The two soldiers hopped out of the back of the jeep and secured the area by walking around and pointing their rifles at the trees. After a few seconds they lowered their weapons and shouldered the rifles to rummage around for whatever they could take from the site. One of the soldiers found a pack of cigarettes on a body that had been killed by shrapnel from the exploding crane. He took the pack out of the chest pocket and found the cigarettes still dry, wrapped in cellophane.
The soldier popped one of the cigarettes out of the pack and lit the end with a zippo lighter. The smoke traveled over to Choi as he was inspecting the scene.
“Hey,” Choi hollered. “Put that out. What is wrong with you? You want to bring whoever did this back here?”
“Nobody is here,” the soldier replied. “These guys have been dead for days. No one is going to stick around to babysit some dead bodies.”
The soldier stood up and went over to the crane. He acted like he already knew what happened.
“Look here,” the soldier pointed to the crane. “You see how close these gas tanks were stored to the crane?” Choi looked over at the spot where the tanks had been stored. “Somebody wanted a light and these cans went up. Which also caused the crane to explode. The fire spread and everyone else died from smoke or fire. This shit isn’t hard.”
Standing by the crane, Choi stood on the tracks and inspected the cabin.
“We should head back and tell mainland to stop sending idiots,” the soldier added.
Choi wanted to believe the insubordinate man. Instead, he continued looking. It didn’t make sense to him that the fuel tank would explode so easily. Looking at the torn metal he noticed something out of place. A wire was sticking out of the tank. It was electrical with a positive and negative side to it. This was not for a censor, but something else. Choi followed the wire back to the source, climbing around the crane. The soldier stood around enjoying his cigarette. At the end Choi found the wire to be part of the ignition switch.
“Sabotage,” he said to himself. Choi took his cell phone from his pocket and took a few pictures of what he had found.
“What? These guys got themselves killed. Case closed.” The soldier flicked his finished cigarette to the side.
“Does this look like an accident?” Choi pointed to the wire and walked away from the crane while the two soldiers inspected what was found.
Walking to the edge of the ridge, Choi looked down to see where the cable was connected at the end. A few hundred yards downhill the cable disappeared with only a few trees taken down. The job had only started for these men before they were killed. Choi climbed down to see why more trees had not been taken down before the mishap occurred. A hundred yards down he found the decaying remains of a man with a chainsaw next to him and a chain wrapped around his face. The jaw and hands were clenched in pain, locked there permanently. Choi turned to the tree that the man had been cutting into and found the spike that had been driven into the truck on the opposite side of where the man had been standing. The chain was still on the logger’s chainsaw and the second saw was missing. Choi looked around and found the second saw ten feet away behind an old tree limb that had fallen long ago. He was starting to get a better picture of what happened. Taking his cell phone out Choi took more pictures of this second scene and saved them for when he returned to base.
Climbing back up the mountain to the ridge Choi waved the soldiers over. “We’re leaving.” The driver started the Jeep and they drove back down the mountain to Seattle where Choi would report his findings.
Across the park from the capital building Choi looked out as the new arrival of Chinese immigrants offered their condolences to the grave of Bruce Lee. Still a major icon of Asian Cinema, Bruce was regarded as living God to some. The Chinese government made sure to change all internet entrees about Bruce Lee to include that he was a Chinese citizen and that he was seduced by American wealth to work in their country. His death is now believed by many to have been caused by the U.S. government when he decided to return to his homeland of China.
Choi knew all of this information to be false and he still loved the movies of his childhood hero. Why the government had to change the history of such a great man he could not understand.
Stepping into the building he made his way to the Colonel’s office and offered his report.
Behind the desk sat a chubby bald man with a cigar hanging out of his mouth. The smoke wisped in the air and clouded the ceiling. The chubby man dropped the papers in his hands and looked up at Choi who waited for orders.
“Well, what did you find?” the officer asked.
“The sites have been sabotaged,” Choi said.
“Is that so?” the chubby man asked. “Any proof of this? We can’t report back to Beijing that we are encountering resistance.”
Choi removed his cell phone from his pocket and opened the file of the pictures he took. The first were the of the wire in the gas tank.
“What am I looking at?” the officer asked, putting on a pair of glasses.
“The ignition switch was attached to the fuel tank,” Choi answered. “The crane was turned into a bomb set to explode when the crane was turned on.”
The chubby man swiped through the phones and came across the picture of the logger with a chain across his face.
“Shit,” the chubby man commented. “And this?” he turned the phone around.
“A spike was driven into to a tree to destroy the chainsaws cutting into them.” The silence that followed caused Choi to say more. “Whoever did this is well trained and there was no sign of them except for the sabotage.”
“So what do you want me to do?” the officer asked.
“Send some men with the loggers from now on to protect the sites” Choi responded.
“No can do,” the officer replied. “We are stretched thin trying to secure this city. If I ask for more men than it looks like I can’t do my job.”
