by Adele Huxley
Chapter 16
Penny’s hand slipped into his as he defended her. It was a strange feeling, putting himself on the line for another person again. He wasn’t comfortable being on the weaker side, but his tone must’ve carried further than their numbers did. Hadley backed down.
“Well, whatever,” she sniffed.
“Claire was right,” Penny chimed in. “They aren’t worried about us being free to roam. That means something.”
“They aren’t counting us, either,” Charlie added, stepping forward.
Phoenix felt an odd sense of protection over the kid. He was so young, far too young to be caught up in all this. But he was doing his best to puff up and act like a man. The least he could do is support him in that.
“Good spot, man,” Phoenix nodded. “What do you think it means?”
His pale cheeks flushed red as everyone’s attention turned to him. “I uh… that they know how many there are and aren’t afraid of us getting out.” The insight sank like a lead weight, but everyone quickly moved past it, saving him from too much embarrassment.
“What about Shaun?” Anna asked. She’d been silent so long, Phoenix had forgotten all about her.
Penny’s hand twitched but her expression remained still.
They were having a conversation within a conversation, looking for hints and clues in what people were saying and how they said it. It was exhausting and exhilarating. But he knew if they took one wrong step, it could be their last.
Unless you already have taken a misstep by trusting her, his mind oh-so-helpfully added. He pushed the uncertainty away and refocused.
Rebel wasn’t great at hiding her true feelings about people. The majority of the time it was fine since she had the disposition of a Christmas elf on ecstasy. But when she didn’t like someone, it was incredibly obvious. The look she gave Anna rivaled the one she normally reserved for Penny, which was saying something.
“I think we can only really worry about people inside the barn. If we start running outside looking for him, it’s probably too dangerous.”
Anna squeezed the sides of the blanket she had tightly wrapped around her shoulders. “I suppose so.”
Rebel’s expression softened a touch. “I’m sure he’ll be okay.”
They talked over each other, throwing ideas back and forth without actually getting anywhere. After ten minutes, there was a throat cleared at the entrance. A lone figure stood at the threshold before taking a tentative step inside.
“Shaun!” Anna cried out. She rushed to him, flinging herself into his arms.
Penny yanked on Phoenix’s arm, tugging his ear down to her mouth.
“Everyone else gets escorted in and he just walks in like he has free reign?” she whispered.
He gave a terse nod and scanned the others. They seemed equal parts surprised but happy. It was another notch toward the hope no one was really going to be hurt.
The guy held Anna’s head between both hands and intently scanned her face, looking her over for damage. It took him a few moments to accept she wasn’t hurt. It wasn’t until he walked closer into the light did they realize he was a bit worse for wear.
“What happened to you?” Rebel gasped.
Shaun’s fingers drifted to the bloody crack in his lip. “It’s nothing, really. I’m fine.”
Anna clung to him as if afraid he was going to float away. “What did they do to you?”
The others exchanged worried looks as he described his experience with the guards. “They didn’t touch you?” he asked Anna, anger and fear tainting his voice.
She blinked up at him with wide eyes. “No. Nothing. They… they…” She didn’t want to finish, the guilt obviously hanging heavy around her neck.
“We got breakfast and you got beat up,” Claire added.
Phoenix couldn’t help but like the woman. She had an odd way about her, but when it mattered, she cut right through bullshit.
“Did you say something to piss ‘em off?” Hunter asked.
Shaun shook his head. His thin lips pressed into a straight line as he stared off into space. “When they separated us, I was dragged off to a little shed. They sat me down on a chair and put a hood over my head.”
Penny’s fingers tightened again. Phoenix rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb, feeling impotent at the meaningless comfort it provided.
“They didn’t ask me any questions. They didn’t want anything from me. I sat there for…” His voice cracked. Tears welled in his crystal blue eyes. “I don’t know how long I was there, to be honest. Out of nowhere, two or three guys storm into the room and beat the shit out of me. They left me on the floor until a couple minutes ago when they dragged me back in here.”
“Did they walk you inside?” Penny insisted, callously overlooking the rest of his story.
Shaun shook his head. “To the door. I couldn’t remember where you were,” he said to Anna.
“They shouldn’t have done this,” she sobbed, hugging him carefully.
“Alright. Well, that cinches it. We have to get out of here. If they’re starting to beat people, I’m out,” Hadley insisted.
“Cause you were okay with everything before that—” Penny began to say before Phoenix nudged her. He gave her a warning look and shockingly, her mouth clapped shut.
They talked over each other, each member of the group throwing out their own ideas of escape or riot. They weren’t getting anywhere fast.
Judging by the rising din of conversation in the entire barn, they weren’t the only ones discussing their situation.
The initial gunshots didn’t sound like gunshots at all. It was only through the luck of positioning that Phoenix noticed Claire perk up first. With an almost sixth sense, she wrenched away from the circle and strode toward the wall of the barn. Beams of sunlight broke through the thin gaps in the weathered boards. He watched as she reached a hand out to touch one when another pop pop echoed.
These were closer. There were shouts outside.
“Something’s happening,” she whispered, waving to the others to join her.
