by Chris Ryan
When all the boys had been viewed, they were lined up to one side of the stage and three West African girls, two older and one younger, were brought out of the dark room across the courtyard. They were dressed in short, sleeveless tunics and their feet were bare. The girls went through the same viewing procedure as the boys, then they too were lined up at the side of the stage. A rustle of whispering spread through the buyers. The girl they had come to see was to be brought out next.
Amber, Alex, Paulo and Hex turned to watch the dark doorway. The woman called, then called again, but it wasn’t until she brought out her switch and flourished it threateningly that the final girl stepped out of the room. It was Li. She was dressed like the other girls in a sleeveless shift, but she wore it as though it were a royal gown.
Paulo felt his heart swell with pride as he watched her stalk across the courtyard with her head held high and her uptilted eyes flashing defiance. She looked beautiful. Her long hair swung loose, reaching down to her waist. It was still slightly damp and it shone with glossy highlights as it caught the evening sun. Her skin looked a little red, as though it had been scrubbed too hard, but otherwise Paulo was glad to see that she looked unharmed. Behind Paulo, Alex let out a long, relieved sigh. He had never quite forgiven himself for letting her go off with the Scorpion in the first place.
Li stepped up on to the dais and stood with her hands on her hips, glaring out at the men who sat at the low tables. The murmur of voices rose in volume to an excited buzz, and suddenly hands were being waved in the air as the buyers called out their offers. The Scorpion smiled, then walked up to the front of the room and stood there, shaking his head and holding up his hands. He gave a nod to the woman and she began herding the group back across the courtyard.
‘Come on, Li,’ breathed Paulo. ‘Look this way. This way.’
As though she had heard him, Li turned her head to look out at the street. Her eyes widened in delighted astonishment as she saw Amber and Paulo standing at the gate, grinning in at her. Li turned her attention to the two burka-clad women standing behind Amber and Paulo and her look of delight turned into a puzzled frown until one of the women gave her a thumbs-up sign. Li smiled in sudden understanding, then gave a slight nod towards the dark room before facing forwards again and walking on across the courtyard.
‘There must be a window round the side,’ muttered Hex. ‘She wouldn’t’ve nodded like that otherwise.’
‘Then let us find it,’ said Paulo.
They followed the street as it curved round to the right and there it was, a glassless, barred window in the back wall of the Scorpion’s slave quarters. The window was at street level, so they squatted down in the dust with their backs to the wall as though they were just taking a short rest.
‘You took your time,’ said Li from the other side of the window.
‘Please, you do not need to thank us, Li,’ grinned Paulo. ‘We know you are grateful.’
He peered in through the window. The room on the other side of the bars was below street level, so the window was above head height for Li and she was having to look up in order to see him. Khalid was standing next to her, smiling broadly. The other children were gathered around Li and Khalid, their eyes full of a wary hope.
Li smiled at Paulo, then her face became serious again. ‘Hakim?’ she asked. ‘Did you find him?’
‘Yes,’ said Paulo.
‘And?’
‘I am sorry, Li. He was dead.’
Li bowed her head. Behind her, Samir gave a wordless cry and sat down suddenly on one of the filthy foam mattresses that were spread on the floor. He did not understand English, but he had picked out his brother’s name and he could hear the tone of their voices and see the looks on their faces.
‘We have to get this guy!’ hissed Li, raising her head again. Her eyes were full of tears.
‘No problem,’ said Alex. ‘Now we know where his base is, we’ll go to the police and—’
‘Useless,’ interrupted Li. ‘He had a group of the local worthies round to tea this afternoon, including the boss policeman. He’s bribing them all to turn a blind eye. We’re on our own.’
‘OK,’ said Alex, trying not to let his dismay show on his face. ‘OK.’
‘You will be able to get us out of here?’ asked Li.
‘Of course we will,’ said Amber, raising her eyebrows at Hex. ‘Tell her the plan, Hex.’
