“Hoping to find a tool that will help us get on board the ship.”
Vanderpol looked at the bag. “Angela’s?”
“Yeah.” Madrid pulled out a small device that looked like a crossbow that had been equipped with some type of reel.
Vanderpol grinned. “She always was into gadgets.”
“Good thing, because this one is probably going to save her son’s life.”
JESS COULD NEVER have imagined her life ending this way. With so much left undone. With so much love in her heart. She thought of Madrid, and hot tears burned her eyes.
“Keep walking, bitch.”
The words were punctuated by a hard shove. Fury and a cold, numbing fear permeated her as two men forced her down the narrow corridor. Her mind spun between Madrid and Nicolas. Was Madrid looking for them? If so, would he reach them in time to save their lives?
They stopped at a narrow hatch. One of the men twisted the wheel lock and the door hissed open. Another hard shove forced her through the hatch and sent her to her knees. Before she could struggle to her feet, the hatch slammed with a finality that sent a cold spear of fear right through her center.
Sobbing in frustration, Jess struggled to her feet and looked around. Surprise jolted her when she saw two small faces watching her. A petite Asian woman wearing a torn blue dress and a bruise high on her cheekbone set her hand protectively on Nicolas’s shoulder and stepped back.
Jess choked back a sob when she looked at Nicolas. He was wearing the same sweatshirt and jeans he’d worn when she’d left him with Father Matthew and his face was streaked with dirt. But she saw recognition in his eyes. “Nicolas,” she cried. “Oh, honey, I’m so glad you’re okay.”
She went to the boy and fell to her knees, pressing her face to his. She wanted desperately to hold him, but with her hands bound she could not. At the moment, though, it was enough to feel him warm and alive against her.
A full minute passed before she got a handle on her emotions. Pulling away from the boy, she looked at the woman. She saw the fear and mistrust in her eyes, and Jess realized the woman was every bit as frightened as she was. “I’m not going to hurt you,” Jess said.
The woman’s eyes narrowed, but she didn’t speak.
Giving Nicolas a kiss on his cheek, Jess rose to her full height and took a fortifying breath. “I’m glad he’s not alone.”
“He’s very frightened.”
Jess nodded, fighting tears. “Who are you?” she asked.
“Chin Lee.”
“I’m Jess.”
The woman nodded.
“Chin Lee, do you think you could untie me?”
Fear entered the woman’s eyes and she shook her head. “It will only anger him.”
“Who? Mummert? Someone higher on the food chain?”
Chin Lee averted her eyes, looked down at her small hands.
“Please,” Jess pressed. “We’ve got to get out of here.”
“There is no way out.”
“Help is on the way,” she said. “Federal agents. But we’re in danger here. We need to get out now.”
Indecision and something that might have been hope glimmered in the woman’s eyes. “The men,” she whispered. “They will return soon.”
“Please,” Jess pleaded. “Quickly. Untie me so I can help you.”
The woman bit her lip. Jess didn’t look away. They didn’t have much time. She could hear the rumble of the engines as the crew prepared the ship for departure. “They’re going to kill us,” she said. “They’re going to kill this child. We have to get out of here now.”
The woman nodded. “I will help you.”
Jess turned and offered her bound hands. Seconds ticked by like an eternity as the woman worked at the knot. Jess couldn’t look, keeping her eyes on the door instead. When she felt the rope fall away, relief swept through her.
“Thank you,” she said.
The woman nodded. “You can get us out of here?”
“I’m going to try.” First Jess went to Nicolas and hugged him tightly. The boy didn’t hug her back, but she could feel his little body relax against hers, and she knew that even though he had gone into his own world, he knew she was there. For now, that was enough.
“He’s special,” Chin Lee said.
Jess thought of how Nicolas had named his mother’s killer from the very start and she choked out a sound that was part laugh, part sob. “He’s a little hero.” For the first time she noticed the dirty and well-used toy at his side and another wave of emotion swamped her. Even in this hellhole, this woman had somehow found a small comfort for the little boy.
“It was all I could give him,” Chin Lee said.
Blinking back tears, Jess smiled. “It’s enough.”