Mineran Influence

by PN Burrows

Pain and full-body cramps surged through his body, part of his mind was semi-aware that he had risen on to his tiptoes as all of his muscles were being over-stimulated by the surge of electricity. Arms drawn in towards his body, his shoulders were hunching so much it seemed like his head was trying to retreat, tortoise-like, into his body.

  It seemed to go on for an eternity and then suddenly it stopped and Sam instantly crashed to the floor, gasping for breath, in agony and feeling an unbelievable amount of fatigue. He had previously been hit by tasers and stun guns as part of his training, but this was more powerful, more aggressive and it pissed him off. He willed his body to stand up, he even saw it in his mind, but when he opened one eye he saw his nose being squashed on the cold quartz epoxy resin floor. His back felt like it had been beaten with a wooden four by four for hours.

  Past his nose he could make out black polished boots, many of them surrounding him, as strong hands lifted him and his head rolled around as if he were an under-stuffed ragdoll.

  ‘Welcome back, Mr Shepard,’ one said as they removed his coat and stripped him there in the corridor. He was powerless to resist. ‘I’m glad you managed not to defecate yourself, although using the firehose on you would have been amusing.’

  They plastic-cuffed his hands tightly behind his back and limply frogmarched him butt naked and barefooted through the doors. Sam lost his sense of direction and the distance that they half-dragged, half carried him. His mind wasn’t working clearly yet, but he was also glad that he had used the toilet before exiting through the door.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  His face was suddenly pushed into a stout wooden door. Two pairs of firm hands held him there as the plastic cuffs were removed with an accompanying snip. His nose was sending urgent signals to his brain that it had suffered enough today and to please refrain from any further damage. He felt the vibration of the door being unlocked. As soon as the catch was released, the pressure that was holding him to the door catapulted him through the now open doorway, stumbling across the room and collapsing onto a strategically placed wooden bed and with a bare mattress. The door slammed shut with a resounding bang. The sound reverberated in Sam’s head as he rushed over to a toilet that he hadn’t consciously noticed, and vomited.

  As he slowly recovered from the tasering, he started to examine the windowless room. It was a stereotypical prison cell with a small wooden bunk, functional steel toilet with sink on the cistern and a small steel mirror on the wall. The walls were of brick construction with no gaps in the mortar and they looked well-maintained. They were painted orange and the paint looked thick from years of re-coats. He could see two grooves where the bed frame had caught the wall as people were thrown onto it. The grooves showed layers of varying shades of orange, indicating it had probably been a cell for a long time. The floor was the same quartz epoxy that he had noticed before, only orange. This was not a room designed to relax in. There was an ominous floor drain in the far corner. Sam inspected it and tried, unsuccessfully, to prise the small cover loose. A drain in the floor was not normally a good sign in this scenario. Thankfully there was no indication that it had recently been used to wash away any blood.

  As his senses came back, Sam saw a pair of bright yellow coveralls that had been knocked off the bed as he had stumbled in; the bright colour making them stand out from between the bed and the wall. Recovering the yellow cotton garment he was grateful to find matching socks and a pair of flip-flops. It’s hard for a prisoner to run or fight in flip-flops.

  Having dressed, Sam checked the door. He remembered it being wood from the outside. On the inside it was covered with a piece of orange painted steel, with an observation hatch at head height which was shuttered on the outside. The door made no movement as Sam put his weight against it and the shutter was similarly secure. The toilet was designed with security in mind. It would probably trap his waste further down the line for inspection.

  He was just about to check the bed for a loose slat or a high tensile spring with which to make an impromptu weapon, when a disembodied voice from above said, ‘I see you found my clue Sam.’

  Sam looked up. There must be a speaker hidden in the light fitting, he thought. He couldn’t reach it for further examination.

  ‘Cat got your tongue, Sam? You weren’t this quiet last time you were here.’ The poor quality of the speaker removed some of the tonal inflection from the voice. ‘Oh yes, you have been here before, although you suspect this already. Go ahead and leave your mark. Your others are there.’