‘The plan. Right.’ Hex frowned, thinking hard. He reached out and picked at the wall where the window bars were set. Under the whitewash, the wall was of a mud-brick construction and it broke into dry flakes where his fingernail scraped at it. His face cleared and he turned to Paulo. ‘That Unimog round the corner – could you hot-wire it?’
‘No problem,’ said Paulo promptly.
‘OK,’ said Hex. ‘This is how it’s going to be.’
EIGHTEEN
The full moon shone down through the window bars, casting pale squares of light over Samir and Jumoke as they slept huddled together on one of the foam mattresses. They were the only two properly asleep. The others all sat around the edges of the room with their backs against the wall, alternately dozing then starting awake and staring up at the barred window.
Li was as jumpy as a cat. Paulo and the others had promised her they would be back once everything was quiet. The Scorpion and his guests had stayed up late, enjoying the cool of the night in the courtyard, but the last buyer had left two hours ago and, from what she could see through a crack in the wooden door of their prison, Li judged that the house had been dark and quiet for over an hour. Where were they?
She sighed and tilted her head back, banging it gently against the rough wall as though she could knock away the thoughts she was having. She was imagining all sorts of different scenarios which all ended in the same way. Alpha Force did not return to rescue them and the auction went ahead the next morning; Alex would decide that the town police could not all be corrupt and persuade the other three to go to the police station with him . . .
Li gave her head an extra-hard bang against the wall to stop that thought. ‘Come on!’ she hissed, staring up at the window. She hated being a prisoner. The room was dark and bare, apart from a selection of filthy foam mattresses and a large bucket in one corner, which served as a toilet. Most of the children had had to use the bucket after their meal of cold offal, and the smell in the room was getting pretty bad. But even if her prison had been as luxurious as a five-star hotel room, Li would still have hated it. The bars were what she hated, and the locked door that she could not open.
One piece of luck had come their way. The Scorpion’s mother had been so rushed getting them ready for the viewing, she was still clearing up the courtyard as the first buyers were arriving. She had hustled Li and the others into the room and had hastily gathered up all their clothes, sandals and boots, throwing the bundles in after them. After the viewing she had locked them back in the room, forgetting all about the clothes she had thrown in earlier.
Li had not relished the idea of attempting to escape in bare feet and wearing nothing but a tunic. She had climbed back into her own clothes gratefully, feeling as though she were claiming back a part of herself. With her hair tucked up into her headcloth and her sturdy desert boots on her feet, she felt ready for anything. Except this endless waiting.
Suddenly a shadow moved in front of the window, blocking out the moonlight. Li sprang to her feet and hurried over. Alex was there and he was carrying a length of chain. The links clinked together quietly as he threaded them carefully back and forth through the window bars.
‘There’s a dog in the courtyard,’ he whispered to Li. ‘We reckon that as soon as Paulo hot-wires the Unimog, the dog will start to bark, so we’ll have to move fast after that.’
Li nodded. ‘I’ll get them ready.’
Quickly, she woke Jumoke and Samir and took them over to join the others at the back of the room. While each of them grabbed one of the stinking foam mattresses and held it in front of them
like a shield, Li hurried back to the window.
Outside, Alex had finished threading the chain through the bars. He picked up the two end links and backed into the street, dragging the double length of chain with him. Once the chain was laid out ready, Alex hurried to the corner to give Paulo the thumbs-up signal.
Amber and Hex appeared at the window. ‘All right,’ whispered Amber. ‘We’re gonna get out of the way until Paulo’s done his stuff, but then we’ll be straight back to help you guys out of there. OK?’
‘OK,’ grinned Li.
Amber reached through the bars and squeezed Li’s hand, then she and Hex moved off, slipping through the shadowy street like a pair of ghosts. Li hurried over to the far wall and grabbed her mattress shield.
A few seconds later the Unimog’s engine started up. Instantly, the Scorpion’s dog started barking in the courtyard. The barks became louder as the big vehicle moved away from the courtyard gate. Li heard the engine note grow louder as Paulo turned the big vehicle into the street outside the window. She heard the clink of the chain as Alex slipped the two ends over the tow hook on the back of the Unimog, then the clunk of the cab door as he climbed into the vehicle to join Paulo.
