Chapter Five

For a long moment, Lara was stunned as the sound of gunfire rang in her ears. It was happening again, in spite of all the precautions she had taken. Why wasn't there any warning? What had happened to the alarm system?

The ceased abruptly and Lara heard voices from within her bedroom. That snapped her out of her daze. Turning to her left, she vaulted over the banister and down onto the steps below. A second vault landed her on the floor, between the long staircases. Now there were loud voices from upstairs.

Moving quickly but quietly on bare feet, she ran past the big grandfather clock to the door leading to the basement. To her amazement, the door stood wide open. Was someone down there?

She advanced slowly down the steps, descending deeper and deeper into the blackness. Once she turned the corner in the corridor, it soon became pitch dark, the only source of light behind her. Working entirely by touch, she found the entrance to the pistol range.

Once inside, she kept her right hand against the wall, feeling her way along it until she reached the cabinet where she kept her guns and ammunition. Her hand found the second drawer, pulled it open and closed around the barrel of the flashlight inside. A press of the switch and she blinked at the sudden light. Thank goodness. Now to get her....

Lara gaped at the empty hook on the wall. Her guns were gone.

It took a few seconds for that to register in her mind. She tried to recall when she had used them last. It was just this morning. And she had left them here. Where could they be?

A frantic ten second search later she was convinced that she was unarmed against whoever had invaded her home. The rest of her weapons were locked in the gun closet in her bedroom. Now what? They were sure to search everywhere, what could she do?

Ian! He lived not too far away, he could help. Quickly she moved to the telephone, hanging on the rear wall next to the bathroom. But the instrument was dead. She was cut off from outside help.

Oh, dear God! Jeeves and Susan were somewhere upstairs and sure to be killed if the invaders found them. Quickly she ran toward the door. If she could get to her....

She halted and quickly turned off her flashlight....staring at the light reflecting from the corridor walls.

"You guys, check down there," said a low voice from somewhere around the corner above her. "She's here someplace and we ain't leavin' without her body."

Lara took a step backward, a knot of fear forming in the pit of her stomach. There was no way out except up the stairs. The light was growing more intense and she heard footsteps echoing softly from the narrow walls of the passageway.

She turned and looked back at the pistol range in front of her. There was no place to hide except the bathroom and a number of metal lockers that stood against the rear wall. No good. They would look there. She had spent a small fortune on the pistol range, but now it stood silently in the darkness, unable to help her.

* * * * *

The two men advanced cautiously down the corridor, a flashlight in one hand and a Uzi submachine gun in the other. Both were dressed in camouflage suits with ski-masks over their faces. Reaching the bend in the corridor, the men paused. One signaled to the other, who nodded, turned off his flashlight and dropped to his knees.

Seeing his partner ready, the man standing quickly stuck his flashlight around the corner. The man on the floor peered around the corner at the same time. A few seconds later, he pulled back and stood up.

A quick shake of his head and the men passed the corner and headed toward the area below. Arnie Wilsford and Simon Maher were soldiers of fortune. Both had worked with Ned Lewis before. The man paid well and promptly. His jobs were superbly planned and smartly executed, and so, when the phone calls had come, each had been glad to accept the assignment. It was Arnie who had shot out the security light at the main gate earlier.

A moment later they reached an open doorway branching to the left. Simon reached in his pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper. It only took him a moment to find his location on the map.

"This here's the pistol range," he whispered, indicating the open door.

"Let's take a look."

As they had done before, one shoved his light through the opening while the other peered around the corner. Seeing no immediate threat, they stepped inside.

"Man, look at this," said Arnie, moving the beam of his flashlight back and forth. "This is some setup."

Simon ignored him as he moved cautiously down the row of lockers, opening each in turn. Finally, he reached a door set into the back wall. It was closed. A look at the map confirmed it was a bathroom.

"Arnie," he called softly. "Over here." He pointed at the closed door and brought up his gun.

Together they stood on either side of the door. It opened inward on Arnie's side. With a glance in Simon's direction, he grasped the knob quietly and turned. Another glance at Simon got him a nod. He took a deep breath and suddenly shoved the door inward, jumping back to avoid any hostile action from someone inside.

The door flew backward and hit the wall with a moderate thud. After a few seconds of inactivity, Simon stuck his flashlight inside and peered around the corner. His caution had been unnecessary. The small room was unoccupied.

Walking together, the two men crossed the tumbling mat and stood for a moment at the low barrier which separated the mat from the targets downrange. As their flashlights played back and forth over the target mounts, it was evident that there wasn't anyplace to hide.

"Looks like we struck out here," grunted Arnie.

Simon moved his flashlight toward a dark corner. It was hard to see very well. "Yeah. You're probably right. Tell you what. Why don't you go take a look the vault? I'll check out all those targets down there, just to make sure, then we'll head back upstairs. Ned's gonna come unglued if we don't find her."

"What's so special about this Croft woman?" Arnie complained. "How come Ned's making such a big deal over it. There are easier ways. Blow up her car, her office maybe. Heck, I coulda shot her easy while she was out running yesterday. Why do we have to do it like this, with all the messing around in the dark?"

