streets. As I sat waiting for something to happen, I jumped as my car door opened and felt someone take hold of my arm. Looking up I saw Tali stood there watching me.

"Unfasten your seat belt and let's get out of here"

As I got out of the car the side door to the van opened and I was soon stood inside looking around the interior. The side door slid closed, and I watched as Tali got into the driver's seat and started the engine.

"There's a seat on the passenger side that folds down"

Was all she said as she reversed the van from where it had been parked, so finding the seat I pulled it down and sat down. As soon as we were out of the park and onto the street, I was surprised at how slowly Tali was driving, though I was thankful as it did make staying on the seat easier. I looked around me now that my eyes had got used to the low light surprised at the screens and keyboards along one side.

"What's this van used for?"

Not really sure if Tali would divulge anything to me.

"We use it as a surveillance vehicle. The computers allow us to hack into cameras and then we have a drone that we control from here to see what's going on"

I had no response to that information pleased that at least Tali had been honest with me. I suppose it shouldn't surprise me that Ranger and Hector had access to such high tech equipment.

"Stephanie, I think we got off on the foot with each other"

"Okay"

I replied wondering where she was going to be taking this conversation.

"Working for Rangeman up in Boston I'd heard the stories being banded about concerning you. To be honest, I couldn't understand why Ranger kept helping you out"

Yeah, probably her and everyone else, which made me feel embarrassed about what she'd maybe heard about me.

"That he then started to loan you cars had me thinking that maybe he felt sorry for you. Then his daughter was kidnapped. I offered to help you know, but he refused, saying that he had everything in hand"

Wow, it had never even occurred to me that he'd have more experienced women that would have taken on that role.

"After that I did some research on you, surprised at just how good you were. Okay you can't shoot for shit or defend yourself, but you seem to have the knack of solving problems"

I wasn't too sure if that was a compliment or not. I mean I knew that Ranger wanted me to train and maybe I should have seen that doing that would have helped me. I just felt that I could never live up to those expectations that he had for me, hell I hated to run and okay maybe I was flexible but nowhere near strong enough to be some sort of ninja princess.

"I think I was jealous of the attention that he gave you. Then I saw it and Les confirmed it. He's really in love with you"

I frowned as she said that realizing that she sounded jealous, was that why she flirted so much with him and tried to give the impression that she knew him so well?

"I thought maybe we were, what's the word, compatible, and that maybe working for him at Rangeman would allow something to develop"

I remembered that Ranger had told me that he'd slept with her a few years ago but that there was nothing there. Hold up, did she just say Les?

"Les as in Lester?"

"Yeah"

Why would she be talking to Les about me and Ranger? I felt a bit let down that Les had done that, hell I'd always trusted him with anything that I said.

"Maybe I can stay down here and then I could help teach you how to defend yourself. You don't have be strong, just nimble and smart, what do you think?"

"Maybe"

Was all I could come up with to say as I processed everything that I'd heard. I'd been so focused on our conversation I hadn't a clue where we were. I didn't recognize the streets we were on so assumed that Tali was using back streets to get to this safe house.

"This safe house, tell me about it"

Really wanting to change the subject about me training and about her telling me how she thought her and Ranger were compatible.

"Two bedroomed, one bathroom house in the middle of suburbia. State of the art security. Jayce should be there when we arrive"

Jayce, was that another person from Boston? I didn't have time to ask anymore because we were suddenly pulling into the drive of a detached house. As the door to the van slid open, I was looking down the street at similar properties all with small neat front yards and looking to be well maintained. The house we turned toward to go in to looked just the same, though I was pretty sure the windows would have bullet proof glass in them and there'd be cameras and sensors hidden from view.

As we approached the door it opened with a woman stood to the side. Tali kept me moving into the hallway, so I never really got a good look at the second woman.

"I'll set the alarm Jayce then get us all a coffee"

Came from Tali as she then led the way through a lounge and into the kitchen. It was a pleasant room with new kitchen units and a small table with chairs in the middle so while Tali filled the coffee machine I looked out through the window.

