“This place seems pretty deserted to me, Andi. We haven’t run into any guards, and so far there’s been no trace of any cars. Are you sure this is the right place?” George snatched the binoculars from Andi’s hands to have a look. Andi shuffled aside to make more room for George at the small window and to keep his partner from seeing the revulsion on his face. They were so at the right place, and Andi was torn between wishing they weren’t and relief they had found another lead.
“Absolutely. We’ll just have to wait.”
George sighed. “We should have brought some food. It’s past lunchtime already.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think that far ahead.” It was the truth. Andi was getting hungry as well, his stomach reminding him that it had parted with anything remotely nourishing the evening before. A plain bagel was nowhere near enough to make up for what he’d lost to the bucket. It was also getting hotter by the second, turning the enclosed space into a sauna of the unpleasant kind, because getting rid of their clothes simply wasn’t an option. He sat down next to the wheelbarrow and leaned his head against the wall. Taking it slow and easy was paramount. They were probably going to need their energy soon, or so he hoped. “Let’s take turns keeping an eye on things. You go first.”
“Bossy,” George muttered under his breath.
“Yeah, sorry, not sorry. I’m going to close my eyes for a bit.”
George huffed but didn’t try to keep talking to him. After a few minutes, Andi felt his mind slipping into blissful darkness.
Chapter 20—Plausibility
GEORGE KNEWexactly when Andi fell asleep. There was a little snorting sound, followed by the kind of deep breathing only sleep could produce. George withstood the temptation to wake him up again. It would have served Andi right, for throwing George into the deep end like he had done this morning, but the man looked so wrung out, George couldn’t bring himself to be so cruel even though he was still fuming. Instead he used the time he had while staring at the empty house to guess what Andi’s big secret was. Perhaps he was some kind of psychic like in theX-FilesorX-Factor. It would explain how he knew about the bodies on the crime scene and why they were on an apparent wild goose chase out in Berkeley County when they should be following solid—albeit cold—leads back in the city. George didn’t even know why he went along with Andi’s craziness. It definitely wasn’t proper police work they were doing. Yet Andi seemed convinced there was something out here. George hated to admit it, but some part of him clung to the hope Andi was performing a miracle and leading them straight to the culprits. Otherwise they would probably be looking at a drawn-out case that was going colder every minute and would eventually be shelved until they would inevitably stumble upon the next bodies. Contrary to what Andi had suggested during their angry spat in the car, George did care a lot about the victims of the crimes he investigated. It was just that he also had a healthy interest in having his good work recognized and rewarded. There was nothing wrong with that as long as he didn’t stray from the path and kept things legal and to the book—which he wasn’t doing at the moment. George mentally slapped himself. He was such an idiot. And yet here he was, illegally on private property, hoping to find he knew not what. What a mess.
While the wait dragged on and Andi’s soft snores filled the small shed, George amused himself with counting the birds flying around on the manicured lawn flanking the driveway to the main entrance. He had just spotted number eighty-four when the familiar hum of car engines drifted toward the shed. The sound was quickly followed by four black limousines, each with tinted windows. George didn’t dare look away to not miss any details. He carefully kicked back against Andi’s leg to wake him up. A startled groan mingled with the clicking of car doors being opened. Four men in black suits got out of the driver’s seats of the four limousines. As if the scene were choreographed, they all went to the back doors on the driver’s sides to open them simultaneously. Four men got out, dressed in suits as well and with black masks on their faces. Two of them had graying hair, and the way they moved suggested men in their sixties at least. The other two were obviously younger, their movements more fluid and graceful. They acknowledged each other with nods before they stalked toward the main entrance.
“Showtime.” Andi’s voice close to his ear should have startled George, but all he felt was reassurance that his partner was here with him.
“What do we do now?”
Andi took the binoculars from him. After a long pause in which he followed the movements of the masked men inside the house, he started to speak. “Now we call the cavalry. Somebody has just brought the victims in.”
George snatched back the binoculars while Andi got his cell out to call the precinct. What George saw inside the now lit room made his stomach revolt, and he was glad he hadn’t brought food. Two men without masks were marching a group of naked children around the room. The youngest seemed to be about fourteen, the oldest maybe eighteen. The boys and girls looked frightened, especially the younger ones, while the older ones seemed resigned to their fate. The masked men were scrutinizing them like chattel on the market, touching their breasts and genitalia to determine which one they wanted. Through a red haze of pure rage, George heard Andi speaking to the precinct.
