Read Humanity Unlimited 1: Liberty Station for Free Online

with his weapon ready, Nathan turned off his light. None of the tunnels gave even a glimmer. He turned his light back on and listened closely, but there weren’t any unusual sounds. They’d have to do this the hard way.
    None of the tunnels looked exceptionally safe, but one looked markedly worse. He leaned close to Jake and spoke softly. He didn’t whisper, because that carried further. “We go a little way down each of these. Come back after five minutes. Mark the path.”
    Jake took the tunnel directly across from the shaky one. Nathan wasn’t surprised. It wouldn’t be his first choice either. He selected the one to Jake’s right and went in. This hunt was almost over.
     
    * * * * *
     
    Harry followed the woman’s instructions slowly. He didn’t want to give Nathan any warning. He slung his rifle and went with his pistol. It would be a lot more useful in these tight spaces.
    He reached what looked like the final bit of corridor leading to the central well chamber and motioned for his men to slow down even more. One was backing him up while the other kept watch behind them. If they ran into any of Nathan’s people, Harry wanted to take them out quietly, if he could.
    That plan almost went out the window when he entered the chamber and someone knocked his pistol out of his hand. It clattered loudly across the floor, but Harry didn’t go after it. He swung in close to his opponent instead, even though his hand hurt like hell. The bastard had used his rifle butt.
    Harry grabbed the rifle with one hand and clamped down on the man’s free wrist with the other. He yanked the two apart, which left him open for another attack, but prevented the mercenary from firing his weapon.
    The bastard staggered to his left, directly toward the well. Harry tried to alter their course, but the man seemed determined to fall in.
    Harry released him at the last moment, but the man grasped desperately at his equipment webbing as he tumbled over the low rim.
    The fight had taken place in relative silence up to this point, with only grunts and growls between the two of them. That changed when they smashed the wooden ladder in the well to splinters.
    Harry landed on top of the man when they slammed into the stone floor far below. Momentum sent him rolling into the far wall. He saw stars, but staggered to his feet. The light from above only cast a dim glow down here, but he didn’t see any movement.
    That wouldn’t matter. Someone would come looking for the source of all that racket.
    The man he’d fought with lay twisted in a way that could only mean he was dead. The ladder was in splintered chunks. He wouldn’t be going up without assistance from above.
    “You okay, boss?”
    He glanced up long enough to see Allen looking down at him. “Better than the other guy. You have a rope?”
    “Of course.”
    “Rig something to get me back out of here. And toss my pistol down.”
    A sound from the tunnel behind him made Harry turn. There was light coming toward him.
    His pistol bounced off the dead man and clattered on the stone beside him. Harry grabbed it and moved to the side of the chamber, aiming toward the potential hostiles.
    Two figurers came out from the tunnel. Though their bright flashlights obscured them, Harry could tell they didn’t have camouflage on. And one of them was a woman. He could tell when she let out a scream at the sight of the body.
    Definitely not Nathan’s people.
    He opened his mouth to make some awkward introductions, but footsteps from the other direction warned him of an oncoming threat.
    “Back into the tunnel,” he snapped. “Unless you want to end up as dead as he is.”
    “Who the hell are you and what’s going on?” a male voice demanded.
    He didn’t have time for this. “Move!” He advanced on them, causing them to retreat in the direction he wanted them to go. Harry made it to the tunnel entrance just as a man with an automatic weapon came into the chamber behind him.
    The hostile opened