Disclaimer: No own! NO OWN!
Authors note: Not much really . . . Chapter 7 yesterday, chapter 8 today . . . you people are spoilt!
Somewhere In Between
By Bubblegum Thai
Chapter Eight: Time In Running Out.
With a soft groan, Suzan Tracy slowly began to open her eyes,
"What hit me . . .?" She murmured, holding her head gently as she sat up strait into her Father's arms,
"You're awake . . ." He sighed with relief, "I was beginning to worry . . . thought I was going to lose you . . ."
Suzan smiled slightly, but once she looked into her Father's face, she knew he was far from kidding. His skin was pale and his lips were formed into a strait, narrow line as he stared at his daughter,
"I'm fine Dad." She said seriously, placing her hand over his. It was shaking slightly as he rested it on her other arm,
"Good . . . when we get out of here, I'll get Tin-tin to look at your head . . ."
"My . . . head . . .?" Suzan asked with a frown, reaching a hand up and gently meeting a large patch of something wet and sticky with her finger tips. She lowered her hand back down and looked at it, her eyes widening, "Blood." She thought. Blood didn't really concern her too much, she'd seen it before . . . but her own . . . in that quantity . . . it was a tad worrying,
"Do you feel dizzy?" Jeff asked, now holding her shoulders as her cheeks paled,
"No Dad . . . I'm fine . . . what happened?"
"They were thieves . . ." Jeff said seriously, "Looking for some sort of 'hidden treasure' . . ." He scoffed, rolling his eyes, "They didn't find what they were looking for so they took what they could off of us before scampering . . ."
"Yeah, but not before leaving us with a bomb!" Dick growled, "In five ours, BOOM!"
Suzan winced slightly, tightening her hand on her Father's sleeve. Jeff narrowed his eyes at the loud man,
"I was getting to that part." He said honestly before turning back to Suzan, "It'll be alright, I promise." He said, though Suzan knew he was lying as his eyebrows furrowed with worry, "Perhaps we should try and call International Rescue!" Jeff suggested aloud,
"International Rescue!" Dick scoffed, "Pfft! Bunch of cowboys!"
Suzan balled her fists,
"Well I think they're admirable!" Suzan snapped, folding her arms across her chest, now becoming conscious to the fact that blood was dripping down the side of her head onto her shoulder,
"What would you know!" Dick growled, "Besides . . . you need a radio to get to them and in case you hadn't noticed . . . there isn't a radio in here! And we can't get out of this room!"
Suzan looked at Jeff desperately. She knew that her Father had a device on him that could contact the others but using it without being noticed was not going to be easy. Jeff held his arms behind his back and all of a sudden he passed a watch under his sleeve towards Suzan. She took it and hid it up her own sleeve before carefully stepping backwards towards a nearby wall. She hit it against her back with a 'thump' sound before sliding into a sitting position,
"This can't be happening!" She whimpered. Everyone turned to look at her as she began to break down, "I just . . . I'm only sixteen . . . I can't die . . . not like this . . . not yet . . ." She sobbed, "Please! No! Someone has to help us!" AT this point she threw her hands to her face and began to quietly sob, whispering to herself as she rocked back and forth slightly,
"Fine mental mess ya got there, Tracy!" Dick laughed. His daughter, Patricia was yet to say a word as far as Suzan was aware, she'd just been sitting on the same sofa she was when everything had gone black, quietly with red-rimmed eyes.
"Please . . . help . . ." Suzan whispered, curled up so that only her arms (crossed a top of her knees), shins and top of her head were visible, "Please . . . we need help . . ."
- - -
"Please . . . help . . . please . . . we need help . . ."
Both the signal and the voice were faint, but John had heard it. He's been checking statistics on the opposite side of the room when it had come drifting from the speakers. He dropped his clipboard onto the floor and rushed over, listening carefully,
"John . . . please . . . we need help!" Came the whispered voice,
"Suzan?" John asked with a frown, "Suzan! Is that you!"
"Someone please help . . . we need help . . . I don't want to die . . ."
