by Jack Soren
LEW WAS ASLEEP for a solid two hours before he woke up in the luxurious recliner in the plane’s cabin. Emily was still asleep next to him, her head resting on his shoulder. He looked down at her face, inches from his own. After a moment, her eyes flitted open and looked up into his.
She smiled at first, but then apparently realized what was about to happen and her smile was replaced with an earnestness. “Are we . . .”
Lew leaned forward, still too close to dreamland for his defenses and self-deprecation to stop him. Emily’s lips parted and her eyes moistened. Then she abruptly pulled away.
“I’m sorry,” Lew said. “I’m a jerk.”
“No,” Emily said softly, touching his face with her open palm. “It’s not that. I just . . .”
Lew raised his eyebrows and shook his head slightly as if to say, What is it?
“If we’re going to . . . that is, before we . . .”
“You’re kind of freaking me out, Emily. What is it?”
“You need to know the truth. My name isn’t Emily Burrows. It’s Denham,” she said almost despondently.
“Your name is Denham Burrows? Kind of masculine, isn’t it?” Lew said. He was being deliberately obtuse, trying to put her at ease. He really didn’t care what her name was. Lord knew he’d gone by more than a few names over the years. She chuckled, the attempt seeming to work.
“No, silly. It’s Emily Denham.”
Then, speaking barely above a whisper while holding his hands, she told him the whole story. Through the whole thing all Lew could think about was how soft and warm her hands felt. And how warm it was getting in the plane’s cabin.
“That’s it?” Lew said when she was done. “Baby, I don’t care about any of that.” Though it did make Lew think about everything he’d eventually have to tell her about himself. Now that bothered him.
“Really?”
“What do you think?” Lew said, pulling her to him. Again their mouths parted as they came closer and closer.
“Lew!” Jonathan’s shout broke the moment and they both jerked apart.
“Uh, yeah!” Lew called, sitting up.
“Get up here. Quick!”
Lew made a face and smiled, Emily pretty much doing the same. He stood up, rolled his neck, and took a cleansing breath.
“To be continued,” he said before turning and heading up to the cockpit. As he walked he heard a voice behind him.
“You better believe it.”
As Lew entered the cockpit, he saw Thomas holding a cell phone. Jonathan looked very intense. Lew wasn’t sure he wanted to know what was going on.
“What’s all the—” Both Thomas and Jonathan simultaneously shushed him.
“Are you still there, Blane?” Thomas said.
“I’m here, but you’re cutting in and out, man. Are you . . . pay or not?” a man’s voice squawked stiltedly out of the device’s speakerphone.
“You’re breaking up too. Tell me what I’m paying for again,” Thomas said at Jonathan’s silent urging.
“U.S. Navy is . . . an attack on Tartaruga. You want details, then you pay,” the voice said.
“An attack?” Lew said. Their looks shushed him again. He shrugged at Jonathan, who just waved a hand, motioning him to be patient.
“How much?” Thomas asked.
“Fifty. Same account . . . last time,” Blane said. Lew could guess they weren’t talking about fifty dollars. Thomas was greasing someone in the forces.
“Deal,” Thomas said. After a long silence, he said it again. “Did you hear me, Blane? What’s the info? I’ll pay. You’ll have the money in the morning.”
“That ain’t good enough,” Blane said.
“It’ll have to do,” Thomas said. Jonathan pointed at Thomas in a scolding way. Thomas waved him off this time. After another silence, Blane finally responded.
“All right. In the morning. We launched a . . . per an hour ago. Should be . . . ere seven-thirty, your time,” Blane said.
“Say again. Launched a what?” Thomas said, then, “Shit! We lost the connection.”
“Get him back!” Jonathan said.
“I’m trying,” Thomas said.
“What the fuck is a per?” Lew said.
“Could be anything,” Thomas said as he repeatedly dialed. “A Clipper, a chopper—anything. Point is, we’re going to have about an hour to get the hell out of there after we land. Ah, it’s no use,” he said, tossing the phone onto the console.
“What do you mean it’s no use?” Jonathan said, picking up the phone. Lew looked at the display and saw there weren’t any bars registering on the signal strength meter.
“Look, I’m amazed we got any signal at all up here.”
“What about Tartaruga? We’ll just call from there,” Lew said.
“Blane’s not exactly the reliable type. We’ll be lucky if he answers.”
“Great,” Lew said. Jonathan looked up at Lew, his eyes showing the fear there. In all the years he’d known him, Lew had never seen Jonathan afraid of anything. But he knew the fear wasn’t for himself, which just made it all the worse. Lew put his hand on Jonathan’s shoulder. “Why don’t you get some rest? I’ll stay up here.”
“I’m fine,” Jonathan said. Lew looked at Jonathan’s hands and saw they were shaking.
The weird thing was, so were his.
PART SEVEN
Thursday
50
Tartaruga Island
6:30 A.M. Local Time
“THERE IT IS,” Thomas said. “Off to the left.”
Jonathan leaned forward and looked down at the seemingly endless sea. At first he couldn’t see it, then he spotted the foam outline around Tartaruga as the ocean lapped at the green and brown growth on its surface. It was hard for Jonathan to believe he’d spent hours down there, never mind that his daughter was even now below him.