‘Here we go,’ she whispered.
Paulo put the Unimog into gear, revved the big engine and started forward. The twin lengths of chain slithered through the dust like snakes, then lifted into the air and straightened, vibrating with tension. Paulo leaned from the cab window, watching the wall of Li’s prison. Nothing was moving, so he pressed down on the accelerator, pulling more power from the engine. The window bars groaned and cracks began to spider through the wall where the bars were set, but still the window held.
The Scorpion’s dog was barking frantically now and the door next to Li shuddered as the beast threw itself against the wood. Li jumped, then peeped out from behind her mattress shield, willing Paulo to hurry up. The bricks around the window were grating together and avalanches of dust were falling from the holes around the window bars. Surely it must give soon?
Outside, Paulo was pushing the engine hard and blue smoke was pouring from the exhaust into the moonlit street.
‘Dios,’ he muttered. ‘It must happen now. The towing hook will not hold much longer.’
He made an all-or-nothing decision and floored the accelerator. The Unimog roared, the wheels spun, and suddenly a whole section of brickwork, with the window bars at the centre, exploded out of the prison wall. The Unimog leaped forward with the chunk of wall dragging behind it and Paulo had to do a fast bit of steering to avoid crashing into the side of the house opposite.
In the prison room, Li ducked back behind the mattress as lumps of brickwork flew through the air like shrapnel. In the courtyard the dog flung itself against the door again and again. Its barks had turned into one long, baying howl and, as Li scrambled to her feet, she heard men’s voices above the howl.
‘Quick!’ she yelled, heading for the hole in the wall where the window had been. She took up position at one side of the hole and Khalid ran to the other side. Amber and Hex appeared, taking up similar positions in the street. As Alex scrambled from the cab to unhook the chain from the Unimog, Li and Khalid grabbed Jumoke and boosted her up to Amber and Hex.
Alex jumped on to the footplate of the cab and hung there as Paulo backed the Unimog up to the wall again.
‘That’s it!’ yelled Alex. ‘You’re there!’
Paulo braked but kept the engine running. Alex climbed into the cab and Jumoke clambered into the back of the waiting vehicle as Li and Khalid boosted Samir through the hole in the wall after her. Kesia and Sisi followed in quick succession.
Light flooded the courtyard and sent thin streamers through the wooden door of their prison. Li heard the thud of running feet as the Scorpion and his men headed across the courtyard. Her heart sank as she and Khalid grabbed Zaid and lifted him up to Amber and Hex.
‘They’re on their way!’ she yelled, grabbing Rafiki by the arms. ‘We’re not all going to get out in time.’
‘Don’t worry about that,’ grunted Hex as he yanked Rafiki through the hole. ‘They’re going to have a bit of trouble opening the gate.’
Li heard the wrought-iron gate in the courtyard wall clang, then clang again as the Scorpion yanked at the latch. She grinned as she hauled Ajani up into Hex’s waiting hands. ‘What did you do?’
‘Padlock and chain,’ said Hex. ‘They’ll need bolt cutters to open it.’
As Li turned to get Juma, the high-pitched voice of the Scorpion’s mother was added to the yells of the men in the courtyard. Her bulk blocked out the streamers of light and the door shook as she grabbed hold of the padlock on the other side. A key chain rattled.
‘Let’s go!’ yelled Li.
Juma shook his head. ‘You first,’ he said.
‘Juma! Now!’ yelled Li.
Juma shook his head again. ‘You next,’ he said stubbornly.
Li did not have time to argue. As the key slotted into the padlock on the other side of the door, she got Juma in a headlock and pinned his arms behind his back. ‘Lift!’ she yelled to Khalid and together they boosted a surprised Juma up to Amber and Hex.