John's eyes widened as panic grasped him. He rushed towards the communicator to call Scott on the island.
- - -
Scott had been awake ever since his Father had called a couple of hours ago. It was six a.m. and the others were still in bed, but he couldn't get back to sleep. He didn't know why, something just felt uneasy. All of a sudden, John's vidi-portrait began to flash,
"Go ahead, John." Scott murmured wearily as he headed towards the console, assuming John was just checking in a little early this morning,
"Scott! We've got a situation!"
"What!"
"I just got a distress call from Suzan."
"WHAT! What's happened? Is Dad ok? Is SHE ok? Where is she? What's happened?"
"I don't know . . . either she can't hear me, she doesn't know she's transmitting or there're others involved and she can't answer me directly."
"Right."
"I'll play what I've recorded . . ."
"Please . . . help . . . please . . . we need help . . . John . . . please . . . we need help! Someone please help . . . we need help . . . I don't want to die . . ."
Scott froze just as John had, his hands tightening against the back of the chair he been leaning against for support,
"I don't want to die . . ." He whispered, "Die . . ." He added,
"Scott . . . I've got a location . . . I'm sending you the co-ordinates now."
"Co-ordinates . . . right!" He exclaimed, "Thanks John, I'll be in touch . . . keep an ear out for her, right? I'll get the others going!"
- - -
Virgil hadn't a clue what was going on. All that he knew was that he had been told to get in Thunderbird 2 and follow the co-ordinates that he'd been given. Scott would brief him en-route. He had Gordon with him and Alan, was of course piloting Thunderbird 1, but not a single one of them had an inkling what was going on,
"Base to Thunderbird 2."
"Scott!" Virgil exclaimed, "What's going down?"
"It's Dad and Suzan."
"Oh God . . ." Virgil sucked in a deep breath, "Right . . . what's the situation?" He asked calmly,
"They're trapped . . . there's a bomb . . . they can't leave the room so it must be on some kind of motion sensor. We've got four and a half hours to get there, disable the bomb and get them out before the whole joint blows!"
"Right!"
"What's your ETA?"
"ETA 90 minutes . . ."
"Good . . . right . . . let me know when you reach the Danger Zone . . . Alan'll be there in 50 minutes or so . . . let's just hope no one does anything stupid . . ."
"Right." Virgil agreed, "Over and out." He sighed before setting it to auto-pilot and turning to Gordon who took a deep breath,
"This'll be tough . . ." He whispered. Virgil nodded slowly.
- - -
"Anything new?" Scott asked John who shook his head,
"Nope . . . she just keeps saying the same over and over . . . she sounds scared . . ."
"She's just a kid . . ." Scott murmured, "She is scared . . ."
- - -
"A bomb . . . a bomb . . ." Suzan sobbed into her knees, "Four hours now . . . only four hours . . . don't wanna die . . . can't get out . . . can't get out . . . trapped . . . need help . . ."
"WILL YOU SHUT HER UP!" Dick fumed, pointing at Suzan rocking back and forth in the corner, "She's driving me insane!"
Suzan jerked her head up and glowered. She faltered, remembering that she couldn't afford to give herself away so her lip quivered and she forced another quiet sob,
"I . . . I'm sorry . . ." She whimpered, "I'm just . . . so scared . . ."
"WELL . . ." Dick began but was cut off by Tsuki,
"I've got an idea!" She declared, "Look! An air vent! I can climb through and get out and get help!"
Suzan looked up at her Father, biting her lower lip,
"I don't think that's a very good idea . . . if they've got the knowledge to rig one room . . ."
"Shut up!" Dick growled, "It's a great idea!"
"I'm small enough to crawl through . . ." Tsuki said, removing her cropped denim jacket,
"Go for it, Tsuki, dear!" Sakura beamed as Dick gave her a leg up to the air vent,
"Please stop!" Suzan begged, "It's far too risky!"
"Shut up you cry baby!" Tsuki snapped before disappearing into the vent,
"GOOD LUCK!" Sakura called out after her daughter. Suzan sighed, edging towards her Father,
"I think I got through . . . though . . . the voice was very muffled." She whispered,
"I think it got damaged in the scuffle earlier." Jeff said seriously, "I just hope it's working enough to get through to John at least."
