Fragments of Grey [Book Five of The Alexis Stanton Chronicles]

by Phelps, J. C.

  I hadn’t strayed too far from the river bank and the voices of men picked their way across the thick air. I’d caught up to the fishing buddies. They bantered back and forth as if they hadn’t just stranded a woman out in the jungle not much more than an hour before.

  I slowly made my way closer to the river so I could catch a glimpse of my current enemies. It was almost impossible to be quiet moving through the vegetation so my advance was slow and their voices drifted further downstream.

  White’s phone vibrated in my back pocket and I let out a quick yelp.

  “Follow the river and you’ll eventually make the docks,” I heard Eric’s voice.

  His acknowledgement of my presence pissed me off and I moved further from the river in response.

  I pulled out the phone and dialed White. The phone didn’t connect. I must not have signal, but why had it vibrated?

  “Damn it.” I said.

  I’d set up a few alarms and since I’d been keeping the phone off most of the time, I’d forgotten about them. I just shut the phone off again. I didn’t want to take the time to play around with my phone right now.

  A few minutes later I stopped to check the map. The river snaked its way through the jungle and a straight line would, hopefully, serve me better than following the water. There was one spot where the river branched around a large island. It threatened to add ten or fifteen miles to my straight path unless I could somehow cross the river. Depending on how wide it was, I might chance a dip in the water.

  I pushed hard into the jungle for several more hours. My inability to remain quiet in this setting was getting to me. I decided this was the perfect opportunity to work on my stealth. If I could master being quiet in this tangle, I should be able to sneak up on almost anything.

  I found I could be quiet, but the time it took was just too much. Besides, I’d seen plenty of snakes, spiders and other wildlife, maybe letting them know I was coming through wasn’t such a bad idea. It would give them the chance to move out of my path instead of making me stop dead in my tracks. I’d already come up on a couple of snakes and I’d been lucky enough to see them before stepping on one and another one had been on a branch right at eye level. I almost had a face full of possible poisonous snake. I’d still have to avoid the spiderwebs made of thinly spun steel, and brush the bugs from my arms, neck, and forehead. But, I could move faster if I didn’t worry about my noise level.

  The thick tree trunks seemed to cluster closer together as the sun’s light started to fail. I was not looking forward to sleeping out here with all these critters in such close proximity, but it couldn’t be helped. All I could do was pray I wouldn’t get malaria.

  I was within a quarter of a mile of a bend in the river and I decided to try to make it as close as I could. Despite the noise I’d made crashing through the jungle, I was pleased with my progress. I was thankful I hadn’t followed the river. If I had, I’d still be several miles from my current location. It was possible I’d made better time than the yacht.

  I slowed as I came closer to the water. The trees thinned a little and I realized the sun wasn’t as close to setting as I’d thought. Jake, Joe, and Eric might still be out on their little boat fishing to their hearts content.

  My pace continued to decrease as I came even closer to the bank of the river and I could hear voices once again. Finally, I was able to see the water and the yacht wasn’t far. The fishing boat was nowhere to be seen, so I decided to try my luck.

  “Hey!” I yelled across to the captain and waved my arms.

  “Miss. Are you okay?”

  “Yes. Can I board?”

  “Of course.”

  He was already pointing another member of his crew to the remaining fishing boat. Within ten minutes I found myself grabbing the captain’s hand to steady myself as I boarded.

  “Thank you.”

  “Is everything okay, miss?”

  “Yes. Everything is fine. I was wondering if there was any way I could move down the river much faster than our current pace. I’d like to reach our final destination as soon as possible.”

  “Of course. I can have one of my men take you down river in the other fishing boat.”

  “How long will that take?”

  “He can have you there in a couple hours.”

  I sighed.

  “We’re really that close?”

  “Yep.”

  “When do you expect the rest of my party to get back to the yacht?”

  “I don’t expect to see them until right before dark.”

