Unexpected Places by V. K. Black

through. The roof and walls clutched at him, trying to hold him back. He tried not to think about what would happen if the rest of him got stuck. Using every ounce of his strength, he pulled himself forward, inch by painful inch.
    As soon as his feet followed his backside through that tiny space, his heart, which had been beating double time, slowed with relief.
    ‘I’m through!’ he called, retrieving his torch, which had wedged itself against the wall.
    ‘Great!’ came Ariana’s muffled reply.
    The roof above his head disappeared and the tunnel widened. Luke crawled till there was room for two people, then he lay, struggling for air, and waited. Ariana’s petite body appeared through the tiny space, her blonde hair reflecting in the torchlight. He waited till her gasps for breath eased. ‘Are you okay?’
    ‘Yes, thank you,’ she said, politely.
    ‘Good girl,’ he said, laughing.
    The new tunnel opened up on their left. It was a small cave, not a tunnel. One more short, easy crawl. Luke’s wavering light illuminated a partly broken wooden box right at the back. When they arrived, they were able to sit up at last. Ariana’s warm body rested against his. He trained the torchlight on the box in front of them.
    ‘Ariana,’ he whispered, the air too thin and stale to speak louder. ‘Hold the torch.’
    ‘Okay,’ she breathed, and took it from him, shining the light down at his hands.
    They glanced at each other, and at the exact same moment, they both grinned.
    He opened the lid. A plump parcel of animal skin lay inside. He lifted it out and opened up the stiff folds.
    Glittering back at him were his two perfectly matched emeralds.

Chapter Six
    Ariana and Luke stared at each other for long seconds. Awe, excitement, joy — she read all those things in his eyes. She read them easily, because she felt them too.
    Then his eyes hardened. Right at the exact same time reality dawned on her. She’d loved every minute of today. The almost sickening excitement of crawling through that dark tunnel, not knowing what would come next. The thrill of finding something so valuable and old and beautiful. That feeling of camaraderie they’d shared.
    But now they were back to business. She had to steal those emeralds and save Jason. Oh, and she owed Luke sex.
    Dragging her eyes away from his, she said, with an attempt at nonchalance, ‘I guess we need to get back to the boat before dark.’
    Luke nodded, then folded the animal skin carefully around the two beautiful gems, and stowed them in the pocket of his boardshorts. ‘Yeah.’
    They crawled, in total silence, back the way they’d come.
    When they finally emerged into the afternoon sunlight outside the mountain, she took a huge gulp of fresh air, but the humid heat, after the relative coolness of the tunnels, hit her like a sludgy cosh. ‘The swim back to the boat will be great, won’t it?’ she remarked inanely, wanting to break the awkward silence.
    ‘Yeah.’
    Great.
    They started off toward the river. It was downhill this time, and easier going. ‘Thank goodness things cool down once the sun sets.’
    He grunted this time. Could mean he agreed with her.
    She knew she should shut up. His lack of communicativeness was annoying her, but she tried again, tossing over her shoulder as she slithered down a small hill, ‘What are we going to do tonight — I mean…’ Clamping her hand over her mouth, she felt herself flush. She sped up. Which was a mistake. Her feet slid from under her and she landed heavily on her bottom on the thick, wet grass.
    Luke strode up beside her and helped her to her feet. ‘I know what you meant,’ he said harshly. ‘While we still have some sunlight, we’ll motor to where the two rivers meet and drop anchor. Then tomorrow, I’ll navigate around all those sandbanks.’
    Wow, a whole speech.
    Ariana nodded. Those blue eyes were so icy. Mr Intimidating sure was back with a vengeance. A wave of irritation washed over her.
    Fine. You