“Circle around and make a low pass,” Jonathan said. “I want to see what we’re dealing with.”
“Okay. Just let me swing away to reduce our airspeed,” Thomas said. After heading away from the island for a bit, Thomas began to bank the plane and head back. They were moving slower now and were much lower. Jonathan could see the white caps on the waves below.
“Lew! We’re doing a flyover. Have a look,” he called back into the cabin.
“Roger,” Lew said. He had his duster off and was sitting on one of the small tables while Emily dabbed at the wound on the back of his neck with some cotton. The first aid kit was open on the table beside him. They both turned and looked out the window. Jonathan could tell there was something real happening between them. He was glad for Lew, he just hoped it wouldn’t get in the way.
As the plane turned, they got a slow, full view of the island. It looked like a turtle, which was probably where it got its name. Near the tail, a bald swath cut across the green canvas covering the island like someone had taken an electric razor and made one pass from beach to beach. It was the paved landing strip. A few small mountains rose up where the apex of the turtle’s shell would be, though Jonathan could see nothing there besides jungle coverage. At the head was what looked like a dock, vacant of boats.
They swung around the back of the island and Jonathan saw the complex and the courtyard where the exchange would take place. He couldn’t see any people, but he could make out the buildings. There were two smaller outbuildings and one larger, flat edifice with a hangar attached to the back corner. The hangar was almost three times the height of the complex, but Jonathan knew the most impressive part was underground. He figured the hangar was where they’d first taken him.
“It’s huge,” Lew called from the cabin. “You say it goes four levels down?”
“Five,” Jonathan corrected, counting Nathan’s vault and the generators.
“It’s a good thing you know where Nata
lie’s being held. If we had to search that place we’d be toast. No way could we do it in just an hour,” Lew said.
“Okay, take us in,” Jonathan said to Thomas. He walked back into the cabin. “You guys ready?”
“Just about,” Lew said, shrugging and wincing back into his duster.
“You’re sure you don’t want a gun?” Jonathan asked Emily, though he pretty much knew what the answer would be.
“I’m sure,” she said.
“Okay. Are we all clear on what we’re supposed to do? If you have any questions or doubts, now’s the time—”
“Jonny,” Lew said, putting his hand on his arm. “It’s going to be fine. In and out like grease through a goose. We’ll be long gone before the attack gets here. Just please tell me we’re not really saving this psycho’s girlfriend.” Jonathan looked over his shoulder to be sure Thomas wasn’t listening. He was busy bringing the plane in for a landing. Jonathan turned back and shook his head no.
“Atta boy.”
“We better get our seats for the landing,” Jonathan said. “Everyone but you, of course.” Lew smiled. The stakes were high—higher than they’d ever been before—and victory, despite what Lew said, was not even close to a foregone conclusion, but Lew looked like he was having the time of his life. Jonathan recalled that he’d always looked like this on jobs when things were at their worst. He gave Lew Thomas’s cell phone number so they could stay in touch when the shit hit the fan, if need be.
“See you soon,” Lew said, shaking Jonathan’s hand. Jonathan headed back up to the cockpit. By the time he strapped himself in and looked back to the cabin, he could see Lew bent over out of sight by the chair where Emily was sitting. Lew stood up and saw Jonathan watching him. Lew winked and headed out to the cargo hold, closing the door to the bathroom behind him.
The wheels touched down with a slight thud and squeal, the nose gear bouncing down a moment later. Now they were racing down the short runway at incredible speed, trees on both sides of the plane smearing past. Jonathan felt himself thrust forward as the brakes caught. When they were almost halfway out of runway, Thomas flipped a switch sending a chime through the plane. It was Lew’s signal. A few seconds later they felt the plane rock slightly as Lew threw open the door in the cargo hold. The plane had slowed considerably, but it was still moving at a good clip. They couldn’t see the rear of the plane, so they had to have faith that Lew had made it.
If they had waited any longer, the security cameras at the east end of the airstrip would have picked up Lew rolling out of the plane and scurrying into the jungle.
The plane came to a full stop and Thomas powered down the engines. Through the window, Jonathan could see a single small building at the edge of the jungle near a dirt road that led over the rise and disappeared into the trees. Parked by the building was a beat-up, military-issue Humvee.
“Now we just—wait!” Thomas said, but Jonathan was already swinging the pistol at him. He hit him in the jaw and knocked him cold.
“Now we’re even,” Jonathan said. He tied Thomas up and then he and Emily made their way to the Humvee with their prize.
There was a note pinned under one of the wiper blades. Emily took it and read it aloud.
“Follow the road to the clearing and wait. Do not enter the complex or your daughter dies,” she said. Emily looked like she wanted to say something, but she didn’t. They got into the Humvee and looked down the runway to where Lew had jumped out. There was no movement down there. Jonathan took solace in the fact that there wasn’t a body lying on the tarmac.
“He’s fine,” Jonathan said as he started the engine.
“I know,” Emily said with false bravado, hugging the cryocase in her lap.
