by Ron McGee
At least, that’s what Ryan hoped.
Ryan and Kasey were at the corner, a short distance from the building’s front door. Ryan had checked the video Danny recorded and confirmed that there was no back entrance. They would have to bring his mother out the front.
“When it goes down, everything’s gonna happen fast,” Ryan told Kasey. “Stay here and wait for my mom. I’ll try to buy you as much time as I can to get her to the car.”
“Got it,” Kasey said, opening her bag. “I grabbed everything I could think of that might help cut her free. Scissors if her hands are duct-taped, wire cutters if they have her zip-tied. And if she’s in handcuffs”—she produced a bobby pin bent into an L-shape—“one ready-to-go lockpick.”
Kasey was full of surprises. “You know how to pick a lock?”
“I have three brothers who love to play tricks on me. I learned a while ago how to break into their rooms and get my revenge.”
“Remind me not to mess with you,” Ryan said. “Okay, you’re the lookout. I’m gonna get set.”
Ryan pulled his Phillies cap out of his back pocket and put it on, tugging the brim down low. He grabbed the sleeping bag and cardboard box he’d brought from home. The box was a big one from their recent move. Ryan had pierced several holes in it for spying. In a nook a few doors down from Aung Win’s building, he set it up to look like a homeless person’s shelter. He left the end of his sleeping bag visible and threw some fast-food wrappers down to make it convincing.
Danny had downloaded an app on all their phones that allowed them to be used as walkie-talkies. Ryan put one headphone in his ear and, with the press of a button, had instant communication with the group.
“Everybody in place?”
“It’s cold up here.” Shrill and loud, Danny’s voice bellowed through the headphone, causing Ryan to quickly lower the volume. “Can you see me?”
Ryan peeked out of his cardboard hideout, looking toward the roof. Leaning against the edge, five stories up, he saw Danny waving. The brick building was narrow, only four windows across, with a fire escape that had a landing at each level. After the top platform, a metal ladder led to the roof.
“I see you,” Ryan confirmed. “How’s Lan?”
“Great. We’re getting to spend some quality time together.” Danny’s voice lowered to a whisper. “I think she’s really into me.”
Steeg’s voice broke through. “You know we can all hear you, right?”
“Jealous, big guy?” Danny mocked, enjoying himself.
“Hey, everybody,” Kasey interrupted. “Heads up. Somebody’s coming out.”
Ryan ducked back inside his cardboard box. Through a hole, he watched as the door opened. A moment later, Aung Win appeared. He had on the cardigan and glasses Danny had described. Stooped over, he carried a broom in his hand. He began sweeping, but Ryan could tell he was actually scanning the area for signs of trouble.
His gaze swept toward Ryan’s makeshift homeless shelter. Ryan pulled away from the eyehole, staying completely still. He held the canister of pepper spray, ready to fire.
But nothing happened.
“He’s going back in.” Kasey’s voice was quiet. Several minutes passed. It seemed like forever to Ryan.
And finally: “Diplomatic plates coming this way.”
Through an eyehole, he watched the familiar black Town Car pull to a stop in front of the building. The driver stepped out and scanned the street. He waited until a couple of pedestrians had walked past, then moved around to the rear door.
Ryan pressed the button on his cell-walkie, his voice barely a whisper. “It’s showtime.”
CHAPTER
50
NEW YORK,
USA
Lan had a secret.
She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t told Ryan. There’d been plenty of time as they traveled. Maybe it was because it still hurt too much.
But now, she was going to use that secret to hopefully do some good.
Up on the roof, Danny turned to her. “You ready?”
She nodded, sticking one headphone into her ear, then slipped the phone he’d lent her into a pocket. She climbed onto the ladder and started down. It was old and rickety, shaking a little as she descended to the top level of the fire escape.
She heard Danny’s voice in her ear. “Lan’s on the move.”
Though everyone had a part to play, Lan’s role was critical. She was to provide the distraction Ryan needed. If she accomplished her goal, it would give Ryan enough time to grab his mother and get her away from Aung Win and his men.
