Devil's Island (Matt Drake Book 20) by David Leadbeater

Author:David Leadbeater
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2019-01-11T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Pursuit came fast.

To Mai it felt deliberate. Up until now their pursuers had moved at a similar pace but now she heard and sensed an urgency. Were they trying to close the gap?

They couldn’t be nearing the exit so why would they do that now? When she voiced her concern to Luther he looked at her and uttered one word: “Trap.”

It happened fast. One minute they were negotiating the dark, roughhewn tunnels, the next they had emerged into a vast cavern that needed no artificial light. Mai stumbled, brain shocked as the walls vanished to left and right. Heat and light hit her at the same time, making her throw her arms in front of her face.

“Don’t stop.” Luther propelled her forward. “They’re less than a minute behind.”

It looked bad. Mai had been in some dangerous scrapes through the years—from Tokyo Coscon to Washington DC—but this could well be the worst. Their path ended about twenty feet ahead where a lava pit dissected the cave. The glow shining up from it was hellish and hot. Gobbets of lava exploded from below, some shooting straight up into the air whilst others came diagonally, landing on the cave floor.

The gap was twelve feet wide. A single plank of solid wood was the only way across. Mai guessed it measured about two feet in width.

The plank’s underside was hit by a lava-bomb even as she watched. Then, a harsh blast flew up and splatted the ceiling, before raining down fire, dripping like melting glass. Within seconds she had assessed the whole cave.

“There’s only one way to go.” Luther stalked forward, making sure his backpack was secure.

“We could stop and fight,” Dino said. “It worked last time.”

Mai wiped sweat from her forehead. “But at some point, we’ll still have to cross that.” She pointed at the plank. “Better now so that at least some of us survive.”

Karin eyes opened wide at her words, as if she’d just realized how deadly this underground pursuit was. Mai placed a hand on her arm. “We’re not all gonna make it,” the Japanese woman said softly. “I’m sorry.”

Luther was at the edge of the lava pit, looking down. Mai joined him, Dino and Karin at her side. It was a white-hot mess below. Fire bubbled, spat and boiled. A shimmering wall of heat dried out the water in their eyes.

“You first.” Luther nodded at Karin. “Then Mai, Dino and me. Move.”

Mai knew he wasn’t being solicitous. It was simply the best order to cross, keeping at least one experienced member of the team with a younger one. And she was nimbler, able to cross faster. If Luther went first he’d slow the whole group down.

But crossing was a whole new matter. Without the spitting lava and a long drop it would have been simple. Karin held her arms out for balance and put one foot in front of the other, teetering at first. She stared ahead but down, keeping the plank at the forefront of her vision. It was the next gout of flame she was waiting for—they all were.

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