“Yes, this is Detective Andi Hayes. I need a SWAT team at the coordinates I’m going to send now. Tell them to come in silent and surround the perimeter. As soon as they’re in position, they can reach me on this number. I’ll give the signal to strike. There are armed men, likely pros, on the ground, as far as I can see four, plus at least six additional hostile people and eight confirmed hostages. Tell them to hurry.”
Andi ended the call. “They’re going to be here in thirty.”
“I’m not sure I can wait thirty minutes. They’re choosing those children like food in a supermarket.” George was trembling with rage and horror. How could anybody do such a vile thing? He felt Andi’s hand on his shoulder.
“I know this is hard. But it’s just the two of us, and if those drivers aren’t ex-military, I’m going to hand my letter of resignation to Chief Norris tomorrow.”
George chuckled weakly. “Don’t go making promises you have no intention of keeping.”
“Why don’t you let me keep an eye on them and you take my cell and wait for SWAT to call?” Andi gently took the binoculars from George’s grasp and directed him to the spot where he’d been sleeping. “It’s quite comfortable, I can assure you.”
Even though he didn’t want to, George sat down with Andi’s cell in his hand. He was itching to storm into the house and shoot those sick bastards, but Andi was right. He would likely get himself, his partner, and worst of all, some of the victims killed. As much as it disgusted him, they had to wait.
After what seemed like an eternity, Andi’s cell started vibrating in his hand. George accepted the call. “Detective Donovan here.”
“Here’s Forard. Tell Hayes we’re in position.”
Instead of playing messenger, George handed the phone to Andi.
“Adam? You in position? Positive. There’s four armed men in the house, most likely in the foyer or the room to the left. In the room to the right, there’s two unarmed men with four hostages. The other two men are somewhere in the house… I’m guessing still at ground level because the upper floors appear unoccupied as far as I can tell from where we are. There have to be two more men in the back part of the house, probably armed as well.”
Andi listened to something Forard said. “Yes.” With his free hand, he got his own handgun from the holster under his arm, which was George’s cue to do the same.
They moved toward the entrance of the shed. George opened the door for Andi and covered him on their way around it. Andi’s voice dropped to a whisper. “We’re behind the little shed east of the entrance. Can you see us? Good. Three, two, one. Go!”
It wasn’t dark yet, just gloomy enough to make the sudden appearance of several SWAT members in their black gear an intimidating sight. George stayed close to Andi while they fell in line behind the two SWAT members who carried an iron battering ram. From the corner of his eye, George could see more black-clad figures swarming around the house, blocking all escape routes. The door gave in at the second push, a rain of bullets greeting them. It didn’t sound like just ordinary handguns either. The men inside were more heavily armed than George would have wished, but then again it made sense considering the nefarious things their employers were doing inside the house. If George had to guess, there were at least two assault rifles aimed at them. What else their opponents might have in store for them they would find out soon enough. One of the SWAT men went down with a yelp. George couldn’t see where exactly the man had been wounded because he was busy ducking behind one of the stone pillars flanking the door, but it had to be somewhere on the legs because the whole SWAT team wore body armor. From the corner of his eye he saw two other SWAT members retrieving their colleague, who was able to run in a half limp supported by their arms, which meant the wound couldn’t be too bad. George breathed a sigh of relief, focusing back on the large entrance hall and his partner, who was crouching behind the other pillar, trying to get a clear sight. Andi’s shoulders were tense, the gun in his hands steady. Another round of bullets whizzed past them, this time doing no harm at all. Then the SWAT team returned fire, aiming high to give them a chance to get inside the house under cover of the hail of bullets. The hall itself didn’t offer much cover, and George followed Andi to the right, where the wall made a dip. Several hooks indicated the barely there space was to hang coats, and it was a tight fit for both of them. Had Andi been as bulky as George, it wouldn’t have worked. Through the cacophony of whizzing bullets, splintering marble, the distinctplopwhen projectiles from said marble put dents in the walls, the deep voices of men shouting orders as loud as they could just to be heard made it almost impossible for George to hear what Andi was saying. He only realized his partner was trying to communicate because Andi turned his head slightly so he could see his lips moving. George leaned in as far as he dared without becoming a prime target for whoever was trying to kill them.
“They have the higher ground.”
Andi sounded upset and resolved at the same time.
