He heard strange, faint sounds. Some were closer than others, and he strained to make them out. Bodies shifting about somewhere nearby. Tinny voices coming as if from a distant monaural radio speaker. Malin glanced at Elna, and she shrugged in return. They moved from behind the stairs together, Malin turning to the right as he passed through the door, Elna to the left. Malin swung the flashlight around, aiming into the far corner.
The light passed over the racks and various alcoves in the walls, over crates and boxes, and then settled on two figures huddled in a deep well in the corner. He was so startled to see them there that he lurched backward, his finger sliding against the trigger. He would have fired if not for the awkward stumble and the wobbling of the light.
They were small, huddled against the wall behind an empty rack and pressed together, their eyes squeezed shut. Suddenly, one of them opened her eyes and rose to her knees, thrusting her hands over her head.
“We surrender. Don’t shoot. He’s just an old man. Don’t hurt him.” The words came tumbling out of her mouth so fast he almost couldn’t tell what she was saying. He was so startled to see her there that he froze for a second, then slowly willed himself to lower the gun.
She can’t see our faces because of the flashlight in her eyes, he realized, then he lowered the flashlight.
“Oh my gosh,” she said. “Malin. Elna. What in the heck? Where did you come from? How…?”
Selene lowered her hands and rose, fear giving way to slack-jawed amazement—as if she’d just seen them phase through the wall itself. Elna rushed past Malin then, holstering her pistol, as Selene rose to meet her.
“Seriously, where did you come from?” Selene said. “We were hiding in this weird dead-end staircase. George said it was blocked, but we heard people coming up behind us somehow, and we were so scared! Is it the tunnel? Is it the tunnel the mercenaries are looking for?”
Instead of answering, Elna went to her father’s side and helped him to his feet, pulling him into an embrace.
“Yes, it’s a tunnel,” Malin said finally, “but not for long. We have to get out of here. The Marines are bringing it down.”
“This is all crazy,” Selene said, stepping out from behind the wine rack.
Malin gestured for her to go back through the open door, but as he did, he became aware of the strange tinny voices again. They seemed to be coming from somewhere in the room, as if there were a very small, low quality speaker in the cellar. He shined the flashlight in the direction of the sound and discovered a small, rusty air vent low on the wall between two racks.
“Who is that?” he asked.
“That’s the commander of the other army,” Selene said. “He’s up in the kitchen. Malin, this place is crawling with those guys, and they’re searching every room.”
Elna was still hugging her father, and Malin thought he heard her quietly crying, but she pulled back now.
“Dad, don’t ever wander off like that again,” she said. “Stay right with me from now on.”
He held up a small cloth bag. When he did, some small bits of metal rattled around inside. “Just grabbing a few things of your mother’s before we set off. What if we never come back here?”
“Those things don’t matter. You matter. Come on.” She wiped her eyes, put an arm around his shoulders, and guided him back to the open door. The old guy looked frailer than ever, bent and shuffling along, his clothes and beard all dusty.
“I thought this rescue was gonna go a lot worse,” Malin muttered, holstering his pistol as he followed Elna and the others back to the door. “We lucked out, my friends. Let’s go.”
24
Elna hadn’t been paying attention to the strange voices coming from the air vent. All of her attention had been on her father. Pop felt so small, his bony shoulder poking through his shirt. Though she hadn’t expressed her doubts to Malin, she’d had low expectations for this rescue mission, yet she’d found him almost immediately. It was an amazing turn of events, and she felt hopeful for the first time in hours.
At least he’s alive, she thought. At least we got him out of here.
She was just about to pass through the open door when a voice from the air vent suddenly shouted. The sound reminded Elna of when she used to talk into a long cardboard tube as a kid. It had a kind of focused but muffled quality. Nevertheless, the words caught her attention.
“I’ve been through all of their paperwork. There’s no map showing the exact location of a tunnel entrance, but I know my intel is correct. It’s around here somewhere. I’m sure of it. And you’re going to find it! Tear this whole building down. Rip it down to the foundation if you have to, but find that tunnel.”
This was followed by a crash and thud, other voices speaking over each other, someone cursing. Were they having a fistfight up there?
“Who is that?” Elna asked.
Selene had just stepped through the open door. “That’s the commander,” she said.
Elna gently pushed her father through the door, but she turned back. When Malin started to say something, she put a finger to her lips. She wanted to hear the commander. She wanted to know what they were planning.
“These people left in a hurry,” the commander said. “They made no attempt
