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Cabin 211 turned out to be located at the other end of the girls' side of Camp New Hope. Occupying the start of the nature-hiking trail around Lake Yo-Tel-T'til. And Sir Anthony and I gazed at it, from the nearby woods, as we pondered how best to commence the rescue of Anna Stepwicz.

There were not many proposals that did _not_ wind up with the two of us getting killed in vain. The arguably best of those involved Sir Anthony causing a diversion.

"I'll sneak round the left side of the cabin...and put a bullet through the head of the virago guarding the front door. I will then run towards the hiking trail! Hopefully, with a good portion of her fellow Buru-nagas in pursuit. That's when you come round the right side of the cabin and rescue the Grand Duchess!"

"How do I signal you if I'm successful?" I asked.

"Don't even try. I'll simply consult my pocket watch as to when five minutes has elapsed. Then, I'll double-back towards where you and I left Bob with Tobias Blair. Hopefully, the two of them are still alive!"

To which I replied with an additional suggestion.

"Why don't you take the extra revolver and gunbelt with you. That way, I can make use of the dead virago's tommy gun! Seeing as she won't be needing it, anymore."

"A capital idea, dear boy! Let us do this."

Sir Anthony went first. Half-crouching/half-crab walking towards the left front corner of the cabin. When he arrived there, he slowly stood up. He then cocked the hammer of his revolver (with mine, still holstered in its gunbelt, slung over his left shoulder) and sidled around that corner.

KA-BLAM!

Instantly, there was a cacophony of excited shouting as Sir Anthony made himself conspicuous in his hasty retreat toward the trailhead. Thereby insuring the anticipated pursuit by the anticipated majority. And, in that confusion, I ran around my corner of the cabin and dove for the aforemntioned tommy gun!

Just in time, too. For the second I did so, I was spotted! So, with no other recourse open to me, I barged into Cabin 211. And, upon making it inside, I slammed the door shut and barricaded it with a handy two-by-four.

[I later learned that all the cabins at Camp New Hope had them. As a means of preventing unwanted nocturnal entry by wild animals...including libidonous teenagers of the opposite sex.]

The only woman in the cabin screamed. And, as she was in her early-to-mid-twenties, I felt it safe to assume the obvious.

"Miss Stepwicz? I'm a friend of Tomas Schmidt! We have to get out the back window. Now!!!"

She merely nodded, and raced to open it. Whereupon, she dove through it! Lending greater credence to the allegation of her true identity. Only someone who had been through a similar situation, once before, could have moved so swiftly and unquestioningly.

In any event, as soon as I had joined her outside, I was racing towards the woods right behind her. With one or two of the Buru-nagas following hot on my heels! And, I confess, I fully expected to be riddled across the small of my back with .45-caliber slugs any second. Instead, I heard something a little more frightening. Angry female voices that instantly deepened into unearthly bellows of anger.

Reaching the edge of the woods, I dared to stop and turn around. Beholding, as I did so, the transformation of our pursuers into bipedal monitor lizards!

Perhaps it was simply the congenital fear of reptiles we all seem to have. Perhaps, my own personal revulsion. Or, perhaps, a combination of both. But, in any case, I immediately began screaming in some kind of primal rage as I began firing the tommy gun at these two monstrosities!

To my immense relief, the two of them instantly slid to a halt, instinctively clutching their throats in pain, before falling to the ground, face-first. I then continued my flight into the woods, where Miss Stepwicz was waiting faithfully for me. I took the lead as I guided her back towards the rendezvous with Tobias Blair.

When we got there, however, I found two shocking surprises awaiting me. A three inch-tall Bob Gabriel dangling from an arrow lodged in a tree! And, Tobias Blair aiming another arrow straight at his shrunken midsection!!

tbc
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