Contracts by Matt Rogers (i like reading txt) 📕

up the trail as possible before they begin negotiations, right?’

‘They want to begin now, but we’re holding them off. We might be able to squeeze another day out of it.’

‘Then that’s another day they need to keep moving. I’m sure Raya and Perry are dead tired. That’s not even mentioning the logistical problems. We’ll catch them tomorrow.’

‘They’ll be heading for Gokyo — the village below Gokyo Ri. I’m sure of it.’

‘Then we’ll find them there.’

‘You’ll have to go in dark,’ Violetta said, her tone hesitant. ‘There’s no-one willing to communicate with us in the village — we’ve already been checking like clockwork. Everyone’s turned into a steel trap — the teahouse owners, the locals, the tourists. It’s like someone got there first and told everyone to keep their mouths shut.’

King had an idea. ‘Can you get us a helicopter there?’

‘No.’

‘I didn’t want to reveal this, but my ankle is bad.’

He heard her lower her forehead to the table in front of her. ‘I knew it.’

‘I don’t know if I’ll be able to make the final trek tomorrow.’

‘The helicopter companies are already uncooperative, and we know why. There’ll be external pressure on them from the insurgents. And if we force them to fly you the final stretch, they’ll radio it straight to the Maoists, even if we make them land at a secluded location. You’ll be fish in a barrel when you touch down. You need to walk it.’

‘Okay.’

‘Can you?’

‘You said it yourself — I have to.’

‘You don’t have to do anything. You can pull out if you can’t continue.’

‘No,’ King said, ‘I can’t.’

‘Yes, you—’

‘That’s never been an option. Not once throughout my career. I’m not about to start making it one.’

‘Is it broken?’

‘I don’t think so. It’s just damaged. Swollen like a pumpkin.’

‘Do whatever you need to do to get it under control.’

‘I’m working on that.’

‘Take painkillers if you have to. In the first-aid kit there’s some serious—’

‘I can’t.’

‘Why not?’

‘They’ll dull my senses. I can’t afford that.’

Violetta paused for thought, and said, ‘You might just be the strongest person I know.’

‘Slater would have something to say about that.’

‘Yeah, well, I’m not dating Will Slater.’

Despite himself, King smiled. ‘I need to rest.’

‘I’m sure you do.’

‘Anything else you got for me?’

‘You should probably know that — statistically — it’s likely the kidnappers will turn violent if this drags out any longer.’

‘They cut her finger off, Violetta. I’d say we already crossed that line.’

‘That’s just the start. The fact that they know about special risks insurers and professional negotiators is unnerving. That means they know what they’re doing, and it’s endlessly more dangerous when they know what they’re doing.’

‘You think they’ve been doing this for some time now?’

‘It’s hard to say. Like I said, kidnap statistics are messy. The vast majority aren’t reported. For all we know, they’ve been hitting trekkers for months now and making sure it all gets swept under the rug. If nothing’s officially reported, then they could be experts at this by now.’

‘It’s a good thing we’re here to clean it up, then.’

‘Yeah…’

King let the silence drag out.

She said, ‘Be careful, okay?’

‘One last question,’ King said. ‘Did Parker tell you about the briefcase?’

‘No… Christ, I haven’t even been thinking about that. Was there something important in it?’

‘His laptop. He said he left a document open with the locations of ten temporary black-ops HQs on home soil. Has anyone in your department heard about that?’

‘No… not a word… wait, why on earth would he do that?’

‘Fatigue, he claims.’

‘That’s something we needed to know about the moment it went missing.’

‘Get in touch with him, then.’

‘I will. He’s still in Phaplu, waiting on word from the trail. Shouldn’t be too hard to reach him.’

‘I don’t completely trust him.’

‘You shouldn’t completely trust anyone.’

‘Besides you.’

He thought he heard her smile. ‘I’m flattered.’

‘We’re compartmentalising, remember?’

‘I remember. Get some rest.’

‘On it.’

He hung up before he said anything he might regret.

Then he lapsed into the same familiar trance-like state, letting his guard down in the process. But there was no need to stay alert any longer. They’d decimated the hostile force, and the bodies all around him proved it. For now, they’d bought themselves time. He closed his eyes and drifted into an uneasy half-sleep, plagued by remnants of pain trickling up his leg.

When he opened his eyes again, his ankle had stopped throbbing.

He breathed a sigh of relief, and then Slater crashed through the trees nearby.

‘Christ,’ King said. ‘You scared me.’

‘Good,’ Slater said, and handed over three icepacks. ‘Means you’re paying attention.’

‘I won’t be for much longer.’

‘That’s okay. If we bed down here in total darkness, there’ll be more than enough time to react if we see more torchlights. Sleep in shifts?’

‘I’ll need first shift,’ King said. ‘Sorry.’

‘That’s okay. I’m fine.’

‘How’s the arm?’

‘It hurts like hell.’

‘Nothing out of the ordinary, then.’

‘Not long left.’

King arranged the three icepacks in a giant ring around his ankle and taped them into place. Then he rolled over, savoured the numbness that crept through the joint, and went straight to sleep.

53

Slater didn’t waver.

He sat bolt upright and meditated, figuring he’d make use of the time. Hours passed, bringing nothing but the wind and the rustling of the trees and the distant howling of dogs. The environment might have unnerved a more timid soul, but he’d been through so much since touching down in Nepal that it barely fazed him. He wrapped himself in several layers of all-weather clothing and draped the sleeping bag over his shoulders and stared straight ahead, barely blinking.

He became the night.

And the stillness helped him in other ways. His heavy muscles relaxed, and his heart pumped at a reasonable rate, and he could swear he was staving off the effects of the altitude on his oxygen requirements.

But there was still another trek to be completed in the morning.

To Gokyo.

He knew precious little about the village — then again, he knew precious little about the route in general. That hadn’t hindered them so far, and now they were confirmed to be closing in on the enemy party.