#us87

“What does that mean?” Sam asked.

“It means we won’t have a lot of time to high tail it out of here.”

“How will Malone get out?” Alex asked.

“I don’t think he plans on getting out,” Marlon said.

“Sounds like he didn’t plan on us getting out alive, either,” Alex muttered.

They stared at the dynamite once they finished setting it up.

“This was a suicide mission all along,” Sam hissed.

“Let’s just wait and see what happens,” Gil said, exchanging an uneasy glance with Marlon. “Nothing we can do but wait.”

*****

The hours passed uneventfully as they waited in the dark tunnels, their flashlights off to save what little batteries they had left. They leaned against the walls, sitting on the floor in an uneasy silence as the time ticked by. They jumped when the radio finally buzzed to life, breaking the silence and echoing off the walls. The static drowned out the faint, panicked voice. Shane held the radio before him, straining to make out the broken words.

“… too close… they’re… now… it now…!”

Gil’s flashlight clicked on, illuminating the area around them. “That’s good enough for me,” he said.

“No,” Shane hissed, still straining to interpret the static voice. “We can’t block them in. We don’t know what he’s saying.”

“I think we can put the pieces together,” Gil snapped. “I’m not sticking around to find out.”

“What about the line?” Alex said, growing panicked. “You said so yourself - it’s not long enough to give us enough time.”

“What do you want to do about it, Alex?” Gil shouted. “Sit here and wait for those brutes to rip us to shreds?”

“We’ll be crushed,” Sam said.

“I won’t go out at the hands of those brutes,” Gil hissed, getting to his feet and moving to the dynamite.

Shane stood abruptly, his heart racing. “Wait.” He wanted a chance. Just one last chance to survive, to see Jas again.