Veronica knew there was no way she could reach for her knife and throw it in time to save her life, but she had to try. As she reached for her knife, the raptor moved in for the kill. The report from Roxton�s rifle echoed in her head. As she watched the raptor crumple to the ground, reaction began to set in. Veronica began to tremble. Roxton put his hand on her shoulder and it seemed to calm her.
�Are you alright Veronica?� the hunter asked concern evident in his voice.
�Yes I�m fine Roxton,� Veronica said, still a little shaky. �I should have been more aware.�
�Yes we both should have,� Roxton said, completely disgusted with himself. He had been careless and it almost cost Veronica her life. He had some nerve to lecture Malone when he was just as bad.
�Veronica are you injured?� Challenger asked, concern showing on his face. He had been lagging behind and felt guilty he wasn�t there to help Veronica.
�No I�m fine,� Veronica replied, �but we need to keep moving. Dead raptors attract all sorts of creatures.�
�I agree,� Roxton said. �Veronica why don�t I take the lead for a while?�
Under normal circumstances, Veronica would have argued with him. For right now, she was more than happy to switch places with Roxton.
The hunter took the lead, with Challenger following behind and Veronica bringing up the rear. She was thinking of her near death experience and remembered one of her last thoughts was of Ned and it was one of regret. Why did that seem to be the most frequent emotion she exhibited where the handsome reporter was concerned?
At least her stomach had calmed and she wasn�t so nervous and fidgety. The feeling of dread had subsided but not gone away completely. Veronica had been on her own for a while and knew to trust her instincts. She immediately put her thoughts to the back of her mind and become more observant of everything around her. It wasn�t over yet. There was still danger out there. She didn�t know where but she could sense something bad was going to happen.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The jungle growth was thick, but Malone kept hacking at it with the machete. He was grateful to Jarl for loaning it to him. He just hoped he was reading the map correctly. Suddenly with one whack he was in a clearing. There before him stood a wood and rope bridge.
�There�s the bridge Marguerite,� Malone exclaimed excitedly. �This means the caves are not far. They�re probably just through the woods there.�
�I know you don�t expect me to cross that decrepit bridge Malone,� Marguerite said scathingly. �It looks like it could fall at any time.�
Malone walked over to the bridge. He pulled on the rope rails. They seemed strong. It looked as if it was in pretty good shape, there were no missing planks and the ropes looked sturdy. He looked down below. There was a stream that was probably ten to twelve feet wide. The embankment, though steep, wasn�t completed vertical. Although the surface sloped in places, there were many large stones scattered through out. It was obvious to Malone that walking down or trying to rappel down with ropes was impossible. No the bridge was the best solution.
�Marguerite the bridge is our only way across,� Malone said. �I know it old but it looks sturdy enough to me.�
�Well I think we should find another way to cross Malone,� Marguerite said. �It�s got to be a hundred foot drop from that bridge.�
�Marguerite it could take a couple of days to find another way to the caves. I�m going across,� Malone said. �but I don�t want to force you to come if you don�t want to. Just stay here. I�ll take a quick look and be back in a couple of hours.�
�You�re going to leave me alone in this God Forsaken piece of jungle?� Marguerite asked incredulously �It�s because of you I�m here.�
�I promise I won�t be gone long,� Malone said. �If you run into any trouble, just fire off a shot and I�ll come running.�
Marguerite looked at Malone as if she thought he had lost his mind. This was crazy. They should wait and come back with the others, but she knew she�d never convince Malone.
�Don�t worry. I�ll be fine,� Malone said with a grin. �If something happens, you can yell I told you so as I fall to my death.�
�Very funny,� Marguerite said sarcastically. �No if I can�t talk you out of this then I�ll go with you. �
Marguerite walked to the edge of the bridge and looked down. She walked back to where the young reporter stood. �But I think I�ll let you go first.�
Malone laughed and stepped onto the bridge. He began to slowly make his way across. The bridge felt secure.
�Be careful,� Marguerite called. She was worried sick. If Malone lost his footing or the bridge broke, there would be nothing she could do to save him. He quickly made his way across the bridge and was just a few feet from the end, when a couple of planks broke out and Malone fell. He was holding on to part of the bridge, trying to pull himself up.
Marguerite felt the blood drain from her face as the planks gave out under Malone�s feet. She lurched forward to the bridge, and began making her way slowly across. The bridge swayed a little but seemed to hold her weight.
�Hang on. I�m coming.�
Malone had managed to pull himself up and stepped across to the other side. He looked back and saw Marguerite trying to make her way to him.
�No Marguerite,� Malone yelled. �Go back. It isn�t safe.�
Marguerite was almost at the spot Malone had fallen, when she stopped.
�Marguerite don�t move,� he called out. �The planks at this end are rotten. Just stay where you are and I�ll help you across.
Marguerite stood still and watched as Malone grabbed the rope railing. His plan was to try and reach the dark haired woman and help her to safety. He was about to step onto the bridge when he heard the sound of cracking wood. The planks where she was standing broke. Luckily she was holding on to the rail as her feet dangled free of the bridge. One side of the bridge was still intact
�Hold on Marguerite. I�m coming.�
�Hurry Malone,� Marguerite replied. �This rope doesn�t feel that strong.�
Malone grabbed the other rope railing and reached for his friend. Just then the rope railing she was holding onto broke, swinging her towards the cliff. Malone almost lost his balance but he managed to remain standing. Fortunately he had not stepped onto the bridge. Using the remaining rail for leverage, he bent down and stretched his other hand out towards Marguerite.
�Grab my hand Marguerite,� Malone called. �I�ll pull you back up.�
Marguerite reached for Malone�s hand stretching one arm up towards him while desperately clinging to the rope with the other. He got down on his knees to get closer to Marguerite. Finally their fingers brushed against each other.
�Almost Marguerite,� Malone said. �Try to extend your arm just a little bit more.�
Marguerite gripped the rope tighter and then extended her other arm as far as she could. Malone grabbed her fingertips and was trying to get a better hold when the other rope railing broke almost sending him to the stream below. Malone was able to keep himself from falling but he lost the hold he had on Marguerite.
�Malone hurry!� Marguerite shouted. �I can�t hold on much longer.�
He laid down on the ground and extended his arm as far as he could. Marguerite extended herself to the limit trying to reach him. Just as their fingertips touched, she felt her rope giving way. Malone grabbed Marguerite�s fingers just as the rope broke. He was unable to hold on to her and she went tumbling onto the embankment, screaming Malone�s name as she rolled down, finally coming to stop against a huge boulder about twenty feet from the bottom.
