From that day on they walked to school together. Word spread that Eva had thyroid cancer. The mean girls in school whispered in the hallways that she’d been born in reactor four, too. It was the same rumor that followed Bobby from school to school. It drew Eva even closer to Bobby. They shared dreams of leaving Korosten. Bobby coveted a life as a professional hockey player in America. Eva revealed her love of animals. She dreamed of being a zoologist.
If bullies and rumors brought them closer together, scavenging made them best friends. Their family faced a crisis. There was no money to buy gasoline for their monthly trips to Kyiv. But the Coach had a plan. There was good money to be made in the Zone. Chornobyl and Pripyat were less than a hundred kilometers away and the Coach had connections. He showed them how to sneak into the Zone to scavenge for vehicle parts that could be sold on the black market.
By their fifth trip they were seasoned pros. Their lithe, athletic frames allowed them to crawl deep into the graveyards and get to parts adults had difficulty negotiating. Their foot speed allowed them to move quickly in and out of the Zone. They shared the adrenaline rush of the danger and savored their scores. When one got stuck or locked in a car trunk, the other freed him or her. Until the night the hunters found them.
There were six of them, to the best of Bobby’s knowledge. Members of an elite club who enjoyed hunting the most dangerous game. The first shots from their rifles missed Bobby and Eva. The youths ran through the red forest under cover of darkness. When they circled around the cooling ponds to make their escape, one of the hunters revealed herself and blocked their path. The woman aimed her rifle at Eva. When the gun misfired, Bobby lunged and shoved the woman into the radioactive cooling ponds. Just as Eva had protected him from the bullies two years ago, he saved her from the hunters.
Bobby remembered the moment when they got home that night. He stood outside the bathroom waiting for Eva to come out so he could take a shower and go to sleep. When she stepped out in her t-shirt and sweatpants, her hair was damp and she smelled of lavender. She stopped and looked at him. Usually she looked away quickly but this time she held his gaze. There was something different in her expression. Something more than brotherly affection. Then she kissed him on the cheek. When she pulled away she smiled at him. It was the first time she’d ever smiled at him. It was the last time she ever smiled at him—
The truck veered left. Brakes screeched. Gravity pulled Bobby’s body to the left. His torso strained. The truck straightened and slowed down. Bobby’s body rolled right back to equilibrium. The truck slowed to a crawl. Bobby tried to remember how long they’d been driving but he’d lost focus.
The smell of petrol grew more intense. The truck stopped beside a rectangular structure. Based on its width, it was the size of a refrigerator. Steel clanged against steel. It was the sound of a fuel dispenser entering a gas tank.
They’d stopped at a gasoline stand.
Footsteps clanged above him. Bobby heard a man’s voice. Deep, masculine. Controlled but firm. The sound of flesh slapping flesh followed, and then a muted gasp. He’d hit her, Bobby thought. The driver had hit Eva. Even though she was bound and gagged he’d found it necessary to remind her he would harm her if she dared try to escape somehow.
Bobby suppressed his rage. Children acted on impulse. Adults waited until their emotions subsided. This is what his father had taught him at age twelve. Bobby was not a child. It was questionable if he’d ever been one. Sometimes that reality depressed him. He felt he’d missed out on something during his primary school years. But other times he treasured his life’s experience. Few adults could control their emotions as well. His self-control was an advantage in competitive situations. Like this one.
The door opened and closed. A pair of black combat boots hit the ground. A cough and a groan. It was the type of yawn a man emits when he stretches his arms after a long drive. A lock snapped shut. The driver had locked the car, Bobby thought. The combat boots moved.
Pain wracked Bobby’s shoulders and arms. It shot up into his brain and overwhelmed him. Only when the driver pulled off the highway did Bobby realize the magnitude of his agony. His daydreams had distracted him. But now that he was on the verge of getting a rest, his life seemed to depend on it, as though he couldn’t have hung on another minute if the driver hadn’t stopped.
