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Dakota was still shooting, and more Golden Nova goons fell with a chorus of shouts and groans.
Two more guys rushed at them, and Dare attacked. He smacked the wrist of another one, snapping bones, making the man drop his gun. He fell back with a cry.
Dare shoved the end of the baton into the next man’s gut and stunned him.
“Get them,” Korrdo bellowed.
Chaos ensued. More people were running toward them, more lasers were fired.
Dare saw Dakota scrambling past on her hands and knees, staying in cover as laser fire whizzed around them. He dived, tackled her, and together, they rolled behind a set of steps.
“Never a dull moment with you,” he said.
She winked at him. “Just the way you like it.”
Suddenly, he heard another sound. He saw Dakota frown.
It was the sound of crumbling rock.
They poked their heads up and saw that some of the laser fire had hit one of the giant temple pillars.
It had cracked near the base and was now slowly tumbling over.
Dare and Dakota watched as the pillar fell and smacked into the side of the golden dome. It had to be strong enough to withstand that. He stared hard at the glass.
He released a breath. It looked fine, everything seemed to be okay.
Crack.
A spiderweb of cracks appeared on one large panel of the dome. They snaked outward, like cracking ice on a frozen lake.
He and Dakota froze.
“Oh no,” she murmured.
The next second, a hunk of golden glass fell with a crash to the floor, and seawater started pouring in.
Dakota struggled through the knee-deep water. The dome was filling up fast. She already saw various bits of treasure floating around them. Korrdo and his men were shooting, but it was sporadic now, as they turned their attention to the new problem.
As the water reached her thighs, she started to really get worried. She had no desire to drown again today.
Suddenly, Dare leaped up onto the base of the broken pillar. He reached down and she gripped his hand. He pulled her up beside him.
She looked over, and saw that Korrdo and his few remaining men were rushing out of the temple with their bags full of treasure.
“We can’t let them take the treasure!” she said.
“I’m wondering where the hell Ry and Justyn are.” Dare’s face was grim.
“They aren’t answering on the comm line?”
He shook his head.
Stars, she hoped Korrdo’s men hadn’t caught them. “How can we stop Korrdo?”
Dare was eyeing the large hole in the dome, not too far away. She followed his gaze, and not far beyond, she could see what had to be Korrdo’s sub tethered outside the dome. It wasn’t that different from what they’d come down in.
An idea formed. “We could swim out to Korrdo’s craft. It isn’t far. Leave that scumbag stuck down here.”