The Cradle Conspiracy

“We’re out of time. I think if I pull out a few more rocks, you can get through.”

She tried to walk, but her legs buckled beneath her.

He grabbed her, and she held her body stiff. “Forget me. Dig.” She pushed on his chest. “Go!”

Another rumble resonated through the earth surrounding them. The mine was collapsing. They had to get out.

Daniel yanked a rock out, then another, speed counting more than finesse now. Within minutes a small hole had appeared.

He shone the light through the opening. The entire cavern beyond was intact. For now.

Raven’s small hand clutched his arm as she crawled up beside him. “I can help.”

“Raven...”

With two hands she grabbed a rock and tossed it into the pile he’d started. “Shut up and dig.”

“Stubborn woman,” he grumbled, but he admired her grit.

They worked side by side, and before long, they’d created an opening large enough for her and Trouble to escape. He peered through the hole. “Can you slide through?”

She studied the gap. “I think so. What about you?”

“I’ll be fine. Trouble,” Daniel ordered, “go on.”

The dog looked at Daniel; then the stupid mutt seemed to roll his eyes. He lifted his paws to the hole and climbed through.

Daniel grasped her waist. “Go on. I’ll be right behind you.”

“Your shoulders won’t fit through that opening.”

“I’ll move a few more rocks, then follow you.”

She hesitated. “Promise?”

“Believe me, honey, I want out of here worse than you do.”

Finally she nodded and reached her arms into the hole. Trouble whined from the other side. Her body slithered through. The rocks groaned in protest and shuddered around her.

Raven stilled.

Dust and gravel landed on her back.

“Don’t stop! Move!” Daniel batted a falling rock away.

Daniel shoved her hips forward, and she tumbled to the ground with a moan, clutching her head. Trouble nudged her cheek, giving her a quick lick.

“Hey! Are you all right?” Daniel asked, as loud as he dared given the avalanche just waiting to happen.

“Yes.”

She rose unsteadily and faced him, too wobbly for his liking. He peered at her through the frame of rocks. “Get outside. Stay at least twenty feet from the mine’s entrance.”

The obstinate woman just shook her head and came toward him. “I won’t leave you. I can dig from this side.”

Another warning grumbled around them.

“Look, lady. This place is coming down soon. A few more rocks, and I’m running like hell out of here. I don’t need to be concerned about you, too.”

She hesitated.

Daniel tossed a stone aside. “Don’t worry. It takes more than a cave-in to do me in. This little challenge doesn’t even break my top five. Now get the hell outside.”

With one last look, she stumbled around the bend toward the mine opening.

“Go,” Daniel said to Trouble. “Guard her.”

A soft whine escaped the dog, but he followed her.

Daniel widened the hole, his adrenaline ratcheting higher with every second. The stubborn woman didn’t weigh more than a hundred twenty pounds, and she’d nearly brought the unstable wall down on them. At over two hundred, he might get one shot to reach the other side, but these stones were like the last blocks in Jenga. Very precarious...and dangerous.

If he was going to die, he wanted it to be out in the open, under the sky, not like a rat trapped in a hole. At least the fight to stay alive was beating back the past—just barely.

He tried to squeeze through, but his hulking six-foot-four frame scraped the edges of the passageway. Damn football shoulders.

Two more rocks should do it.

He moved one, and a spray of dirt sifted over him.

One more to go.

Daniel took a deep breath then tugged out the rock and heard the cracking start.

He shoved through the hole, ignoring the rocks hitting his body. He dragged his bad leg through just as the roar grew louder.

Then the whole damn mountain started coming down on top of him.

* * *

“DANIEL!” THE GROUND around Raven shook, tossing her to her knees as debris scattered over her.

She’d made it to within three feet of leaving the tunnel, and despite several attempts, she couldn’t stagger to her feet. Her aching head spun in the dimming light from outside.

Oh, God, she couldn’t leave Daniel alone. He’d rescued her. She had to get up and help him somehow.

Suddenly he burst around the corner, plowed into her and knocked her flat.

“You’re supposed to be outside!” He scooped her into his arms as if she weighed nothing and hauled her outside through a cloud of dust.