Rubbing the rope burns at her wrists, Jess went to the door and tried the handle, found it locked. She looked around the small room. Seeing no windows, no other doors, she was swamped by the sensation of being trapped. A fold-up cot with a thin mattress and thread-bare blanket sat in the corner, a plate holding a few crumbs beneath it. A tiny black-and-white television sat on a rickety-looking stool next to the bed.
Jess looked at Chin Lee. “Is there any way out of here?”
“No way out.”
She studied the other woman. She was young, but thin and gaunt. “How long have you been here?”
“Two months.”
Jess couldn’t imagine being held captive that long in these conditions. “How did you end up here?”
“The man promise me citizenship in the United States.”
“Who?”
“Mummert.”
Jess chose her next words carefully. “Are there other women on board?”
Chin Lee dropped her eyes, nodded.
“How many?”
“I’m not sure. Fifteen or twenty. Women and girls mostly.”
“Where?”
“The brig. One level down. I take them food sometimes.”
A dozen questions swirled in Jess’s head, but there was no time to talk. If they wanted to live, they were going to have to find a way out.
“Chin Lee, is there a guard outside the door?”
The other woman hesitated, then shook her head. Jess got the feeling there might be a way, but Chin Lee didn’t want to talk about it. “They’re going to kill us if we don’t get out of here,” she said.
Chin Lee’s eyes were ancient when they met Jess’s. “The guard…sometimes he come in here at night.” She averted her eyes.
Jess’s heart twisted at the thought of the ordeals this poor woman had been forced to endure. “I’m sorry.”
Chin Lee’s eyes filled with tears.
Sympathy and newfound anger flashed inside Jess. But the part of her that was a survivor was already jumping ahead to ways they could use the situation to their advantage. She looked around the room for anything they could use as a weapon, her eyes settling on the television.
“Is there any way you can get the guard’s attention?” she asked. “Maybe call him into the room?”
Chin Lee’s eyes widened and she shook her head violently. “No.”
“Knock on the door. Tell him you’re sick.”
“Please, don’t. You will be sorry.”
“I won’t let him hurt you. I promise.”
“You can’t stop him. He’s armed and strong.”
“Yeah, well, so are we.” Jess walked over to the small television and picked it up, tested its weight. “Here’s what we’re going to do,” she said, and began to outline her plan.
MADRID COULD HEAR the big diesel engines rumbling as he and Vanderpol sprinted along the dock. He didn’t have to see the smoke billowing from the dual stacks to know that the big container ship was starting to pull away.
“Where the hell are they going?” Jake muttered.
“My guess is they bring the women here and hide them while money changes hands. Then they unload at Luna Bay under the protection of the Lighthouse Point PD.” Madrid shook his head in disgust. “We’ve got about a minute to get on board that ship.”
“Not going to happen,” Vanderpol said.
“The hell it’s not.” Digging into the satchel, Madrid pulled out a length of rope equipped with a four-prong hook.
“What the hell are you doing, man?”
“Saving the lives of two people I care about.” Madrid quickly coiled the rope. Setting his hand a foot from the base of the hook, he began to swing it like a lasso. “Are you in or not?”
Jake shook his head. “It’s probably going to get me killed, but I’m in.”
Madrid tossed the hook. Sweat broke out on the back of his neck when the rope fell short of the departing ship. Cursing, he quickly reeled it in and tried again. This time the hook caught the lowest rung of the rail just above the anchor hawsehole.
“Gotcha!” Madrid whispered.
But the small victory was short-lived. The ship was picking up speed, the engines gunning as the mammoth vessel was maneuvered away from the dock. Madrid felt the rope run through his hands. There was no time to coordinate with Vanderpol. Giving his fellow agent a final look, he grasped the rope with both hands and launched himself off the dock.
“Madrid! Damn it.”
His name being called was the last thing he heard before the water rushed up and slammed into him.
JESS STAGED THE SCENE as best she could. Her hands were shaking so badly when she picked up the TV, she wasn’t sure she could lift it over her head. She slid the stool behind the door and stepped onto it. Chin Lee had unbuttoned the top two buttons of her dress. Nicolas sat on the bed, rocking back and forth. Next to him, Chin Lee had formed the pillow to look like a female silhouette and draped it with the blanket. Hopefully, the guard would be so distracted by Chin Lee’s cleavage that he wouldn’t notice it wasn’t Jess on the cot.
“Ready?” Chin Lee asked.
Jess nodded. “Do it.”
Pursing her lips, Chin Lee pounded on the door. “Help us, please,” she cried. “The woman is sick!”