A startling noise from outside drew our attention. Allie scrambled back and we did our best to mime as if we were still chained to the pipe.
There was a young man, walking back and forth past the dirty classroom windows. He seemed to be bringing us a meal, but he kept forgetting things; walking back to wherever he came from to go fetch them, only to return without something else.
“He looks nervous, young, inexperienced… Kind of like he doesn’t want to be here,” Alicia remarked.
I agreed. “We could maybe turn him to our side.”
The look on my fellow captive’s told me I was being naive and had to think realistically.
We were in a survival situation. There would be no negotiation.
I had to summon violence. I had to think about all these people took from me… I needed to get angrier than I’d ever been. Then, I had to use that anger against them — channel that rage into action — and destroy them.
“He looks a little too tall for what I have in mind. At least from me,” Alicia swallowed. “I’m going to need you to… To…”
“Kill him?” I asked, hands shaking.
Alicia wanted to nod, or shake her head. One would be a lie the other a truth… I don’t think either of us wanted to face reality.
“You’ve seen chokeholds in the movies, right?” she asked. “I need you to do that, but don’t just squeeze… Twist and turn and use as much force as possible until… Until…”
“He stops moving?”
“Yes. I’m sorry, but it’s our best shot, sir. We can go pray for forgiveness once we’re free.”
“I’m content with going to hell when all this is done,” I confessed.
Alicia met my eyes with sorrow in hers, but there was no time for philosophy or emotion. The next thirty-seconds were the longest of my whole life. We waited for the door handle to twist, the lock to creak, the sound of the wood scraping as it opened…
The young man brought us food on a tray. His eyes were almost closed, like he couldn’t even look at us, and the tray shook.
Setting the food down at our feet, he should’ve known not to get so close.
Alicia made the first move; striking fast as I moved around to his back and grabbed him from behind and wrapping my arm around his neck as Alicia kept a hand on his mouth. He was biting her, but she grit her teeth and persevered through the pain.
For the next ten, twenty, thirty, forty seconds, my mind went blank as my body harnessed a primal energy. All I can remember is the strain on my muscles then Alicia pinching me to stop.
“He’s out,” she said. “Let’s go!”
Alicia pulled a handgun from the young man’s waistband and I held my fingers to his mouth. Feeling his pulse would be too much certainty while feeling a slither of air escape his lungs convinced me he might be alive.
Convinced me I might not have just killed a man.
“He’s only got eight bullets,” Alicia explained, “and this thing looks like it can jam at any minute. Rusted old crap, but I can make it work. We need to be fast and quiet.”
We slowly crept to the door of the classroom. The light outside was fading — the sun setting — and the village around us empty.
“What is this place?” I asked.
Everything seemed abandoned in the surreal town. The jungle around us made the ghostly place even more claustrophobic and dark. Nothing to the left and nothing to the right.
Well, nothing that drew our attention.
“This isn’t Argentina,” Alicia remarked, noticing that the world here looked very different from the one we were snatched. It was dream-like; less lush and more overgrown, with a sheen of dirt covering even the deep green of the dense jungle. There were signs in English and almost every building carried the logo of some corporation.
This was a company town. A place that once served the employees of some American interest.
Alicia put a finger to her lips and pointed to the far-side of the village. There were a couple of men standing next to a pick-up truck. You could hardly see them with the light and the tight angles of the buildings and foliage.
Still, we could tell they were the only souls within range.
“Where is everyone?”
“They must have a camp in the jungle,” Alicia guessed. “Probably sleep there instead of here and post a couple of guards. Now, we could take those two and steal the truck, but then we’d probably head straight back into our captor’s arms. We need to head to the other side.”
“Go into the jungle?!”
“We don’t have a choice, sir. But…”
“But?”
Alicia explained that we would need more supplies. The only option was raiding that pick-up truck in the distance, which meant taking out the two sentries.
We wouldn’t be able to fire our weapon; unwilling to give ourselves away. It would have to be hand-to-hand combat.
The odds were against us. They could pull guns and shoot faster than we could approach. Or, they could scream and give us away. I was against the plan, but Alicia told me she could push past her pain and take them both.
“I’m no master tactician, but I know how to play rock, paper, scissors,” she said. “The only way we’re getting out of here alive is if we take every advantage we can get. We need to get supplies and better weapons.”
Alicia squeezed my arm once for good luck and took a deep breath. She handed me the handgun, telling me it would be easy. “Align the rear sight with the front–”
“They told me how to shoot in Switzerland,” I explained.
“Not people,” she said grimly. “Don’t fire unless absolutely necessary. Once we make that kind of noise, they’ll be on us. Aim for the torso and don’t hesitate to double-tap the bastards if it comes to it. Now, wish me luck…”
“Alright. Good luck.”
Stealthily scrambling ahead with cat-like agility, my protector picked up a stone as she moved. She was swift and snuck up behind the first man.
One hit was all it took and the he was out for the count. His friend must have heard it because he was quick to turn around. I levelled the barrel at him, but before I could fire Alicia had hit him once, twice, three times… She performed a martial throw and struck him again for good measure.
All was clear and my protector called for me to join her. We now had a rifle, a knife, two canteens, and a truck.
We weren’t going to use the truck
“We can’t just run into the jungle,” I argued. “Let’s at least drive a little.”
Alicia gave me a fiery look. “There’s no other option. We can try and outgun them, but I don’t like our chances. Back at the ambush, we killed a handful. Here, we’ve taken out three–”
“You did most of it,” I confessed. “I… I know we’re cornered; I know we’re fighting to survive, but–”
“You’re about to ask if I’m okay? You’re wondering if killing has changed me?”
“Are you okay?”
“I am… We can worry about our souls after we make it out of here.”
Plotting our next move, we concluded that the village we were in must have served some purpose. There should be a mine or something in the area where we can regroup. Hell, there might even be some kind of communication system. Going door-to-door seemed like a bad idea. We had to get away before they realised we were free.
“They probably keep the bulk of their force under the trees to avoid detection,” I figured. “Let’s get some height — quickly — and survey the area.”