Now, it was Ryan’s voice in her ear. “Don’t go any lower than the third story,” he said. “I don’t want you getting too close to him.”
“She knows,” Danny assured him. Lan liked Danny. He was funny and independent in a way that the kids of Andakar couldn’t be. Not when any careless joke could bring the authorities to your door to haul you away.
Arriving at the third-floor landing, Lan walked to the rail and looked down. She hadn’t seen her uncle since the night he caught her. She’d been terrified during their confrontation, but now the fear was gone. She was ready to face him.
“They’re coming out,” Kasey reported.
The cardigan and eyeglasses had been removed as Aung Win came back out. Her uncle motioned to someone inside. Ryan’s mother appeared, squinting against the bright sunlight, her hands clasped together in front of her. Lan assumed the jacket draped over her wrists hid some kind of restraints. She recognized Kang, her uncle’s oversized bodyguard who was never far from his side. Ryan’s mom stumbled, wobbly on her feet, and Kang grabbed her arm to keep her from falling.
“Something’s wrong with her.” Ryan’s voice was strained.
“She looks like she’s been drugged,” Kasey said, her tone reassuring. “They probably just gave her something to keep her calm. Stay focused, Ryan.”
The driver opened the rear door. It was finally time for Lan to confront the man who had ruined her life.
“Uncle!”
Aung Win looked up at the third-story fire escape in astonishment. Lan stared down, both hands on the rail. Up here, she was far enough away to be safely out of reach, but close enough to see the uncertainty on his face.
“I know what you did. I know you were responsible for the car crash that killed my parents.”
The guilty expression on Aung Win’s face confirmed her suspicions. Only days before her uncle had caught her, Lan had accessed Aung Win’s private emails and discovered several old messages arranging an “accidental” crash. She realized with horror that it was dated a week before her parents had died.
In an instant, she had understood. Her uncle had never had a family of his own. He had always been jealous of his brother’s intelligent wife and energetic daughter. And so he had decided to make them his own. Only it didn’t go as he had planned. Lan’s mother wasn’t supposed to be in the car that day. She wasn’t supposed to die.
“That’s absurd,” Aung Win said. “Is that what this has all been about? It was an accident.”
Lan saw that he had regained his composure. Her uncle was moving closer to the building.
“I found the emails. Proof that you murdered your own brother,” Lan said to him.
“You’re mistaken. Come down—let’s talk about this. We’re still family.”
“No, I lost my family. And I’m going to make sure you lose everything you care about, too. I’m going to tell the world that you’re Myat Kaw. And you know how easy it will be for them to believe me—because every secret I stole came from you!”
Lan headed back up the fire escape stairway. She had set the hook the best she could.
Now, if only her uncle took the bait.
CHAPTER
51
NEW YORK,
USA
Aung Win’s face twisted in rage. He noticed the ladder Ryan had unhooked earlier from the bottom of the fire escape. Bottom ladders were usually kept too high to reach from the s
treet, but Ryan had lowered this one. And sure enough, Aung Win went for it, leaping up and pulling himself onto the rungs.
Lan slowed down at the stairs that led up to the next level. She needed to stay far enough ahead to not be caught, but close enough to keep her uncle in pursuit.
The distraction had worked. This was Ryan’s chance.
When he’d first seen his mother, he’d been momentarily overwhelmed. She was unsteady and disoriented, with dark circles under her eyes. And Lan’s revelation that Aung Win was responsible for the deaths of her parents stunned him. But he couldn’t afford to be sidetracked. He had to act fast.
Springing forward, he yelled, “Mom, duck!” Jacqueline reacted instantly, bending down. Ryan now had a clear shot at the bodyguard.
Ryan sprayed a stream of pepper spray right into the huge man’s eyes! He screamed, hands covering his face, coughing and wheezing.
“Run!” Ryan yelled, grabbing his mom and pointing her down the street.
“Ryan, look out!” Jacqueline was looking over Ryan’s shoulder. He spun around, raising the pepper spray. But the driver of the Town Car was too close. Before he could press the nozzle, the man batted his hand away, knocking the canister out of Ryan’s grip. He punched Ryan in the stomach with enough force to make him double over, gasping.
