A/N: Thanks to BurnedSpy, zenfrodo, max2013, Jackie, Stork Hardy, Guest, Caranath, Kenna, Lady Emily, ILoveMom, Guest, Guest, and Guest for your reviews. You are all awesome! Thank you also to those reading. We are only a couple chapters away from the end now!

Chapter 39

Nancy swallowed hard to quell the panic that was rising in her throat as she heard the heavy footsteps echoing in the tunnel.

She sliced through the last bit of plastic binding her ankles and discarded it.

Stumbling to the wash basin, she reached for the pitcher and tested its weight in her hands.

She smiled. It was ironstone. Nice and heavy.

Positioning herself behind the door to the tiny room, she took a deep breath, and waited.

OOOoooOOO

Emily stared into the cavern from her hiding place on the ledge. Joe was still unconscious. Her heart twisted in her chest. She was not going to let this madman hurt him. He'd saved her life more times than she could remember. It was her turn to save his now.

She blinked back tears.

What on earth could she do to help him?

Delacroix and his monk were talking about Frank and Nancy. Emily strained to listen. The stalagmite formations around her offered cover, but they muffled the sounds coming from below. When she was able to make out their conversation, her eyes widened.

"This guy is a freak," she whispered to Bess.

"No kidding. What are we going to do to help them get out of here?" Bess asked in a low voice.

Emily moved away from the ledge and sat back heavily against the stone wall of the tunnel. She felt completely helpless.

Wiping away two errant tears, she said softly, "I don't know. This isn't my field of expertise."

Bess crawled over to Emily. "Yeah, so what? The ones who are experts in this field managed to get themselves kidnapped, so maybe being an amateur here isn't such a bad thing."

Emily managed a smile in spite of the almost paralyzing fear she was now feeling.

"Okay, so what do you think we should do, Miss Amateur?"

Bess thought for a moment.

"Okay, here's what we know." She held up her index finger. "One…Frank and Joe are unconscious and obviously drugged."

Emily nodded.

"Two…Nancy has been separated from them and we don't know her location at the moment. But we do know that she's being 'cleansed' in preparation for some perverted sex ritual. Which I do not want to have to see, so we need to come up with a plan before that happens."

Emily made a face. "I agree."

"Three…there are at least two other people here besides Delacroix. The thug with him, and someone else who's with Nancy. Probably another guy, because she would have beaten up a woman."

"Right," Emily said. "So the odds are sucky, but not awful. Unless there are other people hidden somewhere else in this cave that we don't know about."

"That's a possibility."

"I want to get another look at that cavern," Bess said, as she crawled over to the ledge again. "Emily, come here!"

Emily hurried to her side and Bess pointed. "I think Frank's just pretending to be asleep. He opened his eyes when Delacroix turned his back to him."

"That definitely helps us with the odds," Emily whispered.

OOOoooOOO

Frank remained still as Delacroix waved the incense all around him. He couldn't risk opening his eyes even a tiny bit, and that made him nervous.

Delacroix bent over him and ran a finger over his forehead. Something wet and smooth remained. Oil. He was anointing him for something. Most likely his twisted sex ritual. He felt the man at his feet and then felt the zip ties around his ankles being severed.

Please, oh, please undo the one around my hands.

He waited, but Delacroix did nothing, except continue chanting over him in Latin.

Well, it's better than nothing, Frank thought.

He heard the other monk address Delacroix, and felt the doctor's robes as he brushed past. Frank cautiously opened one eye.

"What are we going to do about him? His girlfriend isn't here."

They were obviously talking about Joe.

"Oh, she will be," Delacroix said. "I have men looking for her now. And when they find her, they will bring her here. She will take part in the ritual as well. She will be purified, then she will atone for her sins by performing the conjugal act here on the altar as part of her repentance."

Frank almost laughed out loud. Delacroix obviously knew nothing about Joe if he thought Emily performing a sex ritual in front of a room full of men was going to happen.

And that was probably for the best. The doctor, in his zealot state of mind, had underestimated them all. That was definitely going to work in their favor.

Frank just had to bide his time.

And then all hell was going to break loose in the doctor's 'holy' shrine.

OOOoooOOO

"Did that lunatic just say I was going to have sex with Joe in public?" Emily hissed.

"Sounded like it," Bess whispered.

"Well, he is very sadly mistaken."

Emily was starting to feel angry. Just who did Delacroix think he was? She was finished with this nut case. Between the doctor and Kathy Martin, she had reached her idiot limit for the week.

And now she was going to do something about it.