Penny hesitated, dropping Phoenix’s hand as he moved toward the wall. When he looked back at her, she took a step away, shaking her head in fear.
“I have to see.”
The pops had gone quiet, but the guards outside resembled a disturbed anthill. He tried to count them, to keep track of how many could possibly be guarding them all, but their identical camouflage made it nearly impossible.
The men moved in semi-crouched positions, all scanning different directions. Some positioned themselves against tree trunks, their assault rifles at the ready.
During the entire ordeal, Phoenix had wavered between two major sensations. On one hand, it all seemed surreal and fake, like a nightmare he was about to wake up from. The other was a glaring, high-definition intensity. It was as if every sense was on fire, all too painfully aware of the shit raining down on them. This moment bounced back and forth between the two like a game of ping pong.
“Those were shots, right?” he whispered to Claire. She had her face pressed against the wall, ruthlessly searching what little she could see.
“They weren’t bottle rockets,” she replied.
“Any idea where—”
The words choked in his throat as a guard walked right past them on the opposite side. The dark shadow made everyone jump back. Only he and Claire returned to the gaps in the wall. The others were too freaked out.
Long minutes stretched by until even Phoenix began to wonder if it hadn’t just been an odd echo. He straightened a kink out of his back when another pop sent the guards scurrying.
It was closer this time, but still impossible to figure out exactly where it was coming from. One thing was certain. It had the guards freaked out, which could only be good for them.
“Can you see anything?” Penny whispered.
Phoenix shook his head. He was afraid of saying anything in case another walked by. The single gunshots were frequent and
deliberate.
A guard forty or fifty yards away suddenly spun from the tree where he’d been lurking. His arm twirled away like a poorly executed pirouette. He screamed in pain and surprise, leaving his rifle on the ground as he belly crawled off.
The others fell to their knees and snapped their attention to the forest to the left.
A chorus of screams and shouts inside the barn pulled him from the wall. He rushed to Penny’s side, pulling her close. With a hand on each shoulder, he tried to push her behind.
“Maybe they’ve found us, they’re coming to rescue us,” Rebel offered with a shaky voice.
The group pressed together like frightened animals as the screams grew louder. When the first athletes fled past their pen, away from the doors, they knew rescue was not on its way.
Gunfire opened up behind them, the rapid bursts of semi-automatics pushing them forward. The panicking people now flooding into their pens drove them back.
Phoenix’s throat clenched as the first guards appeared in the door, forcing and shoving more and more kidnap victims inside their already cramped space. A couple who tried to resist or didn’t move fast enough earned hard blows with the butt of the rifle.
Their group had been jostled against the wall, spread out and almost separated.
He tried to stay calm, to keep a hand on Penny through the whole thing.
A gun went off inside the barn, followed closely by a loud scream. The guard at the front of their pen looked to his right and nodded. Judging from the silence that came after, it was only a warning shot.
“If we’re packed in, it takes fewer guards to watch us,” Penny whispered. He could barely hear her over the cries of those around them.
Chapter 17
Penny struggled to control her breathing and heart rate. As the panic eased and people began to calm down, more space opened up. There only seemed to be two or three guards watching the entire barn. That meant everyone else was out searching for the sniper. She hoped it was Rhett, was almost positive. Judging from Claire’s reaction, she had the same thought.
The words practically tumbled out of her mouth, but Penny knew if they did, she’d have to explain fully what’d happened on the bus. Upsetting Rebel wasn’t on her to-do list at the moment. If she was wrong, if it was someone else, that pain would hurt twice as much.
“You okay?” Phoenix asked, whispering in her ear.
Surprisingly, she found that she was. His presence bolstered her mood, the firmness of his hand in hers. It was terrifying, but somehow she didn’t feel she was in imminent danger.
There was enough space for everyone to sit comfortably on the floor, but with the adrenaline coursing through the place, the group stood in a jittery mess. Their small clan shifted closer and closer together until they’d formed a tight, protective ring.
“Now what are we gonna do?” Rebel asked. Her eyes flitted from one person to the next, searching for the answer.
“We can still charge them,” Hadley suggested.
Penny clenched her free hand, digging her nails into the soft flesh of her palm. That woman was driving her absolutely crazy. She would’ve gladly taken a beating with the hood strapped over her head if it meant shutting that big mouth. But Phoenix’s little touches told her she needed to stay silent.
She wasn’t entirely sure what had gone on while she’d been pulled away, but the mood had decidedly cooled towards her… and now them.
“They’re too twitchy,” Phoenix said, glancing up as one of the guards strode by.
“Yeah, I don’t get the feeling these guys are highly trained,” Miah added. “They’re liable to open fire on all of us if they're spooked.”
Long, heavy silences stretched between them as they struggled to think.
“At least it’s warmer in here,” Charlie piped up. They all nodded absent-mindedly.
Penny rolled a thought around in her mind, over and over, searching for rough edges and sticking points. There were plenty but she couldn’t fully dismiss it. As the chaos outside died down, she had no choice but to at least throw it out into the group to discuss. She was ashamed to admit a part of her hoped it would win her a few favors.
