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After that, they walked for the equivalent of another block As they did, she heard their feet scraping on the rough ground Malachi stopped and touched the walls

"Are these tunnels solid?" she asked

"They see properly, support beams were set inwe’re safe They see you’ll see," Malachi re the way And then they careat," Abby co back

"Why do you say that?"

"You know about where we are?" he asked

"Yes," she said slowly "We’re alonslayer"

"Start at the very end, then back up Feel the walls Feel the different Let’s put the lights down and shine the left, the other pointed toward the right

Abbytheone architects of the tunnels had given theed some of the wood that shored up the walls, but she assumed they would have used a hardwood that didn’t easily deco

She was so intent on her work that she was startled when she heard Malachi shout, "Aha!"

She turned around At first, all she saas darkness and the glare of the light--but then she realized that the light was creating shades of darkness Malachi had found another fork in the tunnel

"How There all there before!" Abby said

"ThatI have at inia In the house, it’s called a pocket door The wall slides into a pocket in the rest of the wall"

Abby picked up her flashlight and stood by his side She gasped "Malachi--that’s the end of the tunnel that leads froured," he said "So, our killer’s been able to access the Dragonslayer froonslayer and the river from either of them"

"We can shut off the bastard, cement him in," Abby said bitterly

Malachi shook his head "Not if ant to find hiht noe go back We pretend we’ve never been here--and we get Will to bring in so That’s hoe’ll rescue Bianca"

Malachi stepped through the hole he’d created in the tunnel wall He inspected the pocket into which he’d slid the wooden door that had originally seemed to be just more earth-and-hardwood tunnel wall "At my house," he told Abby, "this kind of door was used to turn the place into a tavern by night--a way stop for travelers--and then back into separate roo Thomas Jefferson’s fa of et to say ‘Washington slept here’ But I believe this technique uess these tunnels were used at various times, for various reasons," she ht have started thehai others or to effect their own escapes And then they beca the Civil War At other times, the city or property owners sealed up entrances, as well as these secret doorways froovernments--federal, state and municipal--usually do whatever is cheapest You don’t need a tunnel, then seal up the entrance If you know the city and you’ve heard about its history all your life--and studied it--you ht realize where to look for these entrances"

"I know the city!" Abby said

"Yep, and you knew about the tunnel under the Dragonslayer because it was your tunnel You knew about the hospital tunnels because their existence and the history of ent on during the yellow fever epidemic was recorded--sketchily, yes, but there were records," Malachi said He offered her a dry s for a way to kidnap people and take theround Savannah as thoroughly as our killer did Coo back to where we caonslayer tunnel and the tavern stairs The dining rooht now, and I don’t want to be seen"

"Let’s hope nobody sees us crawling through the garbage," Abby said

"Yeah," Malachi agreed "I’e for someone to watch the entrance here Someone in plain clothes on’t be noticed Jackson will have to talk to David Caswell, get someone he trusts implicitly" He had his phone out, tried to call, then nals down here Coet sorinned at her "After that, we need to shower again Another reason I’d rather not go to the Dragonslayer--I don’t want to be seen like this We’ll go to your house on Chippewa, okay?"

Abby nodded Malachi closed the pocket door, and they ht reflected off so on the floor She instinctively started to pick it up and then didn’t She hunkered down and took a closer look; Malachi hunkered down next to her "Guerprints?"

"Possible, yes," Malachi said He glanced at her Even in the eerie light, there was a beauty, a strength, in his face Not only that, she couldn’t re able to cohost thing

It was the sex

It hatever hteenth-or nineteenth-century object," he said He was prepared; he reached into his pocket and she saw that he had a little envelope He turned it inside out to pick up the ripped gu it and slid it into his pocket He took her aret out of here now"