Empty Is the Grave Read online

  Nothing. Not since seeing the two men with guns running away from the burning boat earlier.

  The captain had killed the engine a few minutes ago and the boat listed idly on the waves. If it wasn’t for the chaos he suspected was going down on the island, this might’ve been relaxing.

  But with an unknown battle of some kind ensuing, he found it impossible to relax.

  Especially with Josiah on the island.

  Adding inmates to the mix simply complicated things further. No one ever knew which side they’d land on.

  At least Rafe wouldn’t be among them. He hadn’t been in long enough to be part of any work detail.

  It was a small consolation.

  Morgan joined him at the stern. “SWAT’s been deployed. They should be here soon.”

  “Wish we knew how many we’re up against. What we’re up against.”

  Morgan said nothing, his silence agreement enough.

  He thought about calling Elly, but refrained. The last thing he wanted was to upset her more, and this would definitely upset her.

  Josiah.

  He felt the weight of the situation like a monster hand on his shoulders.

  What was going on? Was Josiah okay?

  Josiah was more than his brother-in-law. Josiah was his mentor, the man who had demonstrated by example how to walk with Jesus.

  What would Josiah say if he was standing right here?

  God has me.

  He could hear the words in his spirit as if Josiah himself had breathed them there. God did have Josiah.

  No matter what happened, God would take care of Josiah.

  What was that verse? God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. Well, Josiah loved God, and he was certainly called to God’s purposes.

  The promise brought a touch of peace.

  Yeah, God had this. So he didn’t need to worry about losing his mentor, friend, and brother. Or about how to tell Elly her brother was dead.

  If it happened, God would deal with it. And if it didn’t, then worrying wouldn’t have done him any good.

  In life or death, God held it all.

  Still, he prayed the day would end with everyone he loved still standing.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  Landon pressed against the rock wall and tried to calm the quivering in his limbs.

  Where was Hugh? And the rest of Bruce’s men?

  How freakin’ long did it take to get out here, anyway?

  The metal bars around the bend rattled.

  The enemy – whoever they were – had arrived.

  He’d taken the external entrance while the only other guy who’d survived the initial onslaught was guarding the cave entrance.

  No gunfire from back there, so maybe they hadn’t been breached.

  Yet.

  More rattling at the gate.

  He inched forward, the semiauto in his hands feeling unusually heavy.

  While he’d practiced with this machine for hours, he’d never had to use it in actual combat.

  That all changed today.

  He peeked around the corner, the darkness of the passageway concealing him for the moment.

  Half a dozen guys stood at the gate. Three of them carried guns. The other three wore pumpkin colored jump suits.

  Like inmates?

  Great. That was all they needed. Hardened criminals with nothing to lose teaming up with… whoever it was that was attacking them.

  One man knelt in front of the lock.

  Picking it, no doubt.

  Landon pulled in a sharp breath. Unless he wanted to die, he had to act. Now.

  He leveled the gun and squeezed the trigger. Bullets dinged off the bars.

  A scream. Two men went down.

  The others scrambled across the rocky terrain, tripping, slipping.

  His bullets cut another man down. Then another.

  Two got away.

  Ceasing fire, his breaths came as rapidly as the bullets had only moments before.

  He’d held them off!

  A smile shook his lips. All those hours of practice had paid off. He’d won!

  Reality crashed like the waves on the rocks outside the cave.

  Victory would be short lived. Those men wanted in here. They’d be back. With more men, heavier firepower, and no mercy.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  She’d never been so scared in her whole life. Ever. And probably wouldn’t ever be this scared again.

  If she lived past today.

  Chloe hugged her knees to her chest and tried to focus on something, anything, but the crisis around her.

  Impossible.

  Josiah hummed softly, some melody that soothed her, even without words.

  How could he be so calm?

  “Aren’t you afraid? That we’re all gonna die?” The question slipped out of her before she could stop it.

  Josiah smiled, an enigmatic smile containing a serenity she couldn’t comprehend given their current circumstances.

  “No.”

  That one word dropped like a bomb.

  No? There were who knew how many men with guns outside and people had already been killed. They were trapped inside this stupid lighthouse. They had no way off this island.

  How could he not be scared?

  “Chloe.” His dark eyes fixed on her with an intensity that made her want to look away. “I don’t know what the future will bring. I don’t know if any of us will die today. But what I do know is that the grave is empty. Death has no power over me. When I die, I go to heaven to be with my Father, who loves me. This shell I inhabit might be in the grave, but my soul, who I am inside, will live forever with Jesus. How can I fear that?”

  He made it sound so logical. She turned toward Rafe, who didn’t seem to possess the same level of calm as Josiah. “I suppose you aren’t scared either?”

  Rafe hesitated. “I’m trying.”

  Yeah, she could see the struggle there.

  There had to be something they could do! Other than sitting around waiting to die.

  Wait. They were on a freakin’ island! Those guys outside, they must’ve come on boats, right? Couldn’t they steal a boat and get the heck outta here?

