“Just close your eyes and keep it there.”
“I doubt I'll sleep.”
“You might if you think about that beach near Cancun. Imagine the rhythm of the waves on the shore. Even if you
“As soon as it's dark…”
“I'll wake you,” Rachel said. “That's a promise. Believe me, I want to get out of here.”
5
Rachel's teeth chattered-less from fear than cold, Savage sensed. In the dark, as the temperature kept dropping, he draped his jacket around her shoulders and guided her farther along the wall. He'd decided that trying to leave through a path from the park was possibly more dangerous during the night than in daylight. Hailey's hidden men would have a safer chance of killing them and escaping under cover of the neon confusion of Tokyo 's nightlife.
Reversing their earlier direction, Savage led Rachel southward, reached a western jog in the wall, and followed its angle. Unseen branches tugged at his shirt and threatened his eyes. If not for the halo of dense traffic opposite the wall, he couldn't have found his way. Horns blared. Engines roared.
“Enough,” Savage said. “Hailey's pissing me off. This spot's as good as any. If we go much farther, we'll circle the park. Screw it. Let's go.”
Savage raised his arms to grip the top of the wall, pulled himself up so his eyes showed just above the wall, and warily studied the street below him. Headlights surged past. A Japanese man and woman strolled beneath him along a sidewalk. Otherwise there were few pedestrians.
Savage dropped back onto the ground. “I didn't see anything to make me change my mind. Are you ready?”
“As I'll ever be.” She mustered resolve. “… Better give me a boost.”
Savage put his arms around her legs and lifted, feeling her skirt and thighs against his cheek. A moment later, she squirmed upward out of his grasp. As soon as she reached the crest, inching over, he hurriedly climbed after her. Together, they dangled from the opposite side. Heart pounding, Savage landed first and helped her down so her stockinged feet wouldn't be injured if her full weight struck the concrete.
Checking both ways along the sidewalk, Savage barked, “Quickly.
A man had appeared from shadows a hundred yards to his left. Headlights revealed the man's face. A Caucasian. He blurted something to a radio in his hand and raced toward Savage and Rachel, fumbling for an object beneath his suitcoat.
“Do it!” Savage said.
“But…!”
The blazing cars formed a constantly moving barrier.
“We can't stay here!” To Savage's right, opposite the Caucasian running toward them,
“We'll be…!”
“Now!” Savage said. He grabbed Rachel's hand, saw a slight break in traffic, and darted off the sidewalk.
Headlights streaked toward them. Brakes squealed. Savage kept running. He still gripped Rachel's hand, although she no longer needed urging.
In the next lane, another speeding car made Rachel curse. She surged in front of him.
Horns shrilled. The stench of exhaust flared Savage's nostrils. His stride lengthened.
They reached the street's divider. Wind from rushing cars flapped Rachel's skirt. Breathing hard, Savage glanced behind him and saw the two Caucasians rushing along the sidewalk. Assessing traffic, they searched for a break between cars so they could sprint across the street.
Savage waved at drivers in the opposite lanes, warning them that he and Rachel were about to race across. A Toyota slowed. Savage took the chance and bolted, Rachel charging next to him. They dodged another car and reached the far sidewalk.
Storefronts gleamed. Pedestrians gaped. An alley beckoned. As Savage ducked into it, he glanced again behind him, seeing the two Caucasians bolt from the sidewalk. At the same time, he sensed an object looming toward him. Pivoting, startled, he saw a van veer out of traffic. It aimed toward the alley.
He turned to run, but not before the van's windshield starred. Holes stitched it, glass imploding.
The van hit the curb. With a jolt, it heaved above the sidewalk, walloped down, veered, kept surging, and smashed through a storefront to the left of the alley.
Metal scraped. Glass shattered. Despite the explosive impact, Savage thought he heard screams from within the van. For certain, he heard pedestrians scream. And shouts from the men across the street.
Several cars skidded to a stop.
Rachel trembled, frozen with shock.
“Run!” Savage said.
He tugged her.
The compulsion of fear canceled her stunned paralysis. She raced past garbage cans along the dark alley.
But what if the alley's a trap? Savage suddenly thought.
Suppose Hailey's men are
No! They can't be
Who shot at the van? Who was
Dismay racked Savage's mind. Confusion threatened his sanity.
Who? Why?
They reached the next street. An approaching taxi made Savage's chest contract. He flagged it down, shoved Rachel inside, and scrambled after her, saying, “ Ginza,” hoping the driver would understand that they wanted to go to that district.
The driver, wearing a cap and white gloves, frowned at the disheveled appearance of his harried Caucasian passengers. He seemed uncertain whether he wanted Savage and Rachel to be his customers. But Savage held up several thousand-yen bills.
The driver nodded, pulled away, expertly merging with speeding traffic.
Savage heard the increasing wail of sirens-with no doubt where they were headed. Straining not to show his tension, he could only hope that the driver wouldn't decide that his passengers had something to do with the sirens.
The taxi turned a corner. Police cars swiftly approached in an opposite lane, their sirens louder, flashers blazing.
Then the cruisers were gone, and though the taxi's driver glanced after them, he didn't stop. Savage touched Rachel's hand. Her fingers trembled.
6
Amid dense traffic that somehow kept flowing, they finally reached the Ginza district. Akira had explained that Ginza meant “silver place” and referred to the fact that several hundred years ago the national mint had been located here. Since then, the area had developed into Tokyo 's major shopping center, with seemingly endless
