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As the three-minute mark approached, they stopped and went still. The guard passed by, performed his scan, and was gone again. They resumed their search. Four more times they repeated the cycle until satisfied they’d collected all they could.
“Time to go,” Sam said. “We’ll retrace our steps to the Rover and—”
Outside, an alarm began whooping.
Sam and Remi froze for a moment, then he said, “Behind the door!”
They pressed themselves flat against the wall. Outside, doors banged open, footsteps pounded on gravel, voices shouted.
Sam asked Remi, “Can you make out anything?”
She closed her eyes, listening intently. Her eyes sprung open again. “Sam, I think they found the Range Rover.”
14
LANGTANG VALLEY, NEPAL
Before Sam could reply, the trailer door swung open. Using his fingertips, Sam stopped the door a few inches from their faces. One of the guards stepped across the threshold, his flashlight skimming through the space. The guard stopped. Sam saw his shoulders begin to pivot, signaling a turn in their direction.
Sam hip-bumped the door closed, took a single stride forward, then lashed out with a toe kick that stuck the guard behind the knee. As he fell, Sam grabbed his collar and heaved forward, smashing the man’s forehead on the edge of the desk. He groaned and went limp. Sam pulled him backward and dragged him behind the door. He knelt down, checked the man’s pulse.
“He’s alive but won’t be waking up anytime soon.”
He rolled the man over, tugged the slung rifle off his shoulder, and stood up.
Wide-eyed, Remi stared at her husband for several seconds. “That was very James Bond–ish.”
“Dumb luck and a steel desk,” he replied with a shrug and a smile. “An unbeatable combination.”
“I think you deserve a reward,” Remi replied with a smile of her own.
“Later. If there is a later.”
“I’d like there to be a later. You have a plan?”
“Auto theft,” Sam replied.
He turned around, moved to the nearest of the trailer’s rear windows, and pulled back the curtain. “A tight squeeze, but I think we can make it.”
“You check the front,” Remi said, “I’ll get the back window.”
Sam walked to the front window, fingered back the curtain, and peeked outside. “The guards are assembling in the clearing. About ten of them. I don’t see the Dragon Lady.”
“She probably just stopped by to do King’s dirty work.”
“It looks like they’re trying to decide what to do. We’ll know in a second if they realize they’re missing a man.”
“Window’s open,” Remi said. “It’s about an eight-foot drop to the ground. There are some thick trees about ten feet away.”
Sam let the curtain slip back into place. “We might as well go now before they have a chance to get organized.” He unslung the rifle and examined it. “This is state-of-the-art.”
“Can you handle it?”
“Safety, trigger, magazine . . . hole where the bullet comes out. I think I’ll manage.”
Abruptly the alarm went silent.
Sam walked to the front door and locked it. “It might delay them,” he explained.