The Seven Seals of Egypt

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

Morning dawned outside the cave network, throwing lustrous rays through the opening and onto the dusty floor. Alicia had given up standing the night before, along with all the others, and now sat in a slurry of dirt, soaked through, her back against the mountain wall, as far away from the guards as was possible. The rest of the team were seated around her, arrayed as best and as restfully as they could be under the circumstances.

During the night, the guards had broken out several small toys. One, a mini-crossbow like a child’s toy, could fire toothpicks, small nails, stones and other sharp implements at a fast and bruising rate. The guards appeared to start gambling on who could make the best shot, elicit the loudest cry of anger, strike certain areas.

It all fuelled Alicia’s fire.

She restrained it, nurtured it, made ready to release it all when that chance arose.

Saint arrived half an hour later.

“Oh, hey.” He looked around and then back the way he’d just come. “They didn’t bring your breakfast? No coffee and bacon? Oh, shit, well, never mind that. I came with news. Who wants a bit of fun interrogation?”

The team generally ignored him, but those that were watching didn’t let their eyes waver.

“C’mon, kids. It’s all good. A finger here, a toe there. I promise to be precise. No ragged edges…” He grinned and spread his arms. “Or you could just talk to me.”

“You need to make your mind up,” Smyth growled. “They’ve been telling us to shut up all night.”

“Ah, well, I am in charge after all. Not you. Anyway, was that a volunteer?”

Smyth grinned back. “Whatever, man.”

“I see you had a nice cool night. Don’t worry, it’ll start to warm up again soon. And I mean really warm up. The temperature in here can rise to a dangerous level. Luckily though—” he swigged from a plastic bottle “—we all have more than enough water.”

He poured the remainder onto the floor before their eyes.

Alicia unglued her tongue from the roof of her mouth. “You do know a time will come when we get out of here?”

“Oh, yeah, Alicia Myles, I really do. In fact, that’s gonna be later today. And then the games really will start!”

He turned away as another man came running up, clearly more than just a colleague to Saint.

“Bud, you gotta come and look. They fired us an email across, showing us what happened. FrameHub, I mean. They launched their demonstration, just a dose of what they’re capable of.”

Crouch leaned into the chained circle. “FrameHub? I don’t get it. Why are they interested in us and what does it have to do with the seals? Shit, what are we missing?”

“Hey, Liam,” Saint said. “What did they do?”

“Stopped a vital dam working in Egypt. Poisoned some kids in the isolation ward in a hospital in Greece. Suffocated six workers in Turkey. All CPU-based shit.”

Saint was grinning now. “This, I gotta see. Give me a moment, bro, I’m trying to decide which one of these assholes I start snipping.”

Liam gawked. “Gotta be one of the hotties, bro. Let the guys pass her around a while; soften her up.”

“You can fucking try.” Alicia was up and at the bars faster than the new merc could blink, her sudden adrenalin dragging the others with her. With the small space she created, she took the opportunity to jab three stiffened fingers at his eyes.

Liam squealed and staggered back, holding his face. Saint shook his head in bewilderment. “Bro, you are a fucking pussy. And not too bright. Get the hell outta here. I’ll be up in a minute.”

Liam staggered away, moaning.

Saint affected a look of embarrassment. “Yeah, I know, I know. And he’s one of the brightest. So look, we gonna do this the hard way or the fun way?”

Alicia gripped the wooden bars, trying to see more of the cave system. The entrance seemed composed of only a brash brightness that left imprints on her eyeballs. The way that led further into the system vanished into darkness, inadequately lit.

Drake and Dahl came forward a little, dragging Kinimaka with them, the three making a formidable wedge at the front of the little chain-gang.

“You may have taken our weapons,” Dahl said. “But, since you’re such a nice, chatty jailor, I have to warn you. We’re not defenseless.”

Alicia also knew what everyone else knew. They were required alive. If not, they’d be rotting in a hole in the desert by now.

“Oh, really?” Saint boomed. “Thanks for that wonderful moment of insight. I’ll promise to be careful. Now… see how we do things.”

He turned to the gathered guards. “I want the old one there. Near the bars. Bring him to me now.”

Alicia saw they meant Crouch and felt a stab of anguish. The doors were opened and the team crowded around. Guns were leveled at them, some wavering. Drake and Dahl bunched at the front, with Kinimaka covering Crouch. The others all bunched in.

“All right,” Saint came inside, “we do it the fun way.”

He held up a Walther, aimed it at Mai’s leg and fired. The bullet flashed a millimeter past, the burn singeing her pants leg. He fired another in-between Dahl’s legs, higher than was comfortable, the bullet missing and then burying itself into the ground.

He whipped his knife around, slicing Alicia and Drake, darted back, and raised the Walther again.

“I can do this shit all day.”

“You do that,” Dahl hissed. “Just get the hell out of our house.”

He kicked out, catching a guard in the ribs. The man folded and Drake reached down for the discarded weapon, only to be brought up short by his chains. Dahl tried to bend too, but the steel was just too short and tight.

“All right. Just take the old fool.” Saint backed out.

More guards flooded into the cell until movement was hard. They tugged on the chains, two, three at a time, shuffling Drake and Dahl to where they wanted them. Punches and kicks were meted out. Kinimaka was stabbed in the thigh until he fell, blood flowing from the wound. Hayden cried out and fell to her knees beside him, dragging Kenzie with her. The movements upset the chain and sent everyone tottering, steel scraping skin, and chains pressing into bone. Rifle butts were used too, on exposed heads and without mercy. Drake could not move as a gun was smashed over his skull, three times.

More guards squeezed by the scene of the punishment and grabbed hold of Crouch. They removed his manacles from the chain and dragged him clear; their colleagues still fighting with Dahl, Smyth and the others. Alicia could barely move but managed to trip a guard and hook a hand around his throat when he fell.

She gripped the larynx, crushed it as hard as she could. His gun was trapped beneath his body, inaccessible to Alicia. Such were the breaks.

A boot smashed down onto her cheek and stayed there, pushing her face into the hard dirt, exerting more pressure until the blood pounded in her brain. In the end she gave up her grip on the larynx, preferring to fight another day. Still the boot pressed down and another pounded on her back for a while. Someone bruised Drake, because she heard him cry out.

At last, the pressure eased and the guards went away. She looked up, hurting, to see Saint still standing outside their cell.

Crouch stood at his side, hands cuffed behind his back, a gun at his temple.

“You see?” Saint said pleasantly. “I hate to say I told you so, kids. But I did, and I guess that’s why I earn the big bucks. I could pop this prick right now, blow his brains out. You want that?”

Alicia felt her heart lurch, tried to move. The others did the same. Chains rattled and restraints clinked.

“You see? A soldier loses his edge when he loves. That’s how it is.”

“I’d say—” Dahl grunted and heaved as he rose to his knees, dragging three others with him “—quite the opposite.”

“They call you the Mad Swede, am I right? I can see why. Now, simmer down for a while. Conserve your energy ’cause you’re gonna need it.”

“Where are you taking him?” Alicia asked. “Why?”

“Just up a ways,” Saint answered. “Don’t worry, you’ll be able to hear him. This prick’s gonna get a very sharp talking to.”