“The loss of timber will look like we are not doing our job,” Choi replied. Instantly he regretted saying ‘we’ instead of referring to himself.
“Oh don’t throw me in with your failures,” the chubby man tossed the cell phone across the desk and picked his papers back up. “Come back when there is something else. Unless these bandits are seen I don’t want to hear about it. Until then we will say there has been accidents at the sites and the logging companies need to train their men better. We are not going to let these setbacks reflect back on the military. These aren’t our men.”
Choi saluted and stepped out of the office. Until something new came up, he would have to sit back and wait.
Chapter 14
Lunch was another pile of slop. That pile of slop Sophie quickly learned was also breakfast and dinner. She had made friends with Greg and Candice. Greg was the handsome tall man that she had seen that first day at the prison. He was obviously the leader of a small group in the prison. Checking on people and making sure everyone was ok, Greg was the kind of guy people wished they had for a boss. Candice was a tall blonde with long straight hair. She was quiet for the most part. She had done modeling for some of the companies in the Seattle area before everything happened. There were other people in the group that Sophie came to recognize. The more she watched the more she came to realize something was in motion. Nobody talked to her or included her in the conversations, but there was something in the air. A feeling that something big was about to change and she wanted to be a part of it.
Greg had just received his pile of slop on the plate and was walking away, being sure to grab his spork. Sophie followed behind and walked close next to him.
“I want in,” she said. There was a tone in her voice that told Greg she was aware of something.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Greg replied nonchalantly.
“I know something is about to happen and I need to be a part of it,” Sophie walked in front of him and stopped. A look of irritation grew on his face. Behind them the guards started to watch.
> “You’re making a scene,” Greg said.
“I want in.” She didn’t know how much pressure it would take to be included. She wasn’t crazy, something was about to happen.
Greg swiped her plate of food away watching it fall to the floor. He tossed his food aside and grabbed Sophie by the arms. His fingers dug into her flesh causing her to flinch. Memories came back of her months in the ship’s cabin. The General walking in and tossing her around until she stopped fighting.
Pulling her close, Greg put his mouth close to her ear. “They’re watching so this has to be quick. You are included. We are not leaving without you. Now start crying and make it look like a lover’s quarrel.”
Greg shoved her back and she did as she was told. She started to cry and smacked Greg across the face. The guards behind them started to holler in Mandarin. Greg looked back and shot them an angry glare. He kicked the plate of food to the side and walked outside. Sophie stood there crying as if a lover had abandoned her. The guard yelled and pointed at the door. She turned around and walked outside. A smile grew on her face and she knew that sometime soon she would be out.
Two days later, in the middle of the night, Sophie woke up with a hand pressed over her mouth.
“Shh,” a voice was heard in the darkness of the tent. “We’re leaving.” It was Candice.
Sophie rose from the cot and moved to the opening of the tent behind Candice. They moved through the camp with the moon hidden behind the clouds. There was a twenty-foot gap between the tents and the fence. On the opposite side was a hundred-yard gap between them and the trees. Once they were in the trees they could hide and continue running.
Greg was at the fence and had already cut halfway down the chain link barrier. Somehow he had gotten a hold of metal shears. Later she would learn the Chinese had them sitting around with the gardening tools. People were growing impatient. There were still a few minutes before the guards would return. This time of night was when they would disappear for thirty to forty-five minutes. It was difficult to estimate since they didn’t have watches and had to use the position of the sun and moon for time.
The final link snapped and two men pulled the fence apart. Greg waved his hand through the hole telling people to go. Sophie was the first to bolt through the hole and out into the yard. She sprinted across the field and stopped at the first tree. Candice was behind her along with two other women. With the sound of the fence chattering against the steel pipes people started to emerge from their tents. Greg and the two men exited through the fence and ran across the yard. More people flooded out. A few seconds later the guards arrived. The two men shouted as they ran around the sides of the fence to where the hole was. At that moment there was a panic and people were fighting to get through the fence. The guards shouted to the prison and a few seconds later a siren sounded on the roof of the building.
“We have to go,” Greg said telling everyone to run.
Sophie watched the people who were still at the fence and the ones who tried to run across the field. The guards raised their rifles and started to unload on the people trying to escape.
“NO!” Sophie screamed a blood curdling yell so loud her throat hurt. A hand gripped her wrist and she was jerked back to start running.
Everyone ran and didn’t stop running until they couldn’t hear the siren anymore. They avoided roads and highways. They tried to stay hidden as much as possible. One of the women grabbed her stomach and fell to the ground.
“Leave her,” Greg said. “We have to keep going.”
“We are not leaving her,” Sophie went over to the woman. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” the woman replied. “My stomach hurts.”
“Can you move?”
“It hurts.”
“Can you move?” Sophie pushed the subject. “Can you walk?”