A plan began to formulate in her mind, and she smiled.

Bess nudged her. "What are you thinking? You look just like the Grinch before he took off on his sled to ruin Christmas in Whoville."

Emily turned to Bess.

"I think it's time for a vision."

"Oh, Lord."

"Exactly."

OOOoooOOO

Nancy pressed herself against the far wall in the small room, clutching the pitcher.

The door cracked open.

"Sister Simone? It's Brother Henri. Shall I just leave the perfume and the water? I don't want to intrude if the cleansing process has begun."

Nancy remained silent.

"Sister?"

The door opened further and the henchman who'd been there earlier stepped inside. He had a small bucket of water in one hand and a bottle in the other. His back was to her, but Nancy knew he'd seen Simone on the floor.

"Sister Simone, what happened?"

That was the last thing he said, as Nancy brought the pitcher down hard on the back of his head.

The man staggered and dropped the bucket, flooding the room with hot water.

He grunted and spun around.

Anger flashed in his eyes.

Nancy backed away.

He lunged for her.

She shrieked.

Nancy knew she was in trouble now.

He was between her and the door.

OOOoooOOO

"Did you hear that?" Bess whispered. "It sounded like a woman. Actually, it sounded like Nancy."

"It came from somewhere behind us." Emily pointed. "Down that tunnel."

Bess scrambled to her feet.

"She's in trouble. I know that cry."

She reached down and grabbed a large rock from the floor of the cave.

"Come on," she said to Emily. "We don't have time to waste."

OOOoooOOO

Nancy bent over and snatched up the piece of glass she'd used to cut through her restraints earlier.

It was the only thing in this room that could even remotely be considered a weapon.

The man leered at her from the doorway.

"Planning on going somewhere, Miss Drew?"

"Get out of my way," Nancy said, holding the glass out in front of her.

"Oh, I don't think so," the man replied. "You are here to be cleansed. That is an important ritual, and one that I need to be sure is completed."

"Don't you dare come near me."

"Or what?"

The man's jaw was set, and his eyes looked fierce. Nancy gulped. She was going to have to go for his neck with the glass and hoped she could kick him in the groin as well. He was at least six feet tall. That wasn't going to be easy.

"Take your clothes off," the man ordered.

"Go to hell."

"You're making me angry, Miss Drew."

"Like I give a damn."

"Watch your mouth, young lady. Don't you know you're in a holy–"

Nancy watched as the henchman's eyes rolled back in his head. He fell to the ground with a sickening thud.

Bess was standing there, a smile on her face and a huge rock in her hand. Emily was right behind her.

"How? What? When did you–" Nancy sputtered.

"No time for that now," Bess said, dusting off her hands. "You grab his arms, Em, and I'll get his legs. We need to get him out of the doorway."

Nancy stood in disbelief while her friends dragged the goon completely inside the tiny room, and Emily closed the wooden door.

Bess looked up at her. "Have anything we can tie these two up with?"

"Um…" Nancy stammered.

"Come on." Bess snapped her fingers. "We have to save Frank and Joe. Delacroix has them drugged in this huge cavern and he's waiting for you to be 'cleansed' so you can have sex with Frank on the altar after he marries the two of you."

That jolted Nancy back into reality. Sex on an altar? That was new. And so not happening.

She began looking around the tiny room and pulled open the cabinet doors under the wash basin. She found a roll of duct tape.

"This should work."

Bess reached for the tape. "I don't even want to know what they do with this."

The three girls quickly tied up both Simone and the thug.

Nancy found a white dress hanging in the corner on a peg. She ripped the material and gagged both of their mouths securely.

"We don't want them shouting for help if they wake up."

Nancy paused and hugged her friends.

"I don't know how you two did this, but I owe you big."

Emily smiled. "You'd do the same for us."

Bess waved her hand in the air. "Let's save the mushy stuff for later. We need to go save your boyfriends' asses right now. They're in some deep crap."

OOOoooOOO

Frank was getting cramps in his legs from consciously trying to hold them still. But he couldn't risk being discovered. He wanted to have his plan in place before the other monk brought Nancy into the shrine. Delacroix had to be neutralized by then.

He watched as the doctor made his way to another altar directly under the Madonna statue. He opened a small marble tabernacle and pulled out the monstrance.

Bingo, Frank thought. Both artifacts right in plain sight. They won't be difficult to recover once Delacroix is taken care of.

He just wished Joe weren't so completely out of it. He could really use his help with this.

The monk approached Dr. Delacroix.