It was a small back yard surrounded by a tall wooden fence with pots and seats arranged on the area that was covered in chippings. Not much of a view so turning back to the room I watched as Jayce walked into the room. She wasn't what I'd expected, then again, I had no idea what I had expected. She was probably my height with short layered hair styled into a severe cut around her face and fringe. Not exactly blonde but not dark enough to be called brown.

She looked so serious as she looked back at me making me wonder if she knew what was going on or even whether she appreciated me being here. I'd probably say that she was heavier than me, broader around her shoulders and waist, though if she worked for Rangeman then I was pretty sure there'd be some serious muscles underneath.

"Is this her?"

She asked as she walked over to stand next to Tali.

"Yeah, sorry. Stephanie this is Jayce"

The introductions seemed to be over, and I watched as Jayce took a mug from the worktop and filled it with coffee. As Tali set a mug onto the table I sat down and cupped my hands around it. I was feeling very uneasy being sat here in the kitchen. Tali sighed loudly as she sat down opposite me and blew across her mug before taking a small sip.

"Jayce doesn't talk too much, she doesn't like new people, it makes her nervous"

I raised my eyebrows at that snippet of information. How the hell did she manage at Rangeman then, because here in Trenton the guys were always so friendly and chatty.

"Jayce had a really hard life before I met her. I got to know her when we were in the same unit in the army. She hates men because of what happened to her"

"How does she cope at Rangeman then?"

I watched as Tali looked down at her coffee, almost as though she was deciding whether or not to tell me something.

"This doesn't go any further, but to be honest, I feel that I need someone to talk to"

I ran my finger and thumb across my lips and made out to be throwing the key over my shoulder which only made Tali laugh.

"I suppose I've become her protector. The men at Rangeman think that we're a couple so no one ever approaches her like that. The problem doing that is that they think I'm a lesbian as well. We share an apartment and partner each other at work but I'm not sure that I can continue the illusion. I want a life where I'm not constantly having to put her first"

I was amazed at what Tali had told me and could possibly understand how them being together all of the time must have seemed to onlookers, but it must have been a hell of strain for Tali to have what would be construed as a normal life.

"So, you see men?"

"I try. I'm the queen of one night stands. But what if I met and fell in love, what the hell would happen to Jayce?"

"Does she have girlfriends?"

Thinking that maybe if Jayce met another woman that she loved then they could move on as a couple.

"Not that I'm aware of. If we go out, she's constantly on edge so I suppose in some ways she's never really put herself out there"

It seemed that Jayce was way too dependent on Tali to let go of the protection that Tali provided her with. It was sad really to think that Jayce was so lacking in self confidence and yet I was sure she'd be able to beat off any advances that came from men. Hell, nowadays there was so much more acceptance of gay men and lesbians that I couldn't understand why she insisted that Tali was always there. Or was it Tali who felt too guilty to let her find her independence?

"Does anyone else know?"

Biting her lower lip Tali looked up at me, hell, in some ways we were very similar.

"Maybe Les does. When he last came up to Boston we ended up at a nightclub and well, things just happened"

I had no idea what to say to that but was sure that Les wouldn't say anything to anyone else. Les might be seen as the joker at Rangeman but I'd always found him loyal, I knew that whatever I said to Les then he wouldn't repeat it, hell I hoped that was the case. Then what Tali had said on the ride over here came back to me. Maybe he wouldn't share personal information, but he was still a gossiper

As we both picked up our coffee to take a drink Tali suddenly looked up and over to the door. Her frown had me worrying and suddenly my senses were on high alert.

"Something's not right"

I said as I stood up and that's when we heard a loud crashing sound coming through from the lounge. Tali was up and through the door like lightning which had me worrying as to what to do. The sound of grunts and banging made up my mind. I couldn't hide in here if there was trouble out there so started toward the door.

I was met by a big man heading toward me but there was no way I was going to just let him come near to me. I backed up into the kitchen until my back hit the worktop, watching as he came closer to me. Shit, he looked mean, and it was then that I recognized him as one of the men from a photo that Ranger had shown to me. He was one of the men who had followed me up to the apartment where I'd met Jenny. Did that mean that he wanted to kill me like he had done to Jenny?

