by Jonas Saul
“And you put two and two together.” Sarah crossed her legs. Something about this was too convenient but she was giddy with excitement as it seemed everything was falling in place.
“We have confirmation that the Chinese man we’re looking to apprehend arrived this morning in Amsterdam on an earlier flight.”
And he’s got a certain black book of mine.
“Is there any way to locate the Chinese man?” Sarah asked.
Dekker shook his head. “All we have is Sven for now. And we have him at the warehouse in an hour. But we don’t have a girl. We don’t have a runner. We hope that you’ll be that runner.”
“In exchange for what?”
“All the charges against you dropped here in Amsterdam. You’d be free to go. It would be as if we never met. The moment Sven is in handcuffs, we will take the wire off you and bid you farewell.”
“The wire?”
“Can’t let you go in without a wire. We would need to record everything he says, get his voice on tape, asking why you ran. You respond that you will not be a part of his human trafficking machine or something like that. We’ll have two dozen officers within seconds of your location at all times. Nothing can go wrong. You’ll be completely safe. But we need your answer immediately as we’re low on time.”
“I want one thing from you.”
“What’s that?”
“The name of the Chinese boss.”
“James Wong.”
“That’s it? Just James Wong? Doesn’t sound very threatening.”
“Believe me, he is. With connections all over Europe, Canada and the United States, this man is powerful and he’s here in Amsterdam today. Not only that, he’s suspected of dealing with the Mexicans recently.”
“The Mexicans?”
“Laundering drug cartel money through his North American operations. We stop Wong, we stop a lot of traffic, human and otherwise.”
“I’m in, but no wire. If Sven even detects a wire, I’m done for.”
Dekker got up from his chair and walked across the small room. Sarah had momentarily forgotten her coffee.
He opened the door and talked to an officer just outside her range of hearing.
He turned back to her. “The wire is a necessity. Sven won’t find it. Even if he did, we’ll have snipers in place. There’s nothing he could do fast enough that we won’t be faster. You’ll be completely safe. Trust me.”
“Famous last words …”
Chapter 14
Sven jammed the gears of his BMW and drove faster than he should on the narrow roads.
“What was so important that you needed to talk to me right away?” he asked.
Amber lowered herself in the front seat and tried to remain calm. The disease in her blood roamed her body, knowing it would eventually win, reducing her to dying of a common cold one day. How was that justice? How was that for a wasted life?
“I’m a bit moody today,” Amber said. “I want to talk about a few things, but not while you’re so busy. Deal with your runner, then buy me a coffee at a café and we’ll talk.”
She pushed her purse down between the seat and the door so Sven wouldn’t see it. The weight of her gun calmed her. There would be no more beatings. She would explain what she had and how he also got a death sentence and then she would kill them both.
It was the only way. Not only was she prepared to do it, it was the right thing to do.
“You know I don’t like to talk.” He said the last word with such disdain she felt nausea whirl in her stomach.
Sven hated to talk. All he ever wanted to do was fuck. Make money, count money, and fuck. Never talk. Too bad. Today he won’t just get fucked, he’ll get fucked over.
“After the runner,” she said, barely above a whisper. “Our talk will be short. Don’t worry.”
“I don’t worry, Amber. I never worry. What’s pissed me off is that Wong is in town today and I have to deal with a runner. He doesn’t like that sort of thing. Bad for business. That’s why I’m dealing with it myself. That’s why—” he leaned across her, flipped open the glove box and pulled out a black gun, “—the runner will die in that warehouse. She will explain herself first. I want to see her cry and beg for her miserable life. I want you to use your cell phone to record me putting the gun in her mouth and blowing her brains out.” He held up the gun. Amber cringed away from him. “I have to make an example of this girl so the rest of you retards don’t ever think of doing the same thing. I need to show Wong that I got this. And now that you insisted on me picking you up, you’re going to help kill the runner.”
Amber looked out the window to avoid him seeing her tears. Another innocent girl, in pain, running, trying to get home to her family, killed and buried in the canal with the rest of them. How many girls did Sven kill per year? How many more had to die?
She wiped at her eyes and committed to herself that Sven would not kill any more innocent girls if she had anything to do with it. She would make sure of it. The only two people that were going to die was Sven Spaans and herself. No more innocents.
After all she had done over her short life, she was not an innocent anymore. Not by a long shot. Killing Sven wasn’t murder, it was just cause. Killing him was the right thing to do.
She inwardly smiled. It would be a pleasure.
The BMW raced recklessly toward the warehouse.
