Kharon

by Wayne Marinovich

  'Thank you, Owen.'

  The decrease in pitch from the noise of the wheels made her heart stop. The sound continued to drop as the truck slowed and came to a halt. She watched Owen get up and move toward the large tarpaulin flap that covered the back of the truck. Two men released the straps on the outside before Owen swung the flap upwards and tied it up against the roof. Light streamed in and caught her in the eyes just below the blindfold.

  The slim young man climbed down the ladder. With his hand though her elbow, he walked her around the side of the truck and stood her up with her back against the truck door. All sense of time was lost. Shifting from foot to foot, she stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity. The scrape of footfalls near her made her stomach clench.

  'Where is Stuart?' she asked.

  'Don’t worry about him. He is still asleep and will remain so for the rest of the journey,' the man with the German accent said as he reached around the back of Christina's head and grabbed the knot of the blindfold. In a quick movement, he ripped it off her head, hurting her ears.

  She groaned and pinched her eyes tight as the bright sunlight blinded her. As she shielded her eyes with her tethered hands, the sound of a knife flicking open made her gasp for breath. The sun gleamed on the silver blade as the German turned it around in his hands, then grabbing her hands he sliced through the black cable ties in a downward swipe.

  'You can have a toilet break for five minutes. Two of my men will escort you to the restroom.'

  Christina nodded and then looked up at his face. Shock hit her like a sledgehammer. Confusion coursed through her like an icy fog. Markus stood in front of her. A man she had once loved in a life long past. A dead man now stood in front of her. Gibbs had killed him in the cold North Sea off Germany.

  The tall blond figure grinned, his eyes narrowing. 'My name is Woolf Egger, and yes, I look like him. He was my twin. Now go to the restroom before I change my mind.’

  'Forget the toilet, Woolf. Why the hell have we been kidnapped?'

  Woolf sneered at her and reached into the top pocket of his black jacket. Pulling out a burgundy piece of folded cloth with frayed edges, he handed it to her. Christina looked into his soulless blue eyes and snatched the cloth from him. As she unfolded it, she gasped. A family crest was embroidered onto what was a blazer pocket. A crest she had seen so many times before. The words, Comme je trouve - As I find, positioned in gold lettering below the faded coat of arms for the Butler family. She handed the cloth back to Woolf and then broke out into a sprint to her left. Her arms pumped as she ran towards two small brick buildings that had been built along the old M6 motorway. The footsteps of the chasing men grew louder behind her, and she heard one of the men laughing. Running as fast as she could across the tarmac forecourt of the buildings, she heard Woolf shout out behind her.

  'What about your son, Christina?'

  Tears welled up in her eyes as she stopped running and stood for a second, her lower lip quivering as she started to sob. Her shoulders shook as she cried and turned back towards the trucks. The men in jeans and jackets grabbed her arms. She could see Woolf standing near the trucks with his arms folded. Trudging back, she was ushered off towards the toilets away from a smiling Woolf.

  A few minutes later as she stood near the first truck of the convoy, Woolf walked over. 'Now that the gravity of your situation has sunk in, I don’t expect any further escape attempts from you. You understand that you will never see your son again if you try and make a break for it.'

  She nodded her head, a fraction of a second before the slap hit her face and wrenched her head sideways. Stumbling to her left, one of the men grabbed her before she could topple over and helped her upright.

  'Throw her in the truck with the little runt,' Woolf said.

  • • •

  With the moon lighting their way, Christina carried Stuart in her arms, his head on her shoulder as he occasionally murmured and sighed, some drug keeping him unconscious. Surrounded by three armed guards, she walked across a large square of concrete. Cracks and holes caused by the onslaught of weeds made walking tricky for her. Ahead was the large doorway of a warehouse.

  'Take them to the second room,' Woolf shouted. 'Keep them separated from the others.'