  He must have seen the question looming on my lips. “In about three or four hours,” he added.

  “Is there any way we can keep this arrangement from the men in my group?”

  “Of course, miss. May I ask why? You aren’t in trouble, are you?”

  “No, Captain. Everything is just fine. They just thought it would be character building to make me hike to our destination.”

  He grinned. “Is the jungle not to your liking?”

  “It’s beautiful, but not easy to move through. I was not looking forward to fending off the insects or crocodiles for the next several days. You’ve saved me a lot of trouble.”

  “The jungle really isn’t a good place for a young woman on her own. You go collect your things and I’ll make sure the boat is equipped for night travel.”

  Then he cleared his throat.

  “I hope you are able to compensate me for the loss of two men from my crew for your trip.”

  “I have some money, how much do you require?”

  I didn’t haggle for very long because I wanted to be long gone before the men came in from their day of fishing. Still, the price was definitely worth not having to beat my way through the jungle for the next several days and to keep the captain from telling the men how I’d gotten so far ahead of them.

  Ten minutes later I handed the cash to the captain, my bags to a crew member on the fishing boat, and accepted a hand from another man to help me aboard.

  The captain stood counting the money as we piloted away from the yacht.

  Chapter Twenty

  The ride in the fishing boat was uneventful and quiet, except for the outboard motor. Within two hours I could see concrete walls of the refinery looming a short distance away. The place was a fortress.

  As our little fishing boat pulled up next to the barge moored to the dock, one of the men tossed my bags out.

  “Hurry,” he told me.

  The source of his unease was obvious. A group of armed men were coming from the refinery gates to greet us.

  I stepped from the boat and looked around. The refinery’s high wall boasted towers every few hundred feet, or so. Each of the towers were manned with two armed guards. I could tell more armed men walked the wall because I could see them briefly pass by open slots in the thick walls. I assumed the openings were for defense reasons. The trees had been cleared away from the premises several hundred feet.

  My ride left the dock and went back the way we’d come.

  “What do you want?” the man heading up the welcoming committee demanded as he took a defensive stance, aiming his AR-15 directly at my head. The other five men all followed his lead. If I wasn’t careful, I might spring several leaks right quick.

  I kept my voice even and said, “Alex Grey. I’m here with Jake Jensen’s crew.”

  “Where’s Jake?”

  I hiked my head back toward the river. “Still fishing.”

  He relaxed his stance only somewhat before he gave a commanding jerk of his head indicating I should move his way. I reached down to grab my duffle bags.

  “Leave ‘em!” he commanded.

  I moved back to an upright position with my hands held at shoulder height. These guys were very jumpy. I thought this was supposed to be a leisurely security job. Jake had told me nothing much ever happened because everyone knew the place was well-guarded.

  The man instructed three of the guards behind him to come get me. My machete was immedia
tely taken from me. One of them carefully opened my bags and rummaged through them while the other two stepped behind me and trained their weapons on my back.

  “Just normal stuff, Bud,” the man finally reported.

  “Pat her down,” he ordered.

  I assumed the position and endured the sweeping motions across my shoulders and down my arms, but flinched when he moved to my lower back. He lifted my shirt and pulled out my six shot Beretta. He checked the safety, ejected the magazine, and cleared the chamber. He slid it down the dock toward the man giving the orders. The search continued until he found the matching Beretta in my ankle holster. As soon as he secured that pistol he slid it down the dock to join its partner.

  “Anything else?” he asked me when he finished the basic sweep.

  Somehow, he missed the survival knife I had on a chain around my neck and White’s cell phone I’d hidden as deeply as I could in my front left pocket. I guess he was being polite by not fondling my lady parts.

  “Nope,” I assured him.

  “That’s it, Bud,” he told his boss.

  “Carry her bags. Let’s go.”

  One of the men behind me nudged me with the barrel of his rifle and we all walked down the dock and through the gate of the refinery.

