Simon’s heart pounded in his chest. He needed to calm down, make a plan. With slow, methodical movements, he reached for his gun. He couldn’t do much against twenty-plus soldiers, but if Cassie went down, the bastard who shot her would. too.
Shouts between one of the higher-ranking men and Lee grew more heated until a soldier moved to Lee’s side and slammed him in the face with the butt of his rifle. Blood spewed from his mouth, and he fell to his knees. The man who’d struck him stood over him until he received an order from the officer. Then he aimed his rifle at the back of Lee’s head and fired. The woman with him and members of the staff shrieked. Several tried to run to safety, but were gunned down too.
Cassie remained still, showing no emotion. If she’d cried over Lee, they may have shot her. Instead, they cuffed her and moved her apart from the household staff. Her height and blonde hair made her different enough to interest them. She might make it out alive. Stay strong, angel.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Cassie had practiced yoga and meditation for years. She was not the best at it, but when pulled out of bed by the North Korean military and forced to watch Mr. Lee die, she’d reached deep inside and utilized every calming technique she knew. When they’d placed the gun above his ear, she’d shut her eyes and focused on a memory of the sunset at the beach. Peaceful and relaxing. She’d heard the shot, heard the screams, and then more shots. She looked at her feet and tried to keep her expression blank as her emotions flew around her in a vortex of horror and fright.
She held her screams inside. She’d save her nervous breakdown for later, or she’d be dead. Why waste a few moments losing control? Tucker had taken pride in making her squirm when he pointed a gun at her head. No longer. If these men wanted her to die, she’d do it with dignity. Why make a spectacle?
A young man in a uniform cuffed her hands behind her back and escorted her to a military truck. He pushed her into the empty backseat. Her shoulders hurt, being wrenched back into an impossible position. Leaning her head on the headrest to try to alleviate some of the strain on her arms, she shut her eyes to keep her mind from being overloaded with images. They lined up Mr. Lee’s staff and would probably be gunning them down soon. There was no point in her witnessing a mass murder. Her thoughts fled again to the beach, a blue sky, and waves that crashed on the sea wall—the perfect day for cranking on her surfboard.
Her biggest worry before this incident had been whether Mr. Lee would rape her. That thought had constricted her chest with constant tension. Now her life was on the line. Stay calm. Don’t panic. Simon and Dane couldn’t rescue her. She needed to find the strength to survive on her own.
The car door opened again and a higher-ranking military officer—older, more confident—sat next to her. The door on the opposite side opened and a younger aide slid in and pushed her into the middle of the seat.
The younger man asked her something in Korean. She didn’t answer. He then switched to English. “What is your name?”
She didn’t answer. With her best composure, she reacted as though she didn’t understand the question. If they thought she was American, they could kill her for being a spy. If she didn’t speak, maybe they’d believe she was Russian or from another country that was remotely allied to North Korea.
After a few minutes, no one spoke to her. The two men discussed something of great importance, according to their tones and the expressions on their faces.
The car drove off over roads marred by potholes and inadequate upkeep. Cassie looked out the window and tried to memorize the route. It wouldn’t be much help; it was more of a brain exercise. She’d been dropped in the middle of nowhere and had no idea how to get out.
They pulled into a base surrounded by barbed wire and filled with military personnel. How would she escape now? The fortress plunged Cassie’s emotions into a dark and miserable void. The younger man escorted Cassie to an office building and a small room. When he departed, slamming and locking the door behind him, she looked around. The room was stark except for a window with iron bars, a desk, three chairs, and a potted plant. Nothing she could use to escape. She needed more time and a plan: stay calm and don’t talk, and look for opportunities.
Part of her problem was the homogeneity of the Korean people. If she escaped, her height and hair would be a beacon as to her whereabouts, like the Bat symbol.
The door opened, and three men walked in—the two men from the car and another older officer.
The younger man pulled out a chair for Cassie and forced her to sit. She bit back a cry of pain from the awkward position of her hands behind her as she slammed into the back of the chair.
“The drones were made in the United States, so we will assume, for now, you are American. It will be easier if you answer my questions.”
Cassie stared at the wall and tried to stay in her surf daydream. If she didn’t listen to the questions, she wouldn’t have an urge to answer them. A soft rain began to fall outside. The rain on the concrete cast a light haze throughout the area. A wonderful night for a stroll to freedom.
Her interrogator spoke to the other men in Korean and then returned his attention to her. “Maybe you don’t understand how serious this is. If you don’t start talking, you will be convicted of espionage and sentenced to forty years of hard labor in a work camp. You will have a difficult time in the mines with your height.”
They hadn’t hurt her yet. She could hold out. The rain outside the window caught her attention again. The wind had picked up and was now blowing around like a monsoon. Most of the soldiers she’d seen lingering in groups at the edges of buildings must have found shelter. Her ears pulled the sound of the storm into focus and ignored the man speaking to her.
