Now might be their only chance.
But she didn"t seem to hear him, transfixed like the others.
Alberto"s cry finally cut out. As if knowing its prey was dead, a final bolt of energy tossed the man"s corpse to the sh.o.r.eline of the gla.s.s pool.
No one moved. The smell of burnt flesh wafted.
Everyone stared at the deadly labyrinth.
The Minotaur had arrived.
7:35 A A.M.
GENERAL RENDE retreated back up the steps to the kitchen. He had been called down by one of his soldiers when the brilliant star had ignited below. He wanted to see what was happening-but from a safe distance away. retreated back up the steps to the kitchen. He had been called down by one of his soldiers when the brilliant star had ignited below. He wanted to see what was happening-but from a safe distance away.
Then the light had expired.
Disappointed, he had turned away as a tortured wail erupted.
It stood the small hairs on his neck on end.
He fled back up to the kitchen. One of his men, wearing a French uniform, rushed up to him. "The first truck is here!" he said hurriedly.
Rende shook off the momentary anxiety.
He had a job to do.
"Radio everyone who"s not on guard duty. It"s time to empty the vault."
7:36 A A.M.
RACHEL KNEW they were in trouble. they were in trouble.
Raoul roared back to his feet, swinging toward Gray. "You knew this!"
Gray backed a step down the wall. "How could I know he"d be fried?"
Raoul lifted his pistol and pointed it. "Time to learn a lesson."
But the gun was not pointed at Gray.
"No!" Rachel moaned.
The pistol blasted. Across the floor, Uncle Vigor clutched his belly with a shocked groan. His feet slid out from under him, and he sank to the floor.
Seichan moved to his side, slipping to him like a black cat. She kept Vigor"s feet from touching the gla.s.s.
But Raoul wasn"t done with them. He pointed his pistol next toward Kat. She was only three meters away. The gun pointed at her head.
"Don"t!" Gray said. "I had no idea that would happen! But I now know the mistake Alberto made!"
Raoul turned to him, anger in every muscle. But Rachel recognized his fury was not at the loss of Alberto, but due to the fact that the sudden and dramatic death had frightened him. And he didn"t like being scared.
"What?" Raoul growled.
Gray pointed to the labyrinth. "You can"t just walk out to the keyhole. You have to follow the path." He waved to the twisted maze.
Raoul"s eyes narrowed, the fire ebbed. Understanding lessened the fear.
"Makes sense," Raoul said. He crossed to the corpse, bent down and broke the fire-contorted fingers, still clutched around the key. He freed the length of gold and wiped the charred flesh from its surface.
He waved one of his men down from above. He pointed out to the center. "Take this out there," he ordered, and held out the gold key.
The young soldier balked. He had seen what had happened to Alberto.
Raoul pointed his pistol at the man"s forehead. "Or die here. Your choice."
The man reached out and took the key.
"Get going," Raoul said. "We"re on a timetable here." He kept his pistol pointed at the man"s back.
The soldier crossed to the entry point of the maze. Leaning back, he placed one toe on the gla.s.s, then yanked it back. Nothing happened. More confident, but wary, he reached again and placed his foot down on the surface.
Still no electrical display.
Clenching his teeth, the soldier stepped fully out onto the gla.s.s floor.
"Stay away from the platinum etchings," Gray warned.
The soldier nodded, glancing appreciatively toward Gray. He took another step.
Without warning, a stab of crimson fire jetted out of a pair of windows. The star flickered into existence, then died again.
The soldier had frozen in place. Then his legs sagged under him. He fell backward out of the maze. As he struck the ground, his body split in halves, sheared across the waist by the laser. A tangled nest of intestines snaked out from the upper half.
Raoul backed away, eyes flashing fire. The pistol again lifted. "Any more bright ideas?"
Gray remained stock-still. "I...I don"t know."
"Maybe it"s a timing thing," Monk called over. "Maybe you have to keep moving. Like that movie Speed. Speed."
Gray glanced to his teammate, then back again, unconvinced.
"I"ve had enough with losing my own men," Raoul said, fury building. "And I"m done waiting while you piece this puzzle together. So you"ll have to simply show show me how it"s done." me how it"s done."
He motioned Gray forward.
Gray stood in place, obviously attempting to find some answer.
"I can always begin shooting your friends again. I know it helps my stress." Raoul pointed the gun again at Kat.
Gray finally moved, stepping over the p.r.o.ne body.
"Don"t forget the key," Raoul said.
Gray bent to pick it up.