  Sam looked at the bed. Whenever he was in a cell he would always try to leave himself a sign that he had been there before. Disorientation against a prisoner was a powerful tool. Similar cells, different locations, sometimes never knowing where you were because you’d blacked out or been drugged. He looked under the bed at the wooden leg where it met the frame. There were three snake-like grooves scratched into the wood, Sam’s S. He looked around to see what he could have used. The only item available was the metal pull tab on the coverall zipper. He removed the garment and etched a fourth S.

  ‘Don’t worry about that, Sam, one way or another you will not be coming back here again’.

  ‘Is that a threat?’ Sam said, looking up at the ceiling, wondering if they had a camera there as well.

  ‘Yes, I am watching you. It must be cold in there,’ he chuckled. ‘And no, it is not a threat, just a simple statement.’

  Sam looked down. ‘Funny,’ he replied, as he put his legs back into the coverall. Struggling with his arms and broad chest, he finally zipped himself back up.

  ‘You found my clue? Or should I say clues.’

  ‘The whisky?’

  ‘Obviously.’

  ‘Clearly it was a breadcrumb leading somewhere, I didn’t expect it to lead to a setup like this. Why don’t I remember being here?’

  ‘In time, Sam, first tell me what you think you have discovered.’

  ‘The barrels I followed presumably contain toxic waste and I assume you are dumping them in the mountain. But if that’s the case why didn’t you kill me last time instead of playing with me?’ Sam spat back.

  ‘Speaking of bread, aren’t you glad I asked Apate to make sure you had a hearty meal before you left the café? It was a long day after all.’

  Sam looked up at the light, pupils dilating not so much from the light as from irritation.

  ‘Did you recognise her perfume at the cafe? She spent a lot of time in your room while you slept, you know. Studying you, you might say. Oh, and as a precaution I requested that she file down your firing pins.’

  Sam looked up angrily

  ‘The security on your cases, whilst being cutting edge for the consumer market, is pretty poor at our level, Sam, don’t looked so surprised.’

  He sat on the bed, looking slightly up towards the source of the voice, though not at the light to avoid temporary loss of sight.

  ‘Anyway, you have it wrong, Sam. It will all become clear, I promise. This is all part of an audition, or as you would call it, a job interview. We are testing your abilities, Sam. You have done very well so far but you still have a long way to go. I suggest you answer my questions and play along. We have a lot to do and only a small window of opportunity.’

  Sam was getting a stiff neck and feeling foolish looking up whilst listening. ‘How did you find the cameras Sam? I read the report from the surveillance team. Oh, they have also picked up your personal items from the B&B, I hope you don’t mind. Mrs Williams was sorry to hear that you had been in a serious accident and that you would not be returning.’

  ‘If you’ve hurt her, God help you, I’ll –’ Sam was cut off.

  ‘Nothing of the sort Sam, she was very obliging. She even made them a cup of tea and a bacon butty each, anything for the boys in blue, she said.’

  Sam could hear faint background noises behind the voice, a keyboard and a chair creaking. The quality of
the microphone was far greater than the speaker in the cell.

  ‘Apparently you marked three out of four cameras with a section symbol §. A double S, as it were, for Sam Shepard. They were not impressed, you have made them look bad. How did you find them?’

  ‘Tell your crew they are nothing but amateurs. I spotted the sequence of vans and cars parked after my third attempt at Minera. Apate’s perfume indicated someone had been in my room. The cameras themselves were easy to find. Few people closely watch a black surveillance screen at night and Mrs Williams’ guest room was very dark, thanks to the blackout curtains. Ten seconds with a torch and two bits of red transparent plastic was all it took. Google it, you’ll get there!’ he said with vehemence in his voice. He was tiring of this charade now. ‘How did you get into my room without waking me?’

  ‘Let’s just say no one in that house would have woken up even if we marched a herd of elephants up those creaky stairs.’

  ‘You drugged us? How?’

  ‘No, nothing so crude or invasive as that, Sam. You won’t believe me at this point in time, but we are not the bad guys.’

