Ship of Death (standard:mystery, 6031 words)
Author: hvysmker	Added: Aug 13 2004	Views/Reads: 3728/2504	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Killings aboard a Cruise Ship

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story


“Leave your card and I'll get back to you by this time tomorrow.  I'd
have to tie up some loose ends and get a crew together.”  Jake sighed.  
“Oh, and I'd like two other things.  If we take it I'll need to put a 
couple of people into your crew, probably as common seamen.   I have a 
couple in mind, ex-navy, and don't tell anybody but the Captain about 
us.  Can you arrange that?  Probably two of us as passengers, so we'll 
need a couple of cabins.” 

**** 

“That's the picture, Mr. Masters.”  Captains Adams finished.  “It
doesn't happen every trip, or even every year, but there have been six 
in the last four and a half years.   My company bought the ship from 
Acme Shipping five years ago, and it took us about six months to outfit 
and crew it after that.  The first killing was on our first trip, to 
Bermuda.” 

“And did you keep the old crew, from Acme I mean?”  Sipping on his glass
of wine.  Master's thought that odd.  The last time he had been aboard 
a ship was as a young man during WWII, about thirty years before.  And 
he sure as hell didn't have wine with the skipper.  He had been a 
seaman on the engineering crew. 

“No, we started fresh.  Mostly people from a ship we retired.  We just
hired a few more, this ship was bigger, but had to get them used to the 
craft first.” 

“I have an assistant who will need to go over all your records,
including personnel and pay records.  Do you have any problem with 
that, Sir?”  Masters asked.  “As far as anyone knows, she'll be the 
only detective on board.  I'll  have two on as seamen, and with myself 
acting like a passenger, that should cover everything.” 

“I just hope to hell it's not one of the crew.  We have both an onboard
security force, under the Master at Arms, and right now the private 
security force augmenting it.” 

The two shook hands and Jake Masters left, to go back to his cabin. 
There he met with his assistant, Jane Compton.  Jane was also an 
ex-police detective.  She had specialized in white collar crimes, and 
had a great deal of experience at examining paperwork. 

Jane had also worked the street for five years before making detective. 
She, like all his people aboard, was single.  He didn't know how many 
trips would have to be made, making that detail necessary. 

**** 

Jerry Smith, like his name, was average in most ways.  Or at least was
before an accident that had scarred him, both physically and mentally.  
He had been a small child, and was picked on by his classmates.  In 
High School, he had never been popular with the girls , or boys for 
that matter. 

Working at low level jobs, he had eventually drifted into the Navy,
where his school boy harassment continued.  Being small and shy, he was 
the butt of constant joking.  Bullies flocked to him like flies. 

After his enlistment, Jerry used his navy experience to get a job  with
Acme Shipping, on this ship.  For the first time in his life, he felt 
at home.  Nobody picking on him, he did his job but kept to himself, 
making no real friends. 

One day he was tightening a wheel to shut off a steam pipe for
maintenance, when the bearing inside the wheel gave way.  A thin jet of 
live steam hit him, boiling the flesh on his lower face.  He had thick 
glasses on at the time, which saved his eyesight, but the rest of his 
face was boiled meat. 

“We'll take care of the bills, Jerry,” Captain Peterson had told him,
“and you'll always have a job on my ship, as long as you live.”  But, a 
year later, the ship was sold and the Captain retired.  So much for his 
promise.  “The bastard had to know it at the time.”  Jerry told 
himself.  He was out on his ass, with a face no mother could love. 

Instead, Jerry kept to the letter of the promise.  While the ship was
being outfitted for the new shipping company, Jerry did his own 
outfitting.  Dressed as a workman, he moved furniture and other 
equipment into an isolated storage room, then sealed the room by 
paneling over the door.  The new owners never missed the room, at least 
as far as Jerry knew. 

He got hold of a copy of the ship's blueprints, simply by breaking into
an office and using the copy machine.  Now he knew more about things 
like the ventilation system than even the ship's engineers.  Being so 
small, he used that method of moving around the ship. 

He stole anything he needed, food from the pantries, etc.  There was
always a lot of pilferage on a ship, and his wasn't particularly 
noticeable.  The ship had been his first happy home, and still was.  
Unnoticed by Jerry however, without human companionship he was slowly 
going crazy. 

He spent a lot of time watching the passengers from ventilation shafts,
and walking the ship at night, when nobody noticed him or his face.  
When he got too lonely, he would find a girl and have his way.  After 
all, the Captain had promised him, and passengers were of no concern to 
Jerry. 

