Quicky Sanders: Dead Drop

[Viridian]

This was meant to be Sanders' tip-off, but Victoria was getting frustrated with the new reporter getting all the scoops. She left the office and headed to the swamp, where she hoped to intercept the message left behind by the notorious crime ring she had been following for months. Wishing she had changed into something more appropriate, she trudged through the swamp, hoping that the clinging mud wouldn't ruin her boots. Though the swamp was vast, the directions were very specific, and she soon found the site of the drop. Scurrying over to the old briefcase, she opened it. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to find, and was initially stunned at its emptiness. She then noticed a folded piece of paper with a scribbled note:

"Dear Sanders,

The more you struggle, the more you sink."

It only took a moment for Victoria to realise what she had walked into. Her boots were already gone and the quicksand was resisting her efforts to escape. She paused, breathing heavily, searching for way out. Damn it, how did Quicky get herself into this sort of thing - and more importantly, how did she get out?

Time passed. Despite her steady balance, she was up to her waist. She had been calling for help, desperate that someone would find her all the way out here. That didn't seem likely. The trap was too cleverly laid out.

Then, a figure emerged from the trees. Victoria stiffened. At first she thought it was one of the mobsters. Then, as the figure neared, she recognised the favourite red sweater, black skirt and ample bosom.

"Sanders! Help!"

"Victoria? What are you doing here?"

Quicky sighed. She knew something like this would happen, but after finding the tip-off on her desk and Troy mentioning that Victoria had disappeared, she knew that her fellow reporter would get herself into some trouble. She began trudging across the quicksand.

"Wait, are you sure about this?" Victoria asked, alarmed that Sanders was recklessly walking into the trap.

"It's not that bad," she said. "I've been through worse. I won't sink very deep before I get you out."

Unknown to the two reporters, another figure began to emerge from the shadows. Just as Sanders was about to reach Victoria, he spoke.

"I don't think that will be happening."

Victoria and Quicky turned their heads to find one of the mobsters pointing a gun at them. He had a toothy grin, his eyes dancing with pleasure at seeing his trap work surprisingly well. "Two for one! Boss will be happy to hear this! A raise for me, yes!"

Sanders gulped. She had sunk past her knees now, and Victoria was also going deeper. What was the crook going to do? Was he going to leave them to die, or watch them sink slowly?

[PM2K]

Awesome! Great story telling as always, and with an illustration as a bonus. I love it.

[sixgunzloaded]

Sweet, Viridian! Great little mini-story with a cool cliffhanger! And I like the perspective from behind Quicky in the pic. Great pose that she's in. And she has nice hair too! Well done, thank you!