Simon glanced over at him. "You take the man's money, you do it his way, Arnie. That's the way it works." He shrugged. "As far as the Croft woman is concerned, I gather that she escaped him once before. The man ain't gonna rest 'till her puts her down."

"If you ask me, he's gone off the deep end over it."

"No one asked you, Arnie. Why don't you cool it with the small talk and go check the vault, okay?"

"Yeah, sure, Simon. Let's get it over with it. It's past my bedtime."

* * * * *

A camouflaged figure slipped silently through the darkened kitchen, pausing at the entrance to the ballroom to watch the two men crossing the big room. It was very quiet and the voices carried clearly.

"All right, let's split up. I'm going to finish checking upstairs, you check the pool, then join the others."

"No problem, Ned," said the second man, a big burly guy well over six feet tall.

The two men headed in opposite directions and from the shadows nearby Susan Oliver grunted with satisfaction. She watched Ned Lewis disappear into the front area of the house, then glanced back just in time to see the other man, who she knew to be Scott Stegler, disappear into the pool area.

She counted to ten, then hurried the length of the ballroom, staying close to the wall. Her soft boots made very little noise and soon she reached the far end, near the pool entrance. Standing with her back to the wall, she drew the twin 9mm pistols, just as she'd seen Lara Croft do so often before.

Peering around the doorframe, she had no trouble watching Scott moving around below her. The pool area was a bit lighter because of the skylight and he was poking his flashlight into the dark areas adjacent to the pool. Susan grimaced. The man was fool. Who did he think he was looking for anyway, some lost child?

She lifted her guns and pushed off the safety on each weapon. The silver chrome finish of the two automatic pistols glinted softy in the dim light as she thumbed back the hammers.

* * * * *

Ned Lewis reached the top of the steps, fuming silently at himself for screwing up. He should have waited longer to make sure Croft was asleep. He and the others had poured fifty rounds through the windows into her bed and she should have been cut to pieces. But when they broke out the rest of the glass and entered the room they found only the empty bed.

Not taking her by surprise had evened the odds considerably. The she-cat had done a good job taking out the alarm system, and now Ned hoped she had managed to steal Lara's other guns from the range downstairs as well. But even unarmed Croft was no easy mark. He had to hurry, for every passing moment made her escape more likely.

Moving quickly, he paused at the attic entrance. Should he check that first or the music room? After few seconds thought, he continued around the loft toward the music room. Croft wouldn't go up to the attic. There was no way out and she could be trapped if she went that way. It had to be the music room or the library or someplace downstairs.

* * * * *

Simon Maher watched Arnie go through the door toward the vault. Turning he stepped over the barrier into the target area. Walking slowly downrange, he panned the flashlight back and forth. There really wasn't anyplace to hide here. The target mounts were too small to conceal anyone. At the end of the room was a solid wall, painted black. By the time he got half way to it, he'd seen enough.

"Hey, Simon," called Arnie's voice behind him.

Simon took one last look around and returned to where his friend was waiting.

"See anything?" Arnie asked.

"Nah. No place to hide here. What about the vault?"

"Nothing, just a bunch of boxes stacked up. And what looks like some old relics in a sealed glass room. It's clean."

* * * * *

Moving around the back of the pool area Scott Stegler swore quietly in frustration. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack. The house was huge, and Croft could be anywhere. Maybe she wasn't even in the blasted house at all. All she had to do was bust out a window and she'd be long gone.

Well, one thing for sure. She wasn't here. Scott snapped off the flashlight and headed back toward the ballroom. Maybe the others had come up with something.

Whatever. Let's just it over with. It was time to wrap this job up and then…

He glanced up and his heart jumped up in his throat as he saw the dark figure in front of him.

"What the…" he yelled, desperately trying to pull the Uzi off his shoulder as he backpedaled away. The figure took a step toward him and Scott panicked when he saw the glint of metal. Suddenly his brain registered rounded hips and a narrow waist. It was the woman! What the heck was she doing….

A pair of bright flashes lit the room and the crack of sudden gunfire was deafening. Something kicked him hard in the chest and he staggered backwards, trying hard to bring up his gun.

The woman took another step forward and the guns in her hands roared again. Scott was spun sideways from the impact and his finger tightened on the trigger. The weapon fired and a continuous stream of gunfire burst from the barrel of the Uzi. Bullets flew everywhere, ricocheting off the floor and into the surrounding walls.

The weapon clicked empty, and Scott staggered as he tried to stay on his feet, his need to escape pushing aside the pain in his chest. He had taken two steps when the guns behind him fired a third time. Something stuck him hard in the back and he lost his balance. Scott felt himself falling and falling and…

The last thing Scott Stegler ever experienced was wetness…when he landed face down in the pool. After a few seconds his body returned to the surface, where it floated silently, the water around it slowly changing color.

The darkly clad figure approached the pool, silver pistols still aimed at the body in the water. Stopping at the water's edge, Susan watched for any sign of movement. Finally satisfied, she lowered the hammers on her guns and slipped them back into the leather hanging at her sides. Then she picked up the empty machine gun and tossed it into the pool, before heading back to the steps

Her fighting spirit thoroughly aroused by the close combat, the lioness began the search for her next victim.

Go to Chapter Six