Usually the rapes, like those on shore, weren't reported.  If they were,
they never got to the police, being hushed up by the ship's company as 
bad publicity.  Sometimes, if the girls fought back too hard, he killed 
them.  It was that simple. 

**** ( Continued ) 

Jake mixed with the passengers.  There were only eight hundred and sixty
six on that trip, according to the Captain.  It was still too many for 
Jake to interview.  He was clued in to one passenger, an elderly lady 
who had a more or less permanent cabin.  Mrs.  Osborne was wealthy and 
liked the atmosphere on the ship.  She was in her nineties at the time 
and made every trip she could, only missing a few for health reasons. 

He simply knocked on her door, and introduced himself. 

“So that's why I'm here right now, Mrs. Osb..., Mabel.”  He sipped the
tea brought by her nurse, a Ms. Edwards.  “I wanted to know if you 
ladies have noticed the same people on different trips, especially on 
these dates.”  Jake passed them a list of rape and murder dates. 

“Don't need the dates or times, Jake.  We don't pay much attention to
them.  That's what I like about this life.  Time means nothing to me.”  
She leaned back in her chair, looking out her window at the ocean.  “I 
can tell you though, I haven't seen anything like that.  I've seen a 
few people a few times, but not all that many.  And certainly not that 
often, like you want.”  She looked over at Ms. Edwards, who also 
nodded. 

Jake went back to his cabin to think, and wait for calls.  The first was
from his other two operatives, the ones on the crew.  They had nothing 
to report, at least yet.  The two had been kept busy scrubbing decks 
and working in the kitchen. 

One of them, Peter Sylvester, reported that one of the cooks had
complained about so much food missing so early in the voyage.  There 
was a lot of pilferage, mostly the cooks forgot to mark it off when 
taken out of storage.  But, not usually so much on the very first day 
at sea.  The storeroom had been locked when Peter went in to help the 
cook take out supplies for the first meal at sea. 

A few hours later Jane called to report her progress.  She had three
meetings of the crew scheduled for the next day.  She would explain her 
mission and ask them if they had any suspicions, and to keep an eye out 
for anything unusual.  The detective had spent the rest of the first 
day going over personnel files, matching them with pay records.   She 
first eliminated all the women on the crew, since they could hardly be 
rapists.  A few others had not been aboard, according to pay records, 
at the time of many of the rapes.  They had been on vacation, or 
serving on other ships at the time.  She next eliminated all the newer 
male crew members.  It would have to be one of the people hired before 
the first few rapes were reported.  After all some could be by other 
rapists.  A lot of horny men took cruises.  All the rapes couldn't 
automatically be attributed to that rapist. 

The crew members left only numbered about eighty men.  Jake had Jane
call the police back in NYC to pass those names to the F.B.I. for 
processing.  Jane would continue working with the ship's staff until 
the results were back.  They would just have to wait.  Meanwhile Jake 
got copies of the ship's plans.  Acting like a passenger, he wanted to 
become familiar with the craft by walking the decks and corridors. 

**** 

Jerry spent the day in his hidden storeroom.  He had filled his
refrigerator and freezer with food the night before.  He had some books 
from the ship's library.  It was best to do it before sailing, as the 
passengers using the library made it harder to steal books during a 
voyage. Jerry spent the day reading and drinking purloined wine from 
the ship's stores. 

He also checked out a new toy, acquired from the electronic shop.  It
was a video camera he could connect to his television set.  It came 
with a large spool of electrical cord.  Now he could plant it at the 
entrance to ventilator grills and sit at home watching.  He was getting 
lazy in his old age, he thought.  Not much chance of it being found in 
the miles of ventilator shafts. 

**** 

Detective Jane Compton used a computer program to check passenger
signatures for repeats.  It took her all day to use a scanner on the 
papers, and separate them for scanning.  Another five minutes for the 
actual comparison.  The few repeats were verified with records, or 
found to be false readings when compared by hand.  Another day wasted, 
she figured. 

It looked like the passengers were eliminated.   It was down to the
remains of the crew, and awaiting word from the F.B.I.  The days went 
by, as she and Jake tried out anything they could think of.  The other 
two detectives were equally fruitless.  Only picking up rumors of a 
strange crew member being sighted occasionally, at night walking the 
corridors. 

