on the dock.
The third is Hull.
Matthew comes over and helps the other two pull the bodies out of the elevator and move them to the oven.
Gabby watches.
When they’re gone, he looks up at me and says, “You need to prepare yourself for what’s coming.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see his men lift one of the bodies onto the metal rack.
I already know, but I ask anyway.
“What’s coming?”
The men slide the rack into the oven and close the door.
“You’re leaving here alone tonight.” He pauses. “I’m sorry, but it’s out of my hands. There’s nothing I can do about it.”
In the next room, one of the men pulls the lever, and I hear the soft hiss of gas followed by the familiar hiss of fire. Something slams against the door, and an instant later, the screaming starts. The sound is flat, muted.
One of Gabby’s men runs forward, reaching for the door.
Mathew holds out his hand, stopping him.
The screaming stops as fast as it started, leaving only the hollow roar of the flames.
The floor under me shifts, and I reach out for something to brace myself on.
“Are you listening to me?”
“He was still alive!”
“Yes,” Gabby says. “And now he’s not.”
I want to say something, but the words don’t come.
“You need to listen to me.” He points to the oven. “If you don’t, they’re going to throw you in there and I won’t be able to stop them. My ass is on the line here, too. I can’t help you this time.”
I open my mouth to speak, but my throat burns. All I can say is, “I can’t leave her.”
Gabby gets up and puts a hand on my shoulder. “But you will.” He turns and walks into the oven room, leaving me alone.
Beside me, the elevator light flashes.
I step closer.
I tell myself that when the doors open, I’m going to make a run for it. I’m going to go back up and find Diane, then I’m getting her away from here, even if we have to jump the gate to get out.
The elevator stops. I close my eyes and breathe deep. All my muscles are tight, ready to go. Then the doors slide open, and I hear voices.
I open my eyes.
– 45 –
“Where is he?”
Briggs comes out of the elevator first, looking from me to the oven room. For a second, I think I see a flash of fear in his eyes, but it’s gone so fast that I wonder if I imagined it.
“You.” He points, moves toward me. “Where is he?”
I raise the gun and he stops.
“Think about this,” he says. “You have no idea what kind of shit you’re about to start.”
“Where’s Diane?”
Briggs stares at me, smiles.
It takes all I’ve got not to pull the trigger.
I start to ask again, and then I hear her voice.
“Jake?”
I look past him and see Diane coming out of the elevator.
The side of her face is red, and there’s blood on her lip. I start toward her, but Briggs moves first. He reaches up and grabs the barrel of the gun, stepping to the side and twisting it out of my hand in one easy movement.
It’s so fast that by the time I realize what happened, Briggs is up and firing, the metallic whisper punch of bullets tearing into Gabby’s men.
I run toward Diane, grab her hand, and drag her behind the metal doors and into the oven room. Gabby and one of his men are inside, standing with their backs against the wall. The man is carrying a short-barreled shotgun. Gabby is holding a pistol. Behind him, Mathew Pavel steps forward, sliding a long clip into a black assault rifle.
I pull Diane into the corner, and we duck behind a stack of shipping pallets. “Stay down.”
She nods, her eyes wide.
I look up and see Gabby nod to Mathew, then all three of them step through the doorway, firing as they go.
The sound of the assault rifle is rapid and loud, and it echoes through the room. When the shooting stops, I get up to look, but Diane grabs my arm and holds me back.
“It’s okay,” I say. “Wait here.”
I come around the corner and see several bodies lying on the ground. Briggs is sitting with his back to the wall. There’s a hole in his neck, and the blood pumps out in waves, rolling down the front of his shirt.
I hear Gabby say, “It’s clear.”
I start toward the metal door, but Diane stops me, says, “Don’t, Jake.”
I ignore her and cross