‘Now you,’ panted Li, bending down and forming her clasped hands into a foothold. Khalid did not argue. He stepped up on to her hands and she boosted him out into the street.
As Li stepped back, preparing to jump up, grab hold of the edge of the hole and pull herself up by her strong fingers, the door swung open behind her and the Scorpion’s mother burst into the room. With a shriek, the woman ran towards Li as she jumped. Li’s fingers gripped the edge of the hole and Amber and Hex reached down to grab her wrists, but the woman caught her by the ankles and yanked her back down into the room.
Li fell hard. The wind was knocked out of her and she sprawled on the floor, trying to pull some air into her lungs. She felt a sharp pain sear across her cheek as the woman began to beat her around the head with her cane. As the cane came down again and again, Li felt a red-hot fury boiling up inside her. She filled her lungs and surged to her feet with a yell. The top of her head connected with the woman’s chin. There was a loud clack as the woman’s jaw snapped shut. She staggered back a few steps but did not fall.
Calmly, Li went into a fighting stance. She chose her moves, then launched herself into the air. Her booted foot slammed into the woman’s stomach, making her fold forward. Li landed lightly and brought her hand slicing down into the side of the woman’s neck. Instantly, the woman dropped to the floor, her huge bulk hitting the hard-packed ground with a solid thud.
‘Come on, Li!’ yelled Hex from the street, but Li hadn’t finished yet. She picked up the toilet bucket and dumped the stinking contents over the woman’s head.
‘Try getting that off with a scrubbing brush,’ snarled Li.
She ran for the wall and jumped, soaring high into the air. Her feet connected with the brickwork and she powered her way up the vertical surface, seeming to defy gravity. Her strong fingers got a hold on the crumbling bottom edge of the hole and she hauled herself up. She rolled out into the dark street and came up on the balls of her feet. As she ran for the Unimog, she heard the thud of running feet coming towards the corner. The Scorpion and his men must have clambered over the gate. She found some extra strength, sprinted for the back of the Unimog and threw herself in. Paulo slammed his foot down on the accelerator and the vehicle screeched off down the street, sending sprays of dust and dirt from its spinning tyres.
Li grabbed on to the end of the bench seat and hauled herself up to look out through the canvas flaps. The Scorpion and his men had rounded the corner and the men were lifting their Kalashnikovs to their shoulders.
‘Get down!’ yelled Li.
They all fell to the floor of the truck as the bullets began to fly, whining through the canvas and clanging into the metal base. Li screamed. If this stream of bullets kept up, someone was going to die.
Then she heard the Scorpion shout an order and the bullets stop
ped. Cautiously she raised her head as the Unimog rattled on down the street; a snarling mouthful of fangs rose up over the tailgate, snatching at her face. Li yanked her head back as the Scorpion’s dog scrabbled against the truck before falling back to the road. That was why the Scorpion had ordered his men to stop firing. He did not want his dog to be hit.
The dog kept chasing, but it was falling behind. Li began to think they were going to get away, but just before the Unimog careered around the corner she saw the Scorpion and his men running towards a battered jeep.
NINETEEN
Paulo’s face was a mask of concentration as he steered the big vehicle through the narrow, twisting streets. He had checked out the route earlier that evening, but it was dark now and everything looked different. He thought he was heading towards the edge of town, but as the minutes ticked by and the desert did not appear he began to wonder whether he could be steering them further and further into the centre. He sighed with relief as he turned a final corner and the Unimog shot out into the open spaces of the desert.
He reached for the night-vision goggles he had retrieved from his quad pannier and slammed them down over his eyes. Instantly, the bumps and troughs that had been hidden by shadow and moonlight sprang into view. Paulo settled back in his seat and turned the Unimog south, setting a course that would take them past the edge of the dunes.
A sudden noise made him jump. Someone was banging on the back of the cab. He began to slow down, but the banging became more frantic, as though it were trying to tell him to keep going. Paulo peered out at his wing mirror and his eyes widened. ‘Uh-oh,’ he said. ‘We have a problem.’