Page 85 of The Captive Missing

“Are you telling me that Cambric doesn’t know when they’re missing captives? Don’t they have a head count or something?”

“We eliminate the captive from the database. The Isolation guard thinks the captive has been returned to housing, and the housing guards are so overwhelmed by the sheer number of you all, that they forget the captive was ever under their section. Believe it or not, it has worked well in the past.”

“But the captives knew, there were rumors of the missing.”

“Yes.” Ava smiled. “But did any of you ask Cambric about it?”

“No.” Val frowned. “No, we were all too afraid. We thought it was them killing us.”

“I’m sorry,” Ava replied. “There’s no way for us to correct the rumor and protect the operation.”

Val flashed back to her time on the inside. She thought of Ben and how he had witnessed others taken while he was left behind. She remembered how he had wanted it all to end. The truth was, they would never have selected him. He was a trainer, with a schedule and a high-profile, he would be missed. Then Charlie and all of his hope. What were they doing to him right now? And Amber, and Mandy, and Gabe’s boys and all the rest.

“Who’s next?” Val asked suddenly. “Who is the next one you’ve selected? If you made an exception for me, can you do it again? Can you get Charlie out? Ben?”

“Slow down.” Ava raised both hands in a calming motion. “No one at Cambric is next.”

“What? I don’t understand, didn’t you just say-”

“We’ve taken the most high-profile captive there.” Ava waited a beat to let that sink in. “The place is on lockdown. You… are definitely missed.”

Val shoved away from the desk, causing her chair to clatter behind her onto a worn Persian rug. Hands covering her mouth, she paced to the bookcase. Then over to the wall of television screens.

What was Ava saying? That it was over? That rescuing her had cost countless others their chance at freedom? Throat tight, Val spun on her heel, eyes rolling around the room, unable to focus on anything. All at once, thoughts piled up in her head and began to tumble from her mouth.

“You can do it again, right? You can get more out. You can find a way. What can I do to help? Do you need more money? What can I do?”

“You can refrain from contacting your husband and son for just a few more months.” Ava watched as a look of horror crossed Val’s face.

“But they don’t know I’m safe.” Val stalked to the desk and clutched at the phone. Ava didn’t try to stop her. “When Cambric reports that I’m missing-”

“Why would they ever do a thing like that?”

“Wha-” Val’s mouth dropped.

“Cambric has not, nor will they ever report that they do not have custody of you.” Ava motioned for Val to resume her seat. “They will investigate your disappearance and find absolutely nothing. Hopefully they won’t find out there have been more captives taken.

Maybe they’ll think you’re dead, killed at the hands of some reckless guard who then covered it up. It doesn’t matter really. What matters is that things eventually calm down and return to normal. At that time we can start moving captives out again.”

“I still don’t understand why I can’t call Jason.”

“If Jason knows you are here, then he will come for you. He will try to get you out of the country, and we all know how well that worked last time. The court case involving you and your son is ongoing, so Cambric still technically holds the rights to one of you. I’m asking you to let the case resolve. Let things at Cambric die down. Let us resume the underground and then we can contact your husband.”

“You’re asking me to stay away from my son for months, possibly longer. How can I do that? I don’t think I can do it.”

Ava softened then, her look of earnest persuasion dissipating as Val continued to clutch at the cell phone. Then Ava told Val a story.

She explained that she herself had once been locked in a cage. She herself had once sacrificed months with her own son in order to keep him safe. It had been a difficult cross to bear, but ordinary people had to do it all the time.

Soldiers were shipped overseas, leaving their children behind. Parents split up and moved to different states, having to share custody over alternating months. It could be done, if you could organize your mind in the right way.

“I am not asking you to give up your son forever,” Ava persuaded. “I’m asking you to give up a few months so that others like yourself have a chance at a lifetime of freedom. Your fellow captives need this from you. They need your sacrifice in order to live. Can you give it to them?”

Val’s hands trembled. But then she slowly, deliberately, set the phone down on the desk. Tears brimmed from her eyes and her heart jerked in her chest. Demurely, she returned her hands to her lap.

How could she refuse? Jace was safe and loved by friends and family. Jumping from house to house on the underground, Val had been so moved by the willingness of people to risk their lives for her own. She had wanted to do more. She had wanted to help, too.

“I will wait.” Val’s voice cracked at first, but she swallowed hard and went on. “But I want something in return.”

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