Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 140965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 705(@200wpm)___ 564(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 705(@200wpm)___ 564(@250wpm)___ 470(@300wpm)
The two men behind him tried to fall back, but Draden was already there. He came up behind the last man, slamming his blade into the base of the skull. That left the one with the limp. He was caught between the two of them.
Draden shoved the dead body and the remaining prisoner into the house and slammed the door. Instantly the prisoner dropped to his knees and began begging loudly for his life, offering all kinds of money and favors.
He’s armed, Shylah cautioned.
Draden shrugged. Let him have his chance. Stay in the background. Let me do my thing.
Shylah sent him a ghost of a smile, all the while studiously avoiding looking at the dead men. Draden reached down and casually closed their eyes. He stared at the prisoner for a long time in silence. The longer he stared, the more anxious the man became.
“What’s your name?”
“Eko, my name is Eko.”
“I’m a little pissed right now, Eko. I was right behind you while you were following my wife. I heard all the very unpleasant things you intended to do to her right before you cut her throat. I have to tell you, I’m not happy with you. You have a wife. Maybe I should go find her and do those things to her and your daughters as well. Maybe I should make you watch.” He snarled it, deliberately as sinister as the man in front of him.
Eko cried out and rocked back and forth. “No, no, I was only talking big for my friends.”
Draden shook his head, deliberately standing directly in front of the prisoner. He knew Shylah was anxious that he was giving Eko a large target, but it was the best form of intimidation, while it also allowed the man to take his chance if he was going to. Better to keep Eko’s attention on him, not Shylah.
“I don’t think so. It’s clear you’ve done this before. Rented the apartment to women and then raped and killed them. Don’t deny it, that will only make me angrier.”
Eko shook his head. “They are nothing, these women. Unclean. Nothing. They live to serve men. We would never harm a worthy woman.”
Draden wanted to step right into the bastard and cut his throat right then. He took a breath and forced air through his lungs. “If Agus Orucov needed to change his identity, where would he go for the papers? Who would he see?”
Shylah knew already. She’d done her research long before she was in the forest hunting the three virologists.
“Faisal Bataknese,” Eko said readily.
Draden didn’t so much as glance at Shylah. He wanted Eko to forget she was in the room. Is that the same man you were told about?
Yes. He’s telling the truth. We still have to track him down.
“Where is he?” Draden asked aloud.
I need to search the apartment. The three may have left clues behind.
Just wait. I need him to make his move without noticing you.
Eko’s expression turned crafty. He licked his lips. “I could show you.”
Draden pretended to consider it. “I’ll think on that. The three had a visitor. An American.” He pretended to know all about the meeting. Shylah had drifted around behind Eko, blending with the shadows in the dingily lit apartment.
Eko nodded enthusiastically. “Yes. They had a fight. An argument. It was very loud.” He indicated the streets outside. “He gave them money. A great deal. Enough to pay Bakti more so he would take them to Faisal.” The sly reminder was blatant.
“How far?” Draden asked.
“Only two streets up. Not far,” Eko said. “But he won’t do business unless recommended. It is a great deal of money. You pay for the recommend and for Faisal’s work.” Now he was eager, certain he would not only go free, but get cash out of it as well.
“He’s the red door,” Draden said.
Eko scowled, shaking his head before he thought. His lips formed the word tan, but he clamped his mouth tightly closed before the word escaped. Draden reached down and rifled through Bakti’s tunic until he found the money Shylah had given him. He made a show of pulling it free from the dead man’s clothes and transferring it to his jeans pocket. Eko’s greedy gaze tracked his every move. Deliberately, Draden half turned, presenting a perfect target.
Eko reacted instantly, his hand going inside his robes and pulling out a gun. Shylah was already behind him, a silent wraith. She cut his throat and stepped back before the body could fall.
“You know more about the kind of work they were doing than I do,” Shylah said. “If you try to figure it out, I’ll try to find something that will point us in the direction they’re going.” Immediately, she began to go through the apartment, paying close attention to the sleeping quarters.
Draden surveyed the lab equipment. “They had more than one remote lab with them. That’s interesting. What do you suppose they argued with Montgomery about?”