Empty Is the Grave Read online

  Truth was, two or ten, he didn’t like losing anyone. Especially not when there was a chance their bodies would be found and traced back to him.

  The boat bounced across the choppy waves.

  His gaze traced across the five men remaining. “Anyone see what happened?”

  Heads shook. Figured.

  Then again, if any of them had seen something, they might be among the dead.

  “Happened by the old warden’s house, though.” One of his men, a stout guy with a fast draw, added.

  Made sense. The old warden’s residence had been on the list for the missing guys to check.

  They must’ve stumbled across the smugglers there.

  The big question was why the smugglers had been at the house when their stash was below ground.

  “What ‘bout those kids?” One of the men, a relative newcomer to the group, asked.

  “What about them?”

  “We gonna go back for ‘em?”

  Viktor stared at the man. “You goin’ soft on me?”

  “Nah.” The guy shrugged in an unconvincing nonchalance.

  “What’s it to you?”

  “My kid brother’s about that age. Guess I wouldn’t want someone leavin’ him high and dry like we did those kids.”

  How had this guy made it onto their crew? “Well, you better stop thinking like a big brother and start thinking like part of this team. Those kids, they’re on their own.”

  And good luck to them.

  Because, frankly, he didn’t care if they lived or died.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  Something vibrated against her side.

  Chloe’s eyes flew open and she choked back a scream.

  Had she fallen asleep? She must have, although she had no idea how she could’ve slept with the gunshots and everything.

  The vibration came again.

  Her phone. That’s all it was. Just her stupid phone.

  Good thing she’d put it on vibrate.

  Had her dad finally figured out she was gone?

  Unlikely.

  But who else would call her in the middle of the night?

  Wait. Her phone was set to alarm when it was time to leave!

  She pulled it from her back pocket and checked the display.

  3:30.

  She had no idea how much time had passed since they’d last heard gunshots. Really shoulda checked the time when they’d first hidden, but she’d been too busy thinking about surviving to be concerned about the time.

  She jostled Switch. “Think it’s safe to head for the boat?”

  It was too dark to see him, but she felt his hesitation. “We gotta try, right?”

  Viktor had made it clear that the boat wouldn’t wait for anyone.

  She pushed gingerly to her feet and limped out of the brush.

  Dang. Her ankle was killing her!

  The muscles in her legs and back had stiffened from hiding in the bushes. The way she was moving, she probably looked like she was a hundred and ten years old or something.

  Switch came alongside her, ducked under her arm, and put his arm around her waist.

  Some of the pressure eased off her ankle.

  “Thanks.”

  He really was a good friend.

  Their descent down the hill involved her half-stumbling and him half-dragging her until they reached the dock.

  No boat.

  She skimmed her gaze across the inky waters.

  No sign of the boat.

  Hadn’t Viktor said it would be within sight?

  Yet she didn’t see anything that even resembled a boat.

  Or anyone else. Where was Viktor? And his friends? The other taggers? Shouldn’t someone be here?

  No. This couldn’t be right.

  She glanced over her shoulder at the empty path behind them.

  Surely, when she turned back around, the boat would be there. Waiting. Just like Viktor said it would.

  Pulling in a breath, she dragged her attention back to the bay.

  Nothing but dark ocean.

  She swallowed, the movement almost as painful as the foot she held off the ground.

  “Maybe they’re on the way.” Switch didn’t sound convinced.

  “Sure.” She forced a shaky laugh. “I mean, Viktor said 4, right? We’re a few minutes early.”

  Still, shouldn’t the boat have been here already if they were supposed to be on board by 4?

  She checked the time.

  Ten ‘til.

  The boat would pull into view any second.

  It had to.

  The minutes ticked by slower than they ever had before as she checked her phone every few minutes.

  At 3:58, the knots in her stomach tightened.

  At 4:00, the air felt thinner and her head reeled.

  At 4:05, she thought she was gonna hurl. She wrapped her arms around her stomach, gripping her shirt tightly.

  This couldn’t be happening.

  No one else had joined them. The boat wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

  In spite of following Viktor’s instructions precisely, they’d been left behind.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  “Don’t look like nothin’s been touched.” Patrick’s voice echoed in the underground storage room.

  Everything did look fine.

  Hugh kept his gun pointed low as he surveyed the boxes and crates, looking for anything that felt out of place. He saw nothing amiss. But if it was all okay, why were his nerves ready to snap?

  Landon and another guy, whose name Hugh couldn’t remember, stepped into the room.

  “Tunnel’s clear. Gate was locked.” Landon gripped his own gun tightly. Too tightly.

  The dude was like dynamite in a furnace.

  “So, no sign of anyone but the four we killed?”

  “Not that we saw.”

  Okay, so that was good, right? No one but their crew on the island.

  Could they have just run into a group of taggers?

  The cans of spray paint and fresh tagging indicated yes, but how many taggers carried guns? And knew how to use them?

