Boom! Paul ducked. The train lurched to a halt and the lights went out. Instinctively he pulled Harriet towards him. A blast of airborne debris pelted them, something hit him. He winced as he felt a sticky stream of blood oozing from his forehead.
- "A terrorist attack," he thought, "Some trip of a lifetime." They'd heard about terrorist threats, but had still come. Harriet wouldn't be cowed by those fanatics.
- An eerie silence followed; Paul heard himself breathing. Then, over the ringing in his head, people were screaming and wailing, crashing about trying to move. Suddenly, the emergency lights came on; he could see through the murk. "You okay, love?" he asked. Harriet looked up, hair plastered with dust and immaculate makeup smeared.
- She shook her head raising a cloud of dust. "I'm all right. That was a bomb; what an adventure!" She grinned, "A bonus from The House of Travel, eh?"
- Through the dim light, Paul could see passengers clambering out into the tunnel's blackness.
- "Let's get out of here," he said, taking Harriet's hand as they crossed the rubble strewn floor.
- Feeling their way, squeezing through the narrow gap beside the train, they headed for a distant glow. Like those coughing and wheezing around them, Paul struggled to breathe the dusty air. His arm jerked as Harriet stumbled; stopping, he groped for her in the dark.
- Rounding the end of the train, past the gaping driver's door, the air cleared. They sped up. Paul didn't notice the switch lever beside the track. He tripped, cursing as he fell. A sharp pain shot through his leg, but he pushed himself-up.-Harriet squeezed his hand as they set off again.
- The station's blaze of light dazzled them. "We're safe now," Paul sighed, helping Harriet onto the platform. She fell, head first onto the beige tiles. "I let her go too soon," he gasped, only breathed out as she rolled over and sat up.
- Looking at her hands, Harriet burst into tears. "Oh, god!" she sobbed, thrusting them towards him. "What a disaster, my nails are broken. That manicure cost fifty dollars!"
