Welch, D [Shadow People 02] Shadow Spies

by Doug Welch

  “Yeah,” he said. “If they ever emerge again.”

  Kitty wondered where the kidnappers had gone. One thing was certain. Unless they were special like her, Normals couldn't simply disappear.

  Chapter 13

  Elizabeth

  After hours of walking and finding no way to escape the tunnels, Elizabeth felt water soak her feet. The imaging goggles indicated the floor of the route ahead looked black with no red. She backed away and retraced her last few steps.

  She’d doubled back several times through different tunnels in an effort to dodge her pursuers and now she had no idea which direction she traveled.

  There were no more sounds of pursuit, so she decided to risk the use of the flashlight again. She removed the imaging goggles and flashed the light down the tunnel.

  Ahead, water covered the tunnel from one side to the other. It didn't look like a puddle and there didn't seem to be any end.

  To her horror, she spied thick strands of cobwebs hanging from the ceiling. She shined the light back the way she’d come. The same ropy cobwebs dangled from overhead mere inches above her. She shuddered when she realized the spider webs had surrounded her the whole time she’d traveled through the passage.

  She stopped, paralyzed with indecision. Should she go ahead, even though water covered the tunnel, or try to retrace her steps, risking an encounter with the kidnappers? She could still hear faint voices echo in the tunnels, but she had no reference as to where they came from.

  Surely, they would never expect her to travel through what lay ahead, would they? But if she did it, she feared infection and maybe worse. She couldn't risk the flimsy shoes she wore. They were already starting to fray. They wouldn't hold up much longer. She would have to pass through the stagnant water in her bare feet. She shuddered at the thought of what might lay beneath it.

  She realized she must make a decision soon, the more she waited, the more risk that her pursuers would find the alternate tunnel. She’d be trapped.

  She started feeling the pressure of impossible choices sap her strength. She knew soon she could be huddling in despair, waiting for her kidnappers to lead her back into captivity. Surely the way ahead had to lead to somewhere she could find help, didn't it? Gritting her teeth, the muscles tightening around her jaw, she removed her shoes.

  She stepped into the water feeling for glass or other sharp objects. The water was cold. Finding smooth rocks and occasional patches of mud and sand, she shuffled through the debris trying to keep her bare feet planted firmly on the concrete. As she moved forward, the water swirled around her ankles, then became deeper and soaked her calves and her jeans. The further she moved forward, the deeper the water became. The tunnel still sloped downward.

  After wading through the water for a few dozen feet, she found a sandy area that sloped up, becoming a sandbar she could stand on, but she had to crouch beneath the cobwebs in the ceiling. She feared hypothermia, because the water was very cold, but the brief rest atop the sandbar allowed her to warm slightly. Tempted, she thought about staying longer, but she knew she needed to put as much distance between her and her tormentors as possible.

  As soon as she felt warmer, she stepped back into the water. She moved slowly, testing each step, as the water began to chill her again. Away from the vicinity of the sand bar, the water grew deeper. Soon it was up to her waist.

  Also, something smelled different about the air. It choked her, foul with the fumes of exhaust gas from seeming hundreds of cars.

  The tunnel ceiling looked different through the goggles. Removing them, she ventured another examination of the tunnel. She looked up, about to use the mini-flashlight, and saw moonlight shining through a series of grates that covered the roof. They stretched for a long distance down the tunnel. The moonlight glimmered on the stagnant water for the whole length of the grating, casting eerie shadows of the bars on the water.

  Moving further along the tunnel, she looked for an access ladder that might lead out through the grates. Toward the middle of the expanse of bars, the automobile smell grew stronger. She found it difficult to breathe. She also started hearing the sounds of multiple automobile engines growing and fading. The sound was very loud and incessant.

  She thought about calling out and screaming for help, but realized it would be useless and alert the kidnappers to her location. She could see stars overhead, so it had to be night time. Another bout of despair gripped her. To be so close to freedom, yet impossible to obtain it, was devastating. If she hadn't been standing in waist deep water, she might have just lay down and waited to die.