I didn't see a gun in his hands and as he came nearer to me, I just reacted, bringing up my knee hard and fast. Like any other man he bent forward, his hands going to support his injured groin. I saw that as another opportunity to use what I was good at so brought my knee up again but this time connecting with his face.

As he careered backward into the table, I made my move toward the door but came to a stop when I saw Jayce laid out on the floor and Tali being held from behind by another man. He looked to have his arm around her neck, and she looked to be struggling to breathe. Maybe he didn't see me as a threat because as I went to his side and picked up a vase, he seemed to be ignoring me, that is until I swung the vase onto the back of his head. The vase shattered into a thousand pieces and his grip must have slackened enough for Tali to turn in his hold and use her elbows and knees to free herself.

I was expecting the man to go for Tali again so imagine my surprise when he took one stride toward me and his fist shot out hitting me on the side of the head. I saw the coffee table meeting me as I fell and the feel of my head on the floor. I had no idea what happened after that.

Regaining consciousness seemed a painful process to me, something that I wanted to avoid. The sensible part of me told me that I had to wake up and work out what the hell had happened while the stupid side of my brain told me to go back to sleep where it was safe and pain free.

I knew letting myself sink back into the dark wasn't going to answer any of those questions whizzing around in my head, so I slowly opened my eyes. I have to say that I expected to be on the floor in the safe house and when I realized that wasn't true then that's when I started to feel the tendrils of fear run through me.

Wherever I was, it wasn't on the nice carpet of the house, it seemed I was laid down on a hard floor. It wasn't cold concrete but looked to have some sort of paint covering it. Lifting my head slightly showed that wherever I was there was no direct light inside with me and that any light was coming from underneath what must have been a door. I used my hands to push myself up to a sitting position only then being surprised that I wasn't tied up. As I looked down at my legs, I didn't see the trousers that I'd been wearing before and with a shock knew that I'd been undressed and put into black joggers and a large hoodie. Lifting the hoodie up I found a T-shirt underneath but became very aware that I was without a bra. My wrist didn't have on the watch which meant that all those trackers that Ella had probably spent ages sewing into my clothes weren't going to help me. Sitting back, I wiped my hands down my face to rid me of what seemed to be a bit of dizziness and that's when I flinched with the pain coming from the side of my head.

How the hell would anyone know where I was, it was supposed to be a safehouse wasn't it? That was why I hated safehouses, I couldn't feel comfortable in them. In fact, the only place where I felt safe was with Ranger which was probably why I was constantly refusing to go to one. Finishing that internal conversation, I looked around at where I was. It seemed quite a large room though the light didn't reach all the way in. The walls were painted a light color and to be honest whilst the lack of windows told me I was probably in a basement I didn't feel cold.

As my eyes adjusted, I could see wooden boxes all around me, in fact as I turned, I noticed that I was leant against one. It seemed odd to me to put me inside a room with crates inside unless there was nowhere else that was secure. Turning against the crate that I was leant against I used it to push myself up onto my feet. It was only as I turned to investigate the crate that I even noticed that my feet were bare. Weird, why was it so warm in here?

There was no writing that I could see on the crate and the lid seemed to be well nailed down. What I wouldn't do for a crow bar right now. Another look around the room had crates of different sizes, all made in the same way, but that's when I noticed high up in the wall just before the ceiling curved above me, a grill. It looked to be quite large, well big enough that maybe I could crawl through it. I knew that I had to get out of here. Nothing good ever happened to me when I was kidnapped and once again, I had no trackers for Ranger to find me.

That had me thinking of the last time that I'd seen him, as he'd looked over to me while he was driving. I'd never found out how he was, if he was injured or how badly. I felt myself deflate as I continued to think of him and worry about him. I had to stop feeling sorry for myself because I had to get out of here and get back to him, to make sure that he was alright. With a renewed determination I looked up at the grill.

I had to get up to that grill so looked at the crates around me trying to judge how tall one would need to be for me stand on. That decided I started to push my chosen crate, surprised at just how heavy it seemed to be. What the hell was inside that made it so heavy? I sure hoped that it wasn't guns or rifles or grenades or even rocket launchers. I ignored those stupid ideas and concentrated on moving the crate.

