Narrator's POV
Joe and Nick meet at the bottom of the steps in an embrace.
"Joe. Joe. You're so stupid. You're such an idiot" Nick said hugging Joe and kissing him all over.
"You jump, I jump, right?" Joe said
"Right" Nick whispered.
Zac sees Joe and Nick hugging and growls. Anthony comes up behind Zac and puts a restraining hand on him but Zac whips around and grabs Anthony's pistol.
Zac runs down the steps, as he reaches the landing above them, he raises the gun and fires.
The carved cherub at the foot of the centre railing explodes. Nick pulls Joe towards the stairs going down to the next deck. Zac fires again, running down the stairs towards them. A bullet blows the divet out of the oak panelling behind Nick's head as he pulls Joe down the next flight of stairs.
Zac steps of the skittering head of the cherub statue and goes sprawling. The gun clatters against the marble floor. He gets up, and reeling drunkenly goes over to retrieve it.
The bottom of the grand staircase is flooded several feet deep. Nick and Joe come down the stairs two at a time and run straight into the water, fording across the room to where the floor slopes up, until they reach dry footing at the entrance of the dining saloon.
Zac reels down the staircase in time to see Nick and Joe splashing through the water to the dining saloon. He fire twice but he misses them. The water boils up around his feet and he retreats up a few stairs. Around him the woodward groans and creaks.
"Enjoy your time together!!!!" Zac yells out to them.
Anthony arrives next to him. Zac suddenly remembers something and starts to laugh.
"What could possibly be funny?" Anthony asks.
"Joseph has the necklace" Zac said.
He turns to Anthony with a sickly expression, his eyes glittering.
"I'll give it to you, if you can get it back" Zac said to Anthony.
He hands Anthony the pistol and goes back up the stairs. Anthony thinks about it and then slogs into the water. The ice cold water is up to his waist as he crosses the pool towards the dining saloon.