  Owen grabbed her arm and gave her a meek smile as they walked into the warehouse. Three big fishing boats undergoing hull maintenance were mounted up on wooden struts. Along the right-hand brick wall of the warehouse were the long tables and workstations of the artisans who worked on the boats. Steel cabinets and tools hung on boards mounted to the walls behind the workstations. On the left-hand side were seven small offices. Owen shepherded her towards them. Stacked alongside the second office door were large wooden crates with the logo for Styx Enterprises stamped on them.

  'Who is Styx Enterprises?' she asked.

  Owen opened the door and pushed her into the dark room, flicking the switch on as she walked through. Three sets of bunk beds with blue blankets and sheets piled on them were pushed up against the opposite wall. Dirty yellowing pillows hinted to the stream of occupants that had slept there.

  'Please be honest with me, Owen. What does he want with Stuart and me? I won't tell Woolf that you told me anything. You have been so kind to me, and it seems that you are the only friend that we have here.'

  Owen's face lit up, and he glanced back out of the open door. 'I don't know that much, Christina. I am employed by Styx Enterprises as a guard and have been detailed to Mr Egger. He has something to do with the fusion ships that Styx builds here in Glasgow. I heard via the grapevine that they have some deal with the New American Government. That is all I know.'

  Christina lay Stuart down on one of the lower bunks and turned to face Owen. 'Thanks for telling me what you know, despite the risk from that vile man. Do you know anything about Francis Butler?’

  Owen smiled again. 'Lord Butler looks after me and a few other boys when we are not working and makes sure we get everything we need.'

  'I see nothing much has changed then.'

  Owen frowned. 'What do you mean?'

  'Be careful of Francis, Owen. The same hands that pat your head and hug you so lovingly will also break your neck when they are tired of you.'

  'He is not that bad.'

  'Take it from me, be careful because he has a dark side,' she said. 'If you do hear what their plans are for us, I'd appreciate it if you told me.'

  The young man nodded and walked out.

  Chapter 14

  Carshalton Estate, Surrey, England, UK - 2033

  Gibbs scanned the Carshalton House kitchen as he and Warren walked into the large square room, half expecting to see his son running around the kitchen getting under everyone's feet. Warren grabbed a big wooden bin that was in the middle of the table and took out a handful of biscuits. He scoffed them down, never taking his eyes off Gibbs, who took the satphone from his pocket and dialled.

  'Of course I'm convinced it was Tom,' Gibbs snapped. 'We double checked his body before we left.'

  Silence on the line.

  'Andrei? You still there?'

  'Yes.'

  'Something must have happened for Tom to betray us like that,' Gibbs said. 'And who the hell was the tall German who knew Markus?'

  'Gibbs, I am just as shocked as you are to hear about all of this. I will talk to a few people who knew Markus and see if he had any other friends. As for Tom, I considered him a good friend and have no idea why he was involved in Christina's kidnapping.'

  'Maybe we should accept that he was just a leader of a gang that annihilated all other gangs in his quest to become the Warlord of London,' Gibbs said, scratching at a crack in the table with his fingernail.

  'Yes, he did, but ever since the Phoenix Council was toppled, he became a better man. You of all people must have seen him become a changed man,' Andrei said. 'Something bad must have happened to make a man like him turn on his friends. I'll continue to make a few calls, and I will get back to you.'

  �
� • •

  Gibbs stood in the centre of his bedroom, beads of water rolling down his body as he wrapped a brown towel around his waist. The shower had freshened him up a little. Sitting on the edge of the bed with his elbows on his knees, he rubbed his face with his hands.

  The empty wooden picture frame on the bedside table hinted to the life without Christina and Stuart. Grabbing it, he threw it with all his might against the wall. It shattered in a shower of glass and wooden bits.

  The satphone in his faded jeans pocket started to ring, and he ran around to the other side of the bed and grabbed them off the floor. Rummaging through the pockets, he pulled out the black phone only to drop it. It bounced on his foot, which he stuck out to break its fall, and then it spun across the room into the wooden floor pelmet, the battery parting ways from the rest of the phone.

  'For fuck sakes, Gibbs,' he shouted and dashed across the floor and snatched up the pieces.

  Clipping the battery back on to the phone, he powered it up and watched the nauseating Iridium satellite logo flashing at him as it started up and attempted to regain signal.

