Shadow Harvest (A Sydney Rye Mystery, #7) Read online

  The prisoners, Loki, and the doctor were all inside. "Come up with a plan?" I asked as I climbed in, joining them in the back.

  Loki nodded. "Yes, to a degree. They are not totally certain of the number of guards but since they lived there prior to it becoming a prison they know the layout well. The authorities turned their bedrooms into cells, the dining hall was still used for dining, and," Loki swallowed, "the practice areas for torture."

  "Why?" I asked. "I mean, what kind of information are they trying to get out of them?"

  "They want them to confess, Sydney."

  "To what?"

  "Plotting against the government."

  One of the prisoners said something and Loki listened to him before turning to me. "There was an online movement that was gathering evidence of torture and organ harvest of Falun Gong practitioners. They thought the center was involved."

  "Was it?" I asked.

  "Not these two," Loki said. "But Mo was."

  "That makes sense. But is hardly the point right now. Where is Merl?"

  "He is in the basement, separate from the other prisoners. We will enter through the front gate. Here is what I'm thinking..." Loki laid out his plan. It sounded as good as any other to me.

  "We better hurry," I said, "the faster we get in and out the better."

  "Agreed."

  "What about the doctor?" I asked.

  "We will leave him here," Loki said, "chain him in the van. That way if we are injured he will be here to help, and if everything goes as planned we'll just let him go before leaving."

  "Okay."

  "Ready?"

  I nodded.

  #

  I walked alone down the center of the road. Loki, the prisoners and Blue were about ten feet behind, hidden by a boulder. Loki following my movements through the scope of one of the rifles we'd stolen that morning. We had twelve bullets between the two rifles. We also had the four handguns we'd gotten off the guards we'd killed by the van. I had one of those slipped into the back of my waist band. My hands were loose at my sides as I walked toward the center. I wasn't trying to hide my presence or quiet my steps. The plan was to have the man see me. The hope was that he'd want to ask some questions before he shot me.

  When the guard noticed me he stepped forward, his hands tensing on his rifle. He yelled something to me. I put my hands up and approached slowly. When he saw that I was a foreigner, his eyebrows shot up and he aimed his weapon at me, yelling. I stopped in my tracks and lowered slowly to my knees. He spoke into the radio on his shoulder and waited for a response before yelling something else to me.

  "English," I said back, loud enough for him to hear but quiet enough that it was clear I was not yelling. I was not panicking, I was not a threat. I was just a single woman on a deserted road alone at night.

  He opened the gate, approaching me slowly, his knees bent, gun up, muzzle aimed at my chest. I saw the doors to the center open and two more guards came running down the path and through the open gate. The first guard was right in front of me, out of reach, but I knew Loki would have a clear shot. The other two were coming around, as if to grab me.

  A shot rang out from behind me and the guard to my left crumpled. Covering my head with my hands I curled into a ball as the man in front of me began to fire over me into the darkness. He wasn't looking at me, neither was the other guard. They were both facing the night, firing over and over again. I reached into the small of my back, removed the handgun and brought it around. I kept my movements slow, invisible to someone staring past me, fearing for their lives.

  The gun was in my right hand. I brought it into the curl of my body, hidden from view then passed it under my left arm so that it was aiming at the guard who stood there, firing wildly into the night. I steadied the gun and fired. The guard in front of me saw him fall but didn't realize I was the one who'd shot him. He screamed, spittle shooting out of his mouth, the bright lights over the gate catching it. I sat up and aimed. He didn't have time to lower his weapon before I shot him in the forehead. His eyes stayed on me as he dropped to his knees. They rolled into his head before he tipped over to the side.

  That's when I heard the sirens, the wailing of the alarm. Turning toward the tai chi center I stood up and ran through the open gate and sprinted down the path. The door was closing, there was at least one more person in there. I hit it hard with my left shoulder, the gun still tight in my right hand. The door flew open and I fell into the room, landing on the floor, my weapon up and aimed behind the door where a small man in an ill-fitting uniform was tripping backwards from the force of the door knocking him over. I shot him once, it hit his arm and he cried out, grabbing at the injured limb, his eyes wide with fright before I shot him again, this time in the chest. He crumpled to the floor and I whipped my head around, searching the rest of the room.

  It was a square, about twenty feet to a side, with a reception desk and a couple of wooden chairs. There was no one else in the room, but I thought it safe to assume there were more on the way.

  Loki and the prisoners came in as I was getting up. "We need to turn off the alarm," I said, hurrying to the reception desk. Behind it were several monitors and I saw guards running down halls. "There are more coming," I said.

  "Go," Loki told me, leaning over the dead guard behind the door. He stood up and I saw he'd taken the man’s gun. "Get Merl, we'll deal with the guards on their way. That way," he pointed with the newly obtained weapon. “The stairs are at the end of the hall.”

  I followed his directions into an open hall lined with closed doors. Wall sconces lit the narrow space. Only half of them were on. I assumed this portion of the building was mostly unused. At the end of the hall was a door, unlocked. As I pulled it open I heard steps behind me.