  ‘How then?’ replied Sam, realising his stoic patience was wearing thin.

  ‘You’ll find out if you pass, Sam. You have much to accomplish in the next twenty-four hours. Now tell me, what did you do to the surveillance car and how did you manage it? They made quite a scene driving back into the courtyard this afternoon’. Sam could clearly hear a hint of amusement from the tinny speaker.

  ‘Mrs Williams’ grandson, Billy. For the price of an Xbox game, he happily agreed to sabotage the first vehicle that called to the B&B after I left. He was to put a handful of marbles into the exhaust and then to smear the back box with axle grease. Schoolboy stuff, I was just letting you know that I knew I was being toyed with.’

  Laughter rang out over the speaker ‘Well played, Sam – although Phon doesn’t think so. I’d try and avoid him for a while if I were you.’

  Ignoring the humour in the lopsided conversation, Sam enquired, ‘So where do we go from here?’

  ‘Where indeed. You have two choices Sam. Either you do nothing, and you will be shortly escorted to the medical bay. There you will be drugged to induce a large memory loss – and I mean large this time. You will wake up in a hospital bed with whatever injuries the guards inflict to make the accident that we informed Mrs Williams about seem real. You won’t remember the wedding Sam, you might not even remember leaving the army last year.’ The disembodied voice droned on. ‘Or, as your sponsor I wish you to continue with the audition, follow the trail, find out the truth and eventually you will want to work alongside me.’

  ‘And if I don’t?’

  ‘If you make it that far Sam and decide not to join, I will guarantee your safety and release.’

  ‘And what do you want me to do next? Dance like a monkey?’

  ‘Escape! The guards will be here for you soon. Two guards, strong but not the brightest. You need to overpower them and make your way down the corridor. There you will find all of your belongings, including your weapons. There is also a nice warm jumper, I suggest you take it, it’s a lot colder out there that you think. Oh, Sam, there is no phone reception where you are going, but I did take the liberty of deleting your phone before it could send your messages. You will need to exit the building via the fire door further along from your possessions and make your way to the base of the mountain. It’s nearly six now, so you should make it there for breakfast time.’

  ‘Now I know you’re lying. Minera isn’t even that big, you can walk right across it in an hour. I will escape and I am going to bring your down, you scum!’

  ‘As I was saying; exit, via the fire door, at the base of the mountain there is a derelict farmstead, I will meet you there. I have taken the liberty of proving a small map and Aunt Mae has made you a few sandwiches to keep your strength up. Good luck Sam, don’t fail me.’

  The speaker gave an audible click as the line was turned off.

  Sam could faintly hear the guards talking as they approached. The clop of their boots ringing out on the hard surface. He quickly removed his flip-flops and socks, stuffing them under the bed out of sight.

  Sam was no novice at hand-to-hand combat, but held neither belt nor award in any of the martial arts. He had trained relentlessly with every instructor the army threw at him, and many they hadn’t. He had personally combined the qualities and moves from each discipline to a fighting style that suited his body shape. He didn’t fight fair, clean, or with honour. He’d been trained to win ruthlessly by any means necessary, but to be an honourable winner once the enemy was safely incapacitated.

  He sat on the bed, head in hands trying to look broken, forlorn and weak. The hatch of the door noisily dropped open with a clang, causing Sam to look up. Hard eyes stared through as Sam seemingly dejectedly placed his head back into his hands. As the thud of the heavy wooden hatch slammed shut, Sam sprang to the side of the door. As it slowly opened, he saw a hand on the handle above the overly large old-fashioned mortise key. Sam grabbed the arm, twisted, and threw the assailant into the room. In a quick dash, he whipped through the opening, grabbing the handle and key to slam and lock the door, shutting the guard inside. With one fluid-like action he had evened the odds.