  'Come on!'

  A minute later as he dressed in jeans and a work shirt, the phone rang.

  'Gibbs!' he answered.

  'It's me,' Andrei replied. 'I’ve been looking into the ten NEG men who did the kidnapping, and we managed to capture one of the thugs who was mouthing off to an informant that he had done a recent job dressed as an NEG army officer.’

  'I want to interrogate the fucker as soon as I can. With the low tide set for another five hours, I can be there…'

  'He died under interrogation, Gibbs,' Andrei said.

  'What! How could you let that happen, Andrei? He was our only solid lead.'

  'Take a deep breath, my friend. We got a lot from him before his heart gave out. I did the interrogation myself.'

  'Wait! Just how long have you had this man in custody? You didn't say anything about it on the earlier call.'

  'I wanted to get the full picture and all the details before telling you.'

  'I thought you said that you were past doing all that kind of FSB torture work.'

  'I did the interrogation myself because I have known Christina my whole life, back since when our parents were doctors at the same hospital in Moscow, so I was never going to let someone else question the man, not even you.'

  'Sorry, Andrei. I forgot you were both close. But don't ever leave me out of the loop like that again,' Gibbs said. 'What did you get from him?'

  'A person from our past has resurfaced.'

  'Who?'

  'Butler.'

  Gibbs felt his chest tighten. 'Jesus, that makes a little more sense. That must be the link. I was wondering how the big German knew Markus Schmidt. Maybe they were both rent boys for Butler.'

  'I agree.'

  'At least we know who we’re up against,' Gibbs said.

  'Yes. It seems the lunatic has left for the Americas. We always knew that he had substantial backing plus an extensive group of companies over there when we were all on the Phoenix Council. I had assumed that they had all been disbanded by the New American Government.'

  'This thug knew all of that. Jeez, I thought they were just some muscle that worked for Tom.'

  'That’s what I thought too but after a bit more persuasion he confessed to being a low-level employee in Butler's organisation. They teamed up with Tom's crew, and it seemed that it was all planned down to the last detail.'

  'What else?' Gibbs asked.

  'We found out that they are trafficking humans from the Americas to the European continent. I chatted to a few colleagues who are checking into this across our NAG states.’

  'What the hell is he up to now? Is it for cheap labour or maybe sex trafficking?'

  'The prisoner said that a lot of people are being taken to America.'

  Gibbs sat on the end of the bed again with the image of Christina and Stuart shivering in a cold ship. It made his skin crawl.

  'The last words from his lips were about some disease he’d heard about. A version of avian flu but we don't know much about that. He was mumbling in the end.'

  'So why has Butler kidnapped our wives and girlfriends? Is it revenge for toppling his little governmental project and other secret organisations?'

  'I don't think so. It is always about money and power with him, so the virus must have something to do with that.'

  'I don’t know, Andrei. It must be about revenge. I mean, why else would he take Christina? He wants to get back at you and me, and he knows that we will do anything to get her back. Maybe he is trying to get us to follow him to America.’

  'Do you believe that he will take them there?'

  'Now, I do. Whatever he is planning, the prisoner said he has gone to the US. He will want to keep Christina close to him. It's the kind of twisted thing he would do, don't you think?'

  'No, I don’t,' Andrei said. 'I think he would have hurt them already if he wanted to make us suffer. Why drag them all the way there when he could have killed them right here, like Tom? I think we should continue our search here in the UK, as it is where Tom was based. He had a part to play in this and was clearly swayed by a much bigger picture that we are not seeing yet.'

  'We can agree on that. Tom would not have just kidnapped eight people on a whim. Christina mentioned that there was something off about him the last time he visited, and I just ignored her.'

  'Don't be too hard on yourself, mate. They will have promised him a lot of money or political power for him to turn on us. I was with him a few weeks ago, and he seemed fine,' Andrei said.

  ‘I would still like you to keep a watch on the main shipping ports, the airports as well. Butler is clearly connected enough to get his hands on a military plane,' Gibbs said.