He counted to three to make sure the driver had entered the convenience store. Then he eased himself to the ground and released his grip on the stabilizer bar.
Relief spread through his torso. He stretched his legs. A delicious release of energy tingled his thighs. He savored a moment of joy. He was still alive.
He rolled out from underneath the truck. Rose to a crouching position. Checked his watch. It was 3:17 p.m. They’d been driving for two hours. A rush of adrenaline. He’d hung on for two hours. He would hang on for another two hours if necessary. He could do it. He could and would do whatever was necessary to stay close to Eva.
Bobby circled to the back of the truck. Tried the door but it, too, was locked. Peered into the window but the driver had spray-painted it black. Bobby leaned into a seam between the back door and its frame.
“Eva,” he said in Ukrainian. “It’s me. Adam. I’m going to get you out of this. Just like that night in the Zone. Do you hear me? Just like that night in the Zone.”
Bobby glanced around for a sign in English that might reveal his location but he couldn’t find one. Everything was written in Japanese, except for the English added to a sign in the store’s window.
Policeman droppings inside.
Bobby reached into his pocket for his mobile phone. He’d hoped to be able to tell Nadia his location.
His pocket was empty. The cell phone was gone.
It must have fallen out during the drive. It could have happened anywhere. Now he had no way to contact Nadia on the go. He had to hope he would find a public phone and have the opportunity to call her.
A shadow flashed in the convenience store. The driver. Bald head and black leather jacket headed for the counter. He could not have looked more Russian unless he’d been wearing a fur hat. He was buying two tall cans of some sort of refreshment, two bottled waters, and three bags of snack food. He dumped his haul on the counter.
Bobby slid back under the truck and assumed his former position. The driver returned and filled the tank with gas. Then he climbed into the truck. Footsteps clanged above Bobby in the cargo space. Bobby guessed he was giving his captive some water.
The engine rumbled. The undercarriage shook. The gear shaft groaned. The tires rolled.
Bobby tightened his grip. He closed his eyes and once again focused on memories of a girl. A girl he’d dreamed of calling his own. A girl who was supposed to be dead and now was sitting bound and gagged above him.
Or so he prayed.
CHAPTER 24
NADIA SAT DOWN beside Johnny at a corner table in the hotel restaurant. A busboy brought them a tray containing two damp hand towels. Nadia unrolled hers and used it to wipe her hands. Johnny applied his towel to his face, as she’d seen other men do at Japanese restaurants. He breathed into the towel for a moment before wiping his hands clean.
Nadia turned her cell phone to vibrate and placed it on the table beside her. “Whoever answered Bobby’s phone had a bit of an accent, but all he said was hello. It wasn’t enough for me to place it.”
“But he wasn’t an American,” Johnny said.
“I don’t think so. I asked who he was but he hung up. I tried calling two more times but there was no answer.”
“What do you make of that?”
“Either the Russians have him and they don’t want to talk, or someone else has his phone.”
“It might have fallen out of his pocket.”
“I hope so.”
“Let me give it a shot,” Johnny said. He reached out for her to hand him the phone.
“How
is that going to be any different?”
“It’s not. But it’s like opening a jar or something. When your friend or loved one can’t do it, you always think you’ll have a better shot.”
“The problem is, Charles Atlas, we’re not trying to open a jar.”
A waiter interrupted them. They ordered bottled water, green tea, and a massive assortment of sushi. Shrimp tempura and grilled chicken skewers to start.
Johnny placed the call after the waiter left.
Someone answered. Nadia could barely hear his voice but it sounded like a man. Was it the same man who’d answered when she’d first called?
“Hello,” Johnny said. He stared at Nadia as he spoke. “The phone in your hands belongs to a friend of mine, Bobby Kungenook. Would you please tell me who you are and how you got his phone?”
Johnny listened. A frown spread on his face. He pulled the phone from his ear. The sound of laughter emanated from the earpiece. He pressed the phone back to his ear.
