"What?" Emily yelled, her ears still ringing from the explosion.
"Mom has a way out!" Jake repeated, shouting into Emily's ear, as he carried her over his shoulder.
"Your mom?"
"Yes!"
A shot was fired beside them. Emily grabbed Jake's pistol from its holster and fired back.
Jake's feet slid on the street gravel. The remaining soldiers were closing in a second time.
"Jake!" Emily pulled repeatedly on the trigger, hearing it click on empty. "Didn't anyone ever teach you how to run and reload?"
"Almost there!"
He raced around the side of a ruined home and dove into the shattered doorway. "Got her!"
Emiliya shone a light on Emily's face. "Are you all right?"
"Yeah... what is this?" Emily looked around. The walls were shattered with bullet holes and bombing burns. The rafters above them barely supported the ceiling and the piles of rebar and the remains of the bombed out building still smelled of smoke and the horrors of war. There were a few military supplies, weapons and explosives within arms' reach.
"We have a tunnel. An escape tunnel," Jake explained.
"Whoa. No. I don't do tunnels. I can't do tunnels," Emily protested.
Emiliya came close and put her hands on Emily's shoulders. "You have to, dear. It's our only way out of the city. You cannot be captured. This tunnel is vital. And if the Russian secret police find out about it, many people's lives will be in danger. You must use it. We all must escape."
"No. I'll find another way." Emily stepped back, moving away from the Russian woman. "There has to be another way."
"You have seen our operation," Emiliya warned, her eyes narrowing and the empathy vanishing. "We cannot allow you to be captured."
Emily was seeing the room narrow. She was smelling the ancient tomb again. She struggled to breathe. The panic was rising in her chest. Her lungs were burning.
"If you do not come now, we will not be able to help you," Emiliya warned.
Emily fought the panic for a brief second.
"We will take you by force." Emiliya looked at Jake. "Punch her."
Jake hesitated.
Emily didn't.
YOU ARE READING
The Sidenstrasse Tapestry: An Indiana Jones Fan-Fiction
FanficIn 1945 archaeologist Indiana Jones was called on one last mission. Now, even in 1960, it haunts him as his youngest daughter, Emily Jones - just as rough and tumble and skilled in handling trouble as her father - scrambles after his legacy to pro...
