He grabbed the launcher and hoisted it onto his right shoulder. The sight was useless in the dark. It didn’t matter. Precision was not necessary. It just needed to be close. He found the chopper again, pointed the launcher in the same direction, depressed the trigger partially and waited for the green light. This was his last missile, their last chance to tie this off neatly. The green light flashed in the sight, and he sent the third missile streaking across the sky. Another fireball lit up the darkness five seconds later.
CHAPTER
74
I
STANBUL
“Where are you guys?”
“I’m waiting right outside the entrance to Migros. White Hyundai van. I’ll drive up to the curb as soon as I see you.”
“And Gary?”
“He’s in position. Where are you?” asked Gwyn.
“We’re just pulling into the underground parking garage now. How many levels are there?”
“Four. Go to the very bottom. Gary said the third level is only fifty percent full, and that if anyone follows you down to the fourth level, you should assume it’s a tail.”
“Right.”
“You’ll be able to park very close to the elevators. There are two side by side. I’ll call Gary now. He says the elevator will be open and waiting for you. Just remove the tape. He’ll meet you on the ground floor. Remember to press Z and not 1. Their first floor is our second.”
“Right. Thanks for the reminder.”
“What about the stairwell?”
“Gary chained the doors on that level five minutes ago.”
“We’ve got another problem.”
“What’s that?”
“Ginger and the kids were being held in some sort of shipping container. After I talked to her on the phone today, one of their captors came in and tried to force himself on Ginger. Of course, Garret tried to defend his mother. Apparently, they took him outside and beat him up pretty badly. He has several cuts on his face, and two on his arm.”
“Oh my God! Is Ginger okay?”
“She’s a bit traumatized, but she’ll be okay.”
“What about Garret? Does he need medical treatment?”
“Well, that’s what’s odd. All of his cuts, most of which seem minor, were stitched and bandaged. It’s odd that they cared enough to do that.”
“Maybe it was a gesture of good will?”
“I’ve questioned Garret at length. He says that during the scuffle he was hit hard several times, and that at some point, he blacked out. The last thing he can remember was a strong odor. He said it was not an unpleasant smell, but that it was sudden and unexpected.”
“What are you saying, Gilbert?”
“I think he may have been knocked out with an anesthetic like sevoflurane or halothane. The whole thing may have been a ruse, so that they could implant a tracking device. After all, they don’t want us to disappear. Ginger says they were separated for almost an hour. ”
“What are you going to do?”
“Gary will take Ginger, Shelly and the kids out to you. I still want everyone to change in the minivan. Have Gary put all their clothes and shoes in a plastic bag and either stuff it in a trash can or hide it behind a car. I’m going to have to pick up some razors, or a sharp knife, some tweezers, bandages and antiseptic.”
“You have to be kidding.”
“I wish I were.”
“We don’t have time for this.”
“Not much.”
“I have to call Gary.”
“Okay, see you in a few minutes.”
Gilbert turned the phone off, and looked over at Ginger.
“Hang in there, honey. It’ll all be over soon.”
She hadn’t said a word in the last ten minutes. She had thought the ordeal was over, that her family was safe. But, as she listened to Gilbert relate everything that had transpired over the last week, she had realized that it was their normal, comfortable lives that had come to an end. The ordeal was just beginning.
Gilbert looked in the rearview mirror. There were five cars behind him as he descended the ramp to the second level. He noticed the elevators were approximately twenty yards from the ramp. They would be the same on every level. He drove slowly across the length of the second level and watched two of the cars peel off in search of a parking space, while the other three followed him down to the third level.
On the third level, Gilbert drove even slower. Near the ramp, there were no empty spaces but he could see that the opposite end of the parking lot was mostly empty. As he passed the first row with empty parking spaces, he looked in the rearview mirror. The first car turned off immediately as did the second, but the third car, a dark-blue, European sedan he couldn’t identify, didn’t turn off. It continued to follow them, moving very slowly and keeping its distance.
“Ginger, we’ve got company. Remember what I told you. It is unlikely anyone will know English, and it will all be so unexpected that I’m sure it will give me plenty of time.”
She nodded and turned to face her husband, her pensive look giving way to a broad smile.
“Gilbert, if this doesn’t go well, I want you to know something.”
“What’s that?”
“That I’m sorry. Sorry for making your life so miserable these last few years. Sorry for not understanding the pressure you’ve been under. Sorry for making my love conditional.”
“Ginger, that’s not . . .”
She reached over and put her finger to his lips.
“Please,” she said, still smiling. “I know what I need to say and how I’ve been. I just wanted you to know that I know. Forgive me, Gilbert.”