**** 

Janice Simpson, age sixteen, went back to her cabin.  The boy she was
dating never showed up at the ship's game arcade.  She waited for 
almost an hour, then got mad and left.  The girl was still angry as she 
unlocked her cabin door, and flicked on the light switch.  She headed 
directly for the small bathroom. 

“I might as well take a bath and go to bed.”  She told herself,
undressing and entering the shower.  She didn't hear the ventilator 
screen in the cabin fall to the floor, or Jerry crawling out.  The 
first thing Janice knew was the noise of her shower curtain being 
pulled back.  She turned to see a horribly burned face a few inches 
from her own.  She backed up and bumped her head against the low shower 
head.  Dead black eyes held her's as strong arms grabbed her. 

“What you want, get out of he....”  A hand covered her mouth, as the
other arm circled her wet torso.  The girl was pulled from the shower 
and held tightly, as Jerry carried her, struggling, out of the bathroom 
and threw her on her parent's bed. 

When he was finished, he turned her on her stomach, sat on her back and
throttled her, until she stopped moving.  In a daze and barely 
breathing, she pretended to be unconscious, as she heard a series of 
metallic, hollow sounding noises.  A few seconds later, she did pass 
out. 

“Wake up, Honey,” Her mother was shaking her, “Why aren't you in your
own bed?”  Her mother must have seen her bruises, “And what the hell 
happened to you.  Did that boy beat you up?  Come over here Harry, look 
at your daughter.” 

Janice didn't want to report it, but her father called the emergency
number. 

**** 

Jake got a call at 11:17 p.m.  He was watching television at the time. 

“Hello, Jake Masters,” he answered. 

“Jake, this is Jane Compton.  We have another rape, and probably
attempted murder.  Cabin C-143, you coming?”  Jake gave it some 
thought, there was only three days to go on the cruise. 

“I might as well, no need to stay undercover, the trip's almost
finished.”  He got up, “see you there in a few minutes.” 

Getting dressed, he hurried down to ‘C' deck.  When he got there, he
found the room crowded with security personnel, along with the victim 
and her parents.  Jane was sitting on the bed with the girl, holding 
her hand. 

“We're handling it, Sir.”  A ship's officer tried to steer him back out
the door. 

“I'm one of you,” Jake showed his credentials.  “Why don't we all get
out of here and let my assistant Jane talk to her?”  He nodded at Jane 
and got a smile in return. 

“You're right, probably better that way.”  The Officer, Second Mate
Smithers according to his name tag, called out to the others to leave.  
They all went out to the hall to wait for Jane.  Smithers even talked 
the parents into leaving. 

There were a few chairs and a table in the corridor, and Smithers had
the parents fill out some forms and statements. 

“We all have a few days to get our paperwork finished.”  The Second Mate
told the private security people and his own Master At Arms, dismissing 
them.  Smithers and Jake remained with the parents.  Smithers also left 
to hurry up the ship's doctor for a physical examination of the girl. 

Jake stood and watched the parents fill out forms.  The mother was
crying and the father just looked mad, now that the initial shock was 
over. 

After Smithers came back with the doctor, Sam found the Master at Arm's
Office. 

“What have you done, Sir?”  He asked the man after identifying himself. 

“Both my people and the private security company have called out all our
off duty people and are patrolling the passageways.  We've checked the 
barracks and found everyone accounted for.  We keep people up all night 
to keep a fire watch, and there are ship's personnel working in the 
passenger, kitchens, and engine areas.  Nobody was found out of place.  
We're interviewing anyone who was working alone, to see if they can 
account for their time.”  The Master At Arms seemed to have things 
under control.  A lot of paperwork would be generated that night. 

Returning to the raped girls cabin, Jake found Jane in the corridor,
smoking and talking to the parents.  She had gotten them another cabin, 
larger and nearer the Security Office, for which they were grateful.  
They had been told that they could go in after the doctor left and get 
only enough of their possessions as needed for the night.  This cabin 
would have to be gone over as a crime scene, left in it's present 
condition as much as possible.  Their property would be returned as 
soon as it was processed.   He motioned Jane to him, away from the 
parents. 

“What did you find out?”  Jake asked her. 

“She went in, the door was locked and she is sure she locked it behind
her.  She was taking a shower when he grabbed her.  He dragged her to 
the bed and made her perform oral sex before raping her.  She passed 
out during sex, said he choked her while he screwed her.  Maybe lack of 
blood to the brain combined with fear.” 

