Page 71 of No Time Off

THIRTY-FOUR

Lexi

The ride to the compound was bumpy in the back of the truck crouched behind the crates, but uneventful. We passed a roadblock, where they briefly opened the door, but no one checked the cargo. I guess they figured it would be unlikely for the prime minister to be hiding in a truck of produce headed for the Chinese compound.

There were no windows in the back of the truck, so we had no idea where we were. When the truck stopped again, I heard voices talking, and we didn’t move right away.

“I think we’re at the compound gate,” Manny mouthed.

I shrugged. A minute later, the back door of the truck rolled up. I froze, not moving a muscle. I heard Sefina saying something, and another clipped voice replied, probably a Chinese guard. The guard seemed to be poking at some of the nearer crates, and one of them suddenly tumbled over, spilling the produce.

A couple of hot green peppers rolled near my feet and came to a stop. My nose started to twitch, so I pinched my nostrils together. I could feel a sneeze coming, so I held my breath and squeezed my eyes shut, holding it back the best I could. Tears started to leak from the corners of my eyes.

Sefina cursed and ordered the guard to climb inside and clean up his mess. Laughing, he rolled the door down, slamming it shut, just as a half-muted sneeze escaped my lips. Manny and I looked each other with wide eyes until I heard a door slam and the truck lurched forward.

We were in!

I kicked the pepper away and let out a deep breath as Manny gave me a thumbs-up sign.

I put my glasses on as the truck rounded a bend before coming to a stop again. After a minute, the door rolled up again. Sefina stepped inside and nodded to us.

“All clear,” she said in a low voice.

We were out of sight from the gate and the dormitory building, behind the main compound building. There was a rear entrance to the kitchen area, and they had backed the truck up close to the door to make the unloading go quickly. It would also make it easy to get an extra person into the truck when we left. Manny and I hopped down from the truck’s deck. I glanced around. If Manny was right, once we were in the kitchen, Slash would be just down the nearest hallway.

So close.

A gated swimming pool and bathhouse were located behind the kitchen. There was no one out this morning, despite it being a lovely sunny day. Of course, it was 0700, so that might have something to do with it. More likely, most of the available guards were already out looking for terrorist me and the prime minister. Little did they know I was right beneath their noses.

We started to slowly unload the truck, carrying the crates and boxes into the kitchen, moving with the pace of a snail. We still didn’t see a soul. The cooks hadn’t arrived yet. They were probably waiting for us to finish our delivery. Ari had been right; there were no guards to supervise us, and the kitchen manager whose office abutted the kitchen didn’t even come out to greet us. We were invisible to them.

Which workedreallywell for our plan.

I put a crate onto the counter and looked around. No one was in the kitchen but me. It was time to put things into motion.

I walked over to the coffee maker and turned it on. I found some filters and coffee and began brewing a pot. Manny walked in carrying a large box and saw me getting ready.

“Now?” he asked.

“Now,” I confirmed, and he kept watch while I finished my task and poured the coffee into a cup, putting it on a saucer. I took the Taser from my pocket and slipped the strap around my right wrist. I checked the intensity setting, making sure it was at its highest.

“Be careful,” Manny murmured. “Stick to the plan.”

“Like that ever works for me,” I whispered, but I nodded anyway. “I will.”

“Oh, I have one more thing for you that you’ll need, and I almost forgot.” He reached into a pocket and pulled out a set of lockpicks. “I gave Slash my best set earlier, but these should work if you need them. You do know how to use them, right?”

I looked at Manny in surprise. “Why would I know how to use a lockpick?”

Manny sighed. “Because you’re CIA, of course. Oh, never mind. I can’t figure you guys out. Take them anyway. Maybe you can slip them under the door and Slash can free himself.”

I stuck them in a pocket and left the kitchen, carrying the coffee in my left hand. I carefully slipped past the manager’s office. She was sitting at her desk, focused on her computer, and never looked up.

I entered the long, shadowy, and carpeted hallway. The layout Manny had drawn indicated the office where Slash had planted the bug was at the end of the hallway on the left. Catty-corner on the right side would be the locked storage room where Slash might be imprisoned.

My heart drumming in my ears, I flattened myself against the wall and peered into the shadows at the end of the hall. I heard a scraping sound and a slight noise and realized there was someone standing at the end of the hallway. I saw a quick flash of light and realized someone had lit a cigarette.

A guard. That was good news, because a guard standing in the hall in the general area of the locked storage room made me feel more confident that Slash was there. At least I hoped so, because in a minute or so, I was about to find out one way or the other. Thankfully, it looked like just one person. That was a good sign, since I was certain one guy would be all I could handle.

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