The driver was about to strike again, when Jacqueline looped her hands around his neck and jerked him back. Her wrists were bound with plastic zip ties, which she now used as a weapon. His mom wasn’t quite as drugged as she’d been pretending.
Ryan kicked the driver as hard as he could right in his crotch! The man’s eyes opened wide, his cheeks puffed out, and he dropped to his knees. Mom knocked him out for good with a nasty kick to the side of the head. The bodyguard was stumbling around, swinging blindly at whatever he heard. Ryan dodged a near hit, then grabbed his mom’s hand, pulling her after him.
“Around the corner,” he urged, trying to catch his breath.
Kasey ran to meet them. “Hold your hands up.” Jacqueline did, and Kasey quickly snipped the ties with the wire cutters. “Come on, we have to meet the others at the car!”
Jacqueline turned to Ryan. “Is Dad here?”
“No.”
“You did this on your own?”
“I got help from my friends.” Ryan saw the driver was already shaking off the blow and back on his knees. “We have to go.”
As they turned the corner, Ryan glanced back at the roof of the building, hoping the rest of the plan was working as well as this part did.
CHAPTER
52
NEW YORK,
USA
Danny leaned over the edge of the roof, watching anxiously as Lan dashed up the fire escape. Aung Win was close behind, quickly reducing the distance between them.
Danny could sense things turning bad. Aung Win was much faster than they’d guessed. Danny held a length of heavy pipe he’d found. He was ready to use it on Lan’s crazy uncle if he had to.
“Hurry—he’s catching up!” Danny shouted as she cleared the last set of stairs. Aung Win yelled at his niece and she glanced down. Lan’s next step hit the rung of the ladder wrong. Her foot slid off the slick metal surface and she nearly fell. Aung Win leaped forward, grabbing for her ankle. But she dodged just in time, scrambling to the top where Danny hauled her over the edge.
“Get to Steeg,” he said, turning back to the ladder with his heavy pipe. Time to play Whac-A-Mole on this dude’s head!
But when Danny leaned over, he got a surprise: Aung Win had drawn his gun and was pointing it straight at him. Danny hurled the pipe as hard as he could. It slammed into Aung Win and knocked the gun from his hand. The weapon clattered along the fire escape, bouncing two levels down before coming to a rest. Aung Win roared with anger and surged upward.
Danny sprinted across the rooftop toward the office building next door, where it would be an easy drop from one building to the next. The plan was to make it to the office building’s stairwell. Once they were inside, they could lock the metal door behind them and they’d be safe.
When Danny made it to the edge, Steeg was below, helping Lan drop from one roof down to the next. “Come on,” Steeg urged, reaching up a hand to help Danny.
But before Danny could jump, Aung Win shoved him. He toppled over, off-balance, and fell into Steeg. The boys tumbled to the ground. Danny rolled to his back and looked up as Aung Win loomed above them. The older man’s eyes were poisonous as—snit—a switchblade snapped open in his hand.
“Move!” Lan yelled from the stairway door, which was propped open. Danny sprung to his feet and ran. As he closed the distance, he saw Lan looking in horror behind him. “Drew!” she screamed.
Danny stopped short, whirling around in time to see Aung Win leap down at Steeg. Steeg was big, but he was agile. He rolled out of the way as Aung Win landed. Crab crawling backward, he tried to get away, but a large air-conditioning unit blocked his way. Steeg was trapped as Aung Win advanced with the knife.
Danny charged at Aung Win with a ferocity he didn’t know he possessed. He tackled the older man around the waist, trying to pull him down. But Aung Win was too strong. He stumbled, then quickly regained his balance and swung his knife.
Danny felt the blade slice his shoulder. He let go of Aung Win and staggered, stunned that he had actually been hit. His hand touched the wound and came away covered in blood.
Aung Win turned to Lan. “Do I need to kill them both?” he asked. Steeg tried to stand, but Aung Win’s hand shot out, the point of the knife aimed right at the boy’s chest. “Their blood will be on your hands … Myat Kaw.”
Lan stepped forward, her face pale. “Let them go. You win, Uncle. I’ll go with you.”