“You were talking to her folks, did they unlock the door when they got
there?”  “ 

They said they did.  It has a deadbolt, no chain.  It could have been
locked from either side, or just locked itself when he left.  She 
described him as a small ugly man with a red, scarred face.” 

Jake went over what Security was doing about it with her and advised
her, “you better get a cup of coffee, it's going to be a long night.  
I'll hang around here.  Oh, and you better bring your evidence kit when 
you return, we'll need it. 

A little while after she left the doctor came out and told the parents
what he had found and done. 

“She was raped all right, and has a lot of bruises. Probably lucky for
her that she passed out.  The bruises on her throat are severe but they 
would have been a lot worse if she hadn't.  She's also got bruises on 
her face and chest where he must have struck her.”  The doctor told 
them.  “You can take her with you, she can walk alright.  I'll come 
over to your new cabin tomorrow about eight o'clock to check on her.  
Oh, and I wouldn't leave her alone for a few days.  She needs 
companionship and love.”  They thanked the doctor and went in for their 
daughter and night time supplies. 

“Did you get a semen sample, Doc?”  Jake asked. 

“Right here.  You want it now?  I should put it in the reefer in my
office.” 

“No, you better save it for the NYC police when we get back.  They'll
probably want to run it for a DNA test.  Seal it right now if you can 
and we'll both initial it.” 

“One thing, Sir.  I had to do a vaginal swab.  It looks like he tried to
clean her off but was in a hurry.” 

After everyone had left, Jake went into the room.  There was only so
much he could do.  He had to leave the scene pure for the police later. 
 Standing in the center of the room, He looked around carefully in a 
full circle.   Walking over to one wall, he noticed a scattering of 
dust on the floor.  It was under the ventilator screen.  Carefully 
using his handkerchief to eliminate fingerprints and his penknife, he 
pulled on the screen.  It came away easily, and noiselessly.  Looking 
inside, he saw scuff marks in the dust. 

When Jane came back they used her kit for a few simple tests.  They
dusted for fingerprints, figuring it wouldn't hurt the scene any.  A 
good many were found, which they looked at and photographed with a high 
resolution camera.  There were only two on the inside of the screen, 
positioned as though pushing the screen outwards at the corners.  If 
the rapist used gloves and used the ventilator he didn't put the gloves 
on until later.  A cursory look, with a magnifying glass, at the other 
ones in the room didn't show a match, at least to their study. 

through her computer, Jane had phone and Internet access in her cabin. 
She sent copies of the prints to the New York City police along with 
all the details of the case.   Detectives would be waiting when they 
arrived.  Jake was ordered to seal the door to the cabin. 

Going back to his cabin Jake first tried the ventilator screen.  It gave
a loud squeak as it came off, and took a good tug to loosen it. 

“Probably hasn't been removed in years,” he thought.  An answering
machine contained messages from the other two detectives.  They said 
they would call back later, so he lay on his bed and thought as he 
waited.  There was quite a lot of evidence.  The doctor could probably 
at least type the semen.  It would eliminate more of the crew.  The 
fingerprints on the inside of the ventilator could be a maintenance 
man, but were probably the rapist. 

It would take a while to get the DNA tested, but that should be a big
help.  If it was a crewman he probably wouldn't run, since he had been 
there for years and multiple rapes in the past.  They had time for an 
investigation.  It was up to the police if they wanted to hold the crew 
or passengers, not him.  If not crew or passengers, then who could it 
be?  At least they now knew the method of entry.  The phone rang as he 
was studying the ship's plans again, to kill time. 

“One hell of a lot of rooms in this thing.”  He shook his head and
answered the phone. 

**** 

“I heard from the NYC police this morning, Jake.  The sent me data from
the F.B.I.  None of the crew have a violent history.  The fingerprints 
I sent in got pushed up in priority since it was a maritime crime.  
They found a match.  His name is Jerry Smith, of all things, and he's 
not a member of the crew, or on the passenger list.  He is ex-navy, 
which is why they had his prints on file.  No criminal record at all, 
not even a traffic ticket.  He does fit the description by our victim, 
except for the red face and scars.  His profile is of a short thin man, 
in his thirties right now.  We get back tomorrow and I don't know what 
to do today.” 