Once I got it moving, I was pleased with how easily it slid across the floor. Once against the wall I was able to reach the grill easily and discovered why it was so warm in here. Warm air was blowing out of the ventilation shaft and into the room. I suppose as this place wasn't usually used as a prison cell no one ever thought of ensuring the grill was secure. I'd expected to find it screwed in place so was so happy that all I had to do was pull it away from the bracket holding it in place.

Okay, so it was maybe big enough for me to crawl through, but I needed to work out exactly how to climb up high enough to maneuver myself inside. I spied a smaller crate so once that was in place I started to climb up on top of my stack of crates. The problem came when I used my foot to push up with, because instead of me going up, my foot ended up going down through the top of the wood.

I screwed my eyes together as pain shot up my leg and looking down saw that splinters of wood where it had broken were now embedded in my ankle. I couldn't scream, I couldn't shout out, became my mantra as I bent down to try and free my foot. I ended up having to push the wood further down into the crate which caused the cut on my leg to get bigger. Maybe because there was so much blood, who knows. I eventually managed to push the broken pieces out of the way and pull my leg out to rest it on the top.

Sat on the edges of the top box I felt that I needed a few minutes to compose myself. I took off the hoodie and tore at one of the sleeves at the shoulder and then wrapped it around the gash in my leg. That's when I looked inside the crate, through the hole that I'd made, and saw something shiny inside, with straw wrapped around it. Curious my hand went inside and soon I was sat looking a beautiful sculptured statue that looked and felt to be made from pure gold.

It was the statue of what to me looked like an Egyptian woman. It fascinated me and yet mystified me at the same time. How was I sat with this in my hand? Then it hit me, the photos that Charlie had given to me. One of the photos was of the museum, was that where I was now, somewhere in the bowels of the museum where they stored artefacts? Was that photo somewhere that Charlie thought was important and not where he'd hidden more clues? That would certainly account for why it was warm in here because I was pretty sure the damp and cold wouldn't have helped to preserve something like this statue.

That revelation wasn't really helping me to get out of this room so this time I stood on the edges of the crate where it would be stronger and pushed the top half of my body into the shaft. It wasn't easy moving, more of a wriggle from my hips and shoulders. The area was quite tight, and I already knew that if this was a dead end I'd have to return backwards. The further I crawled away from the room the darker it got. I hated it, the dark and the feel of the walls against me. As my breathing started to get faster, I had to stop and closed my eyes. I pictured Ranger in my head and heard him saying "Breathe in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5" "Breathe out 1, 2, 3, 4, 5" I did that several times until I felt the panic begin to subside. I felt more in control of myself so continued my journey.

I hadn't really travelled that far when I came to a junction. Hell, this reminded me of being in those tunnels with Mylo and how he just seemed to know which way to go. I had no idea which way to go but it was as I was trying to make that decision that the faint sound of voices floated in the air toward me. That made my mind up, I was going to head toward the voices. They could be good guys who could help me get out of here or probably the bad guys but at least then I might find out who they were and maybe hear what they were up to.

I followed the sound of those voices which entailed me having to navigate around a right angled bend but was rewarded by the sight of light at the end of the tunnel. I didn't want to be too close to the grill but as I wanted to see who the hell was there it seemed I had to forgo that notion.

At first, I just listened but was too curious not to see who was talking so taking in a couple of breaths I moved until I could see down into a room. I had an excellent view from where I was and decided that I must be quite high up in the wall looking down. It was quite a large room and as the room I had been inside there were crates placed against the walls. It looked as though the people down there had the use of a beautiful table. Its surfaces shone and showed an ingrained pattern on its surface, a shame that there were plain fold up plastic chairs being used.

"What do we do about that woman?"

That had my attention on the man who had just asked that question. He wasn't someone that I recognized so I had no idea who he could be.

"I've made sure that I'm residing over her court case, you could threaten her with a heavy sentence if she knows anything and decides to talk"

Okay so maybe that was the judge that Ranger had said was in one of the private residencies that was boasting their security system, Donald, I think he was called.