  Turning and ducking down at the same time I saw a guard coming out of one of the rooms I'd assumed was empty. He was aiming a gun at me, biting his lip, looking nervous and young. I fired, the sound of the gun loud in the narrow hall. The bullet entered his neck. He dropped his gun, reaching both hands to the wound.

  He stumbled toward me and then fell, landing on one knee bringing our eyes to the same level before he tipped over onto his side, his last breaths gurgling as blood seeped out of his mouth.

  I stood up, returning my attention to the stairs leading to the basement, ignoring the final gasps from the young man behind me, pushing away the thoughts of guilt and fear that tried to pry at my mind. There was no time for that now.

  Picking Locks

  I descended the stone steps slowly. They curled into darkness, the air growing colder at each stair. Blue was right behind me, the sound of his paw falls reassuring in the damp cold. I pulled out my phone and used the light to navigate further.

  The bottom of the steps came suddenly, the hall extending straight ahead was pitch black. I felt along the wall, shining my light, trying to find a switch but there wasn't one. I examined the ceiling and walls and saw no bulbs. There were however, candle holders, but they were empty. The space felt like it was from another time.

  Blue pushed past me, his flank rubbing against my leg as he moved forward into the gloom. His nose was in the air, sniffing. I followed him as his pace picked up to a trot, his nose leading the way.

  We passed closed wooden doors, their handles coated in dust, until Blue stopped in front of one. Blue pushed his nose into the gap between the door and stone floor, sniffing hard, letting loose a small whine.

  Shining my phone light onto the handle I saw that it looked recently used, the dull shine of the metal reflecting back at me. I depressed the lever but it was locked. The door was thick wood, the keyhole centered above the handle. Blue whined again, his feet tapping with impatience on the stone floor, nails clicking. "Merl?" I whispered, my mouth close to the door.

  I heard movement, chains jingling. "Sydney?"

  His voice was parched, rough, but unmistakably Merl.

  "Yes," I said, my throat tight. "It's me. Are you okay?"

  The sound of ch
ains moving grew closer until I felt a thud against the door. "I'm alive," he said. "I can't believe you're here."

  "You thought I'd let you disappear and not come looking? I'm going to get you out of there."

  "Do you have the key?"

  "No, but I'll go get it."

  "How did you get here?"

  "No time now, Merl. I'll be back."

  I heard the chains move again, like he was pressing against the door. "It's nice to hear your voice."

  "I'll be back," I promised before turning back toward the steps. Blue whined but followed me, his nose tapping my hip. "We need a key," I told him, knowing he couldn't understand but feeling the need to explain why I was leaving our friend chained up in a dark and dismal basement. Was basement even the right word for this place? It was a catacomb.

  We went back up the steps. Electric light filled the hall above. The guard I killed lay where I left him, his neck still oozing blood, eyes open, shocked, like he didn't know death was possible. I felt along his belt and patted his pockets but didn't find any keys. I picked up his gun before moving quietly down the hall, back into what had been the lobby and was now the reception room for the detention center. I heard shouts coming from nearby and ducked behind the large desk in the corner. Blue squeezed in next to me and we waited, hearing the people approach. They were yelling, running, their footsteps loud in the quiet center.

  I wondered where Loki was. He could pick a lock. A group entered the reception room, their boots landing in unison on the hard stone, making me think they must be guards. Blue's ears perked and I heard it then too, quieter footsteps, coming from the other direction. I peered around the corner of the desk, staying low, sure that the running guards had headed down the hall I'd just left. I saw two people, a man and a woman, both thin, wearing torn silk pajamas, blood crusted in some places.

  They moved almost silently, without Blue I never would have noticed them. Their faces were set in stern yet relaxed expressions, their bodies practically floating as they followed the loud men into the hall beyond the reception room. Moments later I heard screaming, a gun shot, bodies falling to the ground. Another gun shot, thuds, flesh against flesh.

  They must have been prisoners, released by Loki. But had they won? I sidled up to the doorway and taking a deep breath held it as I looked around the corner, keeping my body as hidden as possible. There had been three guards. They were all on the ground now, their guns scattered.

  The former prisoners did not pick up the weapons. Blue growled, and when I glanced down at him, he was staring back into the reception area. I heard more boots coming. The two former prisoners started moving back my way. I ran toward them, coming around the corner fast. They raised their hands, ready for a fight, but quickly realized I was not a guard.

  I motioned behind me that more were coming. They ducked into an open doorway and I followed. With my gun up and the door slightly open, we waited. The sounds of boots filled the narrow space outside. There was yelling when they saw the three guards who had been taken down. I heard moaning and realized they hadn't killed them. Peace-loving mother fuckers were going to get themselves killed, I thought unkindly. Principles like theirs were something I could learn from. If I lived long enough, I thought bitterly.

  There was more yelling outside. I heard the door to the room next to us get kicked open. They were searching for us, recognizing that the attackers could not have gotten far. Twelve bullets, one pipe, a dog, and two peace-loving, tai chi masters. We had a chance against armed guards but only with the element of surprise.

  I motioned to the two prisoners to line up on the wall just out of reach of the door so that when they kicked it open we'd be at the furthest point of their vision without getting hit by the door.