  “Um.” Her voice scratched and she cleared her throat before trying again. “Couldn’t we use one of the boats those guys came on to head back to the city?”

  The Hispanic guard was already shaking his head. “You really think they’d be dumb enough to leave the boat unguarded?”

  Tears pricked her eyes.

  He was right. It was a stupid idea. She was stupid.

  She turned her face away.

  “Actually, that’s not a completely invalid option.”

  What?

  Rush studied her, nodding slowly. “They probably only have one, maybe two guys standing guard. If we could get the drop on them, we might be able to push out to sea before the rest of them notice.”

  Switch jerked to his feet. “Beats sitting here waiting for them to bust down the door. Let’s go.”

  Rush held up a massive hand that was bigger than both of hers put together. “Not so fast. The more people we have, the more likely we are to be seen. Besides, I don’t think their boats are at the dock. Our guys would’ve seen ‘em if they’d landed there.”

  “Okay, here’s the plan. I’ll scout it out. The rest of you will stay here with Cortez.” He nodded at the Hispanic guard before continuing, “If I can get my hands on a boat, I’ll radio in, code word pirate, and that’ll be your cue to get out of here. They’ve probably got guys watching the dock, so head to the back of the island instead. I’ll bring the boat around and pick you up there. If I can’t find a boat, or can’t take it, I’ll radio in, code word Titanic.”

  She didn’t want to think about what they’d do if the code word he called in was Titanic.

  Cortez frowned. “Don’t like the idea of you goin’ it alone.”

  Would the two guards go off and leave the
m here alone? Unprotected?

  Josiah pushed to his feet. “I’ll go with you.”

  Cortez’s eyes narrowed and he pressed his lips together, but he said nothing.

  Probably thinking the same thing she was, that a prison preacher wasn’t going to be much help out there.

  Rush shook his head. “That’s a negative. Can’t be worrying about you and myself.”

  “Brother.” Josiah paused until Rush met his eyes. “You are safer if I’m with you. Trust me.”

  One second dragged to two.

  “Trust me.” Josiah repeated, softer this time.

  Finally, Rush offered a single, decisive nod. “I’d appreciate having someone watch my back.”

  “Then let’s go. We don’t have much time.”

  A shiver worked up her spine. So ominous.

  And for some reason, she believed him.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  Oksana’s labored breathing was music to his ears. Viktor did nothing to suppress a grin as he led the way down the narrow tunnel.

  If she could see his smile, she’d pummel him, but it was too dark for her to see him.

  “You okay?”

  “Fine.” Her bitten-off reply stretched his grin further.

  Sure. She was completely fine.

  She’d always hated confined spaces, even as a kid.

  And a dark, confined space? The stuff of nightmares.

  Yeah, he could’ve been nice and sent her with the outside team, but why? After the way she’d rubbed the chain of command in his face earlier, she deserved this.

  “How much further?” As much as she tried to sound irritated, he had no trouble detecting the fear beneath her words.

  “We’re almost there.”

  The only thing that set him on edge in this journey was the fact that the prisoners were behind him, out of his line of sight. As one of the only people who’d been down here, he led the way, with Oksana right behind him, then one of his men, but about ten prisoners were right behind that man. A few more of his men brought up the rear, but if the prisoners revolted in such a dark, tight space, things could turn ugly in an instant.

  Hopefully Oksana had sparked enough fear in them earlier that they wouldn’t try anything stupid.

  At least what he’d said was the truth – they were almost there.

  He strode forward, his LED flashlight cutting a bright, albeit narrow, path through the darkness.

  Dank air infiltrated his clothes, the chill raising goosebumps on his skin.

  He rounded a corner and slowed his steps as the steel door blocked their path.

  Finally!

  “We’re here.” His hissed words echoed off the concrete surrounding them.

  He slowly twisted the doorknob.

  Locked. He would’ve been surprised if it hadn’t been.

  Every fiber of his being told him there were armed men on the other side of the door, but at least the steel door and surrounding concrete made shooting at him impossible.

  He handed his flashlight to Oksana and knelt beside the lock.

  If he was right and there were gunmen on the other side, there was no way that they could maintain the element of surprise. But if they could keep it just long enough to get the door open and squeeze off a few shots, maybe they could take the guards down.

  As much as he wanted to send his orange jump suit crew in first, that would require arming them, and he wasn’t about to do that.

  The lock clicked.

  Okay. Go time.

  He shifted to the side and slowly twisted the knob.

  The latch released.

  He pushed the door open an inch.

  Gunfire exploded from inside the room, bullets pinging off the steel.

  Jerking back, he watched as Oksana took up residence on the other side of the door. The rest of the team fell back.

  The gunfire lasted a few more seconds. Then silence.

  The silence was almost more ominous than the deafening echo from the machine gun.

  He felt Oksana’s gaze boring into him and lifted his eyes to meet hers.

  Patience was not her strong suit. She’d not wait this out for long.

  Sure enough, she pointed at the door, then herself, then him.

