His glove scraped along the rough rock until he felt cool air blow across his face. He kept skimming his hand over the wall until he found what he thought might be an opening.
“I found the opening.” He felt along the edge and realized it was only about five feet high by about three feet wide.
“He must know another way out of there,” Luna said.
“Maybe there’s another opening somewhere in the woods behind the ruins.” Boone ducked down and headed into the carved tunnel.
“That would explain the disappearing heat signature.” Luna tapped keys in the background. “Cole and Hawk are already searching in that area while Viking provides overwatch.”
“Going silent,” he whispered.
His broad shoulders grazed along the jagged rocks jutting out from both sides of the tunnel. The back of his protective vest scraped and caught against the rough-hewn ceiling as he rushed to keep up with the fading light of Udall’s flashlight.
With each step, the ground became wetter until his boots were kicking up water.
A terrified scream echoed from the other end of the tunnel, and Udall’s light went out.
“You bitch!” he growled.
The screaming came closer, and a bright green heat signature charged toward Boone. The girl was looking back over her shoulder and slammed right into him. He caught her before she fell, and she starting screaming, flailing her arms, and fighting against his hold.
“It’s okay. I’m here to help you.” It had been a while since he’d spoken in Urdu and hoped she could understand him. “Where is he?”
“I … I … scratch him and … and push him.” She was sobbing so hard, she could barely talk. “He … he fall and … and I run away.” She pointed toward the darkest part of the tunnel. “He … there.”
He slipped his small flashlight from a vest pocket.
He whispered, “Here, take this and go that way.” He turned her toward the main chamber. “Someone will be there to help you.” He clicked on the flashlight and gave her a gentle nudge forward.
She gave a frantic nod and started running.
“Eddie, Calliope, there’s a girl coming your way,” Luna said.
He heard the splat of the poor girl’s bare feet in the mud as she raced away, and the flashlight beam bounced with each step.
Boone waited until she was completely out of sight before he resumed his search for Udall.
A few minutes later, Calliope confirmed, “We’ve got the girl.”
“All girls have been secured,” Luna said. “Now go get that asshole.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Boone took off after Udall and only made it about fifty feet when he came to a wider space with what looked like three more tunnel entrances.
He closed his eyes and tuned in to the sounds around him.
Water dripped from multiple places, and he felt a whisper of air across his face.
There was a rustling of movement to his right, followed by the unmistakable sound of a pin being pulled from a grenade.
Something thumped onto the ground and rolled nearby.
“Shit!” He turned, started running back the way he came, and an explosion ripped through the tunnel.
The sound hammered off the walls, and the force of the blast slammed him to the ground. His eardrums popped, and he threw his arms over his head just as a blast of heat barreled over him. Rock, debris, and dirt dropped from the ceiling and landed on his left side.
“Argh,” he groaned and heard Luna calling out his name.
“BOONE!”