“I was thinking last night, Jane.  Whoever it is knows a lot about the
ship.  He would have to know the ventilation system.  You question the 
Captain.  See if he knows the guy, and check over your records again.  
He has to be on the ship, and have been on it often.”  Jake instructed 
her.  “I'll get the Master At Arms or that Second mate.  Maybe they can 
give me some help.  I'll get Peter and Jimmy to help and we'll search 
every unoccupied room and cabin on the ship.  The rapist has to live 
somewhere.  There's no way he can spend all his time in those shafts.” 

The Master At Arms directed him back to Mr. Smithers, who gave him a
dozen off duty seamen to help.  Copies of he Ship's Plans were made and 
distributed among them, and they started the search.  Hundreds of 
rooms, large and small had to be searched.  There were also things like 
chain lockers and bilges to search, more than enough for one day. 

About four p.m. Jake got a call on his cell phone from Jane. 

“I found something, Jake.  The Captain vaguely remembered his name.  He
never worked for this shipping company but was referred to Captain 
Adams by his predecessor, a Captain Peterson of Acme Shipping.  It 
seems the guy was injured by live steam, and Peterson promised him a 
job for life.  He had it set up with Adams but the guy never showed up. 


I found the personnel file Peterson sent over, but eliminated him my
first time through since he didn't have a pay file.  So far the F.B.I. 
or NYC police have nothing on him, like he just disappeared.  Do you 
think he's been hiding here all this time?  Would it even be possible?” 


“Stranger things have happened, but it would explain a lot, like all the
missing food, and a strange little guy wandering the ship at night.  
Listen, Jane, you keep doing your thing while we do ours.  Give me a 
call on this phone if you find out anything else.”  He hung up and 
continued the search. 

**** 

Jane, sitting at the small desk in her cabin, wondered what she could do
to help.  She could interview the girl again, but felt Janice had been 
bothered enough lately.  Her eye fell on the ventilator grill in her 
cabin.  Kicking off her shoes and getting her pistol and a flashlight, 
Jane stood on a chair and pulled the screen loose.  She faced a long, 
square, shiny tunnel.  It wasn't very large, but neither was Jane.  
Getting down and putting her suitcase on the chair, she mounted it and 
pulled herself inside.  Gun in one hand, flashlight in the other, and 
phone in her shirt pocket, she started crawling. 

She found she rarely needed the flashlight.  There was enough light to
see by from the grills that once her eyes adjusted, she could see her 
way.  Her biggest problem was the downslopes.  She had to hug the walls 
with her shoulders and elbow to keep from sliding. 

The cramped conditions made her tire quickly.  She rested often and had
to lie down and stretch out frequently to get the kinks out of her 
muscles.  There was a steady breeze from unseen fans.  She just hoped 
she didn't fall into one.  She had seen a movie once where the hero 
almost got chopped up that way.  “Well, guess I'm committed, or at 
least should be.”  She muttered to herself. 

After what seemed hours, but was only about forty minutes, she found an
electrical wire.  It was just past a split in her path.  Choosing a 
direction, she followed the wire, eventually coming to a ventilator 
grill.  Looking out, she saw one of the main passageways in the office 
section of the ship.  She had been down it often.  The wire ended in a 
small device.  Picking it up she noticed a lense and found it to be 
some sort of camera or spying device. 

Jane replaced it and, laboriously turning around in the small space,
started crawling in the other direction. 

**** 

Jerry was reading a book on Lion hunting in Africa.  He was in his
hidden room sitting in an easy-chair.  Having had time, he moved in 
only the best furniture when he set the room up.  He kept his remote 
camera set up, enjoying a little motion in his lonely quarters.  The 
place didn't seem as lonely that way.  His camera was set to spy on the 
office section.  A movement in the corner of his eye caused him to look 
over at television set. 

At first the camera angled moved around, finally settling on a blue eye
and half a nose.  Jerry perked up.  Someone had found his camera.  He 
had to get it out of there.  The easiest way was just to pull on the 
cord and wind it back in, before someone followed it back to him. 

Jerry grabbed it and started pulling, which was fine for a minute or so,
then it seemed to stick.  When he jerked, someone jerked back.  He knew 
someone was on the other end.  Jerry wished he had thought to buy or 
steal a gun, but it had never seemed important before. 

After a few seconds of thought, he grabbed a boning knife from his
makeshift sink and wiggled his way into the enclosure. 

**** 

Jane forgot all about her phone.  For one thing she still wasn't sure
the camera was the rapist's.  It might be there from Maintenance, or 
even one of the Security people for all she knew.  Besides, she needed 
one hand for her flashlight and the other to keep on the cord, since 
someone seemed to be pulling it in.  If it left her hand it would soon 
be out of sight, down some split in the tunnel. 

