Ryan Quinn and the Rebel's Escape Page 15

  She dropped the rifle and took the soldier’s handgun instead, tucking it into her pants against the small of her back. Searching his pockets, she found the jeep keys, then hurried to locate the second soldier.

  Hearing his heavy steps, Tasha slipped into the shadows of a temple entrance. After the soldier passed, she snuck behind him and wrapped her forearm around his neck in a choke hold. The startled guard struggled, but her grip only tightened. He dropped to his knees, fingers clawing at her arm. A few seconds later, his eyes rolled up into his head and he went limp.

  That’s what happens when you’re careless and undisciplined, she thought.

  Tasha drove the jeep to the entrance of the gold-domed temple and jumped back out. Inside, she found the wall sculpture the villager had described and pushed. Slowly, it opened, pivoting to reveal the tunnel’s entrance. Absolute silence greeted Tasha.

  She was too late—they’d already gone.

  But as she stepped into the chamber, her senses went on high alert. She whirled around, drawing the handgun from her pants with one smooth motion.

  “Don’t shoot. It’s just me.” John Quinn leaned against the wall.

  “Quinn!” she said, not disguising the relief she felt at seeing him alive. Then she glanced around and realized, “You’re alone?”

  “Ryan found me. I was surprised when he said you’d helped him get here. How did you know where I was?”

  “I didn’t. I went to find you and sort of walked into a mess. Where’s Ryan?”

  “With any luck, he and the girl I was helping are in Thailand by now. I need to call Simon McClelland and make sure they made contact.”

  “We’ll call as soon as we can get a signal.” Tasha noticed the bandages. “You’re injured.”

  “I’m getting stronger,” John insisted. “With your help, I can travel.”

  “Good,” Tasha said, coming around behind him. “Because we have somewhere to be.”

  Tasha pulled what appeared to be a pen out of her pocket. She’d been carrying it since they landed in Andakar. But it wasn’t a pen at all. It was a well-disguised hypodermic needle filled with enough tranquilizer to subdue a sumo wrestler. It would be plenty for John Quinn.

  She plunged the needle into John’s neck. He turned to her in shock and confusion as the drug flooded his body.

  “What?” he stammered, already unsteady. “Why … ?”

  “You’ll find out soon enough,” Tasha said without a trace of compassion. John crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Tasha smiled.

  Mission accomplished.

  CHAPTER

  44

  CHINDI PROVINCE,

  ANDAKAR

  The train rattled along, rocking back and forth so gently that it had lulled Lan to sleep. For the first time since they’d met, Ryan thought she seemed at peace. He looked back out the window. Along the way, the scenery had shifted from verdant mountain jungle to flat plains and was now changing once more. If things were different, Ryan imagined the rolling hills and forests they were passing through would be fun to explore.

  The train was huge, probably close to a hundred cars long, and filled mostly with locals who appeared to be from rural areas. Jumping onboard hadn’t been hard. The train was slow enough that Ryan and Lan were able to run alongside and grab the handrails on the back car. Luckily, nobody was checking tickets, so they were able to find empty seats and blend into the crowd.

  Ryan’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He slipped it out, thankful to see he finally had a signal again. It was Danny. It was almost noon here in Andakar, which meant it was close to midnight back in New York. Not wanting to wake Lan, Ryan moved down the aisle before answering.

  “Hey.”

  “Dude, you’re going the wrong way!” Danny said, skipping hellos. “I’ve got your GPS up on my tracking program—you need to turn around, like now.”

  Just hearing his friend’s voice made Ryan feel a little better. “We ran into a few problems.”

  “The kind where you’re dodging bullets?”

  “Plus some white-water rapids, military choppers, and exploding hand grenades. And that’s just since this morning.”

  “You’re joking.”

  “So not joking.”

  “Wow,” Danny said. “And here I was feeling all impressed with myself that I fought with Steeg tonight.”

  “You fought Steeg?” Ryan knew that couldn’t have gone well. “Are you okay?”

