every fifty rotations, marking the width and depth until she finally reached the required specs.
Inhaling a steadying breath, she retrieved the first set of explosives and packed them into the hole. She didn’t set the timer just yet or activate the backup trigger switch. There were still two more sets of explosives to place, both farther down the shaft. The cascade effect of the three explosions would cause the desired outcome.
Checking her watch, she calculated how much time she had left to place the remaining explosives and get out of the shaft. She would have at least seventeen minutes of leeway, if she stayed on her current course.
She loosened the harness lock and lowered herself to the next spot. She repeated the same process, being deliberate in her drilling and measurement and placement of the explosives. Satisfied with the second, she moved down to the third and completed the task the same way.
Heart racing, she checked her watch and saw that she was still slightly ahead of schedule. She swallowed hard before setting the timer on the third explosive pack and activating the backup trigger. When it was done, she climbed her way to the second and first packs of explosives and did the same.
Dry mouthed and anxious, she freed the ropes she had racked earlier and swung across the shaft. Her legs trembled as she climbed up steep rock wall to the first platform. Her shaking hands fumbled with her anchor ropes and hooks, wasting precious seconds she needed to get clear of the blast radius. She ignored the fear building in her gut and moved methodically through the shaft to the access ladder.
Her heart raced so fast now she could practically feel it slamming into her ribs and sternum. Her ears were filled with the sound of pounding blood, and she fought to catch her breath as she climbed higher and higher.
When she reached the grate, she hesitated. Was that a footstep? She hastily switched off the light on her helmet and listened. Crunch.
Someone or something was out there. Dried leaves and dead twigs crunched under something heavy—a boot or paw. In that moment, she would have gladly faced off against a mountain lion or a wolf, anything but a man.
Frozen with indecision, she decided to wait. With every passing second, she brought herself closer to being trapped in the blast. If she moved the grate and climbed out, she was either going to be an early morning snack for one of the massive predators on the mountain or a new torture victim for the Splinters.
The footsteps grew louder and closer. She gripped the rungs and prayed her death would be quick. Closer and closer. Louder and louder. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the inevitable.
Snort.
Her terrified gaze snapped to the grate where two big, rusty brown eyes stared back at her. Shit! It was a bear! A huge, stinking and very curious mountain bear.
Now she was faced with another predicament. She didn’t have the strength to lift the grate with a massive bear paw planted on top of it. If the bear thought he had his next meal cornered, he would stay there until he figured out how to move the grate. Once that happened, his razor-like claws would shred her in one swipe.
She glanced down the ladder and wondered if she had enough time to make it back to the ducts she had flooded yesterday. She could, conceivably, hide in the ducts toward the front of the mine until the explosions detonated and then jump down into main level of the mine once all the Splinters evacuated out of the front entrance. One quick glance at her watch told her that idea was impossible. She was fast, but she wasn’t that fast.
“Please, Mr. Bear, go away,” she whispered urgently. “I will give you all the food rations in my pack if you will let me out of here.”
The bear snorted against the grate again, and she flinched away from the wet blast of foul air. He scratched at the grate, his claws clanging against the metal. She wrapped her arms around the ladder and silently cursed at the universe for teasing her with a chance to escape the mountain only to be eaten alive by a bear.
The bear had its yellow teeth hooked around the metal grate, slobber dripping down onto her helmet and shoulders, when it suddenly stopped. The bear unhinged its jaws and let the grate fall with a clatter. It rose