She followed the cord, turning often as she progressed.  It lay still
now so she could use both hands to crawl with, which made the going 
easier and faster.  The journey seemed endless and her legs started 
quivering from the exertion, but she didn't want to stop to stretch.  
She was too anxious to find the end, and maybe the rapist. 

Turning a corner, she didn't notice how it branched out to her left. 
Her eyes were on a square hole at the end, the cord going inside.  Jane 
stopped to change the flashlight out of her hand and get her pistol 
back out. 

That was when Jerry caught her off balance.  Both hands on her ass, he
shoved her into his room.  Jane landed on her shoulder, the gun 
clattering across the deck.  Before she could get to her knees, Jerry 
landed on her back, bouncing her head off the metal floor. 

By the time she regained her senses he had scuttled across her and
grabbed her weapon off the deck.  Head still spinning, she found 
herself his prisoner. 

Jerry forced her to her knees and handcuffed her right hand to a water
pipe underneath an obviously homemade sink. 

“Well, what are you doing here Lady?  You a tunnel rat like me?”  He was
at ease now that she was secured.  “What the hell you doing crawling 
through those pipes?” 

Jane said nothing, why satisfy him.  At least she still had one arm
free, and both legs for that matter.  She wasn't defenseless. 

“Don't wanna talk, uh?  Makes no never matter.”  He grinned and evil
grin.  “I think I'll keep you a while.  Have some company for a 
change.” 

“In your dreams, asshole.”  She muttered, trying to stare him down from
her awkward position. 

“So you can talk.”  He came closer to her, leaving the gun on a stuffed
chair, but keeping the knife. “We, or at least I'm going to enjoy 
having you here.”  Edging the tip of the knife across one her left leg, 
he started to snake his other hand across her crotch. 

A quick kick and Jerry skidded across the deck, his knife ending up in
Jane's hand.  Again she said nothing.  Being next to the sink, she 
looked up at it's surface to see a handful of dirty silverware, among 
them several steak knives.  Jane grabbed a handful of them. 

Jerry just grinned his evil grin again and got up,  starting for the
chair and gun.  He stopped when, with a ‘thunk', a steak knife quivered 
in a strip of wood on the arm of the chair. 

“Get your ass back across the room, or the next one finds your heart.” 
She told him, holding another dirty knife.  It looked like a standoff.  
He didn't know she had been, in most part, just lucky. 

**** 

“Jake, one of the crew found out something.  It might mean something or
not, but one of the storerooms seems to be missing.”  Jimmy Campbell, 
one of his detectives called Jake on his cell phone. 

“How the hell did they lose a room?  Are you sure Jerry?” 

“According to your zerox its missing.  Not there, nada.  And there's a
long space between it and the next one, like one should be here.” 

“Is it on an outside or inside wall, Jimmy?  We don't want to punch a
hole in the hull.” 

“Inside, no sweat, want me to chop it in?  There's a fire station right
here.” 

“Wait for me.  Tell you what. Put your ear against it and see if you can
hear anything, will you?”  Jake told him, hurrying to the location, 
“I'm on my way there.  You still on ‘E' deck?” 

“Yeah, gottcha' boss.” 

Jake got there to see Jerry holding a fire ax, an alarm clanging in the
distance from where he had broken the emergency enclosure.  Jimmy had 
one ear to the corridor wall. 

“Can't hear anything, Jake.  To much noise out here, but I think I heard
talking a few minutes ago.” 

“The crew must be coming, I think we sho...” He wanted to say wait, but
Jimmy was already swinging.  A few quick chops through a thin plywood 
panel and the thin wooden door behind it, and they could see inside. 

“What the hell's she doing in there?”  Jimmy asked, and hefted the ax
for another swing.  Jake also saw inside and got his gun out. 

Inside, Jerry looked at the two faces in his wall, then back at Jane. 

“The hell with those knives.”  He lunged for her gun.  At his movement,
Jane started throwing knives at him, hoping to be lucky again.  All of 
them hit him flat or with the handle end.  They did slow him down 
enough though.  By the time he turned with the gun in his hand, it was 
just in time to receive three shots from Jake's thirty-eight. 

Jake had fired through the small hole, into the room.  As it turned out,
all of them had been lucky.  Jane in being rescued, Jake in hitting 
through the small hole, and Jerry in not being killed.  He lived to 
stand trial and be convicted.


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