It then struck Rachel. Of course Of course.
Gray straightened and moved to the entry point of the maze. He began to step out, bunching up a bit to run, ready to follow Monk"s advice.
"No!" Rachel called out. She hated to help Raoul reach his goal. She had been prepared to die to keep the Court from gaining what lay hidden here. But she couldn"t watch Gray die either, cut in half or electrocuted.
She remembered Gray"s whisper about the Minotaur. He refused to give up. As long as they still lived, there was hope. She believed him. And more importantly, she trusted him.
Gray turned to her.
In his eyes, she saw the same trust shining there.
For her.
The weight of it silenced her.
"What?" Raoul barked.
"It"s not speed," Rachel said, startled. "Time is valued by these alchemists. They left clues, from an hourgla.s.s to this mirrored clockface. They would not use time to kill."
"Then what?" Gray asked, eyes still heavy upon her. But it was a burden she was willing to bear.
Rachel spoke quickly. "The mazes in all the cathedrals. They represented symbolic journeys. From this world to the next. To spiritual enlightenment in the center." She pointed to the dead body, cut in half at the waist, the height of the mirrored windows. "But to reach there, pilgrims crawled. On hands and knees."
Gray nodded. "Below the level of these windows."
Across the floor, her uncle groaned, seated on the floor, blood seeping between his fingers. Seichan sat with him. Rachel knew it wasn"t the pain that elicited the moaned response. She saw it in her uncle"s eyes. He had already figured out this last riddle, too. But he had kept silent.
By speaking, Rachel had betrayed the future, risking the world.
Her eyes found Gray. She had made her choice. With no regret.
Even Raoul believed her.
He waved for Gray to hand over the key. "I"ll take it there myself-but you"re going first."
Plainly Raoul did not have full full trust in her idea. Gray pa.s.sed him the key. trust in her idea. Gray pa.s.sed him the key.
"As a matter of fact," Raoul said, pointing his gun at Rachel, "since it"s your idea, why don"t you come along, too? To help keep your man honest."
Rachel stumbled forward. Her hands were cut free. She crouched down with Gray. He nodded to her, transmitting a silent message.
We"ll be okay.
She had little reason to feel confident, but she nodded back.
"Let"s get going," Raoul said.
Gray went first, crawling out onto the maze without hesitation, fully trusting in Rachel"s a.s.sessment.
She was held back by Raoul until Gray was a full body-length away.
The gla.s.s floor remained quiet.
"Okay, now you," she was ordered.
Rachel set out, following Gray"s path. She felt a vibration through her palms. The face of the gla.s.s was warm. As she moved, she heard a distant hum, not mechanical or electric, more like the murmur of a vast crowd across a distance. Maybe it was the blood rushing through her ears, pounded by her worried heart.
Raoul yelled behind her to his men. "Shoot any of the others if they move! The same goes for the two out here. Upon my orders, take them out."
So if the maze didn"t kill them, Raoul would.
Rachel continued onward. With only one hope.
Gray.
7:49 A A.M.
RENDE PLACED a hand on the demolition expert"s shoulder. "Are the charges primed?" a hand on the demolition expert"s shoulder. "Are the charges primed?"
"All sixteen of them," the man answered. "Just tap this b.u.t.ton three times. The grenades are daisy-chained on a ten-minute fuse."
Perfect.
He turned to the row of sixteen men. Other wheelbarrows stood out in the hall, waiting to be loaded. Five handtrucks also stood ready. The first truck had been carefully backed to the main gate, and the second was on its way. It was time to empty the vault.
"Get to work, men. Double time."
7:50 A A.M.
GRAY"S KNEES ached. ached.
Three-quarters around the maze, it became torture on his kneecaps. The smooth gla.s.s now felt like rough concrete. But he dared not stop. Not until he reached the center.
As he made his turns around the circuit, he crossed alongside the neighboring paths with Rachel and Raoul. It would only take a hip check to knock Raoul off his path. Even Raoul suspected this, pointing his gun at Gray"s face as they pa.s.sed.
But there was no need for the caution. Gray knew if he crossed the platinum etched lines with even a hand or a hip, he"d be killed as quickly as Raoul. And with the gla.s.s face activated, Rachel would probably be electrocuted, too.
So he let Raoul pa.s.s unmolested.
When he crossed paths with Rachel, their eyes remained fixed upon each other. Neither spoke. A bond had grown between them, one built on danger and trust. Gray"s heart ached with every pa.s.s: to hold her, to comfort her. But there was no stopping.