  She feared carbon monoxide poisoning, so she continued forward, seeking fresher air. Soon, the tunnel started to slope up and the water became shallower.

  After what seemed like hours in the frigid water, she stepped onto dry concrete, wet, cold and thoroughly miserable. She couldn't feel her feet. She knew that was a bad sign, so she untied the socks from her upper arms where she’d stowed them to keep them out of the water.

  She used the ill fitting socks to dry her feet and massaged some feeling back into them. I'll be lucky to not have frostbite. Soon the pins and needles feeling started, indicating the return of sensation. She pulled the socks over her feet, slipped the slippers back on and felt marginally better.

  After resting for a while, the wet jeans began to chill her, so she continued onward, hoping to warm up from the exercise.

  Chapter 14

  Plans

  “We think we may know where your wife’s hidden.”

  Agent Sanders rose from the couch and removed a map from his briefcase.

  “The area under the Imperial Palace where the kidnappers disappeared has an entrance into one of the flood control tunnels that run underneath the strip and all of Clark County. The section they may have vanished into is part of the Las Vegas wash. Some locals call it the Las Vegas River. It’s part of the Clark County Flood Control system. We think they might be hiding her in one of those tunnels.”

  Paris studied the map. “I can't decipher this, Harv. Which tunnel? We need intelligence, so why don't you send a team down there to check them out?”

  Sanders ran his fingers through his hair. “Two reasons. One we're afraid they might just move her to a new location if they know we're on to them, and second, there are three hundred and fifty miles of tunnels. We would have to check all of them and we don't have enough time or man-power. What did you find out from the kidnappers? What was the ransom?”

  I have to lie to him. Paris hated the idea, but he had no choice.

  “Money, of course. One million dollars in mixed bills, largest denomination of one hundred dollars. No consecutive serial numbers. I sent my CFO back to Kentucky yesterday, to make the arrangements. She's working on it right now. But there's a problem. They said they'd get back to me on the arrangements for the swap, so I guess we have to wait for a new contact.”

  Sanders stared at him as though questioning his words and then seemed to think a while before speaking.

  “We likely won't hear anything tonight, but the phones are still tapped so the people monitoring them will notify me. You may as well get some sleep. By the way, Agent Pell was very impressed by your sister – half-sister that is. When he brings her back to the suite, please convey my thanks.”

  Paris grinned. “She is pretty impressive, isn't she? I'll tell her.”

  Sanders smiled. “It's funny, but the information that we have, indicates that you and Alex are the only siblings, and your parents died in an automobile accident. How did you wind up with a half-sister?”

  Paris tried to not appear evasive. “We don't know, precisely, if she's a half-sister, but the family resemblance is remarkable, isn't it? My previous lawyer once told me that it's a tragic fact of life to discover when parents die that they may have hidden secrets. I suppose my father had a life prior to his marriage to my mother. But maybe we'll never know.”

  He knew that any investigation into the relationship between Kitty and him would
reveal his flimsy excuse for the lie it was, so he used his mind-glow to remove all thoughts of suspicion from Agent Sanders' mind.

  Sanders rose to leave. “I'll be back in the morning. Get some sleep, and we'll plan the next step tomorrow.”

  Paris escorted him from the suite only to be met by Kitty and Agent Pell as they both emerged from the elevator laughing.

  Pell straightened up when he saw his boss. “Agent Sanders. Anything new?”

  Sanders nodded to him. “We’ll discuss it later, Pell. –Get some sleep, you'll need it for tomorrow.”

  Both Sanders and Pell entered the elevator and left Paris and Kitty alone.

  Paris swung around to face Kitty. “We need to talk. Wake the others and tell them to meet me in the living room.” Paris strode to one of the couches and collapsed on it.

  Kitty followed him and stood over him with her hands perched on her hips. “Who died and left you king? Wake them yourself.”

  Paris groaned. “I apologize, Kitty, I'm just so damned exhausted. Please, will you wake them? I need to talk to you and all the others.”

  He saw her look change from confrontation to something like pity. “That's better. Wait here.”