  Of the four dead, they’d exchanged gunfire with two of them. While none of his own crew had been hit, the two who’d shot at them had been decent shots.

  They were simply no match for the night vision goggles his team wore.

  He didn’t like it. Not one bit.

  Especially since he and Landon had killed that guy snooping around last week. Now this?

  Too coincidental.

  Maybe their hiding spot had been compromised.

  Well, Bruce was in charge of all this. As soon as the sun was up, he’d call Bruce and fill him in.

  Which was not a conversation he looked forward to having.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  The day dawned clear, the unfiltered brightness of the sun in stark contrast to the demonic cloud encompassing Alcatraz Island.

  If anything, the horde had grown overnight.

  The weight pressed against Josiah’s soul.

  He could sense the frenzy from here.

  And Rafe, along with guards and other inmates, would be walking right into that mess.

  If only he could tell the warden to postpone the work assignment. At least until whatever was going on over there died back down.

  Yet he knew better.

  Saying anything would only result in alienating the warden and possibly losing his access to the prison.

  Sovereign Lord. The words wrenched in his heart, the burden almost too much to bear.

  Be ready.

  The Father’s voice steadied him, just as it always did.

  He would be ready. Whenever the Father called, whatever the Father said, he would be ready to respond.

  Until then, he would pray.

  He dropped to his knees on the sun-warmed deck and tilted his face toward heaven.

  An image locked in his mind. A young girl, probably only sixteen or seventeen. Bright pink hair, round face. Scared and hurting.

  Ch
loe.

  The name, spoken in the Father’s voice, betrayed the Father’s deep love for the teen.

  She didn’t know the Father’s love.

  While he didn’t know who Chloe was or what she had to do with the battle brewing on Alcatraz, he knew she was in trouble and needed prayer.

  So until the Father gave him further instructions, he would pray.

  And prepare himself for battle.

  Four

  It was a great day to be outside.

  Rafe turned his face to the sunshine, enjoying the warmth on his skin.

  Thanks, God.

  In spite of the work that awaited him, this assignment was a gift from God. He knew it.

  And for once, he didn’t have to watch his back.

  The warden had said none of the inmates on this work detail had gang ties.

  It was nice to be able to let his guard down, even if only a little, for a few hours.

  The small boat they rode on hit a rough patch of water and he gripped the railing. He’d never spent much time on boats, but at least he wasn’t getting sick, which was more than he could say for a few of the other guys. Two had their heads hanging over the side, while an odd shade of green colored the faces of a handful of others.

  His own stomach churned at the sound of their heaving.

  He turned away and fixed his eyes on the island, which grew larger by the second.

  Funny how he’d lived in San Francisco his whole life yet never been to Alcatraz. Sure, they’d studied it some in grade school, but field trips hadn’t been something his school did.

  Probably too expensive.

  Or maybe just too much work to arrange.

  The price he’d paid for growing up in the inner city.

  Buildings loomed large on the rocky island. It’d been too many years for him to remember how many buildings or what purpose any but the jail itself had served.

  Would the jail be anything like the place in which he spent his days? Would he even really see it?

  The warden hadn’t said when he’d issued their instructions yesterday afternoon.

  All he’d been told was to pick up trash. Paint over graffiti. Do whatever the guards said to do.

  Not exciting stuff, but being out was excitement enough for him. It’d been too long since he’d smelled the ocean and felt the sea spray on his face.

  The boat slowed as it approached a wooden dock.

  “Okay. Listen up.” Rush stood at the head of the boat, his imposing height alone commanding attention.

  The fact that he was one of the supervisors at the prison, and a man who had proven over and over again to be fair, also made him a respected figure among most of the inmate population.

  “We stick together. Work in one group and finish an area completely before moving on. You are to comply with all instructions.” Rush’s tone was matter-of-fact, not bossy.

  But also not one that any of them would dare to disregard.

  “The island has been closed to all tourist vessels today so it’ll just be us out there. In case any of you think of reenacting any of the many escape stories you’ve heard about this island, I’ll remind you that there has never been a successful escape attempt. Don’t add additional time to your sentence by trying something stupid.”

  Rafe looked around the group. He didn’t know most of them, but in order to get on this detail, they were all small time. Probably had short sentences.

  Running would be stupid. For any of them.

  The boat had docked while Rush spoke. Now, the captain killed the engine.

  “Let’s move out.”

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  “You’re going?”

  Oksana’s ice blue eyes narrowed on him. “Of course I’m going. We will have that island.”

  Activity flurried around them, but Viktor couldn’t take his eyes off his sister. She’d never gone on a mission. Never. Why now?

  “You don’t trust me?” An edge colored his words, but if she noticed, she didn’t acknowledge it.

  “It’s not about trust. It’s about numbers.” She twisted her light brown hair back in a tight bun.

  Numbers, huh? If he had to guess, he’d say it had more to do with their opponent.

  Bruce Lewis.

  With Lewis involved, he should’ve known Oksana would jump in personally.

