There might have been other kidnap victims too, but again she didn’t know.
When she was back in her room, the door was locked, and she was left alone. She sagged down on the single cot and buried her face in her hands, wondering how long this would be. How long before the world found out, and, even if it did, did anybody give a shit? The last thing she wanted was to be here until she was old and gray. She figured that she’d end up with a bullet before then anyway because they weren’t the easiest to get along with.
As it was, she sat quietly in her room, and a tiny rap came on her wall, and Eva knew it was Marge. It was the equivalent of holding hands. She rapped back ever-so-softly. And, of course, Marge didn’t rap again. Eva just guessed that Marge would have laid down and relaxed now.
Eva flopped back down on the bed and crossed her arms over her chest. She didn’t even know how to put out a warning. She had no window in her room, no way to contact the outside world.
Apart from the little knock between her and Marge’s rooms, there was no communication at all. Paul was also here, on the other side of Marge.
Until her food was delivered, this would be her world. She had a small bathroom, where she could shower and use the facilities, but that was it. She had a ten-by-eight-foot space, where she tried to do some exercises, tried to walk and pace, but it was pretty hard to do in such a small space. Mentally she needed it though. And, with that in mind, she slid upright in bed, crossed her legs, and worked on her yoga. If nothing else she needed to cut her stress. Because her heart and mind were just screaming at her. What had just happened with the strangers expected here, and was there any hope that someone was coming to rescue her and the others?
Diesel stepped back, behind the door, as it opened up.
When nobody entered, a man called out, “It’s me.”
Diesel sighed and stepped forward and said, “You should have given me a warning.” But seeing him, he realized why he didn’t. His arms were full. “What the hell?” he said, as he opened the door wider to let Jerricho in.
He quickly dumped his armloads on the bed. Then, in his hand, underneath everything, was a bag. He handed that over to Diesel and said, “Takeout.”
Diesel brought it to the table and quickly emptied the food. “All this?”
“When I placed the munitions order, I decided to get everything at the same time,” he said, “so this is what you asked for.”
He stared at Jerricho and then at the bed. Immediately he walked over and opened up several cases. One was a box with grenades, the other contained C-4 and ammo, and they had nice little techno goodies. He stared at Jerricho, surprised. “That was fast.”
“Yeah, it’s fast. It was a cash deal, and, of course, I suspect he tried to follow me. After all, this is a lot of weapons here. Plus, he’s curious and greedy. I had to try to lose him. I highly suggest that, after we eat, we change rooms.”
“I’m up for that. I suggest we change hotels,” Diesel said.
“Even better.”
The two men sat down, quickly scoffed down the food, hardly even tasting it. And yet street food was some of the best food in the world, as far as Diesel was concerned.
By the time they had emptied their plates, Diesel quickly packed up the little bit that he had, and, taking half of the gear that Jerricho had brought back with him, the two men slipped from the room and locked up. They even took the food containers with them to ensure nothing was left for DNA tests.
As soon as they reached the back street, Jerricho asked, “Where to?”
“I sent Gavin and Shane a message,” Diesel said. “We’re a block up and around the corner.”
“Perfect,” he said.
They quickly made it into the front entrance, which led into a dark shadowy hallway.
Diesel’s phone buzzed. He pulled it out and said, “Room 157. First floor at the far back.”
“Perfect.”
Diesel and Jerricho headed down the hallway to their room and found it empty and open. They quickly stepped inside and shut the door. Diesel kept his phone line open, putting it on Speaker now. They unloaded everything onto the two beds. This time he put the firearms together and quickly loaded then. He filled his pockets with spare ammo and asked, “Do we have a location?”
Shane answered this time. “We have movement,” he said. “Sending you a link.”
As Diesel opened up the link, a group of twelve well-armed men left their SUVs and entered an industrial building beside where their vehicles were parked—within walking distance from either hotel where Diesel and Jerricho had been.
“What the hell are they after?” Jerricho asked.
“I’m hoping they’re on protective guard duty,” Diesel said quietly. “Were we made? Are they moving Eva? Or worse?”
“It’s possible we were made but not necessarily by the Chinese,” Shane said. “Our sensors also picked up several Russian spies.”
“Oh, don’t tell me that they’re after her too?” Diesel asked.
“They might not only be after her,” Shane said, “but it’s quite possible they’re buying her.” With that, Shane ended the call.
“Shit,” Diesel said as he pocketed his phone. “That doesn’t sound healthy either way.”
“Who the hell is she?” Jerricho asked.
“A scientist with some stem-cell research on germs and viruses, and I think maybe they’re looking at it for germ warfare. So a cure for their country and a killer for the rest?”
“Does anything surprise you anymore?” Jerricho said, staring at Diesel.
Diesel shook his head. “No,” he said. “I’m continuously amazed at the absolute depravity of humanity against humanity.” He sighed. “Let’s hope that’s not what this is all about.”
“Regardless,” Jerricho said, “we have to figure out how to get into that building.”
“Well, getting