"She needs to disappear, permanently"

That came from a face that I recognized as Garner, but it had me wondering why he was so keen on me disappearing, did he think that I knew more than I did, was there more to find from Charlie?

"Garner, has she passed anything on to Manoso that would suggest she knows something?"

Garner was the one who we'd seen with Manning, the one who'd been in his platoon in the army, had he been getting information about me through Manning. No, he couldn't have, because Manning had gone before I managed to get myself there. Was there someone else at Rangeman?

"No, nothing"

I watched as the conversation played between the two men knowing exactly what was implied when the man nodded his head to the one just below me. Shit, because they thought I had no evidence then they were prepared to just get rid of me. Why, I mean if I didn't know anything how could I hurt what they were doing? Something really didn't feel right about this.

"What's the word on Watson, Nazari?"

That had me suddenly tuning back into the conversation because I was so worried about Charlie.

"I hooked up with one of the nurses who works there, said that I'd treated him when he was brought into St Francis. She said he's regaining consciousness but there are signs of brain damage. No memory and delusional"

"Are all signs of Rangeman security still on all our properties?"

"Yes Sir, I checked those out today"

So Garner was the one who had maybe liaised with Manning, so who was responsible for Manning being killed?

"Good. We know they're aware of those now, but we'll wait and see what they do about it. If it comes to it, we've got our scapegoat"

"Ah yes, that stupid man Manning. All we need to say is that it was him, a Rangeman employee who fitted them for us. Has all the merchandise been moved?"

It was the man I recognized as Jackson who gave that answer, a smug smile across his face.

"Everything is here in crates ready to be shipped out for distribution. We owe our thanks to Walter here for being so cooperative"

I had a face for Walter but was wondering who he was that could arrange for that to happen, was this man the Walter that Jenny had spoken about? Maybe. Could the merchandise be the drugs, then it occurred to me that there were probably crates of drugs sat around somewhere down here in the basement.

"So, we're set for tomorrow night. Jackson, you use your men to get those drugs out on the street. Garner are the weapons ready to go?"

"Yes. They've been set to misfire giving the shooter a very nasty burn from an explosion. Ramos is expecting his shipment tomorrow in the morning, so we'll swap them out"

"Excellent. Jonathan you'll take delivery of the money and ensure that it's absorbed into the gambling business and make sure that the gambling site is up and running"

That had my brain working as I tried to remember why the name Jonathan sounded familiar, it was Jonathan Denby the man from the gambling place, Anansi

"Are the mob bosses aware of what we're doing?"

"No they're running around in circles. I think they want to get their hands on that Plum woman as well"

"Well gentlemen in a minimum of three weeks we'll have effectively shut them down. A job well done. Our bosses will be very pleased with that outcome, a town free of drugs, weapons and gambling on the streets"

I considered what that man was saying along with who was sat at the table. There was a judge, a retired army officer, a doctor and the man who ran the gambling place. Was this what their aim was, to rid the streets of Trenton of drugs and firearms and somehow stop the elicit gambling that went on. I suppose from the outside it did seem that the mob had too much control and seemed immune from the law. My question was who the hell were the bosses that he was referring to?

As it looked as though the meeting was coming to an end I was stunned when someone stood up from just in front of me. I hadn't been able to see him from the angle I had of the room. I watched as he walked over to Walter surprised at who I was seeing. No wonder I had felt that something was off at the hospital, because stood down in that room was that detective. Shit, I really needed to get out of here. I watched as Denby went over to Garner, glad that they came over to the wall just below me. It seemed as though they needed a private conversation away from the others and it also meant that I could listen in on what they were saying.

"What will happen to the Plum woman?"

It was Denby who was asking that question of Garner, why would he want to know about me?

"Leave her to me, I have my orders, so I'll deal with her"

"Do you know where she is?"

Okay I was so not expecting that, I'd just assumed that everyone knew that I was being held down here with them.

"She's locked up tight here, once we get tomorrow over with, I'll deal with her"

"Does she know anything?"

Garner had obviously had enough of answering Denby's questions and was walking away from him.