"Shall I go and get dressed now? I'm sure the cleansing ritual is almost nearing completion. Henri has already taken the water and perfume to Sister Simone. Miss Drew should be joining us shortly."

"In a few minutes," Delacroix replied. "We still have time. I want to make sure everything is perfect. Will you please check that the corporal and the pall are situated correctly on the altar, and that the chalice and paten are clean and ready for use?"

"Of course."

Frank watched as the monk adjusted some cloths and dishes on the large stone altar under the Madonna. He wanted to wait until the monk left the room before he went after Delacroix.

He couldn't handle the two of them on his own.

OOOoooOOO

The girls snuck down the tunnel and made their way back to the overlook.

Nancy's heart sank when she saw Frank lying on that stone slab. She turned to Bess.

"He's unconscious. Is he hurt?"

"He's not unconscious," Bess whispered. "I saw him open his eyes. He's faking."

"What about Joe?"

"He's out like a light." Bess touched Nancy on the arm. "Come over here. Emily has a plan."

Nancy wasn't exactly sure what kind of plan Emily could have come up with. Her experience with detective work was almost nil, and she'd never rescued someone who'd been kidnapped before. But since she wasn't sure what to do herself, Nancy was willing to listen.

They moved down the tunnel and huddled together behind a large group of stalagmites.

"Okay, Joe and I learned today that Dr. Delacroix has claimed to have visions of the Virgin Mary for years," Emily said. "When he was questioned about them by the priests as part of their investigation, he told them that a strong scent of flowers always fills the air and he sees a bright light. Then he feels the presence of the Virgin."

"So?" Nancy said. "How is that going to help us?"

"I think we can recreate a vision for Dr. Delacroix right now."

Nancy thought for a moment. That just might be what they needed to distract him. Then maybe Frank could sneak up on him and she and Bess could try and get the other thug. The odds were looking a bit more even.

"Em, I think you might have something here."

Emily's eyes sparkled with excitement, and Nancy could tell she was happy to be taken seriously.

"How could we pull off a vision?"

Emily turned to Bess.

"What do you have in your purse?"

"You brought your purse?" Nancy couldn't believe it.

"Of course," Bess said, rolling her eyes. "And you're going to be damn glad I did. I stopped at the duty-free shop in the train station."

She rummaged around inside her bag and pulled out a bottle of perfume.

Emily snatched it from her. "This could be the scent of flowers. The wind on this ledge blows in the direction of the cavern. The perfume would carry right down to the altar."

Bess took the bottle back. "I don't think the Virgin Mary wears Chanel Number Five."

"She does now," Emily said, reaching for the bottle again.

"No, no, it's all wrong for her. Too sexy. She is a virgin, you know." Bess rummaged through her bag again and pulled out another bottle. "Here. Diorissimo. It has a lily of the valley base. Much more suitable for the Madonna."

Nancy rolled her eyes. Someday this conversation would have her laughing at the irony, but not right now.

"Ok, what about the light? How can we do that?"

"Bess, do you have a mirror?" Emily asked.

"Please." Bess reached into her purse and pulled out a compact. "Will this work?"

"I think so." Emily took it and then turned on her flashlight. "If I position the flashlight on those rocks above the ledge, I can reflect the light with the compact and get it to hit right near the Madonna statue. Delacroix won't be able to see the source if I keep the compact behind those stalactites."

Nancy nodded.

"I think Bess and I should position ourselves down in the cavern. I memorized the route that jackass took when he brought me up here to be 'cleansed'. With all the giant stalagmites on the cavern floor, we should be able to find cover fairly easily."

"I think we'd better look for a hiding place from up here," Bess said.

Nancy could tell she was nervous. She didn't blame her. She was nervous herself. But right now, saving Frank and Joe was all that mattered.

"Okay, come over to the ledge with me."

Both girls crept quietly to the overhang and peered up over the rock wall.

Bess grabbed Nancy's arm.

"Look!"

Nancy followed Bess's gaze and saw that both Delacroix and his lackey were drinking from the wine chalice. Gulping from the wine chalice, actually. Nancy smiled. This was only going to make things easier.

"Wonder how long they've been doing that?" Bess asked.

"I'm just hoping it's the mandragora."

"What's mandragora?"

"A hallucinogenic made from the mandrake root. If we're lucky, it'll make them stoned out of their minds."

Bess smiled at her.

"Then that will be the true miracle here."

"I think so, too," Nancy said.

She turned and nodded to Emily, giving her a thumbs-up sign.

"Time to get this show on the road."