  Blue stood next to me. His hackles were up, ready for the fight, to launch himself at the first man through the door. But I laid a hand on his head telling him to wait for my command. He sat, licking his lips, frustrated but obedient. The door flew open and a guard stormed in, I shot him in the back. Cowardly but necessary. There was yelling in the hall and a barrage of bullets flew into the room, passing over the dead man, and splintering the wall beyond him. We were safe standing where we were.

  They would have to come in and get us. They sent in two men this time, back to back, facing the sides of the room. Smart. I shot the one facing us before his eyes had a chance to adjust to the dark room. The other spun around but I shot him, crumpling him onto the body of his partner before he'd even discharged one bullet.

  A low moan from outside. It was possible I'd gotten all the conscious guards. Though since the prisoners next to me had not taken the weapons of the three they'd knocked out, I couldn't be sure if we were safe yet. There was a shuffling sound, like someone sitting up. They would be disoriented but that didn't mean someone couldn't grab a gun.

  But waiting here until the three men became conscious enough to walk into our trap seemed like a bad idea. Who knew how long it would take or if reinforcements would show up? Before I could make a decision the two prisoners slid past me, and the woman peeked into the hall. A small wave of her hand and the man was in the hall, the woman right behind him. I heard a grunt and the sound of metal skittering across the floor.

  I stepped out and found the man and woman still standing, a guard at the man's feet who looked freshly laid out, his gun a few feet from his extended left hand.

  "Do you know who has the keys?" I asked.

  They looked at each other and then back at me. I made a motion like I was opening a door with a key by twisting my fist back and forth. They didn't understand. I did it again, this time more forcefully. "Keys," I said slowly, knowing that saying words people don't understand more slowly does not help, but unable to stop myself. When that didn't work I started to search the knocked-out men in the hall. I found keys on the belt of the second one.

  I unclipped them and held them out to the man and woman. They nodded understanding. I pointed toward the basement, asking if they were the right keys for Merl's cell. They raised their shoulders, expressing that they didn't know. Which made sense. As a prisoner in one part of the building why would you know which keys opened cells in the other parts of the prison?

  "Loki?" I asked, making a gesture with keys.

  They both nodded, I wasn't exactly sure what they were agreeing with, but guessed that someone let them out and it was more than likely Loki.

  I decided to try the keys I had and if they didn't work I'd go looking for Loki and his lock pick set. Starting toward the steps, Blue by my side, I noticed that the man and woman were following me. I stopped and pointed at the three unconscious men on the ground. "You can't just leave them there," I said.

  Obviously, they didn't understand so I grabbed one of guards under his arms and dragged him into the room with the three dead guards in it, dropping him unceremoniously just inside the door. They got the picture and each grabbed a man, hauling him into the room. We closed the door and I tried the keys until I found one that locked the door.

  The three of us then proceeded to Merl’s cell, where I announced that I was back. "Not sure I've got the right key though," I said.

  "Okay," he said.

  "I've got two of the other prisoners with me. Will you be able to walk or do you need help?" I asked, flipping through the keys, trying one after another.

  "I'm weak," he said. "Have not eaten in three days."

  "What about water?"

  "A little."

  I found a key that fit. My heartbeat surged. But the key refused to turn. "Dammit," I muttered, continuing to the next key. "Do you speak Mandarin?" I asked Merl.

  "A little," he said.

  "Ask my companions if there is water nearby."

  Merl spoke through the door and the woman answered. "She says there should be some in the kitchen."

  "Okay, I think we should try to get some before we leave."

  "First let's get the door unlocked Sydney."

  I smiled at the fact that even as a ha
lf-starved, chained prisoner Merl was offering advice. The last key on the ring didn't open the door and I shoved them into my pocket. "That didn't work," I said. "I’m going to go find Loki, he's got a lock pick set on him."

  I looked back down the dark hall toward the stairs. "I'm just not quite sure where he is in the building. But obviously he is letting people out. How many people do you think are imprisoned here?" I asked Merl.

  "At least fifty," he said. "That is how many were here when I was brought in. Let me ask."

  Merl spoke in Mandarin and the woman answered him. "She's not sure but thinks around seventy now. She was sharing her room with four other women."

  "Where did they go?" I asked.

  Merl asked. The woman answered. "Shot," Merl said, his voice quiet. "Just now, while they were trying to escape."

  "Fuck," I said. "Okay, I'll be back.”

  Blue and I led the way back up the stairs. I stopped in the hall and picked up two more guns, dropping my almost empty one, surprised at myself for not doing it earlier.

  I tried to offer guns to the recently escaped prisoners but they refused them. "Fine," I said, moving forward, gun in each hand, one tucked into my waistband, Blue behind my left knee, the man to my right, the woman to my left. We entered the reception area and the woman pointed toward a door to the left. I followed her through the opening. She led the way upstairs. We came to a hall lined with doors.

  I could hear the sounds of people pressing up against the doors, fabric rustling, bodies bumping, whispering. There were a lot of them locked up behind those doors. The woman made the key gesture I'd used earlier. I put a gun under my arm and grabbed them out of my pocket. She took them and started toward the first door.