The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove

from the cave.
    "Nailsworth here," the Spider said. "They're on the way. Give it forty minutes. And there's no other entrance to that cave."
    Burtonwas not happy, having to lie in this crevice for another forty minutes, but once the SWAT team arrived, it would be over. "Nailsworth, shot in the dark here, but have you ever heard of someone calling themselves Kendra, Warrior Babe of the Wasteland?"
    "The Outland," the Spider corrected."Warrior Babe of the Outland. Of course, only the finest series of nuked-out future movies ever made. Kendra's a huge star.Was a huge star. Molly Michon was the actress's name. Why?"
    "Never mind.One of the suspects thinks she's a comedian."
    "If you want some of the cassettes, I can let you have some copies for twenty bucks apiece. I've got almost the whole collection."
    "Nailsworth, you're a pathetic piece of shit."Burton disconnected. The wailing was still coming from the cave and the woman was screaming something he couldn't make out.
    Molly Theo's sneakers were still showing, sticking out between Steve's teeth. Molly grabbed her broadsword, ran up the Sea Beast's foreleg, and leapt onto his broad neck. She brought the broadsword down hard between his eyes and the impact made her hands go numb. "Spit him out! Spit hinzt out!"
    Steve tossed his head, trying to throw her off, but she gripped him with her thighs and hacked away at his head. Chunks of his scales flew off and the blade sparked. "Spit him out! Spit him out!" Molly screamed, punctuating the panicked chant with blows from the sword. She'd seen this before. She knew that if she heard a crunch, Theo was finished.
    The Sea Beast opened his jaws to deliver the coup de grace and Molly could hear a gurgling scream come from Theo. She leapt to her feet on Steve's forehead, put the tip of the broadsword in the corner of his eye, and prepared to leap on the hilt to drive it into his eye socket. "Spit him out!Now!"
    Steve went cross-eyed trying to see his attacker, then made a grunting noise and hacked the constable out on the cave floor. He whipped his head and Molly went flying, hitting her back hard on the cave wall ten feet away and sliding down.
    The pilgrims' wails turned to sobs as Steve slunk to the back of the cave.
    Theo,mired in a puddle of blood, bat guano, and dragon spit, pushed himself up on his hands and knees and looked to Molly. "You okay?" he gasped.
    She nodded. "I think so.You?"
    Theo nodded and looked down to make sure his legs were still there."Yeah." He crawled over to her and sat back against the cave wall beside her, still heaving to get his breath back. "Nice friends you have.
    Why'd he stop?"
    "I think his feelings are huff."
    "Sorry."
    "He'll get over it. He's a big boy."
    Despite himself, Theo started laughing, and before long he and Molly were leaning against each other, giggling uncontrollably.
    "Steve, huh?"Theo said.
    "He looks like a Steve, don't you think?" Molly said.
    Theo wiped the dragon spit from his mouth and leaned over to kiss her. She caught his chin in her hand and pushed him away."Bad idea."
    Another roar rose from the back of the cave, this one less angry andmore sad than the last.
    "I guess so," Theo said.
    "What in the hell is going on in there, Crowe?"Burton called from outside. "You don't have a lot of time to dick around here. There's a SWAT team on the way. What do you want?"
    "I don't even know what the hell you're talking about," Theo shouted.
    "What do you want to walk away from this? Leave the state. Forget everything. How much? Give me a figure."
    Theo looked at Molly as if she might have the answer. She said, "I thought we made our demands pretty clear."
    "He's not going to let me go, Molly. And now he's not going to let you go either. If there's a SWAT team on the way, we're in big trouble."
    "I need to go talk to Steve." Molly stood and walked between the sobbing pilgrims to the back of the cave. Theo watched her fade into the dark where the Sea Beast was pulsing with dim spots of green and blue. Theo rubbed his eyes to try to clear his vision.
    "Well, Crowe? What'll it be?"
    "Make me an offer," Theo said, trying to figure out some kind of insurance.Something that would keep him alive more than two seconds after he stepped out of the cave.
    "I'll give you a hundred thousand. It's a fair offer, Crowe. You can't prove anything anyway, not if Leander is dead. Take the money and walk away.
    "I'm dead," Theo said to himself. The size of the bluff offer itself betrayedBurton 's