  She probably still thought last year’s fiasco was all his fault.

  Never mind that she’d been the one sleeping with the man before he’d turned around and stolen an entire shipment of designer shoes.

  “You know it’s risky.” Dang. Why had he said that? That would only reinforce her desire to come.

  “Everything’s risky in this business. Besides, we need everyone who can use a weapon.”

  And she was very proficient with weapons. Especially the hunting knife she was currently strapping to her thigh.

  Their ex-KGB father had trained them well.

  She slid a Ruger into the holster at her ankle, then adjusted her pant leg over the bulge. “We have one shot at this. Who knows when the island will be closed again?”

  Which was another thing that bothered him. “Why is the island closed today, anyway?”

  She shrugged. “Maintenance. That’s all I know.”

  “That doesn’t mean the island will be empty.”

  “I’d rather deal with a few maintenance workers than tons of tourists.”

  She was right. Boatloads of tourists meant lots of cell phones to call for help. Lots of people who’d watched one too many superhero movies and thought they could save the day.

  A few maintenance workers could be quickly silenced before they sounded an alarm.

  “Instead of concerning yourself with me, you should be getting ready to go.”

  He pulled back his shoulders at her stiff rebuke. “I am ready.”

  Other than the fact that he hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours. But he’d gone longer than that without sleep before.

  She dropped a box of ammo in a small pack and strapped it on. “Then let’s go. That island will be mine by the end of the day.”

  And the amount of ammunition they all carried ensured that they’d remove anyone who got in their way.

  ₪ ₪ ₪

  “Hey. Wake up.”

  Chloe squinted against the bright morning sunlight. Who was trying to wake her?

  And why had she fallen asleep outside…?

  The previous night rushed in with vivid clarity.

  Viktor had left them on Alcatraz and people had been shooting guns!

  Switch hovered over her, looking as haggard as she felt.

  No wonder. It’d been a long night and she’d bet his sleep had been as broken as hers.

  “We oughta check things out.”

  He was right. They hadn’t looked around last night, just retreated to their hiding place in the brush.

  And those gunshots… a shudder worked up her spine. What if someone was hurt? Or dead?

  She pushed to her feet.

  A gasp broke loose as her ankle nearly gave out on her.

  She pulled up her pant leg and looked down at it.

  Swollen. To almost twice its normal size.

  Tears swelled. She shook her head, sending a few down her cheeks. “I’ll slow you down.”

  Switch hesitated.

  She was right and they both knew it.

  Finally, he sighed. “I’m gonna look around. You wait here and I’ll be back, okay?”

  What if he left her, too? She’d be all alone on this horrible rock with no one to know if someone came and shot her. Or worse.

  But they needed to know what they were up against, if there were others on the island who could hurt or help them.

  She managed to nod. “Just don’t forget me.”

  “No chance. But you better stay outta sight.”

  She pushed back into the brush and dropped down, hugging her knees to her chest.

  The night had gotten cold, a dew dampening her hair and cloth
es. She pulled her legs in closer, trying to draw as much heat into her limbs as she could.

  The sunlight taunted her, but she didn’t dare sit out in it, no matter how much she desired the warmth.

  Switch darted out of sight.

  Maybe she should call her dad.

  Right. She could almost hear him now.

  He’d probably tell her that she’d be eighteen in a few months and since she was so grown up, she could figure it out herself.

  Or he might call the cops.

  Either way, it seemed unlikely he’d actually help her.

  Above her, birds called to each other in the clear blue sky. Waves broke against the rocks somewhere nearby.

  If not for the fact that she’d been abandoned, spent the night out in the cold, was hungry and thirsty and had no idea how she was going to get off this horrible place, she might have enjoyed this time.

  But she had no idea…

  Wait!

  This was Alcatraz. One of the most popular tourist destinations in the city. There should be hundreds of tourists coming here today, right?

  How hard could it be for her and Switch to stow away on one of the ships coming back? Surely the crew couldn’t keep track of everyone on the boat. They could pretend to be with one of the families or something and boom! Back on land in no time.

  It had to work. If it didn’t… she didn’t know what she’d do.

  Call her dad, probably. And face whatever consequences that decision brought.

  If she was arrested, would she be charged as an adult? She was seventeen, so probably.

  If that happened, her life was over.

  Maybe someone from Switch’s family could help. He had an older sister, didn’t he?

  A noise drifted up the bank toward her.

  An engine.

  Maybe Viktor had come back for them!

  Sure, that was it. Viktor was a good guy. He wouldn’t leave them here. He’d probably been freaked out by the gunshots last night, but now he was back to take her and Switch home.

  She pushed to her feet.

  They were gettin’ off…

  Wait.

  What if it wasn’t Viktor?

  What if it was the Coast Guard? Or the cops?

  Or the people with guns?

  Leaves rustled as she eased back down and pressed into the foliage.

  Better to wait and watch. Make sure it was Viktor and his friends before she came out into the open.