“Smart thinking,” Prig said, holding his pistol at his side. “Let’s do this, folks.”
Elna took the lead, but she tried to walk in a slouch so it wouldn’t appear like she was leading. The camp dwellers were a dour, unhappy lot, so she fixed a miserable expression on her face, slumped her shoulders, and dragged her feet a bit as she walked. Beside her, Malin walked in a slight stoop, as if cowed by the guards behind him. She was impressed at his performance. He looked half his normal size just from the timid expression on his face.
She continued to skirt the edge of the camp, looking for an unlit and relatively empty path in. However, the camp had grown so much that it took a long time to move around the edge, and she couldn’t find exactly what she was looking for. Too many campfires, too many civilians up and about despite the hour, and she had to avoid the guards without looking like she was avoiding them.
Finally, as the night sky took on the very first hint of early morning light, she realized it was time to move. She stopped, intending to head straight into the heart of the camp, when she heard footsteps coming from beyond the next tent. Before she could react, a line of civilians appeared, moving with purpose out of the camp and into the open field to the north, toward a large pond on the other side of it. Some carried fishing poles, others carried wicker baskets. None bothered to look in Elna’s direction. Finally, a single guard appeared, rifle pointed at the civilian in the back of the line. He glanced briefly in their direction, and to Elna’s great relief, he didn’t react.
A bit of early morning fishing at gunpoint, Elna thought.
The guard’s casual reaction was promising, so she turned and headed directly into the camp. A few sleepy people were up and about, working on various tasks, but the camp was still mostly empty. The whole place had a dusty, dirty, bedraggled sadness hanging over it, and her skin crawled with every step, knowing that Rod Smith was somewhere on the grounds.
As they approached a campfire, she diverted to the left away from the light, taking a darker path. Suddenly, Malin clamped down on her arm and pulled her to a stop, then pointed at something on the ground near her feet. She had almost walked into a large bucket of water. Actually, there were a few buckets set here beside some machine parts. Breathing a sigh of relief, she started to move around it, but she caught herself. The buckets gave her an idea, something that would complete the costume.
She bent down and picked up the nearest bucket, handing it to Malin.
“Look like you’re delivering water at gunpoint,” she whispered. Then she grabbed a second bucket and handed it to Archer. The Marine nodded and wrapped her arms around the bucket, pressing it against her belly. Elna took a third bucket. “Now we fit right in.”
Prig leaned in close to whisper. “We’ve been moving too slowly. The sun’ll be up in half an hour or so. We need to be out of this camp and on the beach by then. Let’s split up, so we can get this done faster. Elna, you come with me. We’re going after Golf. Malin will take Spence and Archer to the medical tent. Are you comfortable with that plan?”
In truth, Elna hated being separated from Malin, but standing in the middle of camp was not exactly the best time to discuss a change of plans. She looked at the lightening sky far to the east. The thought of being here when the sun rose made her heart race.
“Okay, let’s do it,” she said. “We need to move fast.”
Malin nodded, reached out, and briefly squeezed her hand.
“You heard her. Move fast,” Prig said to Spence. “Get it done. We’re running out of time. As soon as you get what you need, head back to the motorcycles. We’ll rendezvous there, just outside of the camp, but if you’re being chased, keep going, run and gun all the way to the beach.”
Spence and Archer nodded in agreement, then they set off, Malin keeping pace with them to point them in the direction of the medical tent. They quickly disappeared deeper into the camp. Just before Malin moved out of sight, Elna felt a twinge of fear. The absolute folly of this whole stupid mission was so clear to her in that moment that she felt profoundly stupid for going along with it.
Why did I let them put Malin back in danger? she wondered. What the heck was I thinking?
Prig tapped her on the shoulder and said, “We have to go. Any idea where we might find our prisoner?”
“I think so,” she replied. “Follow me.”
And despite the regret, the tingling fear, the twist in her stomach, she headed in a different direction than Malin, moving as fast as she dared while still trying to seem like a dour, defeated camp dweller.
12
Malin took a small bit of comfort in the fact that Elna was with Prig. The staff sergeant seemed competent and determined. Still, he hated to be parted from her. It was on him now to take the lead, which he wasn’t entirely comfortable with. Elna had done such a good job of blending in, adopting the sad slouch of the camp dwellers. Malin tried, but he didn’t think he quite pulled it off.
Best to avoid groups of people, he thought.
Though they’d only been in the camp a short time during their first trip here, it was still burned into his brain. He had a pretty good idea of how to get to the medical tent, since Garret had been taken there upon their arrival last time. It was close to the center of camp,