“Don’t hang up,” Johnny said. He repeated his hello a couple more times, then shook his head and ended the call.
“Who was it?” Nadia said. “What did he say?”
“It was a kid.”
“A kid? What do you mean it was a kid?”
“Some Japanese kid. Great English, but you could hear his accent when it came to pronounce an L. It sounded just a bit like an R. The Japanese can’t pronounce the L.”
“What did he say?”
“He said ‘Godzilla’s fathers are under arrest.’”
Nadia tried to make sense of the words. “What is that supposed to mean? Is that a reference to Bobby?”
Johnny started to chuckle but stopped himself. “No. It’s a reference to the movie. The original Godzilla is very famous in Japan. It was made here in 1954. Legend has it the producer and director were arrested when they were overheard plotting the story on top of a Tokyo skyscraper. People thought they were terrorists planning to destroy the city. Later, people said it was a miracle the film got made given Godzilla’s parents were arrested.”
“So what does this mean? Is it code for something?”
Johnny gave her a sympathetic smile. “The phone fell out of Bobby’s pant pocket and some kid found it. That’s all it means. The kid probably knows some basic English. He’s with his friends—that would account for the laughter in the background.”
Nadia imagined a kid finding a phone on the road. “If the phone fell out of his pocket and a kid found it, the truck couldn’t have been in the Zone, and it couldn’t have been on a highway. They had to have pulled off the road. To a rest stop or something like that.”
Nadia’s phone rang. She glanced at the screen. Looked up at Johnny. “It’s Bobby’s phone.”
Johnny shrugged.
Nadia answered it. “Hello?”
Complete silence.
“Hello?” Nadia said. She could hear frustration creeping into her voice. “Would you please tell me where you found this phone?”
A few seconds of silence followed, and then she heard the same kid’s voice. “The oxygen destroyer must not be used!”
“That’s a line from the movie,” Johnny said. “Hang up.”
Laughter poured from the speaker. It sounded as though a room full of kids had exploded.
“Please,” Nadia said. “I’m begging you. Tell me where you found this phone. A boy’s life is at stake.” She waited for an answer.
“Later, Miss Lady,” the kid said, and hung up.
“He’s just a kid,” Johnny said. “He probably wasn’t listening to you, and even if he was, just because he knew the line in a movie doesn’t mean he understood your question.”
“You’re right.”
Johnny reached out and put his palm on her hand. “You need to relax. We need to eat. Then we can try again. Maybe we’ll catch him in a different set of circumstances. Maybe his girlfriend will pick up or something.”
He pulled his hand away, and much to Nadia’s surprise, she found herself wishing it was still there.
The waiter brought them their beverages.
Nadia sipped her green tea. “I watched the local news in my room.”
“I did, too. If you can’t understand a word, how could you be sure it was local?”
“All the people in the stories were Japanese.”
“Good thinking. Very you. I watched the local news, too. Couldn’t understand much more than a word here or there.”
“I didn’t see any stories about malfeasance in Fukushima.”
Johnny raised an eyebrow. “Malfeasance?”
Nadia shrugged. “And I did a thorough search on the web. Nothing there either.”
Johnny nodded, then turned solemn. “Nakamura,” he said.
Nadia bowed her head and stared into her tea. “Tragic.”
“This formula is taking lives.”
“It was doing that even before we were sure there was a formula.”
“You mean we’re sure now?”
“Hardly,” Nadia said.
During her first trip to Ukraine, she’d risked her life in pursuit of a treasure that would have allowed her to pay off a mobster who believed she owed him. Her second trip to Ukraine had also put her in mortal danger, but that was to save Bobby from a lifetime jail sentence. Now, the prospect that Bobby, Johnny, and she were all risking their lives for nothing turned her stomach. Her greatest fear wasn’t the danger. Her adrenaline served as anesthetic to the risk. Her greatest fear was that it was all for naught, for reasons that were beyond her understanding at the moment.