Chapter 15
Sarah loved the micro technology Dekker’s team brought out and now believed that Sven Spaans would never detect the wire. It was a fake clip-on belly button ring. Nothing more than costume jewelry. She wouldn’t be required to take off her shirt, but even if she did, no one would bat an eye at a belly button ring.
They were in a police van, heading toward the warehouse. Dekker had supplied Sarah with a document absolving her of any crimes on Netherlands soil. She had figured out that everything about her being held at the police station was contrived to get her to agree to help them in their sting operation.
But how did they know she was coming to Amsterdam in the first place? Casper? The American government? The Canadian authorities? There had to be survivors who praised her actions after what she did on that doomed plane. Fifty or more people were moved to the rear of the airliner. All those people are alive today.
Inspector Dekker had lied to her because he had a plan from the beginning, a grand plan. Once she met with Sven Spaans, incriminated him and waited for the Netherlands authorities to swoop in and make their arrests, she would exit stage left.
What they weren’t counting on was she would leave with Sven as her prisoner. Dekker had no idea that Sarah was hunting James Wong and Sven could lead her to him.
Inspector Lars Dekker had, unbeknownst to himself, offered James Wong and his black book on a silver platter to Sarah by setting up this little meeting with Sven Spaans.
She needed to locate James Wong and end her time in Europe. Every minute away from Aaron without confirmation he got her message was freaking her out.
“Okay, we’re almost there,” Dekker shouted over the sound of the van’s engine. “You ready?” he asked.
Sarah nodded. They had supplied her with a soft pink, collared shirt. Easier on the belly button microphone, they had said. She still wore the jeans Aaron had brought her before heading to the airport hotel in Toronto the day before. Her shoulder ached from the injury she sustained at the Torture Club, but it wasn’t flaring too bad.
If everything went well, she would be sipping a cappuccino at a canal side café within the hour.
You around, Sis?
Vivian had been strangely quiet again. Vivian was always there, lurking in the shadows, but if Sarah was walking into something altogether dangerous, Vivian would need to be there to walk her through it. A little reassurance went a long way.
“Remember the lines,” Dekker said. “Get him to confirm you’re a runner from his human trafficking ring. Allow him to intimate that he wants to take you back to your job.” He used air quotes on the la
st word. “You’ll never make it inside his car as we’ll swoop in and arrest him.”
“Who will deliver me to him?”
“Our inside man. He’s on site already.”
Sarah nodded. “What’s his name?”
“Doesn’t matter. He won’t know you either. Better that way. He will take you to Sven, then leave. He’s a good cop, but don’t let on you know that.”
She nodded again. “A gun?”
“What?” Dekker frowned.
“I need a weapon of some kind. What if things go bad fast? I won’t like it if this Sven character starts slapping the shit out of me.”
Dekker moved closer. “Sit down,” he said.
Sarah sat.
“This is an undercover operation. With your cooperation, we could put Sven away for a long time. We could effectively free dozens, if not hundreds of girls who have been abandoned by the system. Do you understand?”
“Of course.”
“That means you cannot show up armed. You cannot be one of his girls who tried to run and return armed. You are a lowly sex servant in his eyes. He hits you, we’ll be there. He attacks you, we’ll be there. He pulls a gun, our snipers will disarm him. You are safe. I can’t guarantee he won’t strike you, but you won’t end up in the hospital.” Holding onto a piece of metal jutting out near the roof of the van, Dekker leaned closer. “So no, you don’t get a weapon, least of all a gun.”
“Thought that would be your answer.”
“Let’s test the wire.”
One of Dekker’s men placed headphones on and motioned for Sarah to turn around. She stood up, Dekker easing out of her way, and turned her back to them.
“Now speak,” the man ordered.
“My name is Sarah Roberts. I’m here against my will. I’ve been coerced into being a guinea pig—”
“That’s enough,” Dekker cut in. “We got you loud and clear.”
Sarah turned back around, her face pensive. Before she left the van she needed Dekker to know she was aware of what he had done. As far as she understood it, this Sven guy was a real badass. Short of him wanting to jam a knife inside her, she had no idea how fast these guys would respond to her call of distress if something went wrong in that warehouse. Her life may very well depend on the men around her and the men in the second van. When you put your life in someone else’s hands, you really don’t want any false pretenses.
What they wouldn’t count on is how fast she could be. Disable the undercover cop by breaking his leg, attack Sven and lead him out of the warehouse before they could stop her. It would be a challenge, but Sarah was up for it. The black book James Wong carried was that important and she intended to get it.
“Are we good?” Dekker asked. “You ready?”
“I’m ready.” Sarah smiled, staring into his eyes.
