Spider's Bite
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Matthew Caine sat as still as possible as dozens of spider's crawled all over him and the room. He had not found himself in this kind of predicament for many years. It was going to take all his concentration to keep the spiders from recognizing that he was a potential threat. When the men placed him in the room, they made certain he was as far from the door as possible, but that was not going to stop the old Shaolin from trying to escape. It was only going to be a matter of time.
He regretted having to tell his son that they may never meet again, but the danger was there. By doing so, he could give his whole concentration to the task ahead, and that was escaping from the Order of the Black Widow.
It was painstakingly slow, but as each spider found its way to the floor and away from him, Matthew was able to move just a fraction of an inch. It may take him hours at this rate, but if he tried to move too quickly, he was certain that at least one of the spiders would leave their mark and their poison in his system. One did not mess with black widows.
Matthew could sense that the order's activities were focused on Peter. That was fine by him. While their attention was drawn elsewhere, that meant he was forgotten for the moment, though it would not be long before Kai Mow would once again turn his attention back in his direction.
Slowly Matthew inched along the floor. At one point he had to freeze for several minutes as half a dozen spiders explored his hands and arms. One spider managed to crawl inside his left sleeve and up his arm to the elbow. The sensation of the spider's legs against his skin caused him nearly to react, but he took a deep breath and slowly released it relaxing and working through the ticklish moment. When the spider could not crawl any further because the sleeve was too close to the skin, it reversed direction and crawled back down Matthew's arm and back out onto his hand. It paused there for a moment as if deciding its next move then once again crawled to the floor and made its way to the wall.
Once again Matthew moved along the floor, creeping slowly. If there had been a snail to mark his pace, the snail would win this race. Matthew kept track of time, by counting the seconds the moment he had been placed in the room. Sixty seconds equaled one minute. Sixty minutes equaled one hour. He gave up counting when a full day had passed. Just concentrating on reaching the door that now stood inches out of his reach instead of several feet was enough.
Then Matthew took a chance. He slowly maneuvered his body to where his legs were now under him where he was resting on his knees. There were only three spiders that remained on his person. One sat on his shoulder, another sat in the middle of his back, and a third rested in the center of his chest. Those three could still be a potential threat to his escape, but since they sat where no skin was exposed, Matthew knew if he continued to move slowly, he might cause the spiders to drop harmless to the floor.
He waited patiently and he was soon rewarded. All three spiders fell to the floor without a single bite. Matthew breathed a sigh of relief and rose to his feet, being careful not to step on any of the spiders. It was easy from there. All that was needed was a quick concentration of his qi and the door proved to be no obstacle to his escape. He silently stepped through the door and was surprised to see no guards had been posted outside. The Black Widow Order seemed to think that he, Matthew Caine was no threat to their plans. Perhaps they saw him simply as a bargaining chip to get what they wanted out of his son. Matthew though was not one to underestimate his enemies. But perhaps his enemies had underestimated him. Just because they did not see him as a threat did not mean that he wasn't. Even though Matthew was free from one obstacle, there could be others he would have to face. The only time he would prove to be a threat to the order would be if he could escape totally unnoticed and be far from the order's clutches. He knew where the order was located and how many were in the nest. It was now up to him to find his son and his friends and put a stop to them once and for all.
Matthew made his way down the corridor and peaked around the corner. Still he saw no one. It was odd that they would leave him totally alone. Then his Shaolin senses came alive and he looked up to see several nets had been placed in the very corridor that would lead him to the outside. It would seem the order had an alternative plan after all just in case he was to escape his spidery prison.
Learning from Peter what those nets contained, Matthew was faced with another challenge ahead of him. Not since the Shaolin temple in China did he face such a challenge. It was during his final trial to earn the right to become a Shaolin, only during that trial he had to face three corridors of wooden men and acid dripped down from above. It wasn't easy. Though the acid irritated the skin, it wasn't nearly as fatal as facing a ceiling filled with poisonous nets. It was going to take finesse to get through this obstacle.
Matthew took several minutes to study the floor and ceiling. He could see there was a pattern on the floor overlapping the shadows the nets created. Studying that pattern he could see that if he simply walked through the center, at least one of the nets would be triggered. One net would be enough to stop him. If he had his grandson's speed, Matthew might be able to leap aside but he no longer was as agile. Then another thought came to him. This was going to take walking the rice paper. His steps had to be as light as a feather and no footfall could cross where one pattern met another. Once Matthew decided what his course would be, he stepped into the corridor.
***
Two men turned away from the monitors they had been ordered to watch. It was obvious that the discussion centered on the Shaolin.
"Do you think the old man is going to make it?"
"I didn't think he'd make it out of that room."
"You lost that bet for sure. Just like you lost the bet from when we had the old apothecary in that same fix."
"Well, fifty bucks says he won't make it to the other side of the corridor. That place is rigged so if he even sets foot in that place one of those nets will come crashing down on him."
"Fifty bucks says your wrong. The Shaolin are tricky. They have tricks not even a magician can top."
"You like the Shaolin?"
"Nope, just respectful of what they can do. I'm no fool. I'd rather lay my bets where I know I can win."
"You'd bet against your own order?"
"Only when I know they can't win. So far the Shaolin have beaten us every time."
"We'll see about that. The Shaolin can't win every time. Sooner or later they will slip and it will be the order who will be victorious."
Both men turned back to the monitors only to see that the corridor they were supposed to be watching was empty.
"Damn, where'd he go?"
"Kai Mow isn't going to like this."
"You be the one to tell him."
"We've got to find out where he's at."
The two men frantically started turning switches and watching the monitors jump as each camera was turned on. Some panned the area but no trace of the old Shaolin could be found.
"Where is he?"
"I am here," a third unfamiliar voice added his own to the conversation. "May I make a suggestion? Sweet dreams."
Both men were suddenly grabbed at the base of the neck and shoulder before they could react. Matthew applied the proper pressure at the qi gong point and both men slumped back in their seats. With that taken care of, Matthew studied the monitors and found the quickest route out of the building. The elder Shaolin, however, was not quite ready to leave. There was still one thing that he needed. And only Kai Mow could provide it for him.
Continues with Part 21
Alisa Joaquin Copyright@2002.
This story cannot be reprinted or sold in any other form without strict permission from
the author. It is being distributed here solely for your enjoyment.
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