Lorelli's knees buckled. If he hadn't held her, she would have fallen. He pulled her over to the bed and let her drop on it.

He stood over her, his fists clenched.

"You fool! So you planned to sell me out!" he went on furiously. "Two hundred and fifty grand! Do you think you'd ever have got your hands on the money?"

Lorelli shrank back.

"I had to do it! They'll pay the money. I know they will! It's our only chance to get away. The money is for both of us."

"Is it?" Felix laughed. "I gave you the chance to offer it to me and you didn't even mention it. So you wouldn't leave me? That's funny; when all the time you were planning to sneak away and lose yourself in Buenos Aires. Lose yourself? That's a laugh too. You're crazy to think you could get away. You wouldn't get as far as the boat. You wouldn't even get out of Siena!"

She struggled upright. Her face rigid with terror.

"You won't tell him? You won't give me away?" She scrambled off the bed and down on to her knees, catching hold of his hand. "You can't tell him, Felix! You said you loved me. You know what he would do to me! Felix! Don't do it!"

Don who was watching was shocked by her abject terror.

Felix jerked his hand out of her grip and moved away from her.

"He asked me if you would like to go to Buenos Aires. He's planning to start operations there. He thinks you should go."

Lorelli closed her eyes.

"Then he knows?"

"It's possible. It might be a coincidence, but at least it shows how crazy your idea is."

"We can find another place," she said feverishly. "There must be dozens of safe places..."

"Don't kid yourself," Felix said savagely. "You're going no place."

"If you tell him, I'll kill myself. I'll never let Englemann touch me."

"Very dramatic," Felix sneered. "Okay, go ahead and kill yourself. Do you think I care?"

She began to cry, resting her arm on the bed and her head on her arm.

Felix lit a cigarette. His hand was so shaky he had trouble holding the match steady.

"All right, all right, cut it out," he said. "I'm not telling him. I must be stark, raving mad to do this for you, but I won't tell him."

She looked up.

"You mean it?"

"I mean it. Now shut up snivelling!"

"But what about Willie?" She got off her knees and sat on the bed. "He knows! We can't trust him! He'll tell Alsconi."

Felix showed his teeth in a mirthless smile.

"I was wondering how long it'd take before the nickel dropped. I've fixed Willie."

"But you can't trust him..." Lorelli began, then seeing the expression on Felix's face, she stifled a scream.

"Willie will stay fixed." He came over to her. "We're both in this up to our necks. Alsconi's waiting now for Willie's report, and Willie's in my room with his head smashed in. You're full of bright ideas: how do we get out of this jam?"

"You've killed Willie?" Lorelli gasped, staring at him in horror.

"What else could I do? How much have you got in cash here?"

"I don't know - not much."

Felix s.n.a.t.c.hed up her bag, opened it and emptied the contents on to the dressing table.

"Is that all - five thousand lire?"

"Yes."

"How much in the bank?"

"I've told you: a half a million lire."

"I have four million. That'll get us somewhere. We've got to get out and get out fast before Willie's found."

The sound of the telephone bell made him stiffen. They looked at each other.

"Answer it!" he said.

With an unsteady hand, Lorelli picked up the receiver.

"Is Mr Felix there?" Carlos asked. "The boss wants a word with him."

Lorelli looked across at Felix, sick terror in her eyes.

"Alsconi wants to speak to you," she said and held out the receiver.

Through the peephole, Don watched Felix's sweating face. This ten minutes of drama had held him rooted, but now his mind was already at work, wondering how this change of situation would affect him. If these two panicked and bolted, he would be cut off from Lorelli's help, and without her help he knew his chances of getting out of the cave were slight.

He watched Felix cross the room and take the receiver from Lorelli's shaking hand.

"I am waiting for Willie," Alsconi said softly in his ear. "Where is he?"

"I'm waiting for him too," Felix said. "Maybe he's had a breakdown. I'd better drive down and see what's happened to him."

"He hasn't had a breakdown," Alsconi said. "I sent Menotto to look for him and he tells me the car is at the bottom of the drive, but there's no sign of Willie."

"I'll come up," Felix said.

"That won't be necessary," Alsconi said. "You can stay where you are." He chuckled, a sound that made Felix stiffen.

"You'll probably have to anyway," and the line went dead.

Felix replaced the receiver. There was a look in his eyes that brought Lorelli to her feet.

"Wait here," he said curtly and went quickly out of the room.

Lorelli ran to the door and looked out into the corridor, then she turned and came back into the room. Watching her, Don saw terror was turning to hysteria. If they were to make a move, he had to do it now.

"Lorelli!" he said sharply.

Lorelli screamed and jerked around, her eyes wildly searching the room.

"I'm here," Don said, pushing the slot back as far as it would go. "It's Micklem."