Jonathan put the vehicle in gear and they bounced along the rough road, disappearing into the jungle.
6:45 A.M.
LARA SEETHED AS she stood near the ladder to level four, rage flowing hot through her veins like the steam racing through the pipes surrounding her. Sweat covered her body and the humidity had turned her hair into a white mass of tangles and kinks. She’d passed thirsty about an hour ago and was having trouble coming up with enough saliva to moisten her cracked lips. She checked her watch and realized there was no more time left for the hunt.
Nathan’s order to take Sophia and the little girl alive had been frustrating. She’d hoped Sophia would stick her head out and an exhausted guard would ignore his orders and shoot her. Several times, preferably. It would have tied everything up neat and tidy and Lara would’ve gotten what she wanted without having to disobey her orders.
The only reason Nathan wanted Sophia alive was so he could get the research she’d no doubt taken with her, but a bullet or two to the head wouldn’t harm whatever she was carrying. Lara imagined Nathan’s beaming face—metaphorically speaking, since his facial muscles didn’t move noticeably anymore—when she handed him the research, along with the news that Sophia had been tragically killed.
But no, Sophia couldn’t cooperate. She had to stay hidden with the little brat. And any second now, her father would call Lara on the radio and the game would be over.
Lara kicked a stand of pipes in frustration. There was no point searching anymore. They’d been through the tunnels repeatedly and found nothing. Somehow she’d gotten past them. She was probably in the jungle by now. Lara was just about to double the guards at the helipad when her radio squawked with her father’s simulated voice.
“Go ahead,” she said into the radio.
“They’re here. Are the men in position?”
They weren’t. She’d pulled the shooters off the roof to help with the search.
“On their way,” Lara said.
“Did you find them?” Nathan asked. It was a rhetorical question, but he wouldn’t let up until she said it out loud.
“No. I’ll keep some men searching, but—”
“Never mind. Just get up here. If you can find your way,” Nathan said. Lara squeezed her eyes shut.
“Yes, Father,” she said.
“SON OF A bitch,” Lew said to the corpses.
The smell had assaulted him as soon as he’d entered the hangar. The stench wasn’t new to him, not after Iraq. It was a long time ago, but a million years wouldn’t be enough time to cleanse his palate of that smell.
Inside a storage room off to the side of the hangar’s massive, wire-strewn interior, he’d found them. Over a dozen dead, all in lab coats.
Lew ran across the expanse to the long metal staircase leading up to a series of windows. He ran up the stairs and then along the balcony to an opening between the windows. Once inside, he headed straight for stairs that led to the roof.
It was vacant. He crouched by the door and checked his watch. Just over half an hour before the attack, whatever form it was going to take. The sound of a vehicle echoed from the jungle. Lew saw the open-top Humvee come bouncing out with Emily and Jonathan inside. After they entered the courtyard they drove out of sight. He’d have to get closer to the ledge to see any more.
A noise on the other side of the door stopped him and he pressed back flat against the wall. A few seconds later, the door opened, and two armed guards, each with a rifle over his shoulder, came out. They crouched low and duckwalked toward the edge of the roof.
Shooting wasn’t an option, so Lew put his gun away and just walked up behind them.
“Lose something?”
The guards looked at each other and then spun around, trying to pull their rifles off their shoulders.
Lew focused on the bigger of the two, punching him in the throat and the eye. He went down hard and wouldn’t be getting up for a while. In the meantime, the other guard got his rifle free from his shoulder and swung the butt toward Lew’s head. He caught it with one hand and kicked the guard’s feet out from under him. The guard went down hard on his back, knockin
g the wind out of him. As he gasped for breath, Lew pulled the rifle free and slammed the butt into the side of his head. The guard grunted and then stopped gasping.
They had handcuffs on their belts, which Lew used to hook them to some pipes by the door. Then he took the firing pins out of the rifles and tossed the useless weapons on the ground After scoping out the area, Lew headed back in.
On the third level, Lew found the room where they’d been keeping Natalie. It was empty. He looked under the bed in case she was hiding and found one of her drawings.
“Son of a—”
Voices sounded in the hallway.
Lew eased up to the doorway and peered out into the hall. A grate lay open and Lew watched two men and a woman with wild white hair climb out. What the hell?
“Head downstairs and work your way up again. Find Sophia and the girl,” the woman said.
“Alive?” one of guards asked.
“We need the child alive for the exchange. Nobody says she has to be unharmed,” the woman said.
Natalie’s alive!
“And Sophia?” the guard asked.
“I need what she has on her. If an accident happens, so be it. Understand?”
“Yes, ma’am!” The guards practically saluted before heading off down the hall. Lew eased back into the shadows as the woman passed by. He wanted to reach out and wring her neck, but there’d be time for that later. When he was sure she was gone, he called Jonathan.
“You survived, did you?” Jonathan said when he answered.
“Barely,” Lew said. “From now on I only jump out of airplanes that are ten thousand feet off the ground.”
Lew told Jonathan about the bodies he’d found, Natalie not being in the room, and then about the conversation between the woman and the guards.
