John Sneeden - The Hades Conspiracy

As they mounted the stairs, Zane couldn’t ignore the feeling the fight wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.

Keiko took the lead, illuminating the tunnel with her soft blue light. Zane marched behind, his rifle at the ready. He doubted the rest of the order had simply fled to the surface. They were probably waiting somewhere along the path, ready to ambush them if the trap failed.

“Zane,” Carmen called from the back.

He turned to see Emily bent over with her hands on her knees. The long trek in the heat was finally overwhelming her. They had all taken some water along the way, but it hadn’t been enough to hydrate her system. Stegmann approached and gave her more from his canteen. She turned it up and drank in gulps until it was gone then wiped her mouth.

“Better?” Zane asked.

She nodded and gave him a smile. “I’m sorry, I—”

Zane placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t apologize. You’ve been amazing.” He looked at Stegmann. “Let’s take a quick break and hydrate a little more.”

The men carrying the bodies seemed to appreciate the idea.

Carmen stood next to Zane. “Where are we?”

“If my bearings are correct, the cut-through should be just ahead.”

“That means another half hour to the top,” Carmen said.

Zane looked at Stegmann. “I’m assuming you have a phone with you?”

“I do, but unfortunately, I won’t have a signal until we get out of here.” He patted the rock wall. “It’s too thick.”

“As soon as you get a signal, let me know.”

Stegmann nodded.

A few minutes later, everyone collected their things. They were all ready to finish the trek back. Pratt took over for one of the soldiers carrying the bodies. As Zane had guessed, they reached the cave-in shortly after they resumed walking.

Only one could go through at a time, so Zane motioned Keiko forward. As she was about to enter, a bright light shone on them from the other end. It was so bright, Zane was forced to lift his arm to shield his eyes.

A familiar, laughing voice carried down to them. “I always suspected you were one who liked being in the spotlight.”

Lawson .

Zane backed away and pointed his rifle in the direction of the sound.

“That would be monumentally stupid,” Roger said. “That is, unless you want your beautiful partner’s brains blown out. Now, toss your gun down.”

Zane didn’t have to look to know he was talking about Carmen, who stood next to him. He had little choice but to comply. Lawson was likely hunkered down behind one of the boulders, making it virtually impossible to hit him.

Zane tossed his rifle to the tunnel floor. “What do you want, Roger?”

“What do I want? What could a loser like you possibly have that would interest me?” He chuckled.

As Roger spoke, Zane noted his position on the left side of the tunnel. At this point, there weren’t many options, but he realized it might be useful. If Zane could somehow signal the rest of the team, they might be able to fan out and fire toward the light. But that would only be as a last resort. There were two civilians in their midst, and Zane couldn’t do anything that might put their lives in danger. For now, his goal was to let Lawson keep talking and hope a better plan came to mind.

Zane stared down the tunnel. “If you don’t want anything, why are you here? You should be miles away by now.”

“You embarrassed me earlier tonight, and in so doing, you almost cost me a fortune. It’s time for a little payback.”

“Then take me with you, and leave the others here. I know you have something special planned for me. If you were going to shoot me, you could’ve already done it.”

“Shooting you would be much too easy. In some sense, it would be letting you off the hook. Your life would be snuffed out in a second, and that wouldn’t provide me much enjoyment.” Roger laughed. “No, you’re going to die slowly.”

Zane had no idea what he had in mind, but in the end, it didn’t matter. Whatever Lawson had up his sleeve, it was obviously going to take more time than pulling a trigger. And if that was the case, it meant he had more time to figure a way out.

As he was about to ask another question, his eyes fell on something about thirty feet away. The light had been so bright he hadn’t seen it before. On the left side of the tunnel, a wire ran along the ceiling in their direction. About halfway down, it turned toward the center and disappeared into a mass of irregular rocks that bulged downward.

He immediately recognized the plan. Lawson was going to blow up the tunnel and seal them in.

Zane needed time to warn the others. “Be a man, and let the women out, Roger.”

“If you were a man, you wouldn’t have brought them down here. Their blood is going to be on your hands.”

“Do you really think you’ll get away with this? Our people are searching the area as we speak.”

Roger laughed. “I doubt that.”

The Australian said something to one of his men. Seconds later, the light went out, plunging the tunnel into darkness.

“Good bye.”

There was a clicking noise on the far end, and Zane knew what came next. “Get back, everybody! Get back!”

He turned and ran, as did the others. But it was too late. A flash of light filled the space, followed by a massive explosion. The blast wave hit them like a runaway car, launching Zane into the air.

By the time the charge detonated, Roger was already squatting on the tunnel floor, hands pressed against either side of his head. He and the three gunmen had backed around a bend to protect themselves from the effects of the blast, but they still felt the shock waves rolling through the rock beneath their feet.

In the wake of the explosion, Roger heard boulders, rocks, and other material filling the space. A satisfied grin spread over his face at the thought about how things would now play out. The dwindling oxygen on the other side would bring about the slow death of those who’d caused him so much embarrassment. Not only would they die, they would have plenty of time to think about it.

He spoke into the darkness. “Turn on the light.”

One of his men flicked on a pistol-grip spotlight, illuminating the tunnel. A cloud of dust, dirt, and debris snaked around the corner. After giving it a couple of minutes to settle, Lawson led the men around the bend to the blast site. The explosives had worked to perfection. The tunnel was completely blocked. Nothing would pass through. Not even air.

“Check it,” Roger said. “Make sure it’s completely sealed off.”

The guards stepped forward and used spotlights to examine every nook and cranny. Five minutes later, one of the men answered. “It’s plugged completely, sir.”

“Check it again.”

“It’s sealed as tight as—”

“I said, check it again!”

The man was about to protest then thought better of it.

After they turned around, Roger slid a hand into his pocket and closed his fingers around the grip of a suppressed Glock 17. He slid it out slowly, careful not to make any noise. He stepped behind two guards and shot them in the head, dropping both in succession. Realizing what was happening, the third man swung around, fumbling for his gun. The pistol coughed again, knocking the man backward. He was dead before he hit the ground.

Roger moved the bodies up against the tunnel wall. He’d dispose of them later. Even he found it a bit distasteful to kill his own men, but that was the problem. There were too many people involved. At some point, someone would talk, and that was unacceptable. As the old saying went, dead men don’t talk.