After what seemed like an hour, he gave up and spoke to the other two men. Good. Maybe they’d lock her in solitary confinement, and she’d be safe for a few hours. She’d survived prison before, even though it had been only two days. She knew she’d be able to keep her mind steady for a longer period of time if they left her alone. She ignored her body’s need for food and sleep. And she ignored the small child growing inside of her. If she thought about Simon’s baby, she’d break down and do whatever they asked of her.
Letting her go had been the hardest thing he’d ever done, but getting captured would have been a disaster. If they learned of Simon’s love for Cassie, and vice versa, the enemy would be able break one or both of them to extract any information they wanted. Simon would have a hard time watching Cassie tortured. And they would most definitely torture one of them in front of the other, and eventually kill them both after they received all the information they needed. She stood a better chance of surviving if she was the only prisoner.
They must have killed everyone else, because not a sound came from the house. Only two military guards remained. They’d searched the house and disappeared around the back. The valuables Mr. Lee had acquired while propping up the North Korean economy would slowly disappear into the pockets of friends of the government. The two lucky guards stationed at the house would most likely spend the next few hours searching for jewelry and other small items to sell for a quick buck on the black market.
Simon remained hidden in the tall grass until the trucks departed and the birds began to chirp again, safe from human movement and interruption. He needed food and a disguise. The front door had been left open in the chaos of the evening. He eased into the house and located the kitchen. After refilling his water bottles, he located some kimchi and slices of beef from the refrigerator.
A long brown jacket and beat up straw hat from one of Mr. Lee’s servants hung on a hook by the door to the back garden. He’d blend in as well as he could for a giant. Several minutes later, he crouched low while driving the motorcycle through the endless countryside. His backpack hid under the jacket like a beer belly. He was able to pass several cars without a second glance from the occupants. Then the rain fell. Slowly at first, then in heavy waves that slowed his movement and soaked his skin throug
h his clothes and under his Kevlar vest.
The signal for the drones had moved east, further away from the coast and the small boat that could take them to safety. He passed through several small villages and down long stretches of farmland, pulling over three times to confirm the coordinates and once to change the battery on the phone.
The signal came to a rest in the middle of a small military base. Barbed wire on top of high fences, and the many men wandering between barracks and warehouses, confirmed his worst fears. How would he get her out of a military compound without a major international incident? He drove by twice within the span of an hour and began to access the logistics in the rescue mission.
He hid in an outcrop of bushes and watched the main gates open for merchants, soldiers, and visitors. A night rescue made the most sense. Too many people would be able to gun them down in natural light, even on such a rainy, overcast day. But that provided the bastards more time to hurt Cassie. He grimaced at the thought, and his temples pounded. Slipping into the woods about five kilometers from the camp, he called Dane.
“What’s going on?” Dane asked.
“Cassie was taken by the military in a crackdown. The main buyer, his family, and staff were executed in front of her. I didn’t see where his guards went. They may have been plants for the government. She’s healthy, so far.”
“Are you okay?”
“Just checking on everything. I can move in, extract her, and get out, but I may need some additional help to cross the border.”
“I’m working on it. The South Koreans aren’t too keen on infiltrating their neighbor to save someone else’s ass. The agency won’t help, so I’m alone. I’m trying to call in a few favors.”
“Anything you can bring, I’d appreciate. This is Cassie were talking about.”
“I understand. I’ll do everything in my power to help her.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me. I’m doing this so the great Simon Dunn owes me one.”
“Say the word, mate. Say the word.”
The sun dropped below the horizon, and Simon removed his disguise, hid the motorcycle and backpack, and armed himself for a mini-war. He slid through the shadows, doing work the SAS would do more efficiently. He preferred making deals and covering his ass.
Crawling around in the mud and digging a ditch under a hidden section of barbed wire fencing were not on his list of favorite activities, but he’d walk through a molten lava field to bring Cassie to safety. At least the rain helped muffle his movements. Huge gaps in the presence of North Korean military personnel also allowed Simon to move into the camp without being seen. They must be hiding from the weather. Once inside, he sat for an hour under the roof of a utility shed and waited for dark to completely surround the brightly lit base.
To succeed, two power sources had to be eliminated: the transformer moving electricity into the camp from an external source, and a large generator that provided back up in case a pissed off MI6 agent blew up the transformer to rescue the woman he loved. He’d take out the generator second.
The cold and miserable guards inspected the base with quick glances, never looking to see if anyone had infiltrated the perimeter. When they were satisfied they’d completed the task with a minimal level of competence, they turned back to shelter and their colleagues to discuss more interesting issues than protecting their own hides.
Dropping to the ground and inching his way along, Simon slithered to the generator, located beside a few dumpsters that smelled of rotting fish, and placed an explosive inside a panel that had nothing protecting it other than a rusty latch.
Moving back to the shed, he aligned the sight of his Smith and Wesson 500 on the center of the gray transformer sitting in the open, one hundred and fifty meters away. He didn’t have a great shot, but didn’t think he could place an explosive device without getting shot and killed in the process. He’d have two shots. Making the shot on the first try would be optimal.