  Soon, Caesar, Alex, Dan and Roxanne, appeared, wearing resort robes. Along with Kitty in her red outfit, they sat in the living room waiting for him to speak.

  He roused himself from a semi-daze and looked at the group. “The first thing you need to know is that the bastards don't want money. They want my father's research.”

  Caesar and Alex gasped. Dan snorted. “Fat chance of that Paris. You know the Council won't let you give it to them.”

  Kitty interrupted. “Whoa, wait a minute. What's this about research? I thought we were talking money.”

  Paris sighed. “Long story Kitty, I'll fill you in later. The big question is how do they know about it? It's a Family secret.”

  Dan grimaced. “There's more than one big question. I'll make a list tomorrow. But how can we give them something we don't have?”

  Caesar stirred. “We fake it. What have you told the FBI?”

  “That they wanted money. One million to be exact,” Paris said. “I'll get June busy on it. Kitty can tell us more, but we'll discuss that tomorrow. Right now, I need to talk to you and Alex alone.”

  Dan stood. “Come on Rox. We need to get back to our bedroom.” Roxanne rose to follow him and Kitty rose to join the exodus.

  Paris changed his mind. “Wait, Kitty, I need you to stay.” She stopped and sat back down.

  Paris waited until Dan and Rox had closed themselves in their bedroom. “Kitty, I've got something to ask you and I want you to think carefully about it.”

  She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Okay, but I'm tired. Let’s get this over with.”

  Paris gazed at her. “One question. Are you in or out? Will you join the Family? Be a part of us? Give us your trust?

  # # #

  Trust him? I shouldn't trust him. I've never trusted anyone. Everyone she'd ever met had failed in the trust department. Her father, the only parent she ever knew, had failed her. He’d been unable to cope with his own life much less be a parent. The Borgia? At first she’d harbored hope, only to find they wanted to exploit her and turn her into a slave. And now a man she barely knew wanted her to trust him?

  “What happens if I say no?”

  “Nothing. I pay your plane ticket. Buy you a new wardrobe and thank you.”

  She bit her lower lip. “You know, you've got to improve your seduction technique. I should see a shrink to cure me of what I'm thinking. So, what if I say yes?”

  “The Family needs a second Adept. Alex is pregnant and can't do it. You would be the second Family Adept,” Paris said.

  Kitty’s laugh barked. “Dream on, Paris! In case you haven't noticed, I'm not an Adept.”

  “If you join the Family, you will be.”

  She snorted. “What? You got a magic wand? Don't bullshit me.”

  # # #

  Paris could sense her wavering, but she was like a skittish colt and the wrong word or gesture could drive her off.

  Trust is a two way street. You've got to give it to receive it.

  “No bull, Kitty. And maybe I do have a magic wand. One that will bring you to your full potential.”

  He saw her examine all three of them, looking for something. Alex and Caesar waited expectantly and he held his breath.”

  Kitty sighed. “I've definitely gotta see a shrink. Okay, I'm in. I don't suppose there are any good nightclubs in Kentucky, are there?”

  Alex exhaled and laughed “Welcome to the Family, Kitty. I imagine my old girlfriends will be happy to show you the Kentucky nightlife.”

  Caesar joined the relieved laughter. “You know what this means, don't you, Paris? We'll be outnumbered by women.”

  Paris breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, before we go to bed, the question is how did these bastards discover we had the material? Who ratted us out? And how did they know we'd be in Vegas?”

  “The only ones who know are me, Beth, Alex, you and father – and now Kitty,” Caesar said.

  Kitty broke in. “Know what? What are we talking about?”

  Paris smiled. “The secret that's going to turn you into an Adept.”

  “You're shitting me, there's no such thing.” Kitty protested.

  Paris shook his head. “No bull. It’s sitting in a hidden room back in Kentucky and as soon as we can return I’ll train you.”

  Alex yawned. “Look. I'm dead. Let's talk about this tomorrow. I need my beauty sleep.”

  Paris sympathized with her, but he needed to get some things resolved before they turned in. “The FBI will be here tomorrow. We'll have a hard time talking in front of them. And there's something else. Something you won't like.”