  “Well, by fought, what I really mean is, ‘ran as fast as possible in the opposite direction.’ So, yeah, I’m fine.”

  “You need to stay away from that guy.” Ryan glanced over at Lan, still sleeping. “Did you get my email?”

  “Yeah—so Myat Kaw is a girl, huh?” Danny said, and Ryan knew what was coming next: “Is she hot?”

  “You’re unbelievable.”

  “She is, isn’t she? Text me a pic!”

  “How about I just let you see her for yourself? All you have to do is find us a way out of here.”

  Ryan could hear Danny clicking away on his keyboard as he spoke. “Are you on a train?” he asked.

  “Yeah, how’d you know that?”

  “I’ve got your GPS location on satellite now. I can see the tracks.”

  “Lan says we’re headed for China.” Ryan glanced over and noticed one of the passengers, an older man with a brutish face, watching him. Ryan nodded a friendly hello, then turned away, hoping the man would lose interest.

  “She’s right. You’re actually within a few miles of the Chinese border now.”

  “How close is the nearest airport?”

  Danny typed again. “In Jinhong, about fifty miles from the border. They have an international airport that gets lots of tourists. You wouldn’t stand out.”

  “Then that’s where we need to go. If I send you the names on our passports, you think you could figure out a way to get us a couple of tickets?”

  “I’ll make it happen. And I’ll send you a satellite map of the border area. It looks like a lot of forest and hills around there.”

  “I’m not sure how long my battery will last. I’ll have to turn off the phone until we’re close, make sure I have enough juice left to get whatever info you send about flights.”

  “Listen,” Danny said. “Things have been pretty crazy here, too. I may know where your mom is being held.”

  Ryan totally forgot to keep his voice down. “You saw her?”

  “No, but I saw Aung Win and that big dude with him.” Danny told him about the apartment building. They didn’t know for sure if Jacqueline was inside, but it seemed likely. The fact that Kasey was now involved came as a shock. But just then another call started beeping through.

  He glanced at the screen and his stomach churned: “Blocked.”

  “I gotta go—I think it’s him calling,” Ryan told Danny.

  “Ryan, wait!” Danny’s tone was so urgent that Ryan hesitated. “We called the cops. We were just trying to help—but it didn’t work.”

  “Oh no …” Was Aung Win calling to tell him that he’d already done what he promised? Was his mother dead?

  “I’m sorry, we really thought—”

  “I have to go.” Ryan hit the accept button on his phone, fearing what was to come. “Hello?”

  “My instructions were very clear.” Aung Win’s voice was unmistakable. “You were not to speak to anyone.”

  “I only talked to my dad, just like you told me.” Ryan hoped it was convincing since it was the truth.

  “You called the police!”

  “I didn’t. I promise.”

  Aung Win remained suspicious. “It would be foolish of you not to do as I say.”

  “I know that. My dad told me to just do exactly what you tell me to. Is my mom okay?”

  “What does it matter? You are out of time.”

  “We have one more day! You said five days—that’s tomorrow.” Ryan knew one day wouldn’t be enough time for Dad to get back, but he’d worry about that later. Ri
ght now, he had to make Aung Win believe everything was fine. “My father said to tell you he has Myat Kaw. He has your niece.”

  Aung Win said nothing. Ryan let it sink in that he knew Myat Kaw’s identity, then continued, “He said he’ll make the trade. Your niece for my mom. As long as my mother isn’t hurt. I’m supposed to talk to her, to make sure she’s okay.”

  “He wants to know if you’re okay,” Aung Win said, but he wasn’t speaking to Ryan.

  And then he heard his mom’s voice: “Don’t trust him, Ryan! Tell Dad not to—” But her final words were muffled, like a gag had been placed over her mouth. Ryan was surprised at how calm he remained, not rattled like the last call.

  “If anything happens to her, the deal is off,” Ryan said.

  “And if anyone learns Myat Kaw’s true identity before she is in my possession, then she is useless to me. And so is your mother.” Aung Win’s tone became brisk and efficient. “Tell John Quinn I will contact him at this number tomorrow. He will have one opportunity to make the trade according to my instructions. Alone. Any deviation and I will simply disappear. Along with your mother.”