My blood ran cold as I listened to what Garner had said. The only good thing that he said was that he'd leave me here for at least a day. I was just hoping no one would go into the room to check up on me. I wasn't too sure what to do now other than to find a way out and get to Ranger, but I had a feeling that might not be that easy. Once everyone had left the room and the lights had been switched off, I waited for what seemed like an eternity. I needed to be sure that no one was still inside the room or that someone would come back in for some stupid reason. Having counted to a thousand I deemed that was long enough so started to push at the grill. Yeah, it came off easily, but I winced at the sound that it made as it hit the floor.

Silence followed, no alert sent out, so now to try and get out of this damn shaft. I hadn't realized just how high up the wall that I was and looking down to the floor I was really struggling to come up with an idea on how to get down without killing myself. In the end I gave it up as a bad idea and started to shuffle backwards. It was actually easier than going forward because I could use my hands on the sides to push me. When I came to the junction I travelled straight across, okay after I spent an age maneuvering myself so that I was turned around. I only hoped that I didn't end up where I had started.

Coming to another grill I found myself looking into a room that had similar crates as before. It could have been the same room except that the grill was still in place and amazingly it looked like the door was open. This time I eased the grill out carefully and kept hold of it as I looked at how high up I was. It wasn't as high as I had been in the meeting room, but it still looked a long way down. Okay, I had to do this, this would always be a problem unless I wanted to spend forever travelling back and forth along ventilator shafts. I imagined what the heroine would do in the movies and had a picture of myself landing on my hands and going into a forward roll. How hard could that be?

I counted down from three and on my word go, I slid myself out so that I was balancing with my hips still in the shaft. Another inch of movement had me falling down and maybe the idea I'd had was a good one, but my arms gave way and I found myself twisting with my shoulder hitting the hard floor first. My legs just followed until I was laid on my back trying to catch my breath. My shoulder hurt and my elbow and let's not forget the traitorous wrist that gave out and the hip that had landed on the floor. I didn't think that I could move as I continued to lay there, trying to catch my breath.. That is until I heard a man's voice and that's when I was quickly crawling behind a crate.

"Weapons are in there and the next two rooms. Make sure you get them loaded up before morning when the staff start work"

Their footsteps receded outside leaving me looking at the crate next to me. If these were being moved out tonight was there anything that I could do to delay it? Probably not. But the idea that I was sat in a room full of weapons didn't sit well with me, especially if they had explosives inside of them.

Getting up from my hiding place I went over to the door, checking to make sure that the coast was clear. It seemed to be, so I opened the door further and slipped out onto what was a corridor. Maybe those men were heading outside, but I had no idea how to get out of this place. I didn't like the idea of bumping into those men, so went in the opposite direction. The lighting wasn't that bright so wasn't doing my nerves any good. Being in bare feet meant that I was busy watching where I was going as well as listening for any unusual noises. I'd already passed by two more open doors when an unusual smell caught my attention.

I stopped walking, trying to identify what it could be, sure that I knew what it was, but struggling to name it within the context of where I was. That was when I felt something wet against my foot and the horror of what it was came to me. Gasoline, somehow gasoline was running along the hallway. Visions of fire and explosions that I'd had from cars came rushing into my head and that was when I instinctively turned around and started to run.

I heard the whoosh as the gasoline caught fire and then the boom as something exploded. I had no idea what had happened to cause that and the voice in my head was loud and clear, it wasn't my fault.

As I moved forward a cloud seemed to encircle me and shroud me in a dusting of white. It was like trying to walk through a thick fog, I couldn't see anything in front of me and for some strange reason I was finding it hard to breathe. Struggling to continue to walk I ended up on my hands and knees and for some ridiculous reason started to giggle.

I could see images in the clouds around me and tried to reach forward to touch them only to fall over again. Laid on my back I was quite happy to stay where I was. Baloo the bear was talking to me with Bagheera smiling down. Kaa the snake with her rounded eyes stared at me and was that an elephant dancing with flares of colored fireworks behind him? As the images moved around me it was as though they were following the slow rhythm of a dance, all of them moving slowly. Watching them I felt calm as I lay on my back and I knew for some reason I didn't want to move, I just wanted to stay here and maybe enjoy the show that I was watching.