The rain increased from a light shower to a downpour and blurred Simon’s vision. He needed to have hawk eye capability to shoot out the transformer, and some assistance from Mother Nature, who was currently raging mad with a downpour and occasional lightening strikes. His brother Henry, a former Special Boat Service sniper, would have been the perfect man for the job. Simon tried to harness his brother’s cool demeanor and accuracy.
He pulled the trigger and hit the upper corner of his target, creating a small fire. Shit. The sound of the gunshot caused the soldiers to stop what they were doing and act more professional. He aimed again and hit the bull’s-eye. The transformer exploded. The fire he’d created with the first bullet helped ignite the pole. The men would be working on fixing that for days. The lights went out for a minute and then powered back on, dimmer and with less coverage, thanks to the generator.
He pulled out the detonator on the explosive he’d placed and hit the switch. The blast lit up the back of the barracks and created havoc with the men in the yard as the lights died for good, and the darkness consumed them.
Showtime. He slid into the yard and headed to the main office building. A soldier stood sentry to the area, but everyone else had fled to their posts. Simon shot him in the head and took his assault weapon. He pushed through the halls and scanned room after room for Cassie, shooting whoever was in his sight. He found her a few doors down, tied to a chair, and completely emotionless. Now wasn’t the time for heartfelt reunions, so he bottled up his relief and focused on getting them the hell out of there.
“Cassie? Are you all right?”
“Simon?” She spoke as though coming out of a trance.
He pulled out a knife, cut the rope that bound her, and guided her outside. They didn’t speak. Her energy increased as she moved next to him. Thankfully she had on jeans and sneakers. They might have to hide in the woods for a few hours.
Simon kept his and Cassie’s pace steady. A fast walk. Although he wanted to pull her out of this hell as quickly as possible, moving any faster would draw attention from the soldiers, now on full alert for anything different from the norm. They headed to a transport vehicle he’d seen earlier. Someone had parked it next to the office, probably to prevent the highest ranking officials from having to walk in the rain.
He pushed her across the driver’s seat into the passenger side and climbed in after her. The keys sat ready in the ignition, waiting for a driver or a thief. North Koreans were efficient, and Simon appreciated it.
“Get down, all the way on the floor. Don’t lift your head for anything until we reach the forest.”
He turned the vehicle in a one eighty and proceeded toward the back, less heavily guarded, gate. Several soldiers had started yelling at him and then begun shooting. Adrenaline surged through his veins. He pushed the gas to the floor and rammed the gate. The impact made a high-pitched scrapping sound as the fence bent outward to freedom. He flew down the road at top speed and refused to turn the headlights on as a beacon for his pursuers to follow. Five kilometers out, he pulled into the cut off, a small concrete area that shouldn’t reveal their path. He parked the truck behind a group of trees and took a moment to look at Cassie. She’d sat up when the truck stopped.
“Are we safe?” she asked.
“Not yet.”
They left the truck and moved farther back into the thick trees, hidden by the night and the heavy rain.
“Now what?” she asked.
He pulled out the motorcycle. “Transportation home. I hope.”
“Are you serious?”
He was always serious when running for his life. “Get on.”
She slid on the bike behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Her clothes had been soaked through, and she’d only get more drenched as they rode along. He would have put the large jacket over her to conceal them, but thought they’d have less drag and more agility without it.
They flew out of the trees and onto the roadway. A convoy of vehicles, illuminated by their headlights, closed in on the
ir location.
Simon drove as fast as he could while ensuring the worn out wheels of the old bike held up on the slick roads. He glanced behind him and saw Cassie’s long, wet hair blowing behind her like a surrender flag. They should have tied it back at the clearing. Not what they needed tonight. Tonight, they needed to blend in and be part of their environment.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Cassie convinced her body that the man she was holding tight on the back of a beat-up old motorcycle was not the love of her life, but a mere stranger who had no meaning to her. If she acknowledged that Simon had come for her, blown up part of a military base, and entered enemy territory with guns blazing to rescue her, she’d break down into a sobbing mess of relief and complete and utter panic.
Was he crazy? He had to be to risk his life like that. But she was so glad he did.
The bike rumbled and bounced over bumps and holes in the street. She pulled herself more tightly into him so they could rebalance their weight. She could feel his hips shift at each turn. She leaned as he did to keep them balanced.
Without the headlights on, darkness blanketed the road in front of them. She tucked her face into his back. Her eyes stayed closed for most of the time, because rain pelted her face like a barrage of pebbles. Her cheeks stung and her lips hurt, chapped by the wind, swollen from the cold.
Just as her breathing decreased from the running-for-her-life range to the almost-out-of-hot-water range, she noticed light on the road before them. She turned to see how close their pursuers had come.
“Careful,” he yelled. “You’ll throw us both off balance.”
“There are lights in front of us and behind us.”
“We blew apart their electric transformer and stole a truck. They’ll search every household and field in a thousand kilometer radius.”
“They’re getting closer.”
“Hold on.” He drove the bike off the road and into a small group of trees. “We’ll hold out here until they pass.”
True Deceptions (True Lies) Page 23