  “Ryan!” Ryan turned to find Lan just behind him. She was worried, glancing back the way she’d come. At the end of the train car, the older passenger who had stared at Ryan was pointing him out to a uniformed police officer.

  “Do you understand?” Aung Win snapped in Ryan’s ear. Ryan felt like a traitor, arranging to trade Lan to a man who wanted to kill her while she looked at him as an ally.

  “I got it,” he said to Aung Win. The connection was immediately terminated. Lan gave him a curious look. “That was Danny,” he lied. “He’s gonna help us get out of here.”

  The officer was now talking into a radio—they had to move.

  “This way,” Ryan said, moving to the back of the car. He opened the exit door and stepped out between the train cars. Beneath his feet, the ground rushed past as wind whipped his face. He grabbed hold of the handle on the opposite side and stepped across the open space to the next car.

  They charged down the aisle, passing from car to car. But the police officer was gaining on them. Pushing Lan ahead of him, Ryan grabbed a couple of suitcases and baskets of vegetables that lined the sides, knocking them into the officer’s path to slow his pursuit.

  Passengers jumped up and yelled after Ryan angrily, causing even more difficulty for the officer. Ryan made it to the back of the car, just as Lan opened the next door. But she froze in the doorway: They were at the end of the line, nothing beyond but empty air.

  They didn’t even hesitate. Ryan and Lan jumped!

  CHAPTER

  45

  CHINDI PROVINCE,

  ANDAKAR

  Ryan knew to hit the ground in a roll to lessen the impact. But when he got up, he saw that Lan had landed harder. He helped her up, and she winced.

  “Your ankle?” he asked.

  “It’s all right.” She put weight on it, but it obviously hurt.

  Screeeeech! The squeal of the train’s metal brakes was ear-piercing as it slowed to a stop. Ryan pointed toward the forest up the hill.

  “There. We can hide.” He offered Lan a hand, but she refused. Moving as fast as they were able, they hurried toward the cover of the trees. Behind them, passengers stuck their heads out the windows and watched the unexpected excitement.

  The forest was dense, and the train was soon out of sight. They stopped so Lan could rest her ankle a few minutes and Ryan could check the map Danny sent. The Chinese border was only a few miles away, but it was hilly terrain. Unfortunately, Ryan’s phone now showed a single bar left on the battery. Not only would they lose their map, they’d also lose all contact with Danny if it ran out of power. Ryan took another minute to try and memorize the map, then reluctantly turned the phone off.

  For the next hour, they trekked through the forest, moving steadily uphill. Hungry and exhausted, it took all their strength, both physically and mentally, to just keep moving forward. When a helicopter buzzed by overhead, they knew the ASI had been alerted and was now searching the area.

  Making it to the top of a ridge, Ryan scanned the valley below. It was a rustic area, full of trees and jagged boulders. Cows, oxen, and horses grazed in grassy clearings. At the bottom of the basin was a small community of wood-thatched homes and simple barns. Rocky hills encroached on both sides, and there was just one road in and out—a road that looked like their only possibility of escape. It led to the border crossing at the far end of town, where heavily armed soldiers stopped anyone trying to leave Andakar.

  “We can’t get across here,” Lan said, disheartened. “There are too many of them.”

  Ryan felt his own doubt grow as a chopper flew past. Down below, more soldiers arrived, jumping out of their jeeps. They searched the houses and barns, treating the citizens roughly. Ryan and Lan were severely outmatched. It would be suicide to attempt a border crossing here, but there was nowhere else to go.

  Ryan thought of Varian Fry and the original Emergency Rescue Committee, who helped save so many people from the Nazis, knowing they’d be killed if they were caught. They must have been scared, too. There must have been times when escape seemed impossible. His own grandfather probably felt like this—and his parents, too.

  He glanced over at Lan, whose eyes were closed, her head slightly bowed as she muttered under her breath. After a moment, she looked up and saw Ryan watching her.