He reached up and took her hand, folded it at the wrist and kissed her.
“I do, darling. I do.”
“Good,” she replied. “Now, let’s do this thing and get it over with.”
She turned to the back seat.
“Kids, are you ready?”
Everyone nodded in the affirmative. Gilbert started the turn down the ramp to the fourth level, and as soon as he rounded the corner out of sight, he pushed the pedal to the floor. Every second counted. He saw that the doors to one of the elevators were open, just as Gwyn had said they would be. He whipped into the parking space nearest the elevator, and everyone began piling out of the car. Shelly carried Gabriella, Gilbert took Garth and Ginger grabbed Garrett’s hand as she raced to the elevator.
As soon as they were all in, Gilbert sat Garth down and spun around to look at the control panel. Over the control panel was the piece of packing tape Gwyn had told him about with a tube of super glue wrapped on one end. He shook his head at his brother’s ingenuity. A giant piece of hard candy about the size of a quarter was taped firmly to the button that held the doors open. This had kept the elevator waiting for them. Gilbert ripped off the tape and pushed the Z button. Right before the doors closed, he saw the dark blue sedan come down the ramp to the fourth level.
When the doors closed, he took the lid off of the super glue and turned to Ginger.
“Remember I’ll need at least ten seconds, maybe even twenty, after the doors open.”
“We’ll do our best.”
Gilbert’s heart was pounding in the stillness of the ascending elevator. Men who would love to see them dead were just a few floors below. He looked down at Garret. Images of what the terrorists were forcing him to do to his own son made him feel sick. A soft ding announced their arrival, and the doors opened.
Gilbert depressed the ‘Door Open’ button and began squeezing super glue all around the edges to hold it down while Ginger and Shelly stood side by side in the door with the kids in front of them. The line they formed was a shield, blocking anyone from entering the elevator. They found themselves facing a small crowd of about fifteen people who had been waiting for the elevator. Ginger saw Gary at the back of the small group. He winked at her. It was just the boost she needed to begin her impromptu speech to this crowd of strangers. She forced a smile, cleared her throat and began.
“I’m sorry, but we are looking for the lost and found department. My friend sat her purse down on a bench and now it’s gone. We’ve been wandering about for almost half an hour, and the children are too tired to walk anymore.”
The small group of Turks exchanged questioning glances, obviously surprised by the spectacle of two foreign women and three children addressing them in English from an the elevator door. An elderly gentleman poked the young boy at his side, probably his grandson.
“Evladim, söylediklerini anliyor musun?”
The boy raised his eyebrows and his chin while clicking his tongue to indicate ‘No.’ The old man looked around at the other Turks in the group.
“Anlayan var mi?”
The boy’s actions were repeated with some variation by almost every person standing there. Ginger continued, but noted that a young girl at the back who looked to be about eighteen removed the MP3 player from her ears.
“It’s getting late, and we have to get back to the hotel. Can anyone help us? We really need to find her purse. I’m sure someone turned it in.”
The young girl was making her way to the front.
“You want to go to Lost Items?” she asked with a smile.
Ginger froze. She couldn’t remember how Gilbert had told her to respond. She stood there speechless. She could feel herself turning red. The girl repeated her question more slowly as if she were unsure the foreigner could understand her accent. She was obviously eager to help.
“You want to go to Lost Items?”
Ginger just stared at her, unable to think of anything, anything but whether or not this young girl would have been this friendly if she knew some of her countrymen wanted her dead.
Would her humanity triumph or would her loyalty to the ‘tribe’ win out?
She was startled to hear Gilbert answer over her shoulder.
“Yes, that’s right. If you could just point us in the right direction,” he said, walking out of the elevator and gently prodding everyone forward.
“I take you there,” she replied.
“Oh no, that won’t be necessary. Just explain where it is,” he replied with a smile.
The girl blushed.
“My English not very good. I can show better than explain.”
“That’s alright. I’m sure you have somewhere you need to be. Just show me which way to go.”
The girl turned and pointed towards the other end of the mall.
“There is information desk on left side, across from main entrance. You ask there.”
“Great. Thanks!”
Gilbert tugged on Ginger’s arm to get her moving. The girl shrugged and turned back to the elevator with a puzzled look on her face. Gilbert kept everyone moving towards his brother.
“That was perfect, honey.”
Gary closed the gap that remained between them.
“Boy, it’s good to see you guys safe. We’ll have to hug later,” he said to Ginger. “Right now, we need to move. Mall security will be here any minute to find out what’s wrong with the elevators.”
Gilbert turned to see that the doors on both elevators were wide open. The one they had just exited was now full, and everyone was looking at the control panel.