The panic button either wasn’t working or there was some major delay in their rescue. In any case, she couldn’t rely on help coming from the outside world.
“There’s one thing, but it’s a long shot. Like, aim for the moon kind of long shot.”
She squeezed Phoenix’s hand, trying to communicate silently with him. Watch their reactions. With everyone’s eyes on her, she dropped her voice even lower.
“If I can get back to the bus, I have a sat phone in my bag.”
Hadley’s jaw physically dropped. She didn’t give Penny enough time to read the other’s reactions, to judge if they were equally shocked, happy, or intrigued.
“Are you fucking kidding me? A satellite phone?” the bimbo screeched. “You’ve kept that one close to your chest, haven’t ya?”
The entire pen swung around to stare at the sudden outburst. Without shame, she continued to exclaim until Rebel clapped a hand over her mouth and pulled her down. Hadley’s blue eyes sparkled with anger as she mumbled into Rebel’s hand.
“I wasn’t keeping it from you. I just didn’t think it was something we could even go for.”
Phoenix nodded silently beside her, agreeing.
“But the situation seems to be deteriorating faster than I hoped,” Penny added in a soft whisper.
“How do we get out?” Hunter asked. She could tell his first instinct was force. All it took was a single conversation with the guy to know subtlety was not one of the weapons in his tool belt.
“They’re swarming all over the place out there,” Miah continued.
“You have to wait for the right moment,” Claire said as she scuffed her toe along the floorboards.
“And then what?” Miah insisted. “We walk right out?”
Claire pulled her hair back into a high, messy bun as she looked up. “Basically. If we can get back in my old pen over there, I think we can slip outside. Some of the boards over here are loose,” she said patting the corner behind.
“That’s amazing!” Rebel grinned.
Hadley finally tore Rebel’s hand from her mouth, which she’d comically left there. “Or she’s lying about the phone and trying to get us shot.”
Penny bit back every nasty comment that flooded into her brain. “Fine. I’ll go then.”
“So you can run off and leave us here?”
“Something has seriously wiggled loose in your brain,” Penny snapped. She turned to Phoenix with an exasperated sigh. “I can’t win!”
He squeezed her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist. “Tell me exactly where it is and I’ll go get it.”
“I’m going too,” Claire added quickly.
“You aren’t going without me,” Charlie replied.
The others in the group chimed in with their own desires to escape, loud enough Penny worried if people nearby were listening. She knew there was at least one American who’d turned. There was no way of knowing how many others might be surrounding them.
Penny waved her hands to get everyone to shut up. “You’re missing the point. I have to go.” Hadley opened her mouth to protest so she cut in. “I’m the only one who knows how to work the fucking thing not to mention the fact I’m the one they’d be expecting to call.”
“Why exactly does a journalist have a satellite phone in the first place?” Rebel asked.
“Because signal in the mountains is sketchy at best,” Phoenix quickly replied.
They quietly mulled over this new bit of information until Hunter voiced his opinion. “No offense, but I’d feel a lot better about someone fitter going. It was at least a mile through the snow to get here.”
“Just because I’m not a world-class athlete, doesn’t mean I’m some flubby slob. I can keep up. Don’t you worry about me. Besides, you’ve been shot and Miss Priss over here doesn’t even carry her own
bags.”
Penny’s gaze drifted to Miah who adamantly shook his head. “I’m all for the brave gestures, but Dani is gonna kill me for coming here in the first place.”
“She didn’t know?” Penny asked with more than a little shock.
“I wanted to surprise her,” he chuckled darkly.
Rebel hugged herself, shivering even in the blanket around her shoulders. “Okay, so assuming we can somehow get next door and assuming we can get the boards to move far enough apart we can slip through, who exactly is going?”
“Us two,” Phoenix replied, nodding to Penny.
“I am,” Claire insisted.
“Why exactly?” Hadley frowned.
“My rifle is on the bus,” she said with a tone that implied it should’ve been obvious.
Charlie cleared his throat and threw his hat into the ring as well. “If you’re going, I’m going. I don’t want you alone.”
Rebel shook her head and hunched her shoulders. “Maybe we should just wait for help. Eighty people don’t go missing without anyone looking for them.”
Penny didn’t want to scare them any more than she had to, but they didn’t seem to understand how far-reaching this conspiracy could be. “I have proof the fireman and the cops you and Elle spoke to are, at best, hired grunts. Worst case, they’re completely fake and have no connection to the Italian government whatsoever.”
“Your point?” Hadley asked with a bored yawn.
“Help might not be coming. If they have people in the police, they might have people in the media, in all sorts of places.”
“People will notice we’re missing,” Rebel insisted. “Family, friends. People will notice.”
Penny bit her tongue. Internally she thought, No one would care I’m gone for weeks.
“In any case, I’d rather act than wait,” Phoenix said firmly.
They whipped together a plan of action. It was shaky at best, but the only thing they could think of. As much as she resented or out-right hated the people in that group, it felt horrible to leave them behind. They split apart, those remaining slinking into the far corner while the others tried to make their way to the exit without notice.