  “Were you praying?” he asked.

  “Buddhists don’t pray. I was giving thanks for a blessing.”

  Ryan was confused. “Is there a blessing in this that I’m missing?”

  “You’re the blessing,” she said. “You and your father. Whatever happens next, the two of you allowed me to hope again—if only for a little while.”

  Ryan fixed her with steely gaze. “That sounds a lot like you’re giving up.”

  Her only answer was to look up at the helicopter, which was sweeping toward them. As it spun around, the chopper’s side door slid open and a soldier appeared, shouting through a bullhorn. Another soldier appeared beside him and aimed a rifle their direction.

  “They want us to come out,” Lan said.

  No way, Ryan thought. He wasn’t giving up—and he wasn’t letting Lan give up, either. He’d spotted something down the hill that had sparked an idea, a way they might still be able to get out of this. Ryan grabbed Lan’s hand, pulling her after him.

  “Run!” he yelled. “Stay close to the trees!” A shot rang out, splintering a branch behind them, as Ryan pulled her into a thicket. They heard another couple of shots, but they weren’t as close. He kept changing directions, always keeping the trees between them and the helicopter.

  “Where are we going?” Lan asked breathlessly, fighting the pain in her injured ankle. “There’s no way we can get through the border crossing.”

  “We’re not going to,” Ryan answered. “We’re going around it!” Ryan veered sharply to their right, taking them in a completely different direction than they’d been heading. Since the chopper couldn’t see them through the trees, he hoped this would confuse their hunt.

  It worked. The helicopter moved away, not realizing its targets were now on a different path. But Ryan could hear the rumble of truck engines racing up the narrow roads. The ASI soldiers were on the way.

  Ryan stopped abruptly as they neared the edge of the trees. He had skirted around the hill with this destination in mind. Fifty yards away was one of the ranches he’d spotted. That’s where he hoped to find their possible ticket to freedom.

  “There.” Ryan pointed, enjoying the light that came to Lan’s eyes when she realized what he was thinking:

  “Horses!” Lan looked genuinely excited. “I’m an excellent rider,” she said. “You, too?”

  “No,” Ryan admitted, “I’m terrible. But if you can swim the rapids and run on a hurt ankle, I can stay on a horse.”

  Three horses were tethered on the far side of the clearing. Crouching low, Ryan a
nd Lan used the huge humpbacked cows as cover, weaving among them as they approached the horses.

  As they arrived, Ryan realized the horses had reins, but no saddles. Riders here only used simple blankets thrown over the horse’s back. Lan seemed used to that, leaping onto the back of a beautiful chestnut-colored mare in one agile motion. Ryan wasn’t as graceful, hoisting himself onto a gray stallion and nearly sliding off the other side. He finally got settled and pulled on the reins, prodding the horse with his heels to get it running. The horse bolted forward, nearly throwing Ryan off as it chased after Lan.

  “Across the field and up the hill,” Ryan called. “We make it to the other side and we’ll be in China!”

  Lan was a confident rider, and she charged across the open clearing. Ryan barely stayed seated as his gray stallion flew after her. But after a few seconds of breakneck galloping, he fell into the horse’s rhythm and the ride felt more natural. He glanced back, seeing the helicopter execute a wide arc in pursuit of them.

  “They’re coming!” he yelled. “Get to the trees!”

  Lan knew what she was doing, using the reins to guide her horse in that direction. Thankfully, Ryan’s stallion seemed happy to follow, allowing him to focus on hanging on. They had almost made it across the field when the chopper swooped in, soldiers firing from the open doorway. Bullets hit the ground on all sides, a few of them barely missing before the horses reached the tree line and disappeared into the forest. The chopper flew overhead so low that Ryan felt his whole body shake.

  Gripping the horse with his legs and the reins with his fists, Ryan struggled to keep upright. These were mountain horses, used to the rocky hillside they were now climbing. They darted between the trees, nimbly keeping their footing over the rough terrain. Limbs and twigs struck Ryan’s body and face as Lan led them ever higher, taking them around the border crossing down below.