  ‘Maybe, but he must know that we will check the airports. I'll see what data I can get on the ports.’

  Chapter 15

  Greenock Quay, Glasgow area, Scotland - 2033

  'Christina!' the soft voice said. 'Christina, you have to get up now.'

  She opened her eyes to see Owen, her slim guard, standing over her and holding two folded white towels with bottles of water lying on top of them. She glanced around the large room in a bid to try and wake up from the nightmare. Owen smiled at her.

  'Where is Stuart, Owen?'

  'He is on the floor over there,' Owen said. 'Now please hurry.'

  She stood up and looked across the other empty beds to see Stuart sitting on the floor with a book open between his legs. He looked up and gave her a carefree smile. Her heart lifted at the four-year-old. He was lucky enough not to be aware of the danger they were in.

  'You only have five minutes to be ready, and then you two will be moved to another room.'

  'What for?'

  'I don't know. To be honest, I haven't been told a thing.'

  'Thanks for getting him the book,' she said.

  'Sure thing. I found it in one of the offices,' he said. 'Please hurry, Christina. Woolf hates to be kept waiting.'

  Five minutes later Christina was following Owen as they headed out of the side door of the warehouse and into another larger meeting room. A metal table was pushed up against a white board that hung on one wall. Two large wooden chairs had been placed in the middle of the room. Owen showed them to the chairs. Christina flicked a glance at him and then back at the chair. Owen picked up Stuart and helped him into the chair then tickled his stomach as the little boy giggled. The sound of footsteps made Christina turn. Woolf and four heavily built men walked into the room.

  'That is all for now,' Woolf said to Owen, gesturing to the door with his head. He nodded and walked towards the door, looking back at Christina with a sad smile. She reached across for Stuart's hand.

  'I am glad to see you, Woolf,' Christina said. ‘Can you please be honest with me about what is going to happen to my son and me? Also, I’d like to know what has happened to Kat and the others. I have not seen them at all.'

  Woolf looke
d at her, his cold eyes devoid of any emotion. 'The answer to both questions is, no.'

  Christina was about to reply when a short, plump woman walked through the door and straight up to Woolf. Speaking in German, they were soon arguing about something and both kept pointing to Stuart. The woman wore long black slacks and closed flat shoes, all beneath a white lab coat. Her leathery face showed no sign of makeup and her greying black hair was pulled back tightly into a ponytail.

  Turning towards Christina, she smiled a warm smile. 'Hello, Christina, I am Helga Koch. Everyone calls me Matron. I will also be making the journey with you and Stuart. So I will now give him a strong sedative to make it the trip easier.'

  Christina suddenly felt claustrophobic. Four men in khaki uniforms moved in around her. They were different men to the rabble who had grabbed them from the market. Ruthless glints in their eyes with sharp, purposeful movements. These were military men like Gibbs.

  'What bloody journey are you talking about and why must Stuart be sedated again? I will make sure that he behaves if you tell me what is going on.'

  'It’s the way it has to be for the next few days,' Helga said and removed two syringes from her lab coat pocket.

  Christina stood up and lunged at the woman. 'Don't you dare touch my son, you old witch. I will kill you if you harm him.'

  Stuart started crying as the four men grabbed Christina and manhandled her back into the chair with a thud. Long black cable ties quickly appeared, and they strapped her wrists and forearms to the wooden armrests. One of them produced a roll of silver tape and ripped a strip off, placing it across her mouth.

  Woolf stood over Stuart and held him down with his large hands placed on the little boy's shoulders. Fear coursed through Christina at the sight of the danger to her son, and she kicked out at Woolf. Strong hands grabbed her shoulders, forcing her into the chair and she struggled to stop Woolf tying the little boy's arms. Helga walked forward, pulling the green cover off the needle of one of the syringes. She injected a small quantity of white liquid into Stuart's arm as he squirmed and cried out in pain.

  Christina felt faint. She screamed against the tape across her mouth, her head feeling like it would burst. The cable ties tore into her arms under the strain. Two of the men pinned her shoulders to the back of the chair as she continued to try and kick out at Helga.