Page 18 of Intangible
Memphis came back to the room, standing against the wall. He was actually being banged against the wall by Knox.
“Wake up, you stupid fucker!” Knox yelled, banging Memphis’ head against the wall again. Murphy was keeping up a steady cacophony of barking while dancing around their feet. Memphis couldn’t tell if he was trying to stop Knox or urge him on.
“Stop! What is wrong with you?” he asked, pushing against Knox. It was like trying to move a cinder-block wall.
“We heard you scream at the other end of the hotel. What’s wrong? I barely kept the feds from barging in here.”
Memphis’ eyes grew wide as he remembered why he was screaming. “We have to get to her now, Knox! She’s in trouble. One of the men was trying to rape her, but I managed to scare him away. I don’t think it’ll be long before he returns with his buddies.”
Knox nodded once, then grabbed his bag, stuffing the bunny in it. Memphis was right behind him as he jerked open the door, running for the SUV.
“We’ll get a location on the way. They’re trying to pinpoint the exact coordinates. My guys just left with the drones to scout it out.” Knox threw his bag in the back seat, then waited for Murphy to jump in.
With wheels squealing, they headed out of the parking lot toward the hills. Knox talked to his team on the phone while Memphis watched out the window for anything he recognized. Murphy quickly lost interest, curling up in the back seat. The men paused in their searching to look at the back seat when they heard snoring.
“You’ve been a bad influence on him,” Memphis stated when Knox ended his call.
“I don’t snore,” he responded somewhat indignantly.
“Then what the hell was that noise coming from your side of the room last night?”
“I’m surprised you could hear it over all your farting.”
“Hey! You can’t say a word.” They sat in silence for a minute. Memphis stared out the window, trying hard not to let Knox see him grinning.
“What the hell did we eat last night anyway?” With Knox’s question, Memphis finally let out a burst of laughter. If Knox hadn’t lightened the mood, Memphis was positive his head would have exploded from the frustration of it taking so long to get to Thayer.
“I don’t know, but it damn near killed me,” he laughed.
“Me too, brother, me too.” Knox shook his head with a smile. They both sobered up when his phone pinged with a text. Handing it to Memphis, he motioned for him to check it.
“It’s coordinates. They found the shack, it’s only about five miles from us.” Memphis gave Knox directions down the winding roads as they climbed farther into the wood-shrouded hills. When the road finally ended, both men jumped out of the SUV with Murphy at their heels.
“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Knox said, reaching in the back for an AR-15. “You’re going to focus on finding Thayer. I’m going to have your back while you do it. The feds are behind us and my guys are using the drones to watch our six.” Knox jumped out of the SUV, pulling on body armor.
Without saying a word, Memphis started farther up the hill. It took him about half an hour of searching before he finally caught sight of the shack.
“That’s it,” he said to Knox, crouching down.
“Okay, the feds are about fifteen minutes out. Go slow. Don’t do anything stupid, just get Thayer and get out.”
The men eased forward, looking for threats. They couldn’t be certain if there were any traps though Memphis hadn’t found any earlier.
It seemed like hours before they finally reached the door to the cellar, although it was probably only a few minutes. Murphy crept along next to Memphis, seeming to understand the need for patience as he waited for a command from his master. Knox swept the woods with his eyes as Memphis tried the door.
“Look, he left it unlocked. I’ll need something to pick the cell door.” Knox handed the gun to Memphis while he dug through his vest, pulling out a kit.
Slowly easing the door open, Memphis froze when he heard the hinges squeak. Knox pulled out a small can of lithium, soaking the hinges. With a nod, Memphis laid the door back against the ground before stopping above the steps to listen. Hearing nothing, he slowly stepped into the cellar.
“Be careful. I’ll be up here watching for unwanted guests.” Knox hoisted himself onto the sturdiest looking part of the roof of the shack, taking up the best vantage to see anyone coming.
At Memphis’ quiet command, Murphy shot down the steps in front of him to scope out the cellar. He waited, hunkered down on the steps, until the dog came back around the corner to pull on his sleeve. When Memphis finally made it to the main room, he didn’t see Thayer at first.
“Thayer?” he whispered. He saw the small ball on the cot move slightly, breathing a sigh she was still here.
Kneeling, he began to work on the lock. At least the Army had taught him to pick locks. He technically had a rank and was assigned to a Green Beret unit, but it was all classified. He had picked up some random skills from the other men that came in handy on occasion.
When he finally got the door open, he carefully crossed to Thayer on his knees until he reached the edge of the bed.
