Tunnels 04, Closer

effectively saving Elliott's life. And the boys had forgiven her for her deception.
    That had been then.
    Right now Chester hadn't the faintest idea what he was going to do next. He had Martha to cope with, on top of the ever-present threat of the Styx, who would be after him wherever he went Topsoil. He had nowhere to go, and no one he could go to for help, except Drake. Drake was his only hope, his only lifeline.
    Drake, please, please be here! Chester thought as he scoured the murky darkness of the quay, wishing the man would just appear. Chester wanted to scream out his name, but he didn't, because no doubt Martha would take it badly if she learnt he had tried to contact him. Chester knew how over-protective and possessive she was, and the last thing he needed now was for her to go into one of her protracted sulks. And Chester had not way of telling if Drake had received the message he'd left on the remote server for him. Or even if he was still alive.
    Still without speaking, Chester and Martha followed Will's instructions and hauled the launch from the water. Laboring under the pull of gravity, in not time at all both of them were short of breath. However, with much groaning and cursing from Martha, they eventually lugged it over to one of the empty buildings, where they propped it up on its side.
    As Chester leant with his hands on his knees to recover, he realized all he wanted to do was to go to London and see his parents again. Whatever the risk. Maybe his mother and father would be able to sort this terrible mess out. Maybe they could just hide him away somewhere. He didn't care -- he had to see them and let them know he was all right.

    * * * * *

    Rebecca Two swam quickly back to her sister. She was relieved to find that she still had her fingers hooked around the electrical cables. The Styx girl had managed to hold herself above the water, but her strength was failing rapidly. Her head was slumped against her raised arm, and her eyes were firmly shut. It took Rebecca Two several seconds to rouse her. It was becoming imperative that she be moved somewhere dry and warm before shock set in.
    "Take in as much air as you can. I'm going to get us out of here," Rebecca Two said. "There's a place up ahead."
    "What place?" Rebecca One mumbled listlessly.
    "I followed some narrow-gauge railway tracks along the bottom of the tunnel," Rebecca Two replied, flicking her eyes at the water just below their chins. "I came up in a section that wasn't flooded. It was larger than just another air pocket--"
    "Let's do it," Rebecca One cut her short. She took a deep breath and released the overhead cables.
    Rebecca Two dragged her sister after her until they reached the place she'd described. As Rebecca One floated on her back, Rebecca Two pulled her along like a lifeguard.
    Before long, the water was shallow enough to wade through, although Rebecca Two was forced to support her sister every step of the way. They stumbled and splashed along until they finally came to dry ground.
    Rebecca Two noticed the tracks continued in the tunnel up ahead, but much as she wanted to find out where they led, she needed to deal with her sister first. She laid her down, then very gently peeled back her shirt to inspect the wound. There was a small puncture in the side of her midriff, just above her hip. Although the wound didn't appear to be that serious at first glance, an alarming amount of blood was welling out of it and leaving a translucent red film over the girl's wet stomach.
    "How's it look?" Rebecca One asked.
    "I'm going to roll you over onto your side," Rebecca Two warned, then carefully lifted her sister to check her back. "Thought so," she said under her breath as she found a second wound where the bullet had exited.
    "How's it look?" Rebecca One repeated through gritted teeth. "Just tell me."
    "Could be worse. Bad news is you're losing a lot of blood. The good news is the bullet hit you in the side of your stomach, in the fleshy part--"
    "What do you mean 'fleshy part'? You saying I'm fat?" Rebecca One growled, indignant despite her weakened state..
    "You always were the vain one, weren't you? Let me finish," Rebecca Two said, lowering her sister onto her back again. "The bullet's passed right through you, so at least I won't have to dig it out. But I've got to stop the bleeding. And you know what that means..."
    "Yes," Rebecca One murmured. She suddenly became insanely angry, clenching her slender fingers into fists. "I can't