Dekker looked away to check his watch. “We have ten minutes.” He turned to the driver. “Pull up to the corner and let her out.” He turned back to Sarah. “Our contact is a tall, good-looking agent. A Matt Dillon look-alike. You can’t miss him.”
“He knows what I look like?”
Dekker nodded. “He’s been briefed.”
“Will he be armed? If this goes south, will he be the first one to stop something?”
“He’s armed with blanks. And no, he will not be on our side. When we rescue you, word on the street will be that our guy barely made it out alive. He needs to remain undercover.”
She would have no friendlies close by and only seconds to escape with Sven as her prisoner. Aaron could do it. Had he trained her enough to handle it on her own?
I’ll find out shortly.
“How close will you be again?” Sarah asked.
“Seconds away.”
“When you say seconds, how many exactly?”
“Ten to twenty.”
“And I’ll be watched by snipers?” Sarah asked.
Dekker nodded. “Snipers are already in place.”
“With orders to shoot to kill?”
“No,” Dekker said, shaking his head. “We want Sven alive.”
“Thought so.”
The van stopped and the side door was ripped open. The Matt Dillon look-alike stood in the afternoon sunshine, his hand up for hers.
“Let’s go,” he snarled.
With one last look at Dekker, Sarah moved through the men, jumped out of the van and was led away by Matt Dillon’s doppelgänger.
This does not feel good at all, Sis. We cool here?
Vivian remained silent.
Chapter 16
Sven stopped the car half a block from the warehouse.
“Stay here,” he said. “Don’t move. I’m going to walk around the building, make sure there’s no surprises. If I don’t come back in ten minutes, take the car back to the apartment.”
“Why wouldn’t you come back?” Amber asked.
His grimace was one of disgust. “How stupid are you, Amber?” He wiped his face and looked out the window. “Do you know how I stay alive in this business? How I stay free to roam the streets? How I run my business?”
She shook her head afraid to speak. He looked back at her. She was sure the venom in his eyes was hatred and it was directed at her.
“I stay alive because I’m smart. I’m always one step ahead of those other assholes. You know, the ones who get caught and serve time.” He smacked his forehead for emphasis. “Don’t you see that this could be a setup? I have every reason to believe this is on the level, and a few reasons to believe that it isn’t.” He opened his door slightly. “So I’m going to check it out. Then I will kill the runner and we will go have dinner and do your little talk shit or whatever the fuck you want to do. Then you work tonight. You work hard because looking at you, your days in the window are numbered. You hear me, bitch, numbered.”
Amber just nodded. When he worked himself up, it was better to stay quiet.
“I’ll be back,” Sven said as he opened the car door the rest of the way. “Be ready. Make sure you have your cell on video and it’s ready to record. Now, ten minutes. Give me that. If I’m not back, take off.”
He bounded out of the car and shut the door quietly. Then he crouched down and ran for the corner of a brick building ten feet away, disappearing behind it.
Amber jumped at the chance to pull his black gun from the glove box. With one last look through the windshield to make sure he wasn’t returning to the car, she unclipped the magazine and emptied the bullets, then put the gun back together. Another look out the window before she shoved the gun back inside the glove box, hoping she placed the handle exactly the way he had left it.
A side zipper on the inside of her purse was a perfect spot to stash the unused bullets. After that, she checked to make sure her gun was loaded and ready. One zip and the purse was closed and slipped down between the door and the seat.
She was ready. Maybe the girl in the warehouse was going to live through this, maybe not. But Sven wouldn’t live through it.
Amber Dijkstra had a solid reason for believing that and that solid reason was resting in her purse, waiting for her finger’s pressure on the trigger.
With the HIV virus, things didn’t work out. Sometimes things just don’t work out.
For Sven, she would make sure things would not work out.
Ever again.
Chapter 17
Aaron woke blind in a moving vehicle. His kidnappers had covered his head with a burlap sack and tied his wrists and ankles. His tongue flopped around his arid mouth, not a drop of saliva available. How long had he been out? How long could he go without a drink?
He tested the bindings on his wrists and discovered they had cut off his circulation and his fingers were ten lumps without feeling. His feet were about the same. How long could his extremities go without proper circulation?
“Hello,” he said through the sack, his voice cracking and sounding foreign to him. “Hello?” he tried again, louder.
Someone moved nearby. He detected someone g
etting closer. The vehicle bounced and jostled along what felt like a dirt road littered with potholes. With each crunch of the suspension, his teeth clattered and his butt ached.
How long has it been?
Someone was closer still.
White lightning filled his inner vision as something smashed into his face from the side. The violence of the hit laid him out flat on the seat, gasping.