“I think so.”
Sophie and Candice each took a side and helped to woman back to her feet. They helped her continue on into the woods further away from the prison. After seeing the people gunned down in the field Sophie wasn’t going to let anybody else be left behind.
Chapter 15
Patrolling the western edge of the forest, the Rangers gathered intelligence on the Chinese forces working their way inland. The roads were the most dangerous areas since they were out in the open for the few seconds it took to cross. Contrary to the mission they were on, the day was actually beautiful. The sun was out with a few white clouds speckling the blue sky. Spring was in full swing and the Rangers tried to enjoy the views when they could. Hiding in the woods made it difficult to have a clear view. Subtle glances while crossing streets or moving through bald spots on the mountains gave them the few seconds they needed to enjoy the scenery.
The group was still miles away from the city limits when they heard the footsteps and whispers of people ahead. Their attention was focused on the words they heard and smiled when the conversation was in English.
Dallas stopped the group and everyone lowered to one knee. Dallas listened and the footsteps approached their position. The group split onto either side of the trail and waited to see the people that were coming.
The pines hid the men well as sneakers and jeans came into view. Both men and women could be heard. Towards the end of the group a woman could be heard crying. Once the people in the lead appeared the Rangers waited to see the rest of the people come into view.
“Halt,” Dallas felt corny saying the word as he stepped out. The look of shock on the people’s face told him how intimidating he looked. The gray face, painted from wood ash, and the green camouflage gave him a level of authority instantly with the people who put their hands up in surprise. The rest of the men stepped out from the trees and kept their weapons pointed towards the ground. The people were in custody, but there was no reason to pose as a threat right away. “Are you alone?” Admittedly, the question was stupid considering the size of the group. Dallas counted in his head and saw that a dozen people were surrounded by his five men.
“Are you the Chinese?” the guy in front asked with his hands still in the air.
Dallas never considered that with the face paint he might not appear as white, or American.
“American. Army Rangers,” Dallas answered. “You’re coming with us.”
“Gladly,” a woman said as she lowered her arms.
“Sergeant, we have an injured over here,” Kelly stated from the back.
Walking through the group, Dallas looked at a woman who was hunched over and fighting not to cry. Her long hair covered her face. Dallas lowered to one knee and looked up at the woman to talk to her.
“Ma’am, are you going to be able to walk?”
She didn’t respond.
“What happened to her?” Dallas asked the two men who were helping her along.
“We don’t know,” one of the men answered.
The second man looked like he wanted to say something then finally spoke up.
“We think she might be pregnant,” he finally said. “The soldiers have the notion that they can have any woman they want when they want.”
Dallas waved Kelly over who had the most extensive medical training. He was the closest they had to a doctor on the site.
“Any bleeding?” Kelly asked.
“No,” the first man said. “She started to complain about pain in her lower stomach then had trouble walking.”
“Moving her could be a problem,” Kelly said to Dallas.
The Rangers quickly cut branches off the trees and tied them together making a stretcher to carry the woman.
“Follow us,” Dallas told the group. “We’ll take turns carrying her.”
Kelly and Clive picked up the ends of the stretcher with the woman and moved in the middle of the group.
“What’s your name?” Clive asked the woman.
“Karen,” she answered with a slight groan.
“Karen, we’re going to get you back to camp and see if we can find out what’s going o
n with you,” Clive said.
“We’ll get you patched up,” Kelly added. He immediately regretted it, wanting to add “if we can” at the end of the comment.
The men didn’t have a camp set up, choosing to move around as much as possible.
“Have you been followed?” Dallas asked the two people who had been leading the way.
“Don’t think so,” the woman replied.
“They killed half of us when we escaped,” the man added.
“Where were you being kept?” Dallas asked.
“They have a prison for the refugees. The area is fenced in with guards and tents set up everywhere.” The woman tried to describe the camp the best she could.
“Would you be able to draw a map of it?”
“I could try.”
“What are you thinking?” the man asked.
“If we can, we free our people.”
Chapter 16
The bodies by the fence had been left out all day to rot in the sun. The air was cool, but the clothing and the sun heated up the body to start the decomposition process. The bodies belonged to the refugees that had tried to escape the day before under the cover of night.
The fence had been repaired where the prisoners had cut their way through and snuck out. The number of people that had escaped wasn’t known until the prisoners were counted. After the escape, fifteen bodies were laid out in the grass with four more captured who had been part of the breakout.
Choi was angry at the event, knowing it would play against him in his political profession. To have anybody escape was to show weakness and made him look unreliable.
“Twelve are missing, sir.” The soldier relayed the information to Choi.
“Twelve. That is the final count?”
The soldier didn’t hesitate, telling Choi that the numbers had been double checked and likely checked again after that.
“Gather the camp together,” Choi ordered. “We have to make an example to the rest of the camp that this is unacceptable.”
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