  We marched directly toward a building about three hundred feet to the left of the gate.

  They escorted me inside and placed me in a cell-like room. It had dingy gray walls with a grimy-looking cot and a toilet in one corner.

  “If your story checks out, we’ll be back for you. But, if you’re lying you might as well get comfortable,” the man called Bud said.

  The door was shut firmly and I was left alone in the dark room. There were no windows, so the only light came in through the small crack at the bottom of the door.

  I pulled out the phone and turned it on for a little light. I was thankful the guard hadn’t been more frisky with his weapons search.

  A quick sweep of the room showed no weaknesses I could exploit with a knife and a cell phone, at least none other than the actual doorknob. I was sure I could pry it off with my knife, but I decided I’d wait it out. The bottom of the door, where the light filtered in, was actually a slot. I imagined that was how they got food and water to the prisoners.

  I hoped Jake and the guys would be at the refinery by tomorrow.

  I tried to get comfortable on the bare mattress, but it smelled like old sweat. I decided to curl up on the cool cement floor instead.

  I woke up to a numb hip. Cement wasn’t as forgiving as dirt. I wondered how long I’d slept. Again, I turned on the phone, but to check the time instead of for the light. My eyes had adjusted to the darkness and I could make out everything in the room from the meager light coming under the door.

  I’d slept for ten hours. No wonder my hip was numb. Staying on my side for that long on a comfortable mattress would probably have the same consequences.

  Jake, Eric, and Joe should be at the refinery in a few hours, this afternoon, at the latest.

  About fifteen minutes later, I found myself pacing my room. What the hell was I going to do until they decided to let me out?

  Relax. What’s a few hours of down time? You can handle this.

  I kept talking myself down from the panic that wanted to well up.

  My thoughts were all over the place. Was I really a prisoner? Everyone had warned me about working with Mesa, even if they hadn’t given me a clear reason. Maybe this wasn’t a test, maybe this was real.

  When do I decide they are actually holding me and not testing me? Mesa hadn’t really tested me the way White and Associates had, but that didn’t mean I thought they weren’t going to.

  Was Jake pissed off at me for some reason? Maybe Eric had this planned and since Posner was always on his side, I’d never get out.

  I’d been told the Admiral and Posner had a running animosity toward each other. What if Posner had found out I was the Admiral’s daughter? Maybe he was trying to get even with my dad.

  I had to force myself to leave the phone in my pocket for fear of running down the battery by checking the time every few minutes. At least I had a signal here. If it came down to it, I could call for help. That was one good thing. I was almost certain my ex-partners would save me, if I needed them to. I’d have to be sure I was in real danger first, though.

  At one point, someone came to the door and shoved in a tray of food. A bottle of water rolled in after the tray.

  After the slot was closed, I used my phone to check out the grub. It looked edible, so I gave it a try. It wasn’t bad, but it was the water that was the most appealing. Then I checked the time since I already had the phone on. It had only been an hour since I woke up. How was I going to make it till this afternoon? And, that was assuming they’d let me out when Jake showed up.

  I guessed it was maybe five minutes later when the slot opened up again and a voice demanded I slide the tray and water bottle back out of the room.

  I did what was asked of me after I guzzled down the rest of the water. The hatch slammed back down as soon as the water bottle rolled back through.

  This played out again around dinner time. I didn’t even realize they’d skipped lunch, leaving my afternoon deadline in the dust, until I used the light from the phone to check the time. As I ate, I decided to wait it out a little longer.

  They fed me once again the next morning. Finally, by the time it opened up again for another dinner, I’d made up my mind. I wouldn’t stay another day in this cell.

  I got to work on the doorknob almost as soon as I’d pushed the remains of my dinner and water bottle back through the slat. Thankfully, the door was wooden and not metal. Within an hour I had the knob loose.

  Just a little bit more.