She located the opening in the wall through which he was looking and she backed away.

"Pull yourself together," he said. "You want the money to get away. I have it. We must help each other. Give me the gun!"

"No!" Lorelli said. "I'm not going to help you. I'm getting out of here."

"How far do you think you'll get?" Don said. "Don't be a fool. Give me the gun. If you get in his way, he'll wipe you out as he wiped Willie out. You can't trust him. I can take care of you. Give me the gun!"

He was counting on her terror. The snap in his voice seemed to hypnotize her. She picked up the gun.

"And the cartridges - hurry!" he said.

She brought the gun and the cartridges over to the opening.

"Quick!" Don said as he saw her hesitate. "Give it to me before he gets back!"

She slid the gun through the opening, then she handed in the seven bullets.

"Don't lose your nerve," Don said. "I'll take care of you." She then seemed to realize what she had done; she had given him her only protection not only from Felix, but worse still, from Englemann.

"No! Give it to me back!" she cried. "I didn't mean to let you have it. I must have it back!" She made as if to thrust her hand through the opening, but Don slid the plate across just as Felix came into the room.

Lorelli spun around. One look at Felix's white, sweating face sent her hands to her mouth.

"I can't open the door at the end of the pa.s.sage," Felix said, the edge of panic in his voice. "The current seems to be cut off."

Lorelli shut her eyes and sagged against the wall. He went over to the telephone and lifted the receiver.

Carlos said, "Yes?"

His negroid voice was as thick and as smooth as black treacle.

"Something seems to have gone wrong with the door at the end of the pa.s.sage," Felix said. He had to make a tremendous effort to keep his voice steady. "I can't open it."

"That's right, Mr Felix," Carlos said cheerfully. "Boss's orders. He told me to cut the current off."

Felix suddenly felt he wanted to be sick.

"Okay. I'll have a word with him," he said. "He can't know I'm down here."

"He knows all right." There was a jeering note in Carlos's voice. "He asked who was down here before he told me to cut off the current."

"Put me through to him!" Felix snarled.

"Right away, Mr Felix." Carlos pulled out the plug, then rang Alsconi's room.

"Yes?" Alsconi asked.

"Mr Felix wants you, boss."

"Does he? Tell him I'm busy," Alsconi said. "I'll talk to him tomorrow morning and not before."

"Yes, boss," Carlos said, his thick lips coming off his teeth in a delighted grin. He got back to Felix. "Sorry, Mr Felix, but the boss says he's busy. He'll talk to you tomorrow morning."

Felix slammed down the receiver. Sweat ran down his face as he turned to look at Lorelli.

"You clever little..." The word he used made Lorelli flinch. "We're trapped down here. Alsconi's on to us. He's cut the current off, and there's no way out. I hope you're pleased with yourself and your bright ideas."

Lorelli collapsed into a chair. She held her head between her hands.

Felix went out of the room at a run and into his room. He flung back the door and entered, not looking at Willie's body that lay half under the toilet basin. His .45 automatic lay on the top of his chest of drawers. He s.n.a.t.c.hed it up, and as he was about to push it into the shoulder holster he wore under his coat, he paused. The weight of the gun in his hand told him it wasn't loaded, and yet he knew an hour or so ago, before he had killed Willie, he had checked the gun, making sure it was loaded.

With shaking hands, he pulled out the clip and found it empty. He turned swiftly, jerked open a drawer in the chest for the box of cartridges he always kept by him. It usually rested in the right-hand comer under a pile of shirts. When he moved the shirts, he saw the empty hollow where the box had been, but the box itself was no longer there.

He had used Willie's gun when he had hit him over the head. He had dropped the gun beside Willie's dead body. Now he looked for it, but couldn't see it. He kicked Willie's body aside, but the gun wasn't there.

He stood still, his heart pounding, his hands clenched at his sides. Someone - probably Carlos - had been in his room while he had been wasting time talking to Lorelli and had unloaded his gun, taken his slugs and also Willie's gun.

Well, at least he had Lorelli's gun, he thought. It was only a toy, but it was better than nothing. He could guess what would happen. When Alsconi was ready he would tell Carlos to move in and take him. Felix knew he wouldn't stand a chance against Carlos unless he had the .25 which would slow Carlos down if it didn't stop him.

He went back to Lorelli's room.

She was still holding her head in her hands. He scarcely looked at her. He went to the dressing table for the .25. He had left it there with the seven bullets arranged in a neat row beside it and he could scarcely believe his eyes when he saw it was no longer there.

"Where's your gun?" he said, his voice off-key.

Lorelli started and looked up.

"Where's the gun?" he repeated.

"Why? What do you...?"

She jumped to her feet when she saw his vicious expression.