  Okay. She was going to lead on this one.

  Big surprise.

  Didn’t matter that they were walking into a storm of gunfire, she wasn’t about to play second to anyone else.

  He nodded.

  Five fingers went up. One dropped. Then another.

  He watched the countdown until one finger remained, then curled into her fist.

  She shoved the door wide open, whipped her gun around and sent a flood of bullets flying in all directions.

  Probably hitting some of the merchandise, but whatever. There was plenty here, so losing a few items wasn’t the end of the world.

  He twisted into the doorway, his own gun raining down fury.

  A brief burst of gunfire responded from inside.

  They both ceased fire and pulled back.

  Silence.

  No sound of movement came from in the cavern.

  Had they hit the men guarding the stash?

  Oksana slowly inched forward.

  Man, did he hope she wasn’t edging into a bullet. She drove him crazy and he hated that she treated him like a subordinate, but she was still his sister.

  He flexed his fingers on his AK-74, ready to join the fray if needed.

  After a brief glance, she darted into the room.

  Still no gunfire. Not from her or from anyone else.

  Lightfooted and silent, he couldn’t even hear her moving. Their father would be proud.

  He peeked inside.

  A man lay in the aisle between the two rows of crates, an automatic weapon resting in a growing pool of blood.

  One down. But surely they had more men inside?

  Not that he saw any.

  He rushed in and plastered his back to the closest row of crates.

  Oksana crept down the row of boxes across the aisle.

  Which left him this side.

  He hurried down the narrow walkway, his feet moving almost as silently as hers.

  Almost, but not quite. The price he paid for being bigger and stronger.

  At the end of the row of crates, he paused to listen.

  Nothing. No gunfire, footsteps, not even the sound of someone breathing.

  He peeked around the corner.

  The path was clear.

  A glance up showed that no one was poised to ambush him from above.

  He stole down the passage.

  At the end, he peered around the corner.

  A burst of gunfire met his movement, splintering the crate inches from his head.

  He jerked back as more gunfire responded.

  His breath came in quick, controlled bursts.

  He surveyed the area. Nowhere to go but back.

  Or up.

  He glanced at the crates looming above his head. Could he scale them? If he could get on top, he could crawl to the front and launch an assault that way.

  Another brief burst of gunfire echoed off the stone ceiling.

  “Clear.” Oksana’s voice carried through the cavern.

  He looked around the crates as Oksana dropped to the floor.

  Naturally she’d managed to scale the crates and launch the aerial assault he’d envisioned.

  He ground his teeth together.

  Would he always come in two steps behind his sister?

  Lying facedown in the entrance to the tunnel leading outside, was another man. The truth was blindingly clear. Oksana had used him to draw the second guard out, then had cut the guard down when he’d exposed his location.

  He jogged to where Oksana waited. “You sure there’s no one else?”

  “Reasonably.” Her whisper echoed through the space.

  If anyone else was around, there would be no keeping this conversation secret from them. He switched to Russian. “Only two gu
ards? For all of this?”

  Her eyes followed his gesture to the stacks of crates around them. “We did already kill two earlier. Maybe they thought their stronghold was good enough.”

  Sounded like the arrogance that Bruce Lewis typically displayed. “We need to check the tunnel.”

  She nodded. “I was planning on it.”

  Without the slightest hesitation, she plunged forward, stepping over the body and disappearing into the tunnel. After a brief glance around the still-empty storeroom, he followed.

  Waves crashed in the distance, growing steadily louder as they moved down the tunnel.

  Daylight challenged the darkness and salt air enticed his senses.

  They were close.

  They reached the gate without encountering anyone else, living or dead.

  On the other side of the gate, two inmates sprawled across the rocks. Cut down by the dead guard behind them, no doubt.

  Two of his men also lay broken and bleeding.

  Oksana called out in Russian. Seconds later, one of their crew appeared.

  He whistled and the rest slowly emerged from behind rocks and outcroppings.

  Nikolas was among them. Their eyes locked and his second-in-command slowly shook his head.

  So he’d been unable to obtain the location for the missing guards, inmates, and kids.

  Well, no matter. How much trouble could a few people create against the army they now commanded?

  If Oksana noticed Nikolas, she didn’t comment.

  A grin radiated from her face as she turned to him. “Unlock this gate. Victory is ours.”

  Kneeling beside the lock, he inserted his tools into the hole.

  Sure, victory was theirs. For the moment.

  But something told him it wouldn’t last.

  Twelve

  Josiah eyed the spiritual army overhead.

  Had the mass grown thicker, darker, since he’d last seen it?

  Lord, guide us.

  The prayer sent a ripple through the cloud that he could feel.

  The book of James was right. The prayer of the righteous was indeed powerful and effective.

  He surveyed the landscape around him, longing to see some of the warriors from the Lord’s army. Yet he saw none.

  The time must not have arrived. Not yet, anyway.

  Soon.

  He felt it in his soul.

  Rush led the way around the lighthouse, sticking close to the wall of the prison.