  “There's nothing to like in all of this,” Alex said.

  Paris ran his hands through hair. “I'm sorry, Sis, it gets worse. – I'll just come right out and say it. The kidnapper knew Edward. He said he was a colleague of theirs. And they threatened to deport Elizabeth to Iran. Some bullshit about her being a fugitive there. He said I'd never see her or the baby again.”

  Alex's eyes grew wide. “What the fuck! That's nuts, Paris who do these people think they are, the CIA?”

  Caesar drew Alex close to his side. “Christ what a bloody mess! You're right. That is worse. We need to get Elizabeth out of the hands of those crazy bastards. How’re we going to do it?”

  Kitty broke in. “The cops think she's stashed in one of the flood control tunnels that go under the city. I was following them and lost them at the entrance of one of the tunnels.”

  “So, we go into the tunnel and bring her out,” Caesar said.

  Paris interrupted. “Not we. You and Alex are taking the next flight out of here.”

  Caesar protested. “Now wait a bloody fucking minute, Paris! You can't dictate what we're going to do.”

  Paris felt his resolve harden. “I saw the mind-glow of the guy that called himself 'Shadoe'. Alex is next on his hit list. If they manage to take her, neither of us will be able to cope with it.”

  Paris saw Caesar's face grow pale, and his look changed from confrontation to anxiety. He didn't reply.

  “I need you and Alex safe in Kentucky and out of harm's way. I also need for you to confront your father and find out what he knows about this. I hope – can't imagine – but hope, he's not involved.”

  Paris pled with his eyes. “If it turns out he had anything to do with Beth's kidnapping, I don't know what I would do. If you talk to him and it he admits it, at least he'll be alive after the conversation.”

  * * *

  In the morning Paris greeted Sanders, Spooner and Pell at the entrance to the suite. Everyone else was having breakfast in the dining room. “Good morning, Harv. Would you guys like some breakfast or coffee? We can talk in the dining room.”

  He saw Sanders direct a questioning look at his fellow agents.

  “I've eaten,
but I could use some coffee,” Spooner said.

  “Lead me to the food. I'm starving,” Pell said.

  “Is everyone else there?”

  Paris nodded. “We all need to know what you've discovered and what you’re going to do about my wife. Everyone's waiting.”

  He led them to the dining room. Pell piled a plate full of food and immediately found an empty spot next to Kitty. Sanders helped himself to some of the croissants and fruit on the buffet table and they all settled in to hear what the FBI had planned.

  # # #

  Harvey started the conversation, careful in what he intended to reveal. “As I told you last night, we believe she's being held in one of the flood control tunnels under Las Vegas. There's not enough man power to cover all of them, so the Las Vegas PD has agreed to have uniformed officers sweep the obvious places. They'll make it look like one of the normal random sweeps they perform from time to time. It turns out that hundreds of homeless people live in those tunnels and they're going to take some of them in for questioning.” He cringed when he thought about where Mrs. Fox was being held. The tunnels were dangerous. Poisonous spiders, snakes and mentally deranged transients crawled through them eager to prey on unsuspecting victims, but he wouldn't tell them that.

  “The police are questioning informants to see if any of them have any knowledge of the kidnappers. Other than that, our only option is to wait for them to contact us to make the swap. That’s when they’ll be the most vulnerable and we can apprehend them.” He waited for a reaction.

  Paris spoke first. “I don't want Elizabeth put in jeopardy. If it turns out you have to let them go to save her, I want you to do it.”

  Harvey didn't reply immediately. Not very likely. He knew if he felt he had a chance to arrest the kidnappers and keep Missus Fox safe, he’d take it. Otherwise, the odds were they would find her lifeless body somewhere.

  “We'll do what ever it takes to save your wife, Paris.”

  He saw Paris study his poker face and felt the sensation he could see right through it.

  Paris nodded. “You do that Harv. I want to inform you that my sister and brother -in-law are flying back to Kentucky today. Can one of your agents escort them to the airport?”