She must force those silent antagonists to
some sort of action so she tossed the missile outward and as it struck
with a light clatter, a waiting pistol barked and Alexander's own
roared back at the tiny spurt of flame.
Instantly, too, three others spoke, aimed at her flash and she heard
the spatter of lead against stone nearby. In the confined space the
fusillade bellowed blatantly, and slowly diminishing echoes lingered
after the firing itself ceased. Then once more the silence which was
more trying than gunnery settled.
Slowly an idea dawned in the girl's mind, and strengthened into
conviction. If the main group who had trailed out with torches had
been anywhere nearby, that crescendo of noise must have recalled them
in hot haste. That they had not come back must indicate that they had
never meant to return. They had permanently departed, leaving her in
the hands of a quartette selected as a robbing party, and an execution
squad. With that realization the matter resolved itself into a new
phase. She would eventually be murdered here in this rat-hole unless
she could, one by one, shoot to death the four unseen men who were her
companions there.
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