Page 65 of V-Day
“There’s an office on the second floor, full of communications equipment and surveillance cameras. There’s a room behind it… Nick, I think it’s where Minnie was held, when Duardo was passing as Zalaya. There are chains and cuffs and ways to contain Roldán there, because she was too much of a disruption in the bordello itself.”
“Cameras?” he asked sharply, his attention caught.
“You were part of Minnie’s debriefing, Nick. Remember what she said about the cameras which could see anywhere?”
Nick nodded, thinking hard. He looked at his watch. “Okay, we’ll show the ladies the door, then find Roldán and deal with the equipment at the same time.” He hefted the assault rifle. “Let’s go.”
*
MINNIE LOWERED HERSELF CAREFULLY TOthe floor beside Téra and settled her back against the wall. She rubbed the small of her back, wincing. “Four months and I’m already sick of feeling like a bloated whale.”
“You’re barely showing,” Téra said. “Wait until you’re at eight months.” She rolled her head back toward the windows with the teak blinds. They were new blinds, to replace the old ones, because this was the dining room. This room had taken most of the blast from the car bomb which had killed General Blanco.
Minnie glanced at the closed door. The Insurrectos had herded the women into the room shortly after they had helped Rubén hobble back into the house. That had been hours ago. Most of the women had stopped talking. They sat listlessly.
“What do you think they did with Adán?” Minnie asked.
“I don’t know,” Téra said. She didn’t care, either. She hadn’t felt anything since Zapatero had thanked Rubén Rey for his help.
Minnie glanced at the door again, then slid her hand inside her shirt and withdrew her phone.
Téra looked at it, then looked again. “They frisked all of us,” she said, remembering the groping and prodding she had put up with as they searched her. “Where did you keep it? In your bra?”
“Under my breast, inside the bra. The advantage of pregnancy—swollen, oversized breasts.” She frowned. “The battery is low.”
“We could call for help,” Téra said, turning to look at her. She gripped Minnie’s wrist. “We could tell them what is happening here!”
“And what?” Minnie said, her tone reasonable. “You really want to pull someone away from the fight over there? Duardo?”
Téra dropped her wrist. “You won’t tell anyone?” she breathed.
“I don’t think we should. Look.” Minnie tapped her screen and turned the phone for Téra to see.
3 hours, 58 minutes.
Get out of la Colinas!
Téra’s chest tightened. Her belly swooped. “What happens in three hours?” she breathed.
“I think this warning is for every Loyalist, including Duardo and his men,” Minnie said. “We can’t distract them,” she added.
Téra fell back, her head rapping the wall. “God, I can’tstandthis!”
“Patience,” Minnie said. “Something will change, which we might take advantage of.”
“Fuck that!” Téra cried, pushing herself to her feet. The other women stirred, looking up at her. “I don’twantto be rescued. Fuck it. Fuck the Insurrectos. I wantoutof this place!”
Minnie struggled to get to her feet. “Téra, calm down!”
“No! Fuck it! I won’t sit here and wait for fucking men to rescue me! I’m sick of that. I’m sick ofthem!” She stalked over to the window and gripped the new teak blinds and yanked. They tore away from the wall mounts over the windows with a groaning sound.
“You can’t break the window, Téra,” Minnie cried. “It’ll bring them running, and it’s a sheer drop to the sea, there!”
Téra used the cords on the blind to pull the slats of wood tightly together and bind them. The end result was a solid club of wood that if she swung it with enough force just might be lethal. She circled around the room, as the other women scrambled to get out of her way with mutters and little gasps.
The last window on the north side of the room was still over the sea, which was why the Insurrectos and Zapatero had not bothered placing a guard in the room with them. They could open the windows, but where would they go?
Téra turned the catch and yanked the window up.