“No,” Steeg said.
Aung Win ignored him, striding toward her. “You will pay for your betrayal.” He grabbed her roughly, pulling her through the stairwell door. The metal door slammed shut, locking Danny and Steeg out.
“We have to stop him,” Steeg said, pulling out his cell phone.
“Yeah, we should … warn …” Danny’s eyes fluttered before he fainted, collapsing to the roof.
CHAPTER
53
NEW YORK,
USA
Danny’s hurt.” The panic in Steeg’s voice was evident, even through the cell phone. “And Lan’s gone—her uncle took her.”
Ryan and Kasey locked eyes as she pressed the talk button: “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’ve got Danny. We’re coming down the fire escape. There’s a lot of blood.”
Ryan looked at the Stieglitzes’ Lexus, then turned to his mom. “Can you drive?”
Jacqueline shook her head, woozy. “I can barely focus.”
“Kasey, call 911—tell them we need an ambulance,” Ryan said, already running. He was thankful they’d rescued his mom, but knew that whatever happened to Danny or Lan was his fault.
Ryan rounded the corner just in time to see Aung Win forcing Lan into the back of the Town Car. “Hey, stop! Somebody help!” The street was mostly empty, but a couple walking a dog turned to stare as Ryan ran toward the car.
Aung Win got in and the car started moving even before the door was closed. The Town Car turned right at the intersection and disappeared around the corner. Ryan watched, helpless once again, as Aung Win sped off with someone he cared about.
“Put me down!” Danny’s voice pulled Ryan’s attention back to the fire escape. Steeg had the smaller boy thrown over his shoulder, using a fireman’s carry to get him down the ladder.
“Shut up and keep still,” Steeg said, grunting with each step. Ryan ran over and helped lower Danny the rest of the way to the pavement. Steeg had taken off his jacket and used one sleeve to tightly wrap Danny’s wound. Both the jacket and Danny were caked with blood.
Ryan’s stomach clenched, fearing the worst for his friend. “Aw, man, what did he do to you?”
But Danny shrugged it off. “It’s not that deep. I’m just kind of a wimp about blood
. I’ve fainted at the doctor’s office a few times.”
“You probably saved my life up there,” Steeg said. “You’re no wimp.”
“Remember that the next time you want to stuff me in a locker.” Danny turned to Ryan. “Lan’s uncle is nuts. You have to go after her.”
“We need to get you to a doctor first.” Ryan glanced down the street, where Kasey and Jacqueline were approaching. “I should’ve never let Lan help. I knew it was too dangerous.”
Danny grabbed Ryan’s arm. “Lan could’ve saved herself—she had the chance. But she didn’t. She went with her uncle to save us.”
Jacqueline knelt on the other side of Danny. “Stay still, Danny—let me take a look.” Even in her disoriented state, her movements were assured and efficient.
Danny’s eyes never left Ryan’s. He thrust his own cell phone into Ryan’s hand. “The phone I gave Lan—it’s got my tracking app on it.”
Ryan looked at Danny’s phone and realized what his friend meant. He jumped up, turning to Steeg. “Will you drive?”
Steeg was already moving. “Hell yeah.”
Ryan pulled off the Roy Halladay–signed baseball cap and put it on Danny’s head. “For luck,” he said, then raced off after Steeg.
“Drew!” Kasey yelled after them.
Hearing the alarm in Kasey’s voice, Jacqueline looked up. “Ryan, no!”
Around the corner, Ryan jumped into the passenger seat of the Lexus as Steeg fired up the engine. With screeching tires, the sedan took the corner without slowing. They raced off in pursuit of the Town Car.
CHAPTER
54
NEW YORK,
USA
Steeg floored it, cutting in and out of traffic. Approaching a stoplight just as it turned red, Steeg hit the gas and the Lexus shot through the intersection. Angry drivers honked, forced to brake abruptly.
“Please, god, do not let us pass any cops,” Steeg said, veering around a slow truck in front of them and jetting forward.
“Try not to crash,” Ryan said, glancing down at Danny’s tracker app and setting it to find Lan’s phone.