Suzan nodded in agreement,
"Dad! Your arm!" She exclaimed noticing for the first time it was swollen and twisted.
"It's fine." He re-assured, "I'll survive. How's your head?"
"Dad, quit fussing . . . I'm fine! Really I am!"
- - -
"Thunderbird 1 to base."
"Go ahead, Alan." Scott said, practically jumping over the desk,
"I'm just coming up now . . ." He said, "Just crossed the coastline . . . ETA five minutes."
"Great . . . get there, assess the situation and let me know what's going on, alright?"
"Right!"
Scott slouched into his Father's chair, placing his face in his hands as tears began to well in his eyes. He sniffled,
"I have to be strong . . ." He whispered, "I can't let the others down . . . I can't let Dad down . . . I have to be strong . . . I have to be calm and in control . . . they're depending on me to lead them . . . to save them . . ."
"Scott?"
"Grandma!" Scott gasped, wiping at his eyes furiously,
"Scott, what's going on? What's wrong?"
- - -
"Ok! I'm outside!" Tsuki called through the door,
"That's great honey!" Sakura called back,
"I'm gonna go and get help!"
"No! Stop!" Jeff yelled, "Don't touch the door!"
"Will you relax, Tracy? We got the better of those crooks!" Dick snorted, "Go ahead girl! Run and get help . . ."
"Ok!"
- - -
Back at base, Grandma Tracy dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief as Alan's vidi-portrait began to flash. Scott frowned,
"He only just radioed in a few minutes ago . . ." He mumbled, "Alan? What's up?"
"THE BUILDING JUST EXPLODED!" Alan cried, "I was just pulling beginning to land on the football pitch and boom!"
"What? But we had another three and a half hours to go!"
"Someone must've triggered it."
Scott placed his hands on top of his head. He didn't know what to do next. He hadn't a clue what to tell Alan,
"Think Scott think!" He muttered to himself as Ruth's sobs grew increasingly louder behind him,
"What do I do Scott?" Alan asked in a panic, "Scott! SCOTT!"
"I . . . uh . . ." Scott faltered, tears were rolling down his cheeks, he knew he had to be strong, but how could he? How could he be strong at the thought of his Father and Sister being dead? Finally, he pulled himself together, "Get the scanner, check for life signs. Virgil will be there soon . . . until then BE CAREFUL! If you see anyone . . . in the wreckage try to get them out."
"Right! Over and out!"
Scott turned and looked at Ruth who sniffled,
"Will they be ok?"
Scott forced a weak smile,
"I hope so Grandma . . . I hope so . . ."
- - -
"SUZAN! SUZAN!"
"I'm here . . . Dad . . ." Suzan wheezed before coughing, "Can you move?"
". . . no . . . you?"
". . . uh . . ." Suzan struggled, "A little . . . I think my foot's trapped . . . what happened? Did the bomb go off?"
"I think so." Jeff answered, "Can you reach the watch I gave you . . .?"
"I think so . . ." Suzan murmured, reaching down into her pocket. She struggled a little to pull it out but finally got it, holding it in front of her face, "It's dead . . ." She whimpered, "Is . . . is anyone else alive, do you think?"
"I don't know."
"Should I call out?"
"No, Suzan . . . don't. If you shout, you might bring everything down on top even more."
"Right. Gotcha. Y'know . . . this isn't the first time I've been buried alive in the last month . . ." She chuckled. Jeff cracked a smile, typical of his daughter to try and lighten the mood, even though everything seemed bleak,
"Typical of you to get yourself into dirty situations like this."
"Well . . . you know me . . ." She laughed, "Uhm . . . Dad . . .?"
"Hmmm . . .?" Jeff mumbled, beginning to drift,
"We will get out of this, right?"
Jeff coughed,
"Course honey . . ." He mumbled, "Of course . . ."
"Dad . . .?" She called quietly, "Dad! Dad!"
- - - To be continued . . .