  One down and one to go, he thought. He sprang backwards on both feet like a startled mountain goat, as he sensed, rather than saw, a huge club-like fist swing in a roundabout action towards his face. ‘I’m looking forward to this,’ The guard drawled. ‘After the trouble you caused the last time. I’m the one who cracked your thick skull. Not that you remember, but that’s what you get for kicking a guy in the family jewels.’ He knocked on his private area with a dull thud. ‘Cup,’ he said. ‘You’ll not get me that way again, you little shit. I don’t care what Reb said, I’m gonna hurt you this time. You are, after all, meant to be found broken in an accident.’ A cruel grin spread across his face.

  Another quick punch flew towards Sam followed by a couple of jabs. He swatted them aside, deflecting the brute force to one side. This guy was strong, ox strong, thought Sam. He was a fist guy, the first rule Sam learnt from his first fighting mentor was that you never box with a boxer. Swatting a few more jabs to one side, Sam waited for the killing shot. He didn’t wait long. The brute pulled his shoulder back a fraction too much. He had a tell! A fraction of a second’s heads-up before knucklegeddon. Sam side-stepped as it approached. The brute was too big to throw, hold or play with. A quick throw kick to the inside of the brute’s far knee shattered it with an audible crack, which was only drowned out by the brute’s cry of anguish and expletives. Sam quickly followed it up with a spinning back kick to the head, knocking the lummox out cold.

  Sam charitably checked for a pulse and tilted the brute’s head to one side to prevent him from choking if he was sick. Ignoring the rants and threats coming from behind the wooden door, Sam removed the key, planning to toss it later. This’ll slow you down.

  Jogging silently down the corridor in bare feet, he set off to find his equipment. Sam felt strangely good. He missed the adrenalin rush and the thrill and the chase, even if he was the one being chased this time. He realised the quiet life didn’t fit well on his shoulders. His walkabouts had quelled the doubts that had haunted his past. He had put those ghosts to rest, and as perverse as it sounded, he was enjoying himself.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  He found his clothes and accessories a few turns of the corridor away. The shirt, trousers and jacket hung on a wooden hanger from a door frame, the rest were on a small table. Surprisingly the clothes had been cleaned, dried and ironed. Quickly dressing, Sam finished off by checking his inventory. True to Reb’s word, the phone had no signal and the messages and photos had been deleted. The gun was on the table, unloaded and files stripped. He filled the magazines and then assembled the gun, noting that the firing pin had been replaced. Both knives were still in the cuff pock
ets, and the Iain Sinclair Cardsharp was in his wallet. Mae’s sandwiches were wrapped in a brown paper bag, sitting on top of a small rucksack alongside a bottle of Welsh mineral water, a woolly hat and the promised jumper. He stowed the new items in the sack and slung it across his shoulder.

  Sam had no inclination to follow Reb’s planned route, he just wanted to get out. He needed to get back to the hamlet square, find a phone signal and alert the authorities. As he progressed back up the corridor heading towards the cell, he could hear sound of alarmed shouts and the rhythmic drum of boots running in his direction.

  ‘Damn it!’ he muttered, turning around. ‘Ok Reb, we’ll try it your way for now.’ Sam followed the fire exit signs, looking for the way out. It took several minutes to find the exit as the complex he was in was bigger than he expected. He’d passed several side corridors, a few storage rooms and a communal rest area, stocked with fridges and refreshments. He stopped briefly to fill up his bag.

  ‘This is a frickin’ warren,’ he muttered to himself as he jogged past yet another corridor.

  He could still hear the sound of footsteps in the distance, accompanied by doors slamming against walls as the search party performed a methodical room-by-room search.

  Finally he located the door. A solid affair, plain grey and festooned with emergency symbols. Sam put his hand on the crossbar to force the door open and paused. There was a sensor, if he opened it the fire alarm would go off and give away his location. A quick inspection showed it to be a cheap magnetic reed sensor, common in most office and home security systems. It comprised of two parts: a flat magnet screwed to the door and a small white rectangle screwed to the door frame containing a glass tube with two thin metal reeds. The reeds were millimetres apart unless they were in close proximity to a magnet, then the reeds touched and formed an electrical circuit. No magnet, no circuit and the alarm went off, very easy to fool if you had a magnet.