overwhelmed her.
Slade paced back and forth in front of the mine like an infuriated lion. He gripped the radio tightly in his fist. The rain was continuing to fall at a steady rate; the sky had become a dismal gray. Angrily, he shook off the thought and the feeling. Cat was alive, and that was all that mattered. No one should die alone in that godforsaken place. He wanted to vent his anger on Graham, who sat in his silver Mercedes looking pasty from the turn of events. The frightened mine owner had gone to extraordinary measures to call in local workers who had once toiled in the worthless mine, and to order heavy equipment from a nearby town. The local fire department would arrive shortly with oxygen tanks, masks and rescue apparatus. As soon as they came, Slade was going to borrow a tank and mask and make his way down the shaft to locate Cat’s chamber. He halted. Cat should have called in by now.
Slade called her five times and there was no answer. Was Cat unconscious? Had she died because of oxygen deprivation? Torn between staying and going deeper, he stared down the black maw of the shaft. Maybe her radio was on the blink. He tried to ignore his memory of the slur of Cat’s words and the pain he’d heard with each breath she had taken. He had a gut feeling she was in a lot more serious condition than she was revealing.
He called again. This time, he got an answer. “Cat, how are you?”
“Uhh, dizzy. Sorry, didn’t mean to black out.”
Slade’s mouth thinned, his eyes reflecting his anxiety, but he kept it out of his voice as he depressed the On button. “You’re doing fine. Did you get a look at the chamber?”
“Twenty feet long and ten feet wide. The manging wall is holding. I’m under a stull that’s stopping it from falling on top of me.”
Relief flowed through him. “Great. Any indication of air supply?”
“Dust still too thick. I’m turning off my light to conserve it. Need water worse.”
“I know. Look, you just rest.”
“C-can’t. Got to try and get rocks off legs.”
Slade nodded. “The fire department is coming with oxygen gear. As soon as they arrive, I’m going to find you, Cat. For now, just conserve your energy.”
She knew Slade was right, but she was shivering from the overwhelming dampness around her. As dry as her mouth and throat were, the moisture was seeping through to her bones. She shut off the light and slowly began to remove one rock at a time from the back of her legs. Only her left hand was undamaged. Movement of her right arm sent such a spasm of pain up Cat’s side that she lost consciousness.
Cat was used to darkness; when she constructed a mine shaft, she was constantly in the darkened earth with only a safety lamp and lighted hard hat to illuminate her way. But rarely had she gone without any light at all, and now the dark was as suffocating as the dust that hung around her. A shiver rippled through her, the darkness like fingers of fear closing around her throat. Cat tasted her panic and concentrated on removing the rocks from her thigh, gradually releasing herself from the entrapment.
Minutes dragged by. And each minute seems like a lifetime, Cat realized. She clung to the hope that Slade would call again. Just to hear another human voice eased the terror that was intensified by the dark. Her breath came in painful, ragged gasps; each one feeling as if a knife was being plunged through her lungs. Sweat mingled with dust as it trickled down her face, stinging her eyes. Resting until the dizziness passed, Cat knew she would have to use her right hand to start removing the debris from her right leg. An involuntary cry tore from her contorted lips as she pushed the first rock off her thigh. Blackness closed in on her and she rested her brow against her left arm, sobbing.
* * *
“Over here!” Slade motioned the first of two arriving volunteer fire department pumpers toward the opening of the mine. Graham reluctantly got out of his car and met the chief, who was dressed in a white helmet and turnout gear. Finally, Slade thought, moving toward the fire chief. In moments he had established his identity and was given an air pack and mask. He took a safety lamp and settled the hard hat on his head, then entered the mine. His heart rate picked up. How far down the crosscut had the cave-in taken place? He mentally began to calculate the possible scenarios he might find. If there was a huge wall of debris, it might take days before they could reach Cat. He prayed it was the opposite–that the bulk of the cave-in had occurred behind her and only a thin wall stood between her and freedom.
Chapter Two
Slade found the wall of rock near the second timber support in the crosscut and carefully examined the timbers around him. They were sturdy and did not appear stressed. That meant mining equipment such as drills and augers could be moved into the mine to begin removing the debris without fear of another avalanche. The dust was still thick as Slade breathed in the sweet flow of oxygen through his face mask. Sweat trickled down his temples, following the line of his jaw. Some of his fear for Cat slipped away; most of the rock and dirt that had fallen was in small chunks, and easily handled by picks, shovels and wheelbarrows. Rescue would come more quickly.
Slade crouched by one wall of the crosscut, watching as a constant stream of water disappeared into the wall. He knew that if it was getting through, life-bearing oxygen could also be carried into the chamber where Cat was trapped. Pulling out the radio, Slade attempted contact with her. He waited patiently, repeating his call three times before she answered. Cat’s voice was tight and hoarse, and Slade knew she was in a hell of a lot of pain.
“How’s my girl doing?”
A choked sound came over the radio. “Hanging–in there.”
“Mining engineers always did have more guts than brains,” he told her wryly. “I’m outside the wall where you’re trapped, Cat. Give me a status report.”
“Oxygen level seems the same. There’s–running water to my left.”
“Outstanding. How about you?”
“Would it do any good to tell you?”
“Don’t play that game with me. I know I can’t get to you yet, but I want to know the extent of your injuries and if you’re feeling worse.”
“I’ll bet you use that line on every woman you meet, Donovan.”
He grinned, but it didn’t reach his narrowed eyes as he continued to appraise the wall of debris before him. “With you, I wouldn’t use a line. Come on, level with me. How are you doing?”
“I’ve got the rocks off my legs and I managed to turn over. The right side of the tunnel wall looks weak and the stull above my head keeps creaking and groaning.”
Slade scowled. That meant that even Cat’s chamber could cave in, burying her under tons of rubble. Urgency thrummed through him. “How’s that concussion you’re sporting?”
“Not–good. I keep passing out. Very sleepy when I shouldn’t be. I was sleeping until you called. The scratchy sounds from the radio woke me up.”
Damn it! She had suffered a worse head injury than he had first thought. “Okay,” Slade soothed, keeping his voice steady. “How’s your ribs?”
“If I don’t breathe, I feel great.”
She had spunk, he’d give her that. “And when you do?”
