A twig snapped behind her, and she whirled again, her heart pounding loudly in her ears and her breath was labored. The soft, furtive noises seemed deliberate—and full of malice. She wished she could convince whoever was pursuing her that she knew nothing about Koma’s secret.
Her feet moved forward again of their own volition. She wanted to break into a run, but she knew she didn’t dare. Panic would over-take her, and besides, it was too dark and the path too treacherous to run along it in the dark. She’d fall and break something. She wished she had a weapon. Anything. Her gaze swept the dark ground. A stout stick would do, but all she saw were twigs and branches too small to inflict any damage. A couple of sharp-edged rocks lay along the side of the path, and she stooped and grabbed them up. These would be better than nothing. Hefting a rock in each hand, she hurried as fast as she dared down the hill toward home.
She felt rather than saw the attack when it came. A wind of movement rushed past her, and she heard the rustle of leaves as someone propelled toward her. She turned and raised the rock in her left hand to defend herself, but a hard body rammed into her and drove her to the ground. She fought with the calloused hands that wrestled her. The scent of decaying leaves and moss enveloped her, then she smelled tobacco and mint on the man’s breath as he leaned over her and pinned her hands to the ground above her head.
“You’re a wildcat,” he panted. “I’m going to have to hurt you if you don’t lay still.”
She redoubled her efforts, but he was too strong for her. A gash caked with blood marred his forehead, and she recognized his face but couldn’t place it. “I’ll do worse than cut your head if you don’t let me up.” She tried to bite his wrist, but he jerked it out of the way, releasing her right hand. She brought it up and smashed the rock against his cheek.
He yowled, and both hands flew to his face. She managed to get her knee up and jammed it into his groin. He uttered a screech that would have been funny if the situation weren’t so desperate. With him incapacitated, she scrambled out from under him and tried to get to her feet, but he grabbed her ankle and jerked her back.
“I’ll teach you,” he growled.
“Logan, that’s enough.” The second man moved into view. Though it was too dark to see him clearly, he exuded authority and menace.
Before Leia could make another attempt at escape, he trussed her hands and feet together. The first man grabbed the rope around her wrists and jerked her to her feet. “I can’t walk like this,” she said. She’d lost a slipper in the struggle as well.
He grunted then leaned over and hefted her across his shoulder. Her head hanging upside down, she watched the path recede as the men carried her into the jungle.
Twenty-one
Deep in the magma chambers, heat glowed in a red-hot pool.
The pressure grew and forced the molten rock up through the crevices, where it found a passage along a weakened fault line. Instead of following a previous path, this lava forced its way through a crevice and raced upward as far as it could. A few feet below the surface, its strength waned, and so it waited for the necessary pressure to build and assist it through the last bit of resistance.
Bane had been wandering aimlessly, looking for Leia and the men who had taken her. He stopped and got out his cell phone, and had a signal this time. He quickly dialed Ipo, but the call was dropped before it could go through. He walked a few feet, but it still didn’t come in. He realized he was in Koma’s yard. Maybe he could get a signal on the tree platform.
He squinted in the moonlight, but it was so dark that he stumbled several times over things Koma had left in the yard. He got to the tree and stood looking up into its dark branches. He clambered up to the platform and took out his phone again. There was a signal. He dialed Ipo’s number again. It seemed to ring forever before Malia’s voice answered. “Malia, it’s me. I need you to call Detective Ono. Some men took Leia.”
There was a long pause. “What men? Where is she?”
“We found the treasure, but two men showed up. They took it and Leia. I’ve been searching for her, but there’s no trace.”
Malia gasped. “I’ve been feeling antsy all evening. Eva called too, all upset that some monster was going to hurt Leia. We have to find her. We’ll be right there. T?t? is in bed, and I’ll just let her sleep.”