“If we don’t hear from Bobby tonight,” Johnny said, “we have to consider our options.”
“You mean we have options?”
Johnny picked from a bowl of salty-looking snacks. “Only bad ones. We could go to the embassy and tell them the truth, or some version of it. They would get the local authorities involved. They could check with passport control. The driver must have a Russian name. Probably came in through Narita. How many Russians can possibly have entered the country recently?”
“That will take forever and get us nowhere. By the time we’re interrogated and the system starts rolling, Bobby will either be dead or long gone.”
“Alternatively, we can search by ourselves. We could hire a detective. I know it’s no fun to hear and I’m not trying to get you upset, but he could check hospitals. And presumably he’d have contacts with the police. He could see if there have been any reports about an American boy fitting Bobby’s description.”
“Usually there’s at least one good ‘bad option.’”
“Yeah,” Johnny said. “In this case they both suck.”
“That they do.” Nadia caught Johnny’s eye. “I want to thank you for what you did back there in the Zone.”
Johnny waved his hand as though what he’d done was nothing.
Nadia caught his hand mid-air. His eyes widened.
“Don’t underplay it,” she said. “You put your life on the line for Bobby. For me. Words can’t even begin to cover the debt I owe you.”
“No worries. That’s why I came along. Fortunately, I had some help from our mystery angel, or things might not have worked out so well.”
“He does remain a mystery. Whatever happens tonight and tomorrow, though, I want us to have an understanding.”
“What’s that?”
“You’re on that flight back to Newark on Saturday.”
Johnny frowned. Let their hands fall to the table. “And leave you here alone? With Bobby missing? There is simply no way—”
“Yes way. Your boss gave you a week on the spur of the moment. Your colleague took over your cases. You told me yourself it was a stretch to get that week. You promised when you booked the trip that you wouldn’t let it cost you your job.”
“Yeah, but
I never imagined things would go down like this. I can’t leave. It doesn’t matter . . . It doesn’t matter what happens . . .”
Nadia squeezed his hand. “I cannot let you lose your job—”
Her phone rang again. She spoke immediately for fear the kid on the other end of the line would end the call. “Don’t hang up. I need to know where you found this phone. Please. It’s very important. Do you speak English? Can you understand me?”
A light static buzzed in the background. There had been no such noise during her previous calls. Something was off. Something was different. Nadia pulled the phone from her ear and glanced at the number from which the call was originating.
It wasn’t Bobby’s phone.
Then a voice sounded. As soon as she recognized it a wave of joy swept through her.
“My English isn’t as good as my hockey,” Bobby said. “But yeah, Auntie. I can understand you.”
CHAPTER 25
BOBBY REMAINED GLUED to the truck’s undercarriage for another ninety minutes. The crossbeam farthest away from his head helped him survive the trip. By hooking his knees over it, his arms and shoulders had to support only a fraction of his weight. He diverted his mind with a series of memories and fantasies. The latter included his favorite action sequence, the one where he completed an end-to-end rush and scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal in overtime for the New York Rangers. Not that the uniform mattered that much, as long as it belonged to an NHL team.
He began to smell the ocean halfway through the second leg of the trip. This was his first clue they were not heading back to Tokyo. The second clue was the traffic pattern. The closer one got to Tokyo, the worse the traffic. If they were headed back there, the volume of cars would have picked up after two hours. It didn’t. Instead, traffic lightened.
An hour and a half after the stop at the gas stand, the driver exited the main road. He took two right turns and one left, and parked the truck. Bobby was surrounded by tires. He assumed it was a parking lot. Then he heard a long whistle. A man’s voice came over an intercom. He spoke with a rhythm and cadence consistent with someone announcing some form of transportation was departing or arriving.
The Boy Who Glowed in the Dark (The Nadia Tesla Series Book 3) Page 11