  I was right. Just a little bit more and the knob fell off and into my hands. But, the knob on the other side of the door didn’t have a pair of hands to fall into. It clanged to the floor with an awful sound.

  Shit.

  My adrenaline level escalated. I could feel my heart beat inside my chest, my breathing seemed overly loud, and my hands wanted to shake. I looked through the hole in the door, but didn’t see anyone investigating the sound. Still, the door wouldn’t open.

  Crap.

  I didn’t know if it was my adrenaline, the hours I’d spent fretting over every single possibility, or my anger at being locked up, but all I wanted now was to get out.

  I imagined they had some sort of deadbolt on the outside of the door. I changed my tactics and went to work on the hinges instead. Since the clatter of the fallen knob hadn’t alerted anyone, I took a chance and worked as fast as I could instead of as quietly as I could. After some prying, I had the hinges off the door and pushed it open. The padlocked latch was all that kept the door from slamming to the floor.

  I heard a groan from a nearby cell. This only added to my unease. Who the hell would they be keeping locked up? The man’s voice was muffled and dry-sounding. Knowing they actually kept prisoners bothered me. I wondered again who they’d keep locked up. I considered checking the cells, but what would I do with the prisoners, and maybe they should be locked up. I had no way to know.

  I couldn’t believe they didn’t have anyone standing guard inside the building. That didn’t mean they didn’t have someone nearby. It seemed like they had a well-run place when they captured me a couple days ago.

  I still didn’t know what I was going to do after I left the building. I was at the mercy of these people. Trying to make it to civilization through the jungle wasn’t a good option.

  Where the hell was Jake?

  I found my equipment near the front door of the building in a heap. I equipped my pistols and slung the bags onto my shoulder.

  I wasn’t sure of my options. Did I really need to escape? If I did, I wouldn’t spare anyone who got in my way. But, if I was going to work with these people I probably shouldn’t run around the refinery killing them.

  I rummaged through my bags, found my other phone,
and dialed Jake.

  “Alex?” His voice carried surprise.

  “Are you here at the refinery?”

  “Yes. How’d you get your phone?”

  “So, you did know I was in a holding cell.”

  “Of course I did. You cheated and got a ride to the refinery. It’s your punishment.”

  The sense of relief I should have felt after hearing Jake’s voice and his explanation was absent. I wasn’t convinced I didn’t need to protect myself, but the intensity of my paranoia was pushed down under the rage.

  “I’m done being punished. I have no idea if what you say is true, but I’m walking out of this building right now. If I’m met with any resistance I will respond with serious intent. You better inform your men to stand down or shoot to kill, because I won’t miss and I’m armed.”

  I hung up the phone and placed it in my back pocket. After a deep breath, I made sure the safety was off on both pistols, and made sure I had one in each chamber. Then, I threw open the door.

  I found the guard. He was positioned right outside the door and it had hit him hard when I flung it open. I’d stunned him, but he was fumbling for his rifle.

  “Drop it!” I ordered.

  I could tell he was gauging my mood. He picked the right choice and lifted the gun strap off his neck and dropped the rifle.

  I replaced one pistol to my back holster and trained the second on him.

  “On the ground. Face first, hands behind your back.” I said calmly.

  Again, he complied. I retrieved his rifle and stowed my remaining pistol into my ankle holster. I took advantage of the FlexiCuffs on his belt and secured his hands behind his back.

  “Get up,” I instructed.

  As he stood, I heard a voice come over his radio instructing all men to stand down. Still, the men in the towers surrounding us had kept their attention inward as well as the men who walked the wall.

  I stood behind him with the rifle trained on his back and waited. It wasn’t long before Jake, Eric, Joe, and Bud came into view about fifty yards away. None of them were carrying weapons.

  “Alex,” Jake called across the distance. “You can drop the weapon.”

  I wanted to, but I felt like a trapped animal. Even though the small crowd approaching me on the ground was unarmed, I was well aware of the men in the towers who’d trained their weapons on me.